Embedded Polymer Beads

One of the things that brings joy to my heart throughout the entire creative process is making polymer clay jewelry.

And yet, for  some reason, I seldom share the process or the pieces here.  

I decided to change that.

Here is a bracelet made with some of my embedded beads.

For the most part, the additives are rolled right into the beads.

You can see the one with the red microbeads also had them added to the surface as well.

I love stringing these on elastic cord.

The bracelet is so easy to get on and off.

The rhinestone rondelles add the unexpected touch of bling to the primitive piece.

This piece is very eclectic.

It has a mix of colors and additives.

I hope it catches your eye.

For me, it makes my heart sing.

Thanks for stopping by...

Linking up with these blogs.

Fast and Easy Gratitude Cards

A couple of years ago, I found these great word rubber stamps in the Dollar Bins at Michael's.

They are my most-used stampers.

Today I used them to make two quick cards.

  I always use StazOn ink.

I stamp each word on a little piece of card stock.

Then I glue each one on a slightly larger piece of cardstock to mat it.

Then I just use pop dots to add them to the card.

A couple rhinestones finish them off.

You can add whatever sentiments you like.

I made a whole pile of these in an hour.

Thanks for stopping by....

Simple Sweet Valentine Gift Bags

I made some valentine bags for my daughter's friends.

They are a wholesome, outdoorsy bunch so I wanted the bags to be simple and natural.

I am pleased with the results...

I wanted them each to be unique but I stuck to just a few punches and materials.

Changing the paper colors or adding a paper doily changes the look just enough...

A feather from the chickens is a great natural touch.

My nephew had this tree punch and I have been in love with it forever. 

When he moved, he gave it to me...

Thank you!

I love the heart arrow.

It starts with a twig and two punched hearts.

I punched the holes in the bag and slid the stick in place before splitting a real feather and gluing on the fletchings.

I love how it turned out.

This one is just a heart on a stick...

This one was a variation on the arrow but with a heart for fletchings this time.

The paper fletchings were easier to glue than the real feather.

I love the double twigs as a bag closure.

Even the back of this one is cool where the twigs cross.

Here is a heart rose...

A couple more of those tree punches....

These subtle shades are my favorite....

Last, but not least, there are the owls...

Each is slightly different.

The first one is this little guy where his beak is actually formed by trimming the bag.

I think he's my favorite.

I hope everyone likes their little treats...

Thanks for stopping by....

Linking up with these great blogs...

Jewelry Case Makeovers With DecoArt Chalky Finish Paints....

A couple years ago a friend from work gave me three jewelry cases.

They were well made but very large.

I was not sure what to do with them so they stayed in the upstairs of my shed.

This summer a saw a shadow box done in a tan and coastal blue that I loved.

It was just the colors I had at home from the DecoArt Chalky Finish line of paints.

So this summer, on a hot, hot day I ventured into the upstairs of the shed and carried these down.

I wiped off the dust and grime from the shed.

Let the fun begin...

I do love the silky consistency of these paints.

It took a couple coats to color them the way I wanted.

These originally had display boards covered with black velvet.

I removed the velvet and recovered the boards with burlap from coffee sacks my daughter brought home.

I painted everything with two coats of paint.

It took two afternoons since I had to do the outside of the boxes one day and the insides the next.

Once painted, I used a razor to scrape the window edges.

I also sanded the edges to scuff them up a bit.

I used these at my fall show.

They made a pretty place to display my polymer clay and primitive finished jewelry.

I like the burlap much better than the velvet.

I used vintage folding tape measures to prop the lids open.

I have not used them for every show because they do take up a good bit of space but I do love the transformation...

Thanks for stopping by...

Guest Contributor At Plucky's Second Thought

Check out my Peas in a Pod necklace over at Plucky's Second Thought.

You can find a quick tutorial.

It would make a fast and fun gift for someone for Valentine's Day.

Tell Jess I sent you.

Thanks for stopping by....

Grubby Snowman Ornaments

Are you keeping up with the ornament ideas I am sharing each month?

Not to worry...

I will do a great round up post before Christmas in case you have missed any.

Today is a sweet Grubby  Country Snowman.

Believe it or not, this little guy starts with a couple white pom poms.

Use a glue gun to glue three together in a snowman shape.

Paint a toothpick orange.

Snip off the end and glue it in the top pom pom for a nose.

Add two black beads for eyes with the glue gun as well.

Mix some white school glue, water, strong coffee and ground cinnamon.

Put on a pair of latex or vinyl gloves to protect your hands.

Roll the snowman around in the glue mixture and sqeeze it into the pom poms.

Squeeze to remove excess glue.  

Lay on a plastic tray to dry.  

I usually wait overnight and then turn them and let the last side dry completely.

Tie a little strip on for a scarf and glue a button on as well.

For the string hanger, I use crochet thread and a needle to pass the string through the snowman's head.

I cut the string and tie a knot.

I also make a variation with one large pom pom.

It makes a cute snowman head ornament.

The nose is made from orange Sculpey clay this time and the eyes are bigger half round eyes.

I add a little garland around some for a halo.

I use the same method to add the string to hang it.

I usually make a whole pack of pom poms at a time.

I just change the details for each one.

Thanks for stopping by...

A Review...DecoArt Chalky Finish Paints...

This post was originally slated for this summer but never made it out of the draft folder.

I love these paints though and wanted to share the post with you today.

I am a DecoArt Helping Artist.

I have used DecoArt paints for about 20 years.

I have always thought they were the best quality, consistency, and pigment at a reasonable price.

This summer I ordered some of the Chalky Finish paints to try them out.

My experience prior to that with chalky finish paints were with those I mixed myself.

And while I love my homemade chalk paints, this was different.

These are so creamy.

I ended up painting everything on my workbench that could use a little paint.

These hat boxes have been in every craft room I had for the last 20 years.

This summer when I was cleaning the studio, I almost got rid of them because I was tired of the floral design.

I brushed 2 coats of Chalky Finish paints on them and now I am in love with them again.

Even the first coat has great coverage.

Now my buttons have a happy new place to hang out.

And I like that you can still see the old pattern inside.

I painted  them in different colors.

While I was waiting for each coat to dry, I looked around the workbench and saw the pretzel container of bottle brush trees.

Usually I just turn the label to the back so I can't see it, but there was still paint on the paint brush, so I gave the label a few coats.

Then I did my other one too...

Hmmmm...

How about those little peat pots...

 I showed you how they turned out, but here is where they got started...

This jewelry box was originally headed for the thrift store.

I bought several jewelry boxes full of jewelry this summer at my favorite flea market.

While my brush was still loaded with paint, I decided to give it a chalky makeover.

I love the new pale chalky pink.

I left the inside with the original colors and pattern.

With it's new chlky finish, it is cute enough to be a keeper...

I strongly recommend these paint if you have not tried them yet.

They have a great consistency, super coverage and a great array of colors.

Thanks for stopping by...