Beading and Weaving

Completed Sun Ornament

We finished this yesterday afternoon. It was a little harder to keep the sticks in position at first, so the center is a little wonky, but I like how it turned out. I think the only thing I'll do differently next time is I'll create more striking variances in the yarn. 

Subtle Yarn

 

The slight differences in color that you see were intentional. I used yellow and red food coloring and vinegar to dye this fisherman's yarn. For the orange I first dyed it yellow and then dipped it in the red. For the deeper pinky/red orange I first dyed it red (super bright pink) then dipped it in yellow until it became more of what I was looking for. I microwaved each individual yarn for 30 seconds and then layered them together and dripped some red on the yellow and orange. After smooshing them together I microwaved them again for 40 seconds and let them cool off for about 20 minutes. Then I rinsed them with cold water and hung them up to dry.  Easy. Simple. 

I'm going to tackle a rainbow next because I can never seem to find rainbow yarn that I can afford. :o)

Ronan's Necklace

He's not as grumpy as he looks. He was contemplating the wind and wondering if it really WAS too chilly to swim like I had told him.:o)

I'm in love with those sweet amber necklaces. I know they are made to ease teething woes, but I also know that different stones are good for different things and I started thinking about using the "knotted between the stones" technique for other benefits. I do have some amber on the way, because I've loved amber for a long time. Amber and Moonstone have always been my favorites. Amythest and Rose Quartz are nice too. 

Grass Turquoise

This is what felt right at the craft store. I think it's beautiful, and it really seems to fit the children. They love their necklaces and keep running to the mirror to see, or they pat them. Ronan told me this morning that "Momma, I think that necklace made me sleep last night. I slept a really really long time!" 

This was also incredibly easy to do. I spent around $4 total for two necklaces and bracelets. I still have more than enough waxed linen string for several more necklaces so that takes my cost per necklace down to about $1.75 or so. (The stones are kinda expensive.) I spent the children's naptime making them so it took 30-40 minutes to make one. I'm very happy I decided to try this. The $22 per necklace is the only reason my children haven't had these. I wish I had made the attempt years ago.:o)

Now we're off to grind apples and smash bananas for Maple Banana Bread and Spiced Apple Bread. Maybe I'll manage to get pictures before we eat it all this time.

Wishing you a Creative Day!