Monday, April 7, 2014

DIY Teething Necklace

Well, I have been gone from blogging for a bit because my sweet little boy loves my attention. He still loves my attention but recently decided to once again agree that even he could use a break from mama for a little bit. Lol 

Anyhow, since my last post, I have joined some groups on Facebook and one of which needs some tutorials. So here's the first one I will provide for them. A super easy teething/nursing necklace. :)



Materials Needed:
Natural Wooden Unfinished Beads (or finished, whatever suits you better)
72-ish" x 4 or 5-ish" of cotton (or woven wrap) fabric 
Sewing Machine (or you could hand-stitch it. I just happen to have enough hand stitching on my plate with the Grandma's Flower Garden)
Thread

**Note: Photos will be places AFTER each set of directions**

1. Fold your fabric piece lengthwise (hot dog style) right sides together and place a wooden bead in the top to measure the space needed for your tube. (Next time, I'll make it a little tighter squeeze, but that's my preference) You choose the size.

2. I used a quilter's ruler and pen to mark a "dummy-proof" stitch line. Now, you could pin this all the way down, but I chose not to push my luck on time. Baby Isaac was actually relaxed watching the Goodnight Show on Sprout. I just paused every now and then to make sure the edges were aligned properly. Again, your choice.

3. Yup! Time to sew down that cheat line! Make sure you back stitch at the beginning and end to lock it in place. This is not a baste line.

4. Trim excess fabric about 1/8" - 1/4" away from your sewn line.


5. Place a safety pin near the end of your tube, on one side. Then push the safety pin down the length of your tube. This is a little tedious, but it helps turn your tube right-side-out.

6. Never you mind that hemp cord there. This was the first one I ever made and I was planning on finishing it a little differently. Obviously, I chose otherwise. Now push one of your beads down in the fabric tub to the very center. 


7. Make a knot on both sides of the bead.

8. Now add two more beads on both sides of the first bead and knots (left:bead-knot, bead. Right:bead-knot, bead). Do not add knots after the second bead on each side. When you're done, you should have 5 beads and 4 knots. Then, using both ends of your tube, tie a double knot between the last 2 beads you added. This will create a ring/loop. :)

9. In the same manner that you added the other beads, continue adding beads and knots to the tube to the right and left of the ring. Keep checking for proper length. You can add beads and knots until you've nearly reached the end or leave some space between the last knot you make and the part where you will join the two tubes together. Once again, this is completely up to you.

10. On one end of the tube, fold in about 1/2" and tuck the other end inside it. 

11. Now straighten it out nicely and sew a box with an "x" inside of it. (Or just simply back and fourth a couple times) And you're done:
Note: Lazy alert: yup. Too lazy to switch out thread. Hence the obvious "I MADE THIS" contrast. Lol



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