Vinyl LP Record Necklace

This recycled LP vinyl record project is a great recycled crafts project. It is created by manipulating the melted/soft plastic of the record after it has been heated in an oven. Records can be bought from op shops, thrift stores or garage sales. If you don't want to destroy the classics look for damaged or cracked albums. Firstly, always wear oven mitts as the plastic is hot. Never leave it unattended in the oven and work in a ventilated area in case there are fumes or any type. Start by heating your oven to it's highest setting around 250 Degrees Celsius or 480 Fahrenheit. Place a sheet of aluminum on the bottom of your oven purely as a precaution in case it melts beyond rescue to avoid a massive clean up job. Take your record and place it onto the oven tray and slide it into the hot oven. It will only take a few minutes for the record to become soft and flexible. Using your oven mitts take the record out as soon as it looks soft. It will start to droop and deform when it is becoming soft, that is when it is ready to work with. For the necklace you will need to cut the record in half, you will do this when it is soft, either with a blade or scissors. You will need to work quickly as it will begin to re-harden, you can place it back into the oven to soften again at any time. Once you have cut the album in half, place it back into the oven and soften it again. This time you will free from the pendant style design by pulling the melted plastic and twisting it into a shape or design you like. Once you are happy with the design place it back into the oven to soften the edges. Do not let it get too soft or you will need to re-manipulate the pendant area again. Once it has softened the edges you need to take it out and cut away the middle to form the bands, arms or edges of the necklace as shown. This is the section that hangs around your neck. In the picture the bands, arms are 1/2 - 1/4 inch thick. You may need to pop it back into the oven several times to get the desired shape you want. Remember don't let it melt too much at this point or you will loose your creation. Once you are happy with the general shape, place it back into the oven to soften slightly pull it out and once it is cool enough to touch place it around your neck and press firmly. This will custom shape the necklace to your neckline and make it sit comfortably. If you have any sharp edges you can use a fine sandpaper or emery board to smooth over the edges.

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