The Best Bib Necklace

By: Aki for A Nest for All Seasons

If your current outfit is leaving you unsatisfied, try dressing it up with The Best Bib Necklace. This tutorial will show you how to make a necklace that everyone will be talking about. Forget diamonds! Leather is a girl's best friend with this project. This necklace is a surefire way to dress up virtually any outfit. Make a splash with this bold DIY accessory. You make not want to stop learning how to make leather necklaces once you start. No matter how you wear it, you will surely make a statement.

Materials:

6" x 5" Leather or Pleather
Cut-out Template
Sticker paper or Contact paper
Scissors
X-acto knife
Cutting Mat
Ready-made jewelry chain & connectors or
Chain, Lobster clasp, Jump rings and Jewelry pliers
Leather punch tool

Instructions:

Print your template on sticker paper, resizing it if you want a smaller bib necklace. You may use a cutting machine to cut your template on contact paper if you have access to one. Note: you don't have to cut down your pattern if using sticker paper, you can just stick it directly onto your leather and cut from there.
Stick your pattern onto your leather/pleather fabric and start cutting following the edge of the template.
Use scissors to cut some off the outer edges and the circular parts.
Use an X-acto knife or a box knife to cut the inner parts, but if you think you have better control using scissors then go ahead and finish cutting your piece using that.
After cutting, peel off your pattern to see your almost finished product.
If you have uneven or kind of ugly edges, fix that with a few snips of your scissors. Be careful with this part though.
Make a hole on each end for attaching your ready-made chain.
If you don't have a leather punching tool, carefully cut out your hole with scissors or your X-acto knife.
Now attach your ready-made chain with your connectors.
If you don't feel like making a bib necklace, you can trim it by folding your bib in half and cutting up a V-shape in between the top and bottom circles.