Rowlux® Illusion Film Blog Hop - Colorful Mobile

Hi Crafty Friends!

One of the things I like best about being a professional designer is the opportunity to try new materials fresh from the manufacturer.  It's fun to be able to help introduce a new product to the crafting public and design new ways to use it.

On this hop, some of the Designer Crafts Connection designers will be presenting projects made with Rowlux® Illusion Film.  This fascinating plastic film has been in use in many areas and is now being introduced as a craft material.

Here's a Colorful Mobile that I designed using the film.  The colors are vibrant and the plastic sheets are very sturdy.  It has wonderful 3-D patterns that dazzle the eye and reflect light in all directions.  



Colorful Mobile
with

Rowlux® Illusion Film

Here are the beautiful colored sheets.

Here's some information about this product from the manufacturer:

Rowlux® Illusion Film is made in the USA and comes in a diverse range of spectacular eye-catching colors and patterns.  These durable, translucent, 12" x 12" polycarbonate sheets add instant pizzazz to craft projects, seasonal accents, party decorations, scrapbooks, greeting cards, jewelry, furniture, frames, gifts, favors, accessories, art and DIY home decor projects. Easily cut with scissors, Rowlux® is also the perfect material for scoring, folding, embossing and die cutting. The creative possibilities are endless. This innovative and inspiring new craft material manipulates light to create dazzling visual effects. The illusion of depth and motion is the result of thousands of tiny parabolic lenses that are molded into the surface of both sides of the material. These lenses create a pattern of light reflection and refraction resulting in stunningly brilliant optical effects.

I cut strips of the film using a metal ruler and a craft knife.  To do this, score the film with the knife and bend along the scoring line to snap the strip from the sheet.  Then, I used a 1" punch to cut circles.  You may have to squeeze a few times to punch through the film.  Just keep squeezing in the same position and it will pop out cleanly.

After I punched out the circles, I was left with strips with holes in them.  Well, I couldn't waste those, so I decided to cut them into squares and use them also!

I connected the pieces with 8mm silver jump rings after punching small holes for connecting.

I wrapped a 5" metal ring with bright yellow acrylic beads using 28 gauge silver wire. 

Here's the finished bead-wrapped ring.  Wrapping took about 50 beads and 2 yards of wire.  Then, I connected the strands of circles and squares to the ring with jump rings.  I also connected four pieces of chain to the top of the circle and connected it to a wire hook for hanging.

Here's my Colorful Mobile hanging out in my garden!


Rowlux® Illusion Film

is available on Amazon at:  http://www.amazon.com/Rowlux-Illusion-Film-Polycarbonate-12-Inch/dp/B00CW7940Q/ref=sr_1_1?s=arts-crafts&ie=UTF8&qid=1372292244&sr=1-1&keywords=rowlux

To see more amazing craft designs with this wonderful new material, hop forward on the big blue Designer Crafts Connection button or visit this link:
http://blog.modernsurrealist.com/2013/06/26/Rowlux-Illusion-Film-Designer-Blog-Hop.aspx

I can't wait to see what the other designers have created!  Come back soon and see what I did with my extra circles and squares...I'm thinking a pair of bright, fluttery earrings!  What would you create?  Leave a comment and let me know!

Happy Crafting!

Terry