String, sparkle, repeat — handmade jewelry made simple
The lanyard is quietly the most-worn necklace in America — so why do most of ours look like free convention swag? Here are three beaded lanyard designs, from beginner-friendly to pattern-proud, all built on breakaway hardware for safety.
You don't need a dedicated studio to make jewelry — you need a system. Here's the exact roll-up, stack-and-stow setup I use at my kitchen table, plus the teardown routine that keeps my roommate (and my sanity) intact.
I walked into my local dollar store with a five-dollar bill and one rule: everything had to come off the party favor shelf, the hair aisle, or the kitchen section. Here's what I made, what I'd skip next time, and the stringing tricks that made five bucks of plastic look like a boutique haul.
Every beader has that jar — the mismatched odds and ends that never seem to go together. Kiki turned hers into a finished necklace in a single afternoon using three simple design rules, and she's challenging you to do the same.
I found a $3 blazer at Goodwill, stitched a beaded lapel pin to the left collar, and now strangers at the coffee shop ask where I shop. Here's the full tutorial, plus the stitching tricks that keep your beadwork intact through the wash cycle.
Every trip I take ends with a finished bracelet, and this is the kit that makes it happen. Here's exactly what fits in a quart-size bag, which projects actually work in an airplane seat, and how to turn vacation finds into beads you'll wear forever.
I spent two years making bracelets that technically fit and never got worn. Turns out the problem wasn't my bead choices — it was my tape measure. Here's the sizing method I use now, plus the cheat sheet that lives taped inside my craft cabinet.
Stacking five bracelets you made yourself can swing from editorial to elementary-school craft fair fast. Kiki shares her anchor-and-wildcards method, plus three mix-and-match layering recipes you can string in a single afternoon.
Before a single Czech glass bead gets touched, I string every new design with the saddest, cheapest beads in my stash. Here's why the 'ugly mockup' has saved me hundreds of dollars — and which five designs lived or died by it.
Ever finish a necklace you love, put it on, and immediately feel like something's... off? Nine times out of ten, it's not your design — it's where the piece sits. Here's the length math I wish someone had handed me five years ago.
We design gorgeous pieces, then wear the same three necklaces on repeat. Here's the one-evening closet audit that fixed that for me — matching bead colors, metals, and necklace lengths to the necklines you actually own.
The moment I caught myself doing cost-per-piece math on a pair of earrings I made for my sister's birthday, I knew something had gone sideways. Here's why I quit running my hobby like a side hustle — and the simple questions I use to keep it that way.
The best jewelry supplies I own didn't come from a craft store — they came from aisle nine at Home Depot and the fishing section at Walmart. Here's my honest list of non-craft supplies that make handmade pieces look like they came from a boutique, plus exactly how I use each one.
Chunky acrylics, stretchy chokers, and candy-colored everything are back — and honestly, I'm thrilled. Here's my honest take on which throwback jewelry trends to revisit with grown-up skills, and which ones we should leave fondly in 1997.
We keep blaming bead budgets and fancy pliers, but that's not why new makers quit. Here's my crankypants theory about the moment everyone bails — and the trick that finally got me past it.
If your jewelry habit falls apart the second you hit the beach, this one's for you. These adjustable macramé bracelets use nothing but cord and knots — no crimps, no findings, and no reason to ever take them off.
Forget the fancy studio setup — the best jewelry I make happens on the couch, twenty minutes before bed. Here's why I keep a beat-up basket of supplies within arm's reach, plus the foolproof earring pattern I turn to when I need to unspool a stressful day.
Before you drop money on trend-colored beads, raid what you already own. Kiki shows how to match the Color of the Year with paint chips and build three wearable palettes from your existing stash.
After five years and one very crowded craft cart, Kiki narrows down the gear that actually earns its spot. Spoiler: the fancy stuff mostly didn't make the cut.
You can follow a tutorial perfectly and still end up with a piece that looks like summer camp crafts. Here are the five giveaways I spot from across the room — and exactly how I fix each one before anything leaves my bench.