Monthly Archives: November 2011

Crafty Challenge 3: Drinking Straw Necklace

craft, Craft Challenge, Creativity, DIY, How to, Jewelry, , , , ,
Drinking Straw Necklace
Drinking straw necklace with triangle and chain links.

Cheri: Wow, what a tough challenge number 3 was. I spent a week trying to figure out what I was going to make. I had all kinds of ideas floating around in my head and it really gave me a new perspective on how I looked at items that I was throwing out. With projects like this, I guess the hard part is just picking up something and working with it. It doesn’t always mean that you will like what you are making but each step will give you some insight into your final product.

I decided that I would make my project out of straws. So I grabbed a bunch of straws and started to cut them, bend them and punch holes in them. When I came to the flexible part, which I had discarded, I started to work with the curves. I finally decided that I was going to make them into triangles and I would link one into the other. I fiddled with them until I had the size I wanted and then I glued each one of the ends in to the other end.

I worked with the possibility of making them into a bracelet, which would be awesome, but I really wanted to make a necklace as I had been working with using the leftover portion of the straws as a link in a chain and I liked how it looked.

I love the way the necklace hangs. After I completed it, I started thinking about using straws in different colors or using clear straws. I even worked with a hole punch and put holes in the straws and was able to put other straws through the holes and build structures, like you would with Tinker Toys.

For all my misgivings about this project it ended up being a project with unlimited possibilities, and a go-to whenever I want to make a unique piece of jewelry that is really “out of the box”.

Drinking Straw Necklace
Close up of triangle links.
Drinking Straw Necklace
Close up of chain links.

Crafty Challenge 3: Water Bottle Organizers

craft, Craft Challenge, ,

Craft organizer made from plastic bottles

Loryn: Craft Challenge Three ended today, and we have a lot of fun projects to present!

When I craft, I usually think in terms of functional, rather than decorative, objects. This craft challenge was no different. I started out with the idea of making an organizer with compartments, and I decided to use plastic bottles. I raided the recycling bin at work and got to work cutting up water bottles.

My first thought was to cut the bottoms off and staple them together to make a drawer organizer, but most of my drawers have too many items of different sizes for it to be really useful. Then I started thinking about a wall-mounted system for my craft table.

Plastic bottle scissor holder

I cut the water bottles into various sizes and used grommets to hang them on nails. The grommets keep the plastic from ripping.. This scissors holder was a last-minute idea, but it may be the one that I like the most.

Three-tier plastic bottle organizer

This is a three-tier holder, made by cutting three bottles. I left a long tab one third the circumference of the bottle as a hanger. On the longest tier, the tab is nearly as long as the bottle. The tab on the middle tier is half the length of the bottle, and the top tier is just the bottom. I used the hanging grommet to hold the three tiers together.

The organizers are very lightweight, so I put a strong magnet into the round indentation at the bottom of the bottle to hold pins. It’s held in place with packing tape.

Two-tier plastic bottle organizer

This is a two-tier holder. The bottom tier is made just like the one on the three-tier holder, and the top tier is half of a bottle.

After doing the multi-tier organizers, I decided I wanted a couple simple pencil cups.

Here you can see the tiers in side view.

Here you can see the grommets that hold the tiers together. I used a sharp yarn needle to poke a hole in each layer, then a larger upholstery needle to enlarge the hole. Then I threaded all three onto the grommet and used a small piece of scrap wood inside the grommet as a hammering surface to fasten the grommet.

I also made two string holders by cutting the top and bottle of bottles off and fitting them together, and I used the top of a bottle as a funnel. There are a lot of possibilities with all of the different plastic bottles out there!

—Loryn

Daily Squiggle

365, Creativity, Drawing, Squiggles, , , , ,
Windy Witch
Sometimes squiggles have trouble with the prevailing winds.

-Lynne: I used marker and colored pencils on this squiggle. I used three shades of gray and a black for her hair. I mixed the complements. Blue and orange with the red and green accents of the skirt and shoes.

She looks like she has set sail. Who knows where the trade winds will take her…

Daily Squiggle

365, Creativity, Drawing, Squiggles, , , ,
Cartwheel Squiggle
All squiggles practice cartwheels.

Lynne: I wanted a blue-green and red-orange complementary pair for this squiggle. I used only colored pencil. I put a base of yellow on the complete figure. I added red to the shirt for orange and blue to the pants for green. Then I shaded with green and orange pencils.

I think everyone should do cartwheels, even if just in your imagination.

Beatles Diorama: The Cavern

365, craft, Creativity, Drawing, What a Cat!, , , , , ,
Beatles Diorama
Beatles at The Cavern with Yellow Submarine and Strawberry Fields Forever.
Beatles Diorama
Beatles at The Cavern with Yellow Submarine and Strawberry Fields.

-Cheri: As I have mentioned before, I really like to make dioramas. They tell a story and it always amazes me of how detailed you can make your creation. So when I decided to pay homage to The Beatles, I felt that a diorama of them at The Cavern in Liverpool would be a fun idea.

I spent about a week drawing out my characters and getting them colored and cut out. I looked at a photo of The Cavern to get a good idea of what it looked like and how I would make the stage and the equipment that would be there.

After I had that all designed it came time to glue all of my items in their place. This is always the best part of the project and is where I really start to tell the story of the scene.

Beatles Diorama
Diorama close-up. Is that George behind the mike?
Beatles Diorama
Diorama close-up. John at the mike and Paul on guitar.

After I had all the pieces glued in I looked at the outside and felt that it should be included in the story. I really didn’t want to make a copy of the streets of Liverpool, so I decided to make a yellow submarine diving through a strawberry field. I never get tired of looking at this diorama, I hope you feel the same way.

Beatles Diorama
The Yellow Submarine.
Beatles Diorama
The Yellow Submarine in Fields of Strawberries Forever.