Coffee Filter Angel

Hello and Happy New Year!

I love angels and every once in awhile, I just have to create one.  (See my Pinterest board for some of the other angels I've created.)

Now is the perfect season to create one - or a bunch - and I've had this idea "brewing" in my mind for awhile!  (I know, it's a bad pun!)

For this craft, you will need a foam cone (9"), a foam ball (2") and fluted coffee filters.  You can use unbleached filters like I did or white ones if you like.

Materials for Angel

You will also need some craft basics - craft or paper glue, toothpicks and scissors.  You can also use sequin pins or straight pins to attach the coffee filters.  And, of course, add embellishments of your choice.

To start, cut into a coffee filter and cut around the center. 

Wrap the ruffle around the base of the cone.

Continue to wrap the ruffled filters around the cone overlapping as you go.  Pin or glue at the back and trim any extra.  You can also use tape.

Here is the base of the angel.  Press any extra filter down on the top of the cone.

(Or, you could make a cute tree with this.  The fun thing about coffee filters is that they are so easy to color with things like paint or dyes, even food coloring.)  (See my Coffee Filter Turkey for more ideas on dying with food coloring.)

For the head, place the foam ball in the center and wrap to the back.  The smooth center will be the face.

Adhere the filter to the ball as you wish and trim the excess.  It doesn't have to be neat because hair will cover the back.  Now, push a toothpick into the ball and push the other end into the top of the cone.

For the arm, fold a filter in half and roll it up.  Do the same for the other side.  Glue the edges and attach to the angel on either side.  If you want a less bulky sleeve, cut the coffee filter in half.

There are any number of ways that you could make the wings, but here's a simple way.  You'll need two filters for each wing.  Fold one filter almost in half; fold the other a third of the way.

Slide the bottom one shown into the top one.  This will give you multiple layers on the edges.

Adjust your folds if necessary, then fold in half.

Make your second one and add glue in between the layers before gluing each wing assembly to the center of the back.

To make the hair, I cut thin strips of the fluted portion of the filters and glued them to the head.  You can curl them up or smooth them to make any hairstyle you like.  Then I added a small piece of filter for a collar.

Here is the angel:

Coffee Filter Angel

Happy New Year!

We're All Ears - Leftovers Challenge

Hi!

I've got a list a mile long of things that I want to get done today.  We don't have a Christmas tree yet, I need to pay the bills and send out cards - and I haven't finished my shopping yet!  (This was last week!)  But, I'd rather be beading!  I should get a shirt that says that!

So, I'm making some earrings - because they always make good gifts, too - so maybe I can cross a couple of items off my list at the same time!

Erin challenged us to take a picture of our work areas.  Take a look at hers here.  And, I think I can match hers.  I don't know if that's a good thing or not, but it does leave me with plenty to work with in making earrings!

Here's my workbench:

At least, there is the possibility of finding some space to work here. 

But, my desk looks pretty hopeless!

Oh my!  What a disaster!  Right after Christmas, I'm tackling this mess.  (Right!)

Earlier this week, I made some earrings for friends.  I like to make easy holiday earrings.  This year I made some snowmen.

Snowman Earrings

They were fun to make once I figured out what to use for the hats (sequins and seed beads).  I might add little scarves though I like them this way, too.

Here are a couple with little scarves of Kreinik ribbon.

Now it is the 24th, and, unfortunately, circumstances did not permit more beading.  Maybe next year!  I'd like the gift of time for Christmas!

Merry Christmas, everyone!  Wishing you peace and joy and happy beading in the New Year!

Etched Mirror Ornaments

Happy Holidays!

I love the holidays and love to decorate in new ways each year.  This month, I'm creating a mirrored ornament with etchall® etching crème and a new product - etchall® stencil spray.

Before I received the etchall® stencil spray, I would have to use an adhesive-backed stencil.  Now, I can use any stencil.  I found some small square and round mirrors at my local JoAnn's craft store.  They come in a wide variety of sizes and are lightweight enough to make into a ornament.

To start, I followed the directions on the back of the stencil spray and sprayed the back of the stencil.  I let it dry and applied it to a square mirror.  I smoothed the stencil down and masked any exposed mirror with masking tape. 

Then, I applied etchall® etching crème with a plastic knife. 

I waited 15 minutes and scraped the crème back into the bottle. (It's re-usable!)  Then, I washed the mirror and patted it dry with paper towels.

Here are my ornaments.  I have added some adhesive jewel strips and a loop of thread.  I also glued  cardstock over the loop to cover the back.

Etched Santa Ornament

Etched Snowman Ornament

Here they are again with the etchall® etching crème and stencil spray that I used in this project.  (I am on the etchall® design team and received these products to use in creating these projects.  And, by the way, I highly recommend them!)

I hope you'll give these quick ornaments a try.  Get the whole family involved!  Have a neighborhood crafting party!  You can find all sorts of small mirrors at your local craft store and the etchall® products on the etchall® website.  Be sure to check out the specials and etchall® is now available on Amazon!

Wishing you very happy holidays and a Merry Christmas!

Word Christmas Tree

Hi Crafty Folk!

I hope you are all enjoying the Advent of Christmas.  Here's a craft I created for JOY Iron-on letters that I want to share with you.

Word Christmas Tree

You can find the easy instructions on the Creating with Joy blog.  This word tree is so much easier and quicker than painting the words!  And, you can use any fonts you like.  Or, change the words to use your favorites.

Have fun decorating!  And, come back soon!  I have a few more Christmas crafts up my crafty sleeves!

Pretty Palettes November

Hello!

The Pretty Palettes inspiration on the Halcraft blog this month is a wonderful palette with blues and greens (my faves) with a touch of gold.  The inspiration is a beautiful piece of marbled paper.

Here's the palette generated from the paper:

I headed to our local Michaels, where all the strung beads were 40% off!  Woohoo!  Plus, I had a coupon!

Here's what I came home with~

I was going with more of the beads that Molly chose, but then I saw the turquoise dyed imperial jasper and it looked to me just like the swirly designs on the paper.  Plus, it was turquoise, and it looked like the ocean.  Can't beat that!

After I got home, I noticed some of my selections at Michaels were Bead Landing beads and not Bead Gallery.   And, somehow I missed that white was one of the colors!  Entranced by pretty, shiny things, no doubt!

Here's the necklace and earrings that I created:

Imperial Jasper Necklace and Earrings

I love how this worked up with the slabs and rounds of imperial jasper with the gold bicones.  And, I have extra beads that are calling me!  I was really inspired by the marbled paper, too, and can't wait to try that.  So many ideas, so little time!  Thanks for the inspiration, Molly!

"Gather" Slate Sign

Hi folks!

I look forward to this time of year - the colors of the leaves, warm sweaters, family gathering together to share meals and memories.  It's the time of year when our family parties move inside to the kitchen and dining room from the patio and barbecue of summertime.  So, I take a little more time to decorate the house.

Signage is so popular now whether it is a phrase, a word or more.  One of the most popular words this year is "gather", so I thought it would be a great word to etch on slate.  I love the rustic look of slate and it's easy to etch.  Previously, I have cut stencils and etched inside the stencil.  This time, I'll show you how to etch the background, leaving the letters un-etched.  To do this, I'm using two of my favorite etchall® products:  etchall® dip 'n etch and etchall® resist gel.



Here's the slate sign I started with:

I traced the sign on a piece of scratch paper and wrote out the word to figure out the placement of the letters.  Then, I went over the letters with the resist gel.  I took a toothpick and went through the gel to spread it and added more where I wanted the letters thicker.  Then, I let it dry.

 Here's the sign with the dried resist gel.  Now, I'll put the sign in a bath of etchall® dip 'n etch.

To set up, I found a shallow plastic lid that fit my sign.

I poured the etchall® dip 'n etch over the sign to cover and waited for 15 minutes.

After etching, I pulled the sign from the etchall® dip 'n etch and rinsed under running water.  I let it dry and pulled the resist off the slate.  I poured the etching liquid back into the jar to use again later.

Here it is after etching:

I added a wire hanger.

"Gather" Etched Slate Sign

Quick and easy, right?  This rustic sign will be great in my kitchen or even hanging outside in the entryway.  Tie or wire on a few fall leaves or sprigs of evergreen for an added flair.

"Gather" Etched Slate Sign

Disclaimer:  I am on the Design Team for etchall and receive their products to use in my designs.  I have enjoyed using their products and highly recommend them.

Pretty Palettes October Reveal

Hi Everyone!

This month the inspiration for the Pretty Palettes challenge is a campfire with glowing oranges, black and gray embers with shades of brown and tan.

Here's the inspiration photo from Molly Schaller - a harvest party where they drank fresh cider and fried donuts over the fire!  Sounds wonderful!



And, here's the palette:


Here are the beads I chose from Michaels:

Beads from Michaels

I don't know if I'll use all of them in this set, but there were a couple of strands that were so interesting, I just had to bring them home - those black lava sticks, for instance.  They look so versatile; there are at least three different ways I want to use them.

This is the necklace I designed.  I used the black lava sticks, the fire agate rounds, some brown shell rondelles from a previous Pretty Palettes challenge and some 16-gauge copper wiggles that I hammered.  It's strung on necklace memory wire.  To cover the ends, I painted the silver with some Antique Copper patina.

Tribal Fire Choker

Now, for some earrings and a bracelet.

For the bracelet, I wrapped the black lava stick with copper wire to create a toggle.  The bracelet is strung on black waxed cord.

For the earrings, I wrapped the waxed cord around a lava stick and a jump ring.

I didn't use the white shell discs in this set, but I did use them in my Harvest Moon Earrings in my previous post.

See all the other designs in the Pretty Palettes Reveal.

Harvest Moon Earrings

Hello!  Thanks for stopping by!

Today I'm participating in the Earrings Everyday monthly challenge.  The inspiration this month is the harvest moon.  I love moon watching.  My husband and I usually head out to our ranch to watch the harvest moon come up as the sun sets into the ocean.  We didn't make it out this year, but we have many special memories.

Here's what I cam up with for the harvest moon challenge.  I had some shell discs that I thought would be perfect.  I wanted to show the moon through the branches of a tree.  I tried wire, but that wasn't looking quite right.  Then, I discovered some copper branch components in the drawer.  Those and a little chain to tie it together did the trick.  The branch can swing across the moon as it would in the wind and the chain can go over or in back of the moon.

Harvest Moon Earrings

I ended up taking a lot of shots of these earrings to try and show the features of the shell discs.  I like to try different backgrounds, too.  The above was on a rusty pot.  It usually takes about ten shots to get a good one for me!

On paper bag collage

On plane tree bark

I think I like the tree bark the best.  It shows the gold and black in the chain and one moon is showing the shell surface well.

And, here's one with the earrings on a piece of cardstock.

Thanks for the inspiration, Erin!  Go here to see all the other designs.  Happy Harvest everyone!

Etched Mini Pumpkins

Welcome!

Today I'm working with etchall® dip 'n etch to create some etched mini pumpkins.  I am a member of the Etchall Design Ambassadors and receive product as part of that team.  It's one of my favorite products from etchall®, because it is so easy to use.

I saw these cute little glass vases at Michaels.  Their small size and variety of shapes intrigued me and I though I could turn them into pumpkins.

Glass vases

First, I washed and dried the vases and set up my work station.  I have a plastic container, etchall® dip 'n etch, a timer and a vase.

I filled the vase with water to keep it from floating in the etching liquid and poured the etchall® dip 'n etch around it.

I set the timer for 15 minutes.  You can see that my etchall® dip 'n etch is turning brown.  No problem, it still works fine.  Some of my vases were a little taller than this container, so I put them in plastic cups.  After the etching was finished, I poured the remaining etchall® dip 'n etch back into the container to use again.

 Here are the vases after they have been etched.

To color them, I used an Orange Zest stamp pad from StazOn by Tsukineko.  I really like the warm glow that this ink created.  Then, I wrapped the necks of the vases with some twine.

I wanted to add a little more embellishment so I wrapped over the twine with some wire and added some beads and copper leaves.  The copper sheet is embossed with the end of a paintbrush and a little green patina is added in the veins. I hand cut these with a pair of scissors, but you could die cut them, too.

I like to decorate with pumpkins for fall and harvest, but I also wanted to see how they would look with a jack-o-lantern face.  To make the face, I cut small pieces of black chalkboard labels and adhered it to one side of the pumpkin.  These faces can easily be removed.  On one pumpkin, I added some white paint pen and black pen to create the eyes.

Here are my finished pumpkins.  It's fun to create the different faces; each one has it's own personality!  I hope you'll try etching your own mini pumpkins with etchall® dip 'n etch.  It's so quick and easy to use!  I can't wait to try something for the upcoming holidays.

Etched Mini Pumpkins (or, Jack-o-Lanterns)

Update:
After a year, the stickers had curled off the pumpkins, so I replaced them with features drawn with a permanent pen.

Happy Creating with etchall®!
And, check out all the other fall projects on the etchall Autumn Pinterest page.