Crochet Earrings

Okay, so you know how I'm currently obsessed with my Wishing Stars after I made nearly 3 dozen of them to fill a jar to photograph for the front of my business cards.  Well, my mom was over the other day and said that she'd like a pair of earrings made out of a pair of them.  Yes!  Earrings!  Cool!  I grabbed my yarn and hook and got busy crocheting.

**Did that make anyone think of Shawshank Redemption too?  Makes me want to say it again, but this time imagine Tim Robbins saying it, okay?
'I guess it comes down to a simple choice. Get busy crocheting or get busy dying...'
Ahahahahaha!  Oh, how I crack myself up... Now back to our regularly scheduled blog post... ***

I made a pair of Wishing Stars out of size 10 metallic gold crochet thread, using a size 8 steel crochet hook.  Actually, that means I crocheted 4 star pieces, and then sewed them together to make 2 stars.  Then I assembled my jewelry making supplies and turned them into earrings.

If you are an experienced jewelry designer, this will not be the tutorial for you.  But! if you've always wanted to make cute handcrafted earrings, but you could never get the wires to curl right, then welcome to the easiest way to make earrings ever!  I refuse to call this a cheater way, or a down-and-dirty way to make earrings, since I totally found this way of making earrings from a pricey pair I picked up in Nordstrom a couple of years ago.  I noticed that there was a crimp bead at the base of the earring, holding the beads on an eye pin. Genius!  So, of course, that's been my preferred way of making earrings ever since.  And that's what I'm going to show you how to do today.

You're going to need some jewelry making supplies to make these.  The choice of materials is completely up to you.  I have incredibly sensitive ears, so I have to get the nickel-free or sterling silver coated ear wires.  If you don't have my allergies, feel free to get the cheap bargain ear wires. Or, alternately, you could spring for the really nice stuff.  It's completely up to you and your budget, and your style (ear wires come in many designs, pick some that make you happy, since you're going to be wearing them...)

Wishing Star Earrings
Supplies:
Earwires (I used nickel-free 1" silver fish hook earrings)
2" eye pins
Crimp beads
2 pre-made mini wishing stars (I made mine out of size 10 metallic gold crochet thread and a size 8 steel crochet hook, but you could use larger stars made out of size 3 crochet thread (with a size D hook) and the results would still be amazing!)
Jewelry pliers
Wire cutters
Emery board (optional)

Open the lower ring of the ear wire and put the eye pin on.  Close the ear wire ring back up.  It's okay if the eye pin isn't completely closed tightly.  The way it comes in the package, it won't slide off.

Slide the wishing star onto the eye pin.  Make sure you like how it's centered on the pin.  Slide the crimp bead on after the star.

Use your jewelry pliers to smoosh (crimp!) the crimp bead snugly at the base of the star. Make sure that it is crimped tightly and doesn't move or you risk your star falling off later...

Use your wire cutters to snip the long end of the eye pin off right below the crimp bead.  If the edge is super sharp and pokey, you can use an emery board to file the edge just a little.

Yippee!  You've now made an earring!  Use your new awesome jewelry making skillz and make a second earring.  They really do look better in pairs...

You don't have to just use the tiny tiny thread on these.  I used some Vanna's Glamour by Lion Brand in Platinum, with a size D hook, and made some awesome silver earrings.  

I love the idea of putting a pair of earrings inside a Christmas ornament.  I wish the picture had turned out better, but the ornament was so shiny there was a ton of glare off it.  But I think you get the gist of the idea from my slightly blurry picture.  In real life, it is super cute, and it would make a really fun present.  I did this a couple of years ago when I made some crystal earrings for my mom and sister.  It was really fun on Christmas morning to start pulling ornaments off the tree and give them as gifts.  They were really surprised.  And they still wear the earrings...  It might not be your thing, but I think that the total cost for the star earrings and a plastic ornament from Michaels would come in at slightly over $2, which makes it a pretty rad gift for all your besties AND you can afford to give them to your office friends too.  Dare I say it would be a wish come true?... ;D

xoxo