Make Your Own Greeting Cards: Shaker Cards

It's been a few weeks since I've posted a greeting card how-to, but I'm still fascinated by this topic, so today I thought I'd tackle shaker cards (cards with windows containing pretty little beads, sequins, confetti or even simple paper or cardboard circles made with a basic hole punch).

There are numerous examples and tutorials online, some very intricate, but most of them use specialty hole punches and shapes. If you've done some scrapbooking you may have those, but I don't so I looked for cards with windows that had simple shapes (circles, rectangles and other basic shapes) that could be created by tracing or drawing items to make cutting out the window fairly easy. Here are some examples:

Source

Source

I've included two how-to videos, because they use different techniques for affixing the window backing. For the window I've seen people use overhead projector sheets, photo sheets or acetate sheets bought online or at craft stores. I suppose acetate from mailers could also be recycled if the sheet was big enough, but I haven't tried that. 

Here was the simplest (and probably the shortest) how-to I found. You can, of course, embellish this.

That one used foam strips to affix the window and sequins for the shaker part. This one uses double-sided tape and beads, and she shows you how to add a flat bow/ribbon.

If you'd like something more intricate, there are many videos online, and often they provide a materials list. Also, if you're prefer to buy a shaker card, Etsy offers a good selection. 

Happy crafting!

Myrna

Wrapping Gifts with Less Paper

It's getting close to gift wrapping time (for me, that is. You may have already wrapped some or all of yours). I'm always looking for ways to either reuse items, upcycle unconventional materials into wrapping materials, or, as in this case, use conventional wrapping paper but consume less of it.

I've seen the method used in the two videos below referred to as the Japanese method, although I haven't actually researched it. I like the first video, but the box he is wrapping is a perfect square and I wondered how that would work in a less ideal circumstance, so I found the second video to be very helpful. See what you think.

Have a fantastic day!

Will Wheaton Hits a Home Run

At a Denver Comic Con, a young girl asks Will Wheaton if he had ever been called a nerd when he was growing up and how he dealt with that. His answer is inspiring.

(Note: Someone in the comments section noted that they didn't think the word "nerd" was an offensive word anymore, and...that may be true, but there are scores of young people who, while they may not be bullied, are always aware that they don't quite fit in to the popular crowd. Whether those people are simply shy, not pretty, not slender, not...whatever, there have always been lots of people who felt "less than" or "different from" other children. It's good to hear someone broadcast this kind of positive message).

How To Sharpen a Knife with a Cup

If you don't have a knife sharpener handy, this video from 5 years ago shows you how to sharpen a dull knife with a coffee cup. (I haven't tried this. I hope that it really works).

How to Fold a Shirt in 2 Seconds (Really)!

I don't think I've ever seen anyone fold a shirt this quickly (or explain how it's done so well). This actually makes me want to fold shirts! (It's a miracle)!

You Too Can Be an Animator

I love animation, and Aardman is one of my favorites, but this Aardman video is a how-to. Here Steve, one of Aardman's animators shows us how to make Morph (one of the characters) swim under the table. Such fun!

In Celebration of Education

I love learning new things, and I love it even more when learning is made available to all. So YouTube videos that teach me how to do things are awesome. Admittedly, if you simply type in "How to" into a YouTube search, some very strange things come up, but there are also exercise classes, cooking classes, woodworking and craft classes, to name a few. Here's a video titled Learn How to Screenprint Your Own T-shirts from the MakeMagazine YouTube channel.

During the past few weeks, I've discovered all sorts of places that offer free college-level (non-credit) courses, including some offered by instructors from Stanford, MIT, Harvard, Berkeley, Northwestern, Duke and others). Awesome!

Here are some great sites to check out:
Udacity
Coursera
Edx
Udemy
Khan Academy

There are many more, but I don't want to overload this post (too much), so we'll leave it at that for now. Have fun learning!

Drawing a Wolf

Writers get asked how they do what they do all the time. Having been an author for some time, I'm intrigued by how artists do what they do. Here Mark Crilley draws a wolf.



And here he shows you how it's done. Fascinating!

Make Your Very Own Snuggie

I think the Snuggie craze may have passed, but we're expecting colder weather here soon (eventually--it's staying warm far too late for my comfort. Love the warmth, but 60's in Chicago in December is just...wrong and kind of scary). At any rate, when colder weather comes, I love a good blanket, and as an avid reader, the Snuggie makes sense. No more cold arms while you hold your book.

Here's a Tardis one by craftylilthing. As a Dr. Who fan, I love it. Click through to her Flickr stream for more images of the construction process.

Here are step-by-step instructions from Instructables for making your own basic Snuggie. (This one is by Schoochmaroo, who has many other awesome projects available on the site). 

Even More Gift Boxes (with Instructions)

These Exploding Gift Boxes are so amazing! The box itself is a bit of a gift. Instructions are at Glitter Adventure (with another very pretty box).

The inside of an explosion box (in this case a World Map Explosion Box) (all images on this page are by The Gentleman Crafter):

A Paris Explosion Box


And the inside:


Here are some video examples:

There are many videos showing how to make this type of gift box, but most of them are long, so I didn't include any here. If you'd like to look for them yourself, just type in Exploding Gift Boxes or Explosion Gift Box (not sure I like the names, but I wasn't in charge of that). Here's a link to just one of them.

A Rag Rug Made from Sheets

First, read how to make yarn from sheets (there are images).  Or here's a video if you prefer to learn that way.



Once you have your yarn you can make this rug.

Find the instructions here at Creative Jewish Mom, where you'll find lots of other great crafts.

A Simple Solution to an Age-Old Problem

Okay, so not being able to get glass cleaner (or another solution) out of a spray bottle when it's tilted isn't exactly earth shattering. But it is annoying and inconvenient. Here's a simple solution (I haven't tried it yet, but it looks as if it would work).

Speedy Shortcuts

I saw the first video below the other day, and since I like shortcuts a lot more than I like cooking, I was intrigued. I was also interested enough to go to the website listed at the end, which (sadly) simply takes you to the Sprint website. Hmm. It seems that there was once a series of videos called Sprint Shortcuts, but you can't access them from the website anymore. I did love the titles of some of them though (Instant Shirt Removal, How to Speed-tie Your Shoes. Not sure I really waste much time doing those things).





Note: I haven't tried either of these, so if you have, let me know if they actually work.

Even if You're Not a Photographer, You Can Appreciate This

I'm not a photographer. Not even close. So I know I'll never have a problem with a broken part of my camera, but I know just how expensive photography equipment is, so I can appreciate this man's ingenuity.

How to Make a Clementine Candle

Just in case you want to.

Soren Berger, Woodturner Makes a Wooden Lampshade

I've never seen a wooden lampshade (I don't think) and certainly don't have the skills to make one, but this video fascinated me.

Note: on the YouTube page, the point is made that for those concerned about the waste, this was fast growing pine already cut for firewood, the center of the log is poor quality sapwood and the wood shavings and chips are reused for heating or in the garden.

And Here's How You Wash an Airplane

It's a five-hour job done every six months. Quite a task.

Folding and Packing a Suit

I know that this is a bit of an odd video for this blog, but I've never actually seen anyone fold a suit and pack it in a plastic bag. I want this man to come and pack all my clothes when I travel. He's good!

Making Your Own Christmas Gifts - A Survival Bracelet

All right, it's the day after Thanksgiving, at least in the U.S., and in my world that means it's time to let all things Christmas officially begin. Today's link will take you to the instructions on how to make a survival (or paracord) bracelet. I think one of those would make a very nice present for campers or hikers, in part because it's a unisex present and it's jewelry that's also useful (how awesome is that)!

Note: The image below isn't exactly like the one in the tutorial, but it's similar.

How to Make a Survival Bracelet 

Image by SonnyandSandy

And if you like them, but don't want to make your own, Etsy has listings for all kinds of paracord survival bracelets. Let the fun begin!

I Could Watch People Cook All Day

First of all, let me say that I'm not a big fan of pineapple upside-down cake. I'm not sure why. I like pineapple and I like cake, but put them together and I'm usually not that interested. That said, I do love to watch people cook, and this video has great music and great timing. It sucked me in.

pineapple upside-down cake from rachelchew on Vimeo.

Hmm, maybe I might like pineapple upside-down cake better this time around.