Revisiting Carnival Ticket Baskets

February 25, 2013 I posted a blog on how these unique baskets can be crafted with just a roll of carnival tickets purchased from Office Max or Office Depot. Each colored roll costs about $7.95. These baskets were a huge hit at a recent Oscar party. Note from the photos that one roll can be molded into a variety of shapes. There are multiple uses for the baskets which include: a gift basket with popcorn and movie tickets, putting a vase inside the ticket basket to hold flowers and a basket for snack mix.

This white ticketed one on the left held bread sticks and the flower petals were made from individual tickets. Regular Mod Podge was used on this white vase.










Close up view of flower and petals glued on a stick and flower centers were small pom poms purchased from a craft store

Glossy Mod Podge was applied to these red and yellow baskets

Since I wanted a glitzy look this one was my favorite. It was painted with Mod Podge that has glitter in the glue.

The basic directions can be found following this link

http://modpodgerocksblog.com/2011/04/carnival-ticket-bowl-with-glitter.html

But I did find after making several that one important detail was missing from the directions found on this link; how to actually achieve these shapes. Each roll of tickets need to be placed on top of one or two bowls. Then using both hands and equal pressure slowly press the ticket roll down. 

As an example, I started with these two bowls and placed them on top of each other. I pressed the roll of tickets down to lip of blue bowl. Then removed blue bowl and placed the ticket roll back on green/gold bowl and then finished pressing roll down to the table. Using a higher stack of bowls will achieve a longer shape or by using different size bowls the shape of the bottom can be changed.

Mod Podge comes in three types: regular, glossy, glitter. It all depends on the look you want to achieve.  Using a small foam brush is the best applicator. Use a piece of wax paper to work on. The best parts about this project are each basket can be made in less than one half hour and it will be a conversation piece at your next gathering. This project can also be found on Pinterest.

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While browsing the shelf of Recommended Staff Favorites at a bookstore this title caught my attention. After reading a few reviews online I ordered my own copy from the library. I thought the author was clever to combine the antiquated world of books with the age of digital technology to help solve riddles and puzzles. The hero or protagonist is Clay Jannon, who is a graphic designer with meager programming skills. He loses his job to recession and takes a job at Mr. Penumbra's quirky mysterious 24-hour bookstore in the San Francisco area. After a few weeks Clay begins to notice customers come in but not actually buy anything . The customers go to different corners of the store and find volumes of antiquated books to trade with others. Clay then goes on quest to uncover the secrets of the bookstore. He feels the bookstore is a front for something larger. As the story line develops Clay finds that there is a semi-secret society trying to translate a 500 year old encoded volume in order to learn the secret of immortality. Clay enlists the help from his friends from the techno-geek world to bring the five hundred year old book into synch with the present using all the resources of Google. 

You might find the owner the store, Mr. Penumbra, somewhat like Professor Dumbledore in Harry Potter.  

So if you enjoy an entertaining fantasy novel that shows how current technology can help solve mysterious quests and puzzles this may be the book for you.

"Nothing is impossible, the word itself says 'I'm possible'!" 
Audrey Hepburn