Make Your Own DYI

A few years ago I bought a pretty little murano glass bead bracelet. It was lovely and delicate. Unfortunately the beads were strung on a thin plastic wire. I was traveling abroad. I was in Spain when the bracelet broke in the Prado. To my shock and horror all the pretty little beads stanted bouncing and rolling around on the museum's granite floor. I started to pick them up one by one when one of the guards came over with a broom and dustpan to help me. I thanked her profusely and vowed never to buy such a bracelet again. That silly fishing line just is not strong enough. Since my ears were never peirced (long story) I had more than a passing aquaitance with jewelry making supplies. I often buy pierced dangle earrings and change them over to clip ons. It's very easy. All you need is a pair of pliers. I thought about restringing the bracelet on a plastic string with a metal core. But my real issue was my bad eyesight. I never had good vision but with age my vision has deteriorated signifcantly. How could I tie those knots? However, asking a saleperson, I found out about memory wire. Here was my solution. I bought some easy to handle memory wire and a few extra beads to replace any that had been lost and I made myself a new bracelet. It was a great experience, not only was I sure that my bracelet was strong enough to withstand anything, but I also got to enjoy that supreme feeling of accomplishment. The new bracelet was much nicer than the old one. It felt so good that I started trolling yard sales and dollar stores for beads. I made bracelets as gifts for Chiristmas. I've even managed to sell a couple on eBay, but I'm not all that successful. Anyway a little while later I decided I wanted a charm bracelet. They were all the rage. I started pricing them and found that I was way out of my price range. Of course I wanted one that was loaded with charms. They were in the range of $200. Too rich for my blood. I managed to pick up a rather thin sterling bracelet with only a couple of charms on it for less than $20. Then I started building. I bought charms and using split rings I put them on the bracelet. Silver was still pretty cheap and I built the bracelet for about $75 in total. I wear it a lot in the summer and have even made another with a Christmas theme. You never know what you can do until you try. And if you succeed. IT FEELS SO GOOD. So make your own stuff, if you can't afford to buy it ready made.