Map Pendants With NFC Tags

In this instructable I'm going to show you a simple way to make a map pendant in less than one hour. You can make a plain map pendant, or make one with an NFC tag to add some fun to the project.

Plain map necklace can feature your hometown, favourite place on Earth or a location of your LDR partner. NFC embedded map necklace offers a lot of different options, so the only limitation is your imagination.

So far I've made those NFC pendants as:

• holiday souvenirs- with links to photos and videos taken during the trip
• future holiday destinations- with links to websites selling plane tickets to check the daily deals
• city scavenger hunts- you have to get to the place shown on the map; once there, you have to find a clue, the clue will have be a password to unlock the NFC tag that will reveal the next clue/step of the hunt
• metro map, with links connecting directly to the website, to check when the next train will arrive and/or if there are any disruptions on the line

• Empty pendants and cabochons (glass) - they come in different sizes and shapes; make sure to buy pendants with cabochons, because they are made with real glass and in most cases that glass is a little bit magnifying, which is great for this project because it will highlight tiny details https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=Cabochon+pendant&ref=...
  
• Mod Podge
• All purpose glue like E6000
• Maps

I had old travel guides at home, they had good quality city and country maps, old atlas or car road maps would work too.

If you absolutely can't find any good quality maps, you can always print them yourself. Make sure to print them in high quality and on matt photo paper. Take a look at this fourth picture, it's a comparison between an atlas map and a home printed one. I used my good quality (but not great) printer, regular paper and vivid print. It worked, but I wasn't happy with the blurry lines and lack of pigment. That said, my printer is really bad when it comes to printing pictures, so if yours is good, you will probably be able to print the maps yourself.

Apply a thin layer of mod podge to the portion of the map you want to use. Place the glass on top of the map and push it down to get the glue to spread evenly. Pick the glass and flip it upside down, use a credit card or something similar to run it over the back. This action will remove any air bubbles.

Mod podge will be dry enough within 30-60min.

Use a sharp knife to trim the edges of the map. Apply a few drops of all purpose glue to the pendant and press the glass in. Leave it to dry for minimum of 30min.

If you are using NFC tags, simply glue them between the glass and the pendant base.

Here's what I used my map pendants for:

1. Personalised holiday souvenir- pictures from Australia available on Dropbox
2. Cat collar tag- no more random phone calls from concerned neighbours, they can access the tag and read a saved message.
3. An anniversary gift for my partner- pendant hidden in a jewellery box, once scanned, invitation to a holiday trip to San Francisco appears, along with an itinerary, plane tickets etc.