Get The Technique
1
2 Bangle set painted with metallic gold paint.
3 Bangle set painted with metallic silver paint.
4 Bangle set painted with Martha Stewart Crafts Gross Black Paint.
5 Single rope strands stacked together, painted with a metallic gold, brass and silver paint.
6 Wear your diy rope bangles with your other bracelets!
7 Fun!
Looking for a clever, inexpensive DIY Holiday gift for your friends? I think I've got you covered. Spend an afternoon making unique bangles from what other than... rope! Take a trip to your local Michael's, where you will find all the supplies to keep you crafting all day long. Look for the Martha Stewart Crafts aisle to find the key supplies; water-resistant fabric stiffener and metallic paint!
Click through the photos to see how to get crafting:
1 I purchased rope from the hardware store, nothing fancy. Basically any rope 1/8" or thicker will work. With thinner ropes, use multiply strands in your design.
2 Squirt a dime-size amount of hot glue onto glue pad. Line up ends of thin cotton rope and press into hot glue. Let cool.
3 Twist, braid or knot rope in the design you prefer. Loop your design to make sure the inside diameter measures about 2 1/2 inches (small), 2 5/8 inches (medium), or 2 3/4 inches (large).
4 Mark end point with finger. Squirt another dime-size amount of hot glue onto glue pad; press rope into glue where your finger is holding the end. Let cool to secure. Trim excess glue with scissors after it cools.
5 To get a seamless connection between ends, add hot glue on the back side of the start end of the design, if necessary. Let cool.
6 Snip through the middle of the glue...
7 ...so that the end is straight.
8 Your design should be the proper length now...
9 ... and both ends should be straight.
10 Use a dab of hot glue to connect the ends to each other.
11 Pour fabric stiffener into bowl; submerge rope bracelet.
12 Remove bracelet from stiffener and use fingers to remove excess.
13 Place bracelet over cup and push down to form into a circle; keep in place for one minute.
14 Remove and place bracelet on a flat surface and press down to level it. Make sure you don't disturb your circle shape. Let dry 2 to 12 hours (use a fan to speed up drying time).
15 Paint with metallic paint.
16 Create a bunch of different bangles that you can wear together.
You can also watch the how-to video from Martha's show!
From: Rope Bangles | Shelterholic Now | 12/6/11 at 8:52 am
[...] Food. Rope Bangles The Crafts Dept. at Martha Stewart Tue, December 6, 2011 1:40 PM UTC The Crafts Dept. at Martha Stewart Rate this story Share (function(){var [...]
From: Chantelle | 12/6/11 at 5:33 pm
Can I please say these are absolutely amazing!! I have the deep down feeling of joy..lol..because they are so-o-o-o cute and beautiful. Especially if you pair a few together.
From: {gemmifer} | 12/6/11 at 9:32 pm
Gorgeous bangles! This is a technique that never occurred to me before... now I'm thinking of other things I can do with it...
From: Debbie | 12/20/11 at 8:20 pm
I went to Michaels, but I think I bought the wrong paint, silver gilding? I did not know there was a paint. I have the matalic paint that Martha Stewart has at Home Depot, I tried it on a apiece and it seemed to work. Is it OK to use for jewelry? Does it need to be seeled?
I decided to make a few of these for a friend that wants bangles and has a tiny wrist. She can never find small ones.
Thanks Debbie
From: karen | 12/21/11 at 6:55 am
can i copy the photos?
From: Kristin St. Clair | 12/21/11 at 9:19 am
You are welcome to use the photos in your own blog post if you give proper credit with them.
photos by Kristin St. Clair for thecraftsdept.marthastewart.com
thanks!
From: Kristin St. Clair | 12/21/11 at 9:26 am
Hi Debbie,
Michaels does carry metallic MS craft paint in a variety of colors. The Home Depot paint will probably work as well. On a test piece of stiffen rope, I would test sealing the paint with either a clear coat spray paint or a water proof clear medium, like outdoor Mod Podge. Do test though because it could effect the paint beneath. The bangles also look great painted in pop colors and even just black! Let us know how they turn out!
kristin
From: Nicole | 1/4/12 at 12:48 pm
These are fabulous! I actually liked the bangles the gal that did them on the show ! Hers were black and also glittery! Do u know what paints and colors she used for those???
From: Kristin St. Clair | 1/4/12 at 1:01 pm
Hi, thank you!
I used Martha Stewart Crafts Plaid paint—high gloss Beetle Black and the glitter paint in Obsidian and Onyx (a couple coats).
Have fun making them!!
From: Glend | 1/4/12 at 2:59 pm
If I use the MS metallic pain from Michaels, do I still need to seal it with ModPodge?
From: Tiffanie | 1/4/12 at 4:04 pm
Thank you so much for this. I have never been able to find cute bracelets that fit over my hand. I am excited to make a few bracelets this weekend after my visit to Micheal's.
From: Kristin St. Clair | 1/4/12 at 4:45 pm
Glend,
You probably don't need to seal the bangle if you use most any acrylic paint, including Martha's.
k
From: Amy | 1/5/12 at 10:47 am
My question is similar to Glend's. What paint did you use on the show? I thought it was an oil based metallic paint so that it was water proof. Since acrylic paint is water based, I didn't use it, even though it is cheaper. I bought the Martha Stewart liquid gilding paint. Is that what you used, and does it need to be sealed? Thanks
From: Kristin St. Clair | 1/5/12 at 11:34 am
Hi Amy,
I did use the liquid gilding on the show but the packaging does indicate that it can cause skin irritation. Therefore, I recommend using any of the MArtha Stewart Crafts brand paints because, once set, they are permanent and water proof.
I still wear the ones I painted with liquid leaf—since it was not apply directly on my skin & once completely dry, I have had no skin irritation.
But in any case, be safe and use acrylic paint. I apologize for giving ill-advised information.
k
From: Mitchell Schuller | 1/5/12 at 1:56 pm
When using any metal leaf paint, it's also good to be in a ventilated area. It is not a non-toxic product. Any leaf and acrylic should be sealed to protect it from the elements. While acrylic is great in crafts, after time it can fade and chip if not sealed.
From: 10 hump day D.I.Y inspirations!! « Element Eden Australia | 1/10/12 at 10:55 pm
[...] Inexpensive and unique rope bangles from The Craft Dept blog. Click here for [...]
From: Chantelle | 1/13/12 at 12:31 am
I absolutely love love love these. I keep talking about them at work and most likely my co-workers are sick of hearing how amazing they are..hahaha. What a great idea, and I think they look so cute mixed up with a few worn at the same time.
Also, I blogged about these today @ http://www.thesewecovet.blogspot.com
Also mentioned in my post how much I used to love Martha Stewart Kids magazine. Do you remember? So good. I swear I was inspired to do so many awesome crafts from the basic ideas found in that mag. I miss it!!
From: DIY Twig + Rope Bangles « Glitter & Pearls | 1/16/12 at 1:00 pm
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From: Kelsy | 5/13/13 at 5:14 pm
What a great idea! Adding this to my ever growing to-do list!
~Kelsy