I purchased blank Shoelace Charms on Etsy and once I received them, got started using Photoshop to create the correct size logo. Once I created the logo, I printed it on glossy photo paper. Then I stuck the adhesive clear covers over the logo and cut out around the cover. I attached the covered logo to the charm by using Krazy "Craft" glue.
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How did you know what size that you needed to fit in the charm? I'm doing the same thing, but it took me forever just to resize the image to the correct size, not to mention the printer paper I wasted until I got it right.
@Anonymous: I used Photoshop and added the logo to an image and then cropped and sliced to the size I needed. For an oval charm as the one I used, the inner size is 16mm (0.629921 inches). The easiest method is to use a good photo editor, and then open an image of the exact size of the charm like this one and insert the logo over the charm image and size it down until you have reached the desired result. Make sure the software is set to not scale the image so that it prints the exact size of the image.
I got everything set, but I am having problems with the logo sticking to the charm & the plastic cover sticking to the glossy paper. It starts peeling after a while. What exact glue and procedure did you use.
@Anonymous: The hardest part of creating this type of charm is sticking the cover on top of the paper, you have to be very careful because you only get one chance and then it's stuck. To secure the plastic covered paper to the metal charm, I used Crazy Glue Craft. You can purchase it from Wal-Mart in the crafts section, make sure it says "Craft" glue. Other than that I don't know why yours would be peeling, I've never had that trouble as of yet.
Thanks for the info. This is exactly what I've been searching for. There are all sorts of places selling them but few to none that show how to install it.
@Jeffrey: That's what makes the paracord community so special, the willingness to share what we know. Thanks for the support!
I need to start making my own charms. Thank you so much for this article. Can you suggest an EASY version of photoshop to get? Photoshop elements, photoshop cs6? Is this something that would be hard for me to start doing? I am tired of ordering and waiting for them. Please advise?
@Anonymous: As for an easy version of Photoshop, I don't know of one, but because there are so many free tutorials on how to use it, anyone can learn it with a little time and patience. I would suggest going to the Adobe downloads section and downloading a trial version of the newest version of Photoshop. Install that and try it out, if you find it useful you can purchase an older version much cheaper.
How would you print multiple copy's on one sheet of paper is a regular printer ok or is a special one needed to do this?
@Anonymous: To print multiple copies, using your Photo Editing software, simply copy and paste the image you want to duplicate. A regular printer will work fine, the one I use is an All-In-One Kodak printer, all you need is your software, printer, and photo paper (I prefer glossy).
Were is the best place to get a shoe lace charm kit
I have an image i am trying to do for a rectangular charm. When i print the image it shows up blurry. Anyone know how to fix this?
How much would you charge to make me University of Alabama shoelace charms for paracord bracelets? Different faces..
@chad you da man, there arent many tutorials or anything of such advice on how to do this. Just reading over this is perfect.
Keep Calm and Paracord On!
jojoparacords
What should the photo resolution be for these images? I'm doing the rectangle shape
@Shanna: The higher the resolution the better since reducing an image to the size required for the charm will reduce the image quality.
Those 16mm x 12mm images look small. Do the clear tabs.magnify the image?
@Anonymous: the images will be small, the charm isn't very big at all. The challenge of creating this type of charm is using or creating an image that will look right on such a small scale.