Something Out Of Nothing: Part 2

I'm happy to report that Hubby is feeling much better and is recouperating well.  However, he has been through several cases of bottled water during his recouperation.  What to do with all these stinking water bottles?  Make flowers of course!

This first set of flowers were made from a generic brand of water in which the top portion of the bottles were ridged, thus giving the flowers some riges on the petals.  I wasn't real happy with the look of the ridges, so I started buying Dasani water because the tops of the bottles are smooth.  (Sorry, I dont' have any pictures of the flowers made with the Dasani bottles, nor did I take pictures for steps 1-4;  next time I will be sure to get pictures of each step!)

Step 1:  Remove the cap and put aside, then cut your bottle depending on how large you want your flower.  I usually cut at the first horizontal ridge just below the slanted top.

Step 2:  Cut your petals equal distance apart vertically from the edge toward the top all the way around.  You can get creative here and cut on an angle or in a wavy deisgn and in various widths.

Step 3:  Cut the tips of your petals in whatever desired shape.  Some I made curved, and others I made slanted cut, and still others I made with a pointed tip.

Step 4:  Bend your petals at the base to get the desired shape.

Step 5:  Spray paint the bottom first, and when dry, spray paint the top.

Step 6:  Spray paint your cap your desired color and let dry.

Step 7:  Glue your painted cap on the top of your petal.  The only glue I had on hand was fingernail glue (thank you 13yo daughter!) and I must say, it worked very well!  I put the glue around the center of the flower then placed the cap in the glue and held it until it dried (about 20 seconds).

Step 8:  If you would like, you can attach a magnet to the back to place on your fridge, or attach it to a floral stick to place it in your garden.  Use your imagination and most importantly, have fun!









Something Out Of Nothing: Part 1

Yes, finally Corn Field Finds has a blog!  Yippie!  I've been intending to start a how-to blog for some time now, but fate stepped in and I've finally had enough time on my hands to make it happen. 

Unfortunately, fate dealt my husband an awful blow when he was involved in an accident on the family farm in Oklahoma.  After surgery and several days in ICU, he is home recouperating for what might be 6 weeks!  So, needless to say, I'm trying to keep myself busy by taking advantage of this time to get some crafting done.

The "farm" is our getaway home and as since we were just here for a visit, I didn't have my myriad of crafting tools on hand to satisfy my creative addiction.  Since it is a ways to town and I couldn't leave hubby for too long, I decided to make do with what I had around the house (and in the barn) to come up with some craft goodies, thus making "something out of nothing."

This is the view from my "office".

So without further ado, let's get to it.  The first necessity in any crafting project for me was the need for Mod Podge.  Since a quick trip to the nearest hobby store was out of the question, I googled and found a recipe for homemade Mod Podge.  Honestly, I had no idea how simple it was to make, not to mention how cheap!

Materials

empty water bottle or jar

4oz. bottle of glue (Elmers or similar)

4oz. water

1Tbsp. clear varnish (optional if you want a glossy finish)

Step 1:  Empty 4oz. of glue into empty water bottle.

Step 2: Pour 4oz. of water in with the glue.  If you want a glossy finish, add 1Tbsp. clear varnish.

Step 3:  Shake, Shake, Shake!

Voila!  Homemade Mod Podge for about $1!