Star Wars Lightsaber Earrings

Just what you've always wanted - lightsabers for your ears! These easy little earrings are made from jewelry findings, beads and a piece of aluminum (aka, the side of a soda can!). You can easily customize the look by changing the color of the beads used for the blade and button, or add different jewelery findings to the hilt to make any kind of lightsaber you want. I went with a Darth Vader inspired look mostly because I had the perfect beads on hand for the blade - but a Luke Skywalker inspired set will probably be joining them soon once I find just the right beads ;)

Happy crafting and may the Force be with you!

(And a big thank you to my mom who modeled them for me <3 )

You will need:

-an aluminum soda can
-scissors
-tacky glue
-needle nose jewelry pliers
-wire cutters
-6 mm jump rings (I used silver colored ones)
-6 mm split rings (I used brass/gold colored ones)
-black embroidery floss
-seed beads for lightsaber button (I used red)
-beads of your choice for the lightsaber blade
-earring hooks
-2" long open eye pins
-2" long head pins

Step 1: Making the Hilt

1. From the aluminum can, cut a rectangle that's 1 inch by 1 1/2 inches. Make sure to make it as square and even as possible, with no jagged edges! I like to cut out a larger piece from the can then measure out the size I need, this makes it easier to cut neatly (instead of trying to just cut it right off the can). Remember that the metal can be sharp so be careful!

2. Using the needle nose pliers to get you started, roll the metal into a tube with the pattern on the inside, as tightly as you can. The metal will stay bent and in shape once rolled.

3. Repeat with second piece.

Step 2: Decorating the Hilt

1. Take the 6mm jump rings and split rings and slide them onto the hilt - they should just fit snugly on (You may need to tighten the roll a bit more if they aren't fitting, or open the rings a bit). If they're a bit loose, you can put a tiny bit of tacky glue underneath them to ensure they stay in place.

2. Cut a piece of black embroidery thread about 6 inches long (you won't need all that but it's easier to handle a longer piece) and slip the seed bead for the button on one end. If you're having trouble getting the bead on the floss, take a very thin piece of wire or some sturdy thread and slip both ends through the bead, leaving a loop on the other side. Slip the floss through the loop, pull the thread or wire through the bead, and with a little tug the floss will come through as well.

3. Spread tacky glue on about 1/3 of the end of the hilt. Press the end of the floss opposite the bead down in the glue (yes, your fingers will probably get sticky so be careful not to smear the glue on the rest of the hilt!) and wrap the floss around to cover the handle of the hilt. Add a dot of glue on the hilt where you want the button and then slide the bead down, wrapping the floss over the dot of glue. Give it one more wrap and snip the floss, once again using another dot of glue to hold down the end.

*Be careful not to use too much glue, you really don't need that much. The glue will also dry clear so don't worry if there are white spots on your hilt as they won't show once dry. If it looks like glue is oozing off your hilt, use a piece of paper or something similar to wipe the excess off.

4. If you got glue on the hilt, clean it off with a slightly damp q-tip or something similar, and repeat the above steps to make the second hilt.

Step 3: Making the Blade

1. On the head pin, string the amount of beads to make the blade roughly 1 1/2 inches long.

2. Use wire cutters to cut the remaining wire to about 1/4 inch long. Using the needle nose pliers, make a loop out of the remaining wire tip - this is what you'll attach the blade to the hilt with.

3. Repeat for second blade.

Step 4: Putting it all together

1. Using a jump ring, attach the earring hook to an open eye pin.

2. Slide the eye pin through the center of the hilt until the top of the hilt touches the jump ring (the jump ring should keep it from moving up anymore).

3. Cut the wire sticking out of the bottom of the hilt about 1/2 inch long. Using the needle nose pliers, make a loop but don't quite close it all the way. This loop should be big enough to keep the hilt from sliding down, so it needs to be larger than the loop you made on the top of the blade.

4. Hook the blade into the loop at the bottom of the hilt and then use the pliers to close it completely.

5. Repeat for the second earring.

Tips:

-to easily cut the soda can, use a large pair of scissors to cut the top and bottom off, then cut the middle to make one large piece. It is much easier to cut smaller pieces from a large piece. When cutting out the hilts, try to cut the sides in only one swipe to make them smooth and straight.

-To make different types of hilts try using different colors of embroidery floss or even things like string, wire, leather etc. Add more bead buttons to the hilt and/or make them different colors. Try using jump and split rings of different finishes to make patterns (mix of brass and dark split rings slipped on in a pattern would make a good hilt but you'd need to make sure to glue them down). Experiment with different types of jewelry findings. You could also try staining/painting the hilt once it's rolled to change the color.

-If the blade of your earring doesn't seem to be hanging straight, it's probably that the loop attaching the blade to the hilt isn't quite right. Adjust it with the pliers until the blade hangs properly.

-You could leave off the blade all together to make a smaller hilt-only charm or earring.

-You don't HAVE to make a matching set - maybe Darth Vader red on one ear and Luke Skywalker green on the other? ;)

-This is a great picture of the most famous Star Wars lightsabers with close up of the hilts, if you need some inspiration!