Saturday, June 30, 2012

K-Cup, Flower Bow




What do you do when you need to wrap a small gift and don’t have any paper or bows to fancy it up?  You grab a large sheet of scrapbook paper (The benefit is that it’s even thicker than gift wrap) and a used K-Cup.  Your package will be pretty, unique and best of all recycled!

You will need:

2 white used K-cups (cleaned with filters removed)

Ruler

Small pointed scissors

Small piece of felt to match your paper

Scrap of ribbon, to fit around your gift

Double faced tape

Tacky craft glue   

Glue gun and glue sticks

Seed beads

Paper plate

White glitter

Pencil

Use two K-cups for the flower. When gluing the K-cups together you may use a glue gun or tacky glue whichever you prefer.  Tacky glue will need some time to dry, however. 

1)   Cut around the top edges of the K-cups.  Make sure you remove the lips.



2)   Using the ruler, measure ½” increments making hash marks with the pencil around the top of the K-cups.



3)   Cut slits to the base of the K-cups with the pointed scissors using the hash marks as a guide.


4)   Bend each petal down to the base to flatten.




5)   Round each petal by snipping the edges on each side.


6)   Line up two K-cups inside each other, turning to allow the petals to flare out slightly.  Glue them together.


7)   Spread some tacky glue on your flower petals and working over a paper plate sprinkle on some white glitter and let dry.  Cut a circle of felt the dimension of the center of the K-cup and glue to the center of the flower.  Make some dots of glue in the center of the flower and attach some coordinating colored seed beads.


8)   Use some scrapbook paper to wrap your gift and if you have it available tie on some ribbon. Add some double faced tape to the back of your flower bow and attach to the center of the gift.



Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Patriotic K-Cup Flower Wreath




What is better than going green?  Going green-- and red, white and blue!  Recycle those used K-cups into cool looking flowers that you can use on a wreath or anywhere.  Come back soon to Make it Easy Crafts for more K-Cup crafts.

You will need:

4 to 6 white used K-cups (cleaned with filters removed)

Red Spray paint specifically for plastic

Ruler

Small pointed scissors

Red Embossed felt

Vine Wreath

Navy blue grosgrain ribbon, approx. 24 inches

Glue gun and glue sticks

Tacky craft glue

Marker

Pencil

Two star shaped rhinestones (optional)

Use two K-cups for each flower.  If you want your flowers to have more petals then use three K-cups for each flower. Repeat steps 1 – 5 for each K-Cup. When gluing the K-cups together you may use a glue gun or tacky glue whichever you prefer.  Tacky glue will need some time to dry, however.  I suggest using a glue gun to attach the flowers to the wreath.

1.     Cut around the top edges of the K-cup.  Make sure you remove the lip. 



2.     Using a ruler, measure ½” increments making hash marks with the pencil around the top of the K-cup.


3.     Cut slits to the base of the K-cup with the pointed scissors using the hash marks as a guide.


4.     Bend each petal down to the base to flatten. 


5.     Round each petal by snipping the edges on each side. 




6.     Spray red paint on two or three prepared K-cups and let dry.  Work outside or in a well ventilated area.  I like to contain the flowers in a large cardboard box top. Repeat for the underside.


7.     For the white flowers, line up two (or three depending upon how many you want) prepared K-cups inside each other, turning to allow the petals to flare out. Glue them together.  Repeat this step for the red flowers using the spray painted K-Cup Flowers.  Cut a circle of embossed red felt the inside dimension of the center of the flower and attach with glue. You will have two completed flowers, one red and one white.




8.     Wrap the navy grosgrain ribbon around the wreath.  Use the glue gun to secure.  Attach one of each flower on the side of the wreath with the glue gun.  Add a dab of glue in the center of each flower and add a star shaped rhinestone if desired.  Vary the flower colors for an "anytime" wreath!

Come back to Make it easy crafts often for more ideas on K-cup crafting!


Sunday, June 24, 2012

Prize Ribbon Bookmark from Horse Shows and more




Do you have special prize ribbons all over the place and you are running out of space to hang them?  In one Horse Show alone once can amass quite a few ribbons. Instead of hanging, you can make a special keepsake bookmark that is useful as well and an attractive award.  You can use ribbons from Art Shows, Horse Shows, Science Fairs and more!  You can even get the winner of the ribbon to sign, date and label the back of the bookmark with a sharpie marker before adding the contact paper for a lasting memento.

You will need:

Prize ribbon

Thin cardboard (I used Bristol board)

Clear adhesive contact paper

Glue stick

Scissors

Ruler

12 inches of satin rattail cord

Paper hole punch

1.     Take apart the award ribbon from the rosette if one is attached.  Measure and cut two pieces of ribbon as long as you want your bookmark to be.  Cut one from the printed strip and one from plain if it has extra strips. The plain ribbon strip will be for the back of the bookmark. My ribbon was 2” x 7 ¾.”



2.     Measure and cut one strip of Bristol board about ¼” wider and ¼” longer than your ribbon strips.


3.     Measure and cut two strips of clear contact paper ¼” wider and ¼” longer than the Bristol board strips.


4.     Add some glue with the glue stick to the back of the printed ribbon strip and center it on the Bristol board strip and smooth to attach.  Turn over and repeat with the back plain ribbon strip.

5.     Remove the paper backing from one of the contact paper strips and place glue side up on your work surface.   Center the bookmark on the contact paper and attach.  Remove the backing paper from the other contact paper strip and working as before, center and attach to the other side making sure both contact papers meet.  Trim any overlapping edges.  Bookmark made. 





6.     Use the paper punch to punch a hole in the top of the bookmark and loop a 12-inch piece of satin rattail cord to add a finishing touch.



Note:  If your award ribbon doesn’t have extra plain ribbon strips you can just leave the Bristol board on the back plain and write your message before you add the contact paper.


Kittrich Corporation KIT9993 Contact Paper Rolls 18X3 Yd Clear

Saturday, June 23, 2012

Starry Stripes Duct Tape Coasters




Duct tape is all the rage.  All of a sudden there are tons of colors of duct tape available in the stores. These Starry coasters are so easy and inexpensive you can make a set in no time.   Don't stop with just one set, change the colors to make a set for every room in the house!  

You will need:

Corrugated cardboard from boxes.  (Wholesale clubs are great sources for scrap cardboard)

2 ½” star duct tape or any print of choice

2 ½” solid color duct tape to match

Felt in matching colors (Scraps are fine as long as you can cut a 3 ½” x 3 ½” piece for each coaster)

Ruler

Scissors

Tacky Craft Glue (Tacky glue is thicker than white glue and doesn’t bleed through the felt)

1.     Cut four pieces of corrugated cardboard 3 ½” x 3 ½”.  (Coaster base)



2.     Cut a piece of duct tape 4” in length.  It doesn’t matter whether you start with the print or solid as long as you alternate each time you add a strip.  When you add the first strip it is easier to place the duct tape sticky side up and lay the cardboard on top making sure there is at least ¼” edge overlapping.



3.     Cut the corners at an angle and fold to the backside. (The corners will be mitered)  Smooth the front side with your fingers.



4.     Continue to add 4” strips varying the wideness of the strips on the front and folding the edges to the back two more times.  When you reach the last strip, cut the corners at an angle like you did with the first strip and fold to the back mitering the corners.  You will have a total of 4 strips across.




5.     Cut a piece of coordinating felt 3 ½” x 3 ½”.  Spread some tacky glue on the back of a coaster and attach a felt piece.  Repeat with the other three coasters.





After you've made yourself a set why not make a some more for gifts. Simply tie a pretty ribbon around a set and you have a perfect hostess gift.  





Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Recycled CD landscape brooch




Yes, you can wear a little landscape right on your lapel in the form of a brooch.  The base is a tiny landscape painted onto a wooden rectangle. To finish, all you do is use a wood-burning tool to cut out a shape from a discarded CD. This time, though, you are using a stamp pad design.  Think horses, butterflies, birds or any small design would work well.
See:  http://makeiteasycrafts.blogspot.com/2012/05/recycled-cd-earrings.html  Don't stop with just a brooch though, you can use these little motifs in oodles of crafty ways!

You will need:

2 ½’ x 1 ½” wooden rectangle

Discarded CD

Wood-burning tool

Acrylic paint, blue, white green

Small paintbrush

Paper plate

Acrylic gloss finish

Tacky Craft glue (or glue gun and glue sticks)

1 ½” pin back

Stamp in desired small shape (horse, butterfly, dog, etc.)

Black inkpad

Glass from and old frame

1.     Plug in the wood-burning tool and allow to heat up.  Ink up your stamp with black ink.  Press the stamp onto the non-shiny side of the CD.  This is your pattern.  Put the piece of glass on your work surface to protect it and use the wood-burning tool to slowly trace around your image.  When you have finished the motif should pop out.



2.     Paint the landscape.  Add some white, blue and green acrylic paint on a paper plate.  Brush some blue paint across the top half of the wooden rectangle.  Let dry. Continue by brushing some green paint across the bottom half, meeting the top blue paint. Dab some white on the blue painted area to form clouds.  (See photo) Let dry.






3.     Add some glue on the back of the motif you cut from the CD and attach to the front center of the painted rectangle. 


4.     Glue on a 1 ½” pin back to the back.


Have you made it easy?  If you would like your original craft featured  on Make it Easy Crafts, send an email and I will post a link.  
Nsi Woodburning KitNsi Woodburning Kit