DIY - Zipper Earrings

A girl can never have enough accessories, and cutting back on the spending doesn't have to mean cutting back on the little joys in life. With the snow still on the ground outside though, I didn't feel like stepping out and braving the cold, so I decided to save myself the bus fare and do my window shopping from home today. Whilst browsing the Accessorize website I came across some earring shaped like zippers and instantly thought... I could do that! They cost only £5 for three pairs, which works out at £1.66 each and I think that's pretty reasonable, but it's still cheaper to do things my way; and much more satisfying too!

What you need:

Two matching old or damaged zippers, strong glue, scissors, nail polish and blank earring backs. I don't have pierced ears, so I used clip-ons, but studs would work just fine.

Step 1: Cut off the zippers so that the slides are loose.

Step 2: Using a little bit of glue, stick down the loose bits so that they don't move.

Step 3: Paint with the nail polish colour of your choice.

Now this is where you need a little patience, because the drying time is a kicker! You need to make sure that the nail polish is COMPLETELY dry before proceeding to the next step. Trust me, if you touch them too soon you will just end up with nasty smudgy fingerprints, and who wants that on their accessories?!

Step 4: Apply glue to the earring backs and press the zipper slides on firmly. Leave to dry again.

And you're done!

I should note that the nail polish I used was a little old and gloopy, which ended up with a blobby end result. Using a newer nail polish would have a better result, or you may want to experiment with spray paint, that would create a more even coating and would look pretty cool. I however, did not HAVE spray paint, and as the object of the game is to not spend, nail polish would have to suffice for me.

The inspiration earrings cost £5.00, all I paid for here were the earring blanks which cost £1.35 for a pack of three.

Total cost: 45p bargain!
Total time spent: 1 hour - to allow for drying time.