"Gold Leaf" Fakery

Find any candy or confection wrapped in thin gold foil.

 The wrappers on some candies are gold, thin and pliable making for a great study in gold leaf. Gold Leaf was popular in history--kings, queens and emperors often surrounded themselves with golden objects. Objects were often covered in gold leaf since solid gold objects would have been much too difficult and costly to produce. My little grandson showed me this trick while we were discussing art during the Renaissance Period in History. (He also formed miniatures from the wrappers. More on that at a later post.)

Procedure: First and foremost--unwrap carefully and enjoy the candy!

Place stickers on paper and set aside.*

If there are stickers on the outside of the foil wrapper, paste them on a plain sheet of colored paper. (*Save this paper and put it aside for a fun activity later.) Second, wipe any reside from the side of the foil that touched the candy. This will also help smooth out the wrapper. Third, find a small item you wish to cover with the foil. Lastly, smooth the wrapper, gold side out, over the item and press tightly.
This is how any item can appear to be covered in gold leaf. (Yes, you can use the other side of the wrapper to make an object appear to be made of silver too.) *The sheet that contains the stickers should be put aside and any time you find a sticker, say on a banana skin or on another piece of fruit, put it on this paper with the other stickers. Soon you will find you have a lot of various interesting stickers on the sheet. What to do with this? Look at the next post. . .

Rub off any candy residue.

Find a small object to cover.

Voila! Imitation gold leaf. 

Making Connections

Hi! Just returned from a really nice conference at the Space Coast Writers' Guild (Melbourne, FL.)  I had to hobble around in a "pump boot" because of a stress fracture to my right foot, but it didn't stop me from doing my presentations and also enjoying several one-on-one meetings with agents and editors. If you're contemplating attending a conference as a writer, artist or blogger or curious spectator--jump right in. (Or hobble right in.) Even if you've already had some success in your writing and art, getting together with like minded folks and listening to the wonderful workshop speakers is well work the cost of admission. As much as we all love the creative process, remember that writing and art is also a business--use every opportunity you can to share your creative genius with others and develop more skill and more audience.  Have fun!

Faces on the Walls

I draw caricatures. I'm not like a Disney artist who can whip a likeness out in a few minutes. My caricatures are more mini sketches that include a lot of the subject's interests. My husband and I sometimes give them for gifts. Often it's hard to part with one since I've put so much time into the piece. Well, I decided to take each caricature that I complete to a copy center and make a copy for myself. Of course, the thought then is: What do you do with the copy? I found that instead of borders or wallpaper in our "Cowboy Room," it would be a good idea to use the copies for decoration. It worked, as many of them are themed to go with our SASS cowboy activities. I've enjoyed "visiting with our friends" on a regular basis in the form of their likenesses.

Mixing It Up!

For awhile I've been devoting my blog to my crafts ideas to do with kids, but I realize that a blog is very much like a diary of different things. So, while I'm still going to post easy crafts, I'm going to "mix it up" with some great photos and some reflections. This week, for example, I walked out into my back yard and thought about a statement  folks make all the time about our Florida seasons--or lack thereof. Well, I found myself saying aloud, "Who says we don't have seasons?" Then, I snapped a picture and remembered I'd snapped one of the same area in the summer. Okay, so we only have "sorta" two seasons--summer and not summer. But, if you watch closely, you'll see lots of changes and beauty in those two seasons.

Mediation bench in summer.

Mediation bench in Winter. 

Another Apron

While I made gingerbread aprons for the five grandkids who are under five years of age, I knew the 16 year old shouldn't be left out, but he needed something more appropriate. He helps his grand-pop in the kitchen with potato pancakes and so his apron reflects his "apprenticeship" status. A plain purchased apron from a craft store or warehouse type store is a blank canvas and ready to be personalized. In this case, I made a caricature of the young man and put cooking utensils in place of guns. He often wears a three-cornered hat to SASS shooting events and so that added an even more personal touch.

Bow in a Hurry

 When you need a pretty bow in a hurry, think about your crisper. Much of our bountiful harvest of fruits and vegetables come packaged in mesh bags. You may already save the mesh bags (tied in knots and stored in a baggie under your sink) to use as non-abrasive scrubbers for your non-stick surfaced pots and pans, but the mesh bags also make for lovely--and often colorful--bows. Simply snip off any advertising cardboard pieces. Hold at approximately one-half and tie a regular shoe type bow. Pull tight. Be sure to puff the bow out. Attach to a gift and you have a colorful (and useful) final touch.

Gingerbread Man Aprons

Been busy this week. I cut out and stitched five "Gingerbread Man"aprons for five of the six grandchildren. Two are shown here. One "apron" is more a bib, quite small, for the baby--but all of them have the verse: "Run, run, as fast as you can. You can't catch me. I'm the gingerbread man." The last line is on the pocket that contains a felt gingerbread man. I sent them off to the kiddos with a package of gingerbread mix and cookie cutters. These were especially easy to make by using quilt seam binding for the neck loop and ties. I did make adjustable neck portions using two circles as I was guessing on size as three of the grandkids are out of state. Okay, so I said I had six grandkids and made five of these aprons. Well, the grandkids are 5 mo., 1 yr., 2 yrs., 3 yrs. 4 yrs. and--drum roll please--16 years. I knew the 16 year old wouldn't especially want a "Run, run, as fast. . ." apron. Therefore, I made him an apron, but put his caricature on it. His apron is a "Potato Pancake Apprentice" one and since he does help in the kitchen from time to time, I know he'll use it. The felt gingerbread man was easy to make with adhesive backed felt. I folded the adhesive in on itself and used a cookie cutter to trace and outline. Then, I added buttons, magic marker eyes and white trim.