GL's top 10: do-it-yourself gifts! It's a GL tradition, so why should this year be any different?Here it is--your how-to's for making handcrafted hand·craft n. Variant of handicraft. tr.v. hand·craft·ed, hand·craft·ing, hand·crafts To fashion or make by hand. hand·craft gifts. No ultra-artistic skills required ... and no need to break your piggy. You can make any of these projects without blowing your allowance (look around the house for many of your supplies), and they're all super-duper easy to do. 1 Stained-glass tealight holders baby food jars tissue paper * decoupage glue * paintbrush (graphics, tool) Paintbrush - A Microsoft Windows tool for creating bitmap graphics. * ribbon * tealights 1. Be sure jars are clean and dry. 2. Cut tissue paper into small pieces. 3. Use paintbrush to cover the outsides of jars with a coat of glue. 4. Press pieces of tissue onto the glue in "stained glass stained glass, in general, windows made of colored glass. To a large extent, the name is a misnomer, for staining is only one of the methods of coloring employed, and the best medieval glass made little use of it. " patterns. Let dry. 5. Paint another coat of glue on top of tissue. 6. Let dry completely before dropping a tealight into each jar. Tie ribbon around the necks of the jars. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] 2 Swirly glass ornaments Ornaments are a frequent embellishment to music. Sometimes different symbols represent the same ornament, or vice versa. Different ornament names can refer to an ornament from a specific area or time period. clear glass ornaments * acrylic paints in various colors 1. Remove the tops from each ornament ornament, in architecture ornament, in architecture, decorative detail enhancing structures. Structural ornament, an integral part of the framework, includes the shaping and placement of the buttress, cornice, molding, ceiling, and roof and the capital and and set aside. 2. Pour small amounts of paint into the opening, and move the ball around for a swirly effect. 3. Let dry overnight, then put tops back on. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] 3 Velvet-covered journal blank journal * tacky glue * piece of velvet * ribbon * applique * gems 1. Cut the velvet to the size of the journal cover (ours had purple binding, so we left some of it exposed). Glue to the cover, and let dry. 2. Glue on ribbon to cover raw edge. 3. Glue applique and gems onto the velvet. Let dry completely. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] 4 Glittery glit·ter n. 1. A sparkling or glistening light. 2. Brilliant or showy, often superficial attractiveness. 3. Small pieces of light-reflecting decorative material. intr.v. snow globe baby food jar * trinket * hot-glue gun * baby oil * funnel * glitter 1. Glue trinket to the inside of the jar lid, and let dry completely. Be generous with the glue! 2. Using the funnel, fill the jar to just below the rim with baby oil. Be careful not to get oil on the outside of the jar or the lid might not hold (messy!). 3. Add about two teaspoons of glitter to the oil in the jar. 4. Screw the lid with the trinket onto the top of the jar, and secure very tightly. 5. Use glue gun to run glue around the inside lip of the secured lid. Let dry. 6. Turn jar upside down, and let it snow! [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] 5 Funky funky - Said of something that functions, but in a slightly strange, klugey way. It does the job and would be difficult to change, so its obvious non-optimality is left alone. Often used to describe interfaces. evening bag fabric remnant * decorative trims * scissors scissors Cutting instrument or tool consisting of a pair of opposed metal blades that meet and cut when the handles at their ends are brought together. Modern scissors are of two types: the more usual pivoted blades have a rivet or screw connection between the cutting ends * needle * thread * steam iron * cardboard 1. Cut fabric into a 22-inch-by-18-inch piece. Fold in half, inside of fabric facing out. It should now be 11-inches-by-18-inches. 2. Sew sides together with a sewing machine sewing machine, device that stitches cloth and other materials. An attempt at mechanical sewing was made in England (1790) with a machine having a forked, automatic needle that made a single-thread chain. In 1830, B. , or backstitch with needle and thread. 3. Turn bag right side out. Cut two pieces of cardboard that are the length of your purse and a half-inch in width. 4. Fold top edges of bag under a half inch, and insert cardboard under the fold on each side. Using a T-shirt to protect the bag, iron the folds into place. Fold down again, and iron. 5. Use a machine or neat overcasting stitches to sew trim to outer top edge of bag. 6. Cut 12 inches of another piece of trim for the bag's handle, stitching each end to the inside top edges on both seamed sides of the bag. Finish by sewing beads or tassels to bottom corners of bag. We used old earrings! [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] 6 Pretty ribbon headbands pretty ribbon * steam iron * tacky glue * ribbed elastic * scissors * needle * thread * decorative buttons 1. Cut the ribbon into 14-inch lengths for each headband. 2. Fold both ends of the ribbon under a half inch, and iron into place. Use dabs of glue to secure folds. Let dry completely. 3. Cut a 10-inch string of elastic, and form a loop. Sew the ends of the loops together on the underside of one end of the ribbon. 4. Sew a button onto the top side of the opposite end of the ribbon. Loop the elastic around the button to form headband. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] 7 Box o' molded chocolates bags of white and dark chocolate chips Chocolate chips are small chunks of chocolate. They are often sold in a round, flat-bottomed teardrop shape (similar to a Hershey's Kiss). They are available in numerous sizes, from large to miniature, but are usually around 1 cm in diameter. * candy cups * cookie sheet * nuts * coconut * cocoa * gift box 1. Line up several candy cups on cookie sheet. 2. Melt chocolate according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. package instructions. 3. Pour melted chocolate into cups. Decorate tops with nuts, coconut, chocolate chips or cocoa. (Be creative by layering and swirling the two chocolates.) 4. Set sheet in refrigerator for about 20 minutes. 5. Put hardened chocolate cups into gift box. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] 8 Funky personalized per·son·al·ize tr.v. per·son·al·ized, per·son·al·iz·ing, per·son·al·iz·es 1. To take (a general remark or characterization) in a personal manner. 2. To attribute human or personal qualities to; personify. calendar colored heavy card-stock paper * personal photos * decoupage glue * paintbrush * hole puncher * ribbon 1. Punch two holes, centered and two inches apart, at the tops of 12 sheets of card stock. 2. Use your computer to create and print out calendar grids for every month of 2007 (or draw with a ruler and felt-tip marker). 3. Cut out each grid, and use a paint brush to cover the backs with glue. Place each on the bottom half of one piece of card stock. 4. Brush glue on the backs of photos (make color copies if you don't want to use originals), and glue above each grid. 5. Continue to decorate pages by gluing on cut-outs. Let dry about an hour, then place a heavy book on top of each page to prevent curling curling, winter sport, similar in principle to bowls and quoits (see horseshoe pitching), played on an ice court by teams of four. Each player hurls a squat, circular stone—weighing 38 lb (17. . Let dry overnight. 6. Stack the pages in order, and tie at the top with ribbon, leaving enough slack for hanging. 9 Fab!-ric wall hanging unfinished frame * printed fabric * staple gun sta´ple gun` n. 1. A device used to drive a heavy staple through multiple objects, so as to fasten them together; it has a spring mechanism which stores force as a lever is pulled by the operator's hand, and the force is released all at once * buttons * thread * gems * tacky glue * felt 1. Get a piece of fabric that is at least six inches wider and six inches longer than your frame. 2. If you want, you can embellish the fabric by sewing and gluing on buttons and gems, like we did. 3. Lay the fabric facedown on a hard surface, and center the frame on the fabric. 4. Pull one side of the fabric up and over the back side of the frame and staple along the edge. 5. Stretch fabric along the opposite side of the frame. Staple to secure. 6. Folding the corners in like you're wrapping a present, stretch and staple the fabric along the remaining two sides of the frame. 7. Cut felt to fit frame, and glue onto back for a clean finish. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] 10 Handrolled beads-on-a-string old magazines * ruler * scissors * tacky glue * embroidery embroidery, ornamental needlework applied to all varieties of fabrics and worked with many sorts of thread—linen, cotton, wool, silk, gold, and even hair. Decorative objects, such as shells, feathers, beads, and jewels, are often sewn to the embroidered piece. thread * small beads * large-eyed needle * jewelry jewelry, personal adornments worn for ornament or utility, to show rank or wealth, or to follow superstitious custom or fashion. The most universal forms of jewelry are the necklace, bracelet, ring, pin, and earring. clasps and rings 1. Cut magazine pages into long triangular strips. 2. Starting from the wide end, roll the strips, leaving a small hole for stringing. Secure the point at the end with a dab of glue. Keep rolling strips until you have a pile of beads. Let dry. 3. Cut embroidery thread to whatever length you want, leaving plenty of excess to knot up the ends. 4. Thread the needle See Thread needle , knotting thread at the end. String beads onto thread (alternate with small beads if you'd like). 5. Securely knot clasps and rings onto ends. Use scissors to trim excess thread. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ILLUSTRATION BY BARBARA McGREGOR * PHOTOGRAPH BY BILL SCHILLING |
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