Wednesday, December 8, 2010

50 Cent Bridesmaid Earrings

My goal in making my bridesmaid's earrings was first to make something that most of them would wear again. I fell in love with cascade-style earrings like these:

 
Pearl Cascade Earrings 

 
I've made earrings before but never this intricate of a style. I did a quick search on how to make cascade earrings and found these instructions. The methods used were ones that I've used in other jewelry-making endeavors so I wasn't scared.

 
Here's the breakdown of the costs and where I found my materials:
  • 72" chain purchased at Michaels for $2.99
  • 190 gray Crystazzi 6mm pearls at Michaels for $2.50 (on sale)
  • 400 dark purple Swarovski crystals on eBay for $5.00 (including shipping)
  • Sterling silver earring findings: I already had these in my jewelry-making kit
  • Tools: I already had these as well!
Total Cost of Materials: $10.49

 
Now let's do some more math. I like to figure out exact costs so I know how much I really saved. Also, I will probably end up using the crystals and pearls in other projects (thinking of the crystals for my tree-branch centerpieces and for bouquet jewels).
  • Chain- using 12 inches (2 inches per girl/1 inch per earring) = $0.50 total
  • Gray Pearls - using 72 total (12 per girl/6 per earring) = $0.94 total
  • Swarovski beads - using 132 beads (22 per girl/11 per earring) = $1.65 total
  • Sterling silver earring findings: free!
  • Tools: free!


Actual cost (that I forked over) for ALL bridesmaid earrings = $3.09
Actual cost for each bridesmaid/each pair of earrings = $0.52

 
WOW! Seriously? It costs me about 50 cents a girl? I guess I could have used more expensive materials, but really they look lovely the way they are!

 
See my next blog for the complete tutorial on how I made these earrings.

1 comment:

  1. They are lovely indeed. Great idea. Thank you for breaking down the cost. What you did not add is your labor - but that is labor of love. - Dita

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