Today’s review features this fan made Princess Leia bead necklace by The Little Black Bow. The Etsy seller specialises in chunky ‘gumball’ beaded necklaces, available in both children’s and adult sized lengths. I am always on the lookout for female character themed fashion that is a little unique – the gumball necklace style is not often seen in licensed Star Wars jewelry.
This custom designed Princess Leia pendant features her classic white action gown and memorable bun muff hairstyle! She is ready to battle the dark side! With lots of special beads like foil lined and stardust spacers, this necklace is something unique for the true fan. It is sure to impress any Star Wars fan and would make a unique gift, top off a costume or make Star Wars Weekends at Disney so memorable.
The adult sized necklaces are available in 2 lengths – 20″ long (US$25.00 each) and 22″ long (US$27.00 each). Little Black Bow can ship within the US and Canada (overseas customers can purchase via a mail forwarding company). They also have Darth Vader, Yoda, and R2-D2 necklaces available – check out their Star Wars necklace range here and follow The Little Black Bow on Facebook to hear about specials and giveaways.
Princess Leia chunky beaded necklace – US$25.00 to US$27.00 each – sizes 20″, 22″
The Princess Leia chunky bead necklace features large ‘gumball’ style beads, with a cute Princess Leia pendant. The necklace is strung on silver tone jewelry wire, and finished securely with silver tone metal beading fixtures. The pendant features Princess Leia in her classic white dress and bun hairstyle from A New Hope, which matches the white and silver colour scheme of the beads. The face sculpt reminds me of the Pop! Funko style, with the small black eyes.
The Princess Leia pendant is curved (not flat) to add dimension to the sculpt. The face and dress are coated in enamel, while the belt, eyes and hair feature rhinestone details. The back is hollow, with a textured silver tone surface (the back shows how curved the sculpt is). The pendant is hung from a silver tone metal ring, spaced between 2 small clear beads. These 2 small beads create space between the larger gumball beads, so they don’t ‘crowd out’ the pendant or knock into the rhinestones at the top of the pendant.
The Princess Leia pendant is not unique to this necklace – it is available from Asian manufacturers (and sold via outlets like Aliexpress). While fans can purchase the pendant and create their own style necklace, it is much easier to simply purchase one already made – no jewelry making experience required.
For me, one of the main selling points of this particular necklace is the choice of beads. Many other fan designs include brown or bronze coloured beads – while Princess Leia’s hair is certainly iconic, I prefer the white and silver colours of her classic outfit as a colour theme. It makes the necklace much more neutral toned, and easier to pair with outfits. Of course this is my personal preference – I can’t resist sparkly silver tones!
My necklace is the 20″ version, which features 22 beads in 7 different styles – plain white, clear with silver core, plain silver, white striped, silver rhinestone, clear/faceted, and clear with silver foil core. These are symmetrical along the entire necklace – one on each side, in a pattern. 4 of these bead styles are repeated – like the white striped beads, appearing 4th and 10th in the pattern (counted from the pendant).
The large beads measure approximately 2cm in diameter – my necklace is the 20″ length, so the 22″ length version would include a few extra beads (accounting for the extra cost). In between each large gumball bead, there is 1 small silver tone ‘stardust’ bead. This spaces out the larger beads and prevents them from rubbing against each other – especially useful for the silver rhinestone beads.
The necklace features a silver-tone lobster style clasp, with silver tone adjustment chain. At the end of the chain, there are 2 beads – a round silver bead, and a smaller clear faceted bead. While often not visible when wearing, I always like a nice accent detail on the end of necklace adjustment chains. The adjustment chain measures approximately 5cm long – a longer length is not really needed here, as you can order the longer version of the necklace if preferred.
The Little Black Bow can also do custom orders, so you can customise the necklace length or beads to suit your preference. This is such a cute and fun necklace, I am so happy to add it to my collection. I love unique styles, so this bead necklace is a fun alternative to a standard chain necklace. The eye catching design makes this a stand out accessory for any outfit – it looks beautiful with a plain white dress, or as the finishing touch for a Princess Leia themed outfit.
