22.12.10
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30.11.10
From www.chubbyhobby.com
Origami Heart Earrings :: a tutorial
Posted February 8, 2010 By Jo
Valentines is just ONE WEEK away!!How about making something special for yourself to wear on the big day? ^0^
… Or for anyone who’s still searching for a Valentines Day surprise gift!
It’s quite easy to make, and I’ve included lots of photo to follow!
So here we go…
You’ll need:
- A piece of Washi (Japanese Origami Paper) 15cm x 15cm
- Beads (of your choice)
- 2 x Fish-hook earring findings
- 2 x Head Pins
- PVA Glue
- Water-based Polyurethane & brush to apply
- Pliers
- Pin & Needle
- Scissors
- Wire
Step 1
Have your washi ready on a cutting mat. I used a type of origami paper known as Yuzen Chiyogami – love the prints! I also chose pink/red because it’s Valentines!
Cut out two 1.5 cm strips.
Step 2
Take one strip, fold one end of the washi to form a triangle.
And then keep wrapping the washi around the triangle.
When you reach the end of the washi strip, it should look something like the picture above. Fold the bottom corner of the part of washi strip still sticking out.
Step 3
Use a toothpick to apply a tiny bit of glue.
Tuck “end bit” in.
Step 4
Use your finger, gently press from the top of the triangle. Squash the two sides a bit to form a rough heart shape.
Repeat step 2 to 4 for the other washi strip.
Step 5
Use a pair of sharp scissors, trim the two sides of both hearts to make them rounder.
Step 6
First poke with a pin, and then a real thick needle to make a decent size pinhole.
Insert a piece of wire through both hearts – you don’t want to be holding the hearts when you apply the coating!!!
Step 7
Use a small paint brush to apply a thin coat of polyurethane and let dry. Repeat 2-3 times. Patience is the key – let dry completely between applications.
I’ve made heaps more hearts while waiting for the coating to dry ^0^
Step 8
Your hearts are now sturdy and water-resistant!
Remove hearts from wire and insert a head pin into each.
Thread a few beads in to make the earrings a bit more interesting.
Step 9
Trim the head pin if it’s too long, leave a section of exposed length of pin to form a loop using a pair of pliers.Open the loop of a fish-hook finding and attach it to the head pin. Then close the loop again.
I don’t have a picture for this step, because I couldn’t take one><
Step 10
No more steps!! You are DONE! ^3^
26.11.10
From obstinatepursuit.blogspot.com
Recycled Bottlecap Embellishments {Altered Element}
This is my first post as part of the new Altered Element Design Team, so I've been keen to work on something that's versatile and can be used in many different types of projects. Whether you're a seasoned crafter or a beginner, you'll be able to use these cute embellishments in your jewellery, interiors or scrapbooking projects - and as a bonus they're made from stuff that most people throw away.
What You'll Need:
Glossy Accents - A versatile 3D clear, gloss medium that you can use for lots of things. There's also a Matte, Sepia and Crackle version - so good!
Cord - I actually used a lovely Leather Cording, but I think these pretty Metallic Cords would be perfect with winter colours.
Bottlecaps - If you're not a big drinker, fear not. Ask friends or relatives to collect them for you or head down to your local bar, ask nicely and flutter eyelashes. Works for me!
Spray Paint - I used Plastikote Project Paint in matt white and bronze, but if you'll be sticking your embellishments down instead of hanging them, you can skip this.
A Selection Of Bits & Pieces - I used punched paper circles, buttons, small seashells and beads in my embellishments. These Alpha Beads and Spangles & Trinkets would also be excellent and are on my wishlist for next time I make these!
Hammer & Screw - Optional for adding a hole to hang your embellishment.
1. Before The Beautifying - You might like to clean up your bottlecaps by boiling them for a few minutes to get rid of any residual beer stains and tarnish. If you want to remove the small plastic inner, boiling will also help to loosen it up, but be careful trying to take it out while it's hot. We'll be covering this up anyway, so there's no real need to try this unless you're one of those people who like things to be as perfect as possible.
Glossy Accents - A versatile 3D clear, gloss medium that you can use for lots of things. There's also a Matte, Sepia and Crackle version - so good!
Cord - I actually used a lovely Leather Cording, but I think these pretty Metallic Cords would be perfect with winter colours.
Bottlecaps - If you're not a big drinker, fear not. Ask friends or relatives to collect them for you or head down to your local bar, ask nicely and flutter eyelashes. Works for me!
Spray Paint - I used Plastikote Project Paint in matt white and bronze, but if you'll be sticking your embellishments down instead of hanging them, you can skip this.
A Selection Of Bits & Pieces - I used punched paper circles, buttons, small seashells and beads in my embellishments. These Alpha Beads and Spangles & Trinkets would also be excellent and are on my wishlist for next time I make these!
Hammer & Screw - Optional for adding a hole to hang your embellishment.
1. Before The Beautifying - You might like to clean up your bottlecaps by boiling them for a few minutes to get rid of any residual beer stains and tarnish. If you want to remove the small plastic inner, boiling will also help to loosen it up, but be careful trying to take it out while it's hot. We'll be covering this up anyway, so there's no real need to try this unless you're one of those people who like things to be as perfect as possible.
2. Painting - I used Plastikote Project Paint to re-colour my bottlecaps. Just lay your bottlecaps face up on a sheet of newspaper and, with the spray about a foot away, lightly mist over your bottlecaps. A couple of light coats if better than one heavy, clumpy one.
3. Adding A Hole For Hanging - If you'd like to add a small hole to your bottlecaps so that you can use them as ornaments or jewellery charms, it's pretty easy to do. Grab yourself a screw and a hammer. Hold the screw at the edge of your bottlecap, hit it really hard a few times with the hammer and voila. (Using a screw instead of a nail might seem counter-intuitive but I find that they don't bend and are, therefore easier to use!)
4. Creating A Collage - I like to line the base of my bottlecaps with a punched paper circle. (If you haven't got a punch for this, just draw around the base of your bottlecap and cut out - or use beads and spangles to cover the base instead.) Layer up your collage using additional punches, stickers, sparkles and beads - sticking them down with a little dot of Glossy Accents to keep them in place.
4. Using The Glossy Accents - Don't shake the bottle - this will add bubbles. Just turn your bottle upside down really quickly, then squeeze onto a piece of scrap paper. Start adding to your bottlecap around the outside and then around the edges of your accents, then fill in the remaining space. Try to make sure that the hole for hanging is clear, but don't worry too much - it's easy to bang in another through the Glossy Accents.
5. Leave To Set - Your Glossy Accents will look less than glossy at first, but leave them to dry overnight (somewhere level) and by morning they'll dry to a hard, clear and glossy finish.
6. Hanging Your Charms - Use your screw to ensure that your hanging hole is free of Glossy Accents (just wiggle it about a bit - technical term) and then thread through some leather cording, knot and hang.
I'm planning on adding these embellishments to my scrapbooking pages, gifts, mini-albums and jewellery - and how cute would these be on your Christmas tree? There's so many ways to make them work in your projects!
As always, if you have any questions or have a go at making some I would love you to let me know in the comments.
22.11.10
From blog.betzwhite.com
Pomander Tutorial
I've got a little treat for you today...a tutorial for making a felted wool pomander! (Remember these little rosettes? I've been staring at them trying to envision them in a project. I was thinking how cute they would look all bunched up close together.) I've used felted wool sweater scraps, but I think it would also look nice with wool craft felt and other fabrics. Great for ornaments and holiday decor! Cute. Plus easy. Nice combo.Coupla' things to mention here. I'm trying out the tutorial in a slide show format to help eliminate a looong post with excessive scrolling. I had to add the text to the actual images, so I hope you can read it all ok. Let me know what you think of this format!
(edit: I just discovered that you can't actually SEE the tutorial if you are subscribing to the feed, so please visit me over at my blog...its cool!)
A note about my process: I tutorialize on the fly...that is, I photograph new projects as I make them for the very first time...just in case they turn out! The problem is that sometimes I come up with different solutions from what you see photographed. Um, yeah. Sorry.
For example, take the styrofoam ball. I had a few laying around, so that's what I used for the center of the pomander. But Oh. Em. Gee. Have you priced Styrofoam balls lately? Way too pricey for what they are. So I came up with a few options for the center. Wrapping up fabric scraps and yarn into a ball works really well, especially if the fabric is a stretchy knit. Another option would be to wet felt or needle felt some scrap roving into a ball (see brown fuzzball above). Since the center is completely covered, no one will see what's inside. It'll be our little secret. *wink*
Oh yeah, and one more tip to add to the tutorial. After you glue the rosettes to the ball, remove the holding pins s-l-o-w-l-y after the glue is dry, twisting them with your fingers if they are reluctant. Alternately, you could just use your decorative pins to secure the rosettes, but I didn't think of that since I was making the whole thing up as I went along...you know.
Whaddya think, are you going to try it? Should I make up a few for my etsy shop too? No promises...just thinkin'. I didn't even know what a pomander was until I was trying to figure out what to call this. Thank goodness for google...
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