The Craft FantasticI’m not talking about those rolled paper beads that everyone does, because everyone does those. Not that there’s anything wrong with them; they are simple, fun and effective, thus the basis of their appeal.
It all started with the paper bead things in my Kirstie Book; they’re made by cutting lots of circles of the same size, folding them in half and sticking them together.
I have made these two already and have lots of ideas for projects:
You know sometimes you have what you think is a brilliant idea, so you look on t’internet for a bit of inspiration and find that it’s already out there?
What started it all off was something my mum was telling me about; she’d seen somewhere about making little bowls out of lace doilies (you can find a good tutorial here.) The idea is, basically, that you use an existing glass dish, cover in clingfilm, place your doily on and smother in PVA glue; so when it dries, you’ll have a cute little solid lacey bowl.
Now, I’ve been looking to do some Steampunk-inspired stuff, and have amassed a collection of various bits and pieces of old broken jewellery and watches etc. The only problem is, I’ve been at a loss where to start; I feel I need a single, solid piece to work from, as a base.
As is the way of brainwaves, I don’t know where this came from, but I had a thought: what if I took the whole lace & PVA idea, and made little solid lace shapes as a basis for my Steampunk experiments? Surely lace and cogs go? Of course they do! Check out these marvellous creations from those talented people selling on etsy:
Pretty little bow from tarnisheddanglies.
Amazingly gorgeous wrist cuffs from raven666.
Or how about this adorable brooch from LadyCharis?
I currently have some lace all glued up at home… can’t wait to try some ideas out!
It was a blog post on the awesome Rock ‘n’ Roll Bride (yes, I still look at it, even though I am married) that brought the marvels of Anissa Lee to my attention. And ohmygosh I love, love, love what she does.
Check out Paper Wonderland. I think this heart and rose dress is my absolute favourite.
Looking at the site makes me want to just sit and cut things out of paper with scissors or a scalpel. Which is kind of what I do anyway, only usually I’m doing origami or making cards or something. I want to cut out pretty things, like Anissa Lee. Or Rob Ryan.
Sigh! And this hand-cut paper bird card I found on Etsy puts my attempts at cut-out cards to shame…
Kirstie’s back, hurrah! I have missed having a weekly craft show to watch, I really have.
I loved Kirsty’s Homemade Home. Ooh, and, Kirsty’s Homemade Christmas. And now there’s Kirstie’s Handmade Britain.
Not only are the shows great to watch, the websites linked above are a great resource for crafts/ideas/projects/events/contacts.
So excited am I that next week’s episode is paper crafts, I am actually thinking of blowing off awesome live jazz for £5 at Ronnie Scott’s to watch it.
I quite like the idea of sticking things to the walls in my house. Also, I like the idea of being able to get them off again. Happily, I found some handy adhesive things in Paperchase that say they stick to walls and things and come off again. Perfect. £5 for a pack of 50, not too bad.
So, I’m thinking of more up to date versions of ye olde ducks in a row:
Perhaps origami butterflies or birds?
Yes, I am aware of how far away Christmas is. But if there are potential craft fairs to be done at the end of November, these things need thinking about now.
I’ve made a few origami crane mobiles now and have got the hang of them. Whilst thinking of things to make for the Christmas craft stall, I had a little lightbulb moment. Christmas Origami decorations. I want to make garlands of origami stars, little Christmas trees to hang on Christmas trees, pretty paper baubles and so on and so forth.
I do already have a couple of origami books with suitable projects and ideas in, but I also found some handy websites:
I can’t wait to get started! First up, I need to go paper shopping. I’m thinking red, green, gold, silver, dark blue and white. Second up, I’m going to make lots of these christmas origami lucky stars as I think they look awesome.
Here are just a few of the things that are inspiring me to have a go at my own versions of Christmas Origami:
I am extremely excited. There are four of us going and I’m sure one of is actually going to explode at some point in the run up to the holiday.
As I’ve been before, I’m going to play at being Tour Guide Barbie. I am looking forward to many months ahead looking over maps and marking the plans on.
Happy happy happy 🙂
Whilst trying to find something to do with the heaps and heaps of old videos I have and can’t watch (yet can’t bring myself to throw away- because I NEED to own copies of Airheads, Empire Records and China Town) I discovered the happy world of upcycling. It’s not that it’s a new concept to me, I’d just never thought of doing it myself. I’ve found lots of great websites to help inspire me to make useless stuff I have into useful stuff.
I’m currently working on a few DIY upcycling projects of my own- origami crane mobiles made from paper bags and little Japanese stab binding notebooks with old video covers.
Results to follow!
Of course everybody knows how cute bunting is, but it does appear to have grown in popularity of late. There was a point when it seemed like it was everywhere and I actually thought I had seen enough bunting- but never fear, I have been cured of that thanks to this website. Strangely more appealing due to the word ‘kitten’, there is nothing on the Little Kitten Homemade website that isn’t 100% adorable. I officially love bunting once again. I highly recommend a visit.
Due to inclement weather, the heart bunting from the last Craft Fantastic stall got so soggy it had to be thrown away. New Bunting is needed.
Check out the following websites for some top tips on how to make your own bunting:
This weekend I will finish my new bunting for the next craft stall. Result to follow!
