Upcycling Toothbrushes into Bracelets

First and foremost, we're so excited that Thrifty Decor Chick featured our blog on her series of newbies!  We're so excited to have so many new people visiting and we're equally stoked to welcome so many new followers!  Isn't Thrifty Decor Chick the bestest?  We think so.  Thanks, Sarah!  (If you're interested, you can see our highlight on the TDC blog here.)

And on to the crafty-ness...

When I was in middle school in California, I knew this gal named Kathryn who was super-cool.  You know, just one of those naturally cool kids--a trendsetter, too.  She wore a rad bracelet that she made out of a toothbrush and I thought it was awesome (naturally) so when she gave me the secret on how to make one, I rushed home to do it myself.  (See, even back then I was a DIY gal!)

Any-hoo, wanna make your own?  I thought you did! 

Here's what you'll need:

An old toothbrush (sans rubberized texture stuff)
Needle-nosed pliers
Vise grips (or you can get creative with whatever tools you have)
Tongs
A pot big enough to accommodate your toothbrush

You'll want to start with a super-plain toothbrush and avoid any of that grippy/soft plastic stuff that most toothbrushes have these days.  I use child-sized toothbrushes (What?!  I'm a small person with a small mouth... you wanna make something of it?  Obviously I have a short girl complex, too.) so they are pretty plain and perfect for making bracelets.

I used needle-nosed pliers to remove all of the bristles.

Umm, when you're using said needle-nosed pliers on the bristles, take it easy...  I teach by example guys.  So, learn a lesson from me be and gently remove the bristles from the toothbrush, and provide ample support to the neck of the toothbrush.

Obviously, I had to restart with a different toothbrush.  And I was much more gentle the second time around.

Doesn't the naked toothbrush look so awkward?

Once you have a naked toothbrush, boil that naked toothbrush for an hour.  Seriously, do it for a whole hour--don't skimp on time!  If you check it midway through, the toothbrush will seem like it will be pliable enough to form but if you bend the brush too early you may cause ugly white streaking (think: stretch marks) and possible snapping.

Once the toothbrush has boiled for an hour, you're ready to shape it into a bracelet.  You can use a bracelet you have as a size reference or you can just wing it.  I guesstimated and it came out fine!  I used tongs to hold the toothbrush in the middle and vise grips to shape the hot plastic.  If you make a mistake, don't worry--you can pop it back in the boiling water for 15-20 minutes and reshape. 

Common sense warning: that toothbrush is HOT!  You would be too if you'd just been boiled for an hour.  Be careful!

Once you're happy with your shape, drop the bracelet into a bowl of cold water to "set" the shape.  (I think that the Lemongrass Fiestaware bowl compliments the purple toothbrush quite nicely!)

And there you have it--a gorgeous toothbrush bracelet!

Pretty fun and simple, right?  I'm not a jewelry girl--but I think that even if I was, I'd much prefer for my husband to make me one of these for V-Day than to buy some generic piece of bling.  But that's just me.