Workbench Wednesday

I have not done a workbench Wednesday for a while.

This is not an official peek at the workbench...

It is too messy right now.

So I will just show you some of the things I have been working on.

I love the little BoHo owls...

Some are pendants and some are beads.

I have been working on some fun new bone look focals.

These are actually old but heading to the shop.

The terra cotta clay has a whole different look.

These pretty washed looking beads make me think of the beach.

A sweet little whimsical collection:owl, ladybug and flowers.

White-washed blush set.

Blue hope set of connectors and a pendant.

White-washed pastels.

Fun angels and frozen Charlottes.

Faux bone disk set.

 And some large round beads that make me think of gumballs.

Which are your favorites?

Thanks for stopping by....

Craft Lightning Recycled Edition

I am delighted today to be participating in another great round of Craft Lightning.

This time it is Recycled Crafts in 15 Minutes or less.

Today I am going to show you how to use dryer sheets and a few simple supplies to create this sweet angel.

You will need

dryer sheets

scissors

a scrap of yarn or twine

a piece of lace ribbon

a wooden doll head

glue (I used hot glue and a glue gun)

Optional :

DecoArt Chalky Finish Paint

vintage sheet music

Decoupage from DecoArt

wooden wing shape

paintbrushes

sandpaper

Flatten and stack 3 (or more if you desire) dryer sheets.

Cut them in half so you have the longest pieces possible.

Cut the dryer sheets into thirds to create strips.

Neatly gather all  the strips into one pile.

 Use one of the strips and tie it around the middle of all the strips.

Fold your yarn scrap in half and tuck the ends into the hole at the bottom of the wooden head bead.

Add glue.

Use the tip of the scissors to push the center of the dryer sheet strips into the hole as well.

Allow it to dry.

Smooth out and stack 3 more dryer sheets.

This time cut them in strips the short way across the dryer  sheets.

Again use a strip to tie them together in the middle.

Glue these wings to the back of the angels head.

You may also want to glue the yarn up the back of the angel's head a bit to keep it from tipping forward when it hangs.

Optional:

You can add wooden wings in addition to or instead of the dryer sheet wings.

Paint the wooden wings with DecoArt Chalky Finish paints.

Once dry, trace the wings on a page of vintage sheet music.

Cut it out and use DecouPage to attach it to one side of the angel wings.

When they are dry, use a piece of sandpaper to remove any paper that extends over the edge of the wood.

Glue the wings to the back of the angel.

If you don't want to hang the angel, substitute a skewer for the piece of yarn.

Just use the skewer to poke the dryer sheet body into the head.

Leave it there to dry.

Now you can stick it in a plant.

That would be perfect for Mother's Day...

Or you could add it to the garden for a touch of recycled whimsy.

For another variation, you could dye the dryer sheets.

Our gracious hosts for Craft Lightning this time are:

Country Chic Cottage

30 Minute Crafts

and Creative Green Living.

You can pop over to any of their blogs for a complete list of participants and projects this week.

Thanks for stopping by...

Linking up with these great blogs this week.

Polymer Clay Ornaments

I love polymer clay.

It takes me back to playing with play doh when I was a kid.

I wanted to make some simple Christmas ornaments for our open house.

I took a trip to the craft store and got a few new cookie cutters and a big box of Sculpey Original clay.

I like how soft it is.

I rolled out the clay and cut a few shapes.

I used some letter stampers to add a few words.

Ok.  Here is where I had a glitch.

In the winter, sometimes my toaster oven singes things if it is very cold outside.

That happened here.

They are no longer the snowy white I wanted.

Some got quite singed.

Ouch!

So I thought I would add some crackle and paint.

Always follow the directions on the product.

I did not seal these first as instructed so the crackle could not slide around and crackle.

It did leave some subtle texture.

Next I used some DecoArt Chalky finish paint.

That stuff covers a lot of mishaps.

Once they were dry, I scuffed each one with a sanding block for a primitive look.

I love the way they turned out despite all the issues...

You can tell these have the subtle texture from the crackle glaze.

It left them just a little bumpy.

These would be really easy to do with kids.

And they would last longer than traditional salt dough ornaments.

I love that about Sculpey.

They don't get damp and moldy.

Mice and critters do not nibble on them in your attic.

They are durable and seldom break.

They look great!

I do love the way they turned out but they are not what I planned when I started the project.

That happens to me often....

Sigh...

I just roll with it.

Thanks for stopping by....

Linking up with these great blogs.