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Having a beautifully decorated indoor to your house is a wish of many. Often, people find that the best thing to do when moving into a new home or even every once in a while as a follow-up of the big spring clean-out. But, what else compliments a stylishly decorated home more than an outdoor area and garden that looks as good? Exactly! Even though there are many decorations available to buy and place in your outdoor space and garden, as DIY-enthusiasts; we owe you a good do it yourself option to spice up your outdoors a little bit!
That’s why today we will be talking about Wind Chimes. Extraordinarily satisfying and easy to make, and the entire family can join. Even better: there are many old household items or treasures found in and around the house or during holidays that serve perfectly to put your wind chime together. To make a creative wind chime, next to decorations and a base, you will need a type of string that helps you put everything together and attach all the pieces together.
As a wind chime is likely to endure many different weather conditions, from the warm sun, firm or soft wind to wet conditions as rain and cold snow, it is essential to find yourself a good quality, strong type of string. Below, we have listed for you the four best string for making wind chimes to use when getting crafty at home, accompanied by our personal best options reviewed and to purchase right away. Next to that, we have put a short DIY-guide together on making wind chimes and a care-guide to prolong the fun of your project.
Nylon (Fishing) Line
The fact of the fishing line being a multi-purpose type of string is no news. This transparent, often nylon thread is strong, flexible, and easy to use. Given that it is transparent, it makes it extremely suitable for any type of wind chimes in any theme, as you don’t have to worry about matching colors. Also, fishing line is known to be easy to knot, and, just as we need: strong knots. It is available in many different weights, which can serve as a strong base for each part of your wind chime. Below, you will find our best choices in this category.
#1: Blulu 500m Clear Nylon Beading Thread (Invisible) for Hanging Ornaments (0.45mm)
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For a modest price, the brand Blulu allows you to not only craft your entire wind chime, but with this amount and length of thread, it will enable you to make almost as much like wind chimes as you like. And even after that, you can easily use the same spool of thread when your wind chimes need a little update after a while of hanging outside. The clear nylon thread has a diameter of 0.45 mm. and comes in a spool of no less than 500 meters long. Strong, clear, sturdy, and multipurpose. The spool is easy to store away due to the plastic box.
#2: Pandahall 20m/roll 0.6mm Transparent Crystal Nylon Beading Wire Cord
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Even if the nylon fishing line is already quite strong from itself, opting for a thicker thread will ensure you even more of using more heavy items to decorate your wind chime. Pandahall provides its customers with a spool of clear nylon thread with a length of 20 meters and a diameter of 0.6 mm. Despite that, the cord is still easy to knot. Also, this number 2 product can serve as the best option when you are just looking to make one wind chime instead of more.
Braided and Waxed Cord
There’s one thing stronger than one string of thread, and that is when there are more! That’s why a braided cord is an extremely suitable option to use for wind chimes. Materials used for this type of cord are often polyester or nylon. In most cases, the thread is provided with a waxed layer to extend its longevity and give it a waterproof layer. It is available in many colors, and the spools are modestly priced. Below, we have selected two of our best choices for this type of thread.
#1: Fandol Waxed Polyester Cord Wax-Coated Strings Waterproof Round Wax Coated Thread
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In six neutral-shaded colors, Fandol provides a beautiful color palette for wind chimes with a natural twist. The thread is made out of polyester and contains a waxed coating which avoids the line from the tear, wear, decoloring, and water damage. Each spool of wind chime cord includes 55 meters of thread with a diameter of 0.8mm. Next to this set of six colors, the waxed polyester cord is available in twenty other color shades.
#2: Paracord Micro 90 Cord – M90 – Nylon Paracord in Solid Colors with Tensile Strength 90 LBs
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With a diameter of 1.18mm, this string for making wind chimes is the most thick and sturdy of all four reviewed products on the list. The thread is produced in the USA and comes in nineteen different color shades to match your wind chime project. Also, the yardage is up to you, as you can choose from five different lengths (10, 25, 25, 100, and 1000 feet). The string is super sturdy and has a tensile strength of 90 lbs. On top of all this, the color doesn’t bleed or fade, and the thread won’t mildew or rot.
Step by Step: How To Make Wind Chimes
Now that you have hopefully found the perfect string to make the wind chime of your choice, we will share with you our favorite, easy, DIY guide on a beach-themed shell wind chime. Shells are often used as decoration, and due to their lime (calcite and, or, aragonite) material, they make subtle sounds when moving in the wind. Also, shells are often to be found in the home or brought as a souvenir from a beach holiday. It is a cheap and easy option to do and try out if making your own wind chime is something for you.
What you will need to make this wind chime
There are a few items that will come in handy when you are crafting this wind chime. You can decide yourself how big you want your wind chime to be.
- Scissors
- A string of your choice, we prefer transparent fishing line or neutral-colored string
- A small wooden branch
- A bunch of your favorite seashells
- Other decorations to add (if preferred), such as beads or pearls – beaded strings give the wind chime an even more cheerful look!
- A hammer and nail, or a small drill for jewelry making, to make a small hole in the shells
Step 1: Make sure all your items are clean and ready to use.
Meaning; make sure the shells are clean and the wooden branch is undone of any dust, spider webs, and anything else.
Also, an option: if you wish to paint your shells, step 1 is the right time to do it. Make sure to use waterproof paint, and give the shells enough time to dry before you use them.
Step 2: Drill holes in the shells
To make your project go as smooth as possible, make sure to drill holes in your shells before you start lacing them on the strings. You can either use a jewelry drill or a hammer and a nail. In the last case, make sure to be careful, go to work softly, and stock up on plenty of extra shells, as they may break. Ensure the hole is not too big, so you won’t have to worry about falling shells due to a too-small knot. A string that’s tied too much is likely to look a little sloppy.
Step 3: Start lacing!
Now, it’s time to cut the strings in pieces. The number of the strings and the length they have doesn’t really matter, and you can decide for yourself what will look good on your outdoor (or indoor!) area. Make a knot at the bottom of the threads and thread your shells, beads, and buttons. If you want to keep spaces between objects, make a knot in the thread after each shell, bead, or knot.
Step 4: Finish up the Wind Chime
Now that you have all the decorated strings ready in front of you make sure to strongly tie a thread on the branch of wood which the wind chime will hang on. After that, tie the strings with shells and beads to the branch, play with the distance in between them and alternate in length. Your seashell wind chime is now finished!
Are shells not really your cup of tea? There are many other items found around and in the house that can serve as props for your wind chime, for example:
- Keys (that you don’t use anymore, of course ;))
- Small flower pots
- Cooking utensils
- Buttons
- Coins
- Metal food cans
And many more! Pinterest is a great option to browse around for ideas.
How to take care of your wind chimes
No matter what material you use, after a while in strong and different, severe weather conditions, every wind chime will need a little upgrade from time to time. First, a tip: take your wind chime inside when a heavy storm is coming!
To update your wind chimes, make sure to take the time to clean them, replace the branch they are hanging on, and secure the ornaments you have used better or anew by re-threading them on a new string.
FAQ
What can I use to make homemade wind chimes?
Next to the items, we have mentioned earlier, there are numerous other options you can use, such as:
- Silver metal or brass decoration items
- Chains
- Pencils
- Small bells
- Old children’s toys
- CD’s, or DVD’s
- Sea glass pebbles
- Driftwood
- Vintage treasures
- Aluminum tubes, metal tubes, or any other type of tubes.
What material makes the best wind chimes?
As for the sound, the most popular material is aluminium. This material can even be tuned to specific tunes, and it is incredibly durable. In aluminum, there are several metals used: steel, brass, and copper. Apart from metals, bamboo or wood are extremely popular for a calming, soothing, nature-like sound. But also shells are popular due to the playful sounds.
How do you make a beautiful sounding wind chime?
Try to find out what sounds you prefer. Aluminum is a lot different from wood, but also shells make a significantly different sound. You can try what suits you best by experimenting.
The Takeaway
When you are a big fan of DIY-projects, making your own wind chimes can be a great activity. Make sure to gather the right tools, but more importantly: don’t underestimate the value of high-quality threads! Hopefully, we have helped you find the correct string for making wind chimes. Happy crafting!