facebook creativity -- barrettes!

alas, i was able to fulfill the facebook creativity thing that was circulated earlier in the year...

the idea was that you had to make something handmade for at least 5 of your facebook friends... and this had to be done by the end of the year. i mailed out the last ones yesterday. so done!

unfortunately, i forgot to take a picture of the first 5 pairs i gave out (to jen h., dayni, lisa, amy, and carolyn), but here's a picture of the last 3 i made.

really easy to make. just used brown bobby pins and brown 26-gauge jewelry wire. and i already have tonsa tonsa beads, so it's just a matter of picking the right size... they couldn't be too big. and those small, gray freshwater pearls in the bottom set is prolly as small as one would want to use for this project.

basically, just cut about a 12in length of wire. fold it in 1:2 ratio and wrap it a few times in the LOOP end of the bobby pin to secure it. then to the shorter end, add beads that span the entire bobby pin. the longer end is then used to wrap over-and-under each bead.

kinda hard to describe it here... but if interested in learning, i can easily show you next time i see you. or if you received a pair from me, i'm sure you can easily figure it out by looking at how the wires wrap around the beads. really easy project.

and if you're a lil' iffy about the functionality of these hair pins, don't fret. the wire wrapping around the pin actually lends extra grippiness.

Blue Zebra Earrings

Yay, I finally made something again! Even though I am supposed to be studying for my pharmacy law midterm, I decided to make a pair of earrings for my roommate's bday instead. Ta da!

Belly Cast

we made a belly cast last friday night.

we learned to do it by watching this video. the idea was a result of two other friends who had done it in the past. one had a friend paint a really pretty butterfly theme one for her little girl's room. the other is going for more kid-like with a frog painting (eyes on the boobs and a big froggy smile across her belly). it consisted of: 3 rolls of pre-plastered strips (cut into 12" lengths), bowl of warm water, petroleum jelly and me, preggers sitting on the edge of a dining room chair on a tarp in the middle of the kitchen. after the first and second layer hardened (20-30 minutes...), it felt really claustrophobic. it reminded me of a painting of Frieda Kahlo when she had to be in a body cast. it was really tough to sit still, inhale and exhale and stay still with 27 extra pounds on your body.

but all in all, it turned out really nice. g's going to put another layer b/c we should have used a 4th roll to make it stronger. then, he'll take it to work and add bondo to make the whole thing smooth. i suggested he paint it at work, like a flat black similiar to his '66 Chevy and maybe someone can pinstrip it like a car. i think that would be pretty nifty. or a tree. i don't know yet.

propagating african violets

not sure that this qualifies as a "craft." but it sure is a neat lil' experiment.

african violets are ubiquitous at my workplace. i have 2 plants at my desk and i know a handful of folks who have 'em, too. it helps that a lot of the cubes are by a window, so the violets grow really well. a VERY green-thumb'd coworker taught me this trick....

i used a clean razor blade to cut some stalks at a diagonal. say there's three rows of leaves, cutting from the middle row works the best, since the outermost row of leaves are old and no longer maturing and the innermost rows are too young and have too-short of a stalk.

stick the stem in a tube of clean water. that's it. african violet plant food can be used, but water alone works just as well. keep the stems in a bright spot, but not overly sunny. basically, whatever kinda sun works for the parental plant should work well with the baby cuttings. every few days, i added more water.


within a few weeks, i started seeing lil' roots.
this is about a 6-week old cutting. i've actually let it go on too long. these bushy things are now called "water roots" and it'd be harder for them to adapt to soil. they're not gonna automatically die in soil or anything, it'll just take a lil' longer for them to get settled. maybe an eighth to a quarter inch of roots would be ideal for transfering to dirt.

see the lil' itty-bitty leaves starting to come out? cool, eh?


i cut about 10 stalks at a time, so here's a bunch that's ready to go into soil.


here's a bunch in different stages of development.
the super young ones (bottom right) were from cuttings i did back in may or april. the rest are from earlier this year... february, i think.


definitely not an "instant gratification" kinda project. it'll take about a year for plants from cuttings to actually start flowering. but it's a cheap (i mean... FREE!) way to get a lot of african violets from one plant. and since i've started cuttings from 5 different plants (2 of mine and 3 from various coworkers), i should get a crapload of plants of different varieties!

i've also been told (although i've never tried it myself) that if different varities are planted in one container, they'll start sharing DNA through their roots. so if you planted a dark blue plant with a white one, both plants will eventually start flowering pale blue ones. i can't wait to try it out! when i finally get myself a house, all these mini-plants will prolly end up in one long flower box. DNA-exchange away!

hoop earrings with dangleys

i haven't made anything in a while and i had an urge to make something that won't take a long time to complete.

voila! a pair of hoop earrings with interchangeable dangleys.

silver and orangey necklace and earrings

made this as a gift for my orange-loving friend. used sterling silver chain and wire. i added approximately three inches more chain and an extra clasp so it can be worn either as a short or a long necklace.

instead of using headpins for the dangley thingeys, i just cut a piece of wire and made a spiral headpin. here's the instructions, if interested (charlyn! :) )

gotta say, i'm enjoying the wirework-and-chain thing.

"random" blues and greens

i made this a while ago. my first project using wire. i strung the beads just using simple loops. i wired a bunch of beads separately, then just randomly strung them together.

not crazy about this. i think the moral of the story is... you can go for a "random" look, but you still have to think about where things should go. the whole "balancing of elements" kinda thing. meh.

i used 20 gauge cheap wire that i got from jo-ann's. and i'm already noticing it tarnishing. like, it's actually turning black in some places. from now on, i'm sticking to sterling silver.

Blue Necklace

Yay! Finally putting my skills to use. A necklace for my godmother with matching earrings. She loves blue. (w/o flash)

(with flash)

free admission to bead show this weekend

hi kids,
if you're up for a cool bead show this weekend, check out the international gem and jewelry show at the san mateo expo center. i've been to this 2x with friends and it's always a good time.

and with this coupon, you and your guest will get in for free (normally $8/pp). just print it out, fill out the info, then hand it to the ticket collector at the door.

Curtains are up!

with 8 weeks left... (or 6 weeks if mini M is really ready to come out), we committed to two hours last night to finish the other half of the curtain and the sheer. FINALLY. AT LAST. after two temper tantrums with the sewing machine (ahem, husband), we got it done. we cleaned the room of the clutter collected in that room and viola, that's what the poor kid has so far. there's a trip to IKEA for the crib in the works, re-sale shop for a dresser and various other goodies people are letting us borrow. it's finally looking like a room....

new author...

hi, all....
meet charlyn.

she's an ex-coworker, future pharmacist-extraordinaire, and a beading buddy. we've gone to bead shows together and often share ideas for beading projects. she's made some really awesome pieces and i've asked her to contribute to our craftster's blog so we can all enjoy the pictures, even after she's gone away to pharm/grad school.

plus, now i can copy her awesome designs. ha! :)
totally digging those earrings... and i got plenty of those donuts, too!!!

Earrings

Char again: just made some earrings for my friend's bday. too me forever! and a lot of wire work! *hands are tired*

Eyeglasses Holder

Hi! Charlyn here! Made an eyeglasses holder for my mom! Altho it makes her look a tiny bit older, its super useful, and I thought the pattern/beads I chose were really cute!

super close up.

Motorcycle Seat

The basement has been converted into multiple kinds of rooms to fit what we need. it went from guest room (when my sister came to visit), TV Room (so that we had a "formal livingroom" upstairs), a play room (dart board and game table) and currently, a "craft" room. It's in shambles; a mess of upholstery fabric and projects waiting for rainy days (and deadlines) to motivate the Husband to create.

He has two sets of patio furniture, two motorcycle seats and a project from last Summer to complete... amongst a list of other things people have subtly asked him to do. as the warm weather approaches, folks with motorcycles and boats (seats) have inquired.

the Husband at work on his favorite investment: industrial sewing machine

he'll brag, "the needle will sew through your hand."

he's really anal about his work. it can be annoying... but i guess that's what makes him so good at what he really enjoys doing. i'm the "eh, it looks all right. no one will notice" sort or attitude.

test fitting the outcome on the motorcyle seat.
the seats in flaaaaames --- a pretty common design

he's almost done and the customer will be able ride the "hot seat" this weekend.

mother's day necklaces

btri-color freshwater pearl necklace for my brother's MIL.

i made this thursday night for my SIL. maybe it's because she's closest to my age, but this is the one piece out of the three that i would actually wear.

purple and pink w/ freshwater pearls for my mommy.

and here they are, all ready to be gifted.

purple and pink necklace

i have to finish 5 necklaces in the not so distant future. 2 for mother's day (1 for my mom and 1 for my bro's MIL), one for SIL's bday, and 2 for girlfriends who had their bdays in april.

i think this is gonna go to one of the mom's. it's not sealed yet, so i'll be working more on it this week.
as always, comments and suggestions are welcomed.

freshwater pearls necklace

i dunno....
is this mother's day present-worthy?
what do you think?

meh...

Wonders with Frosting

At the request of Ms. Avery, I've added some more cake photos.... Y'all caked out on the blogs yet?? :>)

I've never really considered myself a crafty person, but cake decorating is definitely a skill. It requires you to make things look good with just the use of frosting. There are no supports and it's all in the technique. I think that the basket weaving baffled people the most. Next in line on the list of puzzles is flowers: roses, rosebuds, sweetpeas, carnations, etc. I look forward to learning about fondant, gumpaste, and modeling chocolate.

paint your dog

this might not qualify as "crafty" per se...
but guess what else makes a good medium to paint on besides on the usual paper, canvas, etc...?

he was a good sport about it --- only b/c he was completely oblivious. but let's just say, i was painting for a reason and you might see some of those colors on something very soon.

orange and green necklace with donut

this is only my 2nd necklace made without "adult" (the pros from work) supervision.

i started this necklace with the intention of giving it as a birthday present. when i was done, i was like, these are soooo my colors! plus, that lil' issue of the off-centered clasp. my bad, i wasn't measuring. so obviously, i HAVE to keep it. it's hardly gift-worthy.