Monday, November 18, 2013

Washi Tape Gourd Ornament - Craft Lightning Holiday Edition 2013

Happy Holidays!

Yes...I know it's a tad early...but really the Holidays are upon us with Thanksgiving coming up next week!

Are you prepared or way behind like me?

At least I've started on my Christmas ornaments and this year I'm obsessed with gourds!


If you saw my last post, then you know what I'm talking about.

I purchased a good sampling of dried gourds at the pumpkin patch in October and have been trying to come up with various crafty and thrifty ways to decorate them for the season!

It occurred to me that time is always a factor when preparing for the Holidays and so I wanted to use a technique that was fast, yet would still be cute and  worthy of display.

Then Washi Tape popped into my head!


Of course you've heard of it...it's one of the latest craft trends and SO easy to use!


It just so happens that it was time for another fabulous "Craft Lightning" Series hosted by my awesome bloggie friends Carolina at 30 Minute Crafts and Angie at The Country Chic Cottage, so this project is a perfect fit!


If you are new here, then I'll fill you in on what "Craft Lightning" is...it is a craft that you can make in 15 minutes or less (minus drying time)!

This edition of Craft Lightning features a roundup of great Holiday Projects from a awesome bunch of Craft and Home/DIY Bloggers, you won't want to miss one minute of it!

Here is a photo collage of the steps I took to make this ornament...


I somehow forgot to get a photo of the part where I added the thin gold ribbon to the top and bottom of ornament, but you can see it if you look closely at the pics.

Here are the tools and supplies used to make this project:


Materials/Tools Used:

Dried Gourd
Delta Ceramacoat Acrylic Paint (White)
Paintbrush
Washi Tape, Tape Works by Sandy Lion (#SC9518) Red/Pink Paisley Design
Aleene's Original Tacky Glue
Darice Glitter, Lt. Pink
Braided Ribbon, Metallic Polyester, Gold, 1/8", Berwick/Offray
Scissors, mini
ModPodge Gloss
Foam paint brush
Satin Ribbon, Pink, 3/8" (Brand Unknown)
Faceted Faux Jewel, Gold/Yellow, 1/2", in Blook By Design (Hobby Lobby)

Thank-you for joining me today! 
Be sure to check out all the other great projects in this series, you'll truly be inspired!

This project/post is linked to the following sites/link-up parties:




Friday, November 8, 2013

Gourd Ornaments

Christmas is just around the corner and it sure snuck up on me fast this year!
I wanted to make some ornaments, but wanted to try something "new" so I decided to give gourd crafting a shot.


In October we took the Grandgirls to the Pumpkin Patch and I purchased some dried gourds and couldn't wait to make something with them, so when I realized the "No Ugly Ornament" series was coming up, I knew it would be a perfect time to "experiment" with my new craft materials!


I started out by cleaning the gourds, as the one's I purchased from the local farmer had been dried, but not cleaned. Some places sell cleaned gourds, but you will most likely pay more money for them and it's really pretty easy to clean them yourself if you have time.


I won't repeat the entire cleaning process here, but instead I will direct you to two of the sources I used to guide me, since this was my first time using gourds.

I watched this video on YouTube which was very informative and helpful:


I also visited this webpage on cleaning gourds: http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-clean-a-hardshell-gourd/

Once the gourds were clean and dried it was time to get busy!

At first, I wasn't sure how I wanted to decorate them, but I knew most likely they would need to be "primed" in some way, so I painted them with some white acrylic paint (2-3 coats).

I decided to try a few different techniques since I had several gourds.

For this series I decided to make a Bejeweled "Blinged-Out" Ornament and a Hand Drawn Mosiac design ornament.


Here are the supplies I used for this project:


Materials/Tools List:

Sanding Pads (Coarse, Fine)
Delta Ceramcoat Acrylic Paint (White)
Paint Brush
Bic Mark-it Ultra-Fine Permanent Markers
Sharpie Ultra-Fine Permanent Markers
in Bloom by Bead Design, Faceted Faux Gems, Assorted 
One Button (from misc. stock on hand) - (for Hanger atop gourd)
Aleene's Tacky Glue
E6000 Adhesive
Krylon Workable Fixatif 1306

I used the fixative spray (not shown in photo) on the mosiac gourd, to keep the colors from smearing when the ornament is handled.

(This also helps if you are going to add lacquer, mod podge or other decorative coating to the surface, as some of these coatings will make the color from the ink pens run and a very light spray of fixative will help prevent this problem)

Be sure to stop by and visit all my crafty friends who are part of this great series hosted by my friend Erin at My Very Educated Mother.

I know you'll have fun and be inspired!

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