Category: Crafts (Page 5 of 9)

Making cards

Our craft for yesterday and today has been making greeting cards. I’ve been thinking about making them for a while, but I was finally prompted by the card project in The Crafty Diva’s D.I.Y. Stylebook. Of course, decorating greeting cards is very easy – the ideas that I got from the book were to use cards that we had around, instead of creating them out of hard paper, and make a little raised area in the front, by pasting colored paper on thick (or doubled-up) cardboard and then decorating with a sticker. I think it looks quite nice.
The cards I used were those I got from a stationary set I got at Costco many years ago. The set came in a beautiful wooden box, which I want to use for other stuff anyway. I still have the letter paper, however, and it’s a mystery what I’m going to do with it (maybe freecycle?).
In any case, the kids weren’t as excited about the raised-surface idea and they decorated the cards as they wished. Below is a picture of their (and my) creations:
cards.jpg

The Crafty Diva’s D.I.Y. Stylebook

craftydiva.jpgThe Crafty Diva’s D.I.Y. Stylebook: A Grrrl’s Guide to Cool Creations You Can Make, Show Off, and Share is the lattest – and last – craft book that I got. It arrived yesterday and at first glace I wasn’t too happy with it. Most of the projects required buying pre-made items and decorating them – which could be expensive and doesn’t require as much crafting as I’d like. For example, instructions for a “powder puff fluff” involve buying white baby powder, putting it in a jar and decorating the jar and brush. Not too exciting.
But I looked at it more carefully today, going through the book and making a list of the crafts I want to do, and I found a surprisingly large number of these – about 12. Yes, some just involve decorating an item I have or can buy (e.g. making a treasure box by covering a wooden box with fabric & decorating it – I hadn’t thought of the fabric part, and I think these can make very good boxes for the jewelry we are going to make as Xmas gifts). But others are a bit more involved and interesting: making photo key chains, a “charades in a can” game and a pant leg purse (great idea, as Mika’s jeans are pretty much disintegrating). Alas, for most of these projects I will have to buy stuff. But hey, as long as we do stuff together, right? 🙂
As for today, they’re having a playdate at home and I think I’ll finally try making “quicksand” – a mixture of cornstarch and water that seems solid when you quickly and forcibly press on it, but becomes viscous if you slowly introduce your finger in it. Very cool. I may also try to make sculpting dough from water – though I’m somewhat doubtful that will work.

Decorating backpacks

Yesterday I got a couple of junior backpacks that I’d ordered from woot.com a while ago. They were $5 each (+shipping) and I couldn’t let the deal go. Today Camila and I started decorating hers, and this evening Mika joined up. Alas, now that her backpack is all done, she’s mortified that the children at school will think she is weird for having decorated it. *sigh*
Anyway, here are their works of art. We used shells and pearls from the jewelry bag I got at the flea market a week ago, and wood letters, ribbons, feathers and flowers that we got from freecycle. We used regular glue and E6000 Jewelry Adhesive, which was recommended to me as a “glue everything” glue. I hope the decorations won’t fall 🙂
Camila’s Backpack
Camila's Backpack
Mika’s Backpack
mikabackpack.jpg
*Update*. Mika did take her newly decorated backpack to school the next day, and the kids liked it. So now she’s happy to take it every day.

Flea market finds

Last weekend, I got a bunch of beads and old jewelry at the flea market. I thought I might get more today, but there was nothing of the sort to be found – instead, I lucked out and got a scrapbook kit for $5 (including an album) and some extra scrapbooking supplies (cut outs, stickers, etc.) for $1. Now the girls are scrapbooking, and I’m too tired from going to the flea market and then to Michael’s (where they have a sale on acrylic paint) to actually do anything with or without them 🙂

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