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  • Wednesday, October 10, 2012

    DIY: Vintage Button Jewelry

    If you saw my last post, you would know that I've been going crazy over my new DIY goodies. (You can check out that post here.) They're the easiest things to make and yet they look so chic. It's official, I'm a vintage button addict.
    Want to make your own vintagesque bling? Continue reading!


    To make a vintage button ring, you'll need..• vintage buttons
    • ring base (adjustable size)
    • glue gun
    • scissors (based on experience...an exacto knife was not exactly the perfect weapon of choice)
    • nail filer 

    1. Cut off the backing of the vintage button
    With a pair of scissors, carefully cut off the backing of the button. Cutting parallel to the backing makes it a lot easier. My first attempt was to use an exacto knife, but I highly highly highly do not suggest that as my bloody finger proved it was way safer to just use scissors. 
    2. Sand the rough edges
    To make sure the back of the button adheres flat to the ring base, sand away the remaining bits of the button backing. A nail filer is great for the job. 
    3. Glue gun the button to the ring base
    Once the back of the button is flat, apply glue to the center of the button using a glue gun and stick to the ring base. Be careful not to burn your fingers with hot glue!  
    4. ...And you're done!



    To make a vintage button bangle bracelet, you'll need..
    • vintage buttons
    • scissors
    • glue gun
    • nail filer
    • plain bangle or bracelet (silicone bracelets in the above photo are not recommended!)

    1. Cut off the backing of the vintage buttons

    Likewise to making the rings, you want to carefully cut off the backings of the buttons that you want to use for your bracelet. I would eyeball approximately how many buttons you'll need for your bracelet before cutting the backings off. This would ultimately depend on the size of your buttons. I wanted to mix different sizes of buttons to make it more interesting. Plus, different sizes make it easier to cover the entire surface of the bangle. 
    2. Sand the backings of the buttons
    After cutting the backings off, sand away the remaining rough bits with a nail filer. 
    3. Glue the buttons on the bangle/ bracelet
    My first attempt was to glue them on a silicone bracelet that I found at home. Problem was that the glue did not adhere well to the bracelet at all. As soon as the glue was dry, the buttons (still glued together) would peel off the silicone as one big strip. I then switched them over to a metal bangle and it worked out a lot better. A bangle with a flat edge like mine is recommended so the buttons won't have to lie on a weird angle. If your bangle has a rounded surface, I would suggest sanding it flat first before applying the buttons. 
    4. Voila! And you're done!
    Once the bracelet is all dry, stack 'em up and you got yourself a vintagesque arm party! I just love it when my nail polish matches with my jewelry, haha.
    And there you have it, the super duper easy steps in building your arm candy. They're pretty self-explanatory steps...but look what a few cuts and dabs of glue can create! Stay tune for some OOTD posts on how to style your outfit with these vintagesque goodies! 

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