# 12 new ways to tell you how to make DIY keychains with simple tools and turn waste into treasure



## NANA Winn (Feb 21, 2021)

For most people, keychains are necessary for our daily life. Without keys, we can’t open doors. Without keychains or rings or lanyards, we hardly find our keys. Here I would talk about how to make keychains. I will introduce you the easiest ways to make your own personalized keychains.

*1. Make keychain with paperclip*








Tools: paperclip, pen or something cylindrical (These are easy to find tools in our houses)
A. Straighten the bent part of the paper clip
B. Wrap the straightened pin around the pen or something cylindrical to bend it fully.
C. Put the key in the wrapped circle, and a simple keychain is complete.

*2. Make keychain with peach pits*








Tools: knife, peach pits, strings
A. Prepare a dried peach pits. You can put the wet peach pits in the sun until it dried.
B. Use the knife to carve letters or small patterns as you like. The peach pits have lines that are easy to carve.
C. Use the knife to make a hole.
D. Tie the finished peach pits with strings that you like.
E. If you want, you can tie those peach pits together in lines and don’t forget to put your key in the string.
F. A cute wrist keychain is complete.

*3. Upgrade version: make keychains with peach pits and ink pens*
Tools: knives, peach pits, strings, beads with holes, ink pens
A. Use the knives to carve on the dried peach pits; don’t forget to make a small hole
B. Paint on the carved peach pits
C. Weave the strings: There are many ways to weave the strings. Later I will make a special article to introduce various *string weaving methods*.
D. String the beads, keys and finished peach pits together. Tie them up. The end of lanyards can be decorated with small beads.

*4. Turn waste into treasure: make keychains with earrings*








Tools: earrings, strings, small pendants with holes that can be found at home
A. Weave the strings: There are many ways to weave the strings. Choose one you like. You can find the tutorials online. I recommend you to make a strong, thicker and wider string lanyard.
B. Make the earring plug into a ring. You can use bare hands. It is easy. Alternatively, you can take the plugs away. The pendants on the earrings also have holes so that we can string them up with keys.
C. String the pendants, keys and earrings together. How to arrange them? Choose the way you like. You will find it is very exciting to turn them into different kinds of keychains when you tie the pendants and keys together in different ways.

*5. Turn waste into treasure: make keychains with cable*








Tools: cable of headphones, mouse, etc, strings with colors that you like, scissors, decorative small pendants that you can find at home
A. Cut the headphone cable with scissors. The length depends on your need.
B. Weave the cable with strings into a new strong keychain lanyard.
C. String keys with some decorative small pendants. Tie them up. A simple keychain is complete.

*6. Turn waste into treasure: make keychains with nail polish*
Tools: old or dirty or rusted pendants with holes, rings, strings, nail polish
A. Renew your old or dirty or rusted pendants with nail polish. Don’t forget to clean them before nail polishing them. Then dry the pendants.
B. Renew the rusted rings with strings: after clean the rusted rings, wind the strings around the ring the way you weave strings.
C. Continue to weave some short strings into short lanyards. I recommend you to choose different colors.
D. Tie the key and pendants up in the way you like with short lanyards.
E. Tie the short lanyards and rings together.
F. Your personalized keychain is complete.

*7. Make keychains with leather*
Tools: leather, scissors, thick needle, strings, 2 buttons, key ring
A. Cut a piece of leather as the picture shown below. I think it would be easy to found a piece of leather at home. Do you heave a purse? The handle or shoulder strap made of leather can be a good choice. Of course, cut it down from things that you will never use them again. Don’t waste.
B. Hemming the strip-shaped leather with needle and strings.
C. Sew a button on one end of both sides. Make a buttonhole on the other end. I recommend you to choose some pretty strong buttons for decoration. Metal buttons are better.
D. String the key ring up with the strip-shaped leather.
E. Put the key on the key ring.
F. Button up the strip-shaped leather.
G. A simple and personalized leather keychain is complete. You can button the keychain up to your bag or belt.

*8. Turn waste into treasure: Make keychain with can ring







*
Tools: can ring, key rings, pliers, string
A. Use pliers to cut the can rings like this:
B. Hang the key onto the can ring.
C. String the can ring up. Tie up. A simple keychain is complete.
If you have a hole puncher at home, you can make some holes on the can rings and string them together. If you have engraving tools, you can engrave on the can rings. If you like, you can wind some colorful soft strings round the can rings.

*9. Turn waste into treasure: make keychains with bead chain
Tools: bead chains







*
Some times when we buy some new bags or clothes or shoes, there is a bead chain that is used to bind tags. Don’t throw it away. We can use the bead chain to hang the key up or tie the key to a key ring or pretty key string. If you think the bead chain is too long, wind laps. A simple keychain is complete.

*10. Turn waste into treasure: make lanyard keychain with a strap on a purse







*
Tool: strap on a purse, pliers, colorful strings
A. Take the strap down
B. Weave the strings together with the strap to make a colorful lanyard
C. Use pliers to open the metal rings.
D. Connect the metal rings and keys together.
E. If the keyhole is too small, add a strong short string or metal ring or weave strings into lanyards and then tie the key with the lanyard.
F. A colorful lanyard keychain is complete.

*11. Make keychains with any picture you like*
Tool: computer, mobile phone
A. Use the computer or mobile phone to get a picture you like
B. Click some online shops such as vograce.com, find the type of keychain you like
C. Upload your picture and add the keychain you want to cart
D. After payment, wait for your personalized keychain to be delivered to your door.

If you can draw, that would be great. I highly recommend you to create your own personalized keychain design. Because stealing other people’s work is not right. If you only keep it for your own collection, no one would accuse you.

*12. Make keychains with your own artwork or design*
Tool: computer, mobile phone, pen or not
A. Use the computer to create your own artwork or use your pen to draw a painting
B. If want to make personalized acrylic keychains in bulk, vograce.com is recommended because it is cheap and beautiful; if want to book 1-3, visit etsy or shop near by you to save money.
E. Upload your artwork or painting and add the keychain you want to cart
F. After payment, wait for your personalized keychain to be delivered to your door.

*To conclude*
There are various easiest ways to make keychains at home. In this article, you can find the tools are easy to find in our daily life. I highly recommend you to turn waste into treasure. Of course, throw something you don’t like or will not use anymore after you think there is no way to turn waste into treasure. There are surprises everywhere in life. Creating with your own hands can bring unexpected fun and sense of accomplishment.


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## CaptTom (Dec 31, 2017)

I've been using the same keychain since 1979. I'll keep this article in mind when I need a new one.


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