DIYF (Do-It-Yourself Friday): Make mini God’s Eye jewelry
I’ve been bitten by the camping crafts bug. I just can’t get enough of the God’s Eyes we featured the cover of the June/July issue of ReadyMade, and while stringing a few of my own at the Curiosity Shoppe event last weekend, I came up with a brilliant idea (if I do say so myself): Why not make miniature God’s Eyes and turn them into jewelry? So that’s exactly what I did…
INGREDIENTS
- Skeins of embroidery floss in various colors
- 2 toothpicks
- Various jewelry findings (jump rings, chain, clasp, earring hooks, etc.)
TOOLS
- Scissors
- Pliers
- Clear nail polish or clear-drying glue (optional)
- Sandpaper or nail file (optional)
MAKE IT
1. Make a miniature God’s Eye out of embroidery floss and toothpicks: Start by tying one end of the embroidery floss to the middle of one of the toothpicks. This will allow you to keep the floss taut as you begin to wind it around the frame. (Psst… In case your God’s Eye-making skills are rusty, Design*Sponge has some great step-by-step photos of the process.)
2. Cross your toothpicks at perpendicular angles to form an X-shaped frame. To bind the sticks together, use a figure eight technique and wind the floss around the point of intersection. Do this only until the two toothpicks are bound together in an X shape; three to five loops should suffice.
3. Start weaving the floss around around the four poles of your toothpick frame. Remember, the goal is to weave the floss in a diamond pattern; take the floss over the top of one pole, wrap it around the pole, and then proceed to the next pole and do the same. You can weave in either a clockwise or counterclockwise direction, just keep the floss taut as you go. To change colors, simply snip the floss, tie the end of a new skein of floss to the existing line, and keep weaving.
4. When you’re finished weaving your God’s Eye, wrap the floss two or three times around one of the poles, snip the line (leave some room to tie it off), and secure the line to the pole with a simple knot. To make the necklace shown in the picture above, I threaded a jump ring onto the line just before I tied my knot, and then threaded a chain from a different necklace through the 
ring. You can also make a pair of mini God’s Eyes and attach an earring hook to each one, or make two different mini God’s Eyes and create a lanyard-style necklace by attaching them to the two ends of one chain.
5. Don your new summer camp-inspired baubles!
{ TIPS }
1. To strengthen the knots on the back of your mini God’s Eyes, coat them with a tiny drop of clear nail polish or clear-drying glue.
2. If you’re concerned about the tips of the toothpicks snagging your clothes or poking you, snip the points off with scissors and give the ends of the poles a quick smoothing with sandpaper or a nail file. I’ve been wearing my necklace for a couple of days without trimming the points and I haven’t had any problems, but I imagine that if you make God’s Eye earrings, the toothpicks might jab you in the neck.
