Embroidery Floss and Rhinestone Bracelet
Embroidery floss jewelry ideas still flowing..... Floss and rhinestones are materials that don't normally go together. But they are perfect in this bracelet!
You need:
- 1 yard embroidery floss
- toggle clasp
- 2 lengths of rhinestones by the yard, cut them the same as your wrist measurement
- scissors
Keep on wrapping and knotting to the end. Knot the toggle circle to the end. Trim floss ends.
It would be a pretty bridesmaid bracelet.
Take your Vitamin C!
Thin Bangle Series #8 - Wrapped Floss
For this project, I used two thin metal bangles. It could be done with one, I just wanted a little more thickness.
Knot the floss ends together. Trim.
Seriously. It took about 10 minutes to make it.
Take your Vitamin C!
Trendy Embroidery Floss Bracelet
This bracelet is super inexpensive to make and fits the trend. It is a cross between a friendship bracelet and beaded jewelry. You could make this with any kind of bead. The technique is absurdly easy and kids could make this easily.
You need:
- 2 yards embroidery floss
- beads of choice, I used 1/4" silver disc beads...the amount will be determined by the length of the bracelet, mine has 26 discs
- a toggle clasp
- jewelry glue (optional)
Do this:
1. String the toggle bar to the center of the floss. Tie a knot, holding it on.
2. String a disc over one strand of floss. Knot both strands together.
Repeat until the bracelet is the length you need.
3. String one strand of floss through the toggle circle. String the second floss strand through the circle toggle going the opposite direction. Tie a square knot: right over left and left over right. Add a drop of jewelry glue on the knot if you want before trimming the floss ends.
It truly only takes a few minutes to make this bracelet. At the jewelry counter, bracelets with similar materials were $25 - $50. No kidding, this bracelet cost under $2 to make. You probably have the materials in your stash already.
I challenge you to find a trend you like and make it your own. Don't copy it, but use the same materials or the same technique in a different way to make something new. Try it!
Take your Vitamin C!
Thin Bangle Series #7- Wired Crystals
To make one you need:
- a thin metal bangle bracelet
- 24 gauge silver wire
- beads, whatever you want
- wire cutters
1. Cut about a yard length of wire. Wrap one end tightly around the bangle. String a bead on the wire. Snug it up to the bangle. Wrap the wire around the bangle after it.
This is a simple project that does not require much in the way of materials, but looks high end.
Take your Vitamin C and see what else you could use this technique on.
Girls' Night In - April Fools
Every once in a while, I hear that the troubles in Michigan are on the way to being fixed, more jobs opening up, fewer foreclosures. But at Grace Centers of Hope tonight, we were surprised with at least 15 more women than usual...and their children. GCH has hired more counselors and has redone an old section of the building into women's residences. They are filling the rooms at an alarming rate, and told us to expect even more the next time we visit.
On the nights we are there, we laugh and enjoy the activities together. We get to know the women and look forward to catching up with them. The mood is usually "up."
Once in awhile, we hear a story that breaks our hearts. Stories like that abound, it is the nature of rehab. Tonight, we looked for one of the women we have been visiting with for a year. We looked forward to celebrating with her because her graduation day is April 15. She was not there tonight, and when we asked, we found out that she had left. They know that she is homeless and living on the riverfront.
Over the year, we watched her start in a state that was close to non-functioning. She grew into a happier person who spoke to us, crafted, and played games. She changed so much. And now, just shy of finishing the program, we are reminded that the pull of whatever landed her in the rescue mission, remains strong.
How can you use your art skills to encourage someone who needs it? Think about it?
And take your Vitamin C!
An Everyday Thanksgiving
Today I am foregoing a creative post because I am off to work on my taxes...something in which you should probably not be creative.
So, I leave you with three pics of my day in France last summer. They have nothing to do with anything, except it was a terrific day and remembering it makes me happy. I am thankful for that day and the people with whom I shared it.
Today, I am also thankful for:
- The work God has provided, which ends in paying taxes.
- Memories of good times. It is my college roommate Carol's birthday today. We used to do the bump together. It was the 70s. So, today we have decided to turn on some BTO and bump the wall in replacement of each other. If you are too young to know BTO, look it up. Then do the bump.
- I went to the phone store today to get a new battery for my phone. And what do you know? Buying a new upgraded phone is cheaper right now than buying a battery. When does that happen?
- I am headed into Detroit tomorrow to check out an elementary school with the possibility of redecorating some rooms this summer with Divine Design. God opens the doors!
- Oh yes, and On The Border salsa. Warmed up = perfection.
Off to take care of one of life's sureties,
Take some Vitamin C for me!
Understanding Your Learning Style
Lately, I have been thinking a lot about learning styles. I think it is because I just took a month long online class, and I will tell you more about that in a bit.
In case you are not aware of your own learning style, you should find out and understand it. It will make many things easier for you, not just learning and classwork. Learning styles affect how you remember, focus, talk on the phone, pray, read a book, figure out a craft project, organize projects and people, and well, pretty much everything you do. I think they should be called focusing styles instead of learning styles. Understanding learning styles can help you adapt material and how it is presented to fit you better.
If you have a hard time focusing on something, it is probably not directed to your learning style.
There are basically three types of learners:
Visual learner:
- you learn better by reading
- illustrations and diagrams in color are very helpful to you
- you like to see the facial expressions and body language of the person presenting to you, video is good, sitting in the front of the classroom is good
- when you have lost something, if you close your eyes, you can probably see the last place you had it
- you can easily sit still and read as long as there is no hands-on or listening involved
Auditory learner:
- as long as you can hear the instructions, you do not need to see the teacher, the text, or the action
- it helps you to learn if you read it outloud
- for you, learning takes place well in a lecture situation
- repeating things outloud cement them in your head
- you need activity and frequent breaks
- you speak with your hands or act things out
- a hands-on situation helps you learn and retain, learning by doing is good for you
- you have a hard time sitting still and focusing, for instance quiet meditation is impossible
I am a kinesthetic learner. Once I figured that out, my life got easier. For one things, I could never sit still with my head bowed and hands folded to pray like I had always been taught. The minute I do that, my mind is all over the galaxy. I found out that if I walk or journal, or doodle while praying, I can pray for hours. When I talk on the phone, I pace around my house, and that helps me focus on the conversation. When in a classroom situation, writing or drawing while ingesting material helps me learn and retain it. Even when I read, if I rewrite the parts I need to remember, that is all it takes. I know that I have a short attention span, and taking frequent breaks actually helps me focus better between breaks. I have piles of notes and doodles.
Nephew #2 is an auditory learner. He is in college right now and is having a hard time with all of the reading that is assigned. If he can read the material from the book outloud, hearing it helps him learn it. If he can read it into a tape recorder and play it back, that is even better.
So, I just finished the Blogging Your Way class taught by Holly Becker of Decor8 and Leslie Shewring of A Creative Mint. As teachers, both of them have this figured out. The lessons were taught online via text, with lots of photos, strengthened by podcasts and videos. The material was often presented in more than one way. It was well thought out and well presented for everyone, not just visual learners. That takes time and effort on the part of the teacher, but pays off for students. You see that understanding learning styles will help you be a better teacher as well.
You can google "learning styles quiz" to help you figure out your learning style if you don't know it already. Here is one that is short and sweet: quiz to find your earning style. Once you understand your style, you can begin adapting to help you find pain-free focus and learning.
Take your Vitamin C!
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