I’ve recently become a lover of old postcards. Ever since I found this little corner of history in an antique mall in Austin, I fell in love. I’d just sit down and flip through thousands of postcards, as hours passed me by. It’s not about the thing, the postcards themselves. It’s about the stories they tell. They inspire. They bring back. They give us a glimpse into the past and what life was like ‘back when.’ My favorites are postcards of painted places. And so I’m going to share a tutorial with you for making postcard pendants. Maybe you have a favorite place, a dream destination. With this tutorial, you’ll be able to wear that place around your neck as constant inspiration for dreaming big.
Hammer │ Chisel │Mod Podge – Dimensional Magic │Postcards│Scissors│Necklace Supplies │An old pendant (either earrings or a necklace pendant will work – preferably used, so as to upcycle and make use of what is already available) │A pin
STEP 1 : Peruse through and pick out your favorite postcards.
STEP 2 : Find an old pendant. It can be in the form of earrings (which are great because then you can make two necklaces) or a necklace. I found these at a local thrift shop. The best places are thrift shops, garage sales, estate sales and Craigslist. As with all of my tutorials, everything is as repurposed as possible.
STEP 3 : Use your chisel and hammer and gut out the inside. Just make sure it’s as flat as possible. You’re not always going to be able to get all of it out though, and that’s okay.
STEP 4 : Pick out a spot that you want to use in your post card for the pendant. Here is a trick (which I didn’t include in the supplies because it’s optional) – create a stencil for the shape you need. I found an old plastic bottle and cut my needed shape out of it. Clear is best because then you can be sure what you are cutting out is what you want.
STEP 5 : Cut out your piece and put it in the pendant. If it’s nice and snug, then it may be fine. But just in case, use some glue to get it in. Otherwise it will rise and bubble when you add in the mod podge.
STEP 6 : Take your dimensional mod podge and slowly fill the pendent, covering the image completely. Use the pin if you get any bubbles. Your finger will also suffice. It will be very fuzzy at first. Let it sit for 3 hours and you will have a clear postcard pendent, turning the discarded into the cherished.
For the curious: The other postcard I used is an old car driving down Big Foot Pass in South Dakota.
What place would you choose for a postcard pendant?
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Also, after a lot of thinking and messing around with my shop website, I’ve decided to hold off on the shop for a few reasons. Mostly, I’ve had an idea for a different shop for a long time that I’m super stoked about and I’ve decided to focus on that idea. So I’ll share that once it comes to fruition. In the meantime, I’m going to share what I hope are original and helpful tutorials. If you see what you like, I’m willing to sell them and will only charge for the cost of the items and shipping, so as to cover my costs.
These are so cute!
Ooooh! Love these! I love how vintagy they look.
This is such a fun idea! I also love the painted postcards!
Oh wow, I definitely think I’m going to try doing this, it looks so cool! Also, I’m so jealous of you and your husband, travelling the world in an RV will be amazing. I have ultimate jealously! Your blog is so cute by the way! x
I love this! When I was in Austin this weekend we stopped by Uncommon Objects and I absolutely loved the old post cards and photographs, especially if they had been previously written on. I wrote about my visit, here.
What a great tutorial, I’d love to try it.
-Sarah
sarrrahgirl
What a brilliant idea! I love mod podging, and vintage postcards – perfect!!
Thanks for sharing!
Sarah xo
Oh dear! Those are adorable!! I wanna make em. ^^
Great idea for a personal piece of jewellery! Thanks for sharing.
I love this idea! They turned out so pretty! Thanks for sharing
What a lovely DIY! Very simple too. I collect postcards and can already imagine some of them making stunning pendants.
What a great way to keep old memories.
What a great idea. These look unique and the best part is they look vintage.
This is such a cute craft!!! So simple, personal, and unique!
Hello it’s me again! I’m just so into your blog! We should follow each other on bloglovin’. I just started following you and can’t wait to read more from you:)
Much love, http://www.myomlife.com/
These are so beautiful!
These are so beautiful and creative!!!
Now following you on Bloglovin.
Looking forward to reading more of your posts.
Have a great weekend
Bismah @
Simple Mama
Hi! What a great project! Recycling and preserving the history behind it aswell. You know, the castle in your project is actually an old mill, transformed into a hotel to today, so one could say that this old mill, the Saltsjökvarn, has gone through the same process as your pendant; still there but in a new shape.
This is amazing!! I’d never in a million years think to do this but they look perfect as jewelry. Fun to see some of the work you’d told me about!
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Great DIY! Thanks for sharing! I want to try it with my Instagram pictures!