It's been a crazy week at our house. My computer crashed last week just a few hours before our last blog hop. I thought I had lost EVERYTHING, but thanks to incredible technology and to my awesome husband, I now have my computer back to the way it was...AND it is backed up (like I should have been doing all along). I am so relieved to have life return to "normal" (what is normal, anyway?) and be able to share today's project with all of you.
For a while now I have been wanting to experiment with using the new Simply Pressed Clay from the annual catalog. I wanted to do more than just press it into a mold and pop out a flower or a button. So I sat down recently and played with it to see exactly what I could come up with. Obviously I was successful with my attempt, but there are a few things I learned along the way...
To create these fun leaves I added some Old Olive reinker to some clay and worked it in until the color was consistent. TIP NO. 1: Wear gloves when coloring the clay with reinker. Don't doubt me on this! I walked around for a week with green cuticles and fingernails. (I blame it on another crafter who said that gloves aren't really necessary...LOL!) Trust me...wear the gloves!
Next, I used a non-stick craft mat and a rolling pin to flatten out the clay. TIP NO. 2: Don't use a silicone craft sheet. I thought I was being clever by using my SU silicone sheet and quickly learned that was a BIG mistake. The Simply Pressed Clay sticks to it. It took me forever to get the clay to release from the sheet and get everything cleaned off. Not to mention the fact that anything I had stamped got ruined in the process. Thankfully I was able to just knead the clay and start over.
After I had rolled out the clay to about 1/8" thick I inked my stamp with Old Olive ink and then pressed it into the clay. I love how it leaves an impression and stamps the image. At this point you might want to let it sit there for a few minutes, but not too long. After about ten minutes, I carefully cut the clay into sections and pulled it up from the mat. Then I shaped the leaves and let them air dry. Once completely dry I used scissors to trim the leaf shape more precisley. Then I used an Old Olive marker to color the sides of the leaves. Next I used a sponge dauber to add shading. (TIP NO. 3: remember, this is "paper" clay and it will tear if you are too rough.) Finally I created a Burlap Ribbon band around the hand-stamped box and used a hot glue gun to attach the leaves to the band. This way the reciepent can slide everything off to open the box.
Just one more tip...YOU give it a try!
Now be sure to head on over to see what Erica Cerwin and the rest of the Artisan Design Team have in store for you!
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