Make a Washer Necklace

A DIY washer necklace tutorial using objects found around your home.

My daughter wanted a 'cool necklace' for her birthday a few years ago. After looking at hundreds of cheap necklaces at the mall I was uninspired. They were ok, but I ended up going home empty handed. The same day, while browsing Pinterest, I got bitten by the bug to make a one-of-a-kind washer necklace.

I saw a lot of different styles and had an idea of what I would do. I just needed to get cracking and find what I needed. There wasn't any time for shopping so I had to get creative.

Finding the Bits & Pieces

This was a spur of the moment project using pieces I found. It was after dinner time, the night before my daughter's birthday. First I went next door to look through my Father-in-law's basement. He has jars and jars of screws and whatnot, but I couldn't find one for washers. But I found one single washer in a junk box that would be perfect. Back at my house I asked my husband for some of his random hardware parts and found another single washer that was smaller. Just what I wanted. I also sorted through my daughter's beads looking for an accent piece, but they were all too small so I decided to use a nut.

Now what could I hang it on? I asked if anyone had a leather shoelace, nope. Looked at my daughter's craft string... too thin and I wouldn't have time to braid it. I was searching through drawers and cubbies, and finally in my grandmother's old sewing box. I found black elastic cording. Jackpot.

The only thing left was to pick out two colors of nail polish. My daughter has bottle after bottle of every color so I had plenty to choose from. She loves purple so that was a quick grab. And I thought the green looked nice with it. Both shades had a metallic kind of swirl to them. (She was out playing with her cousin so she didn't have any idea what I was doing.)

Specifics

Since these were random pieces, and not bought recently, I really can't tell you the exact types I used. I tried measuring and looking at a million website charts but I don't want to guess wrong. I don't think it really matters anyway. So, just to give you an idea of scale, here are the basic sizes I used...

Small Washer: 7/8" across, with an 3/8" opening

Large Washer: 1 1/4" across, with a 9/16" opening

Hex Nut: 3/8" across, with a 1/8" opening

About 28" of black 1/16" round elastic cord

Wet n Wild fastdry nail color in Sage in the City

N.Y.C. long-wearing nail enamel in Purple Pizzazz Frost

I painted the bottom of the pieces once, and gave the top two coats each. Once they were dry I looped the cording through the two washers, slipped the nut down, and tied the cord at the top. You can see a closeup below, minus the nut.

Nailpolish I Used

Wet N Wild Fastdry Nail Color, Sage in the City 225C

A metallic green shimmer.

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New York Color Long Wearing Nail Enamel, #133A Purple Pizzazz Frost - 1 Ea, Pack of 3

A deep purple with blue toned simmer.

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Necklace Material

Dritz 9342B Round Cord Elastic, Black, 1/16-Inch

5 yards (180") of light stretch elastic cord.

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More Ideas

So, mine was a very simple example. If you have more time, and can go to a craft store to choose embellishments, you can do so much more than what I've shown you. I've seen some beautiful decoupaged washer pendants using scrap book paper and Mod Podge. Some have intricate wire wrapping, bead work, or charms. Others use multiple washers in a row. If you have the tools you can personalize the pendants by stamping in text. The necklace itself is up to you too. A few easy ideas are leather, ribbon, or a chain.

There are tons of washer necklaces on Pinterest. I started a board just to pin my favorites. You can see them here.