Creative Me Time Women's Retreat

We had such a fabulous weekend at the Creative Me Time Retreat!  We created Vision Boards for 2015 - look out 2015 these are strong and beautiful women ready to take on the new year!  We expanded our creative horizons and mixed white bread and glue to make amazing bread dough roses that we added to a decoupaged frame.  Then it was on to making a heart plaque with ceramic pieces and beads.  In between all that there were several naps taken, much, much, much food, shopping, hikes, reading...it was a perfect getaway weekend!  Check out upcoming retreats and workshops at www.CreativeMeTime.com

Make Healthy Fun! Workshop

 

What an awesome workshop at the Morro Bay Library!  I was under-the-weather so I recruited some helpers I knew would do a great job and I hear they did!!!  Thanks to my sister-in-law, Nicki, my bro, David and 9-year-old nephew, Brandon who made a fun morning for kids and adult alike making marbles (all you need is some cornstarch or white bread, glue and paint) and creating a container garden complete with beans seeds to get the kids going on growing their very own garden.  Check out workshops and other ideas to get the entire family to unplug, exercise and eat healthy at www.MakeHealthyFun.blogspot.com and www.MakeHealthyFun.com

How to Make Bread Dough

Bread Dough Marbles

My nephews, Justin and Brandon, had a great time this weekend making marbles. It's super easy - all you need is bread (or cornstarch), glue, acrylic paint and zip top bags.

Bread Dough Recipe

What It Takes

1 slice of white bread

1 Tablespoon Aleene's Tacky Glue

2 zip-top plastic bags

How to Make It!

Remove crust from bread and discard.

Tear bread into small piece and place in plastic bag.

Add 1 tablespoon Aleene’s Tacky Glue.

Smoosh bag to mix bread and glue until smooth.

Cornstarch Dough

What It Takes

Cornstarch

Aleene's Tacky Glue

2 zip top plastic bags

How to Make It!

Measure and pour 2 parts cornstarch to 1 part Aleene's Tacky Glue into plastic bag.

Smoosh bag to mix cornstarch and glue. Add more cornstarch if the mixture is too sticky or add more glue if the mixture is too stiff.
Smoosh dough until smooth.

To Color Bread or Cornstarch Dough

Separate dough into several balls and place in clean plastic bag.

Remove one ball at a time, resealing bag to keep remaining dough moist.

Add one drop of acrylic paint at a time and knead color into dough.

Continue to add color one drop at a time until desired color is achieved.

Return dough to plastic bag.

Repeat to color remaining dough.

Making Marbles

Roll a ball of dough to desired size.

Add tiny bits of colored dough on ball. Twist to mix or leave dotted. Roll to form ball.

Drying time will depend on thickness and weather. Place in a dry place. Let set a few days until firm when pressed with finger. Tip: Set by your computer fan for quicker drying.

Make Mom Jewelry Ideas

Victorian Choker and Earrings for Mom

The beautiful roses and leaves are created from white bread and Aleene's Tacky Glue!!!

How to make bread dough roses!!! It's super simple!!!

What You'll Need

Bread, 1 slice white

Aleene's Original Tacky Glue

Aleene's Jewel-It Fabric Glue

Acrylic paint: colors for roses and leaves

Charms, pearls and small buttons

3 Buttons, large for base - approx. 1" diameter

Zip-top plastic bags

Hook and loop tape

Grosgrain ribbon, enough to go around neck, plus 2"

Scissors

Earring backs

Tablespoon

Needle or pin

How to Make It

Bread Dough

Remove crust from bread and discard. Tear bread in small pieces and place in one zip-top bag. Add 1 tablespoon Tacky Glue and close bag. Knead ingredients until smooth. Separate into two balls. Place each ball in a zip-top plastic bag. Add a small drop of acrylic paint into each bag, close and mix. Add more paint as desired. Store in plastic bag while making roses and leaves.

Bread Dough Roses

General info:

Rose buds and petals all start using a small pea size ball of colored dough that is pressed into a thin circle.

1. For bud, start to roll from right to left, lightly turning top of roll back so petal looks as if it is opening.

2. For first petal, roll back top left side and top right side of dough circle a tiny bit. Lay original bud in center of petal and wrap first petal around center bud. Place petals a little bit higher than bud so when edges are curled back petal are same height.

3. For second petal, repeat as on first petal and place opposite first petal.

4. For third petal, repeat.

5. Add three more petals, overlapping. Cut back of rose off with scissors to flatten.

6. For leaves, use a pea size dough ball and mold into tear shape by squeezing one end. Flatten tear shape. For veins, use a needle or pin to mark lines.

7. Let roses and leaves air dry.

Choker

1. To keep ends of ribbon from fraying, place a thin line of Jewel-It Glue along each end. Let dry.

2. Separate hook and loop tape. Glue one side to end of ribbon and reverse side on back of ribbon.

3. Glue pearls, charms, buttons, roses and leaves to large button. Let dry. Glue to center of ribbon. Let dry.

Earrings

Glue pearls, charms, buttons, roses and leaves to large buttons, using Jewel-It Glue. Let dry. Glue earring backs to back of buttons.

Bread Dough Recipe

Aleene's Bread Dough Recipe

Remove crust from white bread and tear into pieces. Place pieces in ziptop plastic bag.

Add 1 tablespoon of Aleene's Original Tacky Glue for each slice of bread. For larger batches, use 1/4 cup of Glue to 4 slice of bread.

Knead until smooth.

If after a few minutes the mixture is still sticky, add more small pieces of bread. If it is too dry or still, ad a few drops of Glue.

Place dough in another plastic bag. Knead dough until smooth and pliable.

To color dough, add paint a few drops at a time and mix or wait until dough is dry to paint.

OPTION:

Mix equal amounts of cornstarch and Aleene's Original Tacky Glue and follow the above procedure.

Video Taping and a Photoshoot!

It's been an exciting week! I was photographed with my decoupage projects for an ad that will be featured in a craft trade magazine in January. I love decoupage - it's so easy and the results are fantastic! Here's how I created these floral projects:

• I photocopied the picture of a flower I took on my vacation last month.
• Cut it out.
• I applied Aleene's Instant Decoupage on my base piece and on the back of the photocopy. I placed the photocopy on the base piece and brushed Instant Decoupage it.
• I wanted some dimension, so I attached silk leaves to the pieces by dipping the end of the leaf in the Instant Decoupage and placed it along the stems.
• I wanted to add a touch of sparkle, so I attached Tulip Glam-It-Up! Iron-On Crystals in the flower centers and along the stems.

I love being able to show off the photos from my vacation instead of sticking them in a photo album!

Video Taping

I had so much fun this afternoon taping a Bread Dough How-To Video featuring Aleene's Original Tacky Glue with Alexis, a designer I work with. We laughed so hard watching our play back. It needs to be edited (just a little) and will be at http://www.duncancrafts.com/ under the Education section. I'll let you know when it's available.

If you haven't tried bread dough in a while, Alexis shows some new ways to mix the dough and also includes how to make a dough with cornstarch.

Upward and onward...

Joan