Once inside an egg....

...inside a "Kinderüberraschung" (a Kinder surprise egg). No, of course I didn't made pictures before. Just imagine colourful plastic pieces put together. Are you able to do this? To be honest, I am not and I actually saw the original plastic animal ;)

I glued the plastic animals on the lid with E6000 (where was this glue in my life until now?). After this I put two basic coats on the plastic and the metal: First the surface preparation of Christi Friesens swellegant paints and after this black acrylic paint from Reeves. 

Then I painted three layers of swellegant copper on top, waiting in between to let every layer dry. For the final and fourth layer I used the verdigris green patina with the still wet copper paint. Love the shades of green! Again... waiting for it to dry...

My last step was to add matt sealant and then putting some highlights with a dry brush and swellegant brass on top. Yes, I sealed first and added then the metall highlights (and sealed again). It happened to me that if I put the highlights without the sealant on top of the patina it can actually also turn green very fast (minutes sometime even).

Both of the glasses were the "packaging" for birthday presents for friends. You can see the presents (earrings of course) here and here :)

As it happens far to often in the last time... weeks... months... (months? ehm... yes, sadly true...) I took the pictures just in the last minute before heading to the birthday party. I even finished just at the same day. 

The idea of glueing plastic animals on some lids and painting them already is running wild for some years in the internet. I wanted to try this for a long time now. But I really think that by using swellegant I created something new out of an old idea.

And yes, you need them too! Your own little metal statues! ^^

Covered in polymer clay - steampunk box

This metal box I made as a special thank you. I know I don't write too often in the last time. But this is not only a problem I have with my blog but also in real life. So my way of showing that I care is rather by creating something for the person. Better than words, at least for me :)

This is an old candy boy out of metal. Very thick and high quality metal in this case not the thin cheap ones. I covered it with polymer clay (Fimo classic), used some glas nuggets and stamped a lot of textures in the surface. Of course I also added more polymer clay on top, little balls or snake like things. 

The original colour of the clay is a dark brown. A good colour should be the basis for such a project because even thought it seems that all is now covered with acrylic colours, the basic colour always comes through! 

At first I went with black, wiping most of it away before it was all dried. Then I added several layers of other colours, like copper and bronce (all with Reeves acrylic colours). In the end I used some aqua acrylic colours (even if most stores don't have them, try to get them, they are such a great addition!) and of course I lacquered it with shiny gloss. It is intended to be useable ^^

And because I can't decide which pictures to skip... I just show you all of them! ;)

Beading beads - earrings

Yes, this is new to me. Not completly true, then I was a kid we beaded little flower bracelets. The ones were you bead five small glas beads in a circle around a middle one. 

So beading in different directions and even three dimensional, that was really new to me! A friend showed me how to make these earrings (adapted from a pattern from beads and buttons).  I made already three different pairs for myself and this goes to my family (the earhooks are gold plated). 

I am still struggeling how to catch the real colours, shine and beauty of the beaded earrings. My photo skills have to be improved in the next time... 

Here on in the direct sunlight so you get an impression of the shine and shimmer of the glas beads!

The only negative things about the beaded earrings: The faceted glas beads with the high quality needed... are  expensive! So this earrings I will propably just create for family and friends (and myself! ^^)...

And I didn't wrote down the winner of my tiny giveaway for my tiny eyeball earring studs from last week. 

The winner is Mickymunchkin!

Even not anouncing you here in my blog: You alreday should got an email from me asking for your adress!

And because it is a short time before christmas and I am already preparing a lot of packages...

How about a little surprise for the others? :)

@Mich L in LA: I know, I know... I should habe your adress already but could you send it to me again?

@Crystelle: Could you send me your post adress as well?

It is watching you!

I combined my polymer clay (fimo) eyeballs with some structured stuff also made out of fimo and put it all again on a little glas.

Now it is watching you!

This time the basic colour of the polymer clay I used was a dark brown. I went over it with black acrylic colour. Before the paint could set I went over the surface with a wet sponge to remove most of the colour. 

For the highlights / metallic effect I used at first copper and then bronze metallic acrylic paint (the ones from Reeves, really good quality!). Of course followed by a lot of layers from lacquer / shiny gloss. Especially the eyeball got some more layers! ^^

For a little eyeball tutorial: Have a look here

For another glas with polymer clay: Have a look here

Play with structures and polymer clay!

I covered the lid of a little glas jar with polymer clay (fimo) and then I started adding some structures with stamps and molds... 

In the middle I out some stones which were part of a hair piece I had and which broke. I just couldn't part with them because they were to sparkly and beautiful ^^

After I baked the clay I used different shades of blue of water acrylic colours as well as normal black acrylic colour to get some patina effect. On top I brushed a little bit of silver acrylic paint with my finger tips to get some highlights.

And a final layer of lacquer (or shiny gloss)! Really tine glas... I am keeping now little baked fimo parts which I want to use for earrings inside...

Bigger glas magnets...

With my crow...

...and of course again the little chameleon and snake skeleton from Karen (the graphics fairy)!

I am still experimenting how to get the snake with the best effect on fabric ^^

I displayed my magnets on an empty whisky package which is made out of metal. 

Okay, without glas nuggets some stars. But I also love them :)

The horse silhouette I also created from a graphic from Karen and the tree from a foto I made.

Some stamped airdrying clay... i didn't smoothe the edges... I wanted to see the effect it created.

 

Post it's with magnets on the back... like the ones of the advent calenders last year.

...and even some colour under glas ^^

Under glas - pink ornaments

I confess: I love glas nuggets!

There is something so cool and also fascinating about the magnification effect of the glas.

Decopatch paper was glued under the bottom. I added magnetic adhesive tape (I love it!) afterwards. This is so much easier to use than magnets itself ^^

The glas nugget itself is a little bigger than my last ones. But I bought only two of them... sniff.

Cute little bones I - Under glas

I love all the little skeletal pictures of graphics fairy! Maybe because I am a biologist, maybe because I am a little bit weird ^^, but there is a strange but very delicate beauty in a skeletal system. There is even an impression of movement if I look at them!

So I thought about, what I could do with her pictures... Here is my first one. Just takes the time for printing and some glue to dry ^^

I printed this one very small (half an inch maybe?), glued it on a glas nugget (yes, I found some new ones!) and after drying put a layer of white acrylic paint on the back. This is as well for protection as for getting a brigther background.

This glas nugget had a lot of little air bubbles inside. I like imperfections like this, it is the final touch on everything. :)

Little "written" glas stones...

Everybody uses this little glas nuggets to make cool decorational stuff. I love them (and it is years ago sinced I made my own ones)! So I was infected again and I made some with writings. I found some clear and light blue glas nuggets (I found more but the rest was not transparent enough to see something through the glas).

I just put the glas nuggets on a printed script, marked the shape around the glas nuggets, cut the paper piece out and glued it under the nugget (I used a transparent gemstone glue pen which was really cheap ^^). Afterwards I added a layer of white acrylic paint and that was it.

I love this magnifying glass effect especially on this non readable old script ^^

Beside the old script I printed some writings in a bigger size and searched for some word I liked in it to put them in the center and therefore "magnify" them. The basic (if you are curious) is Goethes "Faust II" in german.

Phöbus´ Räder - Phoebus´ wheels

Mondes - of the moon

  

Stern an (Stern) - Star at (star)

Funken - spark

I think the little flaws in the glas make a special effect :)

Together with some more :)

Dämmerung - dwan / twilight

Erdgeboren - earth born (earthlings in the english translation I found)

Elfen - Elves

The can be put on magnets, on card, on gifts or collages... or just be used as they are. I like to make some with a special meaning for other persons.