Blinged Out Pumpkins

I was scrolling through craft pictures during Halloween season in 2010 and came upon some awesome Martha Stewart pumpkins all decked out and sparkly. She had actually glittered larger pumpkins. Knowing that glitter can be quite expensive, I bought a few of those mini pumpkins and decided to bling those bad boys out! All I would need is the glitter.

I sent my boyfriend (now EX) to the craft store to find some. He came back with the actual Martha Stewart glitter pumpkin kit. I'm not a big fan of buying an all-inclusive kit. I find them to be overpriced, the supplies to be not-enough for more than a couple of projects, and I like picking out my own colors and varieties rather than someone from some manufacturing company deciding what I should like.

With that being said, however, I was quite impressed with the quality of this particular kit. It came with a container of thick, pasty "glitter glue" that you had to dilute with some warm water. I was just going to use regular white glue, but found this glitter glue to be a lot better when working with the glitter. It didn't run, it dried fairly quickly, and it set fast enough once the glitter was applied.

The glitter itself was fantastic. It was a fine grade, the colors in this particular kit were unique and deep, and the results where quite remarkable! If you MUST buy a kit such as this, don't order from the website. (Martha charges an arm and a leg, and the shipping charges are ridiculous.) Go to your nearby craft store, and print out a coupon before you buy anything. Weekly coupons usually take 40%-50% off regular retail prices. This kit was bought at AC Moore.

The pumpkins lasted through New Years. I made them a couple of weeks before Halloween.

Materials:
Mini Pumpkins
Martha Stewart Glitter Glue (kit)
Martha Stewart Glitter (kit)
Craft paint brushes (for the glue)

Yo Gabba Gabba Group in Fondant

I usually put these things up on my cake blog: Queenie Cakes. However, I was so proud of how these came out that I felt they were crafty enough to put up here. I had serious doubts whether or not I could pull this project off, but the customer was more than happy with the results, and so was I. (Brobee was actually the main character on the cake done up on an edible frosting sheet. That's why he wasn't sculpted out of fondant.)

Materials:
Fondant
Toothpicks
Wire
Candy or Lollipop Sticks
Gel Food Coloring
(All these materials were bought at AC Moore- with a coupon, of course!)

Cut Here

Did I mention I also like to dabble in jewelry making? I'm not really into the fancy stuff or the crystals. I like edgy, contemporary, steampunk, or just symbolic. Silver or white gold is my vice of choice, but I'll tolerate other materials in the name of art! (And to be less stressful of my wallet...)

This little baby of mine is called "Cut Here". I saw a very similar necklace made by an artist in Europe but the scissors and beads were made out of resin and are much larger. I wanted something a little more understated and subtle.

I'm going to make this necklace again but with silver cylinders or with the hematite cylinders like I used on this necklace and a black scissor. Unfortunately, I had a hell of a time find the right type of scissor charm for this necklace. I ended up finding it online, in only one size, and thankfully in silver colored metal.

This is my firs attempt at it, but I really love the look. I will play around and see how I can tweek it!

Description:
Hematite cylinders on clear stretchy string with a silver metal scissor charm. The décolletage is all me!

Supply Sources:
Scissor Charms- Artfire.com
Stretchy String- Pearl Paint NYC (in store)
Hematite Cylinders- Pearl Paint NYC (in store)
Metal clasps on the back of necklace- Pearl Paint NYC (in store)

Crochet Flowers

My cousins and I started our own informal Stitch and Bitch. (I think we've met up a total of three times...) Oh, well. Such is life. I'm a pretty good crochet'er but I'm a little slow and I have a hard time following patterns. Even still, I find that my flowers look pretty damn kick ass, don't you think? =)

Materials:
Paton's Classic Wool- One Ball Petal Pink
                                  One Ball Black
(I obviously didn't use a whole ball of yarn for these two little flowers.)

Source:
Jo-Ann Stores

Peacock Mask

I just learned this cool new leather mask technique. This is my first creation! I made it for my friend Margaret as a going-away gift. We saw similar masks (which were a lot less ornate than this one) at a Renaissance Festival last summer. A very plain mask was selling for nearly $30 a piece. The materials I used cost a lot less than that!

Materials & Sources:
8oz thick Vegetable Dyed Leather: Tandy Leather
Peacock Feathers: AC Moore
Liquitex Acrylic Paint: Pearl Paint
Ribbon: AC Moore