I knew I wanted to make my own bling iphone case about a month ago. I was reading my favorite blogger Gala Darling's diary about her adventures in Chicago and in one of the photos she is holding up this fabulous gem encrusted iphone cover she bought. It is sparkly pink, hearts, and pearls, and oooh I wanted it. (I have a thing for pink sparkly stuff, maybe I am still just a teen girl at heart). But instead of caving and searching all over for one to buy, I decided I would make my own version. I wanted to see just how hard they were to make, because I could see that they would make outstanding gifts.
This is not a typical Rebel Crafter project as this project takes a few hours to create. I still give it a big thumbs up for the time invested because when you are done you get to hold that little work of art in your hand all the time.
For supplies the blank iphone cases are sold at dollar stores. I went to my dollar store but they were sold out. They said they get them in periodically and to check back. I ended up buying my cases on Etsy for $7, so try the dollar store first. The cabochon trinkets can be found at the craft stores or on Etsy under cabochon in the "supplies" section. You can be creative and recycle stuff too. Many of my trinkets are scrapbooking stickers that I peeled the adhesive off the back before gluing down. Also, consider Gumball machine trinkets, charms for necklaces, earrings, and buttons with the shanks removed. Or skip trinkets and do an all over gem look. The flat back gems are pretty inexpensive. I bought most at Michael's where they have an area devoted to flat back gems and each container is about $2.99. I also bought a little bag of flat back pearls on Etsy.
This project ranks pretty easy (just takes time). You need:
Plain Hard Plastic iPhone cover (soft flexible does not work well) (check Ebay, dollar stores, and Etsy)
E-6000 Glue
Toothpicks
Gem Pick Up Tool Like "Quick Stick" or a Wax Pencil
Flat Back Gems in a couple sizes and colors (you do not want adhesive gems, do not buy the sticky kind) (Check on Ebay, Etsy, also sold at Michael's and other craft stores)
Flat Back Pearls (optional) (Find on Ebay, or Etsy, sometimes sold in craft stores like Michaels but often as stickers. If they are stickers you wil need to remove the adhesive backs)
Cabochon trinkets, refer to our
Rockin' Hair Pins for ideas Ideas include dimensional stickers, large plastic gems found in kids crafting area, earring and necklace findings, and charms. If you always use your phone in your pocket stick with smooth gems like the pink case. Pronged gems may catch on your material.
Start by laying out your large trinket pieces on your iphone case until you like the placement.
Glue those down with E-6000. If the trinket is an adhesive plastic sticker make sure you peel off all of the adhesive back before gluing down as adhesive stickers would never hold up to the iphone use.
Next start filling in your gem background.
Take some E-6000 on a toothpick and spread out about 1/2-1 inch area. Do not spread more than 1 inch as the glue dries too quickly.
Use your gem pick up tool or wax pencil to pick up a gem and start placing them. I like to spread out a variety of the gems on my work surface so I can pick up random sizes. Like a puzzle you will have to think about what size works best along corners etc. Decide if you want a pattern (like the border of the pink phone case), or random. I think in some ways the pattern is easier than random.
As you fill in an area stop and take a look to make sure you like everything before moving on.
Continue until your entire front is covered.
Let the cover dry for the evening, or at least an hour or so before continuing down the sides.
Lay out a few gems on the side to find the best placement for the narrow width before gluing down. Again this project is like a small cross stitch, it takes some time, but when you place that last gem on celebrate...you just rocked your iphone!
Let your cover dry for 24-48 hours before using or giving.
Now is the perfect time to start making these little gems for Girlfriends, Sisters, Daughters, and Grand Daughter's. I think any girl would love one of these cases to rock their phone. I sure love mine!
XOX,
The Rebel Crafter
My Husband's before and after Nerium photo at 6 days. Click on the photo if you want to check out my Nerium page. It is a great product with a money back guarantee. Use it for the month and return it on day 29 if you don't love it. But if you are like all my friends you will love it!
