DIY: How to upcycle a glasses case into a Minaudière inspired box clutch

In case you`re wearing glasses, you can  easily imagine the following scenario: Glasses cases pile up, one on top of another, probably same-sized, eventually same plain black-coloured... There are a lot of tutorials here on the web that explain how to turn simple cases into cute little box clutches. The idea is not just pure invention, if you have a look on the pricy designer clutches by Alexander McQueen or Minaudiere for instance - don`t they allude to glasses cases? Just in the way they are formed?
So with a few inspirations from Honestly ...WTF (and in mind, I would really like to have one of these for my graduation ceremony), I started to work on my own Minaudière.

... into this more-creative-looking box clutch

Turn this boring case...












You`ll need:
a (sun-/eye-)glasses case
small piece of fabric
nail polish
clear varnish
embossing glitter powder or similar
(microwave) clay
a paint brush
a pair of scissors, a cutter
needle and thread
glue, masking tape (or tape that can be removed easily)

The greatest challenge in turning a simple glasses case into an approved box clutch lies in receiving a result that does not remind you of an odd diy-upstyled case that claims to be somewhat better than an ordinary case at first glance. 

The most conspicous part of my morning dress is red, so it was a happenstance that I had a red glasses case lying around in the exact red colour. If you don`t have or if your`s is just too boring, dip into this or this tutorial. They give you an idea of how to change your outer clutch appearance.


1) I separated the outer hard case from the interior case, so from now on I have two independant cases that need own treatments each.







2) My glasses case was quite old, so there were indeed some traces of usage, e.g. the imperfect golden embellishment.





3) In order to remove this or - to be precise - to refreshen the golden rim, I used red nail polish. I added a few layers, so in the end, the rim had almost the same colour as the rest of the case.






4) After that I dusted the (again) freshly painted rim with embossing glitter powder I also had around my working bench. What a surprise, it was red...
Let it dry a bit, then carefully shake the case to remove redundant glittery powder. Then seal your new embellishment with clear varnish and a paint brush.
This will prevent your glitter to peal or rub off again.




5) With the outer case almost finished, I then put focus on the interior case. I cut out a piece of fabric (again, white polyester satin, which I had already used for my bow bracelet) that would fit for the interior. Preventative, leave more fabric around the case then actually needed, you`ll definitely need excess lenght for sewing. I taped the fabric around the case so I would be able to sew around. When done, I cut of the excess fabric and taped the new ends, just in case.


6) I sewed on a label in place where I had left a stitch. I added three stitches in the interior case to keep the tension in the fabric.


Speaking of which, key word: labels
How to make your own label
I found the instruction for personalized labels at elm street life. I first tried out cotton banting and the thing  I thought would work like freezer paper. It failed so hard. It seems as if my inkjet printer is sophisticated 
in concerns of materials and sizes you put into the printer... Never mind, five out of six labels are still good enough for my works. And gosh, the superflous ink... it`s vintage, isn`t it? ;)


7) A lot of DIY-Blogs have used beautiful knobs or plastic animals, painted in elegant colours such as gold or silver. I was looking around in our house, all I was able to find were a few knobs - too massive for my not longer than 1 inch wide case - and a small decorative metal key. Not absolutely what I`d liked to have on my new clutch. I came up with the idea of creating my own decorative eye-catcher. I took some microwave clay and formed it into a small dice. [I believe you could use any other material that fits your concept].According to the directions I put it into the microwave for about 2 min with a small bowl filled with cold water. My dice was hardened and now I was able to work as a sculptor. I used a cutter to carve a bird silhouette (it should be...). I painted the sides with nail polish again (this gives a great glossy look) and sealed it with clear carnish for a finish. In the end I glued it onto my glasses case.



What do you think?
Happy Wednesday!
Neary

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2 Kommentare

  1. What a clever idea! You can also use polymer clay for the decoration I guess. What did you use for gluing the bird on the case?

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  2. oh, thanks ^^ I guess you can... I believe any material that is strong enough to be used as a knob should work out. I used instant glue btw, but rather due to fact that I had no other comparable glue at home than pure intention xD

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