When I was a kid, my great aunts gave us their old costume jewelry to play with. I’ve never craved real gemstones and wear very simple jewelry as an adult, but I have incredibly fond memories of playing with the fake stuff. The clip on earrings that made my earlobes numb, the over-the-top brooches, and the miles and miles of beads.
I’ve used discarded or broken jewelry as embellishments in some of my upcycling, but never tried a full on broken jewelry project until today. This is my creation, glued to a plain white canvas.
Yet again, I’m giving myself flowers. I’m a lucky girl!
That is absolutely beautiful. What a wonderful way to display items that were loved so much at one time and can be enjoyed again. It definitely goes with your Make something of it theme. It would give me great pleasure to view something like this in my home.
You continue to amaze me! I wish we had all of my m-i-l’s costume jewelry, she had tons and far more than any of us needed. We kept a few things and donated the rest. She would have loved to have had her jewelry honored like this. You could offer this as a craft to sell, have people send you their loved one’s costume jewelry to make into something beautiful? I hope you know how gifted and incredible you are, Leah!
I echo Kathy’s comments above (though I didn’t care at all for my MIL’s costume jewelry–or her “real stuff;” we had totally different tastes). But you’ve worked wonders here, Leah, and I do think there are folks who would LOVE to have their family pass-downs/treasures transformed into things this lovely. You are endlessly gifted, my friend, and your ability to bring such beauty out of otherwise-junk is unsurpassed. Plus, never miss an opportunity to give yourself flowers; I do it whenever possible.