Jewelry and a Movie: 3 Chokers for $10

Chokers are a hold over from Victorian fashion. While they aren't commonly worn by women today, they are still a much sought-after accessory for those with archaic tastes.

The problem is that they are difficult to find in mainstream stores today. Furthermore, what I have found has been limited in style as well as the available sizes. To my disappointment -- as well as my general rage at the anorexic bent of USian fashion -- I couldn't find one in my size.

Thankfully, chokers aren't difficult to make. In fact, with $10 and a few simple tools, you can make several chokers over the course of two hours. In the meantime, we can put on a movie to provide us some background noise.

Materials

So here's what we'll need to make our choker:

• Ribbon Clips -- These are little metal jaws with a loop in the middle. You can find them in the beading section of any craft store in a variety package.
• Ribbon -- This forms the main part of the choker. Pick a good quality ribbon that you can buy by the yard. The kind and style is up to you. If you have a dainty neck, you may want a thin ribbon. Boarder ribbons are better for thicker necks. This helps create a slimming effect.
• Fasteners -- In this case, I chose barrel fasteners. They come in a quantity package so that many chokers can be made from one package. Any sort of fastener will work provided you have a means to attach it to the ribbon clip.
• Charms (optional) -- If you want to have a centerpiece for your choker, pick up a few charms or broaches. The one at the top is a simple teardrop of art glass.
• Movie (optional, but recommended) -- in my case, Star Trek 3: The Search for Spock.

Tools

Now that we have our materials, we need tools to work with them:

• Measuring Tape -- This isn't explicitly necessary, but it can help when cutting the ribbon.
• Needle-nose pliers -- While you can use any, these bent-nose pliers have a small working area and a smooth gripping surface. This is ideal for jewelry work as it won't leave score lines in the clips.
• Scissors -- You could use a Japanese Katana to cut the ribbon., but this would only be appropriate if the movie you chose is Kill Bill.
• Lighter or candle -- We need this to melt the cut edges of the ribbon so that it doesn't fray later on.

Step 1

The first step is to attach the fastener to the ribbon clip. I chose the barrel fasteners specifically because they have a loop of wire that makes it easy to work with.

Using the needle-nose pliers, open the loop of wire in the fastener and insert it through the loop of the ribbon clip. When your done, use the pliers again to close the wire so that the ribbon clip and the fastener are held together.

Step 2

You've just made one fastener/ribbon clip combination. We'll need two of these to complete the choker. Repeat Step 1 using another ribbon clip of the same size, and the other half of the fastener. It's these two little pieces that allow you to create a choker.

You can use other means of joining the ribbon together of course. Instead of clips, you can use a piece of high-quality string or even Velcro. As long as the joining method is comfortable and strong, it doesn't matter how you do it.

Step 3

Now we can prepare the ribbon. We don't need to measure it yet. Using the scissors (or katana) make two diagonal cuts at one end of the ribbon. This will form a point in the center of the ribbon. Why do this? It's easier to roll up the ribbon when starting at a point.

When you're done making the cuts, grab the lighter. Carefully melt the cut ends of the ribbon by moving the edge of the ribbon toward the base of the flame. Be very careful! Some ribbons are made of materials that can ignite if they are exposed to flame for too long. If your ribbon is made from all-natural materials, you should skip this step altogether.

Step 4

This is the trickiest part of making the choker. We need to roll up the ribbon from the end that we just prepared. This forms a small coil of ribbon that the ribbon clips can hold on to.

Using the tip of the pliers, grab the tip of the ribbon. Then, holding the pliers still, wrap the ribbon around the tip of the pliers starting the coil. When you have the coil going, grasp it at the center and carefully remove the pliers. Roll up about 1-1/2" of material.

Now that you have a small coil, insert it into the jaw of the ribbon clip. The coil should be big enough to fill the entire space of the clip when closed. This may take a bit of guess work.

Step 5

Using the pliers again, crimp the ribbon clip closed around the coil of ribbon. Ideally, the jaws of the clip shall encompass the entire coil when closed.

By doing this, we've created a bigger lump of material that has to get through the closed end of the clip if the ribbon were strained.

Crimp the corners of the clip first, and then work your way to the center. Apply as much force as you are able.

Step 6

Take your half completed choker over to the nearest bathroom mirror. Place the clip at the center of your neck in the front. In other words, the opposite place from where it would be when wearing the completed choker. This way you can see it in the mirror easily.

Wrap the ribbon around your neck being careful not to tangle it or twist it around. Position it high on the neck and adjust it for comfort. Mark the spot where the unfinished end of the ribbon overlaps with the finished ribbon clip. You can use a pen for this, but I simply used my fingers to avoid staining the material.

Wait a minute, what about the other ribbon clip? Doesn't that mean we have to make the ribbon shorter? No, not really. What we have to do is to allow for this overlap so that we can create another coil of ribbon at the other end.

Step 7

Starting from your marked off spot, cut the ribbon twice diagonally outward like you did before. Again, use the lighter to melt the edges.

Now we're ready to add the charm. Fold the now cut and melted ribbon into an 'M' shape. Insert the ribbon through the loop of the charm. Now move the charm to the center of the ribbon while maintaining the 'M' fold.

Again, this is only one way of doing this. Other methods exist that keep the ribbon flat and unfolded about the neck. I chose this method because it is simple and requires no extra hardware or adhesives.

Step 8

Attach the ribbon clip to the unfinished end of the choker. Remember to roll up the pointed end into a small coil and then place that coil completely within the jaws of the clip. Make sure you have the matching end of the fastener, then crimp the clip using the pliers.

Done!

Using this combination of materials and methods, you can make several chokers for around $10. Including the time it took me to take the pictures for this post, it only took me most of the movie to complete.

Chokers are unique and easy to make accessories that require very little expertise to create. These three are in fact the first I made.