August 2012!

08/01-2/2012 - Woven Coin Purse
My intention was to make this a little bigger to fit cards, but I cut it a little too small. It is a really cute little coin purse which I have been meaning to make for myself anyway. I used a loom to weave this so the process did go much faster than the one I had made earlier in the year. 

08/03-4/2012 - Rubber Choker Necklace 

I know these really aren't in style, but I still think chokers are sexy. I was going to add a charm to it, but it didn't really flow. I love this red Asian-inspired fabric that I found at SCRAP to accent it though.

 
08/05-06/2012 - Rubber Tree
This project was much harder than I thought. I tried three different types of glue to make this work. Tires are much harder to work with than the inner tubes because they lack flexibility and are harder glue to each other. I prefer not to use anything too caustic, but I found some rubber adhesive at the hardware store. My goal is to make a giant tree in the future. I think it would need some sort of armature that I could staple or nail the rubber to.

08/07-08/2012 - Experimenting with making more Yoga Slings

My experiments looked like a crazy mess, so I am not bothering to add a picture. I was trying to create different closures than Velcro like I did for the camping bed rolls. I think if I add a little more patience and head back to the drawing board, this could work.

08/09/2012 - Wallet Cuff
I feel purty darn smart for coming up with this. I made an opening in the lining of the cuff to secretly keep cash. The one issue I ran into was the shape of the inner tube that I used. It bowed out in the center a little bit, but I am excited about the concept.
 

 
08/10/2012 - BJ Purse Handle 

This purse was actually Grandma BJ's Christmas present, but the handle was a little too short (I actually cut it down because I was afraid it was too long when I made it). She would still carry it around and show it off though -- I think I should have her be my publicist.

08/11/2012 - Brake Wire Tree
I made this tree by twisting apart the brake wire, then twisting it back to look like a trunk and branches. Of course, my fingers were worse for the wear when I was done. I cut little leave and poked each one through a little strand of brake wire. I really love this, but it still needs some work. Someone at work donated a tree made of brass that looked kind of like mine, so someone else also had my great idea.

 



08/12/2012 - Speaker Box

My sister-in-law and nephew, Heather and Hunter, came over again and we worked on the speaker box project we started in May. We decided to use a jigsaw to cut out the fronts of the boxes. I need to add shelves to mine and add more coats of paint, then I plan to use it as a bathroom shelf. Heather finished hers and made it look artsy and Asian-inspired.

We also entertained the kids, ourselves and great grandma by turning an old swimming pool liner into a slip and slide!





08/13/2012 - School Supply Redux
After talking to my sister in Chicago, I decided it would be cheaper for me to buy my niece's school supplies at SCRAP and mail it to her, then for my sister to buy everything new. I got almost everything from the list that SCRAP had in stock, plus a few extras and only spent $4.88! I did a cost breakdown for SCRAP's blog: School Supplies for under $5!  A few of the items had to be fixed up, like this composition notebook. Thankfully my niece likes wolves and Sierra Club keeps sending me these same exact cards over and over again. Her supply list was very specific, so I improvised with the folders as well. She needed certain colors with pockets, so I added pockets, etc.

08/14/2012 - Map Star 
I enjoy doing paper crafts, but I don't think it is my strong suit. I saw instructions to make this star online, but it was in German, translated into confusing English. I struggled to follow the pictures, but I think I finally figured it out. I also used up a map I got in the mail.

08/15/2012 - Magic Braid Rubber Bracelet

I got excited when I saw the Pinterest Instructions to make this "magic braid" from leather. I figured it could also work with rubber and it did! Hip hop hooray! I must say, I am proud of myself for not just pinning stuff to try, but actually doing it!












08/16-17/2012 - Wire/Rubber Basket 1
The biggest challenge in making my baskets is making a sturdy frame. I bought a pair of sturdy metal frames from SCRAP to turn into baskets. With the wood frames, I have the benefit of stapling the rubber to the wood, but that obviously doesn't work with metal. Because the rubber is so stretchy, I was able to tuck the ends under to hold them in place. They were surprisingly sturdy.

08/18/2012 - Zoe Storage Book
Kids are so rough on books when left unattended. Zoe got this fun pop up book from one of her grandma's, but after a couple years, it was worse for the wear. I took off the cover and glued a zipper around the edges and also glued in a lining for Zoe to keep stuff in. I drilled a couple holes in the spine and pulled ribbon through for the handle. I tried using a plastic handle I had, but the spine was too thick. It is a great storage place for her stickers.

08/19/2012 - JG Bracelet
I am such a nice sister...making all this stuff for my sis, but still haven't sent it to her. Sorry, Jules, guess what will be in your Christmas package? :) I cut thin rubber strands and threaded them through some sparkly letters I got at SCRAP. I used wire to wrap the ends and make a closure.









08/20-21/2012 - Wire/Rubber Basket 2

I made the twin to the basket I made a few days earlier. That's all I got.

08/22/2012 - Doll Arm Jewelry Hangers
These are one of my favorite things I have made. I bought some random doll arms at SCRAP and found some wood samples and attached them to make little jewelry hangers. I am still trying to figure out my fascination with doll parts. Kind of creepy and cool all wrapped together.

08/23/2012 - Cycling Dream Catcher 

UPDATE 4/4/17 - I have removed this photo and craft. At this time, I was oblivious to the fact that creating dream catcher crafts is not appropriate for a non-Indigenous person. Dream Catcher are an important part of what defines Native Americans.

08/24/2012 - Film Canister Salt and Pepper Shakers
I was so excited to use these for our camping trip. Really, how brilliant, film canisters that were the corresponding colors. Not so great when I went to season food while outdoor cooking though. I didn't drill the holes big enough so I just popped the lids of and sprinkled salt and pepper on the food. I am still giving myself kudos for this one though.







08/25/2012 - Zoe Number Tin

We were preparing to take our 3 year old on a 4 hour car ride to camping, so I thought it would be fun to make her a little magnetic number game. First things first -- decorate a cute tin to put it in! I used an old calendar picture and Mod podged it onto the top of an Altoids tin.










08/26/2012 - Game Piece Magnets

I took some old rounded game pieces and glued magnet circles I had cut to the backs for the number tin. At first I tried to paint letters and numbers onto the pieces, but the plasticy blue color made them hard to see. I painted each piece silver then added numbers to them. As you can see there a few numbers missing and a few went AWOL somewhere in the car. It did manage to keep Zoe entertained for quite a while.

08/27/2012 - Crocheted Rubber Circle
I can knit and crochets straight lines for days (but that is about it) and have been wanting to try crocheting rubber into circles. I practiced for many hours on the car ride to our camping trip using regular yarn before I started with rubber. It took me quite a few hours to get this much done, so I need to keep practicing with yarn.

08/28/2012 - SCRAP Kite
Since we were camping on the Oregon Coast, I thought it would great fun to get Zoe a kite. I bought one from SCRAP and Zoe and I decorated it to fly at the beach. The kite achieved about 3.2 seconds of air time before the harsh coastal winds beat it out of the sky. Lesson learned - little plastic kites are no match for the Pacific Coast.

08/29/2012 - Crocheted Bracelet
I was feeling pooped and defeated from my lack of success with the kits and rubber circle, so I made myself a crocheted rubber bracelet on the car ride home. I also made Jason stop on the side of the highway so I could grab some blown tires for my OMSI project (but didn't end up using). I should join a roadside clean-up crew though, there is some interesting stuff out there! 

08/30/2012 - Chain and Bead Bracelet
Breaking chains is surprisingly difficult. Jason got me a heavy duty bike chain breaker, but it is still slow and tedious and leaves my hands filthy. I just love the shapes of the pieces though and enjoy incorporating them into things. I have been thinking about making a bracelet like this for a few years now, I have finally done it! Hoorah!

08/31/2012 - Rubber Chain Strand Bracelet
This has become one of my favorite bracelets to wear. I cut really thin strips of rubber and spaced out the chain links on it. I used aluminum wire to wrap the ends and added a clasp. I think I need to upgrade the wire I am using though.

07/21-31/2012

07/21/2012 - Rubber Triangle Necklace

I saw a picture of this on Pinterest and fell in love with it. It looked like it was just a picture of someone's art, so I hope they don't mind me copying their beautiful design. Every once in a while I get rubber tubes with a colorful line on it, so I incorporated it into this necklace.

07/22-23/2012 - Round Rubber Basket

The picture is kind of deceiving for this basket. I didn't plan the bottom very well and there in a stack of rubber strips about an inch thick so it doesn't sit completely flat. Other than that, I love how it turned out. I made the frame using embroidery hoops that were missing the outer parts and the wire handles from take-out containers for the vertical frames. I do love when I can make my projects from 100% reclaimed materials though!

07/24/2012 - Studded Wrist Cuff

When I first started making things with rubber, I would use scrapbooking brads for embellishments because of the variety of shapes and colors. The problem is (like most things we buy these days) they are so chintzy. I need to find an alternative that doesn't cost much more but has options. Now that I have said that, I used cute little square brads to adorn this cuff.

07/25-26/2012 - Free Form Bracelet 

This really shouldn't have taken me three days to complete this, but I kept adding parts and trying to figure out a good option for the closure. I has seen clamp/crimp closures once upon a time, but just couldn't any at work or at the big box crafty stores. I ended up using a magnetic clasp (for purses) and kind of ruined the whole thing. I may take it apart and redo it sometime. Maybe after my year of creating is over. 

07/27/2012 - Plastic Bowl
My collection of mesh fruit and food bags has grown over the years, but I only used one or two for scrapbooking. I thought it would be interesting to see what happened if I melted them. I turned a metal bowl upside down and layered about 6 layers of the mesh bags over the bowl and covered it with foil. (I wasn't sure what would happen so I put a cookie sheet underneath. The bags shrunk quite a bit so it is a half bowl, but it looks really neat. It is more of an artistic bowl, I suppose.

07/28/2012 - Starbucks Earrings
I made these earlier in the year from Starbucks "splash sticks", or as Zoe calls them, "the mermaid". The design is a little bit different. My sister asked for a pair when I first made them, so I finally got around to it, but now I still need to send it to her.

07/29/2012 - "Olympic" Medal
In the spirit of the Olympics, I took plastic rings in the colors of the Olympic rings and hot glued them to a gold baby formula lid. I had to cut the rings to connect them but those little bugger plastic rings were a pain to hot glue back together. I awarded my sweet husband with his own medal. This would be a fun project for little ones during the Olympics.

07/30/2012 - Pink/Rubber Yoga Mat Strap
I found some great bright pink fabric at work that I thought I could use for a yoga mat strap, but (probably through poor execution) it just didn't work out quite right, so this turned into a half finished project. I didn't want it to go to waste, so I used it for my project for the next day. Just another case of trial and error.

07/31/2012 - Rubber “Bangle" Bracelet
The pink fabric didn't work out as the yoga mat strap, so I turned it into a "bangle" type bracelet.

7/20/12 - Angry Birds Name Diorama

This project probably just shows that I have played Angry Birds one too many times. I made this for my husband's niece's birthday. The kid in me wished that my name was "Iris" so I could have kept it for myself, tee hee.

Reclaimed Material: wood scraps, plastic mailer, plastic toy packaging, Chinese food take-out handle, old cigar box
Other Material: clay, wire
Tools: hot glue gun, paint and brushes, marker, sand paper, scissors 

Random thoughts about this project: I haven't done a diorama since I was a kid, but they were some of my favorite school projects. It took me a while to figure out how to do the rocks. I started wrapping paper balls around the "s" shaped take out handle. I ended up wadding up bits of a plastic bag and hot gluing the "rocks" to the handle. A few fingerprints were lost in the process though.

07/19/12 - Wooden Bible

I bought a piece of a wood flooring sample with a rubber strip on it from SCRAP because it reminded me of a book. After a few months, I had an "aha" moment and decided to turn it into a decorative "Bible" for my mom. Since the rubber strip could be removed, I decided after I painted it to turn it into a small keepsake box.

Reclaimed Material: Wood Flooring Sample
Other Material: none 
Tools: gold paint pen, drill, chisel


Random thoughts about this project: Painting this to look like a Bible was the easy part. Trying to chisel out the middle for the box portion without ruining the piece was a challenge. I hollowed out a little bit then set it aside thinking I had plenty of time to finish it for my mom's birthday in September...and I managed to forget about it until right before her birthday.

07/01-07/18/2012

07/01/2012 -Rubber Band Headband
July 1st was a busy day for me. I worked all day then rushed home to get ready for my hubby to take me out for my wonderful birthday dinner. I didn't think I would want to work on anything after my hot date, so I did this project in the car ride to the restaurant. I cut 1/4" segments along the width of the tube. (If you are in a pinch and need rubber bands and have an inner tube, just cut the size you want by cutting through the width of the tube.) Then started pulling one band through the other to connect them together. I don't know how to describe the process, but when I got to the end I had to use a long strip to tie the ends together.

07/02-06/2012 - Really Big Inner Tube Basket
This is an offshoot from my 12 basket project for my sister-in-law. I love this giant size (2'x3') but the frame was too weak to support the rubber. This will be revisited with a stronger frame. Well, revisited four times since four baskets are needed.






07/07/2012 - Zoe's Lacey Skirt
This is another adult sized skirt that was stuck in with fabric at a fabric pricing party at SCRAP a few months prior. Zoe, of course, looks adorable wearing it. It reminds me of a girly steampunk skirt and I want to make a matching fitted vest and little top hat to go with it.

07/08/2012 - Practice Rubber Wrist Cuff
Wrist cuffs seem to be my "go to" craft. I think it was the first of my daily crafts. I made a practice cuff to lead a craft for Destination DIY's "Makin' It" Event on July 18th.


 

07/09-12/2012 - Camping Roll Slings
We have those wonderful self-inflating bed roll mattress thingies. The problem is containing them when not in use. I created a yoga mat-type sling to carry them and keep them together, out of, yes, you guessed it, rubber inner tubes. There are some kinks to be worked out, but I was happy with how they turned out. I got them done in time for out family camping trip.




07/13/2012 -Beer Can Lantern
Considering I freehand cut this lantern with a camping knife it didn't turn out too shabby. The ribbon I hung it from didn't seem like a good idea to combine with a citronella candle though.





07/14/2012 - Glow Bottle
I had read on Pinterest comment that you could make a glow bottle by opening a glow stick and pouring it in a water bottle filled with water. WRONG! I emptied about 6 glow sticks into a half filled water bottle before I finally gave up. All I could think of was those funny "nailed it" memes when people try to copy things from Pinterest. No photo of the lameness, but my sister-in-law did a hilarious thing where she taped glow sticks to herself to look like a stick figure lady. When it got really dark we walked around the campground cracking people up.

07/15/2012 - Rubber Wrist Cuffs
I was pretty pooped after getting home from our trip and made a simple rubber cuff to use as a sample for the Makin' It DIY event.







07/16/2012 - Wooden Bracelets
Another Pinterest attempt. I like how these turned out for the most part, but the white one didn't keep it's shape so it is too big to wear. I started the soaking process before the camping trip. Here are the instructions to give it a try: Wooden Bracelets.





07/17-18/2012 - More Wrist Cuffs 

I made a couple more examples of cuffs and led a quick tutorial at the Makin' It DIY event on the 18th. I didn't realize until a couple weeks later and had it pointed out by someone that this is not the peace symbol I intended. It was a big "duh" moment that I was showcasing an upcycled rubber cuff promoting the Mercedes Benz logo.