Happy Easter

Hi to All,

Happy Easter.  I hope spring is trying to come your way.  We finally got a hint of it yesterday with temperatures close to 60 degrees F.  Below is the my most recent "Wizard of Oz" necklace.  This necklace was crafted from reproduction pages of the first Wizard of Oz  with the illustrations by W.W. Denslow.   I made the paper beads from cardboard game tiles; the chains and the other beads were reclaimed from vintage jewelry.  This necklace is posted on my Etsy site now.

Wizard of Oz paper bead necklace

Front cover of the journal

Back cover of journal

My friend teaches nursery school and loves reading to her 4-year old pupils.    This is a special journal I made for her, above are the photos of the front and back covers.  The covers are collaged with prose and pictures from some of the best known children's picture books.  After gluing the papers, three coats of an ultra-thick gloss is brushed on to protect the covers.  And no picture books were destroyed in this project.

Next week I'll be at the 2013 Earth Day Fair at the Pleasantville Middle School.  I will be running a workshop on making paper beads for the Middle Schoolers.  The Fair will run from 5:30 until 7:30.

Talk to you next week.  Be sure to stop by my Etsy shop or come see me at the Fair!

anne

Here it is!

Hi to everyone,

Ozma of Oz Necklace

Well, here it is; my Ozma of Oz necklace.  You can see some of the steps in making in the necklace in my previous blog.  There is also a complete tutorial describing the process of  making these paper "beads" in my November 11, 2011 blog. I posted the necklace on Etsy a few days ago.  You can see it there by clicking on the picture caption above.

Now I am working on a Wizard of Oz project made from the pages of a copy of the original edition.

Spring is just around the corner, some of the crocus have poked their purple heads up through the ground.  The first day of spring will be March 20th and Easter is March 31st.  So the Spring Craft Fairs can not be far behind!  Here we go again, my second season of craft fairs.

First on the agenda is an Earth Day Fair at Pleasantville Middle School on April 11.  I love participating, it is really a workshop. I can teach kids all about paper beads and how to make them.  It teaches them that we can make beautiful things out of what we throw away.

Sunday Morning Paper Bead Bracelet

And here is a sample of bringing old designs back!  This bracelet is made from the pages of the Sunday magazine section of the newspaper.  Available by special order at annemadethis@gmail.com.

Talk to you soon,

anne

National Craft Month

Greeting to all,

                                   

March is National Craft Month.  The special designation was created by the Craft and Hobby Association in 1994, designed to encourage people to learn about and rediscover the the joy of crafting and all of its benefits.  You can read some of my previous posts about some of the benefits of crafting.

Many craft stores mark this month with special sales and discounts, in-store demonstrations, make-it and take-it workshops and other classes.  National Craft Month has become an international celebration of creativity with millions of crafters participating.  So get out there and learn a new craft!!  You can start with some of my tutorials!

And here is some more inspiration for Craft Month.  I have started  making a new necklace made from the pages of one of the Wizard of Oz books, Ozma of Oz.  Below are photographs of the some of the first steps of the process.

Disks cut from corrugated cardboard and the novel

After cutting out the disks from the pages of the novel, they are glued to each side of the cardboard.  Then they glazed with three coats of triple thick acrylic.  Set them to dry overnight on toothpicks.  You can follow a complete tutorial on my November 8, 2011 blog.

"Ozma" disks drying on toothpicks stuck in an egg carton.

See the finished "Ozma of Oz" necklace next week!

And special thanks to Karen, my Etsy friend for saving the pages of the books she uses for her hand bags. Karen provides the "literary" pages I use to make my jewelry.   Check out her "novel" bags  at her Etsy site, NovelCreations.  She has made purses from Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights and lots of other famous novels. What adorable purses!

Happy Craft Month and be sure to visit my Etsy shop, annemadethis.

Talk to everyone soon,

anne