Art Necklaces

Leah Walls, a spunky young mother of two, creates a beautiful necklace featuring her original art. Using her creative mind, paint, glass and a computer, this former graphic designer makes a piece of art jewelry.

Art piece materials:

Bristol board
pencil
paintbrushes
gouache paint in various colors
scanner
computer
color printer
Epson matte paper heavyweight (for printout)

Necklace materials:

flat glass marbles
scissors
Sobo glue
20-gauge stainless steel wire
wire cutters
heavy-duty multi-purpose adhesive
paper towels or rags
glass cleaner
black acrylic paint
paintbrush
24-gauge copper wire
beads
ribbon
Fray Check

1. Draw art piece on paper.

2. Paint the art piece with gouache (figure A) and let dry.

3. Scan the art piece into the computer.

4. Size the art piece in a computer program to 1-1/2-inch square; make any adjustments needed.

5. Print the art piece out on heavy-duty matte paper.

7. Glue the art piece onto the back of the marble (figure C) and let dry.

8. Cut a 1-1/2 inch stainless steel wire piece and twist to make a loop.

9. Attach this loop to the back of the marble (art piece) with heavy duty adhesive (figure D).

10. Allow to dry overnight or in the oven on warm.

11. Clean glass with glass cleaner.

12. Paint back with black paint and allow to dry.

13. Use copper wire to attach to loop for adding "beaded cool."

15. Finish off by making a loop at the end of the wire.

16. Cut ribbon to 20 inches or desired length (figure F).

17. Apply Fray Check to the ends of the ribbon to prevent unraveling.

18. Lace ribbon through the loop at the end of the beads.

E-mail: leah@leahwalls.com

Website: www.leahwalls.com