Easy tassel

I was recently inspired to add a little something extra to my purse this winter. I love long fringe. When I crochet scarves or ponchos and add fringe, the longer, the better! Although I was not looking for a fringed handbag, I thought a tassel would be a fun addition.

I looked at the craft store for ready-made tassels with no luck. Either they don't make them....or (I suspect) I was not looking in the correct area (my guess is notions). I did spy some leather lacing that gave me an idea. I chose a packet of buff-colored leather laces. They also had black and dark brown. I thought the buff color would go with more purses, but black could be fun, too! The leather laces cost $3.99.

Since I made my tassel a few months ago and neglected to take pics, I will show how I did it using some leftover yarn. I think at the time, I was not sure it would work...lol.

First, you will cut the yarn/leather into several strands that are the same length. Some recommend to wrap it around a piece of cardboard, then snip all the strands at one end. I eyeball it myself, because you can trim the pieces later. Keep in mind that the more pieces you have, the thicker the tassel will be. Also, I like long tassels/fringe, so err on the side of being too long, since you can always trim later.

After you even out the pieces, you will bunch them all together and keep the loop open at the end. For demo purposes, I will put my tassel onto a carabiner clip. For my leather tassel, I used an old keyring I had in a drawer. I thought it would be helpful if I wanted to change my tassel from purse to purse. You will put the end through the ring. Then, take the other ends and pull them all together through the loop:

And pull tightly:

Trim up the ends so they will be even and there you go:

And on the purse? Love it.

I really love my new yellow purse. It's a great pop of color and I like lightening up a bit now that it's spring....and not carrying around a behemoth bag.