Changeable scenery terrarium pendant

A few months back I saw some great terrarium necklaces on Etsy and Pinterest, and decided to make my own.

I looked all over online for pendants that would work for this project and wound up buying a set of two shadow box pendants from HHHdesigns for around $11. They're copper and big enough to make some cute little scenes inside.  They're a little bigger than a typical pendant, but despite that, it was still a challenge to find small enough figures to put inside.  I had a little owl that I thought would be perfect, but, like, one claw on his tiny foot stuck out too far to fit. 

Initially, I put Velcro in the back and bottom of the box and on the felt I used for the scenes, with the thought that it would make it easier to change scenes out.  Unfortunately it was too bulky.  I ditched that and sewed the felt into little L shapes, connecting the back and bottom pieces so they'd sit in the box without any support or adhesive.

First I made this little duck scene (although I did redo it before this picture, after the Velcro idea failed).  The ceramic duck was $1 at the Mall of Saint Paul.  The water is felt and beads, sky- felt, cloud-batting, sun- felt, and the reeds are felt and sticks from the end of incense.  All I bought for these scenes were the animals, the rest was from around the house with felt as the main medium. 

I got this glass cat at a bead store for $1.50.  I used some rhinestone beads for stars and felt for the rest.  The great thing about the cat bead is that it has a hole. I used wire to attach it to the felt.   

Now, this elephant is probably my favorite and cost a little more ($5 at the Mall of Saint Paul), but I love it.  It's pewter and pretty heavy.  I put felt hills behind it and a bead for a setting sun.

And last is this cute little ceramic bluebird from an antique store for $1.  I used twigs from the yard and star beads.  This is the only one that doesn't have a felt base at the bottom of the box, but the twigs fit snugly and hold it all in place. 

I think this pendant is going to be great to switch up and wear, especially to work for the kids in my class!  I  want to find a chain or cord that matches better than my typical silver chain.

Honestly, when I first took on the project, I thought it would be something I could duplicate and sell on Etsy, but it took so long to find the tiny animals for my own necklace, that it would be a pretty time-consuming.  I'm happy with this being a personal project that maybe other people can try out and have fun with!  I'd love to see other ideas and results, so please post anything that you make!