DIY Tassel Earrings

Pinterest has done it again! In my quest to find the best budget-friendly decor ideas for the copper and emerald green bridal shower this weekend, I came across the CUTEST DIY earrings from A Pair & A Spare. And because I'm me, I had to put my own complicated twist on the project.

But this isn't a complicated project at all - especially if you already have most of the materials on-hand. I did have to make a quick trip to Joann's Fabrics to pick up the colored string and the copper discs, but I already had everything else in my craft drawers. From start to finish, one pair of earrings took maybe three hours, so this is an easy afternoon project.

Materials:

• Color Thread
• Copper Discs
• Earring Hooks
• Jump rings
• Elmer's Glue
• Super Glue
• Pliers
• Drill w/ very small drill bit (1/16")
• Leather scraps
• Cardboard strips

If you don't want to trek to your local craft store, I did find similar materials on Amazon.com! And I have to disclose that these are affiliate links....

Ombre Embroidery Thread ○ Copper Discs ○ Kidney Earring Hooks ○ Fishhook Earring Hooks ○ Jump Rings ○ Craft Leather Scraps

Part 1: Tassels

Creating the Tassels

For this part I cut a long rectangle of thin cardboard (from a pasta box, if that helps!) that was as tall as I wanted the tassels to be long and about 4 inches long so that I had enough cardboard on one end to grab as I wrapped the string around the cardboard.

I put a stripe of white Elmers glue about two and a half inches long along a long edge of the cardboard and proceeded to wrap a single thread of whichever color I wanted around the strip. This is also where I differed from A Pair & A Spare; I used multiple shades of blue thread to make multi-colored tassels.

Keep wrapping and looping until you have a very thick panel of string on each side and let the glue set or a few minutes.

Using small scissors, cut the threads along the bottom (not the edge with the glue) of the cardboard to create the fringed ends of the tassels. You'll want to pull the tassels-to-be off of the cardboard before it has a chance to really set or it will be stuck to the cardboard. No one wants that!

I would also recommend wrapping more thread than you think you'll need. My tassels on this first attempt ended up looking a little thin and scraggly. If you can't see the cardboard on either side anymore, your tassel is probably thick enough.

Part 2: Copper Discs

Bending the Discs

I accidentally bought brass discs instead of copper and they were almost impossible to bend! Maybe the copper discs from the original DIY are easier? Regardless, I got them bent using a jewelry kit I purchased at Hobby Lobby a few years ago, similar to this one from JC Penney.

After you've gotten the discs bent -- and given your hands a rest -- it's time to drill the hole in the discs.

"Piercing" the Discs

I didn't take a picture of this part because I forgot to document the struggle. But! If you look at the main image for this blog post, you can see where the holes need to go: at the top of the flat edge of the "half moon" or "taco" shape and the hole needs to go through both sides of the bent disc. (Pro Tip: drill on top of a piece of scrap wood if you have it so that you aren't worried about drilling into any furniture or your floor.)

It did help to create a small puncture using a small picture hanging nail and a hammer to give the drill bit a place to start. I actually broke a drill bit on this part, so consider yourself forewarned, though this may be because there are softer copper discs to be found at your craft store than I used.

Part 3: Assembling the Earrings

Shaping the Tassels

Cut a thin strip of leather into a smaller version of your half-moon discs. They should look like a flattened 'u' to make sure they don't cover the hole you've drilled for the earring hooks once the leather is wedged into the "tacos."

Attach the tassels you created in the first step to the leather to create a fan shape. I used super glue successfully, but if you have metal glue or E3000 that would probably work just as well. 

Tassel Meets Copper

Dab some glue into the insides of the folded copper tacos and insert the fan tassel. At this point, you can fold the copper piece completely closed and trim the edges of the fan tassel.

Prep the Earring Hooks

I had to use two jump rings: the 1st through the holes in the copper disc and the 2nd through that jump ring and connected to the earring hook.

This is where the pliers come in handy again, especially if you have two. Use one set of pliers to hold the jump ring, and the other to twist the ring open. These are very malleable so it doesn't take much effort to open & close the rings.

Add the Earring Hooks to the Discs + Tassel

By now, your leather & tassels have settled and dried in place in the copper "tacos," so it's safe to pick them up and mess with them again. Attach your earring hooks to the copper discs using the jump rings, and close the jump rings tightly with your pliers.

With the earring hooks I selected, the jump rings would have been quite loose, so I squeezed them a little tighter too to keep the earrings secure.

Part 4: The Grand Reveal

Et voila! Handmade earrings!

Happy crafting! If you give this a go, please let me know in the comments!