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Friday, August 10, 2012

Soda Pop Can Tab Jewelry - Two different Options

I showed these bracelets before in a post here. We have been saving pop tabs for months now to get enough to make some more jewelry. So, for something new for Princess number 6, we thought she could make some bracelets. 

Princess number three showed her how to make the thinner ones. The top two are layered one's and those were made by Princess number five and her friends in the post linked above. 

I like the bottom one best as it lays flatter on the skin making it less bulky. So, I am going to show details on how to make that bracelet or necklace depending on how many tabs you use and the length of ribbon. 

We first started with two yards of ribbon but that was WAY too long for small wrist-ed girls and ended up using just about a yard or a bit longer.

First off, cut the ribbon. It can't be too thick or it will curl. You can use thinner ribbon but I found I liked the 1/3 to 1/2 inch wide thick ribbon the best. We did lace which came out cute and printed one's with peace signs as you see in the photo and that came out cute as well. 

I cris-crossed two colors making a red and blue one with the silver for princess number six to take home but didn't get a picture but just know that you can experiment with these using different colors or textures and crossing over each new tab etc to make your own new creations. 

Next, place tape on the ends of the ribbon which keeps them from catching and fraying while you are lacing them. After that, place both ends through one tab with right side up. 

Leave a little loop of ribbon out which makes your loop to tie the bracelet or necklace together. In the top two in the top photo, you can see they didn't do a loop but left both ends loose which makes for a bigger bow. The bottom one has the small loop which makes it a smaller bow as it is only one side tied rather than both. I think the smaller the loop the better but it really is up to you how long to make it. If you are using two colors, it will have to be two bows. 

 
Once you have the loop made, pull the ribbons back on itself and place another tab right side up on top of the first. Then, lace the ribbon down through both tabs.

Once you have it down through both tabs, come up through just the second tab. fold the ribbon back on itself again and place another tab on top of the second tab. Take the ribbon and go down through both tabs. Come up through only the third tab. Fold the ribbon back on itself and repeat until you have about fifteen tabs laced through the ribbon. 

You will need to check the bracelet on your wrist often towards the end as you don't want to have too many tabs on it or they will overlap and the bow won't hold. We actually ended taking off a few once or twice to make it not so long. 

If you are making a necklace / choker, you will need to use more tabs and a longer ribbon. I also think you could make a cute earring set using the same color ribbon or string but we haven't had time to get that creative yet. Have Fun!

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