Recent discovery of glue!

I recently read about how super duper awesome e6000 is as a craft glue so I did two projects to experiment with its sticky prowess. 

Dinosaur earrings! 

I love dinosaurs! Who doesn't! Got a pack of mini dinosaur buttons, snipped off the sticky out bit at the back and sanded down the stumps with sandpaper. Glued on silver ear stud posts and they seem to be holding well - although to be honest I don't dare to be too violent with the posts! 

Loving my new dinosaur earrings! Dinosaurs! Woohoo! 

Remember to drop me a line if you want a free postcard from Singapore! 

The beginnings of my personal alpine forest

Last year's Christmas brooch was one of Ms Patti Duff's mini tats.

This year's is *drumroll* 

Ms Marilee Rockley's beaded Christmas tree :) 

A lovely quick tat :) I love the frilly 3D effect of the rings. 

The bigger ones are with Milford 20. The smaller ones are DMC cebelia 30. I used five different colours of beads (a good way to destash!) together with some star shaped buttons I've had since I don't know when! 

(I had initially tried the pattern with red beads only but I didn't like the outcome.) 

I'm loving them little trees! It might seem early but you never know when you would or wouldn't have time to tat!  

9 done... 11 to go! 

Another button brooch

Ms Eborall's pattern has swiftly become my "go to" brooch pattern!

Experimental failure?

Was playing around with buttons trying to de stash and make a gift card at the same time

Methinks I was not quite successful :( I can't decide whether I am just not good at it, the idea was flawed to start with or I'm using colours that are too strong for the background :( 

Help? 

Happy Administrative Professionals' week!

Happy Administrative Professionals' week!

I know it's silly but I make effort not to call it Secretaries' week so that like my office accounts lady and despatch uncle (who aren't technically secretaries) don't get left out. 

Made brooches for the 4 secretaries in me office! 

Don't think I've done this type of button work before. And I definitely haven't done beadwork like this is a long time. 

Made in 4 shades of Lizbeth thread with size 11 beads, I did some minor changes to Ms Eborall's pattern - I didn't do the little dangle and instead of the beaded centre I glued on a flat backed crystal :) 

I quite like them! I'm going to make another for a friend's unwell mother. 

Ms Eborall's beaded button brooch pattern has been generously shared here:  

http://www.janeeborall.freeservers.com/BroochFlat2013.pdf 

The decision is made... I think

I prefer doing brooches for Christmas because then the men can wear them too! 

But the problem with tatted brooches is that more often than not the brooch backs or pins can be seen through the holes in the tatting. :/ has anyone figured out how to overcome this problem? 

Toyed around with two patterns 

A holly pattern from a Japanese pattern book. And... 

A minitat snowflake. I did this in some silver thread I got from a local beading store. 

I think I like the snowflake better. But can the brooch back be seen? 

What do you think? 

Selamat Hari Raya!

I recently bought crocheted flower brooches at a fundraiser for the girls in my office. They liked them so much they asked for more! 

So, as celebratory gifts I made them fabric flower brooches using the clover templates (extra small). 

I love these little guys. 

Flower power!

A while ago I tried my hand at tatting a flower on a large press stud.

I decided to try shrinking it down on a more normal sized press stud. 

The large one was the "original" done in size 20 Anchor thread and size 30 DMC Cebelia for the leaves. 

The new mini is in size 80 Anchor for the petals and size 80 DMC for the leaves. (Oh my goodness I just realized that the brands are the same for both flowers and leaves!) 

I quite like it small as well! A nice size for bags and purses if I don't say so myself. 

Interesting...

I tried something new :) tatting on a plastic press stud! The pattern was from the Ring of Tatters newsletter and was designed by Jennifer Williams.

The flower was in 20 coats (the same that was previously used to make Marty's butterfly... I had snipped off a long stretch when I was winding shuttles for the butterfly due to a knot in the ball :( - at least it didn't go to waste!) and 30 green cebelia. 

Outta curiousity for most people which is the "top" of the press stud? The flat bit or the protruding bit - I did the protruding bit on top (and put a dob of glitter fabric paint for the centre).