CREATIVE CRAFTING

Posts Tagged ‘Crafts’

This an easy project for you and your children to try.  There are different variations and I have found that you can use gourds, small pumpkins, or apples to make this wonderful centerpiece.

Remember any craft is made up of your imagination.  There are no set rules to a craft project.  As they say “It is in the eye of the beholder”.

Use different color tapers, different bases, ribbons, glitter…imagination is the key element.

Materials

• Large Rome Beauty apples (that will stand straight on the table)
• Candles
• Waxed paper

Instructions

1.Using an apple corer, make a hole about halfway through the middle of an apple. Make the hole as straight as possible and remove the core piece.
2.Insert a candle into the hole. It should fit tightly; if the hole is too large, wrap waxed paper around the candle’s end.
3.Older kids can decorate the apples by carefully carving designs in the skins with the tip of a potato peeler (to prevent the designs from turning brown, rub them with lemon juice).

4.Arrange the candleholders in a circle on a plate or cutting board.

Every once in a while I come across an written article that catches my eye and imagination.   The techniques used in this article can be used for any invitation or card.   Birthdays, Halloween, Anniversary, Christmas, and so on.

Author: Mark Etinger

If you’re looking for a fun, affordable way to get together with
friends, you should most definitely host a dinner party. With
the right menu, décor, and cute homemade invitations, you can
really make a night in, something special and memorable for you
and your friends. A great way to send the message that the
dinner party is something special, is to make your invitations
special! That means that you should skip the card aisle at the
drug store and hand-make them. Even if you’re not the most
crafty person on the block, with the right printable paper, a
couple of accessories and some colored envelopes, you’re on your
way to receiving quite a few RSVPs for your next dinner soirée.

1) Before you buy any printable paper, or even address the
colored envelopes, you’re going to need to compose an invite
list and draft up the text for the invitations. You want the
basics: briefly describe what is going on, where it is, when,
and what they can bring (if anything). Keep the text minimal and
make it easy to scan.

Polymer Clay is a fun medium to use because it is easy to mold and it can be cooked in your oven. When making jewelry, and you have run out of beads that you want to use, take out your clay, and make beads. Here are some techniques that will make your bead making more intricate and unique.

I found a technique for making imitation bone or ivory beads using polymer clay. You can also maneuver the clay so that it will take on a wooden look. You start the process by making beads the size you need out of white. Some artist like to use more cylindrical shapes as they claim it enables them to “carve” patterns easier than more rounded beads, for myself I didn’t see a difference. So use your own ideas on the shapes (more fun that way too!)

After the bead has been baked use a small knife to carve patterns. You can also use on of your pointed clay tools or a sharp needle also works well. Once you are satisfied with the carving use either a tan or light beige acrylic paints and lightly rub the outside of the bead. Do not rub so much in that the paint goes into the carving you made, that part should remain white. While the paint is slightly damp still use either a piece of paper towel or a napkin to remove any excess paint.

Got some little elves with time on their hands? Invite them to help out in a special holiday workshop, creating season’s greetings for everyone on your family’s mailing list. Using four super-simple techniques and such kid-friendly materials as glue dots and stickers, they’ll be turning out festive, personalized cards in no time.  These would also make cute Thank You cards from the kids.

You will need:
# Ink pad with nontoxic brown or bronze ink
# Plain notecards or card stock
# Craft glue
# Googly eyes
# Mini pom-poms, brown and red
# Brown marker

Use a thumb or fingertip to stamp 3 reindeer heads on each notecard. Glue on googly eyes and pom-pom noses (including a red one for Rudolph, of course). Finish by drawing antlers.

Courtesy of Family Fun.com

There are some wonderful tools available for the Polymer Clay artist.   One of these that I have used quite extensively in my projects involving fairies is the flexible mold.

You can purchase them at your craft store.  There will be a wide variety of molds for you to use, everything from feet, emblems, leafs, flowers, hands, faces, even body molds.  These molds are made of a flexible rubberized material. However, I have learned there are some tricks to using these molds to your advantage.

First if you have never worked with Polymer Clay the first thing you should learn is to condition it.  That means take a small amount of clay off of the block and knead it with your fingers until it becomes very pliable.

Next pick the mold you would like to use and measure out the conditioned clay to approximate size of the shape you are trying to mold.  In the case of a face, pinch a very small end for the impression of the nose.  Press your clay into the mold.  Remove any excess clay around the impression.   You want the clay to be level with the mold do not want it to overlap on the outer mold surface.

To release the clay from the mold, gently rub clay off the edge of the mold toward the center of the molded piece.   This will give you a nice clean edge on your molded piece.  The mold is flexible so if you are careful you can release your piece by gently pressing opposite sides and your piece should release from the mold.

I have been married a few years…40 to be precise.  Unfortunately, or fortunately whichever the case maybe, I don’t remember much of that day only through pictures. I don’t have many of my wedding gifts left, but that is what happens over a long period of time.   The one item I do have and I cherish is a decoupaged wedding invitation given to me by my late brother and his wife. I have always loved it and it has always hung in a place of honor in my home.

It is such a simple gift and yet it is the only one that has lasted a lifetime.   Several years ago in another home, we had a small fire and some of my wedding memories were lost in the water and smoke damage so I no longer have the original invitation, only this reminder.  Yes, it is yellow with age, but it is still a reminder of a wonderful day.

I am sure when my sister-in-law made it she never thought what this gift would come to mean to me and my husband.  It is a reminder of a beautiful day with family and friends.

The reason I am telling you this story is this:  Wedding season is upon us.   The brides will have their lists at various stores of items they need and want, and you will no doubt purchase something for them.  But why not add something personal with the gift.  Something you made by hand for them to remember long after the gifts have worn out.

Ribbon Candy has always been a Holiday staple as far as I am concerned.  So this year when I found a way to make decorations out of polymer to look like ribbon candy, I couldn’t wait to try it.

I am using these on the tree, to decorate packages and a bowl of “fake” ones on the table in a candy dish.  I have no small children coming to my house, so I don’t have to watch for anyone wanting to eat them!

Click on picture for more instructions

So much for my 21 days of Christmas Crafting…my only excuse is shopping.

Design by Marie Redmond

Last year around this time I was just starting my exploration of Polymer Clay. I knew from the start that this was something I would enjoy for years to come. One of my favorite aspects of clay is the miniature scenes, characters, and villages one can make. I like doing things in a small size.

I ran across this on my favorite Polymer Clay site Sculptey.com. The complete instructions for this and other crafts are there for both novices and experienced alike.

Happy Holidays!