The Tutti-frutti Necklace
get ready for the summer with this tropical tutti-frutti necklace!
next stop: carmen miranda...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLsTUN1wVrc
next stop: carmen miranda...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TLsTUN1wVrc
What You Need
- modelling clay - i used FIMO AIR LIGHT.
if you can't get it, your choice of clay should be as light as possible when dry and it should be possible to paint it once dry.
- headpins
- silver or gold chain - it should have links that you can connect the jump rings to
- chain fastener
- jump rings (i used a diameter of 6 mm)
- paint ( i used acrylic, any paint that you can paint your choice of clay with will do)
- clear coat
tools:
- pliers, wire cutter
- paint brushes
- cable ties or skewers (see step 3)
if you can't get it, your choice of clay should be as light as possible when dry and it should be possible to paint it once dry.
- headpins
- silver or gold chain - it should have links that you can connect the jump rings to
- chain fastener
- jump rings (i used a diameter of 6 mm)
- paint ( i used acrylic, any paint that you can paint your choice of clay with will do)
- clear coat
tools:
- pliers, wire cutter
- paint brushes
- cable ties or skewers (see step 3)
Make the Fruit
form the fruit out of the clay:
- since the clay will shrink about 10% (the one i used did at least) make your fruit slightly bigger than you want them to be later.
- although in real life the fruit i made have different sizes i made them all more or less the same size. only the slice of watermelon is a little bigger than the rest because it will be my "centerpiece".
- make an uneven number of fruit (i made 11) so you can have one in the middle and the same amount on each side of the center one.
- an apple and an orange will look really similar when made from clay (like a ball), but don't worry, the paintjob will fix that later...
after you formed one fruit insert a headpin HEADFIRST into the end of the fruit that it should later hang from. leave about 1 cm of the pin outside of the fruit. close the clay around where you stuck it in the fruit so that the pin can't come out again.
continue with the rest of the fruit.
let the clay harden - the fimo air clay just drys by itself after 24 hours, you don't have to bake it. if you use different clay, you may have to do something more than just wait - just follow the instructions on the package.
once the clay is hard, form an eyelet out of the rest of the pin sticking out of each fruit with the help of the pliers. this eyelet will later be used to attach the fruit to the chain.
- since the clay will shrink about 10% (the one i used did at least) make your fruit slightly bigger than you want them to be later.
- although in real life the fruit i made have different sizes i made them all more or less the same size. only the slice of watermelon is a little bigger than the rest because it will be my "centerpiece".
- make an uneven number of fruit (i made 11) so you can have one in the middle and the same amount on each side of the center one.
- an apple and an orange will look really similar when made from clay (like a ball), but don't worry, the paintjob will fix that later...
after you formed one fruit insert a headpin HEADFIRST into the end of the fruit that it should later hang from. leave about 1 cm of the pin outside of the fruit. close the clay around where you stuck it in the fruit so that the pin can't come out again.
continue with the rest of the fruit.
let the clay harden - the fimo air clay just drys by itself after 24 hours, you don't have to bake it. if you use different clay, you may have to do something more than just wait - just follow the instructions on the package.
once the clay is hard, form an eyelet out of the rest of the pin sticking out of each fruit with the help of the pliers. this eyelet will later be used to attach the fruit to the chain.
Paint the Fruit
to make painting easier i stuck the fruit on the end of a cable tie, you can also use wooden skewers or something similar.
start with painting the whole fruit in one base color (in case of the lemon on the pictures lemon yellow) and then add details in other colors. it could help to look at pictures of fruit or at actual fruit, if you are not sure how exactly you should paint one specific piece of fruit.
let the acrylic paint dry - i just put the cable tie with the fruit on it in a glass.
continue with the rest of the fruit.
after the acrylic paint is dry apply the clear coat. for me it worked best to dip the fruit directly into the coat until submerged completely. let the excess coat drip off, then let the top coat dry. continue with the rest of the fruit.
start with painting the whole fruit in one base color (in case of the lemon on the pictures lemon yellow) and then add details in other colors. it could help to look at pictures of fruit or at actual fruit, if you are not sure how exactly you should paint one specific piece of fruit.
let the acrylic paint dry - i just put the cable tie with the fruit on it in a glass.
continue with the rest of the fruit.
after the acrylic paint is dry apply the clear coat. for me it worked best to dip the fruit directly into the coat until submerged completely. let the excess coat drip off, then let the top coat dry. continue with the rest of the fruit.
Prepare the Chain
with the wire cutters, cut the chain to your desired lenght.
put a jump ring on one end of the chain and fasten the chain fastener with another jump ring (i used 2 for extra support) to the other end of the chain.
put a jump ring on one end of the chain and fasten the chain fastener with another jump ring (i used 2 for extra support) to the other end of the chain.
Attach the Fruit
find the middle of the necklace and attach your centerpiece fruit (in my case the watermelon) with the help of a jump ring.
attach the rest of the fruit left and right from the center fruit using the jump rings. i counted the chain links, adding a fruit ever 7th link to have the fruit at equal distances. (before i attached the rest of the fruit i tried in which order they would loook the nicest)
continue until all the fruit are attached.
attach the rest of the fruit left and right from the center fruit using the jump rings. i counted the chain links, adding a fruit ever 7th link to have the fruit at equal distances. (before i attached the rest of the fruit i tried in which order they would loook the nicest)
continue until all the fruit are attached.
Finished!
enjoy your new necklace and wear it!
to complete your tropical outfit you could also make matching fruit-earrings...
to complete your tropical outfit you could also make matching fruit-earrings...