Mushroom Earrings- your easy DIY

October 24, 2022

Let’s be honest, mushroom earrings aren’t for everyone, but for all my nature-filled wild folks out there, your gonna want to tag along for this ride on how to make mushroom earrings!

What kind of mushrooms?

When looking for mushroom to make into earrings, I look for thin, rubbery ones that don’t have a lot of water retained in them. This is because the mushroom is easier to dry and probably won’t smell or have many bugs to worry about. Mushrooms like the ones pictured above are what I go for. These fungi are labeled as bracket fungi by the scientific community, and are usually found on the base of trees or on decaying logs.

Ethical mushroom foraging

When looking for mushrooms for your earrings you want to make sure you forage them in a sustainable way. This means- DO NOT rip them from the ground. If you do so, you will pull out the stem and damage the rest of the fungi (the part that lives underground in root like structures) and the mushroom may not regenerate anymore (kind of like picking a flower but pulling it out with its roots instead of snipping it at the stem- big no no). You MUST snip the mushroom right above the base of it with a knife or scissors! It’s simply respectful for the mushroom and for the greater good of the ecosystem you are taking it from. Make sure to say your thanks as well.

Materials

Resign
Paint brush- one you don’t mind ruining (the resign will be hard to get off the brush)
Mushrooms – sustainably foraged of course
Earring hooks
Small crystals or rocks
Silver jewelry wire (thin enough to easily bend between your fingertips)
Super glue
Scissors or wire clippers
Plyers

Steps

Sustainably forage your mushrooms- bracket fungi are very common and can usually be found in our own backyards. Look in your own backyard on trees and decaying wood.
Dry your mushrooms either in the open or pressed in a book (about 3 days)
Apply resign with a paint brush- coat the fronts of your mushrooms in a thin layer of resign. Let this dry then coat the back.
Super glue the rocks or crystals- Glue the crystal/rock to the top of each mushroom. This is what you will use to connect the mushroom to the earring hook in the next step.
Wire wrap around your crystals/rocks with a piece of wire about 10 inches in length. Cut the wire with scissors or wire cutters if you have them. Wrap around the crystal/rock about 4 time then create a small loop behind the mushroom. wrap the remaining wire around the base of the loop.
Attach the earring hook to the loop. Use plyers to open up the loop in the earing hook and attach it to your earrings.