The Path Taken Necklace

Designer Cynthia Deis

Remember your journey with this book necklace that features an acorn bead and a stamped, copper disc ‘book’ on the pendant. You can fill the book pages with maps, as shown, or use text, family photos, or your own artwork. The acorn symbolizes growth and potential, the trailing fiber tassel both roots and branches.

For some great stamping tips check out our Letter Stamping Tip video!

Ingredients

-103 inches of hand painted rayon gimp cording, cut into 4-22 inch pieces and 3-5 inch pieces
- 2 antique copper fold-over ends
- 1 antique copper spring ring clasp, 11 mm
- 1 inch (6 links) antique copper Really Round Cable Chain
- 1 Lori Flanders glass acorn bead
- 1 copper hammered ring, 22 mm
- 2 copper pretty petals bead cap
- 6 Elaine Ray Magic Bean beads
- 1 olive green Swarovski rhinestone bead, 8 mm
- 4 copper square jump rings, ¼ inch
- 1 copper extra thick head pin, 1 inch
- 6 inches antiqued copper wire, 20 gauge
- 2 1 inch copper discs, 18 gauge
- Fray check fabric glue
- Old map pages for inside of book

Tools

- Scissors
-Chain nose pliers
- Round nose pliers
- Liver of Sulphur Extended Life Gel
- Glass bowl
- Paper towels
- Polish Pads
- Blue painter’s tape or masking tape
- Ball pein hammer
- Bench block
- 1/8 letter punch set
- 1.8 mm Euro-tool hole punch
- 1 inch circle paper punch

1. Place one end of each 22 inch strand of gimp into a fold-over end. Using your chain nose pliers, bend the fold-over end inward, one side at a time, to secure the gimp strands. Repeat at the other end of the strands with remaining fold-over end. Use your chain nose pliers to open one link on the end of the copper chain section and attach it to the ring on one fold-over end. Use your chain nose pliers to open the ring on the spring ring clasp and attach it to the other fold-over end. Set necklace aside.

2. Mix the liver of sulphur in the glass bowl following the manufacturers directions. Patina your copper discs by placing them in the  bowl with the liver of sulphur solution. Remove discs from solution when they are darkened. Rinse the discs in clean water and dry with paper towels or a soft cloth. Using the hole punch make a single hole in one disc approx. 2 mm from the edge of the disc. Lay the punched disc on top of the remaining disc and punch through the existing hole to make sure the book covers line up.

3. Using the 1 inch paper punch, create book pages by punching out 6-10 images from your map book. Stack these images on top of one another and place a punched copper disc over the stack. Using the hole punch, punch the papers through the hole already on the copper disc. This will ensure that your book pages line up with the covers.

4. Write out your message as shown, taking care to line up the center of each word. Determine which line in your message you want to punch first. Tape a copper disc in the center of your bench block using the painter’s tape at the appropriate height for one line in your message. You may stack up the tape in several layers to make a thick guide for stamping if you wish. Watch the video here.

Punch each line of your message. Set disc aside. Tape down the back cover of your book and punch your design or message there. If the patina on the covers is too dark you can polish them lightly with the polishing cloths.

5. Create a coiled loop on the end of your length of wire. Thread the wire through the acorn bead, the bead cap and two 6-0 seed beads from the bottom of the acorn. Bend the wire to a 90 degree angle and trim to ¾ inch. Set extra wire aside. Create a coiled loop above the bead cap and beads using your round nose pliers. Set acorn bead link aside.

6. Make the tassel. Create a coiled loop on the remaining length of wire. Feed the three remaining strands of gimp through the coil. Feed the wire on the coil through the bead cap so that the tassel emerges from the bead cap. Using your round nose pliers create a wrapped loop atop the bead cap, looping all the wire around the top of the cap.

Feed an Elaine Ray bean bead onto one gimp strand. Tie a knot at the very end of the strand of gimp to hold the bead on. Place a small drop of Fray Check on the knot. Repeat with remaining Elaine Ray beads until all the tassel fringes are knotted. Open a square jump ring and attach the tassel to the hammered copper ring.

7. Feed the head pin through the rhinestone bead. Using your chain nose pliers loop the head pin. Stack your book covers and pages in the correct order. Using chain nose pliers open a square jump ring and thread it through the book and through the loop on the rhinestone bead dangle. Use this jump ring to attach the book to the hammered copper ring.  

Use remaining two square jump rings to attach the acorn to the necklace and to the hammered copper ring as shown.

Click here for a printable version of this tutorial