8241. Do Paper Embroidery

 I loved going to Make and Mingle at Kaukauna Library every month. It was a great way to get out of the house and try my hand at various crafty projects. Then my work hours changed it was more difficult to get there. I was able to make it work in May and I dragged Danielle with.

May's project was paper embroidery which is almost like regular embroidery but on paper instead. My aunt used to do counted cross stitch while my mom the just regular cross stitch. I found both tedious and never picked up the craft. 

To start the project, we had to decide if you wanted to make a card or a picture. I opted for a picture. I don't send cards. I just needed one piece of cardstock type paper. Otherwise I would have used 2 (the second to hide the stitching inside the card.

Then we had to punch the pattern on the paper using a needle. This was a bit of a pain because the needles weren't very sharp. We were all doing the same flower pattern. 

Once we were were done with punching the pattern, it was time to start stitching. It was simple line stitch for the most part. We started at point 1 and then went to point 2 and back to point 1 and repeated until the flower or leave was done. 

The hardest part was pulling the floss apart into 2 strands. I cut my strands too long so it would not up. Danielle found if one of us held one end while the other split the threads apart, it worked much better. 

My picture didn't turn out too bad except for the one of the petals of my flowers is going in the wrong direction. I guess that's what makes it mine.

Like cross stitch, paper embroidery is not my thing. Definitely too tedious. It was a fun project and if it wasn't so tedious, it is definitely a project I could master. Even Danielle agreed with me. Maybe one day I'll attempt Macramé. 

7803. Do scrape painting

 When I saw that April's Make and Mingle at Kaukauna Library was Squeegee Painting, I had to sign up. I always thought squeegee painting looked fun and was willing to try it especially when there was no cost to me. 

Squeegee painting or scrape painting is a relatively easy concept but it is harder than it looks. You basically need a paint and something to scrap it with -- a squeegee, a knife, a library card, an old credit card. Basically anything with a flat edge. We used library cards.

We taped down our practice paper. Then we put a drop of paint on the tape. This was to be our palate. Then you scraped the paint towards the bottom of the paper. You are supposed to hold your scraper at a 45 degree angle. You can also make wavy lines. It is supposed to make really cool designs... except I forgot to hold my scrape at a 45 degree angle so it was not as cool.

You could also apply paint directly to the scraper edge to make the rainbow effect. 

You could also apply drops of painting directly to the paper in random patterns and then scrape down. This was supposed to make a really cool looking design. Mine looked like a really bad finger painting. Again I forgot about the 45 degree angle. 

Needless to say this was not my best work of art. I learned that I need to remember to pull down at a 45 degree angle. Danielle agreed this would be a good painting activity for a girls' get together. Maybe next time will be a success. 

Trying My Hand at Paper Quilling

 This month's Make and Mingle craft at Kaukauna was paper quilling. I wasn't sure what it was but it sounded intriguing and I was willing to give it a try. Per Wikipedia, "Quilling is an art form that involves the use of strips of paper that are rolled, shaped, and glued together to create decorative designs". It sounds simple enough. 

After watching a quick demo on the different types of rolls and how to roll your strip of paper, we were pretty much left to our own device. 

The two types of rolls are tight coils and loose coils. The difference; a loose coil you let unwind after you wind it on your quilling tool before glue. A tight coil you glue without it relaxing a bit. There are also ovals which are loose coils squeezed at the end. These are the basic shapes you need to make a design. 

I choose a snowflake. It required 6 full strips of paper, 6 1/2 strips of paper, and 6 1/3 strips of paper. All the paper came in a package. There were multicolored packs. I choose double blue and gold. (Shocker). You can get these packs at any craft store or on Amazon.

Basically you slide your strip of paper in the edge of your quilling tool and then wind it around itself. I found it out it easier to hold with my left hand (non-dominant) and roll it with the right. Then depending on the shape, you let it relax or not. Then you glue the end to itself. 

Once I had all my coils rolled and the 6 full strips pinched into ovals, I attempted to make my snowflake. For whatever reason my full coils ended up being different sizes so it wasn't perfect. In order to glue the coils to themselves, it's best to use wax paper or something so it doesn't stick to what you are glue it on. However, we didn't have that and I just used scrap paper. It stuck to the paper. Now I have a random piece of neon yellow paper with a funky looking snowflake on it.

I tried. Would I do it again? Probably not. It was fun but I don't see myself having a use for quilling. I'm much too impatient to sit and coil paper strips and then glue them into shapes. Reading is so much better.

I am glad Kaukauna library does these Make and Mingle projects so I am introduce to a wide variety of crafts that I probably never try on my own. 

7714. Make a paper bead bracelet

 Scrolling through Pinterest, I saw that you can make beads out of paper. It looked interesting and easy enough that I saved several examples to my crafting board and promptly forgot about them... like usual. When Kaukauna Library offered a paper beads as one of their Make and Mingle Events, I was like sign me up.

Paper beads are fairly easy to make if you are not in a hurry. When you want to rush they do not turn out as good.

Materials

• Paper -- just any paper will work. We used old magazines. You want to make sure there is a lot of color and not a lot of words. Pick a color palette and stick with it.
• Scissors
• Glue -- we used regular Elmer's School Glue. You could also use a glue stick if that is more your thing.
• Toothpicks and something to stick your toothpicks in. We used form blocks. 
• Bracelet string or wire

Steps

1. Cut your paper into tapered strips about 1/2 to an ich wide. You want one end to make a point. There are various ways to cut if you are talented or want to be fancy but they all end with a tapered point. Mine were more triangle shaped.

2. Once you have at least 16-20 strips of paper, you can start making beads. To start place the fat end of your paper strip on a toothpick and begin to roll it around the toothpick.

3. As you roll apply glue so it the strip sticks to itself. You do not want to glue the strip to the toothpick otherwise you will never get the toothpick off.

4. Stick the toothpick in the form to let dry. It will dry quickly (10-15 minutes)

5. Repeat step 2-4 until you have enough beads to make a bracelet.

6. Once you have all your beads made, string them on your bracelet. We used a stretchy bracelet cord so we just tied square knots to finish it off. 

I was told thicker paper like scrapbook paper isn't as easy to use. Comics and magazines work great. Try to make your strips all the same width or your beads won't be the same width.

Like I said it was an easy craft and not really too time consuming. It is something you can do while watching TV. Even older kids can handle making them. The hardest part is starting the bead on the toothpick. 

Would I make them again? Maybe. I would need the right opportunity. I am not one to sit and do crafts so I would really need a reason to make them again.

7535. Create alcohol ink art

 May's Make and Mingle at Kaukauna Library was Alcohol Ink Coasters. I don't need any more coasters and all the alcohol ink projects, I've seen I was not overly impressed with. Despite both of those, I figured what the heck, I might have give this alcohol ink art a whirl.

Alcohol ink is not all the difficult to work with. You literally wipe/drop/pour rubbing alcohol on your surface. We used ceramic tiles. Then you drop alcohol ink on top.

They will create puddles.

You can use multiple colors

You can swirl the ink around to create patterns.

You can press the ink into the tile with your gloved hand to make a really cool background and then add a different color on top.

You can drop more alcohol on top of your ink to wash out the color.

The possibilities are endless. 

Super easy. Slightly messy. 

While we were waiting for our sealant to dry, the one gal commented she would love to tile her shower with these. It is a great idea. We told her she should go to the Kohler Art Center to check out the bathrooms there. They have some unique ones.

I bring home the coasters and the hubby is like more coasters? I'm like these are our outside coasters and put them in the garage to use when we entertain outside. We rarely do but you never know when you need coasters outside. Now we have them just in case.

I would totally do this again. Maybe not coasters or a mug. Maybe a bigger wall size or mantle size piece. It is fun and relaxing not to mention quick. 

7467. Etch glass

 The Kaukauna Library does Make and Mingle once a month on Wednesdays. Last month we did paint pour pumpkins. This month it was going to be Etched Glass. I wasn't going to sign up because that sounded dangerous. However a few of my fellow girl scouts said it was pretty easy and I could handle it. So I signed up along with a few of the adult girl scouts.

It turns out it was not really difficult at all and very safe even with acid.

Materials

-- Armour Etch
-- Glassware -- we used pub glasses
-- Stencil -- We had several Wisconsin or alcohol themed choices to choose from. All done on a Cricut. 
-- Popsicle stick
-- Paint Brush
-- Tub of water

Steps

1. Pick out which stencil you wanted. I made both glasses the same.

2. Apply stencils to the glass using transfer paper. This is where the popsicle stick comes in handy so you could transfer the letters easier to the transfer paper and then the glass.

3. Apply the Armour Etch to the glass very liberally using the paint brush. The more you put on the better it turned out, especially if you have a large area to cover. I found if I saw the Armour Etch, I figured I had enough.

4. Wait 5-15 minutes to let the acid do it's thing.

5. Wash off the acid in a bucket of water. We did not do this part. The librarian did this since she does glass etching all time. Yea for keeping Amy burn free. 

6. Dry glass and remove stencil.

The whole project probably took 30 minutes. It was clean, simple fun. You just have to remember you are working with acid so be careful.   

I loved how my glasses turned out. I really hope they do this project again. It was fun and make great gifts. Hopefully they keep Make and Mingle going in 2023. Stay tuned for more fun projects hopefully.