Two Crafty Brownies

Rainbow Love! : Clay Rainbow Brooch Tutorial

Hello lovelies

Hurrah! It is officially the Summer hols in our house starting this afternoon! We are all exhausted and need a break from the daily grind. We are going to spend our holiday relaxing, adventuring, washing clothes and dishes, cooking, reading, playing, bickering and gardening! I am sure there are more verbs I could add to that mix but I am sure you get the gist.

The other Brownie is already holidaying and having a fab time by the looks of it. Did you see Jenny's holiday pics and list of travel essentials last week? I love the handmade thank you cards that Jenny leaves for hosts along the way. What a lovely idea!

If you follow us on instagram, you will know that in June, we took part in a wonderful challenge, #colourmyeveryday, which was a celebration of all things colour. Each day, there were different prompts such as ‘tin’, ‘building’, ‘flower’ etc to encourage variety and to get us thinking. It was created by the gorgeous Jo of Adventures and Tea Parties. It was an absolute joy to take part in, I took photos I wouldn’t have thought to take without it and our gallery was so much brighter for it! Jo was so complimentary and enthusiastic about everybody’s entries each day. It must have been hard work to run but I am sure a pleasure too!

Inspired by Jo’s #colourmyeveryday challenge I have dug out the air drying clay again and made a rainbow brooch!

What you need is:

Air drying clay - such as this one.

2 plastic trays - one to roll the clay out on, one to dry the clay on.

Non stick craft rolling pin such as this one with the 3mm rings attached.

Template of rainbow and clouds - Download Rainbow Brooch Template

Craft knife such as this.

Small pot of water.

Nail file.

Dust mask.

Slim paint brushes.

Porcelain paints such as these - you could aso use poster or acrylic paint too but these porcelain paints created a lovely gloss finish.

Gloss varnish - I used Fimo (polymer clay) gloss varnish. You can find it here.

Brooch back findings such as these.

Epoxy glue such as this.

What you do is:

Print out and cut around the rainbow template.

Break off a chunk of clay (size depends on how many brooches you want to make). Wrap the rest of the clay up using cling film to keep moist.

Knead the clay in your hands for a bit. A few squeezes will do!

Put the 3mm thickness markers onto the rolling pin and roll out the clay until it stops getting any thinner.

Place the rainbow template onto the rolled out clay and cut around it with a craft knife. Use a cutting motion rather than a slicing motion. The latter will pull the clay out of shape.

Separate the shapes from the rest of the clay. Wrap up the spare clay in cling film to use at a later date.

Smooth the edges of each rainbow with a finger dipped in water. Don’t worry if it is not completely smooth. Once dry the clay can be filed to smooth out further.

Leave to dry on the tray covered in cling film, according to the clay manufacturer’s instructions. I usually leave mine for about 48 hours. Keep an eye on them whilst they dry and carefully press down any raised bits. You could also turn them over after about 24 hours to speed up the drying process.

Once dry, using a nail file, file the edges of each rainbow to smooth them further. It is advisable to wear a dust mask because of the clay dust this process creates. Blow off any excess dust and wipe with a tissue to be sure.

Place the template labelled ‘red’ onto one of the rainbows, so the bottom edge of the template lines up with the bottom edge of the rainbow.

Using the red porcelain paint, paint the exposed area of the clay and leave to dry. This is the first rainbow stripe.

 Now paint an orange stripe underneath the red, allow to dry, then paint a yellow stripe and so on until all the colours have been painted.

Once dry, paint the clouds white. This is optional - you could just leave them.

Once the paint is dry, apply a layer of gloss varnish to the back of each rainbow and allow to dry. Then paint the front. This gives them a little extra durability and a nice shine. Allow to dry.

Once dry, with the rainbow brooch turned over to the wrong side, add a small dollop of glue to the middle and gently press a brooch backing onto the glue. Leave to dry - 24 hours will usually do.

Your brooch is done! Isn’t it cheery and colourful?! Wear with pride (tee hee)!

Well my lovelies, that is it for me until September. Jenny and I are going to take a little break in August but Jenny is back next week so I will leave it to her to sign off properly! Have a gorgeous weekend whatever you are up to!

Lots and lots of love and cuddles to last all Summer,

Lucy

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Fruit and Veg Clay Magnets Tutorial

Hello there friends!

It has a been a little while hasn’t it? As Jenny said in her post about her lovely craft room last week, we've had a little holiday from blogging and it has been so nice to take a break and slow down a little. I say a little because with the family around over the Easter break for 3 weeks in total, it hasn't been possible to properly slow down but it has been lovely!

So the Easter hols are now over and the normal routine has been resumed. The kids are back at school and my hubby is back at work. We all spent such a lot of time in the garden during the Spring break, each of us enjoying it in our own way. I have been getting very excited about growing some flowers, fruit and vegetables this year. So far, I have planted from seed, sweet peas, tomatoes, lettuce, carrots and chamomile and all look promising so far. It is amazing how much love and hope goes into every little seed that I have pushed gently into the soil!

Inspired by my new found love of growing things, I have been at the air drying clay again and these fruit and veg magnets have been such fun to make. This is definitely one of my all time favourite mediums (media?) to work with. I could squeeze, roll, cut, smooth, file and paint all day long! If you have read our blog for a little while, you will know this isn’t the first tutorial I have written using air drying clay. Have a look at our ‘Crafting with Clay’ category for more inspiration!

What you need is:

Air drying clay - I used an air drying clay from Flying Tiger UK, but if you haven’t got one of those near you, this one from Hobbycraft will work just fine.

2 plastic trays - one to roll the clay out on, one for drying the clay.

Non stick craft rolling pin such as this one with the 3mm rings attached.

Fruit and Veg shaped small cookie cutters with presser to make marks/patterns in the clay. I bought mine in Paperchase, but these are the same.

Cling film.

Slim paint brushes.

Porcelain paints such as these - you could also use poster or acrylic paint, but these porcelain paints created a lovely gloss finish.

Small pots or ramekin dishes to mix the paint in.

Gloss varnish - I used Fimo (polymer clay) gloss varnish.

Small magnets such as these.  

Glue - I used this.

What you do is:

Break off a chunk of clay (size depends on how many magnets you want to make). Wrap up the rest of the clay using cling film to keep moist.

Knead the clay in your hands for a bit. I love this bit of the process so I do it for far longer than I need to! A few squeezes will do!

Put the 3mm thickness markers onto the rolling pin and roll out the clay until it stops getting any thinner.

Press the different fruit and veg cookie cutters into the clay making sure to press down to make the patterns.

Peel off the spare clay once you have used all possible space in the clay and set aside to roll and make more if desired. If you have enough at this stage, add this spare clay to the remaining clay and wrap well in cling film and then foil to keep fresh and moist.

Now peel off each clay shape from the tray and smooth the edges with your finger.

Place on another tray covered in cling film.

Repeat with the remaining shapes and leave to dry according to the clay manufacturer’s guidelines. I usually leave mine for about 48 hours. Keep an eye on it whilst it dries and carefully press down any raised bits.

Once dry, apply a layer of porcelain paint, which you have mixed to the desired colours, to the sides and the top of each shape. I used a small slim brush which I found worked well in the grooves created by the presser on each cutter.

Allow to dry, again following the manufacturer’s guidelines.

Once the paint is dry, apply a layer of gloss varnish to each shape, giving them a little extra durability. Allow to dry.

Turn the shapes over and using a small amount of glue, attach a magnet to the back of each shape.

Once the glue has set and dried, your magnets are free to use! Aren’t they bright and fun?!

My favourites are the aubergine and the tomato…..

Well I’m off to read up about how to protect my tomatoes from the slugs and snails once I plant them out into the garden. At the moment, they are safe on my windowsill and doing very well!

Have a lovely weekend flowers! See you back here very soon, lots and lots of love,

Lucy xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxzzzzzzzxxxxxxxxxxxx

Inspired by mini eggs!

Hello dear friends!

Ooo things are warming up here in London town! The Spring has sprung, the sun has been shining a little more and the world is starting to look really colourful. Here in Two Crafty Brownies Land, Jenny and I are very excited about our very first workshops. We are holding them in such a wonderful setting, the Arbour Café at The Boma Garden Centre in Kentish Town. We will be teaching how to make your very own journal/planner on the 27th April and a floral appliqué embroidery hoop on the 8th May. If you are interested in either of our workshops, you can do so and book a place by clicking on our workshops tab above or follow this link! We do hope some of you can make it!

Whilst Jenny has been inspired to decoupage with napkins, yielding beautiful results, I have been slightly obsessed with Cadbury’s mini eggs! Maybe it goes without saying that I love eating them. Over on instagram, I described them as little eggs of joy with speckled, crunchy exteriors and melt in the mouth chocolate centres. This may sound like an advert but sadly I have not been sponsored to write this post although if you are reading this Cadbury’s, you may be able to twist my arm!

I’m mostly inspired to eat them straight away but I did have enough willpower to save a few to decorate some little spring cupcakes. The kids were sooooo happy when they came home from school on this day….

I even speckled the buttercream with sifted cocoa. Look, there’s a mini egg thief about!….

I'm not impressed that Cadbury's don't make a blue mini egg! Surely there should be right? I may just start a campaign. Who's with me?......Not important enough a cause you say? Hhmph!

As well as eating them, the pretty speckled shells of mini eggs has got me crafting. I just love this look. I mean, take a look at these socks,. Don’t you just love them?.........

Also, look at those little feet! They belong to my littlest girl (all the heart eyes).

I find myself attracted to all the speckled yarn and I have to try very hard not to purchase every ball of speckled wool I see! Occasionally though, yarn just has this habit of following me home. Have you been witness to this phenomenon or is it just me? Very strange…..

This yarn is from Rico Design and I bought it from here in cream and peach too as the cream needed a friend. I am in the process of hooking up a cushion cover……….the colours make me so happy as I hook….

I’ve also had the air drying clay out again. I have played with this before as you may know. Check out the tutorials here if you fancy having a go. I made spring themed shapes using these fab cookie cutters from Paperchase....

I painted them using ceramic paint which has a glossy finish and speckled them by dipping a paint brush in gold paint and flicking the bristles with my finger. Don’t they look cute?

I am going to make them into brooches, keyrings and magnets for my little cousins as surprise Spring gifts.

I've also got a bit crafty with fabric paint, a stencil I made earlier (of an avocado stone which looks very much like a mini egg), a sponge, a paint brush and cream cotton fabric…..

I am going to transform the speckled fabric into a pouch! I might have to keep this one……...

Phew! Are you all mini-egged and speckled out? I’m not sure I am quite yet…..

The kids break up today for their Easter hols and I am very excited about the next couple of weeks of pottering and larking about with them and the hubby. Have you got any plans for Easter? Whatever your plans, do have a smashing time my lovely mini-eggs! (compliments indeed!)....

All the love and hugs,

Lucy xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxzzzzzzxxxxxxxxxxx

Cloud and Raindrops Wall Hanging Tutorial: #BeInspired with Cass Art.

Happy New Year lovelies!

How are you all doing? Do you feel rested or do you need a holiday? I'm in the 'Please can I have one more week' camp. Unfortunately, I was poorly throughout the Christmas and New Year break, so I am glad to be done with it and move on into January, which for me is a month of clearing out the Christmas clutter and planning for the year ahead. Although I am not putting everything away. I want to keep some of the pretty and the magic so my wreath and the fairy lights are staying!

This time last year, Jenny and I wrote about our 'Word For the Year' here and here, and in a couple of weeks I will be talking about the word(s) I have chosen for 2017. This post however is all about a new collaboration with Cass Art. Needless to say, Jenny and I were so excited when Cass Art approached us and asked us if we would like to take the Cass Art Challenge and join their '#Be Inspired' campaign. This campaign is all about finding out what inspires what we do and what we use in our creative process. We waited eagerly for our first package of craft goodies and when it came the packaging and the contents were pleasing indeed!.....

In fact, I was so taken, you could say 'inspired', by the shiny blue and interestingly textured packaging that I created a 'Happy New Year' sign with it....

Now on to the contents. You may remember that I am a big fan of air drying clay with a few tutorials already posted here, here and here. However, there were a few extra items that I have not worked with before. In addition to the air drying clay, the package contained some marbling clay in Sodalite Blue and Verona Red , a glossy effect varnish and a special rolling pin with changeable thickness bands. I pondered on the contents for a while as I wanted to do something very different from my previous projects and eventually the image of a cloud with raindrops came to mind. Perhaps it was the fact that there were lots of grey skies and some rain over the Christmas break or even that I felt a little bit low because I was ill, but the image of a stormy marbled cloud with raindrops wouldn't leave my mind, so I got making! And do you know, when I had finished it cheered me up lots and lots!

To make your own Cloud and Raindrops wall hanging, you need:

Air drying clay

Air drying marbling clay in blue

Non stick rolling pin with adjustable thickness rings

Glossy effect varnish

Plastic tray 

Template - Download Cloud and Raindrops Wall Hanging

Craft knife (to cut the clay) - you could use special clay cutting tools such as these, but I used what I had to hand.

Cup of water

Cocktail stick

Cling film

A nail file

Thread

What you do is:

Break off a chunk from the white air drying clay and knead in your hand slightly. Using your hands, roll into a snake shape on the tray. Do the same with the blue marbling clay using much less than the white.

Wrap the blue length and around the white and roll further still using your hands, lengthening as you go.

Fold in half lengthways and twist together. Roll again as before. Do this perhaps one or more times until the blue clay is well incorporated into the white.

Now using the rolling pin with the 2.5mm thickness rings attached, roll out your clay. This bit is exciting (well I think so!) as you reveal the marbled effect. If you feel that it isn't marbled enough, repeat the rolling out into a snake and twisting. Do you see my swirly, stormy cloud appearing already?

Cut out the cloud template and one raindrop. Although there are 7 raindrops on the template, you only need one. Place the cloud onto the rolled out clay and cut around using a craft knife.

Poke holes into the clay using a cocktail stick at the points indicated on the template.

Peel off the cloud carefully from the tray and smooth out any rough edges using your finger dipped into a little bit of water. Place onto clingfilm to dry. Cut out and make holes in the raindrops in the same way.

Follow drying times on the manufacturers packaging, turning the clay after about 12 hours. It took about 36 hours for my clay to dry.

Tip: My cloud started to warp slightly as it dried, so when it was almost dry but still damp, I placed a book carefully on top to flatten it.

When fully dry, smooth out any more rough edges with a nail file.

Using the brush that comes with it, apply a layer of the gloss varnish to the upper surface of the cloud. I hadn't worked with this before and I found it slightly tricky - it has a very thick and sticky consistency. I worked from left to right covering the cloud, quickly but steadily. It did not dry in approximately 2 hours as the packaging suggests. Perhaps this is because I gave it a thick coating. I left it for about 2 days! Before this, when I touched it, it left a finger print mark.

When both the cloud and raindrops are fully dry,  cut some lengths of thread. Using the holes you have made (you may need to poke them again with the cocktail stick to clear the varnish out of them), attach the raindrops at different lengths with the thread, ensuring the knots in the thread are placed at the back hidden behind the cloud. Now thread 3 more identical lengths as desired through the 3 holes at the top of the cloud. Tah-dah!..........

I have decided to hang it on my pegboard above my desk. I love it! 

There were bits and pieces of clay left over and I also had a go with the red marbling clay. I decided to make some heart rings and a necklace too! For the heart rings, I used a sugar paste cutter to cut out a heart shape, allowed them to dry and then attached ring findings using epoxy jewellery glue and for the necklace, I pressed the pendant into the clay, cut around the shape made using a craft knife, allowed it to dry and attached it to the pendant also using epoxy jewellery glue. I really love the marbled effect on these projects!

This tutorial may inspire you to reach for some air drying clay and have go at marbling yourself. I do hope so! Let me know if you have a go!

Have a fab weekend lovelies! See you back here very soon!

Love always,

Lucy xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

PS - We were sent the materials for this project free of charge by Cass Art as part of their #Be Inspired campaign. Any opinions expressed are my own.

 

 

 

 

 

Autumn Leaf Necklace Tutorial

Hello lovelies!

I love Jenny's rag rug - such a good way of using up scraps of material and the result is fab and so pretty! This project is going on my 'new crafts to try' list, which if you are anything like Jenny and I, is a long one!

There is no mistaking it now - it is definitely Autumn. Here in the UK, well in London anyway, Summer came back for a bit. In fact it came back tropical style and Autumn was caught a little off guard! The kids had to wear suncream and hats to school and barbeques and picnic rugs were retrieved from their hibernation for that last blast of Summer heat. Now there is a certain autumnal chill in the air especially in the evenings, and the leaves are turning all the shades of brown and gold and falling to the ground. That’s ok, I’m happy to celebrate our seasons. I lived in Kenya when I was younger and the fact that the seasons changed was one of the things I really missed about the UK...that and marmite!

So to celebrate Autumn, I have decided to make a pretty leaf necklace, using air drying clay and sugar paste cutters. If you’ve read our blog for a little while, you may remember me mucking about with air drying clay before - making Christmas gifts and making Christmas decorations.

What you need is:

Air drying clay - I used a Fimo light air-dry clay which I definitely would not recommend. It turned out to be a bit too light and fragile, too porous and not solid enough for my liking! So for better results I would recommend a normal air drying clay such as this one.

A plastic tray

Non stick craft rolling pin such as this one.

Something to ensure the clay is of consistent thickness when rolled. I used 2 coasters measuring about 2mm thick but you can get guide rings which fit on to the ends of rolling pins such as these.

Leaf shaped sugar paste/small cookie cutter - the cutter I bought was a ‘plunger’ cutter which makes a vein pattern when pressed down onto the clay. You can find them here.

Cocktail stick/skewer.

Cling film.

Paint brush.

Nail file.

Paint  - I used poster paint but acrylic or even porcelain pens would work.

Gloss varnish - I used Fimo (polymer clay) gloss varnish. You can find it here.

Jewellery findings - 1 jump ring (I used 8mm) and a chain. Have a look at this website for all your jewellery finding needs!

Jewellery pliers such as these.

What you do is:

Break off a small piece of clay. You don’t need a lot for this project. Wrap the rest of the clay up using cling film to keep moist.

Roll out the clay, putting the thickness markers underneath the rolling pin to the sides of the clay.

Once the clay is at the desired thickness, press the large leaf cutter (or any of the others depending on the size of pendant you’d like) into the clay, making sure to plunge (love that word!) to make the vein pattern.

Lift the cutter up, lifting the clay leaf with it, smooth the bottom edges of the leaf and carefully press the plunger down to release the leaf into your hand.

The top edges of the leaf may be slightly rough. You can either smooth them down now using your finger dipped in water or leave until it is dry, when you can smooth the rough edges carefully with a nail file. I did the latter as I thought fiddling with it too much would misshapen it.

Whilst the leaf is still in your hand, press the cocktail stick or skewer into the top, twisting gently and repeat from the other side.

Leave on some clingfilm to dry. Follow instructions on the packaging for drying times. Normal air dry clay can take a few days to properly dry out. If you like, gently twist the leaf - this gives it a nice effect when dry.

When the leaf is dry, carefully smooth any rough edges. You should wear a dust mask for this, especially if you are filing lots of leaves.

Apply a few coats of the desired colour to your leaf, allowing each coat to dry before applying the next. I painted mine a lovely bronze colour.

Once the paint is dry, apply 1 or 2 layers of gloss varnish to both the front and the back. Allow gloss to dry.

Using jewellery pliers, put the jump ring through the hole in the leaf which you made earlier, loop the chain onto the jump ring and close.

Your necklace is done and you can celebrate Autumn in style and at not much expense!

Of course you could mix it up a bit and use different colours, different size leaves, put multiple leaves on one necklace, make earrings and so on! So much fun! Here are some more I made....

If it is Autumn where you are lovelies, I hope this cooler but beautiful season is treating you well! Wherever you are, lots and lots of love,

Lucy xxxxxxxxxxxx

Oh Bring Us Some Figgy Pudding.....Decorations!

The Story

Hello friends! I love Christmas!.....What do you mean I’ve already told you? And I waffled on about it you say? Who me? Ok, so I’ll tell you something you don’t know. I don’t love Christmas pudding! I can probably blame 70’s school dinners for that. School dinners were really bad when I was growing up. Some of you may remember the song. “School dinners, school dinners, concrete chips, concrete chips..”....it doesn’t end well. At Christmas time, I have memories of a sultana-filled, custard-swamped, tepid, dome shaped desert. The building buzz of excitement that could be felt as we all queued up to collect our Christmas puddings, was definitely not down to its culinary merits, but instead was due to the anticipation of who would find the silver coins. Yes, in the 70’s, health and safety was not what it is now! The possible dangers were weighed up, considered, pondered even, and then caution was thrown to the wind!

Alas, I have digressed. I think I have conveyed my dislike of the traditional Christmas pud (I know there are variations nowadays), and the possible origins of this dislike but I am here to tell you that the image of the Christmas pudding is my favourite! Hurrah! I love the image of a plump brown pud covered with swirls of white frosting, topped off with pretty green holly and little red berries.

So for this week’s crafty project, I have made 3 different Christmas pudding decorations, using some of the methods in my last project. You can of course vary them and I have given you a few ideas at the end of each make. And just like my last project, you can also get the kids involved!  

Clay Christmas Pudding Decoration

For this decoration I have used air-drying clay, which the kids love playing with and I really enjoy using. It can be rolled and shaped into all sorts of things, no oven drying is necessary and can then be painted, varnished etc. It can take about 4 or 5 days to dry once shaped so it pays to plan ahead. This clay is very reasonable and it goes a long way and is therefore a really thrifty way of making decorations and other shapes that can be given as gifts. Check out my last blog post for ideas about turning air-drying clay into necklaces, keyrings, brooches etc.

What you need is:

Air-drying clay - this one can be found online.

Non-stick craft rolling pin. I bought a small one from a kitchen shop a few years ago but you can find them online, for instance here.  

Something to ensure that your rolled out clay is of a consistent thickness - I used two tiles which were about 3mm thick but you could also use small books, CDs etc.

A plastic tray

Round cookie cutters - I used two different sizes, 6cm and 5cm diameter

A skewer to make a whole in the top of the decorations so that they can be hung up

Cup of water for smoothing out the clay

Newspaper to protect your work surface

Drying racks

Paints for decorating - poster paints are fine but I used these porcelain pens because they give a really smooth, slightly shinier finish.

Glitter

Thread/string/ribbon for hanging your decs

What you do is:

Protect your work surface with the newspaper and fill a cup with water.

The clay should come with instructions of how to use it and how long it takes to dry etc. Break off a piece of clay, ensuring the rest of the clay is wrapped back up to keep moist.

Knead the clay in your hands for a minute to soften.

Put your thickness markers onto your tray making sure that they will be underneath the rolling pin and roll out the clay.

Use cookie cutters to cut the rounds out of the clay - I cut out two different sizes.

Carefully peel the shapes from the tray.

Gently make a hole in the top of the shape using a skewer. The hole needs to be large enough for ribbon/string/thread to go through. I tend to put the skewer in from both sides and wriggle it around gently, reshaping around the hole if necessary.

Dip your finger in the water and smooth out any rough edges and surfaces.

Place the shapes onto a drying rack to dry. This can take 4 to 5 days so plan ahead!

 

Once dry, using the brown pen, paint a curvy line about a third of the way down from the hole at the top so that the top third looks like the frosting. Because you are using white air-drying clay, the top third is already white which means it doesn’t need painting. Colour in the rest of the decoration with the brown pen and paint the sides too.

Once painted allow to dry. I added another coat of brown paint and it was at this stage when this second coat was still wet, I sprinkled over some glitter.

Now paint the holly leaves on, sprinkle on some glitter. Leave to dry. Then paint the red berries, sprinkle some more glitter! Allow to dry.

The shapes can be heat-fixed now that they are painted, but I am not sure how necessary this is for these decorations. This involves putting them in the oven - follow the instructions that come with the pens. I didn’t heat-fix mine.

Then attach ribbon, thread or string so your decoration can be hung on your tree! Stand back and admire your work!

Other Ideas for clay decorations:

If you want to branch out beyond the Christmas pud, you could use the round shapes as baubles instead or try cutting out other shapes, like gingerbread men/women, holly, Christmas trees etc and decorating them accordingly.

You could also use a cookie embossing/message stamp kit to stamp a message on the decorations. I bought such a kit from here and I haven’t stopped using it for one thing or the other.

You could also make gift tags, which can either be embossed before drying or written on with a sharpie after being painted.

Try stringing a few decorations together to make a garland.

 

Decoupage Christmas Pudding Decoration

Decoupage, the art of gluing and layering small pieces of paper to an object, is great fun. I showed you how in my last post where I decorated a picture frame. Here, I am decoupaging onto a craft ball to make a Christmas pudding bauble.

What you need is:

Craft baubles. I bought these 5cm diameter card baubles here. Helpfully, they already have a nice gold string attached for hanging them up.

Brown and white/cream tissue paper to make the pud

Green felt, red sequin pins/buttons/beads.

Decoupage glue/varnish - you can find this and other decoupage paraphernalia here. You could also make your own glue using PVA and water. When I have done it this way, I have mixed 2 parts glue to 1 part water.

Glitter

Paintbrushes

Scissors

Clean, empty jars to prop your baubles onto as they dry

newspaper to protect your table

What you do is:

Using a ruler, measure and draw a line about 2cm from the top of the bauble.

Cut the brown and white/cream tissue paper into small square pieces.

Starting with the brown pieces, apply some decoupage glue to a small area of the bauble with a paintbrush and cover with a small piece of tissue paper. Apply more glue, then more paper overlapping as you go.

Allow to dry in stages, resting on the opening of a jar.

To get a good covering of the brown tissue paper, repeat this process twice more if necessary.

Repeat with the white paper

Then coat with glue one final time, adding a sprinkle of glitter.

Draw and then cut out 2 holly leaves from the green felt. Put a needle into the tip of each holly leaf, pulling it all the way through.

Using a drawing pin, poke 3 holes in the top of each bauble.

Gently push a sequin pin into the hole in one of the holly leaves and then push into one of the holes in the bauble. Repeat with the second holly leaf and then push a sequin pin into the third hole creating your berries.

Instead of the previous step, you can use green felt holly leaves and little red beads for the berries, sticking these on with PVA craft glue.

Hang up on your tree and enjoy!

Other ideas for decoupage decorations:

Using the same craft balls, try decoupaging using other decorative, wrapping or specialist decoupage paper to create fun baubles. You could add buttons, glitter, sequins, ribbon, washi tape etc.

You can also buy other craft shapes to be decoupaged from the same place I bought the baubles from, for instance, diamonds. They also have polystyrene versions which can also be decoupaged.

 

Yarn wreath Christmas Pudding Decoration

I think these mini-wreaths are so very cute, there are so many possibilities of what you could do with them. For this decoration, I have chosen to use wool and wrap it around the wreaths, meaning no crochet or knitting is required and you can also use scraps of yarn leftover from other projects. I have definitely been inspired by blogger and crochet queen, Lucy from Attic 24. She has made some wonderful seasonal wreaths such as this beautiful winter wreath earlier this year.

What you need is:

1 x 50g ball each of brown and cream wool (acrylic will do). You will need approx 7.5m Brown and 7m cream yarn for each wreath.

Polystyrene wreaths (9cm diameter, 27cm circumference) - you can find them here.

Double-sided sticky tape.

Green felt.

Plastic sequin pins - you can find them here.

Needle

What you do is:

If you are taking the yarn from a large ball of wool, loosely measure and cut 7.5m of brown wool and 2 lots of 3.5m of cream wool.

Wrap each around your fingers to make small balls of wool. You need to do this as the larger ball will not fit through the hole in the middle of the wreath.

Make a pencil mark anywhere on the wreath. This will be the top.

Then make 2 further pencil marks on the wreath at approx 6cm either side from the first mark. These are the marks that will separate the brown and cream yarns.

At these points and approx every 1cm, place strips of double-sided sticky tape, but at this stage do not peel the tape to reveal the sticky side.

Decide which side you want to start with, for example, I started on the left and made my way round to the right. Peel the first strip of sticky tape by this mark and start to wrap the brown yarn around tightly and closely, tucking in the end of the yarn.

Peel off the sticky tape as you go round and when you reach the second pencil mark, stop and tuck the end of the yarn in. At points as you go round, you will have to overlap the yarn on the inside of the wreath.

With the cream wool, you have cut two lengths. Start with one length and do the same as the brown wool, starting from the place where the brown wool stops up to the top pencil mark. You should have some yarn left. Do the same with the next length of cream wool, meeting the other at the top.

Tie a knot to join the 2 ends of cream wool that are left over against the wreath and a further knot in the top of the ends, making a loop. Cut off any spare wool.

Cut out 2 small holly leaves from the green felt.

Using a needle make a hole in the tip of each holly leaf, pulling the needle all the way through.

Attach the holly leaves to the wreath by pushing a plastic sequin pin through the hole you have made in each one and then piercing the wreath until secure. Add one more sequin pin in the middle so you have 3 in total.

Your yarn wreath is finished. Hang up on the tree, on doors, on the wall and enjoy!

Other ideas for yarn wreaths:

Using craft glue, you could stick on the felt and red buttons or beads instead of using the plastic sequin pins. You could also snip the loose ends of wool and using a needle and gold thread, make a loop to hang your decoration.

Cut out more holly and other shapes of leaves and pin these all the way round to make more of a traditional looking wreath.

Try wrapping scraps of yarn you may have in your stash and gluing or pinning on sequins, buttons etc.

And there you have it! A few ideas of how to make your own Christmas decorations with no sewing, knitting or crochet involved. So bring me your figgy puddings.....decorations not the real thing of course! If you have a go at these or variations of the decs in my post, I would love to know what you make and how you get on! We are on instagram, pinterest and facebook and you can be updated as soon as we post using Feedly and Bloglovin' too!

Take Care my lovelies! Until next time,

Lucy xx

5 No-sew Christmas Gift Ideas

Hello friends!

 

Firstly, Jenny and I would just like to say a huge thank you to everyone who has ‘liked’ us, ‘followed’ us, commented and shown their love and support at this, the start of our creative journey as Two Crafty Brownies. You are just fab!

 

The Story

I love Christmas! I love the endless repetition of cheesy Christmas tunes blaring out from the radio, the twinkling of fairy lights everywhere you go, the singing of carols, the kids’ Christmas performances at school, getting together with friends and family, curling up with the kids in front of a good Christmas program on the telly, shedding a tear during the festive John Lewis Ad (You know what I mean...those penguins last year and the lonely man on the moon this year? Sniff!), and…..giving. I do love the feeling I get when I give a gift to someone, especially a gift I have made.

 

Herein lies the problem though. No matter whether I plan ahead or not, I seem to always get a bit fraught in the build up to Christmas after setting myself unrealistic goals and expectations that I can make gifts for everyone, sewing right up until Christmas eve and therefore spending less time relaxing and playing with the family, which is what the holiday should be all about. Handmade gifts can be kinder on the bank balance though so I decided there was a balance to be struck. How about buying some gifts and making some too - gifts that are less ambitious, simpler, perhaps no sewing at all and at points getting the tots involved, so spending a little bit of time teaching them that creativity and giving are so important? Yes please! So here are 5 gift ideas, makes that don’t break the bank, that require no sewing, a little bit of creativity and that I do believe your loved ones will be happy to receive. Spoiler Alert for my family and friends - oops!

 

 

1. Decorated pottery

 

Pottery painting workshops have become more and more popular but they can be a little dear. However you can easily decorate pottery at home, the results can be great and it can be such a fun family activity too. The idea is that whatever you are painting is for decorative use.

 

 

What you need is:

Small plant pots, sugar bowls, jugs, ceramic tiles, side plates etc - whatever you would like to decorate. I visited this shop which I am lucky enough to have nearby. I bought a jug to be used as a vase and some small sugar bowls to be used as small plant pots . You can buy plain white crockery from kitchen shops, large supermarkets and Ikea of course!

 

Small house plants (succulents are ideal) if you are going to decorate the sugar bowls as plant pots. You may also want to use some decorative stones, pebbles or shells to put inside the pots.

 

Ceramic/porcelain paint pens - I bought these pens. What is great about them is that they are water-based and can also be used on glass, plastic and metal. You can also buy ceramic paint and use paintbrushes to apply to the surfaces.

 

Newspaper to protect your work surface.

 

What you do is:

 

 

Protect the table you are working on with old newspaper.

 

Make sure all surfaces of the crockery you are painting on are clean and dry.

 

Plan your decoration - you can make a sketch of your design on a separate piece of paper, cut it out and using a pencil draw around it lightly onto the crockery first and then paint over it or if you like you can just go for it! We did a combination of both.

 

Read the instructions for the porcelain pens you buy before you start painting. They will need time to dry once applied and time in the oven to be heat-fixed, then cooled down. An adult should deal with this bit.

 

The ceramic paint pens I bought are dishwasher safe but I would err on the side of caution and wipe with a damp cloth to clean.

 

 

 

 

Don’t you think these will make lovely gifts? The kids loved decorating the plant pots for their teachers.

 

Some other painting pottery ideas and notes:

Paint a child’s favourite toy or character onto a small plate to be hung on the wall.

 

Use tiles/coasters to spell out a name, a letter for each one, or just an initial also to be hung on the wall or on a bedroom door.

 

2. Clay brooches/keyrings/necklaces/gift tags

 

 

Clay is such fun to play with and the kids loved getting stuck in! There are different types of clay you can buy. Polymer clay is one of my favourites as it comes in such a wide variety of colours so the possibilities of what you can make are endless. It can be costly though, especially if like me you feel the need to buy a rainbow! For this project however we used soft, white, air-drying clay.

 

What you need is:

 

 

Air-drying clay - I bought this one (in the pic) from a great local arts and crafts shop but this one can be found online.

 

Non-stick craft rolling pin. I bought a small one from a kitchen shop a few years ago but you can find them online, for instance here.  

 

Something to ensure that your rolled out clay is of a consistent thickness - I used two tiles which were about 3mm thick but you could also use small books, CDs etc.

 

A plastic tray.

 

Assorted cookie cutters. I have some great veggie/fruit cookie cutters I bought in the sale at Paperchase. They cut the shape but also emboss more detail into each one. I have also just bought this brilliant cookie embossing/message stamp kit - it is such fun!

 

Cup of water for smoothing out the clay.

 

Newspaper to protect your work surface.

 

Drying racks.

 

Paints for decorating - poster paints are fine but I used these porcelain paint pens (also used on the painted crockery above) because they give a really smooth, slightly shinier finish.

 

Jewellery findings - Brooch backs, keyrings, chains, jump rings (small metal rings that join a chain or keyring to a pendant). I have bought them here before.  You may also need jewellery pliers to help attach the jump rings.

 

Glue - I used an epoxy glue called Araldite (which involves mixing two substances together) to attach the brooch backs to the shapes. You can find this in hardware shops. Adults should deal with any glueing using epoxy glue.

 

What you do is:

Protect your work surface with the newspaper and fill a cup with water.

 

The clay should come with instructions of how to use it and how long it takes to dry etc. Break off a piece of clay, ensuring the rest of the clay is wrapped back up to keep moist.

 

Knead the clay in your hand for a minute to soften and warm up.

 

Put your thickness markers onto your tray either side of the clay making sure that they are slightly underneath the rolling pin. Roll out the clay.

 

 

Use cookie cutters to cut shapes out of the clay, embossing or message stamping if applicable.

 

If you want to use the shapes to make necklaces, keyrings or gift tags, at this stage, gently make a hole in the top of the shape using a skewer or cocktail stick. The hole needs to be large enough for a jump ring or cord to go through. I tend to put the skewer in from both sides and wriggle it around gently.

 

Carefully peel the shapes from the tray.

 

Dip your finger in the water and smooth out any rough edges and surfaces.

 

Place the shapes onto a drying rack to dry. This can take 4 to 5 days so plan ahead!

 

Once dry, paint the shapes, adding 2 or 3 coats if necessary. As mentioned I used these. Once painted, the shapes should be heat-fixed - follow the instructions that come with the pens. An adult should do this bit.

 

For good measure and added protection, I have added a coat of varnish. Find it here. Allow to dry.

 

Then either: Attach the brooch back using epoxy glue (follow instructions on glue packaging), attach keyring or chain for necklaces (with jump ring) or ribbon for the gift tag.

 

  

 

3. Decorated photo frames

 

 

A couple of Summers ago, I was lucky enough to pick up a bag full of pre-loved wooden photo frames at a school fair for a couple of quid. My big girl, H and I decorated them, wrote poems to put in them and turned them into pressies for her teachers when she left her primary school. Think about adding a photo, an initial of the person it is for, a print or a painted picture. I think these would make such lovely Christmas gifts!

 

What you need is:

Wooden photo frames - may be pre-loved, new, painted or not.

 

Newspaper to protect your table.

 

You may also need:

Fine sandpaper, acrylic wood paint (I used white).

 

PVA glue - to stick buttons on.

 

Paintbrushes.

 

Washi tape - you can get all kinds, including lace, fabric or paper. You can buy washi tape from all good craft shops and some stationers.

 

Buttons.

 

Specialist decoupage paper (decoupage is the art of decorating objects, furniture etc with small pieces of paper), decorative paper, wrapping paper or napkins (thinner paper is better), decoupage glue/varnish, decoupage paintbrush - you can get these and other decoupage paraphernalia from here.

 

What you do is:

Depending on the state of your photo frame and the effect that you want, you may need to sand the frame lightly and then paint with acrylic wood paint. I did this for the washi tape and button frames.

 

Allow the paint to dry and then either stick on the washi tape or apply PVA craft glue sticking the buttons on as you go. I actually laid the buttons on the frame without sticking first to see if I was happy with the overall look and then stuck them down.

 

 

For the decoupage wooden photo frame, take out any glass and backing, so you are left with the frame only. I used the frame as it was, without sanding as it was unvarnished.

 

 

Cut small pieces of the paper you have chosen.

 

Using the paintbrush, add a layer of the decoupage glue/varnish to a small area of the frame and place a piece of the paper on top, smoothing down with the paintbrush and a little more glue/varnish. Add another piece in the same way with a slight overlap. Continue to add layers of paper and glue, pausing when needed to allow one area to dry, before starting another.

 

 

 

Add your photo, picture etc and enjoy! Here's a photo of my frame with one of my boy's drawings. He calls this one 'Ninja Race'.

 

 

Once you have decoupaged once, you’ll be hooked I tell you! You just have to google ‘decoupage’ to get more inspiration. I decoupaged this polystyrene head a few years ago and used her as a prop at craft fairs.

 

 
 

4. Decorated t-shirt/babygro

 

 

A while back Jenny and I ran a few t-shirt decorating workshops for children, which were such a big hit! They loved decorating the t-shirts and wearing their creations afterwards. A few adults joined in the fun too! We had a group of 4 friends decorate a babygro for a baby. Their idea was to design a coat of arms which had four sections. There are just so many design possibilities.

 

What you need is:

 

 

Plain white t-shirts/babygros.

 

Fabric pens from here.

 

Newspaper to protect your work surface and to put inside your t-shirt to prevent the colour leaking onto to the other side.

 

Templates - these are optional but I do find templates so useful for so many projects. For the workshops we did, the templates were really useful and many children loved using them as the basis for their designs. To make a template, use a piece of paper, the size of which depends on the size of t-shirt and draw your design. Cut out and use as a guide to draw around onto your t-shirt. I tend to use the paper template to draw around onto cardboard to make a stronger and longer-lasting template.

 

What you do is:

 

 

Put a 2-layer piece of newspaper inside your t-shirt making sure it fits snugly inside.

 

If using a template, place onto your t-shirt in the desired position and draw around with a fabric pen. Follow any advice that comes with the fabric pens. Colour in as applicable. You will need to hold the t-shirt taught when you are drawing, otherwise it will wrinkle or ruche up making it difficult and possibly spoiling your design.

 

Leave to dry for about half an hour.

 

For an adult: once dry, heat fix the design with a warm dry iron (as per the instructions that come with the fabric pens).

 

 

 

Other ideas with fabric pens:

You could also decorate a plain white pillowcase, book/grocery bag, skirt or jeans.

You could even decorate a piece of fabric and put into one of the decorated frames (see above).

 

5. Make your own Craft Kit

This idea is an amalgamation of the above really. Craft kits are easy to come by now but have you ever thought of putting your own one together as a gift? For example decorate a t-shirt kit: Buy the correct sized t-shirt/pillow case/bag etc, fabric pens, include your own personalised instructions and you could even include some of your own templates. The recipient can then have fun decorating it themselves! Such a personal pressie. Any gift that spreads some crafty love gets my approval.

 

I do hope you might give one of these ideas a go. If you do, let me know how you get on!

 

Be kind to yourselves in the run up to and during Christmas my lovelies. Until next time,

 

Lucy xx