Tutorial: Scrabble Tile Necklaces plus Bonus

I know I owe you a block tutorial, and I am working on it-I will have it up next week okay?
Pinky promise!
Until then-make a bunch of these up for yourself, your daughters, your moms, your friends and anyone else you know.
They are very addicting and I think so cute!
I have seen these in a couple places, and thought I'd share a tutorial for them.

Here are the supplies you'll need:

• Scrabble tiles (can be found at most craft stores if you don't want to raid your game closet)
• Scrap paper, stickers, newspaper, junk mail...pretty much anything you want to cover an eeny little canvas with.
• Scissors
• Modge Podge
• Paintbrush
• Drill with tiny bit
• Necklace Bales (found at craft or beading stores) or you can use little jump rings if you wanted to.
• Piece of scrap wood to drill on top of
• Paper glaze-such as Diamond Glaze

Start by getting a tile and the paper and elements you want to add to your tile.

Next cut out the paper to fit the tile, you can trace it if you want or just set it on the paper and cut around it.Next add any elements you desire, for this one I just added a simple 'K' sticker.

Then paint a thin layer of modge podge to your tile and add the paper.

After you have your paper and elements glued on, take the modge podge and begin painting a thin layer of it.

Paint it until you have a thin, smooth layer of the entire surface and then let it dry for a few minutes or longer if you wish.

After your modge podge is dry add a layer of paper glaze on top-smooth it out with the tip. This gives it a cool "glassy" look, and a little dimension. Make sure to smooth it out as best you can and not leave any bubbles-unless you want the bubbles to show, because they will.Next you are going to let it dry...the problem with diamond glaze, is that it takes a long time to dry, the upside is, you have lots of time to get started on the next dozen or so tiles you will want to complete!Then you will take your drill with the tiny little drill bit and drill a hole a little under the top of your tile.

I am still waiting for the 'k' tile to dry-so we will go to this 'z' tile for now...

When you drill, make sure you go all the way through, and then put the drill in reverse to remove it from your tile. Scrape off any sawdust you might have and there you have a little hole in your tile ready to get it's bail.

And somewhere an angel will get its wings..oh wait that's a bell, not a bail.

Moving on. I had a couple different kinds of bails, and the ones I liked best for this project went all the way through and then clasped at the back, but I also used some clamp ones that worked just fine too, I just had to use a hammer to make sure they were good and tight in there. Then you have this cute little pendant ready to slide onto the chain or string of your choice.
Then you will have a whole jewlery box full of little pendants... or if you're not greedy like me, a pile of gifts ready to be given away...I guess not that greedy-I did make this one for my Miss B. I just used a piece of black string to tie it on and she loves it.

She's also claimed several others from the pile as well...little scoundrel.

***BONUS: And if your little boys are feeling left out, because you are making such girly jewlery, you can whip up a few of these for some manly necklaces...if there is such a thing.

I first saw these in the spring on some website, and I don't remember where...and have been making them for a bunch of my nephews, (we got some cute little circle pendants from a local beading store and made some at girls camp too, but these are more masculine).

The supplies:

• Washers-can be found at any home improvement store, and they are cheap-you want to make sure you get a softer metal like zinc so that it isn't so hard to leave an impression.
• Hammer
• Steel Stamps (Harbor Freight. These are really cheap-around $8)
• String to tie them to.

Pick out the letters you need, and hammer them in.

You can go over each letter with a sharpie and then wipe off with a baby wipe to make the letters stand out a bit more-but I think plain stamped looks a little more "dog chain-ish".

Thread a string through and you've got yourself a manly necklace, a keychain, a backpack tag or whatever else your little guy wants to do with it. These I made for my nephews who have birthdays this month.