Made It! Monday - Felt Flower Wreath

Here was the inspirational pin:

This gorgeous wreath was created by Nest of Posies. I love vibrant colors and the black and white stripes - so eye-catching!

But I love how you can take a great idea and still make it your own.

Here's how I put it together:

You'll need:

• Wreath. (I bought mine at a craft store, but then saw this idea that will only cost you $1.)
• Felt. Since this is going outside, I just used the cheap craft felt - I think they are 9" x 12"?
• Fabric - I didn't have any striped fabric, but I found this fun zebra print bandanna for $1 at Michael's.
• Scissors
• Glue Gun

 There are so many different ways to make felt flowers and if you do a quick search on google or pinterest you can easily pull of a plethora of great tutorials.

I chose to make just 2 types - pompoms and roses.

To make the pompoms:

1.  From the longest side of your felt, cut a strip 2" wide. Lay down a thin line of hot glue on the bottom edge (long side) and fold over.
2. On the folded edge, make 1/4" wide cuts all along the length of your felt strip. Cut on the fold towards the raw edge, stopping before you reach the hot glue. It doesn't need to be exact, but leave maybe 1/4" or so un-cut.
3. Then, start rolling it up from one side, securing with hot glue as you go.
4. Here's how the underside will look.

If you'd like a bigger flower, add another felt strip - just continue rolling where you left off. You could even use another color for an extra fun look.

To make the roses:

1. Cut a circle of felt. (I traced a circle using a dessert plate, about 6" in diameter, which produced a 2 - 2 1/2" rose. To make a larger or smaller rose, simply change the size of your circle.)  Cut the circle into a spiral, about 1/2" wide.
2. Starting from the outside edge, start rolling the felt. To make the rose petals, twist/fold the felt as you roll it. It's a little hard to explain in words exactly - but it truly isn't complicated, once you give it a try you'll figure it out lickety-split! Secure with hot glue as you go...
3. Here's how the underside will look with the twisting and rolling.
4. And here's the front.

For another felt flower design, roll your spiral, but don't twist it - cute!

Next, the wreath:

1.  Cut your fabric (bandanna in this case) into strips, approximately 3" wide.
2. Wrap around your wreath base, securing with hot glue here and there to hold in place.
3. Arrange your felt flowers as you like them, and attach with more hot glue (oh boy, I love that stuff!)
4. Voila!

This was sort of a two-for-one pinterest challenge, because I've been wanting to make some felt flowers forever! Turns out, they were super easy. I have a stash of nice quality wool felt in super yummy colors and can't wait to use my new skills making some fun felt flower pins, and maybe some hair clips.

But that may have to wait a bit, as I already decided what to make for this weeks challenge - it's something practical, simple, and makes a great gift....



Look What You've Made!

I absolutely love it when my Resin Tutorial readers take some time to tell me about their journey into the world of resin and to share what they've made.

So there will be a new blog feature showcasing your own amazing designs!

To start things off, check out these stunning flower resin pendants, created by Chris, who sent me this lovely photo:

Chris said this was only her second attempt, and they turned out beautifully! Working with delicate flowers like these presents a lot of challenges including preserving their vibrant colors once embedded into the resin and also keeping those fine, soft petals from folding, breaking, and shifting. Chris did an amazing job - so very pretty!! ♥

So for all the rest of you out in blog-land, I would love to see some of the fun things you've made! You can email photos directly to me at jen_skinner@charter.net

Ooh, I can't wait to see more wonderful resin!

Welcome Home Wreath

I've seen so many lovely wreaths in the blogosphere lately, and I really, really wanted one. If you look closely at the ugliness of our front door (which I cropped out as much as possible) you'll see how much we really needed a cover-up!

Here's my $4 dollar-store wreath. If you had any of this stuff on hand, you could make it even cheaper. The dollar store has these skinny, skimpy wreaths, so I bought two - one smaller and one larger and nested them together to beef it up a bit. I also bought a roll of moss-tape which I wound around the larger wreath. (I think it would have looked just as nice without though, so I could have totally saved a dollar and bought, say, another plastic organizing bin. Seriously, I need to stop buying those!)

The red flowers were also $1, attached and snuggled closely together for extra fullness. They also had a nice ivory shade of the same flower, and I think a mono-chromatic scheme would have looked really classy, but we needed the color pop.

I made the three paper flowers from my pages of my collection of old, destroyed books that I'm slowly tearing apart for various uses. I used the same book and a piece of scrapbook paper to create the mini bunting banner and paper bow. The bunting and bow are coated in mod-podge for added protection against the elements. I left the paper flowers untouched as a little weathering could only enhance the look (I hope.)

All components were assembled with hot-glue for super-duper easiness (though I burnt my finger at the VERY end, completely needlessly I might add!)

So anyway, if you've got a hankering to craft your own wreath, hope this adds to the inspiration pool...

Make Your Own Play Dough and a Porcupine Too

I've tried a few dough recipes, but they always seem a little too gritty. This one is smooth and soft - fairly close to the store-bought version - and stays amazingly soft and pliable even after being left out for hours (or overnight in our case).

Here's what you need:

1 cup flour

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 cup water

1/2 cup salt

2 teaspoons cream of tartar

optional:

food coloring

glitter

scent - (you can use an extract like lemon or vanilla)

Combine all your ingredients in a large saucepan. Stir with a wooden spoon over medium heat. Stir constantly. It will be very soupy for several minutes and then suddenly it will start sticking together and can be stirred into a ball. It will look very lumpy too - don't worry. Remove from the heat and keep stirring briefly. Turn the whole lump out on a floured surface and knead as it cools. Just for a few minutes - you'll see when it's the perfect consistency.

It will store nicely in Ziploc bags or of course, old play-doh containers (we've only got about 30 or so laying around). If you're not going to use it for a while, storing it in the fridge or freezer will make it last for a long time.

Here's an easy project for the little one's to make with their new dough.

You will need:

play dough

2 small beads or button (for eyes)

round toothpicks

1. Roll a handful of play dough into a ball.

2. Pinch one end to form a nose.

3. Press your beads into the clay to make eyes.

4. Cover with toothpick "needles".

 Here is my 3-year-old's version, (completely unassisted). I love that this is so easy, and yet adding the toothpicks takes a bit of time, so you'll have some peaceful moments as your kids are thoughtfully placing each one.

Here's another my 5-year-old. Don't you love the big eyes and goofy smile?

Have fun!

The Half Hour Light Tent

Two months ago, fed up with window sill photography, I took the plunge and made my own light tent. There are many DIY tutorials that provide a much more aesthetically pleasing finished product, but in my case, I didn't feel like measuring, outlining..etc..

This one took less than half an hour to finish. I used only what I happened to have on hand at the time...

Materials Needed:

• cardboard box
• scissors/knife
• white acrylic paint
• paintbrush
• waxed paper
• tape

I used a serrated knife to remove the top flaps, then cut square holes in three sides of the box.

Next I painted the inside with white acrylic paint. I had less than half of a 2 oz. bottle left, so the coverage was kind of thin and not too pretty, but it still works great. Acrylic paint dries super fast, so it was great to use for this project.

Look! So easy, a three year old can do it!

Next I covered the two side holes with waxed paper. I folded a long sheet into thirds for extra thickness, then secured to the box using packing tape.

I left the top holes uncovered so I could take shots with the camera straight down, but if you wanted to put a light straight down instead, you could cover that as well to diffuse the light.

Ah yes, the light...

For my first attempt using the light tent, I used lamps with our regular GE Reveal light bulbs. Ugh...the pictures were terrible. I played with all the white balance settings on my camera to no avail and thought the whole light tent had been a waste of time. Until I read that you need to use 'cool natural light' bulbs.

These were $9.99 each and worked like a charm...

I sill favor taking photos outside in natural light; out in the fresh air with the kids playing in the yard...

But this will get me nicely through the end of the cold season and also enables me to take pictures any time of the day.

Here are some more DIY light tent tutorials to check out:

http://www.pbase.com/wlhuber/light_box_light_tent
http://digital-photography-school.com/how-to-make-a-inexpensive-light-tent
http://www.diyphotography.net/homestudio/super-simple-light-tent
http://www.roughfisher.com/2009/01/diy-light-tent.html

How To Embed Paper in Resin - Part One

When I first started working with resin, I scoured the internet for how-to information. There are some nice books on the subject, though it was through trial and error that I really figured out what I was doing. This will be the first in a series of resin how-to’s, and I hope it provides some useful information. The instructions provided are just based on my own experiences, personal preference and style. The most important thing is to do your own experimenting. First learn the basics, and then get creative!

This tutorial is all about embedding paper into resin. If you have never used resin before, I recommend the book “The Art of Resin Jewelry” by Sherri Haab. It is very easy to follow and understand for a beginner and provides useful information on types of resin, how to mix it, using molds, and includes a thorough resource guide.

Embedding Paper into Resin – Part One- Preparing Your Paper

Materials Needed:
Paper, of course! Any image or paper you like.
Scissors
Craft punch (optional)
Glue (Mod Podge recommended)
Small container to pour your glue into
Plastic work surface
Cheap paintbrush
Black marker (optional)

Selecting and Cutting Your Image

Any type of paper will work. You can use pieces of old books, magazines, newspaper, scrapbook paper, or photographs. One of my favorite items is the digital collage sheets sold by graphic designers on Etsy. Once you purchase the image(s), the seller simply emails the file and you can print it at home as many times as you like. When I do this, I print on photo paper because I like the high quality, glossy image. Different types of paper will provide a different look, so experiment to find the style you like best.

Next you will need to cut out your image into whatever shape you need. Sometimes I cut-out my images free-hand using scissors, but I love to use craft punches whenever possible because they make clean edges and uniform shapes. My local craft store has a great selection and I’ve found many sizes that work perfectly for the resin molds I’m using. You can also search the internet for all kinds of shapes and sizes – circles, stars, trees, baby feet – you name it.

I like to cut out a many different bits and pictures and seal them all at one time. It’s much more efficient if you already have your supplies out, and you’ll have plenty of images ready to go when you need them.

Here’s an optional step if you are using photo paper or other thick paper…I almost always use black resin as my final layer and found that when I embedded images on photo paper, the white edges really stood out against the black and just looked so “paper-y”. First I tried painting the edges with acrylic paint, but it was too messy and usually smeared onto the front of my image. Now I use black marker (Sharpie to be exact, since it dries fast.) Just glide the marker around the edge for easy cover up. There are markers in almost every color so you can match it to whatever color resin you are using.

Sealing the Image

Here’s the important part – thoroughly sealing the paper so resin does not seep through. Since the paper is porous, the resin will seep through just like water causing dark spots if it is not sealed properly. I cannot overestimate the importance of this. When I started, I often had a “that’s good enough” attitude, and it resulted in a lot of messed-up pieces. Here's an exmaple of dark spots:

Even now, when I’m sure I’ve done a fabulous job, there will still be an occasional oops where the resin seeps through a bit. It can be very disappointing, especially when it’s a piece you are otherwise very proud of. So please, take the extra time to do it right so you are not sad later.

Now, lay out all your images on a plastic work surface. I used waxed paper for the purposes of taking these photos, but I really don’t recommend it. The glue makes the waxed paper soggy and your images may stick and tear. My favorite surface to use is a clear paper protector sleeve. They are thick, sturdy, washable, and re-useable. I start with all my images face-up, but it really doesn’t matter.

Next, you’ll need your glue. I’ve tried a few different kinds, but I like Mod-Podge the best. It creates a thick, almost vinyl like surface on the paper and seals the edges very well. Pour some glue into a small container for easy access. (Yes, I’m using a coffee-cup lid and yes, that IS a cow in the background. She’s my little helper today…)

Brush a coat of glue over each piece. Take care not to let the image slide around and lay on top of wet glue, it could cause some yucky blobs on the other side. I use a toothpick or Popsicle stick to hold the image in one spot while I paint it with glue. (With the first coat, it’s always hard to keep the small papers from sliding all over. Don’t worry, it gets easier.)

Apply a layer over the top, and then make sure you get all the edges. I brush each edge from the outside in; to make sure it’s well covered. Don’t be afraid to slap it on thick. No matter how scary it looks it will dry clear and you will feel better that it has been sealed properly. If you are timid about applying so much glue, that’s ok. Just take extra care to be sure you’ve sealed all the edges.

One coat is probably sufficient, but I always apply two. There’s too much work involved to have your resin piece ruined by a lazy sealing job. It’s okay if the first coat is still a little wet. Mod Podge dries fairly quickly, so by the time I’ve finished the first coat on the last piece, I can just go right back to the beginning of the line and start on the second coat. After applying the second coat, I like to lift each piece up and move it over so it doesn’t dry in place. It just makes it easier later, but if you forget, no worries – if the pieces seem stuck, just lift up your plastic sheet and peel them off like stickers from a sticker sheet.

Thinner papers may warp or curl from the moisture, don’t worry, its normal. There may also be “skins” of glue attached to the edges. Also normal, and a good sign that the paper and edges were well sealed. Just leave it there for now. Allow your papers to dry thoroughly before flipping them over.

Then, flip and repeat all the steps on the reverse side. You won’t need to worry so much about the edges since they have already been sealed, (but a little extra never hurts). Allow the second side to dry. If you have edges of dried glue, just trim it with scissors. Some or all of your papers may be warped or curled. I recommend pressing them in a heavy book overnight to ensure they will lie nicely in your resin when you embed. I press all my images; even if they look already look flat.

I hope this has been useful – Part Two will get to the actual embedding part! Stay tuned…

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and found it easy to understand and informative. I have complied all my tutorials, refined them, added new information and pictures, and added 2 complete step-by-step project instructions in this 32-page digital booklet, "Getting Started With Resin Jewelry". For more information, click here.