Paint pouring rocks

On July 21, 2020July 17, 2020 By CarynIn Craft

I have been hearing about paint pouring projects for about two years. At the beginning of the summer I purchased some flow agent (Floetrol, but there are others), but didn’t get around to giving it a try until now. I’m sorry I waited, this was fun! My kids really liked it, and it wasn’t nearly as messy as I feared it would be.

I lined paper plates with wax paper to catch the drippings. (When the paint is dry we will use the drippings for another project.) I put bamboo sticks across the plates to hold the rocks above the plate. I used 5oz paper cups for mixing and pouring. I mixed about twice as much Floetrol as paint, so the consistency was about the same as pancake syrup. When the solid colors were mixed, I poured spots of color into a different cup. Then I handed over the cup and let the kids pour!

After pouring, we let the rocks sit for a bit, then moved them over to another sheet of wax paper so we could pour more.

I don’t feel like we have wasted paint since we caught the drippings and used up all the mixed paint. The stir sticks will dry and can be used again. Some artists use washable cups, which is a good idea if this becomes a frequent craft for us.

Once these have sat a couple days, I will put on a protective clear coat. These are too pretty to just leave to the elements!

Ear saver head band

On July 18, 2020 By CarynIn Craft

As I make masks, I have long strips of waste fabric, so I made some head bands with buttons to try as ear savers!

Child’s mask attached to buttons on a head band

To make the headband, I made a strip of fabric 3” wide and 15” long for an adult size, or 3” x 12” for a child size. I folded the strip lengthwise with right sides together and sewed a 3/8” seam.

I used a tube turner to turn the fabric tube inside out, then pressed it flat.

To attach the 3/8” elastic, I folded the end of the tube to the inside, then made two inverted folds on the sides to reduce the width of the headband (other sizes of elastic would work as well). I sewed across the end to secure the elastic.

After sewing in the elastic on one side, I measured 21.5” from the end of the fabric for the adult size (19.5” for the child size), cut the elastic, and sewed in the second side. With the elastic secured, I sewed on machine washable buttons.

Ear saver headbands (top child sized, bottom adult sized)

I can do what with shaving cream?

On July 16, 2020 By CarynIn Craft

Today’s crafty thing comes from my kids. I bought shaving cream to test the anti-fogging properties on glasses (it doesn’t work). When my kids saw the shaving cream they wanted to get their hands in it! Ok? I gave them each a baking pan and they emptied the little can. They asked for color, so I pulled out the soap colorants I had in the cupboard (food coloring stains skin, so we avoided that). My eldest learned a marbling technique in art class and showed me how that works. So cool!

When the kids were done, I played a little. I mixed up their colored foam, added more color, and swirled it with a tooth pick. Then I pressed a piece of paper down gently on the top.

I made three prints, added some blue, and did three more prints. I ran out of room on the table at that point, but I think I could have continued to print!

If you do an image search on “shaving cream marbling” people have achieved some really gorgeous results.

Happy Little Stacks

On July 14, 2020July 15, 2020 By CarynIn Craft

I am not a fan of ironing, but my steamer makes me happy. That and neat stacks of in-process masks.

Neatly pressed in-process masks (adult and kid sizes)

I also enjoy seeing the steamer do its work on the masks after they come out of the wash. I straighten out the wire, then steam the mask mostly flat. I’m sure there are wizards of ironing out there that could make them as crisp as new; I don’t have that patience, but I do appreciate storing mostly flat masks. Yes, these masks follow the first pattern I made in bulk. For the kid size, instead of starting with a 10”x14” piece of fabric, I downsized to 8”x14”. This pattern stores nicely, fits nicely, and is easy to make in an assembly line method, which means I can make more a little faster!

Grape vine Nal

On July 12, 2020July 11, 2020 By CarynIn Craft

As we sat and watched the fire around the artist’s charcoal (see yesterday’s blog entry for more on that), I had extra lengths of grape vine stick, which happened to be a good length for a nålbinding nal. I had my pocket knife and decided to give carving a nal entirely by hand a try. Previously, I used a drill press for the holes, and a band sander for shaping. It was quite easy to carve the grape vine, and although it does have some flex, it is sturdy. I was able to carve out the eyes of the nal, which was the trickiest bit. I also added a channel along the eyes, which helps the loops of yarn pass through easily with the needle.

After roughing out the shape with my knife, I took 120 grit sandpaper and refined the shape and the eyes. Then I used 220, 320, and finally 400 grit to smooth the wood. Rolling the sandpaper into a tight tube helped sand out the holes.

At this point I tested the nal with some scrap yarn and found that it had an unpleasant bump in the middle. I went back with the 120 grit and sanded out the lump, then smoothed it out again. To be sure I had all the wood fibers smooth, I ran the nal under water. This raises the fibers that want to raise, and is an important step in wood finishing, especially for hand tools. If this step is skipped, those fibers still raise, but do so when the sealant is applied. It is much easier to use water first. When the nal dried, I sanded again with 400 grit. It needed it! I repeated the water treatment, then I had a nice smooth nal.

Raised wood fibers after rinsing with water

I usually leave my nals uncoated, letting the natural oils of the yarn and my hands condition the wood. Since the grape vine had so much raised fiber after the water treatment, I decided to apply a couple coats of teak oil to seal the nal.

The love the light and dark color of the wood and the slight curve!

Critters and Craft

Category: Craft