Sunday 12 September 2010

Wish Bracelets - Additional Information ..... Thread/Cord & Charms - Buying From Hong Kong & China

For the bracelets featured today I have used a soft red cotton knitting thread - which if worn constantly has lasted between 2 - 4 weeks. However, I have since bought a reel of 0.5mm red waxed cotton from the e-bay seller below as I thought that would be a little more durable and professional looking. I got a 100m reel but the lady does sell smaller quantaties in lots of different colours.  It came within days and the seller has excellent feedback.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/0-5mm-x-10-Metres-WAXED-COTTON-CORD-RED-/380255415087?pt=UK_Crafts_JewelleryMaking_GL&hash=item5888fd2b2f

There are thousands of Tibetan silver charms at reasonable prices on e-bay but the array can be daunting .... The best thing to do is search for specific themes, I wanted snowflakes and stars ....and bought what I thought was the best value.

The "best buy" charms are from China and Hong Kong, where you can buy 50 charms for the same price of 20 identical ones in UK and often with free P & P. At first I was a little wary and crossed my fingers as I pressed the "pay now" button, but touch wood I have never been let down, but they do take several weeks to get here.  I see at the moment you can get 50 assorted snowflake/christmas charms for £3.24 (free P & P).

Christmas Wish Bracelets

Christmas Wish Bracelet 
I have made single Wish Bracelets for my “cookery girls” when they go off to do their GCSE’s but I have been thinking of ways to adapt the idea for Christmas, and this is what I have come up with.
Christmas Wish Bracelet 1
The charms were from a couple of sellers on e-bay.  I already had the “wish” charms, but it took me a little while to think of two other suitable charms to go with them, in the end I decided on snowflakes (£1.50 for 10 plus P&P) and stars (99p for 35 plus P&P), I’ve also got some wishbones on order (from Hong Kong!)
Christmas Wish Bracelet 4
I am sadly lacking in the area of the poet, so this is the best sort of verse/instructions I could come up with, perhaps I should make my own wish ……to become more poetical.
Christmas Wish Bracelet 5
To keep the threads all in place I have stuck them down with small sticky labels and then to give the whole package a professional look I have cut another piece of card the same size to cover the back when put in a cello bag .
Picture 008Picture 007
To seal the cello bag I have used some snowflakes stickers  that I think were free with a craft magazine a couple of Christmas’s ago.
Christmas Wish Bracelets 7
I am going to pop one of these in my many pocketed Advent Calendar.