Crazy Cute Buttons From Plastic Dollar Store Jacks

I made these buttons and dangles:

From a set of soft plastic jacks from the dollar store.

I love them so much, I could marry them.

Want to DIY?  Here's how.

Begin with jacks that are flexible plastic; they need to be able to bend just a little.

Snip, snip.

Heat a thin poker and melt a hole.

Stack two colors of your new four-armed 'beads,' and sandwich them between bead caps.  Thread the sandwich onto a headpin.

Here I used some plastic flowers in place of those bead caps:

Tip: Try to use something symmetrical to make the 'bread' of the sandwich.  Off-center flowers, or bead caps with an odd number of petals, won't squish the jacks together tightly.  You'll end up with wavy balls.  And wavy balls are not normally a good look for anybody.

Finish with a wrapped loop at the top of the sandwich.

 Fabulousness!

To visit my original tutorial on turning beads into shank-style buttons (one of my favorite posts ever), click right here.


Question.  If I'd used these in a "Guess The Mystery Thing" game, would you have guessed jacks?  Or would you have been mystified?

Hope you enjoyed this funny upcycle.  See ya!