Guest Postage: Flamingo Toes

Hello Yesterday on Tuesday readers! I'm so excited to be here today!

My name is Beverly and I blog at Flamingo Toes.

I love to do sewing, home decor, and jewelry projects – with my favorite being knockoffs! I love taking an overpriced item and recreating it for a lot less. ;)

So that's what I'm sharing with you today! I found a gorgeous necklace at Ann Taylor Loft and decided to make my own version.

Here's mine:

And here's theirs – for the not-so-low price of $39.50!

I made mine silver – I don't wear a lot of gold jewelry. (The beauty of knockoffs – you get to make your version your way.)

Ready to get started? You'll need:

• Large assortment of jump rings (4 sizes total) • Small piece of chain (at least 6") • Decorative silver chain (at least 16") • Bead assortment • Head pins • Necklace closure

Begin with your small piece of chain. (I cut mine the length I wanted, 6", but it made it pretty difficult at the end to get the rings on. So I recommend leaving your chain a little longer and trimming it when you're ready.)

Add a medium sized jump ring onto one side of the chain.

Begin with your smallest rings. These are just a little bigger than the chain.

You can do as much or as little of each size as you'd like, you just want the rings to get gradually bigger, then smaller down the chain.

Before you move on to the next size ring, add a small jump ring through the link in the chain at the end of the small jump ring section. Then add the next size up jump ring to the next link in the chain. This will help keep the rings from overlapping.

Add the next size jump rings to the chain.

Before adding the next size rings, add a bead on a head pin loop to the chain. (You can find detailed instructions on how to put a bead on a head pin in this tutorial.)

Add your largest jump rings to the center.

Repeat the process across the chain so it mirrors what you've done so far.

Finish out the chain and add a medium jump ring to the other end.

Add your beads to head pins and make loops as you did before. Add them to the rings along the center section.

Measure with your decorative chain how long you'd like your necklace and cut two pieces for the sides. Mine are 8" long each. Add a length of chain to each of the jump rings at the ends of your short chain.