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Friday, August 29, 2014

And let the crafters begin...

Each summer a group of teacher friends come to the lake for relaxation, good eats, fine conversations and making crafts. We rotate taking turns coming up with a craft and making sure everyone has the right supplies. Thrift stores are one of our most valuable resources. Some of our previous creative endeavors from years past include:
 left to right front of picture
cake stand (plate glued on a wine glass for a base) wine glass (decorative wire and beads glued on) spoon (decorative wire and beads glued on) writing original poems (typing on decorative paper and framing the work) and last year's napkin note cards.   
To the right of the cake stand are 3 new additions.
Paper Gift Boxes
These little gift boxes were highly addictive. Once we figured out the process we couldn't stop making them. We had so many paper choices which made it fun to choose top and bottom with different papers. Only materials needed for this project are scissors, pencil and scrapbooking paper. 
There are many links and tutorials on line to help you create decorative paper boxes. Just type in GOOGLE decorative paper gift. Try this one
I had to cut myself off at 8!!
Starched Crocheted Doily Baskets
This is what I call "The Granny Craft" And we all went a bit crazy on this one. In preparation many of us scrounged thrift shops or looked in attics and closets for old fashioned crocheted doilies. Any size works.  This Pinterest project was adapted. Originally it called for using a spray starch stiffener from a craft store like  Micheals. But when we used it the finished product was too soft and not firm enough to hold its shape. Plain liquid starch in a bowl worked great.
Step one: Cover working surface outside with wax paper. You will need a variety of bowl sizes depending on size of doily. Cover the bowl with cling or saran wrap. This helps in the removal of the doily once it is dried. 
Step Two: Place doily in liquid starch and really soak it.
Step Three:Place doily over inverted bowl and press firmly to bowl and smooth out doily edges toward edges of the bowl.  
Step Four: Let bowls dry outside in sun for at least 5 hours. 
So we were doing just fine on step 4 when the sun disappeared, clouds moved in followed by drizzle. Some quick thinking on the part of our craft directors and step 4 was reinvented. Remember liquid starch is water soluble and we'd be back to square one if we left them outside. 
Everything was moved into the garage for an overnight stay with fans turned on to help the drying process. 
The results are amazing and the delicacy of the doilies make this an eye-catching project. 
 Michaels sells colored doilies and a thin ribbon can be added as a decorative touch. 
My creations.

Wine Glass Shades
These shades were made from vellum paper. A tea light is placed inside the wine glass.
One creative participant suggested skipping the vellum shade and placing a doily basket on top as the shade and using this as a nightlight.
Check out this link for more ideas and template for wine glass shades. 
Well congratulations for making it all the way to the end of this long blog.  If only you were here I'd offer you a piece of Cafe Latte Turtle Cake. But the next best thing is a link to a previously published  Cafe Latte Turtle Cake recipe. Perhaps you may want to try it.
   

1 comment:

  1. What a fun idea and some great projects. That cake looks really really good.

    ReplyDelete

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