"Checkmate" Knitted & Beaded Necklace

Instructions

My necklace, as shown, measures 24" around the inside edge of the I-cord; this length doesn't really require a clasp to fit over the head, but I like having one. If you make a shorter necklace, you will definitely need some sort of closure. (Don't we all?)

Materials:
Cord: approximately 10 yards of bulky yarns should be enough; you can combine thinner yarns and knit them together as I did. I knitted mine on U.S. size 8 double-pointed needles, for a fairly tightly-knitted cord, but feel free to experiment with other sizes.

Jewelry findings: 1 large (2-2 1/2") pendant (you could use a brooch for this); 1 6" strand of crystals or other beads; clasp; jump rings. Possibly necessary, depending on weight of pendant: weaving needle and small amount of yarn to reinforce pendant attachment.

This necklace is made with 5-stitch I-cord; I used yarns from color cards that I make while developing colorways for my line of yarns, but you can use just 1 yarn if you'd like, or maybe use up some of those leftover bits that are too small for anything else, but too good to toss out. For this size, you'll need to make about 12-14" of cord, but of course you can make it whatever size you like.

The glass beads came already strung and ready to connect with jump rings; I hooked a large jump ring into each end of the I-cord, then used a smaller jump ring to connect the larger one to the beaded strand on one side, and to the clasp on the other end. The clasp is also attached with jump rings.

The pendant is attached to the I-cord with a combination of a jump ring and a couple of stitches (made with a short piece of yarn and a blunt weaving needle); the jump ring by itself didn't seem as secure as I would like, given the weight of the pendant. My necklace, as shown, measures 24" around the inside edge of the I-cord; this length doesn't really require a clasp to fit over the head, but I like having one. If you make a shorter necklace, you will definitely need some sort of closure. (Don't we all?)

Materials:
Cord: approximately 10 yards of bulky yarns should be enough; you can combine thinner yarns and knit them together ...
Read full instructions »

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Difficulty:

Category: Jewelry

Type of item: Accessory

For: Women

Style: Retro / Vintage, Romantic, Whimsical

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Materials

Yarns, glass beads, metal-and-crystal pendant, brass hardware.

What was your inspiration?

This is one of the first necklaces I've made with a knitted component; I only recently started learning how to make jewelry, period. For this particular one, I was inspired by the gold flecks in one yarn section of my I-cord, which led to the choice of the flower pendant. And, since I like an element of asymmetry whenever possible, I decided to add the strand of crystal beads, which also introduces a new texture that helps to balance out all that fiber.

What are you most proud of?

I'm most proud of just thinking up the design! I'm so new to making jewelry (although not to knitting) that I wouldn't have thought I had the repertoire yet to even think about designing my own. But there's something about working with these I-cords made from the color cards of my company's line of yarns that gives me the initial idea for the design.

What advice would you give someone starting this project?

Again, I'm very new to jewelry-making, so I don't feel totally qualified to write detailed instructions, so my advice would be to have at least a working knowledge of jewelry-making techniques, such as connecting parts using jump rings. You'll also need to know how to knit the I-cord; if you don't know how, please feel free to e-mail me, and I will send you the instructions.