Monday, April 27, 2020

Quick Craft: Turn Any Disney Pin Into A Necklace With This Easy DIY Converter!

The other week I accidentally 'bounded as Mickey Mouse, so I went looking for a necklace to finish off the outfit:

I couldn't' find any good necklaces, but I *did* have a cute Mickey pin... which completely disappeared on my black sweater.

So I did this!


This is a super easy trick that doesn't harm the pin, is comfy to wear, and turns almost ANY pin into a wearable necklace - which I am SO EXCITED about. I don't consider myself a pin collector, but even I have a good dozen or so that would make fantastic necklaces. And since I never wear pins but always wear necklaces, this gives me lots more options!

Just look how cute:





To make your own pin-to-necklace converter you will need: 

- a Disney pin
- a thumbtack
- 2 metal jump rings
- and 2 sets of jewelry pliers

To make it look a little nicer you can also use a necklace bail like I did, but that's optional.

Here's what you do:
 

Take one rubber pin back - which probably looks like these.

Stick a thumb tack through the back tab, like this:


 Make sure the hole is closer to the bottom of the Mickey head:

 

Now, stick a jump ring through that hole. (This part's tricky, and might take a few minutes. I find a gratuitous use of "colorful metaphors" helps.) 

Once the first jump ring is in, add another jump ring OR a necklace bail. Your choice.

 Here's how it looks with just a jump ring:

 

And here it is with the bail:


And that's it, you're done!

Your pin-to-necklace converter should look like this from the back:


And this from the front:


 Now string it on a pretty chain or cord, and have fun deciding which pin you want to plug in first!


Ideally you'll want a pin large enough to hide the rubber backer, since smaller pins like Piglet here still show the backer and can sit a little wonky:

 


Here's how it looks from the side:

 
The rubber pin back isn't pokey at all; it's very comfortable. If you wear it in the sweet spot on your clavicle, then the pin doesn't lean forward much, either.

If a little of the backer does show, it's not very obvious:

 


Especially from a distance!

 I hope this simple DIY inspires you to put your pin collection to better use, gang, and get it out of that dusty drawer and into your daily wardrobe! Remember, you only need ONE converter, since you can swap out pins with ease, so I bet almost all of you have what you need to make one right now!


 

 This converter also lets you keep your pins as pins without damaging them. If you want a more permanent conversion, though, then I'd recommend clipping off the metal pin spike from the back, sanding it down, and then using a little epoxy to add a glue-on necklace bail.



So tell me, do you have any favorite pins you'd like to wear as a necklace? Which ones? And if you end up making your own necklace converter, be sure to share pics on FB or Instagram, and tag me so I can see!


******

P.S. Looking for more crafty projects? Then check out my tutorial page!


I've got over 150 fun builds there for you to browse!




19 comments:

  1. I cannot wait to try this! What a great idea :)

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  2. This is awesome! I have tons of pins, but not so many necklace charms. Thanks for the tutorial.

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  3. What does 'bound mean? I'm unable to find a definition online. Searching always removes the ('). BTW I'm in my mid-sixties and truly enjoy both your blogs.

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    1. Search for "disneybound", that's what it's short for. It means "to casually dress up as a disney character", from a blog titled Disney Bound that showcased the idea more thoroughly.

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    2. Thank you so much! And yes, what Bay said! Disneybound is the original term, but now you can "bound" as any character by wearing everyday clothes in the colors/styles of that character. It's fun and a nice creative challenge, so I highly recommend it!

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    3. Thank you! Learned something so now my brain has a new wrinkle. I'll share this info with everyone I've asked what 'bound meant.

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  4. I suddenly had the realization I could turn all those odd earrings I had into necklace charms. Thank you.

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    Replies
    1. !!!!!!! (gasp) That is an amazing suggestion!!

      I had special earrings from my wedding and lost one. I kept the spare and didn't know what to do with it - now I do! :) Thank you!

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    2. I'm thrilled. And your response made my day. -grin- Jen's comment about taking off the pointy part of the pin made the lightbulb light-- I have one of my grandma's everyday pearl earrings left; so Dremel out.

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    3. I've done that! With earrings that have posts you can just curl the post into a circle with some jewelry pliers and put it directly on the chain. You don't even need a jump ring if the chain is thin enough. I used to buy broken costume jewelry for parts and this was one of my favorite things to do with it.

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    4. Or, you can do what my mother did . Back in the 80's she gave me a Pierrot-pin (with a brass nail on the back) and told me it was an earring. I asked her if she was sure, she said yes. I believed her. My mother wouldn't lie to me, would she? Oh my did it hurt to push that nail through. She still insists she really thought it was an earring. Laughing at the same time.

      Karin Beronius

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  5. A quick suggestion: use a small split ring (think a key ring but the size of a jewelry jump ring) for the piece inside the rubber backer. It will be more if a pain to put on, but will be far more secure.

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  6. I'm now regretting everytime I walked away from a pin I loved because I don't wear pins. But not next time!

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  7. Pardon my ignorance, but is there something like that plastic Disney pin back you can use of you want to convert other kinds of pins?

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    Replies
    1. Yes, I've seen rubber-backed pins in this style (minus the Mickey ears) on almost all artist pins, so they're not uncommon. Plus you only need one!

      They also have these on Amazon, though it seems silly to buy 100 - but at least it's only $5 for the whole pack.

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  8. I have a Swedish Chef pin I'm dying to try this with! Thanks!

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  9. This makes me go from looking at pins as pins to "OMG I WANT THEM ALL!" as a necklace!

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    Replies
    1. Me, too! Honestly some of these I may permanently convert by clipping off the pin spikes, since I have a feeling I'll want to wear them all the time this way.

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  10. This is such a great ides - thanks for sharing!

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