In my younger days, I made jewelry for fun, and with the encouragement of friends and family, I started selling them off too. Back then, I did not wear jewelry, never liked wearing them anyway, though I loved making them. I eventually wore jewelry to advertise my work.

It all started when my cousin showed me the earrings she had made. I was fascinated and started experimenting with whatever I could find to make my own jewelry.

My mom is a whiz with all sorts of handicrafts. Macrame, dress making, crochet, rug making, you name it, she’s probably made it. She has a nice collection of craft materials. Beads, buttons, fabrics, strings.. and she let me use her materials.

I started with bracelets. No clasps. Just plain stretchable bead bracelets that were simply wooden beads strung together on elastic.

Bracelet making is about putting together a pleasant combination of beads, both in size and color. Mix and match the colors. Mix the big ones for focus with the small ones as fillers. You can thread them through a string first to see how it looks and measure it against your wrist for the fit. Once you are satisfied with the bracelet. String the elastic through the beads and tie a dead knot and hide the loose ends of elastic under the beads.

Here are 2 sets of instruction on bracelet making. Making A Bracelet and How to Make Bead Bracelets.

Once you have made your bracelets, you can sell them to friends and family. Or even get friends to sell for you for a commission. Some pals who love selling stuff might even sell them for free, or mark up the price and take the difference as a profit. Work out something you both are comfortable with.

About the Author

The writer is the webmaster of www.buy-bracelets.com – a site totally devoted to bracelets.

Written By: Janice Wee

We’ve all felt stress in our lives. And we’re left wondering what’s the best way to try and deal with it.

Some exercise, others veg out in front of the TV, I however have discovered the amazing zen of charm bracelets.

Charm bracelets are both a way to collect memories without large obtrusive knick knacks everywhere and is also a fun hobby for people that like collecting things.

It’s almost like a treasure hunt looking for new charms to add to your collection and display like a trophy to everyone you come in contact with for them to admire your work and your chance to tell them all about the history of each charm.

See, it’s not just about collecting the charms simply to collect them, it’s about what they mean to you.

Much like someone that gets many tattoos, there’s a story that goes behind them and a memory of when they got it.

It’s the same with charms, there is a certain story, a certain reason for having the charms you have and every time you look at them, they remind you about the things that are special to you.

You can collect charms that remind you of a trip you went on, of a certain belief you have, or a special time in your life. And best of all, these can all be worn on your wrist.

You can even make multiple bracelets for different periods in your life or for different moods.

It’s a relaxing, almost therapeutic hobby that will help you relieve stress and live your life with great joy and happiness. And all those memories are a short glance away.

I would recommend this hobby to anyone, and once you’ve got you’re very first charm, you’ll know what I mean.

The charms are endless just like your memories. Carry them with you always.

Copyright Juliette Adams

About Juliette: Juliette is the nation’s leading expert on the creation of charm bracelets and rare charms. Her site is http://www.coolcharmbracelets.com

Written By: Juliette Adams

What do you do when the straps of your watch come apart?

You could send it for repairs, or simply change the strap.

Or, you could transform that old watch into a stunning bracelet with gemstone beads.

That is exactly what I did with my old watch when it gave way.

The old strap was secured to the watch by 2 holes. One on each side of the watch face. That meant, I could attach my new strap through those holes.

I have a large collection of semi-precious gemstone beads which I use for jewelry making. Rather than using fishing line, I wanted something really strong to hold these precious stones together.

I had a pal who was a dentistry student. In her class, they used very strong stainless steel wires to make braces. She had more than enough wire for her work and could spare me some.

I cut that wire in 2. Each half was enough to go around my wrist. Then I slipped a wire through the hole on one end of the watch and doubled it up, so I could string 2 strands of beads through each half of that wire.

As my watch had a gold face, I chose tiger eyes and orange and yellow topaz for my watch bracelet. I strung the beads through the wire until I was pleased with the look. Then I secured the end of the wires onto a necklace clasp. I did the same with the other wire on the other hole on the other side of the watch and attached the wires to the other side of the necklace clasp.

All done, I had a gorgeous, unique, expensive looking watch to flaunt. No one knew it was from an old watch that would otherwise have been discarded.

You can do the same with an old watch. You can get some strong wires and pliers from a nearby hardware shop. If you see an old or hideous bracelet or necklace that is about to be discarded, just salvage the clasp. You can use these clasps for new watches, bracelets or necklaces. Just improvise with whatever you can find.

Nowadays, gorgeous watches don’t cost much. Check out my site http://www.cheapestsale.com. I created that section http://www.cheapestsale.com/watches/ to help me get the best deals in a huge selection of watches, branded or otherwise. I hope you find it useful too.

About The Author

Janice is the webmaster of http://www.cheapestsale.com/watches/ and an avid do it yourself enthusiast. She made and sold jewelry as a student, from recycled materials and things that others would consider as trash. Note to webmaster. If you use this article, you must hyperlink all the urls. Thanks.

Written By: Janice Wee Tien Yong