DIY Tutorial: Chandelier Crystal Earrings

Love them but don't want to make them? Click here to buy them at my Etsy shop.

I have A LOT of jewelry supplies lying around. Since I am trying to save money, I'm going to go ahead and use the things I already have to do tutorials with. Jewelry tutorials are the easiest for me to make since I have been making jewelry for almost 10 years now. Plus, it's pretty AND you get to wear it while having the satisfaction of knowing you made it yourself (which is especially awesome when you get compliments on it!).

I wanted to do a pair of chandeliers for this post for a few reasons. The first is that it is not much more difficult than some of the other earrings I have done tutorials for on this site. (Check out: Christmas Tree Earrings to see what I mean). It's essentially the same thing really. It just takes longer and you have to repeat steps multiple times.

I chose to do my earrings with Swarovski crystal. Swarovski beads are pretty expensive though, so if you don't already have some on hand, you can use pretty much any bead as long as they will fit nicely in the frames you choose. You can also pick any frames you like. There are usually a few different types at craft stores.

Materials:

- A pair of chain nose pliers

- A pair of round nose pliers

- A pair of cutters

- 2 Chandelier frames

- Headpins (one for each loop on your chandelier frames)

- Beads (I used 4mm, 5mm, and 6mm Swarovski crystal but you can choose whatever you want as long as they are small enough to fit in the frames).

- 2 Earring wires

Directions:

Step 1: Place beads you want for the center of your chandelier on an headpin. Grab the end of the head pin (the end with no head) and bend it at the top of the beads. Be careful not to do it too aggressively, or the top crystal may crack. You will want to make sure that there is room for the headpin and the beads in the middle of your chandelier. If the headpin is too long, or the beads are too large, the piece will not dangle correctly.

Step 2: Next, take the round nose pliers and grab the head pin at the top of the beads. Make sure it is as close to the beads as possible without actually touching the top bead. Grab the end of the head pin and bend it around the looping pliers, pulling to make a round shape with the wire.

Step 3: Next, cut off the excess wire leaving some room to complete the rest of the loop.

Step 4: Finally, use the chain nose pliers to bend the wire into a complete loop. I find it easiest to push up at the same time as bending to make a nice even loop. This step can be difficult if you've never made jewelry before, so you may want to practice on some empty head pins before trying it. Okay, so now push the loop closed. This piece is finished.

Step 5: Repeat this process with all other dangling pieces. How many beads you put on which loop in the chandelier frames is entirely up to you. I decided to keep it simple and put two larger beads for the middle piece and one small bead on each bottom loop (see photos). You can be creative and put as many as you'd like for each loop. Just make sure they will dangle correctly and not get stuck when they hang. Attach pieces as you make them by opening the loop you made on the headpins and closing them around the loops on the chandelier frames using a pair of chain nose pliers.

Step 6: Once all your pieces are on the frames, open the earring wires and slip the frames onto them. Close them with the chain nose pliers.

You're done!

Love them but don't want to make them? Click here to buy them at my Etsy shop.

5 of My All Time Favorite Recipes

I know I haven't been posting much. Unfortunately, I've had to tighten my budget up and can't really spend money on materials or ingredients for blog posts right now.

Today, I decided to write a blog post about 5 recipes that I have made over and over again. They have become staples in our dinner menu rotation over the past 5 or so years. These are all from Allrecipes.com - one of my favorite recipe sites.

Links are provided as well as a description of each recipe and the things I have done differently than the original recipe's author.

Garlic Chicken

This is one of those recipes that's so easy, you can throw it together in just a few minutes from stuff you might already have on hand. It makes flavorful, juicy chicken breasts with a nice crunchy exterior.

Tip: The only thing I do different for this recipe is to pound the breasts out so they are nice and thin. I'm not a big fan of a low crunchy outside to meaty inside ratio and pounding it thin solves the problem. If you are going to do this, you need to decrease the cooking time or it will overcook.

Cream of Tomato Soup with Pesto

I absolutely hate the way Campbell's tomato soup tastes. It's sickeningly sweet and the texture is globulous and just all wrong. I use this recipe for my tomato soup needs and it's amazing. It tastes exactly the way tomato soup should taste. The pesto sets off the whole dish perfectly.

Tips: Make sure the soup is cool before blending it. This recipe once caused my blender to explode from the build up of heat within. I had burns up and down my arms. It wasn't good. Secondly, use the pesto to taste. The amount you need will largely depend on the brand you use so add it and taste it til it's perfect.

Baked Salmon

This recipe makes you look like you really know how to cook, even if you don't. It's elegant and super tasty. It has a nice lemony flavor that complements the fish perfectly and baking it in foil keeps all the moisture sealed in perfectly.

Tips: I substitute some of the butter for olive oil to make it healthier. I also top each fillet with very thinly sliced lemon with the rind still on it. The 1/8 inch slices add more flavor and make it look fancier. I also make sure to wrap each fillet in its own small foil pocket instead of putting them all in one together. Lastly, you can make rice to serve the fish over and dump the liquid from the bottom of the foil over it.

Catfish Tuscany

(sorry this pic is awful, hopefully I'll have a chance to make this soon and do a post on it)

I've used multiple types of fish for this recipe and have discovered that any type of mild fish will work. It's soooo yummy! I've always had it with sun-dried tomatoes, not sliced or canned. This recipe produces fish that eve fish haters are likely to enjoy. It's rich and flavorful yet is still low in calories.

Tips: watch your fish carefully when in the broiler! At least 6 inches from the flame is a must! I've never tried it with Roma tomatoes and I really don't want it any other way after having it with sun-dried tomatoes on it!

Broiled Tilapia Parmesan

This is my fiance's favorite meal. When I first started making it, I thought the ingredients were a bit weird. Over time, I didn't care what was in it. It's yum!

Tip: This recipe can be used on other mild fish as well. You'll want it 6 inches from the heat source when broiling.

Balcony Container Garden

I shop for groceries 3-4 times a week. I like to buy the freshest meat and produce and that requires going to the store frequently. Day after day, I am faced with the choice to buy the pricier organic or the pesticide laden conventional produce. Living on a budget is hard, especially when it's important to you to eat clean, organic food.

To solve this problem, I decided to plant my own garden. I live in an apartment with a long narrow balcony. I started to research how to make a container garden. It's simple really and the materials I used, while unconventional, seem to be working out great.

I used 3 rubbermaid type tubs along with other pots to plant my garden. The most important thing when using any type of container is drainage. Your plants need moist soil but their roots can't be sitting in water for a long period or they will rot. I cut triangular holes in the bottom of my rubbermaid containers. To get the holes started, I used a nail heated with a lighter and then pounded into the bottom of the container with a hammer. It wasn't the simplest way to do it but it did work with the limited materials I already had. Once the nail had penetrated the container, I used a sharp knife to cut the triangular holes. They were about 1/2 - 3/4 inches wide.

I layered lava rock across the bottom of each container. I tried to stick to the larger rocks with a diameter of around 1-2 inches. I then topped the rocks with coffee filters before pouring organic soil on top. I also mixed in a little organic fertilizer into the top 2-3 inches of soil.

Currently, I have strawberry plants (which are already producing fruit), a cherry tomato plant, cucumber plant, multiple types of lettuce, basil, mint, chives, and onions. The things that seem to be taking the longest to grow are the lettuces. The tomato plant is starting to bud and has shot up nearly a foot since I planted it three weeks ago! It's all going really well, and that's saying a lot for a self proclaimed plant killer. I guess I just never took the time to really research how to properly garden.

During research, I found that these were the most important things to consider:

1) Drainage! You're plants will die if their roots sit in water for too long. They will start to rot. Drainage is not just about making holes at the bottom of the planter, it's also about making sure the holes don't get clogged with soil and that containers are off the ground where they can't drain properly. I have my large containers on bricks so that the water doesn't build up underneath.

2) Amount of sunlight. Make sure when buying plants to check how much light they need and how much light the area you want to put them in gets. All the plants I chose were full sunlight since my balcony gets light all day long.

3) Use potting soil! You need soil specifically for potting. If you get regular soil for planting in the ground, you won't be getting enough nutrients to have a thriving container garden.

4) Use fertilizer. I found organic fertilizer/plant food at Wal Mart.

5) Do your own research! This post is just to give you an idea of how to go about container gardening. Trust me when I say, I am not an expert at this... in fact, this is my first thriving garden ever.

For some reason, these pictures came out extremely bright although it didn't appear so on my camera's screen. These are just a few photos of when I first planted the garden and then a few more of the garden after 3 weeks. There were a few lettuce plants that were a little wilted in some photos but I'd like to report that they are all doing fine now.

Arugula- week 1

Arugula- week 3

Strawberries - Week 1

Strawberries - Week 3

Lettuce - Week 1

Lettuce - week 3

Basil - week 1

Basil - week 3

Tomato - week 1

Tomato - week 3

Chives - week 1

Chives - week 3

Cucumber - week 1

Cucumber - week 3

Overall - week 1

Overall - Week 3

UPDATE: It is now week four and a half and some of my plants are ready to eat! The arugula is more than ready.

This morning, I went outside a took a close look at the leaves of my lettuce and what did I find? Only hundreds of aphids!!! Hurdle number one is here and I'm going to do my best to correct the problem. I'll update in a few days.

St. Patty's Day

Ladies and Gents, we are lucky this year. St. Patty's Day is FINALLY falling on a Saturday! It's been a long time coming and I am thoroughly looking forward to it this year. In past years, finals have always seemed to create a conflict with the holiday. This year, no finals, and... on Saturday!

St. Patty's is especially important for me. It is my anniversary - the day that my fiance and I became more than friends and started on the wonderful journey that is us. This year is our 6th and I'm determined to make it the best. He will also be completing his final two classes for his bachelor's in Biotechnology on the 16th. Congrats Love!!!

In honor of St. Patty's, I've found some great party ideas. Take a look at these recipes for cool looking food and drinks: (Links to each recipe are in titles)

St. Patty's Day Food and Drinks:

Rainbow cupcakes:

Rainbow Cake:

Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes

St. Patrick's Day Drink Recipes:

Rainbow Jello: