DIY: NECKLACE FROM OLD BRACELET BEADS

I am hoarder. Hoarder of all my old stuff. I still have the skirts i wore in my middle school(6-8th) days back at my parents place(my mom is kind enough to keep them for me), and i was wearing them until 2 years ago. We regularly give away my clothes, bags, etc to the less fortunate girls in our neighborhood, every few months me and mom discuss about what needs to be given away and what stays, but i make sure to keep a few. I still have the colorful hair ties(they are different in India) i bought matching my outfits back in my teenage years, i hardly used those then but i still have quite a few of them. I still have all the hand painted and drawn greeting cards i got from my school and neighborhood friends for every b'days and festivals, i am sure everybody keeps the cards and gifts, but hair ties? I know, but thats just who i am!

I love arm candies aka bracelets. I don't wear a string of them, i stick to one. Especially in college, i remember i was always wearing one, often changing it, but i was smart enough to buy them in neutral colors or mix of all colors to match most outfits. Best thing about beaded bracelets is, even after so much usage, when one day it breaks, you can still collect all the beads and reuse it for something else. And thats exactly what we are doing today. I had two bracelets, gave their life serving my arms in my college years, i kept them safe, and took them thousands of miles away to be with me here in Seattle(now do you get why i say i am a hoarder). And after a year, i took them out and made them into necklaces.

Supplies & Tools:
Beads or Pendants - New or from old bracelets
Cotton/Leather Cord (buy it here) (Readers in India can get it here)
Measuring tape
Scissors

First, ensure your cord is able to get through the holes in the beads smoothly and is strong enough to hold your beads. Determine the length of your necklace. You can do this by placing the cord around your neck, mark the length and cut them accordingly or you can search for standard necklace sizes and follow those measurements. I chose 24in for my necklace, and added 2in as extra length for knots and such. So my cord was 26 inches long. Then its easy, string the beads, put a knot, and you are done.

Since my necklace is long, it goes over my head easily, but if your's length is short, either tie and untie every time you are wearing it(what i do with my shorter necklace), or put a lock to your necklace(tie a tight knot to the ends of your lock system and you are done).

Love my new necklace for two reasons, one they are 90%(cord is just few dollars and i used only a fraction of the whole 9m length) free and other important reason, it holds so many wonderful memories, every time i look at them, i think of my wonderful and carefree college days. Are you searching for old beads in your accessories stash? If not, you should and start making new necklaces already.

Thanks for reading, have a great weekend!

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