I love these little earrings. After seeing them on Etsy, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to make a few of my own, especially since I have tons of stars lying around. The blue ones I couldn't resist since the design is for the star sign, Sagittarius. The purple ones are little pandas and the pink ones are of a little girl in different costumes.
They're quite easy and with a little practice, are quickly produced. For the knitterly inclined, instead of attaching to earring wires, the stars could be placed on jump rings in needle appropriate sizes for stitch markers. =)
Materials
Size 6/0 seed beads in two colorsOrigami Lucky Stars
Earring Wires
Head Pins
Nail Polish/Modge Podge or some sort of decoupage medium
Ceramic Cleaning tool or something sharp
Round Nose Pliers
Chain Nose Pliers
Side Cutter
1) Use the triangular blade of the ceramic cleaning tool to poke a hole in the bottom of the lucky stars.
Poking a hole
Hole on the bottom of the star
2) Place a bead on a head pin.
3) Use the head pin to poke through the hole at the bottom of the star. The head pin should emerge at the point of the star opposite the hole. It may take a little maneuvering for the head pin for poke through the top.
4) Paint the stars with at least one layer of nail polish or decoupage medium, waiting for each layer to dry before applying a new layer. Depending on the paper, it may bleed. This step protects the stars from getting waterlogged, although showering with the earrings is not recommended.
The top coat I used. (I’ve never actually used it on my nails…)
5) String on more beads, or stars, as you like.
Alternated red and clear seed beads.
6) Take the side cutters and cut the head pin approximately 1 – 1.5 cm above the last bead/star. Excess can be trimmed accordingly.
7) Using the round nose pliers, take the head pin, making sure it is flush with the top of the pliers. Place the pin at the diameter of the final loop desired. Wrapping around the round nose pliers at different places will give different size loops.
8) Bend the head pin at the top of the bead/star to prevent them from moving up.
9) Begin making the loop by wrapping the head pin around the pliers. If it looks as if there is too much wire, take the side cutter and trim off the excess before continuing with making the loop.
Beginning of loop.
10) Finish the loop.
11) Open the newly formed loop using the chain nose pliers. Do not pull the loop open, just lift the loop to create a space.
A better tutorial of steps 6-11 is available athttp://www.firemountaingems.com/beading_howtos/beading_projects.asp?docid=691E
12) Attach the earring wire and close the loop.
Open loop with earring wire.
13) Finished earrings
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