TURNING STAR WARS TOYS INTO WEARABLES
I have a hard time saying no to small Star Wars toys. It’s true that I can’t resist cute designs, but that’s not the only reason I have Micro Machines and LEGO minifigs crowding my shelves and covering surfaces throughout my house. Tiny toys take up less room so I can display more of them at once, and they’re also useful for crafting. Miniature figures and vehicles are ideal for projects like terrariums, small scale dioramas, and jewelry.
While there are officially licensed jewelry options available, it’s fun to wear accessories made from toys – especially if they were once part of your collection. Don’t worry: I’m not using costly or rare items in my projects. I look for used lots of Micro Machines or minifigs at conventions and online and repurpose them. I’m giving them a second life that’s more fabulous.
Making jewelry from toys involves a range of skill levels, but you can make items with as few as three supplies. Start small, see if you like modifying toys, and if so, invest in some basic jewelry making tools and supplies at your local craft store. Twenty dollars worth of wire, earring hooks, chain, and jump rings will get you far, but we’re going to begin simply with a snowspeeder ring. Gather the following materials:
Supplies:
.A ring blank-silver or gold plated is fine,just make sure the circle on the front is medium-sized
.Tube of E6000 adhesive or Krazy Glue
.Plastic Micro Machine snowspeeder.
Steps:
1.Wipe down the front of the ring blank and the back of the snowspeeder with a paper towel.
2.Put a small amount of E6000 or Krazy Glue on the front of the ring blank.
3.Decide where you want the snowspeeder to be placed on the ring and push it firmly into place.
4.Press the snowspeeder and ring blank together for a few seconds to allow the adhesive to take hold.
5.Let it dry thoroughly before wearing.
Tada, that’s all you have to do to make a snowspeeder ring, and you can apply that technique to any Micro Machine with a flat bottom – like the Millennium Falcon. It even works for necklaces. You can find necklace pendant blanks in circular or rectangular shapes and glue ships or LEGO minifigs right to them. It might be the easiest way to make jewelry.
If you find that wearing plastic toys isn’t suitable for every occasion, you can dress up miniature vehicles with Swarovski crystals. Stacey Bender wanted to get aStar Wars necklace for a friend’s birthday, but when she couldn’t find exactly what she had in mind, she decided to bedazzle Micro Machines. She started with an X-wing she found on eBay and carefully added crystal embellishments. She then turned the most sparkly X-wing in the galaxy into a necklace. She ended up liking the finished process so much that she’s transformed many Micro Machines into Star Wars wearables.
To create something similar, hunt down some pewter colored or die cast metal Micro Machines. If you can’t find those, you can always cover up other colors with silver paint. Gather Swarovski crystals (available at your local craft store), tweezers, Krazy Glue Gel, eye screws, split rings, necklace chain (you can buy these from a jewelry or craft shop), and needle nose pliers.
Start by attaching a split ring to the eye screw. Then glue the eye screw to the back of the toy, wherever you want the top of the pendant to be. Set it aside and let the glue dry completely. Once the eye screw is secure, decide where you want to add crystals. Put a small dot of glue on the toy and put the crystal in place with tweezers. Rinse and repeat until it sparkles to your satisfaction.
Have you ever made jewelry from your Star Wars toys for fun? Go to the comments and tell me about your projects.
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