Ombre beads and color block necklaces.
In our continuing column, DIY Guide, Wednesdays are our day to bring you a little Do-It-Yourself fashion on the fly. After all, it’s not everyday that you can acquire a new outfit, so why not invent one. This week we give you a way to simply revamp your old jewellery in a way that will give your pieces new life and color.
Some artists work only in the medium of spray paint- painting walls, tables, chairs, sidewalks, just about anything they can get their hands on. We took that artistic method to the next level and created a DIY using spray paint on some of our old jewellery that we’ve long out-grown, out-worn or just simply couldn’t ever find a way to include into our ensemble. The process is simple and the materials are easy to use, so follow these steps in creating a cool ombre or color block piece.
Step 1.) Collect your materials. This is a very simple DIY project so you really only need a few things. The most important step is that you do the project outside because the paint fumes are toxic and can really give you a headache if your not careful. You can also use gloves, especially if you have a fresh manicure because the paint easily spreads on to your fingertips. Here’s what you’ll need:
– Unused or Old Jewellery
– High Gloss Spray Paint
– Tape
– An Open Outside Area
– Close Pins and Hanger
(L) Collect your materials (R) Tape the clasp.
Step 2.) Color Block Jewellery. There aren’t any rules to this really. You can make your necklaces or bracelets into any new design you want just by using tape to preserve the areas you don’t want painted. It’s key to tape the clasp though so it doesn’t get too gooey with paint. We used a couple of old pendants to spray paint black and white. Since those colors are on trend for fall season we thought the final product would be easy to incorporate into our wardrobes. To get the look, all we had to do was tape where we didn’t want the spray paint and then hang dry the pieces.
(L) Cover your chain and clasp (R) Spray the pendants white and black.
Color block details.
Step. 3) Create an Ombre. If you have beads or a heavier piece of chain you can create an ombre look. All you have to do is create a base coat (we used black) with a darker color and then hang the jewellery on a line to dry. When the paint is almost dry, spray a lighter color paint on the piece from underneath. Spraying from underneath gives the intensity of the color at the bottom and then fades the color as it moves upwards to the top of the necklace. We used it on a bracelet and beaded necklaces and it turned out great. Just don’t drop it in the grass, you’ll have to start over– yea we did that.
Voila! Now we have five new pieces to play with. If you want something a little more electric, try using bright spray paints on custom jewellery. You can even do stripes on a necklace if you use a piece of cardboard by blocking sections of the necklace off. It helps to control the spray diameter from spreading. Just remember to have fun and get artistic with your DIY project. If you don’t like it, you can always spray over it.
(L) Hang your jewellery (R) Apply your base coat.
(L) Spray under for an Ombre effect (R) The final result
Ombre beads.
