While on vacation recently to Disneyland, I realized I needed to get gifts for my friends. The cheapest item I could find (a personalized keychain) was eight dollars. At the prospect of spending over a hundred dollars on souvenirs for friends, I started searching for a way out.
I saw the penny machines, a fifty-one cent gift, but knew how cheap it would be to come back with a handful of smashed pennies.
As I'd been studying jewelry lately, the thought hit me: I could simply drill a hole in the pennies and turn them into nice looking necklaces. Sure, still a little cheap, but the added necklace would make it new and different. I figured it would make for a decent gift.
I saw the penny machines, a fifty-one cent gift, but knew how cheap it would be to come back with a handful of smashed pennies.
As I'd been studying jewelry lately, the thought hit me: I could simply drill a hole in the pennies and turn them into nice looking necklaces. Sure, still a little cheap, but the added necklace would make it new and different. I figured it would make for a decent gift.
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Items:
Necklace chain (I used 18")
Jumper ring (needs to be large enough to fit in the hole you drill in the penny)
Pennies (the Stitch is made from a quarter and I made another (not pictured) from a nickel)
Tools:
Hammer
Punch (a nail will work fine too)
Drill (with small drill bit, depending on the hole size you want to make)
Scrap Wood (something to drill on)
Shop Rag (something that won't scratch the penny)
Needle Nose pliers (Jewelers pliers would be better, but I didn't have any on hand)
Necklace chain (I used 18")
Jumper ring (needs to be large enough to fit in the hole you drill in the penny)
Pennies (the Stitch is made from a quarter and I made another (not pictured) from a nickel)
Tools:
Hammer
Punch (a nail will work fine too)
Drill (with small drill bit, depending on the hole size you want to make)
Scrap Wood (something to drill on)
Shop Rag (something that won't scratch the penny)
Needle Nose pliers (Jewelers pliers would be better, but I didn't have any on hand)
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It'd be really cool to take someone on a date where you can get a smashed penny and give it back as a necklace as part of a gift for an anniversary type thing.
I will definitely be trying this tomorrow though!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Punch_(metalworking)#Center
I'm a semi-pro collector (over 6,000 collected over 8 years) of these elongated coins and would like to add my two cents worth... crushed as they are.
To locate machines in your area (and worldwide) check out http://www.pennycollector.com/locations.html
There are machines for penny, nickle, dime and quarter pressing.
Do not use new pennies as they are no longer copper (just plated) as the plating stetches and leaves silvery marks. These corrode to black and can not be cleaned. Copper pennies (pre-1982 in USA and pre-1980 Canada) can/will actually go up in value over time (ok, not with the hole). Some are rare already. For dimes and quarters use older (mid 1960's and earlier) as these are silver rather than nickle. Don't worry if the design is worn.
Do not use copper chains unless you like a green neck.
There are ways to keep the original design and date information on the back side of the coin.
Check ebay and pressed penny collector sites for values and other tips.
Happy collecting!
Fire Mountain Gems looks to be a very good store (though I've never shopped there), you can buy chains in bulk for quite cheap, you'll just need to remember to get the clasps separately. You can always look at chains at Beadworks and see if there's any you like there (keep in mind, they sell theirs by the inch).
If all else fails, you can always go to Amazon and type in 'silver/gold chain' and see if any of them suit you.
Best of luck!