No matter what time of year it is, we love to accessorize. Even though we do like to accessorize all year round, it’s certainly true that we change what we wear depending on the season. In the summer, for example, we find it too hard to wear large necklaces that are very heavy or hang down onto our chest, so we save a lot of our larger statement pieces for fall and winter, option for smaller accessories that take up less space when the weather is hot. That’s why we love chokers so much! Besides being the perfect stylish summer accessory, they’re also a heck of a lot of fun to make.
Just in case you really dig the idea of making homemade chokers for the summer, here are 15 of the best designs that we’ve come across online to give you a little bit of guidance as you get started!
1. Basic 90s choker weaving pattern
When we were in middle school, these henna tattoo inspired bendy chokers were all the rage. Not a single girl for miles around was seen without one for probably a solid two years until they trended back out of fashion. Hilariously enough, however, they’ve made a comeback in a really big way and, since we’re older and a lot more into DIY fashion than we were at age 11, we’ve been eager to learn how to make them ourselves rather than just buying them all over again (sine, sadly, we didn’t have the foresight to keep our originals from the first time they were cool). Check out how Hello Whimsy used a few simple weaving techniques to make it happen!
2. DIY macrame choker around a ribbon
Are you quite intrigued by the idea of a simple woven black choker like the ones we showed you above, but you just can’t help but wish for an additional detail to differentiate yours from the classic style at least a little bit? Then we’d definitely suggest taking a look at how Trinkets in Bloom created this choker that’s woven around a piece of ribbon using techniques similar to macrame.
3. DIY drop crystal lace choker
When it comes to choosing between shiny things and lacy things, we’ll admit that we have a lot of trouble settling on only wearing one or the other. We just love each of those finishes so much! We love the way that pieces involving rhinestones have a sort of modern glamour to them but we’re also pretty obsessed with how lacy pieces look almost automatically vintage inspired, even if you didn’t make them to purposely look old fashioned. We’re sure it’ll come as no surprise to you, then, that we were completely in love with this DIY drop crystal choker design featured on More the moment we saw it! We’ve actually made three separate versions of this in all different colours.
4. DIY beaded lace choker
Did we actually catch your attention quite well when we started talking about beaded lace but your personal sense of style is just a little bit more gothic than what the design we showed you above looks like when it’s finished? In that case, we have a feeling you might get a long at least a little bit better with this black lace, ribbon, and beads version featured on Love Maegan! Sure, you could switch the aesthetic up a little bit by using more brightly coloured materials, but we just can’t get over how wonderfully gothic and Victorian the original black version is.
5. DIY lace trim choker
Are you still thinking about how much you liked the lace trimmed choker idea but you’re not sure you want one that’s quite so big, especially in the summer heat? Then perhaps you’d prefer to make yourself a thinner, more delicate looking version instead! We love the way DIY Mode created an extremely simple lace choker by cutting a strip of lace trim (like the kind you’d use in sewing) and putting clasps on each end. You could totally still embellish this version with beads like you saw above, or keep it casual the way it is; either way will look gorgeous.
6. Bead and wire velvet spider choker
If you’re going to make an attention grabbing choker, would you actually prefer to make some kind of custom embellishment that really grabs people’s attention, rather than concentrating on the fastening choker itself the whole time you’re crafting the piece? Well, if creep crawlies have ever been your thing, then we definitely think you’re in for a fun time following this awesome bead, wire, and velvet spider choker tutorial outlined on Anne A. Hollabaugh. Sure, it’s a pretty dark aesthetic for summer, but sometimes that’s just how we feel and we wouldn’t have it any other way.
7. Seed and tiered bead choker
Perhaps you’re actually a little more experience in the art of jewelry making, particularly where there’s beading involved, so you’re looking for a style that will give you a little more of a challenge than some of the simple designs we’ve shown you so far? In that case, we’d absolutely suggest taking a look at how Guidecentral created this fantastic tiered Y-style choker that looks almost like an intricate dual coloured collar by the time you’re finished with it. This design would look amazing in essentially any combination of colours!
8. Coloured DIY tattoo choker
Are you still thinking about how much you enjoyed the idea of being able to make an accessory that you used to wear obsessively when you were younger, but in your own iteration? We don’t think there’s anything wrong with jazzing the look of a classic style up a little bit to modernize it or suit your own tastes! That’s why we liked this colourful version of the classic plastic henna tutorial featured on Paige Noelle! The steps might be relatively the same, but we hadn’t thought of using differently coloured materials to make a brighter version until we came across this resource, so we absolutely still think it’s worth listing!
9. Knotted leather and pearl choker
Have you always appreciated a more minimalist approach to fashion and accessories, even though you’re undoubtedly always accessorized well? Then we have a feeling you’re going to get a long just find with this tutorial featured on Michou Beads. They believe that simple can still use a little bit of pizzazz so they’re created a very easy wrapping choker but also added a couple shining pearled beads to keep the look interesting. As long as you’re able to slid beads down a string and tie knots in the ends, you’ve already got all the skills you need for this one!
10. Woven chain and tie choker
Were you actually quite taken with the way the ribbon in the macrame version of the henna choker we showed you above kind of looked like it was woven through the holes, but you’re just not sure you’re a fan of the ties plastic aesthetic you saw there are and you can’t help but feel that you might prefer something a little chunkier? In that case, we’d suggest taking a look at how Lake Cabin actually did weave their choker’s string through something; a shining length of gold chain. We love the way they left enough length to wrap the string around your neck several times and tie is loosely in a stylish bow to keep it in place.
11. Braided suede and drop bead choker
When it comes to jewelry making, we can’t pretend that suede isn’t one of our very favourite things to work with. It’s soft, durable, and simple to manipulate, plus it comes in all kinds of colours! Those qualities basically make it the perfect material, if you ask us. It’ll come as no surprise to you, then, that we basically fell in love with this awesome braided sued choker idea, especially since the design, created by Darice, includes a gorgeous drop bead in the centre as well. We love the way the sued gives each weave in the braid awesome definition.
12. DIY pearl beaded choker
Have you actually been scrolling through our list hoping to find a pretty little choker design that’s a little more delicate and feminine than some of the designs we’ve shown you so far? Of course, we know that there’s a particular beauty in making things that are clearly homemade (trust us, we love showing off our handy skills as much as the next person), but sometimes it’s nice to create something so polished looking that people who see it might think it’s from a store. This lovely little pearl choker outlined step by step on Greta Culture is the perfect example of what we mean! We also think this design would look stunning if you used pearled beads in a rose gold or soft cream colour in the place of pure white.
13. DIY spiked chokers
We know that a lot of the DIY choker designs we’ve shown you so far have been quite pretty and feminine looking but what if your personal style is a little more punk rock and confrontational than pearls and lace allow for? Well, we have a feeling, then, that you might just be the perfect person to create this awesome faux leather choker with metal spikes! Yumi King walks you step by step through the process of hand studding your own piece in whichever base colour you choose. They used medium spikes, but you could go bigger or smaller, depending on what you can find in stores, and still have the piece be metal concert worth by the time you’re finished.
14. Dual chain and key charm choker
Has the design element we’ve mentioned that’s caught your attention the best so far actually been the idea of working with chains? Well, we’ve only shown you a little bit of chain work so far, but we promise you that chunky costume style chains aren’t actually the only kind you can make if you’re going to start creating your own chokers. We love the way She’s Got The Notion made a choker base from a medium thickness chain and added two swooping decorative chains in a thinner gauge from the centre, topping it all off with an adorable key charm where all the chains meet in the middle.
15. Embroidery wrapped and ring chokers
Have you actually been scrolling through our list thinking about how you can’t help wishing you could use partial elements from several of these choker designs all in one place to create something really unique? Then we have a feeling you’re going to completely adore this fantastic embroidery wrapped ring choker featured and outlined on Cut Out and Keep. We love the way they created colour blocking and stripes on their choker base using bright floss, but also how they contrasted that with chunky rings or hardware washers that are wrapped right up against the base using the same floss. The finished effect is so mod we can barely stand it!
