Royal Purple T-Shirt Yarn Necklace

Make T-shirt jewelry you'll obsess over with this tutorial.

From the Designer: "Make a fashion statement with this modern T-shirt yarn necklace. This accessory will look well with a simple shirt, or wear it when you glam up for a night on the town. Use the rich purple color as in the example, or use lighter colors to fit with a summer theme."

If you've always wanted to delve into crafting with T-shirt yarn, this is the perfect project to start with! Braiding the yarns is almost like making friendship bracelets on a larger scale, and the finished effect is so lovely! This is the perfect accessory to celebrate summer.

Materials List

Printout of the provided diagram ~ click here to download
Roll of pink, gray and purple mix-a-match t-shirt yarn
Two purple marble wooden beads, each with a diameter of 1”
Royal purple wooden bead with a diameter of 1”
Darning needle (to thread yarn through the bead)
Needle and 100% nylon invisible colorless thread
Standard scissors

Instructions:

Cut 9 strings of T-shirt yarn, each with a length of approximately 36”.
Thread three strings through a purple marble bead (bead 1 in the diagram). Depending on the size of the hole in the bead, you may need to thread one string at a time. Decide where to place the bead and use all three strings to make a knot above the bead. Braid the three strings below the bead ~ the braid should be about 7.4” long. Use a clothing peg to temporarily secure the braid until the big knot in step 4 is made.
Thread three other strings through the purple bead (bead 2 in the diagram). Again use all three strings to make a knot above the bead. Braid the three strings below the bead ~ this braid should be about 3.6” long. Use a clothing peg to temporarily secure the braid.
Thread the last three strings through the second purple marble bead (bead 3 in the diagram). Gather all 9 strings together to make a big knot below bead 3.
Gather the ends of the three strings above bead 1 together and use a backstitch to sew them together. Do the same with the three strings above bead 2, and the three above bead 3. Now sew all 9 strings together, again using a backstitch and neatly cut the ends behind the stitches shorter.
Gather the ends of the 9 strings below bead 3 together and use a backstitch to neatly sew them together. Neatly cut the ends behind the stitches shorter.
Place the two ends of the necklace, i.e. the end above the beads, and the end below the beads, over one another and use a backstitch to neatly sew everything together.
Cut a short piece of T-shirt yarn from the roll. Wind this piece tightly around the area where the two ends were connected and use a backstitch to secure.