Dangles and Bangles: 25 Funky Accessories to Make and Wear

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Reported by: Heather Strenzwilk

Like many crafty moms, I am always on the lookout for craft projects that my daughter and I can do together. When we found this book, my daughter and I were eager to try some of the projects

Dangles and Bangles: 25 Funky Accessories to Make and Wear was written by the mother-daughter team of Sherri Haab and her teenage daughter Michelle. The authors present 25 projects- with variations such as necklaces, belts, earrings, bracelets, key chains, ankle bracelets and toe rings. The projects range from the practical- duct tape change purse and belts to the frivolous- cell phone robots.

The book is divided into several sections: Tools & Techniques, Groovy Girl (mod jewelry), Out & About (keychains and coin purses), Gettin' Glam (sparkly jewelry and hairclips) and Fun Lovin' (recycled objects such as junk drawer charm bracelets and time capsule charms.) There is a good discussion of the basics and several photos. Additionally, there are traceable project templates and a limited resource guide including URL's.

My daughter and I made several projects from the book including: butterfly ankle bracelet (modified into a necklace), cell phone dangles (for an old cell phone), button bracelets and ribbon jewelry. Other projects that caught our attention but we lacked the materials for were: pop top belt, glittery hair flowers, candy wrapper jewelry and duct tape coin purses. Our favorite recycled item was the empty Tic Tac mint dispenser that was turned into a mini wedding treasure capsule.


The ribbon bracelet was one of the simpler projects in the book. However, I wish that there had been a photo of a model wearing the bracelet. The samples in the book used 7 or 8 large buttons, but when we made a bracelet with 7 small buttons, it was large enough for my wrist. Even showing a photo with a coin as a reference would have been helpful.


One of the few projects which is created from scratch is the butterfly ankle bracelet. My daughter wanted a necklace so we followed the directions but made three shrink plastic butterflies to be worn as a necklace. This was our favorite project. We have used shrink plastic many times but I had never thought to add glitter glue like Stickles or faux jewels. My daughter even said she would wear this necklace to school!


My daughter enjoyed digging through her "junk" to find items to use for cell phone dangles and a ribbon pendant. The samples used elastic coated rubberbands to hang the "dangles" from the phone. While these projects weren't particularly creative, they weren't messy either. These might be a fun way to involve a younger sibling (and to clean out the toybox!)

The book had a heavy 60's themed projects and illustrations. I had the opportunity to show the book to several young ladies ranging from ages 7-14. The younger ones had no concept of the 60's and the older ones thought it was "retro" but said they wouldn't wear anything like that. In particular, the braided cloth belt and felt flowers for hats, were given a universal "thumbs down."

Many of the projects in the book relied on either basic jewelry making supplies such as beads and findings or miscellaneous junk (game pieces and gumball machine toys.) While some of the samples were cute and variations were offered, I think the average tween might have difficulty trying to duplicate the projects exactly. Some of the suggested tools, such as a Fiskars craft hand drill, are not the most common tools. One project, for glittery hair flowers, involved adding glitter to silk flowers and I have concerns about the wearer getting glitter in her hair.

Pros:

• Descriptive directions (including photos) and additional tips for personalization
• Projects targeted for a female tween - early teen audience (all but one project was "girly")
• Several projects use common household objects or recycled materials and some good ideas such as using commonly found coated elastic rubberbands

Cons:

• Several projects require adult assistance (drill, oven, etc.)
• 60's retro themed book and projects- the kids I talked to didn't understand the significance
• Some project materials difficult to find- especially for the robot cell dangler project
• No photos of the finished pieces being worn by models

This book was originally published in 2005 and a revised edition, including a project kit will be available soon. The first edition of the book is still available from various online book retailers including: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Target for $9.95.

The premise of the book is cute but this was definitely more of a "how-to" guide for combining pre-made items. Some of the projects lacked originality (gum chain jewelry, pop tab belt) but would keep hands busy on a road trip. For those wanting more of a "from scratch" creative project book, you'll need to look elsewhere. I'll be interested to see if the revised edition and project kit bridges the creativity gap.

Have you read this book? Did you like any of the projects in it? Share your thoughts with our readers.