Spooky Cuties (wee ghostie brooches for under £5!)

Hello, ghoulies and girlies!

Halloween is coming and it's a perfect excuse to get crafting. Follow these simple ten steps to make yourself your own little ghostie to celebrate the turn of the season!

Let's get started!

WHAT YOU WILL NEED:

• Ruler
• Lighter
• Scissors
• Glue
• White Grosgrain (16mm)
• Coloured Double Sided Satin (7mm)
• Googly eyes
• Glue-on Diamante
• Brooch pin

STEP 1.

• Snip your grosgrain into four pieces.
• I went for 6cm pieces, but it depends on how big/small you want your brooch!
• (don't worry about trailing ends, we'll get rid of them in a minute)

STEP 2.

• Cut a diagonal line across the bottom of your grosgrain, and seal ribbon with a lighter or other flame source.
• I used a lighter because I like the wavy line is can produce, adding to my ghostie's spooky effect!

STEP 3.

• Glue your pieces together, overlapping each ribbon just before halfway.
• You don't need lots of glue for this, just a little gem-tac does the trick.
• Wait for the glue to dry!

STEP 4.

• Once the glue in dry, curve the top of your ghostie with your scissors, and seal it again with your lighter or other flame source.

STEP 5.

• Add your eyes!
• I found this best to do over the joins, and then I added a tiny little bit of glue to the centre join about halfway down, just to keep it together.

STEP 6.

• Now for the little bow.
• Cut about 10cm of your coloured ribbon (I went for purple!) and seal the ends.
• The easiest way to do this bit is to cross the ribbon as shown above and glue together.
• Wait for glue to dry.

STEP 7.

• Flip your ribbon over and, pinching the middle, twist it over.
• Add a little glue over the back of your original join and stick it down.

STEP 8.

• Glue a diamanté of your choice to the centre of your bow.
• Or a button! Or any sort of decoration that you see fit.

STEP 9.

• Press the ribbon into the top left hand corner of your ghostie and wait for it to dry.

STEP 10.

• Finally, add your brooch pin to the back.
• I've glued mine, but it's also possible to sew it on if you feel that's appropriate.
• Alternatively, try hairbands or hairclips - the possibilities are endless!

TA-DA!

And there we have it!

A quick wee ghostie brooch to put you in the mood for some Halloween crafting.

Thanks for listening!

If you have any questions, ideas, or creations of your own - feel free to send them to us at tara@josyrose.com.

HAPPY CRAFTING

How To Create A Unique Bowl Out Of Buttons

It’s that time of month again where we share our handy tips and tricks on how to create cute craft projects. This month we’re taking a look at what you can create for the home and we have come up with this super easy tutorial on how to create a unique bowl out of buttons.

 All you’ll need is this:

•    Flat buttons – try experimenting with colours to create your desired look
•    Balloons
•    White PVA glue
•    Large paint brush
•    Scissors
•    News paper
•    Cup or can to balance balloon on while it dries

Step 1

 

Firstly, you will need to take one balloon and blow it up to the size you want your bowl to be as you will create your bowl shape using the curve of the balloon.

Step 2

 

Hold the balloon at the end with the knot and take your paint brush, dip it into your glue and cover the other end and sides (to the point where you want the bowl to end) in glue.

Step 3

 

Let the glue dry completely, to do this place the knot end of the balloon in a cup or can to balance the balloon.

Step 4

 

When the first layer is completely dry, apply a second coat of glue using your brush. Start at the top of the balloon and work your way down toward the knot. Attach buttons to this layer as close together as you can fit them.

Step 5

 

When you are finished attaching all of your desired buttons turn your button covered balloon upside down in your cup or can so that the knot is in the air and the buttons are balanced on the cup.

Step 6

 

When the second layer of glue and buttons is completely dry you will need to coat the buttons again with a third layer of glue.

Step 7

 

When your bowl is completely dry use yours scissors to cut the knot on the balloon to slowly let the air out. Use your scissor to snip any unwanted glue bits away from the button edge and there you go, your very own button bowl!