If you’re struggling to think of the perfect Mother’s Day gift this year, we’re here to help add a little glitz to the occasion. Instead of the usual present ideas of flowers, prosecco or jewellery, why not elevate your gift by giving it a crystal makeover! With home made gifts and upcycling becoming ever more popular, and rhinestone craft being taken up by more people, it is a fun and easy way to add that extra special touch.
We are going to show you how to decorate a perfume bottle with non hotfix crystals, here we have chosen the Michael Kors Wonderlust – we loved the expensive looking gold lid and immediately thought the Aurum crystal would match perfectly.
For this project we will be using Preciosa crystals which have a strong foil backing and high quality shine. To glue on the rhinestones we recommend using Gem Tac glue and a syringe applicator. This is the best way to apply glue in small amounts without making a mess. We will also be using a crystal katana, which is the top selling rhinestone picker tool in the industry, to pick up and place the stones neatly in position.
Before starting, make sure the lid of the perfume is clean and dry, if you have any sandpaper it is worth sanding the area slightly to give the glue something abrasive to stick to. With the glue in your syringe, squeeze out tiny dots of glue in a neat row along the base of the lid, allow these to get tacky for a few seconds, then place a crystal onto each glue dot. You can use the katana tip to make sure the stone is sitting flush and is in the correct position.
Continue the process of glue dots followed by the rhinestones all the way round until you reach the top. The crystal size we are using is ss10 (3mm), you may want to use a smaller size to fill in any gaps along the way. Once the whole lid is fully crystallized, allow 24 hours for it to dry fully and gently wipe over with a cloth to polish the rhinestones.
And there you have it, a thoughtful, hand embellished perfume bottle. Adding craft rhinestones really gives off an air of luxury, and also brings a personal touch to a gift – it’s not something you can buy in a shop!
For more handy guides, crystal application tips and creative rhinestone craft projects, head over to our blog.