CREATIVE CRAFTING

Posts Tagged ‘Holidays’

The Penguins are ready for the holidays. Are you? I have started making small Christmas Ornaments for friends, neighbors, and anyone who happens to be passing by the house. This is a very easy project to make and takes very little time.

The individual penguins are made up of one black ball approximately 1″ in diameter with a white ball sitting on top that is about 3/4″ in diameter. The eyes are no more than a 1/8 inch ball of white clay with a black dot painted on after baking. As for the hats…make a cone out of any color you want and fit it to the heads. And don’t forget the beak…orange 1/8″ ball worked for me.

I used blue metallic for the base and made it so that both penguins could sit on it comfortably. The tree was made with a 1/2 ball of green clay shaped into a cone and textured to resemble branches..then I rolled the tree in different color small glass beads.

The sign can be a little more advanced for the beginner, but still easy to do. Get some liquid Sculpey. On transfer paper print the greeting you want the penguins hold up. Take your liquid Sculpey and put an even coat on the transfer, place it up side down on a tile and bake. Once cooled remove the paper backing and place the greeting on a very thing sheet of clay…color of your choosing. Use a small amount of liquid Sculpey to the transfer to have it adhere to the little sign. Sometimes this will take some practice and you might have to do it a couple of times if you have never done it. Be patient as Liquid Sculpey is going to become your next best friend.

With the holidays almost coming up faster than some of us would like it is time to start thinking of ways to wrap our gifts.  Gifts should be presented to be one of a kind and a good way to do this is by using unique, personalized gift bags.

Gift bags do not have to be generic store bought items.  But should reflect your tastes and that of the person to whom you are giving the gift.  For that reason I suggest you dig out your scrapbooking papers, embellishments and other doo-dads and get to work having some fun and making personalized gift bags!

The Basics

Begin with simple, plain gift bags I have found that if I use a plain bag such as tan-colored I get better results. These plain gift bags come in a variety of colors and can be found at any craft store and even some scrapbooking stores. Once your bag is complete, stuff in some matching tissue paper to give your bag an extra burst of color!

Here are some ideas for different individuals in your life! Since I haven’t started mine yet I borrowed some ideas from Kayla Richards Filip at Scrapbook.com.

For Teachers

• school-themed patterned paper
• black-and-white dotted grosgrain ribbon
• assorted buttons
• red organdy ribbon
• plain #2 pencil

I found this fun Halloween  Haunted House at my favorite site Sculpty.com. They have tons of fresh ideas for Halloween and I couldn’t resist this little house. It has a battery-operated “flame” making it safe for even small children to use. I only made one for now, but plan on making a few more for around the house and yard.

Here is what you will need to get started:
Clays:

Sculpey® III: Black – 2 oz — 1 block
Sculpey® III: Chocolate – 2 oz — 1 block
Sculpey® III: Elephant Gray – 2 oz — 1 block
Sculpey® III: Emerald – 2 oz — 1 block
Sculpey® III: Just Orange – 2 oz — 1 block
Sculpey® III: Pottery – 2 oz — 1 block
Sculpey® III: Spring Lilac – 2 oz — 1 block
Sculpey® III: Tan – 2 oz — 1 block

Tools:
8” Acrylic Roller
Clay Knife
Etch ‘n Pearl
Super Slicer
Additional Supplies:
Glass tealight holder and tealight or battery operated tealight
Super Glue gel

To get started with your Halloween House preheat your oven to 275 °F. Test temperature with oven thermometer for perfectly cured clay. Make sure you condition all clay by kneading until it’s soft and smooth or running it through the Clay Conditioning Machine for several passes on the widest setting. Do this until the clay is soft and plyable.

Step 1
Use acrylic roller or clay roller to roll Black clay to ½” thickness. Roll Elephant Gray to ¼” thickness. Roll Spring Lilac and Tan clay into ⅛”-thick sheets.

To:  All of my readers

From:  The Kraska Family

Our holiday crafting is done for this year, at least I think it is.   I have made all of my tags with embellishments from spare scrapbooking items,  decorated packages with homemade items from polymer clay, the house is done, I think. Each friend and family member received their handmade Christmas cards (I hope).  So I am done!  For now.

I have a lot of ideas for next year and hope to post some of the more successful ones here.

Thanks for supporting my blog and have a safe and happy holiday season!

Here is a fun and easy craft for the kids to make for either grandparents, teachers, or friends.

The pavers might be hard to find this time of year, but you can use the same principle and use Styrofoam forms and use it as a window decoration instead.

Use your imagination…isn’t that why we craft?

Materials

* Keyhole-shaped paver (available at many home improvement stores) *
* Paintbrush
* White and black acrylic paint
* Orange modeling clay
* Superglue

* Fleece
* Pipe cleaner
* Two 1 1/2-inch pom-poms
* Rubber band
* Felt

Instructions

1.Rinse off the paver to remove any loose bits of dirt or cement. Paint it white and let it dry. If needed, apply a second coat and let it dry completely. (if using Syrofoam cover it with white felt or white cotton)

2.Lay the paver flat and paint on the eyes, mouth, and buttons. Let the face dry, then mold a clay nose and affix it with superglue (a parent’s job).

3.Cut a fleece scarf (ours measures 1 by 22 inches) and tie it in place. For the earmuffs, bend a 5-inch piece of pipe cleaner into an arc. Superglue the ends to either side of the head and the pom-poms over the ends (a parent’s job), then wrap the rubber band around the snowman?s head to hold the earmuffs in place until the glue dries.

4.To protect indoor floors, superglue a small piece of felt to the base of the snowman.

Sorry, I am a little late with my Christmas decorations this year. But it is worth the wait. So many new ideas that I have been busy trying as many as I can possibly manage.

For those who are not regular readers, I am big on handmade gifts. Whether for the Christmas holidays or anytime of the year. Nothing says I care more, than something you made. So in keeping with that thought over the next several weeks I will try and post one craft a day leading up to December 25. Then I am taking a short holiday to get ready for Valentines Day.

So here is my first entry into the 21 days of crafting!

This pretty-as-a-package pincushion is the perfect gift for a crafty friend. Cover a foam square with fabric (wrap it like a gift) and secure along the edges with fabrics glue. Glue on beads and tie on a ribbon bow.

I also thought how great it would be to take this same concept and instead of a pincushion, pin candy or other special treats to the present. You could put it on a side table for when the grandchildren come over (just don’t put chocolate on there..what a mess that would be).

I will be the first to admit I get most of my ideas from online, magazines, Michaels or sometimes one of my friends has made something and I will “steal” the idea.

Gift tags don’t have to be store bought, or plain, use your imagination and create your own unique tags.  You can purchase blank tags at Michaels, or any craft shop.  Even some office supply place have blank tags.  Then just either use your leftover scrapbooking embellishments, or items from around the house.  Decorate them with costume jewelry or pictures of your kids.  Have fun and get the whole family involved.

Frosty’s Wish

Make a snowman out of clear buttons or beads. Then give him an outfit with a ribbon scarf, paper nose, and drawn-on top hat.

BGH Magazine

This Santa ornament will be lots of fun to make, and a treasured keepsake to enjoy year after year.

Crafting Time:
1 hour plus baking time

Skill Level:
1 being the easiest

* Glass Ornaments (box of 6)
* Sculpey III® Polymer Clay: Beige, Red, Black, White
* Acrylic Paint, Black
* Cookie Sheet, clay dedicated
* Paper, white (to place items on when baking)

* Roller, clay dedicated
* Toothpick
* Paintbrush
* Paper Towel or Soft Cloth
* Knife, clay dedicated

Cost of each project will vary depending on materials used.

Due to the seasonal nature of some merchandise, actual availability of some products pictured may vary.

Condition each color of clay by hand until pliable.

Roll out beige clay to ¼-inch thickness. Cut an oval piece to form the face area and press onto ornament.

Roll a small log of clay to form bridge of nose and place on center of face. Smooth edges into face. Add two small balls on each side of nose for nostrils. Smooth edges into nose and face. Use handle of paintbrush to create nostrils.

Mix a small amount of red clay into the beige clay to make cheek color. Roll a ball of clay and cut in half. Place on face for cheeks and press into face, smoothing down at the bottom edge.

Mix a little more red clay into the cheek mixture to make the mouth color. Roll a small snake of clay, form a “U” shape for mouth.