Hi Everyone,

I've been busy making things so there are a ton of new ideas I'll be adding over the next few weeks. Due to the fact that I'm the world's worst photographer, the pics are taking up far too much time. I'll persist and hopefully they will appear soon. I dislike making up instructions so most will be pics of things that should be easy enough to work out from a good photo (hence the need for the good photo).

The pics I've added today are:

The origami bird decoration which is made from a recycled magazine page with a feather for the tail and sequins or diamantes for the eyes. This design was made for a school Christmas craft project using recycled photcopying paper. It has the advantage of being able to be folded flat for easy posting. It is made from a simple origami bird with a feather glued at the tail end and sequins or diamantes glued on both sides for the eyes. The pic shown is the latest design where I've added a bow to the body.

A peacock box made from an origami box decorated with a peacock image and gold edging made from a decorative edge cutter and embellished with glitter. The box is made from wallpaper. This one was not made from recycled paper but it can be.

The owl brooch is just a simple idea made from end bits of fabric, buttons and embroidery thread.


Have fun,
Connie

I just thought I’d share the Easter eggs I designed around two years ago. I used the plastic eggs sold in craft shops like Spotlight and decorated them with ribbons and other embellishments. This year I tried using the plastic containers from vending machines (containers for small trinkets) but they are a little less egg shaped.
I’ve also added a vintage card I have in my collection for you to use. Just right click and save.
Have a Happy Easter,
Connie

Here's something else I created using recycled paper. For this flower decoration that can be used for gift wrapping, I've used old music paper. This flower can be made with any recycled paper such as used printed paper, pages from magazines and off cuts from wrapping paper.

Step 1 - crumple a piece of paper and unfold to flatten it out.

Step 2 - cut out rough squares from the crumpled paper.

Step 3 - cut a slit from the middle of the square towards the centre of the paper but only about 1/3 of the length of the paper. Repeat on other four sides.

Step 4 - Cut one corner into a petal shape (see diagram) and repeat on other 3 corners.

Step 5 - Repeat steps 3 - 4 on the same sized paper to create 3 flower shapes.

Step 6 - Make one more flower shape using a smaller square.

Step 7 - Arrange the 4 flower shapes on top of each other to look like a flower (with the smallest flower shape on top).

Step 8 - Staple the centre of the flower 3 times like an asterix.

Step 9 - Mold the petals to give the flower dimension.
It's the crumpling that enables you to shape the petals.

Happy crafting,
Connie

Two recycling ideas

Hi Everyone out there!

I'm spent many years gathering inspirations and craft ideas off the web - so it's about time I shared my designs with you. The first is my Tissue paper dolls (great for making a small present look good). I wanted to make something with the tissue paper you get when you have purchased delicate goodies, so I came up with Tissue paper dolls. To make, cut a sheet of tissue paper in half so you have a sheet around 40 x 30 cms. Fold both ends up a bit (on the 30cm length) and glue down. Sew along one end and gather to create a skirt. Find a picture of the upper part of a doll and cut out. Glue skirt onto doll and decorate as you see fit. The second idea uses recycled plastic drink bottles to make cheap and nifty display domes. I used a one litre clear plastic drink bottle. Draw a straight line on the bottle and cut along it. Trim it to make it sit properly and decorate around cap top to cover it for the top dome. Glue a bead onto the middle of the bottom dome.

Happy crafting,

Connie