Today’s post has been a while in the making and I’m rather excited to be sharing it at last. Whether you love accessories for yourself and would like to make a little something special to keep, or are looking for a last minute Mother’s Day gift, these easy DIY necklaces for kids to make will have a stylish accessory whipped up for you in no time.

Littlest and I recently used dyed pasta to make an edible pasta necklace, if you like pink and purple pasta… It was a simple and fun activity but not something I’d be able to wear for a long time which inspired us to make necklaces with different materials. That led to us making five necklaces, and today we’re sharing three of those styles as Mother’s Day inspiration.

Making these necklaces was lots of fun for the kids and I’m pretty thrilled I get to keep them all for myself. I hope you enjoy making them too!

1. DIY abstract wooden bead necklace

What you’ll need

– wooden beads
– paint; we chose peach, gold and white
– paintbrushes
– mod podge
– disposable containers
– skewers
– string; we used a piece of leather string

What you’ll do

Step one: thread the beads on to the skewers and hang the skewers over the disposable containers so that the beads are suspended in the air. This lets you paint the beads without much touching and you can rotate them to paint all over by turning the skewer.

Step two: paint random swashes over the beads until they’re covered and leave to dry.

Step three: paint mod podge all over the beads and leave to dry. This step seals the paint so it doesn’t wear off.

Step four: once it’s all dry, thread your beads on to your string and tie off.

Next up in our necklace collection is…

2. DIY clay bead necklace

What you’ll need

– polymer clay
– disposable latex gloves
– skewer
– string; we used embroidery thread which was plaited to create a thicker string
– clear nail polish

What you’ll do

Step one: preheat the oven according to the instructions on your polymer clay* and line a tray with baking paper.

Step two: pop on the latex gloves^ and knead the clay until it’s soft and malleable. You’re then ready to start rolling beads into the sizes and shapes you’d like. Once you’ve achieved the shape you’d like, use the skewer to push a hole through the bead for stringing then place each bead on your baking tray.

Step three: bake your beads in the oven, keeping an eye on them so that they don’t overcook and discolour or crack.

Step four: once your beads have cooled from the oven, thread the string through and tie off.

Step five: apply a dab of nail polish to the ends of the string where you tied it off to help keep fraying at bay.

* I used Sculpey polymer clay, the oven was at 130C (275F) and I baked the smaller beads for about 18 minutes and the largest one in the middle for 25 minutes.
^ latex gloves are optional – I use them so I don’t leave fingerprints and marks from my palms on the clay as the beads are rolled.

We’ve saved the easiest for last and the final creation in our necklace collection is…

3. DIY wool pompom necklace

What you’ll need

– wool in different colours, we used 4 ply wool in black, grey, pink and beige
– cardboard ring for making your pompoms / or a fork if you’re wanting to make little pompoms really quickly
– wool for the necklace string; we used a bamboo cotton
– tapestry needle
– clear nail polish

What you’ll do

Step one: make your pompoms.

Step two: thread your string through the tapestry needle and thread the needle through the middle of each of the pompoms until they’re strung together.

Step three: tie off your string and apply a dab of nail polish to reduce fraying at the ends.

Happy creating!