DIY Initial Charm Necklace for Cheap

I love the whole monogram and letters and initials craze right now – I just love personalized things, so I’m on board.  When I saw the initial necklaces floating around, I wanted one… and you know me, I’m all “I could totally make that!” and for super cheap – I’m guessing it’s just about $1 per necklace, probably less.  And I have a tutorial to show you how to make one for yourself.

If you’d rather buy one, just start browsing Etsy (like this one below) – there are lots of cute options.  But if you want the accomplishment of making one, keep on reading.

I hear people like long step-by-step images for pinterest, so here’s that if you’re looking for one of those:

This all started when I saw these super cute wood letters in the scrapbook section of Michaels and I knew they could be used for something awesome.
So for this project you’ll need:
–small wooden letters (think scrapbook section) – 2 packages
–wood glue
–drill
–Painters pen or paint

First, dig out your letters.  If they’re not the popular letters, you’ll need 2 packages because you need 2 of each initial.

They are pretty thin, so to be able to drill through the side they’ll need to be thicker.  Hence needing two of each initial – you are going to use the wood glue to glue them stacked together.

Let the wood glue dry completely.  (I waited overnight).  Then you are going to use a tiny drill bit and drill through the side – you can do this!

Next up, painting!  I went with silver to give the wooden letters a metallic look.  I was afraid that regular paint would clog up the little holes I drilled, so I used a Painters marker, and that worked pretty good.

Now, the hole is pretty little – – I found a tiny chain that would fit, but the metal oring thing on the end was too big, and it wasn’t removeable.  I squished it flat with my pliers, pulled the chain through the letters, then opened the circle back up.

And that’s it!  I thought about giving it a coat of clear spraypaint, to seal the wood, but I forgot.  But it seems like it would be a good idea.

Just ignore my neon pink nails… I took this pic right after returning from a blog conference where there was an 80s party….

True story – – my kids have “jobs” or chores, each day after school.  But when I want one of them to take some pictures for me, I let them count it as one of their jobs, in place of one they don’t want to do…  whatever works!  So, pics courtesy of my 5th grader:

 You can make this Initial Craft Necklace – really!  Go give it a try!

www.SugarBeeCrafts.com