Donnerstag, 28. November 2013

Stars and only stars!



Mh, yes. 

More about my little stars ;) They are part of the "Creative Xmas Decorations' Blogger Competition" for the english Dawanda platform! 

What else may I say other than: Have a look yourself at their facebook page! There are more of sweet little christmas projects :)

By the way... I love the look of simple news paper to wrap up gifts! Just a nice tape added, some thread and of course a star. 

Dienstag, 19. November 2013

Where to find the others...


Felt House Gift Tag Holder – I ManuFatti / Christmas Trinket Hoop Mobile – Carina’s Craft Blog / Felt Polar Bear Ornament – La Creature and You / Christmas Hoop – Claire Payne / Embroidered Christmas Mug Rug – Button Button / Polymer Clay Star Ornaments - Saraccino / Knitted Christmas Stockings Garland – Knit Me a Cake / DIY Christmas Ribbon – Adventures & Tea Parties / Embroidered Mistletoe Ornament – Bugs and Fishes / Scented Salt Dough Ornaments – Retro Delicious / Crochet Christmas Tree Decorations – Homemade@MyPlace / Christmas Cross Stitch Raccoon Ornament – Hugs are Fun / Polymer Clay Christmas Tree – Little Creatures / Christmas Wish-List Felt Envelope - Jumbleberries / Felt Christmas Tree Toy – Pinwheels and Stories

...of the crafty christmas tutorial link-up :) Can you see my polymer clay stars?

Laura from Bugs and Fishes asked a few weeks ago if someone would like to take part in such a link-up. I already have a lot of small tutorials and five minute projects on my blog. Maybe not as many as I would like to but this was one more reason to say yes. The most important reason? I really love Lauras blog. Her little felt animals always make me smile. I follow her blog for... a long time now and hey, I even won one of her books! (My first giveaway win ever!)

Let it Snow Embroidery Pattern – A Little Happy Place / Festive Wanderers Embroidery Pattern – Unexpected Kitty / Festive Felt and Fabric Coasters – Betz White / Holiday Ribbon Pillow – Mrs. Saint Nick / Felt Gingerbread Man Gift Tag – Grace’s Favours / Crochet Christmas Star Jar Covers – Dinki Dots / Edible Christmas Ornaments – Hydrangea Girl / Cross Stitch Christmas Trees – Made by Mrs M / Secret Love Letter Christmas Gift Tag – Crafts of Texture / Applique Love Christmas Card – Halcyon Threads / Christmas Mini Mitts – The Crimson Rabbit / Felt Reindeer Ornament – Pickle-Lily / Christmas Carousel – Aura Verde Crafts / Embroidered Christmas Stocking Ornament - Cocojude / Stencilled Christmas Embroidery Hoop - Angharad

So please go over to her and say hello and maybe have a look on the other tutorials. Just sweet little things to do with friends and kids. This is also why I made a simple little tutorial that will always turn out great, no matter how experienced or of what age the maker will be :)


Montag, 18. November 2013

Catch a star! - Crafty Christmas tutorial link-up



Here we go! Laura from "Bugs and fishes" asked who would like to participate on her Crafty Christmas tutorial link-up. I enjoy tutorials and I also thought this would force me to have some kind of a little break. Yes, I am creating a lot but not blogging at the moment. (Truth to be told, my digi and I are not on the best terms anymore, she got a little senescent and forgets when to focus ^^)


If you know me and blog, then you won't be surprised with my choice of material: Polymer clay! 
I want you to catch all the stars you want for christmas :)

Let's start with the basic material:

- Fimo or any other polymer clay
- cookie cutter

Everything else is optional or can be substituted, but here a little list of what else I like to use:

- knitting needles
- crafting scalpell / knife
- acrylic paints (from Reeves)
- Fimo shiny gloss
- paper towels / baby wipes
- everything to create pattern like stamps and molds
- GLITTER!

Knitting needles, cookie cutter, fimo effect...


...in metallic pearl...!


...you can choose different star cookie cutter! Or cut your own shape with a knife...


Here you can see my collection of random things I used to create pattern. The nice thing with making these little stars is that you just need a simple star shape... and just anything lying around you!


Stamp and metall earrings...


Sugar cube, texture mold out of polymer clay and spices, air-drying clay with plant prints...


Plastic trash from the lab and clear stamps...


GLITTER! You can really use every kind of glitter. The highly expensive perfect pearls or even more expensive (but even greater) Kryolan make up glitter, holografic glitter from rico design... or just simple powder to make your own eye make up! This kind of powder is cheap and beautiful.


Mix you clay thoroughly and roll it out. Then use your cookie cutter to cut out your star! 


Punch a hole with a knitting needle...


If you turn your star around you will see that the hole is not perfect...


Just carefully use the knitting needle to punch the hole also from the other side = perfect round hole!


Of course, what to do now? You may add glitter... press it in firmly!


Nothing shines as bright as Kryolan!


Stampes / pressed against an old earring...


Dots! Just made with plastic trash...


Cheap air-drying clay where I pressed in some plants... cheap to make, easy to use with polymer clay because it won't stick!


Another earring pattern...


Or roll the handle of a craft knife over the clay...!


Normal stamps are also working great! Here I used my nonsense english stamp from korea. My favorite ever!


More lab trash! Gorgeous geometric pattern... to think that it took me years to see this pattern...


You only need a knitting needle for this pattern!


Strangely enough sometimes all you need is a cube of sugar!


One of my pattern / texture molds made from polymer clay made with spices...


Also clear stamps work great (just be careful with clear stamps, clean them off very fast afterwards with a wet or baby wipe).


Already beautiful in this pearl shine!


And another image!


You could leave them like this but... I want to show you what else you can with all your stars!
(Edit: After you baked them :))


Okay, maybe you can see how often I use this acrylic paints. ^^ 

Paynes grey, raw umber, violett are my favorites but I used a lot more. I prefer acrylic paints from Reeves because they have a good quality and stick perfectly on polymer clay without being sticky or plastic like. 

Hey, they even have great iridesent medium!


To make it short: Use good paints, not cheap ones (rather buy one less). 

Now just cover your star with acrylic paint. Yes, make a mess!


Start wiping it off before it dries with paper towels and/or baby wipes...


Just try different colours... or even lay colour over colours (just wipe it always off in between).


Cut out a hole in the middle to create a different shape.



Can you see the different layers of colour?


Just find the star meant for you only :)


Have fun!

PS: To add more shine and to protect the surface you can add one or two layers of fimo shiny gloss :)


Donnerstag, 7. November 2013

Inspirations: On the streets (Leipzig)



Sometimes there are pictures that take you by surprise. This one did this for me! Even seeing the person (she made it all alone in only a few days!) creating the picture it moved on so fast! I wanted to make a photo of her creation process but just forgetting my digi cam for some days and my chace to "capture" her was over. 


The left way is my way to and from work (just for walking or going by bike). It is in the bio city of leipzig next to the BBZ. There are other research institutes and companies around, from Fraunhofer to MPI. The painted building itself is one of the few without research facilities inside. It is in urgent need of repairs. Maybe this is why they allowed her to paint it. I don't think she was paid for it. 


Here you can see the empty space on the left side (before the explosion of colour!). I took this picture as an inspirational photo of the golden "spike" of the building in the back. I also love the shades of red of the building to the right. This time a really new building (one or two years old) with a lot of laboratories inside. This building is especially for small biotech companies to rent necessary working space.


I will have to take another picture as soon as the sun comes out again. So maybe... after the winter! ^^ Her signature is at the bottom to the left side. I'll also try to get a sharp image of that.



But just look at the details (even if the details are really big)! Shades from colour going into each other, shapes that look like splashes of paint, all the lines moving around...! It is huge!


My mind is already working on this, the colours, the shapes and the surprising location on the greay and old building... it makes me smile!


LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails