DIY Gemstones Jewelry - Earrings & Necklace

Last week I shared what to do with gemstones you collect from mine trips, this week is the part 2 of gemstones DIYs. While we were washing the stones in the running water, we saw a lot of small garnet and emerald stones. I was sure I could them in some of my projects so I made sure to collect them all and also my hubby helped me collecting more of them. Actually, I thought of making a lamp shade with something transparent and gluing the stones on them. As the some of them are translucent , I was sure they will allow light. As this project requires some more planning(I decided to do try sometime in the future), I thought I would whip up some quick jewelry project to make with those small stones. Here is how.

Materials Required :
Small raw gemstones
Cabochon setting tray/ Pendants with setting
Polymer clay
Three jump rings, Lobster clasp, chain & pliers(For necklace)
Earring post and glue (For Earrings)
Gold leafing pen (Optional for earrings)

To make Necklace :

Step 1: Sort the raw gemstones based on color and size. Use the small size stones for the pendant. I think green stones are a mixture of various gemstones like green calcite, fluorite, emerald and green quartz. But does that matters? I think as long as all the stones fall under the same color scheme, it looks beautiful. You will see for yourself.

Step 2: Take the cabochon setting tray, you can find them on eBay as well as in the jewelry supplies websites like fire mountain gems, Doreenbeads, etc. And also a small ball of polymer clay. Here I am using clay in coordinating color but it is up to you to use whichever color you desire. Use your finger and fill the cabochon setting with the clay.

Step 3: Take the small stones and press them on the clay one by one until the whole pendant is covered. 

Step 4: Bake them according to the manufacturer's instruction.(I baked at 275F for 45 mins) Allow them to cool. Attach a jump ring to the pendant and add a chain with a jump ring on one side and lobster clasp on the other.Attach the whole chain to the pendant to complete the necklace. 

I expected the stones to come off of clay after baking but it did not. The whole thing stayed strong but if you experience anything like that, take the whole clay from the setting like you will do to take the cake out of the pan by running the knife around the edges. Use a craft knife to do that and use a tweezer to pull the stones from the clay. Apply a dot of glue and glue them back to the clay piece and the pendant setting. 

I did pull a stone purposely to show you. However, my pendant was perfectly fine without any glue. You can also use liquid clay to do these steps before baking to ensure they hold securely. 

To make earrings :

The steps are almost similar except that these earrings don't need a cabochon setting however these can also be done in the procedure as above for a cabochon earrings. 

Step 1: Select two raw gemstones that look similar in size and color. Here I'm using a Dalmatian stones. (I guess that is the name of these stones). And two balls of clay in the same size. 

Step 2: Press the stone into the clay and make the clay flat.Bake them according to the manufacturer's instructions. Allow them to cool

Step 3: This step is optional and recommended for that classy look. A hint of gold makes everything gorgeous.Do you agree? Use gold leafing pen to add gold edges to the earrings. Allow them to dry.

Step 4: Add a drop of glue to the earrings post and glue them to the back of the clay piece to complete the earrings. 

How simple was that? Hope you like these easy jewelry ideas and give them a try. Share what you think in the comments below.As always I will be happy to hear from you. 

Other Jewelry crafts you might like :

DIY Double sided Earrings

DIY Geometric Necklace

8 Strand Braided Bracelet

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