I've been bad...

Sheesh... I've been forgetting to take pictures.... the whole reason this blog was started was to document what I make, lol, and here I have been making things and forgetting the camera. *eyeroll at self* I took the gingerbread boys back from The Flying Pig, replaced them with beaded feathers. Dang, I had so much fun making the beaded dangles for the feathers that I wondered if it could possibly be legal, lol!

I will try to be good and take pics of the next batch, which are already painted. If I like the looks of them--they always look different the day after, because the paint cures overnight and often gets muted--then I will bead them right away, but if not, then I will paint them some more and bead them tomorrow.

Hey, I discovered that boxes other people's holiday gifts come in make mighty handy craft caddies--cleaned off part of my friend's front porch, lol. She had all sizes and my fav was a box from a digital camera; it was long and not too tall, and made easily into two matching caddies. You shoulda seen me with all my gears turning, trying to figure out how to make one set of cuts and get two identical caddies, lol...

This is not recycling, btw... this is "upcycling." Recycling is making something into the same thing it was originally; upcycling is adding value by making it into something new and different. Certainly I think free craft caddies are pretty valuable! I may tame some of this clutter yet! *grin*

Door Wreath, Incarnation #4

The roses are silver tissue paper, recycled from a November birthday gift. The leaves are a few of the November leaves, gilded with metallic paints. The gingerbread boy is a cookie cutter. The added cord is red and green satin twisted with tiny gold beads.

I burned a LOT of glue this month; a local boutique has some of my ornaments, hearts, bells, gingerbread boys, snowmen. We'll see how they do. *tries not to bounce in chair, lol*

I have a crafting partner now too; we took our crafts to the boutique together and are looking for more places. *waves hello to you!*

Glueburning: Because everyone needs a special birthday present...

Tis Gryph's birthday, so what better than a gryphon?

This is the white inside of my flour bag. I just *knew* that paper was good for something! *grin*

Happy birthday, darlin! May it be the start of your best years yet!

Glueburning: I keep going back to basics

There are some crafts that just never get old for me. Have you burnt glue lately? I actually deliberately spent money on 18 gauge floral wire stems and some paint--despite our tight budget!--to be able to do these this year.

Remember what they are? Hint: Aleene's Tacky Glue.

Hint: recycled crafting.

I dangled some beads from the single hearts after I cut them from the main piece of floral wire, but the doubled hearts are on one stem which has been twisted at the top to make a hanging loop. The tassels are just crochet thread which matched the paint.

Hint: Simple craft, easy as can be.

Hint: You need ordinary scissors and a candle.

Got an angel in my pocket... Sometimes instead of dangles or ornaments, I make plant pokes. This angel was just a little too big and kept drooping in on itself over the candle flame, so I ended up picking up the candle and "painting" the flame over the whole surface.

Figured it out yet?

They're made from a USED brown paper grocery sack covered in wet glue! Remember? You glue cutouts together with wire down the middle, coat them with Tacky glue, and burn them over the candle flame. They turn absolutely black with soot (it does make some smoke; you might want to open a window), which you wipe off... and voila! antique metal! Then you drybrush, dab, or sponge them with metallic paint or gold-leafing, and there you are!

MY very expensive, fancy paintbrushes were wadded up damp paper towels. *eyebrow waggle* I used three paints, Folk Art Metallics Antique Gold, Metallic Copper and Metallic Amethyst. The ric-rac scarf on the angel, the crochet thread tassels, and the beaded dangles were all made from leftovers and/or scavenged from other projects. One evening's work total, including the time it took to remember how to efficiently use the candle and whether it matters if the glue dries before you burn it (nope).

I haven't had so much fun in an age. *grin*