Link Bib Necklace: MakeThis Accessory for Just $10

You've seen this look on celebs: a necklace made of entwined circles, draping to create a cascading effect. This style of necklace is selling for thousands of dollars in fancy boutiques. You can make this look for yourself for less than $10.

All you need to make this beautiful necklace are jump rings and a clasp. You can use base metals, copper, sterling silver, or gold. The cost of the piece will depend on which materials you use. I'm on a tight budget right now, so I got my supplies at Michaels. I used base metals, but, this piece definitely is worthy of the finest metals.

To make a necklace exactly as pictured, I puchased:

Jewelry and Craft Essentials 10 mm Jump Rings (2 packages)

Jewelry and Craft Essentials Lobster Claw Clasps (1 package)

Basically, the jump rings are easily linked circles which came together to make a beautiful necklace. A common mistake with jump rings is when people try to pull the circle apart, and then try to put it together. The correct way to do this is to twist the ring. I hold the ring in both hands, and my left hand twists away from me, and my right hand twists toward me. I put another ring onto the ring I just opened, and then I close this open loop the opposite way (left hand twists toward me, and the right hand away). If you have done this correctly, you will have a perfect circle still, and the point where you opened and closed the ring will only be visible under close examination.

I looped all the rings together until I found the length I liked. When I was done with the length, I found the middle point of the chain, and made that the one that I would begin the dangling circles from. I attached a ring to the bottom of this "midle point." I attached a total of six rings going down from the mid-point of the chain.

I worked to the right first. I skipped one link, and began fashioning another chain "down" from the main chain. This chain had five rings going down. When that chain was complete, I skipped another link to the right, and formed another chain going down with four rings. When that chain was finished, I moved to the right again, again skipping on link, and creating a chain with three links.

I then worked on the left side, making my chain symetrical with the right side, in the same fashion I had just used.

When I was done creating the chain part, I attached the lobster claw clasp. I opened a link on the main chain and put it through the hole on the lobster claw clasp. Because the necklace is already made of jump rings, I use the clasp to attach to any link on the other side, to make the necklace as long or as short as I wish.

I made the necklace while making dinner and through a few commercials. I didn't really time myself, but I think it was under 30 minutes to make the necklace. I was very pleased with the results of this necklace and I hope you will be too!