If you’ve been searching for the perfect gift with a touch of whimsy, look no further than this DIY Charm Necklace!
Before we get to the tutorial, I’m going to muse a bit about indecision – a talent I seem to have perfected. Case in point: my ongoing dental drama. What started as a routine cleaning turned into a full-blown saga starring one very indecisive molar. Root canal? Implant? Exploratory surgery? I’ve given my dentists quite the workout (not to mention my pocketbook) and changed my mind so many times, I half expect the tooth to just get up and leave out of sheer frustration. If only it could!
But here’s the thing about indecision; it’s not all bad. Sometimes, it leads to unexpected creativity. While debating my tooth’s fate, I realized I needed a distraction. Something fun, simple, and, most importantly, decisive.
Making a charm necklace turns out to be the perfect antidote to decision fatigue. You get to choose your favourite pieces – even better if they represent something meaningful – and combine them into a unique, wearable story. Plus, it’s a much less stressful way to make choices than deciding between tooth-saving options.
Today we’re transforming a vintage heart locket, thrifted yarn, wine charm, leather cord and a knitting needle into a one-of-a-kind piece of jewelry. Whether you’re celebrating Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, or just want to remind someone how charming they are, this upcycled necklace is a heartfelt gift (but I may just keep it for myself).
DIY Charm Necklace Elements
With the exception of the sweet vintage locket, all of this stuff is thrifted. I found this ugly necklace and loved it for the round leather cord. That chunk of metal is SO heavy, it just has to go (you may see it again in a future upcycle).
The cable knitting needle and kilt pins are courtesy of one of Hubs excursions. As you’ll see later, you can make this into two different versions of this necklace; use whatever you have at your disposal!
Lastly, I spotted a wine charm with this bottle opener set, thrifted from Value Village. Because, it pulls in the gold and black from the locket and beads, we’ll use it to compliment the pink variegated yarn.
Even the yarn is thrifted! I love finding yarn at the thrift store; I always find something I’d never think to buy at full price.
By the way, it’s time for another Creative Craft blog hop! So if you are visiting from Tammy at Patina and Paint, welcome! Weren’t her decoupage hearts lovely? At the very bottom of this post, we’ll be directing you to the next stop on this venture. But don’t forget to check out the other stops too because you’ll find plenty more ideas. Be sure to drop back in throughout the week to visit them all!
Materials
[If you’re looking for some of the things we used, we’ve got you covered (disclosure): The blue links in this post may be affiliate links. We earn a commission from qualifying purchases which we proudly donate to Alzheimer’s research. But don’t worry, you don’t pay a cent more! Thanks for helping to support our fundraiser!]
- Jump rings (variety pack)
- Kilt pin – three inch or four inch
- Cable knitting needle
- Cotton yarn – red or pink variegated
- Vintage rose heart locket
- 4 mm knitting needles
- Large hole black beads
- Blunt large eye needle
- Wine charm
- Black rubber grommets or knitting needle stops
- Scissors
DIY Charm Necklace
Kilt Pin Version
To start, we’re going to cast on 3 stitches and knit a heart (the pattern is in the next section).
You’ll knit two identical parts on the same needle.
Then snug them up to each other and knit them together.
You’ll end by weaving the end through the last three stitches.
Use a jump ring to attach the heart locket in the middle of the knit heart. The tail ends create the two loops for attaching to the kilt pin (or a knitting needle as you’ll see ahead). Weave in all ends on the back.
This version is so simple and lovely for Valentine’s Day or Mother’s day. By adding additional jump rings onto the kilt pin, you can turn it into a necklace. Or you could permanently attach this to the non-working end of the kilt pin so it can be warn as a pin.
However, I experimented further with a cable knitting needle and further embellishment just for fun (keep reading below the pattern)!
Knit Heart Pattern
Here’s the free pattern for the knit heart.
Abbreviations
- kfb – an increase stitch: knit in front loop, keep st on needle, then knit into the back loop
- K – knit
Cast on three stitches.
R1. knit 3.
R2. K2, kfb
R3. K3, kfb
R4. K4, kfb
R5. K5, kfb
R6. K7
The left section of the heart is now finished and you can cut the yarn leaving 8 inches. Slide this over, leaving this on the needle then cast on another three stitches onto the same needle. Repeat rows one to six.
Slide the two sections together and continue knitting.
R7. K6, K2tog, K6
R8 – 11. knit the next four rows
Now we’ll decrease as follows:
R12. K11, K2tog
R13. K10, K2tog
R14. K9, K2tog
R15. K8, K2tog
R16. K7, K2tog
R17. K6, K2tog
R18. K5, K2tog
R19. K4, K2tog
R20. K3, K2tog
R21. K2, K2tog
R22. K3
Cut yarn and thread the tail onto a blunt needle. Weave the yarn through the remaining three stitches on the needle and remove the needle and pull yarn tight. Use the tail ends as indicated or weave in all ends.
Use in kilt pin or knitting needle version of the DIY charm necklace.
Knitting Needle Version
When I came across this wine charm, I couldn’t resist repurposing it for this DIY charm necklace; it screams “key to my heart”! If you don’t have a wine charm, you can easily make one with some wire, beads and a key charm.
Position it at the bottom of the knitted heart and push the wire ends through to the back. It won’t likely fall out because of the way the wire is bent, but feel free to add a drop to glue and let dry if you want the extra assurance.
Attaching the Knitting Needle
Now to add the knitting needle and cord. First, you’ll need black rubber grommets (or needle stops if you have them), large hole black beads and jump rings.
Put one rubber grommet on the knitting needle. Then string on the first loop of the heart, followed by 5 black beads, the other heart loop and the final rubber stopper.
Add a jump ring onto the left needle and thread the leather cord through. Position the second jump ring on the cord. Then insert the right side of the needle through the jump ring. Be sure to choose jump rings that aren’t too big; just big enough to fit the cord and knitting needle without squishing the cord.
Reveal
Centre everything so it’s balanced on the leather cord. I love how the black, gold and pink colours play off each other! It’s also so interesting how the cable knitting needle naturally falls into the ‘V’ of the knit heart.
If you’re wondering if everything will stay put, gravity will do its job and keep everything in place. If you like, you can add knitting needle stops over the pointy ends of the knitting needle, but I prefer it as-is!
Funnily enough the ‘V’ of the heart fits right into the V detail of my sweatshirt. Like it was meant to be!
Isn’t it charming? I absolutely love the idea of incorporating knitting needles into jewelry. While my incisions heal and I gear up for yet another dentist appointment (fingers crossed this root canal does the trick), I’ve already created another knitting needle necklace that I’ll be sharing soon.
Next time you’re at the thrift store, take a moment to imagine all the creative possibilities for repurposing knitting needles into unique pieces. The options are endless!
In the meantime, I can’t put the actual knitting needles down and knit this sweatshirt cuff replacement to save my favourite cozy sweatshirt! It’s a great idea to save a comfy standby from the landfill!
Want more unique thrift ideas for Valentines? Check out this wooden air plant holder, paint stick pallet made from paint stirrers, or felt appliqué.
Pin DIY Charm Necklace
Creative Craft Hop
Now it’s time to check out this Lantern Floral Swag For Winter In Black and White from Donna at Modern Monticello. When you’re done, please remember to visit these other amazing talents below:
- Valentine’s Heart Shaped Air Dry Clay Dish
- Drab to Fab Spruced Up Winter Garden Sign
- Cord Wrapped Wire Basket
- Valentine Tree
- Free DIY Valentine’s Day Treat Bag Toppers using Printables
- Decoupage Hearts
- DIY Charm Necklace (that’s us!)
- Lantern Floral Swag For Winter In Black and White
- Crushed Glass Valentine-No Resin
- DIY Pottery Barn Vase Dupe
I know I’ve told you this before, Sara, but your creativity is amazing! Only you can come up with such a beautiful creation all over a dental decision about a tooth! Your charm necklace is gorgeous and quite unique and I love it! And it looks perfect around your neck!
You are so sweet Gail! A knitting needle necklace probably isn’t to everyone’s taste, but it sure is a conversation starter and so fun to wear :).
How pretty. I love how creative you are with your crafts Sara. I love each thing you added to the heart to make it unique. Thanks for sharing the pattern with us. Terrie – Decorate with Tip and More
Thanks Terrie! It’s been a long time since I picked up some knitting needles and knitted anything. It was fun to brush up again!
This is so pretty Sara, and amazing how you created this from this and that on hand! Wow! Good luck with your tooth and thank you for hosting the hop today!
Jenna
I’d really like to craft this year using only what I have on hand; I think it will be a fun challenge but we’ll see how long it lasts lol!
I love to create things with what I have, it is fun, thank Sara!
Half the time I surprise myself by finding things I didn’t even remember I had! Maybe this is the year I get more organized too!
This is so creative!
Thanks so much Gina!
What a creative idea!
Thanks so much Joanne!
I love your creativity, Sara. This is a clever and well thrifted project.
Thanks so much Alys! It’s always fun to dig into the craft stash to see what develops!
Agreed!
Sara, I adore your pretty knitted heart and charming necklace–great job!
Thanks so much Cecilia!
You have a creative mind for sure! Using all those thrifted elements to create such a sweet necklace. I’m loving that vintage heart, also. Thanks for hosting!
Being creative definitely keeps the brain working with all that problem solving! And you’re welcome Allyson; it’s always a pleasure to host :).
You have started off the year with a great project. Good luck continuing to work through your craft stash.
Thanks Donna; should be a fun challenge!
Very creative, Sara, and I love the addition of the heart locket!
Thanks so much Ann!
Ouchie, there’s nothing worse than problem teeth. My sympathies, Sara. I hope the root canal works out and takes away the pain.
Thank goodness you have such a brilliantly creative mind to come up with something so unique. I don’t believe I’ve ever seen anything quite like it. Pinned.
Thanks Michelle!
What a clever and creative idea. Thanks for sharing with us at Handmade Monday 🙂
Thanks so much Julie; that means a lot coming from you :).
Oh how cute!! Thanks for joining in on Home Matters Linky Party! I will be featuring your post this week! #HomeMattersParty xx
Wow, thanks so much Joy! It’s always exciting to be featured!