Dichroic Resin Earrings
Introduction: Dichroic Resin Earrings
Want to create your own dichroic earrings?
This is a simple project that makes earrings that sparkle and change color in the light.
Supplies
To make this project you will need:
* Small clear plastic cubes (I used resin cubes but plastic beads or cut out acrylic shapes would also work)
* Jewellery findings (earring loops, jump rings and eye screws)
* Self-adhesive dichroic window film
* A small hand drill
* Tweezers
* Craft Knife
Step 1: Applying Dichroic Film
In this step we will apply the dichroic film to the clear plastic cubes. We want to cover 4 sides of each of the cubes and leave the opposite sides of the cubes uncovered so that we can attach the cubes together in a later step.
* Cut out a square of dichroic film large enough to cover one side of the largest cube.
* Remove the clear backing from the dichroic film, exposing the adhesive layer.
* Place one side of the largest cube face down onto the adhesive surface of the dichroic film.
* Carefully cut away the excess dichroic film using a craft knife.
* Repeat until you have covered 4 sides of the largest cube, leaving two opposite faces of the cubes uncovered.
* Repeat for the remaining cubes.
* Please note - the dichroic film can look clear and colourless when viewed or photographed from certain angles, so even though the cubes are covered with the film on 4 sides it looks like only 1 side is covered in some of the photographs.
Step 2: Attaching Screw Eyes
In this step we will attach screw eyes to each cube so that they can be linked together. Each cube will need two attachment points, except for the smallest cube that only requires one.
* Using a small hand drill with a width slightly smaller than the screw eyes, carefully drill a hole approximately 2-3mm deep into each uncovered side of the cube. Only drill one hole for the smallest sized cubes.
* Using tweezers to grip the loop of the screw eyes, screw a screw eye into each of the drilled holes.
Step 3: Attaching Jump Rings and Ear Hooks
In this step we will finish off the earrings by attaching the cubes together and adding the ear hooks.
* Using two tweezers open the jump rings by twisting the sides apart
* Thread the open jump ring through the eye screws of the smallest and second smallest cubes.
* Close the jump ring by squeezing the two sides using tweezers.
* Repeat until all of the cubes are attached to each other with jump rings.
* Use two more jump rings to attach the ear hooks to the eye screw of the largest cubes.
Step 4: The Finished Product
You have now finished making a set of dichroic earrings.
If you'd like to make these more durable, you can add a top coat of resin over the dichroic film - simply paint on a layer of UV resin and cure using a UV light. 1013