So the first one (the most challenging one) was making bats and ghosts out of paper Mache. It was a challenge because the finished product takes a very long time to dry and a lot of patience. It took us about 4 days to finish 3 bats and 1 ghost (only 1 because we failed miserably with 4 other balloons). I don’t know if any of you have ever done any paper Mache crafts but it’s fun, easy  (not so easy for a 3 and 5 year old) and you can create pretty much anything  with a little creative thinking and imagination. So for this project we used:

1. Balloons
2. A mixture of warm water and flour (about 2 cups of water and 2/3cup of flour) to act as adhesive
3. Newspaper, ripped into small pieces
4. Acrylic paint, nothing too expensive since most of it will end up on the floor
5. Paint brushes
6. String
7. Tissue paper
8. Eyes (plastic) and glue
9. Construction paper or painted cardboard.

You blow up the balloon to the desired fatness. You slap on the newspaper (shredded to smallish pieces) coated in the warm goo, you cover the balloon, every millimeter of it except for the tied up part.

You wait for about 1 day, maybe longer. When its dry you paint it black if it’s a bat, or white if it’s a ghost, or orange if it’s a pumpkin, then you stick on the eyes, you cut out wings for the bat, you make a “Sheet” for the ghost, out of tissue paper and voila! You have a small ensemble of things to hang from your ceiling.

The next project was a much, much, much simpler one that we performed (at least I did) with more patience. We made a wreath for the front door. I always mean to buy a frame for one that I redecorate for every season but I haven’t been able to find one that fits all my needs, so we decided to make a very simple one to welcome guests into our house. And all you need for this are 4 things:

1. Construction paper
2. Paint
3. Little hands
4. Scissors

Draw an barely there circle on a big piece of construction paper and ask the little hands to do the rest, stamp a circle of hands on the paper, then cut it out and hang it on your door! Have fun!

I was put in charge of buying new material.  It was a lot of work to figure out what kind of beads I wanted to sell. I’ve always worked with mostly glass beads and semi-precious stones, but a few years ago I discovered seeds. While on a trip to the Pacific coast of Mexico a young man on a motorcycle stopped for an overnight at a beachside hotel I was staying. After dinner he unloaded his only suitcase which was filled with beads and jewelry he had made himself. He had a lot of turquoise mixed with shells, wood pieces and seeds he had picked up along his way. He gifted me some crescent moon shaped seeds that I used to make a necklace, and ever since then I have had an affinity for natural materials.

I still use seed beads and glass from time to time, and am planning to explore into polymer clay and lampwork.  This blog is meant to be an insider’s resource, as Emily and I learn new techniques and materials we will share our creations, inspirations and frustrations.  As we learn more about selling our jewelry, running a bead business, and buying beads in exotic locations we will also share our experiences.  I hope you enjoy it!  These necklaces are very popular in Mexico where my cousin and I sell them in the winter.

A Tagua Necklace

Suzanne