DIY: Rock of Ages

I have been wanting to play around with creating something from a few broken beads that I had in my crafting bin. I decided to break more of them recently to make a rock-candy inspired ring. Growing up I was not able to eat rock candy, since it was pure sugar, but my family used it from time to time. I was basically a sugarless hyper-energetic child, but in a good way! However, food in general to me is much like art—even now I can see the art in various forms of rock candy.
 
If you've never had this classic confection it's made from crystalled sugar and may come in a diverse range of colours by the simple addition of food colouring during the creation process.

Rock candy, (not to be confused with sticks of Rock/Blackpool Rock) has been widely used and enjoyed for centuries. It is also referred to as candy sugar, better known from its origin of India and Iran since the ninth century. In some cultures it is used in teas, for medicinal purposes, and even as a sweetener in certain cuisine.  

Have you had rock candy before? Now that you know a bit more about rock candy, view my version of it below worn as a playful and uniquely styled ring. I am so excited to wear it and already making a few other colours for friends!

Materials:
Glass Marble (1) per ring
Acrylic Beads approx. 10 pcs.+/-
Heavy Duty Glue
Adjustable ring (1)
Glitter Glue or Dried Glitter
Hammer
Scissors to cut excess (optional)
Cloth/Flannel

 

To begin, take a handful of acrylic beads and place them in a cloth (a face cloth size works fine), then hammer away at it until breaking the beads in smaller pieces. After the preferred size is achieved start to glue the beads to the top of the glass marble one by one.

If you use the clear acrylic beads like mine, they have a mirror-like film on the backside of each bead. As you hammer the beads be mindful of this so that you may have some of the beads scratched more than others on their backside. To do this, turn some of the beads on opposite sides as you hammer away. The rubbing against each other with the cloth creates this effect.

To give my ring that extra sparkle and more depth I used the backside of the beads as I glued them, creating somewhat of an asymmetrical raised shape. By using my technique when the light hits the ring, it now has a sparkling effect with the mirrored edges dispersed throughout the ring. 

Afterward, I added dried glitter-glue atop the now formed rock. You may also use loose glitter to carefully drizzle small parts of the rock. Let dry. Lastly, attach the rock to the adjustable ring. Let dry, and wear!

*Further reading and fun facts on candied rock here. 
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