Make a Glass & Knotted Leather Necklace

Before: Broken Plate

Our internet is back up and we can post our projects again. Yeah! Between the snow and our technical difficulties we were forced to take a break from publishing, but now we are back and looking forward to sharing our upcycling adventures.

Imitation Leather

Today's project was derived from the same broken plate we used to make our glass & brass link bracelet.  Let's face it, it was a large plate...so we our goof yielded a LOT of glass to use in jewelry making. It really is a good thing my daughter and I both love to work with blue glass.

Rather than attach the beads to a brass chain, today we strung the beads on some imitation leather we had in the studio and use for our favorite vegan friends, family and customers.

After: Glass & Leather Necklace by GeltDesigns.com

Materials
Glass
Imitation leather cord
Spring ring clasp (sterling silver or 14kt gold-filled )

Tools
Glass cutter
Diamond hone, diamond files or a glass grinder
Drill and diamond coated drill bits 
Barges glue

Step 1
Wash the glass with glass cleaner to remove kiln wash and other dirt, grease and grim.

Step 2
Cut the glass using a glass cutter into three -1-1/2 inch square glass pieces.

Step 3
File the edges of the glass smooth using a diamond hone, diamond files or a glass grinder.

Step 4
Drill two holes in two of the glass pieces using a drill and diamond coated drill bits. The holes are needed to create the beads. The holes should be large enough to feed through the leather.

Step 5
Finish the glass beads. We fire polished the glass in our kiln, but you can polish the glass using by hand using sandpaper if you do not have a kiln. The process of hand sanding is labor intensive, but quite effective.

String Glass Beads

Step 6
Feed the imitation leather of other stringing material through the glass beads. Pull the string so the beads sit one on top of the other and they create a natural arc.

Step 7

Knotted Leather

Center the beads on the string. Measure up about 1-inch from the bead on either side and make a knot.

Step 8

Attach Clasp

Measure another inch from the knot and create another knot. Continue until you created a knotted chain that is either 16-inches or 18-inches long, depending on the length you want for your necklace.

Step 9
Feed the clasp on the imitation leather. Attach the clasp by doubling over the imitation leather and then tying the end in a knot about 1-inch from the clasp. Add a drop of Barges glue to the knot for added security.

Glass & Leather Necklace by GeltDesigns.com

Step 10
Create the eye by repeating on the other end of the necklace chain. Double  the imitation leather and then tie the end in a knot about 1-inch from the clasp. Again, add a drop of Barges glue to the knot for added security.

Related Tutorials
How to Drill Glass
How to Cut Fused Glass with a Tile Saw
How to Slump Glass
How to Add Oil to a Glass Cutter
How to Prepare a Slump Mold with Kiln Wash for Fused Glass
How to Make a Slumping Mold
How to Remove Devitrification from Fused Glass
Repurpose Empty Wine Bottles
How to Melt Wine Bottles into a Bead
How to Melt Wine Bottles into a Cheese Tray
How to Melt Wine Bottles into Jewelry
How to Melt Wine Bottles for Lampwork
Make a Kiln Formed Bracelet
Make a Glass Charm Necklace
Make Recycled Glass & Sterling Silver Earrings
    
Further Reading
"Mod Knots: Creating Jewelry and Accessories with Macrame"; Cathi Milligan; 2009.
"Decorative Knot Craft: Over 20 Innovative Knotting And Macrame Accessories"; Kim Sang Lang; 2008.
"Elegant Knotted Jewelry: Techniques and Projects Using Maedeup"; Becky Meverden; 2009.

Books on Kiln Formed Glass
"Warm Glass: A Complete Guide to Kiln-Forming Techniques: Fusing, Slumping, Casting";  Philippa Beveridge, Ignasi Domenech, Eva Pacual; 2005.
"Contemporary Warm Glass: A Guide to Fusing, Slumping & Kiln-Forming Techniques": Brad Walker; 2000.
"Fused Glass Handbook"; Gil Reynolds; 1987.
"Fuse It - 18 Fused Glass Projects": Petra Kaiser; 2007.
"Innovative Adornments - Introduction to Fused Glass & Wire Jewelry";  Jayne Persico; 2002.
"Richard La Londe: Fused Glass Art and Technique"; 2006.

New & Noteworthy
"Contemporary Fused Glass";  Brad Walker; 2010.
"Microwave Kiln Techniques: For Fused Glass Jewelry, Stained Glass Projects and Silver Clay"; Geneva Perkins.

Day 40. Week 5. Month 2.  Jewelry from Found Objects.  $ spent: 0
Found materials: Broken glass plate
New Jewelry a Day.