AFFIRMATION TAG BRACELET
by Barbara Matthiessen

A quick trip to a bead or craft store will provide all of the jewelry findings and beads. Materials: Silver link bracelet Opalite™ Cypress Frost, Arctic Emerald, Golden Mist and Orchid Ice 1 sheet black shrink plastic Graphic design rubber stamps-Square Stripes, All Night Media®-Zulu Border, Uptown Rubber Stamps™-Spiral, Diffusion-Small Leaf- A Stamp In Hand Word stamps- Devotion Slab, Postmodern Design-Trust, Inkadinkado Silver metallic marker (Krylon Silver Leafing Pen) Various paper tags for patterns 10- 2” silver head pins Black and iridescent E beads Crystal and opalescent 3mm-5mm beads Silver bead spacers 7mm silver jump rings Tools: 120 grit sandpaper, scissors, 1/8” hole punch, heat gun, bamboo skewer, round nose pliers, wire cutters

Instructions: Lightly sand shrink plastic in all directions. Wipe off dust.   Place tags on sanded plastic. Trace 6-10 tags depending on how long and full you desire bracelet. Cut tags out with scissors and punch hole in tops with hole punch.   Stamp graphic designs over tags using all inks except Golden Mist. Be careful while handling tags because ink is not dry.   Stamp words onto tags with Golden Mist.   Hold tag in place with skewer while heating with heat gun. Tag will curl and twist as it shrinks. Continue heating until tag lays flat. Tag can also be flattened by pressing wood side of rubber stamp against it firmly while it is still hot. Allow tags to cool before handling.   Outline tag edges using the silver pen.   Attach tags to bracelet using jump rings through punched hole. Turn sides of jump rings out as a gate, place on tag and link in bracelet then close as if closing a gate. (This will keep jump rings from spreading.) Attach all tags to bracelet.   Make beaded charms on head pins. Stack beads and spacers onto head pin. Grip top of head pin next to last bead and bend at a 90degree angle. Allow 3/8” of head pin wire then snip off excess wire. Grip end of wire with round nose pliers. Rotate pliers bending wire around into a ring meeting up with last bead. Bend ring open to one side, place on bracelet link then close.