The Puzzle Results!

I've been tweaking for days but finally have the pictures to show you! I ended up with 10 little projects out of my simple $1 quilt puzzle I picked up at Michael's (it's from Darice, if you're interested in that information). While there were a couple of pieces that just didn't turn out how I planned, I simply turned those into magnets - after all, you can never have too many of those! All in all, I made 2 magnets, 2 bracelets, a frame, 2 pairs of earrings, a Christmas pin, and a paintbrush rest (lol, yes, see the story below the picture!). I also went back to Michael's and picked up another handful of these as well as dug out some other wood pieces I've had around for years for more play! It's a tiny size to work with, but the possibilities (and scraps to use!) are endless - I haven't even pulled out my stamps yet!



So here again is the original...

And here's the finished 10 projects!


As you can see, I'm still in a pretty big Basic Grey Blush kick, but mainly because I pulled everything for this project out of my scraps (lol, see my post of my organizer spinner to see one of the reasons I have lots of small scraps from this line right now!). I tried to grab a few things that had been sitting around gathering dust for years too, just because!



Starting with the magnets. The pink and brown one is BG paper, covered by a clear acrylic faceted "gem" from the Tulip (think fabric paint) line a few years ago (not sure if they even still make them but there were a whole bunch of different shapes and sizes) and "grouted" with dimensional paint from PSX. Used an acrylic butterfly from the same line on the other magnet, but used glitter underneath. This looks really neat...up really close. The paper was from an old Making Memories line. Both the magnets were originally intended to go into necklaces, but I just didn't like them well enough to bother. Attach the magnets with E6000 adhesive. I promise they'll never move again! Another note on working with magnets (I used the little button type) - always test your magnets before you adhere (especially with E6000) to be sure you know which side to adhere to and which side will be stuck to your refrigerator or wherever you put it!
For the snowflake ornament. I used the blue diamond pieces as is! I glued together 8 of them - they didn't fit EXACTLY in the middle but that gets covered) and then edged the whole thing in silver Stickles. I then embossed a technique tile from Technique Tuesday in silver and glued it on top and drilled a small hole to thread some metallic string for hanging.


On the earrings. The red and yellow ones I also left their original color. They were just scattered on my table and the color combination just looked kind of fun so I went with it! I drilled through from top to bottom (more on the drill later - I used it on almost every project!) then strung them like beads. The diamond ones were covered in paper from 7gypsies and while I liked the look, I just thought they needed something...so I dug through my embellishment drawers and came to the drawer I had full of those little spiral clips that were "in" years ago...I have a LOT, lol! These little ones added just the touch I wanted. I then drilled through the tops and created the earrings using these like beads again. I didn't have jump rings big enough handy so I grabbed some of the bigger spiral clips and they were the perfect substitute!


The pin changed forms many times. I had painted the square black because I meant to stamp on it with an interference ink. But I was being lazy and didn't feel like hunting down a stamp (again, this is a TINY size) so I dug through my scraps and found this paper from Prima. After I Mod Podged it on, I added some gold glaze over the top and sides and loved the look. Again, it needed something. I was putting away groceries and came across a bowl that for some reason got stuck in a kitchen cabinet (no idea, lol) that was full of charms...yup - back from when charms were "in" and I bought gobs and gobs of them! I found this little gold candy cane and snipped off the hanger and voila - the Christmas look for my red and green paper! I haven't attached the pin back to it yet because I'm still debating - might end up as a zipper pull or something instead!


I had several mishaps during the course of all this because I was working with several paintbrushes at a time and hanging them off the lids of the paints and Mod Podge. My table picked up a few new colors. But again, serendipity reigned while I was scooting little pieces here and there and four triangles glued together became a perfect little paintbrush rest! A little bit of Basic Grey paper and some DecoArt paint in rich espresso metallic (same as I used for the kitchen spinner - gotta have my little matching details!) and it now holds two paintbrushes handy yet off the table (and they won't roll off like they do off of lids...).


The two bracelets are by far my favorite projects out of the bunch. The Asian bracelet was actually the first project that came out of this. I had the red squares and had some paper from Zsiage that had the perfect sized characters - for the record, the symbol is double happiness - what a cute concept for a bracelet! I used an old Family Treasures punch that just happened to be the ideal size and Mod Podged them on - I used glossy to give it that lacquered feel. Side drilled them and strung them onto stretchy jewelry cord with some silver beads and blackstone. For the pink and brown one, I painted the squares with the same espresso metallic paint and also painted some wooden beads with the same to match. I covered the squares with Basic Grey paper (the squares are identical front and back) and really wanted to put rhinestones in the middle. Well, I couldn't find exactly what I wanted. The flat-backed Swarovski just seemed like overkill, yet the cheap plastic was just too...cheap plastic. I was in Michael's and happened to find a cell phone sticker set with little rhinestones in the clearance section for $1! Yea, I'm all about the clearance and sale and $1 items, lol! I used an Xacto to pull single stones out and adhered them to the centers of the designs and found matching glass beads from Blue Moon Beads to finish the bracelet off (again with stretchy jewelry cord). Love it! Note to self - there's a reason I despise working with stretchy cord though - I just didn't want a clasp interfering with the design on these!

And finally, I used the base as a little dimensional frame. Same espresso paint (can you tell I really love this with the Blush line?) and also another metallic, kind of a light teal that's used on the inside edges. Added the Basic Grey paper, a photo, and a tag from the Blush collection. Then I took some of the remaining diamonds and painted them and added the letter stickers.


A few notes about supplies. When altering small items (trust me, after working with them, I think trying to line up an actual photo on them would NOT be easy!), the 6x6 pads of patterned paper REALLY are the best answer! I used full-sized patterns on a lot of the Basic Grey (just because I had all these scraps!), but have a lot of my trusty 6x6 pads handy for later! I very rarely scrap in 6x6 but just can't resist the cute little pads and paper packs in this size and am always glad when I'm altering something small. MOST manufacturers shrink the entire pattern when doing 6x6 and 8x8 sizes and this can really make a difference in how things look!


Now, I'd like to introduce you to the tool that really inspired most of the projects - my handy dandy hand drill. This is from Forster (they do wood dowels and such you'll find in craft stores - I know Hobby Lobby has this drill right there with them but don't think Michael's carries it) and probably the #1 best craft buy I've ever made. They're on sale right now at Crafts Etc. for $3 (regularly still only about $4) - you get the drill handle and 3 drill bits. Seriously. Buy several and keep one in your toolbox, one in your scrapbook tote, one in your junk drawer... There is a bit of a learning curve to keeping it straight while drilling, but a little practice is all it takes. It will go through wood, acrylic, chipboard, etc. It is invaluable for altering small items. I. Love. This. Tool. I have several other craft drills (such as the Fiskars that you have to crank) and real drills, but this still gets pulled out more often than anything just because it's simple and does the job.


Well, I hope you've enjoyed the fun that has come out of this little $1 find as much as I have!