Finish the Mother's Day Bracelet
Easy Instructions How to Tie the Charms onto the Cotton Cord
Tie the charms onto the cotton cord. Use pliers and quick set glue to finish this jewelry design in plenty of time to give as a Mothers' Day present.
Charmed jewelry continues to be very popular. Riding along on the trend, this year's Mother's Day project is making a charmed bracelet using cotton cord and silver toned charms. Prior articles discuss selecting meaningful charms and buying the needed jewelry supplies.
It' time to put all the pieces together! When ready, set aside about 30 minutes to make this trendy charm bracelet to give to that special lady on Mother's Day.
This bracelet merely requires the cord, a selection of expressive charms and a clasp. Check out the prior article for the exact materials and brand name products used. You'll also need some quick set glue, a pair of pliers and a ruler.
The first step is to determine the appropriate length. Most ladies bracelets are sized in the USA at 7.5 inches - so that's a good starting point. If Mom wears a bracelet frequently, measure it's length to get a better idea as to what length for this bracelet will fit perfectly. Good rule of thumb - if Mom is small boned reduce the length by 1/2 inch; if she's large boned increase the length by 1/2 inch.
Important - factor in the length of the clasp when making this bracelet. If the exact cord and clasp from the material list are used, the clasp adds approximately 1.25 inches. If not using the same clasp, adjust the instructions below. Also, adjust these instructions if making this bracelet in a length other than 7.5 inches.
- Cut a piece of cotton cord 14 inches long.
- Leave a tail of 2 inches from one end and tie on a charm using a simple knot. See Image 1.
- Then, approximately every 3/4 inch tie on another charm. No worries if this is off a bit. When the charm bracelet is done it will not be noticeable. If using reversible charms, try to tie all the charms on in the same direction. This is not crucial as the charms will flip back and forth when the bracelet is worn.
- When all charms are tied on use a ruler to trim the charmed section of cotton cord to measure 6.25 inches. At this point, one side of the cord is more than likely longer than the other. Fix this by trimming both ends of the cotton cord so that it is the same length. For example, if the total length of the piece of cotton cord measures 7.25 inches, 1/2 inch is trimmed from either side to reduce the length down to 6.25 inches.
- Place one end of the cotton cord in one side of the clasp. See Image 2. Dot with some quick set glue and use the pliers to first fold one side of the crimp down over the cord. Then, crunch the other side on top of that. See Image 3. Repeat on the other side using the opposite side of the clasp.
Voila - done! Wrap the bracelet in some pretty paper or cloth. Tie with a ribbon and you're good to go for this year's Mother's Day. Now, make another bracelet for yourself.
Note on Cutting the Cotton Cord:
Measure twice or three times before trimmng the cotton cord in Step 4. Once the cord is cut it's a done deal. Better to check, check, check than to have to make the bracelet over again because the cord is too short.
Here's another example for trimming the cord: Following the instructions above, the tail extends 2 inches beyond the first charm. Trim the other side so that there's a 2 inch tail after the last charm on that side also. Then trim an even amount from either side to get the total length of the cord down to 6.25 inches.
