Hot Glue Strings No More

Yesterday I finally made my button tree, which was probably one of my first pins ever.

See it here.

It only took about 2 hours to make, mostly that time was spent gluing on the buttons.

Afterward, there was this;

Glue strings! Yuck, but then I remembered a little trick to get rid of them.

how-to-get-rid-of-hot-glue-strings

Water Bottle Flowers

I saw the pin and the accompanied Fail.

But I attempted it anyway.

Instead of a 2-liter bottle, I used a soda bottle. The small one.

It can get all globby.

The trick is to lightly press the bottle into the paint for more flower-like shapes.

Packing Tape Image Transfers

This is a VERY good one.

Works perfectly.

I have been doing a lot of ATCs lately utilizing this technique.

You put a SOLID strip of tape over your image.
Rub, with the back of a spoon or a coin.
Wet for 10 seconds.
Rub the paper off.
Voila! Transparent image, with a sticky back (bonus!)
Adhere to....well, where ever you are putting it.

I made this one this morning.

Packing tape.

Image.

Playing card.

Marker.

DIY Mod Podge

I have seen this pin plenty.

Several recipes online for this. 

Glue and water.

I used this recipe as a fabric stiffener. 

I would only use it in place of Mod Podge in an emergency.

The general consensus is that this does not work out the same as Mod Podge. That it yellows as it dries and just won't work on the thicker papers. 

With the exception being this lady;

I have used the regular Elmer's Glue-All mixed with equal parts of water with great success. Just be sure to allow your work to dry thoroughly between layers and after you've completed your piece. Then you can add a coat of clear varnish (water type) or shellac to protect your finished object. Do not use the school glue for these projects as I don't think it's really thick enough to begin with. My husband bought a gallon of Elmer's Glue-All to use in his own work, and it's the most economical way to go if you're going to be doing a lot of decoupage work. I've covered entire bookshelves in decoupage and it worked great.

Plague Recovery

I feel better.

I wish I could attribute it to the honey~cinnamon thing, but I also was taking Theraflu. Eating clementines. Garlic.

You name it, I tried it. I felt that  bad.

Home remedies are good, though.

A couple that I have tried and would actually recommend.

Toothache~ lemon extract (real)

Earache~ Garlic capsule (the gel vitamin) Squeezed into ear, cotton ball.

These are all I can remember offhand, but I am sure there are others. I try them a lot.

Desperation Kicks In

I came down with the plague on the morning of December 31. 

Fever, etc. I could barely get out of bed.

Tasty? Yes.

Effective? I hope so. 

Salt Dough Ornaments. Take Two.

Success!

Same batch of dough as before.

This time though I kneaded the hell out of it and then let it rest for 30 minutes before making anything.

THEN I turned down the heat. 250.

Baked these for several hours.

The initial place I found this recipe stated that they were done when they sounded hollow when tapped.

Nana loved her ornament.