Showing posts with label Craftsplain. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Craftsplain. Show all posts

Monday, April 22, 2013

Happy Earth Day: The Tale of the Upcycled Scarf Ring Tree of Life Bangle Bracelet

Tree of Life Bangle Bracelet

I’m starting a new meme. “Craftsplaining”. Like when you get an idea in your head to use something for a completely unrelated purpose ( eg I have "craftsplained" my way through Home Depot, Lowes, Dollar Tree, Target…) I've had conversations like : ”oh how old is your baby” because I’m buying baby wipes. “20 but these aren’t for him. I use them to clean up after my Mod Podge projects

Or when someone says “what made you think of that”. OK sometimes there’s not even a “craftsplanation” for that. Like this project. I received a scarf for Christmas and it came with his big acrylic ring that you could use to tie it different ways. HA! It’s a bangle bracelet DUH!

For this project you will need:
  • Plastic or acrylic bangle type device
  • Mod Podge
  • Paper Scrap
  • Metal leaf adhesive
  • Metal leafing
  • Charm(s)
Scarf Ring Bangle

Since this was an Earth Day project, everything I used came from my stash.

Scarf Ring Bangle 1

Trace around your bangle on your scrapbook paper scraps. I hadn’t decided yet which paper I was going to use so I cut two paper “bangles”. I also hummed the Olympics theme song.

Rough up your bangle. I just used an emery board. Apply Mod Podge (I used Matte finish, my go to) apply paper, smooth, apply coat on top of paper. Go make dinner or surf our favorite blogs.

Metal Leaf Adhesive

Now, once your MP side is dry you’ll want to apply your metal leaf. If you’re not familiar with metal leafing, supplies are available at fine art stores or I know Michaels carries them. Metal leaf is not the same as FOIL. Foil has a dull side and a bright side. If you use foil ( which you could for this project) makes sure to keep the shiny side up. Also, the label is not green and Mona Lisa doesn’t usually look seasick on it. I spilled a green alcohol re-inker on my bottle.

Silver Leafing

Unlike foil, when you apply metal leafing entire portions of it stick to the adhesive. Lay your foil over your sticky surface ( adhesive takes about 20-30 min to set up before you apply your leafing) and then I just use a stiff stencil brush to pounce on the leafing. Go all over your surface.

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As you go around your surface, the portions with nothing to stick to will tear away. If you are a neat freak can’t stand any uncontrolled mess, this is NOT for you. The leafing is very light weight and pieces will fly away. HINT: I lay down a piece of wax paper to help control things and then I can just toss it. You should also save your scrap pieces for other projects.

Tree of Life Charm

Once I had my leafing on, I attached a “Tree of Life” pendant from Blue Moon Beads to my bangle using a large jump ring. I thought this was perfect for Earth Day.  I like big clunky jewelry but of course you could use something smaller. You’ll just need a big enough jump ring to hold your bangle. I also used up some little charms from my stash. Yay stashbusting!

Silver Leaf Mod Podge Bangle

Tree of Life Bangle 2

I would love to hear some of the "craftsplanations" you've had to give. Share in the comments!

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