Oh My Blog! - Back in the crafting saddle

Yes, I'm still blogging! I know. I've been a very bad blogger as of late. I wanted to blog more this summer (even tried to do mobile blogging while in Europe [that was a bad idea!]), but the time just got away from me. Hopefully, my latest craft session will make up for it!

Diamond Glaze by JudiKins. Bought from Amazon

So this week, Hubby and his brother asked me to sew some patches on their Angels jerseys. I happy obliged and the craft bug came a-biting! It also helped that I bought some of the most AMAZING craft glue EVER!!

Diamond Glaze is like the Holy Grail of crafting glues. It bonds most crafting materials (paper, plastic, metal, etc) and also makes a great crafting medium in itself. It dries with this beautiful glass-like finish, so it is perfect for making custom pendents. I first saw this stuff when I was really into watching the DIY Network (back in the good-old days of unemployment!) and there was a show where they made pendents out of scrapbook paper and metal washers. So, guess what I did this weekend? XD

I made three custom pendents and one keyboard necklace! And let me tell you: these were all necessary items! I needed to make another TARDIS necklace because my other one broke and the image was lost. I'm not even kidding. I was so sad! But now I have this one!

So, these are the materials that I had on hand to work with: some metal washers, jump rings, random beads, random bits of chain and ribbon, various charms, empty pans and frames, and some fasteners. I've had all of this stuff hanging around for a while and today was the perfect crafting stuff to use it (mind you, this is a pitiful collection compared to what my mom has and what she had when I was growing up, so this felt like a bit of a challenge to me.).

These were the bits I decided on tackling specifically. I grabbed some blue ribbon, the broken silver chain (previously from a shirt I owned years ago, a metal washer, a silver frame charm, and this round disc pendent thing.

The tools: Diamond glaze, scissors, Xacto knife, computer, printer, and my amazing rotary tool.

Project 1: Framed Picture

Start with a tiny silver frame. This one happened to be meant for jewelry making and so it has little hole in the sides for a chain, but any tiny frame will work.

Measure the inside area of the frame so you know what size to cut or print your image. For this post, I'll be using a map from the Underground in London, but for the TARDIS necklace, I used Photoshop to find and size the image.

 Measure out and cut the image you want to use in your pendent. Here, I traced out the logo for the Underground because it was just the right size! In another charm, I used a picture of the Eiffel Tower from a map of Paris. I've found that Diamond Glaze works best with images that are laser printed rather than ink jet printed. The ink jet images tend to smear, although it is very subtle. If you are taking images from professionally printed materials, though, there should be no smearing.

 Carefully cut out your image. Try to make the cuts as straight as possible. Try to cut all of your trace line away to ensure that your image is small enough to fit in the frame's borders.

Add one drop of Diamond Glaze to the frame and evenly spread it across the frame using a needle or a business card. This layer is just to bond the paper to the metal so it doesn't ripple or float when you add the top layer of glaze.






Gently, insert your picture and gently tamp it down to eliminate any ripples, folds, or air bubbles. Before I inserted the image, I used a ball point pen to add "London" to it. That's the other thing I love about Diamond Glaze; it seals and protects whatever is underneath it. Theoretically, you could take your own art or doodles and use them to make adorable and personal jewelry! I know, so cool!

Add several drops (15-20) to the top of the image, taking care not to let any bubbles in. Smooth the glaze evenly across the surface, popping any air bubbles. Let it sit for 24 hours and viola! It is done and ready to wear! For the Paris charm, I added two jump rings to the top so I could easily hang it on a chain, but I put the TARDIS charm on a blue ribbon. These would also make really cute magnets or pins!



Project 2: Washer Pendent

I made two versions of this pendant. In the first one, I covered the entire washer to make a round "Apple Pie" pendent. In the second one, I cut through the hole in the center of the washer to make a "doughnut" type pendent. For the "doughnut" pendent, I chose a pattern that didn't need to be whole (a map from Rome) so the focus would be on the shape and colors rather than a specific image.

Here's what you'll need: Metal washer (any size you want), Diamond Glaze, printed image, scissors, Xacto knife, something to use as a loop for your necklace.

Start by tracing the size of your washer onto the image you're going to use. If you're going to cut the hole out, then trace the hole. If you don't want the hole, then don't trace the hole. Cut out your tracing with scissors; use an Xacto knife for the hole.

Apply a thin layer of Diamond Glaze to the flat side of the washer (one side of the washer has flat edges, while the other side is rounded). Drop the washer on the image and center it as you wish. Use an Xacto knife to clean up the edges as you will probably have some excess paper.

Apply a thick stream of Diamond Glaze to the top of your pendent. Use the tip of the bottle to distribute it out to the edges, being careful not to scrape your paper image. I say thick, but use your own judgement. You want the layer to be thick enough to give the appearance of a glass bubble, but not so thick that it spill over the edges. If the layer is too thin, you won't get that professional look. Use a needle to fine tune the distribution and to pop any air bubbles. Any air bubbles that you can see will dry that way and then you're stuck with them!

London: day 2

Had another awesome day! Marty and I took a sight-seeing tour through the city and hit up mist of the big attractions.

Our first stop was St. Paul's Cathedral. Holy moly! The architecture and mosaic work were incredible! I could hardly tear my eyes away from them! We stopped in the shop on the way out ("there's always a shop") and I got an isometric sketch of the Cathedral. I can't wait to put it in my classroom! It was also strange to be there since this is the church in the "Feed the Birds" song from Mary Poppins. Very strange indeed.

We also went to the Tower of London and that was amazing! You know how you get that excited giggly feeling when you're in a replica castle and then you let yourself down because you remember it's a replica? Well, it was that feeling the whole time but with no let down because it was a real castle!

We also did a lot of driving around to see London. We went past 10 Downing Street, drove up and down Whitehall, past Westminster Abbey twice, and past Buckingham Palace. We missed the changing of the guard due to rain, but we still have one more day left. Which reminds me: this weather is freaky! It's July and raining! And the sun! It stays up forever! It's 9pm and its still light out!! And the sun comes up at 5am!! What the hell? Am I in Alaska???:::sigh::: I guess Marty and I will just have to stay out longer and wake up earlier and do more in the city. 😉

Oh, and I also had this amazing cappuccino at a little French cafe!

Red Lion Pub

First meal in the UK!! I was starving so Marty and I stopped here based on a map recommendation.

I got the sausage and onion baguette.

It was good, but I ate it too fast and couldn't finish it. It came with a light salad in an oil dressing. Come to think if it, the sandwich was oily too. :/
Don't know what I think of those circumstances.

The rest of the pub was nice. All dark wood, brass, and glass. It also had thus gorgeous woodwork ceiling!

We're Here!!

We made it to London! It is raining, but that's ok. It means I won't get sunburned! Our Hotel is right across the street from Buckingham palace and has the TINIEST elevator ever!! And the craziest walls: they're embroidered and padded and they match the bed spread.

Leaving on a jet plane...

I'll be back in 10 days though! I'm trying my hand at mobile blogging this summer. I've got my Weebly and Blogger apps downloaded and I'll see how I like this. So far, I'm annoyed that Blogger won't let me type in landscape mode!!! At least Weebly got that fixed.

Oh, I bet you're wondering where I'm going to be for ten days, aren't you? Marty and I are heading off to London, Paris, and Rome! Very exciting, stuff indeed! It's a good thing too, since this is the only vacation time I get this summer. I've spent the last two weeks at CalPoly Pomona cramming a year's worth of technology information into my brain so I can then teach it to my zero period class next year. Yes, that's right, yours truly will be teaching 8th graders at 7:30 in the morning. Good thing I like zombies, right?
And if the past two weeks weren't intense enough, I will also be attending a four week engineering curriculum development training at USC immediately upon my return from Europe.
"But then you have all August off!" cried the person who doesn't understand what a teacher's job really is. No. No, I do not have August off. August is when I have to go in and prep my room and plan my lessons for next year. That room doesn't make itself look good, ya know!!

And that is why I don't feel one but guilty about skipping off to Europe for ten days.

Let the mobile blogging experiment commence!!