Craft Blog

There are endless possibilities for using old wire hangers if you are a crafter.  Here are just a few of the ideas to get your imagination going.

 Wreath- You can use a wire hanger simply as a mold for the wreath or you can use many wire hangers wrapped together as the wreath.  Whatever you do it can be great for any time of year.  You could make many different wreaths or make one that can be changed for each season, that depends on the time and hangers you have to work with.
 Dream catcher- Your kids will love to use yarn to make a dream catcher.  You can make the hanger round and then let the kids make their dream catchers with their favorite colors.  You can add feathers or beads throughout the yarn for a great affect.  You might also use some metallic looking yarn so that it catches light and looks awesome.
 Mobile- Every kid makes a hanger mobile in school, but making them at home can be so much more fun.  You can choose your favorite coloring book pictures to cut out or even make one with pictures of your family.  Whatever you make it will be fun for the kids to hang up in their room and share with their friends.
 Plant hanger- Use an old wire hanger to breathe new life into a boring potted plant.  Use the wire to hang it up, whether outside or in.  You can manipulate the hanger into a design around the pot or simply wrap it around so that it can hang up.
 Roaster- Kids love roasting marshmallows over the fire, use your old hangers for your roasting sticks!  Kids can make it on their own and will love using something that they have made to make their own dinner (or dessert!).  You can inexpensively have enough for the whole family to use up camping or in the back yard.
 Bubble blower- Homemade bubbles are a great outdoor activity.  But sometimes those small bubble blowers that come with the bubbles just aren’t good enough.  You can take old wire hangers and make bigger bubble blowers and cool shaped bubbles.  Let the kids bend the hanger into cool shapes, making sure that they are tight so the bubbles will form.  If you are making big blowers then you can make a big bowl of bubbles using dish soap.
 Snakes- For those that like to sew, hangers can be used as the skeleton of a snake.  Kids will love to help you stuff the snake and then play with it.  The snake’s body will be rigid and able to be manipulated into different slithering positions.
 Costumes- Have you ever tried to make your child into a pumpkin but just couldn’t get them to be round and plump?  Consider using a wire hanger as the skeletal frame for your pumpkin.  It will give it some stability and keep it in the shape you want it.
 Reindeer- Christmas seems to bring out the crafters in all of us.  You have to be creative in the gifts that you give to your friends and neighbors.  Use your old hangers and other craft materials that you have lying around to make adorable reindeer.  The materials are very open, you can use anything that you can come up with to make your reindeer very jolly.
 Piñata- When your homemade piñata just won’t hold its shape, use a wire hanger as a frame for it.  This will help it hold together until it isn’t supposed to anymore.  It will give you a much easier time in making and decorating your masterpiece.

With all the items you buy for your scrapbook pages you need somewhere to store them. You need something or somewhere to store the surplus of embellishments. A place to help protect all the many items you need and the many more items you will purchase. Here is a look at the steps to take to organize your scrapbook space.

Take a look at your style of scrapbooking. Do you scrapbook at home? Do you have your own little nook of the house to dedicate to your scrapbooking? Does your family eat in the living room because your  dining room table is taken over with scrapbooking? How much lighting is available? There are ways to organize all of this no matter how you do your craft.

If you have your own little space of the house look at how much room you have. Do some measurements. You’ll want this space to be organized in a way to help you move around. You don’t want to spend time looking for a certain item. You may want to do some quick sketching to see what may look best. If you are not lucky enough to have your own little space there are still many options available. If it is a tight space make a list of your must haves.

Some must haves for scrapbooking include a working space. If this is a dining room table look at investing into a tray to move your work around. To get the most out of a workspace it should be about 15" wide and 30" deep. You’ll need adequate lighting. Look for lamps to keep on the table or use track lighting. After the workspace and lighting the rest is up to you and how you need the space to fit your style.

After you have an idea for your space and what you need it’s time to do some shopping. Scrapbook stores will have just about everything you need to organize your space. These stores will have items that are meant to hold scrapbook supplies. The 12" x 12" deep shelf for paper is one such unique item. The stores will also have travel carts for you to take to your scrapbook parties.This makes it easier to store and to find the things you need. These items are also more expensive. If you are an avid scrapbooker it can be worth the price.

You can also shop regular stores in the craft aisles. There are plenty of different plastic storage drawers  you can use for storing stamps and extra books. You can also take a look at the office supplies. Plastic stacking trays are great for paper. Grab some pen holders to keep your pens readily available. 3 Ring binders are great for stickers. As with most things in scrapbooking you need to find what works for you and your pocket book.

There are other items in your home that can help you organize your space.

Use spice racks to store stamps or your chalking supplies. They are also good for packages of beads or eyelets.

Bookshelves are great to put items on or to store small plastic bins. Bookcases are also great for storing extra albums. They also are vertical storing making the most of a small space.

Use old kitchen cupboards for organizing. Plate racks are great for papers. The cupboard doors will close making it easier to hide your clutter when needed.

Use the thread spools for sewing to store your ribbons.

Take a look at teaching supply stores. Teachers know how to make the most of small spaces. Use the smaller cubbies for storing bins, or papers. Use book racks to put finished pages in before putting on your pages. These would also be great for sticker or die cut pages.

There are many options available to organize your workspace. You need to figure out how to best make the space work for you and your needs and then buy items to fit.

There are many different ways and styles to window paint.   If you are interested in beginning window painting there is a lot of technique and instruction available.  There are also several decisions that need to be made before you get started.   

The first decision to make is whether you want a permanent window display or if you want a temporary window painting design.
 
Permanent Window Painting:  Permanent window painting would be a good option if you are looking for a stained glass look or if you want a painted window for the purpose of privacy. 

Temporary Window Painting:  If you are looking to paint a storefront window or a commercial building, temporary window painting is probably the way to go.  Often times stores want their windows painted for seasonal displays or with special deals or prices of items.  Temporary window paintings can be used at residences as well if you are looking for a seasonal pattern that will be changed throughout the year. 

The next decision to make when window painting is what type of picture or pattern you want. 

Purchased Patterns:  There are many patterns available for purchase on the Internet or in local craft stores.  There are a very wide variety of patterns to choose from.  As mentioned earlier, seasonal patterns are available as well as geometric patterns, floral designs, animal patterns and many others.  Most purchased patterns come in 2 different sizes – they are 22×28 inches and 8×10 inches.  These purchased patterns also come with a color key in order to make painting simple and user-friendly.

Create your own Pattern:  Windows can be painted on just the same as painting something on paper.  You have the option to paint whatever picture or pattern you choose.  You can freehand a picture on a window or you can create your own pattern.  If you do want to freehand a design it is recommended that you do sketch something on paper first so as not to make a mistake or get a final product that you are not please with.

The next piece of information needed for window painting is how to go about painting the window and what products you will need.

Paint: If you are doing a permanent window painting you will need different paint than you would for a temporary painting.  Permanent paintings require Enamel paint such as Folk Art Enamel paints, or a professional quality tempera paint such as ProArt.  One could also use an acrylic paint and add a sealer medium to the paint.  A glass or tile sealer medium would work well.   A temporary window painting is simpler.  You only need a regular acrylic paint.  All of these products can be found at a local craft store. 

Masking tape:  It is a good idea to tape off areas as you would when painting a room so you don’t get paint in areas where you don’t want it.

A razor blade:  This comes in handy for you can scrape off paint before or during painting.

Paintbrushes:  A good selection of One Stroke brushes in various sizes and styles are a must for the project.

Washcloth and water:  It is a good idea to clean the area before painting a design on it.  Make sure it is clear of any paint for a previous design and clean of any other residue.

Another choice you will need to make before beginning is whether you want to paint the inside or the outside of the window.  In some areas the paint will wear faster on the outside.  But usually if there is some kind of protection from the weather the two will wear at about the same rate. Both will get scratched.  Typically a storefront window painting will last 3-4 months before being re-painted.   Painting the inside of the window is a little bit more difficult because you have to paint backwards.  Typically a beginner would choose to paint the outside of the window because it is easier.

What are different ways to scrapbook? Whether you are creating a festive holiday scene for your scrapbook page, or if you are simply adding some color to a rather drab page of pictures. There are different scrapbooking ideas that can help your scrapbooks come out truly unique.

Starting with the type of paper you use. The type of paper, with different pictures, colors, shapes etc, will create a very unique way of telling your families stories to the future generations.

With all those codes, marking and signs, it can be very intimidating reading a knitting pattern. However, with a little help, a few definitions and practice you will be an old pro at it.

The first time you take a good look at a knitting pattern it likely looks like you are reading a foreign language. This is primarily due to the abbreviations, codes and signs.

The knowledge of a good knitter is not merely a tally of technical milestones or finished projects.  Rather, it is a product of technical proficiency and the ability to supply context to a knitting project where little context.

Context is the ability to knit "smarter" this is the ability to supply fine points to a pattern with less than perfect instructions, or to recognize the source of errors and the means of correcting them. It’s having a starting point for creating an original design, insight into shortcuts for making knitting, fitting or finishing easier, and being able to visualize the big picture.

Therefore, with this in mind, you need to read the pattern from the beginning to end. You will need to make sure you have the abbreviation code to decipher any words or abbreviations you do not know.

Here is a sample of an abbreviation code chart:

Knitting Abbreviation Chart
                
Abbreviation    Definition    Abbreviation    Definition
" Or in                Inch            Pat                    Pattern

()    Parentheses. As in a math problem, the instructions within the parentheses become one unit. (k,p)3x would mean to work a knit st, work a purl st, and then repeat that 3 times.    psso    Pass slipped stitch over

*    (Asterisk) Repeat the instructions following the asterisk as many times as specified.    Pwise or P-wise    Purl wise, or as though to purl

Beg    Beginning    rem    Remaining

CC    Contrasting Color    Rep    Repeat

dec    Decrease    RH    Right hand

dp    Double pointed needles    Rib    Ribbing stitch, work in ribbing as established

ea    Each    rnd    round

Inc    Increase    SKP    Slip 1 stitch, knit 1 stitch, pass the slipped stitch over the knit st

incl    Inclusive    sl    Slip, usually slip one stitch

K    Knit    sl st    Slip stitch

K1b or K1-b    Knit one through back loop    sl-K    Slip stitch knit wise

Kwise or K-wise    Knit wise, as though to knit    sl-P    Slip 1 stitch purl w

LH    Left hand    sp    Space

lp    Loop    st    Stitch

M1    Make one stitch: work into back of horizontal st lying before next st to create an extra st in row    St st    Stockinet st (knit 1 row, purl 1 row)

MC    Main color    tbl    Through back loop

O    Yarn over (see also YO)    tog    Together

oz    Ounce    wyib    With yarn in back

P    Purl    wyif    With yarn in front

P1b or P1-b    Purl one through back loop    X    Times – 3x would mean three times

p2sso    pas 2 slipped sts over    yo    Yarn over

You will need to make a note of the gauge per inch that the pattern calls for. Then you will want to make a swatch to make sure you can create the same gauge.

Gauge is typically given as a number of stitches and rows over a span of four inches. It is a relatively easy calculation to break down as numbers of the stitches and the amount of rows per inch. You will need to have these numbers available.

If you think you do not need to gauge before knitting, think about that again. There are very few circumstances that swatching is not necessary.

After you have been prepared, you are ready to read the steps of the pattern and begin knitting. Most patterns have basic steps to each stitch required, but if you have any problems, you can get knitting details for each stitch off the Internet, from a book or CDROM.

If you have ever watched a metal craftsman (or a blacksmith, as we used to call them) in action, you’ve probably stood in awe as the s/he carefully heats a piece of iron or other form of metal in a charcoal forge before placing it on an anvil.  S/he then proceeds to hammer it into all kinds of unique and often beautiful shapes.  It looks pretty simple.  And the blacksmith, or any proficient metal craftsman, would probably tell you that it’s not that difficult to hammer & shape things from red hot metal (mostly because the metal is quite fluid when it’s that hot).  S/he would be right in saying that it’s not terribly difficult- generally all it takes to work with metal is a small amount of knowledge and some solid practice.  But everyone has to start somewhere.  Which is why this article is perfect for you if you’re interested in learning some easy metal crafts.  Keep reading and you’ll learn a little bit about metalworking as well as a few ideas of crafts to start with. 

What exactly does metalworking entail?

Metalworking is the craft and practice of working with different types of metal in order to create structures, artwork, home décor or even machine parts.  Metalworking covers anything from building ships to bridges and oil refineries to delicate jewelry and other instruments.  It had its beginnings thousands of years in the past.  Early humankind used different kinds of metal ores to make tools and adornments.  Today metalworking is an irreplaceable craft in modern society.  Making crafts out of metal can be a very enjoyable, interesting experience.

So where should you begin?  One type of metal craft that almost all of us have participated in at one point is metal cut outs.  Think back to elementary school- remember making Christmas tree ornaments or Hanukah decorations out of old pie tins?  Yes, that is metal working.  Granted, it’s a very simplified form, but it is still a metal craft nonetheless.  If it makes you feel better, it is possible to cut yourself on the sharp edges of the cut out (though not terribly likely).  They are especially good for children who are interested in learning a new craft.  Metal cut outs are a great place to begin. 

Another type of metal craft that is simple to start with and fun to do is metal wire votive holders.  They can be a lovely addition to your home décor and are easy to make.  They require a small amount of supplies and about 10 straightforward steps to making them.  You can find instructions for making votive holders by doing an internet search for “metal wire votive holders.” 
 
Some people enjoy making charms or figures out of metal.  This can be a bit more difficult, but is still fairly simple and rewarding.  Metal charms that you have made yourself make excellent gifts for friends or family.  This leads us to another metal craft that beginners can easily learn how to do: metal casting.  As with any craft, as long as you have an imagination and determination, you can learn to cast metal.  Foundry work is basically using a timber or metal pattern to create a cavity in a two-part sand mould, and then carefully pouring molten metal into the mould cavity. The more you can learn about metal casting, the better your skills & work will become. 

To find out more about the types of metal crafts that are good for beginners, go to your neighborhood’s library or bookstore.  You should be able to find a selection of books on the easy metal crafts.  Also, try doing search on online book stores or any other site that might sell craft books.

 The stitches to the opposite end of the needle. Now the working yarn is at the bottom of the row. Knit again, pulling the working yarn up the back of the piece so you can work with it.

Again, slide the stitches to the opposite end of the needle. Repeat in this manner for as long as you like. As you pull the yarn, the back will close up on itself, like magic. If you have a very wide I-Cord, you might need to help it along by giving the cord a little tug, after you have completed a few inches.
You can also use I-cord to make the hem of your garment. Pick up stitches if your garment is finished, or leave the stitches on the needle if you have not cast off.
Get a new ball of yarn, cast on three or so stitches on a double-pointed needle, then slide those stitches onto your other needle starting with the first stitch on your needle, so that the working yarn ends up three stitches in.

Pull the working yarn up as before and knit the first two stitches (or all but the last of the stitches you just cast on if you’re using more than three). Then knit the next two stitches together, through the back of the loops.

You will now have three stitches on your right-hand needle. Instead of sliding as if you would with a regular I-Cord, slip these back onto the first needle, again backing them on so the working yarn is in the middle.

Repeat this process of knitting two and knitting two together through the back and sliding them back on the first needle until you’re down to three stitches. Then bind off the garment as normal.

Attaching to the edge of a finished project as the I-Cord is knitted:

Knit across the I-Cord to the last stitch, and then knit the last stitch together with the first of your project. Then go ahead, pull the yarn across the back of the cord, and slide the stitches to the other side of the needle.

See this is not that hard. Sit down; give yourself some relation and leeway. Try a few. This is a beautiful creative way to adding pizzazz to your projects.
All of a sudden, you have some instructions on your pattern that calls for you to knit an I-Cord. Ok, so what is that, and how do you do it?

The idea of an I-cord seems obnoxious and difficult until you now how to do it. Many knitters tend to wait a long time to sit down and make an I-cord because it always sounded somewhat scary, probably because it involves double-pointed needles, which are also kind of obnoxious and scary.

Great news is that making an I-cord is really quick and easy, and you can use them for all sorts of things.

I-cords are great for:

1.    Straps or handle to a purse or a bag
2.    Tank top straps or ties for knitted blouses
3.    Ties to a dress
4.    Belt
5.    Hair ties or head bands
6.    Added project decoration
7.    Appliquéd
8.    Flowers or ties for art or crafts

Making I-Cord
An I-cord is a thin piece of knitting created on double-pointed needles that are made as long as you like for a thousand different uses, either utilitarian or decorative. I-cords can be made of any yarn as long as you have double-pointed needles that are similar in size to the gauge of the yarn (use smaller needles with finer yarn, larger needles with heavier yarn).

Steps to make an I-cord:
Cast on a few stitches (usually between three and six).
 Knit the first row. Slide