Showing posts with label craft tips. Show all posts
Showing posts with label craft tips. Show all posts

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Great FREE craft site

Hi!

personalized hangings and more

Having a really tired day.
I got up early to go meet a friend for breakfast.
Before 10am.
I usually don't speak to anyone, much less be dressed
and ready to go anywhere
Before 10am.
yawn.
Then when we were saying goodby,
I was getting into the trusty red van when
ooww!
something poinged in my back, and now I hurt.
ouch.
It's hot again today, but not nearly as hot
as elsewhere in the states.
I shouldn't complain.
It's hot.



Today I am going to be brief
(is that possible for me?)
and just share some cool things
and a website where you can find tons
of free craft patterns.


soda can purse with ultra suede lining

travel house pocket with peeps



dragonfly doll from a wooden spoon


spoon herb garden markers


vintage suitcase redone to a picnic getaway

The following website has tons of free craft pages.


You can easily spend an hour or two just grazing.
Here are some samples of what she offers.
It is a very random, very small sample!

Terra Cotta Birdbath
Handmade Mulberry paper Card
Milkweed Pod Poinsettia Ornaments
Easy Potpourri Pie
Round Crochet Rag Rug
How to Air-Dry Flowers
Decoupage Plant Markers
Make candles from Old Crayons
Girls Journal
Unique Gift Wrapping Ideas
Coffee Can Container Gardne
Homemade Beaded Candles
Homemade Scented Bath Salts
Flavored Vinegars and Oils
Beautiful Balloon Wedding Decorations
Soap Crayons....
the list goes on and on and on!

Have fun exploring today!
Better yet, go get a glass of
Celestial Seasonings Tea, cold or hot
and a small bowl of M&Ms.
Or mixed nuts if you can't do that chocolate thing.
sigh.
Relax.
Take 3 Deep Breaths
and go!

see you tomorrow,

inkspired


Thursday, April 14, 2011

Decoupaged Glass Plates tutorial

Hello all,
Well, today I am going to jump in and try my hand at showing a tutorial. The project is super simple with the right tools and product.
Don't even talk to me about doing a video!


Decoupaged Glass Plate Tutorial:
you will need:
   clear glass plate clean, oil free (fingerprints, etc.)
   ModPodge matte, gloss or glitter!
   sponge brush
   glass of water for glue brushes
   plastic lid or plate to pour glue into
   damp rag/paper towel for finger clean up during project
   newspapers to cover your craft surface
   craft mat or placemat size rectangle of waxed paper
   pretty napkins
   sharp scissors

Step 1
  Spread newspapers, wax paper etc. to cover work surface
  Get damp rag and place in a bowl or on plastic plate/lid
  Prepare napkins:
      remove extra plies so you have only one ply of decorated napkin. You can use the leftover white napkin plies in later steps and also use them as napkins!
Step 2
   Cut motifs from napkins. Cut many more than you think you will need!
Very Important: lay out your napkin cuttings frequently so you have an idea for placement. Continue to do this as you cut.

Do your final placement layout.

Now is the time to trace and cut out a background sheet of tissue paper or napkin. This is when the other napkin plain plies will work well.

Set aside.

Step 3
   Pour a glob of ModPodge onto plastic lid.
   Place clear glass plate FACE DOWN.
   Spread a little glue to cover where you want to put your first napkin cutting.
   Place napkin cutting FACE DOWN, and dab more glue on with brush.

tip: remember that you will be placing your motifs down from the front to the back.
Example - if you are gluing down a watering can full of flowers, you will first place the watering can down. Then you will place flowers on top of that, so when finished the flowesr will be inside (or behind) the can. Then you will place any clouds/sky on top of the flowers, so the finished scene will look like clouds in the back, flowers in vase.

   Continue spreading a little glue, placing napkin motifs and dabbing with more glue until all your first pieces are in place.


Problem?  It is very easy to tear the thin napkin pieces. You can smoosh some of them together with the wet glue. Hate it? Remove it quickly and do another piece instead. Or, make the tears part of your overall look, and be sure to do more of them. Think crackled Venetian vases or old paintings.

tip: make sure all the napkin pieces are covered with glue.

Step 4
Set aside on wax paper. Let dry.
Now is the perfect time to start on another glass plate or bowl, while your first is drying a bit.
Here, my lovely assistant Pam is starting on a small bowl. She has cut out a few pansy motifs from one napkin, then has taken another blue striped napkin and torn it into small strips.
Remember! You are gluing napkin pieces face down onto the bottom outside of the bowl.
Pam has glued a few pansy motifs first, and is then applying blue strips on top of them.

Step 5
Pick up your dry/wet glass plate carefully.
Get the set aside one large piece of tissue paper/napkin that you have cut out.
You can now apply the covering "back" layer. This usually goes on top of all your glued pieces, but doesn't have to. Play around with looks, but do this BEFORE you start gluing things down! It is very difficult if not impossible to remove motifs once the glue has started to set (which is within seconds sometimes!)
Remember your steps: Put down a layer of ModPodge first, being careful not to tear or smoosh the already glued down motifs. Then place tissue paper/napkin on top and dab glue to cover it all. If you don't get glue everywhere on this step, it will leave a dry spot that is okay but doesn't look great!

This plate is drying. After first layer of napkins, I am now adding a layer of yellow behind the lion, and torn strips of light blue and white napkins around the edge.

Step 6
Set aside to dry thoroughly.
Go back to your second bowl, plate or whatever, and apply finishing touches.
Here is a Happy Birthday bowl that I made.
Here it is done, but drying:

Here it is dry, and shows you the unfinished edges where the tissue paper is sticking up. I actually did this on purpose, to give a finished edge when I am done .
 
Here I am holding the bowl up to the light so you can see it at a different angle.
I used a mixture of matte ModPodge, and glitter ModPodge.

Step 7
Finish up any decoupaged pieces you have more steps to do.
If you want to do a small piece now you can decoupage small candle cups, or in this case, we used mini clay pots:

Here are the finished products:

In the above 2 photos you can see the mini bowl and the bunny plate still need their edges finished.

Step 8 Final
Take an old emery board or file. File off the tissue edges that are sticking up away from the rims. Smooth the edges with the file, as needed.
Well, just hmmmm. I have no idea why this particular picture is tipped wrong. It isn't in my saved files that way! Sorry, guess you will just have to turn your head or hold your monitor up sideways!

Here are our finished samples:


 Oh just ick. Guess that is what learning new things is all about! I will have to play with this photo issue, but I do want to get this wonderful and easy craft to you, so please just bear with me, and do that crooky neck thing!

This is the plate I did years ago:
front:
back:

 laid down on  white napkings to show detail:
Yes! Those pansies and leaves are from a napkin!!

Here are some last minute finishing tips:

These are decorative plates and not meant to be washed. If needed, you can wipe the glass surface with a damp cloth, and dry immediately.
They are NOT food safe unless you spray with food safe finish.

The back side can often feel 'sticky', even after it is dry. Use a clear acrylic spray to eliminate this. I like Kryon.

Check and see, I believe there are food-safe sprays that you can use! After spraying with this kind of spray, you can put food on the plate, but still only hand wash with very mild soap and rinse with a damp rag.

If you can't find the food safe spray, or just want to use the clear acrylic spray, that's fine. You can put wrapped candy on you plate if you wish. You could use it as a serving plate for pre-wrapped tea bags, or 3 little tea cups. How about a creamer/sugar set?

I think the birthday bowl would be a great place to anchor some birthday balloons!

I hope you have enjoyed my first tutorial.
Print these out on sticker paper, and have fun decorating cards, lunch boxes or Easter eggs!

inkspired




Monday, March 21, 2011

Springtime Butterflies

Good day!
Hurt No Living Thing

Hurt no living thing;
  Ladybird, nor butterfly,
Nor moth with dusty wing,
Nor cricket chirping cheerily,
Nor grasshopper so light of leap,
Nor dancing gnat nor bettle fat,
Nor harmless worms that creep.
- Christina Rossetti

I just started hearing the birds a few days ago. I listen for them every winter - waiting for the spring sounds. In a few weeks I will be able to wake up in the morning and lay in bed and listen to them. It's a happy sound. A fresh sound. It's a "Spring is on her way!" sound.
While I know I will still have days of snow and drudgery, the hope is always waiting. The hope of buds of flowers, tiny green shoots of grass; the hope of sunny skies and wearing shorts and eating fresh cherries.
It's coming!
It's coming!
Today I have a very simple Butterfly decorating project.
In fact, I can hear my friend Dani say "Re-ally."

Butterfly Barrette Project:
For these projects, you need to go to the store and purchase butterflies. There is a huge assortment out there. I found 4" wide sparkled white butterflies at the Family Dollar store. At Michael's you will find realistic and fantasy butterflies in sizes from 1" across to 5" across. You can find sweet little netting and rosebud butterflies at WalMarts for $2. Look around! I found some sparkly sequin butterflies, no bigger than 1 1/2" big on bendable green stalks, in the floral department.

You will also be purchasing an assortment of plain hair clips, head bands and barrettes. You can go three ways - purchase them in the colors closest to you hair color, go with the basic gold or silver; or purchase them in some spring pastels that would match the butterflies.

Now collect some fasteners: low temp glue gun, Aleen's Tacky Glue or another thick glue. The runny stuff (Elmer's) is just frustrating on this project.  Some craft wire will work on a few; or sewing thread.

You are going to stick an assortment of butterflies onto your purchased hair clips et al. Ohhhh this sounds too simple - and it is!
  *To add butterflies onto a fabric head band I would suggest you use a strong thread with tiny stitches.
  *To add plastic sequin type butterflies go with the Aleen'es Tacky Glue. You will have to either hold in place or prop it up, but it will work.
   *Thin bendable wire is perfect for headbands or hair clips with a slot in the middle. 
*Anything else that you think can handle it - use the low temp hot glue gun. I recommend the low temp as this project is small enough that you will be using your fingers quite close to the glue.

Crafting tip:
If no one has told you, here is a basic tip for hot glue guns. Keep a bowl of ice water very handy. When you burn a piece of your finger (and we always do) immediately stick it in the bowl of ice water. This can  prevent blisters and cools the burn down quickly.

Crafting tip #2:
When you use low temp/hot glue you want to 'bury' the object in glue. Don't squirt so much that you have a huge glob with a tiny butterfly in the middle. Just use as much glue as possible for a very firm hold. A little drop of hot glue will not hold an object, no matter how light, for very long.
Also hold the item (example: floral stem) and place glue on the stem, then push the stem where desired. This will prevent getting glue all over places you don't want it.
You now have a beautiful spring touch to add to your girl's day, or even your own.
Think about hot glueing those extra left-over butterflies onto an old purse. How about one in each corner of placemats? I have already added some to a plain basket with a spray of spring buds as a table centerpiece. I plan on adding some around my bathroom mirror in the guest room. I have greenery glued in place as a frame to the mirror. It's time now for me to wire some fresh butterflies to tuck into it.

Tip:
I really like using the Christmas wire hangers that are like green plastic covered paper clip weight, but very easy to bend. They are a perfect size to wrap around something.
glitter stickers from Dover

"Ahh, the wide almond groves in full white flower
Stunning in the morning sun.
Old naked Winter in his garb of grays and browns has run.
Forsythia blooms come and go in the blink of a yellow Eye,
Then, suddenly, mysteriously, Green erupts; and we sigh."

-   Michael P. Garofalo, Cuttings
until tomorrow -
inkspired

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Day 3 Irish countdown, Barbies, Decoupage and Vintage song sheet graphics

Welcome!

Today I would like to share with you one of my passions -

Barbie, Barbie, Barbie!
Yes, it's true. I am an adult (so my age says) and I collect Barbies! I love the fancy dresses and costumes. The outrageous hair.  All the glitter and glam.
The fantasy of it all.
Here are a few examples of Irish Barbies that Mattel has produced:
"It's just a Barbie kind of world...."

Here are some great vintage song sheets, from Indiana's Music Libraries. See side bar for the link.


So, what can you do with these great images except just admire them?
DECOUPAGE!!
Decoupage is such an easy project to do, and the results can look so professional.
My favorite decoupage medium? The standard Mod Podge is still one of the best. I have tried several others, which all seem to work fine. I do really like Aleene's products. She has a reverse decoupage glue and a napkin decoupage glue among many others.

Simple decoupage project:
Pick out an item. Some ideas:
   a frame with glass (use Aleene's reverse decoupage glue)
   a side table
   a frame with a large border
   a mirror with a large border
   a trinket box
   a wood stool
   a plaque
really, just about anything you want.

Now, just follow the directions on the bottle! I'm not going to repeat them here, they are so simple.

Hint: before you start, remove all surface dirt with a good scrubbing if needed, or remove wood dust with a tack sheet.

To use the Irish song sheets, click on the image. Copy and manipulate to the size desired. Watch for the pixels. That means if you blow it up too much it will be very grainy, or 'pixeled'.  Print. Wrinkling the printed paper can help some to disguise the larger 'pixels'. Lightly swipe a dark brown ink pad over the wrinkles to age it even further.
For a very distressed aged look, tear the edges. Practice! Then sponge on some of that great dark brown ink you have.

Apply decoupage glue as directed on the jar/bottle.

Fun hint: At this "wet" stage you can sprinkle on glitter! Try a little green sparkle, or some irridescent glitter!

While these examples are not done using song sheets, it will give you some ideas on how a copied picture can look:
Garden Shrine by inkspired

Here is an example of how decoupage glue can be used to glue
recycled paper scrap - in this case catalog pictures of book covers and then heavily sprinkled with glitter:
Fairy Book Box with closeup of inside by inkspired
Share your completed projects!
Found any tips that will help the rest of us?
Write and let me know!

"May the good Lord take a liking to you...
but not too soon!"
- Irish proverb

inkspired