{Candie Cooper's Journal}

DIY Hair Fascinator for Prom

It's prom time!  I secretly wish I could wear this little number.  Anyone else?  My studio is a few doors down from Ellen's dress shop.  I've been enjoying their ever changing windows with all the different prom dresses, picking my favorite.  Naturally I start thinking about accessories for these dresses (and my prom days, waiting for Seventeen magazine's special issue on the subject).   My gram always made my flowers.  My inner 17 year old self would have to have a foo foo hair fascinator this year.  They are easy to make with a few supplies.  Keep it simple or funky, embracing indivdual style.

You need: a cloth headband, big flower, feathers, a stem of sparkle stones, wire cutters, scissors, hot glue, basically.  Just walk around the craft store, you'll find some fun stuff!

Arrange your pieces on the head band and hot glue as you go.  It helps to work in front of a mirror so you can get an idea of where the pieces will actually be.

And there you go, Buttercup!

The sparkle stem is from Hobby Lobby by Prima and the silk flower is from JoAnn's by Plaid Enterprises.  (Cue Footloose soundtrack)

Making Rainbows

Hello there!  This is my little window herb garden that's kept me going through winter.  Rosemary, mint, and lavender (left to right).  Nothing beats sweet potato fries with fresh minced rosemary and sea salt.  It's almost time to put them back outside.  Yay!  The other thing I wanted to show you are the prisms we hung over the weekend.  Yep, it's rainbow city at about 8:30 AM here (sun willing).

This picture doesn't do the room justice because there are a hundred rainbows bouncing from ceiling to the floor.  Trust me, it makes you feel so happy.  The prism thing started when I was a kid.  My gram has three or four hanging in each window in the living room from pretty ribbons. Us girls would sleep on the floor or couch and wake up to what seemed like a million rainbows.  Magical.  You can pick prisms up for $6 and up depending on the size.  Both gram and I agree that the smaller ones with simple facets make the best rainbows---bigger isn't always better maybe?  This might be a case for Myth Busters. Well, actually, I know that to be true because just the other day I was wearing Swarovski droplet earrings that made rainbows all over the car.  Hmm, I know someone out there knows the reasoning for this.  Until then, I'll just keep letting the light in.

Labor Day Weekend Fun

I remember as a kid that Labor Day was kind of the "last hoorah" of summer.  We always spent it at the lake.  I'm just throwing this little idea out to you kids of all ages--- if you have an extra $10 in your pocket, pick up a *bubble machine and some bubbles for this weekend.  Make it a surprise for your kids, your college roommates or even your spouse that you've been married to for 40 years.  Everyone likes bubbles.  

In other news, I'm up to my ears in instruction writing and shooting how-to photos for my new book.  Things are moving right along and I can't wait to show it to you!!  Yay!

 

*I got the bubble machine at Walmart ($6.28)

Vintage button necklace...

This is what you get after watching a night of royal wedding coverage.  I'm serious!  It all happened so subconsciously.  A pretty vintage button, a few crystals, some nostalgia and blingo!  And besides, anything to use a vintage button for jewelry, right?  To make this I used a large Katiedid component, Beadalon gunmetal chain, button with round shank on back, Swarovski crystals, 3mm coral beads, and a Vintaj Arte metal leaf charm. Also, I sanded the Katiedid and put a coat of liver of sulphur on it....to antique it a bit, you know?

The button with a round shank on the back made it so I could string it just like a bead with the same head pin it's hanging from.  Use a touch of tubing on both sides of the shank to center it---no adhesive required (jic you want to use your button for something else later on).  Ok?

I've always loved vintage.  If I was going to prom, I would wear this little gem.  Or the Royal Wedding for that matter.  Hey, a girl can dream!

Rice Krispie Treat Nests

This is an ol' family favorite treat.  My grandma has made these every Easter for as long as I can remember.  She puts a basket of individually wrapped Rice Krispie Treat Nests out and we nibble on some and stash a few in our tote bags for later.  They are especially good for Monday morning breakfast because it's a little piece of the weekend to soften the blow of the work week.

There are lots and lots of versions for how to make them---see picture ideas here.  I use the original recipe and keep my hands super buttered when forming the little nests.  Drop in some Jelly Belly's for eggs and wrapem' in pretty cellophane.  Grandma puts Easter grass in the basket, then lays them on top.  Super duper cute and yummy!

Tortilla Soup and Day of the Dead Crafting

I love cooking for my friends.  The weekend went so fast, but I couldn't have ended it better.  Eating and crafting with my best pal.  Last night I tried a new recipe which was risky, but I took a chance.  Tortilla Soup.  AMAZING!

Can I just say fried tortilla strips are my new favorite thing?  They are the perfect crispiness!  The only thing I added to the soup was a can of corn.   It went together really easy and I liked that it was a hearty, but somewhat "light" soup.  Good for Spring.

I got the "Survivor" place-mats at Meijer.  You love the way they set the avocado off, don't you?

Within seconds of finishing eating, the table looked like this.  Kaboom.  Craft explosion.  I was so inspired by my trip to the Pilsen district in Chicago last Sunday.  I have been on a mission to make some Day of the Dead art.  By the way, the link above is the guide I used when visiting West Pilsen and it was really, really helpful.  The area is full of interesting things and so fun!  I went to bakeries, botanical shops, cathedrals, taquerias, a pinata store and the National Museum of Mexican Art (which was really incredible).  They also have great vintage clothing stores! We ended up making bright crosses embellished with flat back crystals, old jewelry torn apart with my trusty Beadalon ergo pliers.

And sequins.  Gotta have sequins.  The crosses are from Hobby Lobby.  We also used Folk Art paints and Extreme Glitter along with Mod Podge to adhere the flat-back crystals and paper embellishments.  Mmmmmmm.

A little nod to Rocker....love of my life.  Thank you Crafty Chica for the chihuahua card!

My friend loves baseball.  After she glued it down she said, "watch this thing be worth hundreds in a few years if only left untouched."  We giggled. "Cest la vie," I say!

She went home and back to reality I went working away on some upcoming projects.  I'm so thankful for my friends.

It's been a fulllll day today.  Before I close, thank you Lark Books for a neat little interview and thank you everyone who has a copy of Metalworking 101 for Beaders.  I'm off to help some students with metalworking tonight as a matter of fact.  It's pouring rain.  I think I'll sneak a bowl of leftover soup before I head out.  Viva la Vida!

Learning to Paint Again...

As I write this, "bust a move" is on the radio.  "If you want it, you got it."  We're not talking about the same things, but it's a true statement. My song goes like this. I've been wanting to paint.  The other day I stopped into one of my favorite stores and it so happens they were offering oil painting classes.  $20 for 3 hours.  If you want it, you got it!  Perfecto!  So I got some supplies together and away I went.   I'm not going to lie, I was a little scared.   The anxiety of transferring 3D images to flat....ugh.  Yesterday was my first time oil painting since I took it at Purdue (maybe in 02/03ish?).  I had a great professor then, and my instructor yesterday rocks too!

To add to it, everyone in the class is really fun.  This is the still life I am painting from.  3 perfect pears.  They won't look so very perfect in my painting, but I'm ok with that.  Do you love that fabric?  It's going to make me crazy to paint.

This is how I left my painting yesterday.  Next week I will block out the fabric and start adding more layers to the other areas.  This class is my sudoku puzzle of sorts and I needed it.  What are you doing to challenge yourself?  I find if I don't learn something new or challenge myself, I get so blahhhhh. 

Dazzling Geodes

The Craft and Hobby Association's trade show is fast approaching and I'll be there with Plaid showing off their fantastic Dazzling Geodes line.  If you are coming to the show, stop by and make a necklace using these awesome components! 

The geodes come in all different pretty, earthy colors.  You can put a jump ring on it and string it on a piece of leather or layer it with some of the other pieces like this:

There are also little glass ovals that are really cool.  I glued them on ring blanks with flat back crystals---it took all of five minutes and they looked jazzy.  Check out the project book that is with the line.  It features ideas that the folks at Plaid and I collaborated on.  Like this!

And this!

There are pinch bails, prong settings, links, chain, charms, pendants, and tons more that make assembly really easy.  You could also use the flat geodes for decoupaging to.  Joann Fabrics has the Dazzling Geodes line in case you're hot to get some!

Repurposing a Brooch for a Veil Comb...

This is a piece I made for a special bride-to-be this past fall.  The Mother-In-Law to be commissioned it in hopes of incorporating a treasured rhinestone brooch that was her mothers.  You can see the snow-flake like brooch in the middle.   The dress was ivory so I used off white Swarovski glass pearls and crystals.  With a plain hair comb and a bit of 22g wire you can do anything!  Just anchor your wire to the comb with a few wraps and start stringing and wrapping.  To finish it, I sealed the wrapped area with a satin ribbon.  You can also paint a layer of E6000 over the ribbon and leave to dry overnight to create a bit of "grip".  Or you can always commission me to make one for you.  I don't have long hair, but if  I did I'd probably have a thousand of these things incorporating all kinds of brooches, feathers, charms and whimsies to pin my hair up in.

Picture Blocks...

Hello Crescendoh.com readers!  Thanks for clicking over...   It's an honor to be featured on Crescendoh-thank you, Jenny.  Dear readers, I do hope you find some fun ideas over here from food to crafts, I love living a creative life.

These photo blocks seem really timely since I have a few friends with babies on the way.  I can see them tucked in a nursery with pictures of grandma and grandpa or siblings.  Although, I think they are fun for big kids (like me) too.  You can find sweet little blocks in antique stores and ebay for around $1 each. 

I pulled the twirly wire photo holders from a pre-made photo holder.  Michael's has some unfinished wood blocks with the coils right now for 99cents that you could use (they were tucked in a dollar rack at our store).  Drill a hole in the center of the block, string some beads and even a thimble on the wire and glue them in the hole.  Done!

A moment of silence now as this week I have managed to lose my SD camera card that had 1090 pictures on it.  Shame on me for not downloading them sooner.  Argh.  Lesson learned.  Although, maybe now that I have admitted to losing it to the world, it will turn up!  Fingers crossed.  
 

I heart eggs.

I do.  Always have.  And if you've read my blog(s) for any length of time you know what a fan of "egg in a frame"/"egg in a basket"/"egg in a nest" I am.  My 6th grade home ec teacher taught us how to make them.  Thank you Mrs. Gallahue (who I still bump into around town from time to time---she runs with my kindergarten teacher)! 

Now, I heart hearts just as much as eggs so this is a perfect combo in my mind.  Here you go my sweets...love this idea and site!  And if you want to get really crazy, you can graffiti your toast with cute love sayings like, "You're One Egg-celent Valentine!"  Corny, but fun.

XO, Candie

My Gram's Valentine Cookies...

 

My Gram, Mary DeLauter and I have made these a time or two.  I'm sharing the recipe because we've never heard one complaint.  Not even from grandpa, who gets stuck eating the over-done ones because gram and I've gotten side-tracked yakking or fussing over icing details.  Fussing meaning, grandma puts red hots on EVERYTHING and I'm not such a fan of red hots...although they look so dang cute (truthfully, as I age, they are growing on me).  But, I will never tire of these cookies or apologize for eating two or three in one setting.  Neither should you.  Ok, grab your heart cutters because here's the recipe.

 

Mary D's Sugar Cutout Cookies

¾ C shortening (part butter or margarine)

1 C sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

2 ½ C flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

-Mix shortening, sugar, eggs and vanilla

-Add flour, baking powder and salt

*Chill at least 1 hour

-Oven @ 400

-Roll dough 1/8” thick on lightly floured board.  Cut with cookie cutters and place on un-greased baking sheet.  Bake 6-8 minutes or until golden brown.

 

Butter-cream Decorating Icing

½ C butter

½ C solid vegetable shortening

1 tsp vanilla

½ tsp salt

4 C confectioner’s sugar

3 Tbsp cool milk or cream

-Cream butter and shortening together with electric mixer

-Add vanilla and salt

-Beat in sugar, 1 C at a time, blending well after each addition

*Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often

-Add milk and beat at high speed until light and fluffy

-Add color if you like too...

*Keep icing covered with lid and store in fridge. 

 

Screen it...

or bust! That's my motto!  I'm in Anaheim this week with Plaid Enterprises for the big Craft and Hobby Super Show and Trade show.  You could call it the big dance for crafters.  ;-)

 
I'm excited to be demonstrating one of the "Make and Take" crafts in Plaid's booth!  We will be using Simply Screen, an awesome and easy way to make your own custom screen printed t-shirts. 

 
You can find the Simply Screen line in major craft stores around the t-shirts, aprons, canvas tote bag section....you know the aisle!!  Tons of very cool designs and paint colors.  This is a great indoor winter activity to scare off the winter blahs.  Nothing says hope, like making a new t-shirt for summer...I always say. ;-)  Or wear a long sleeve t under your short sleeve so you can wear it right now (this is what I'm doing for one of the show days).

For those of you in the neighborhood, I'll be watching for you!

XO, Candie

True Confessions...

from a former garage band girl...

 

One of my favorite things about Rocker is his silhouette.  Tonight, when we were out for our walk, there were street lamps shining on our backs creating ultra bold shapes on this shed of a canvas or canvas of a shed..  So we did an immediate U turn back for the camera.  This is Rocker and Candie's the Scream.  Rocker's idea.

 

Photoshop.  What would we do without it?  Anyway, true confessions....I used to be in a garage band back in high school.  The Worms.  That was the name of our band.  I played the bass guitar.   Since moving back to Wabash, affectionately called, The Bash, I've seen a couple of old members.  But tonight, I got a random call, totally out of the blue from one of my old buddies who was also in the band. He's been living in Germany the past 5 years and it was so neat to catch up and talk about living abroad.  I haven't seen him in over 10 years so this was pretty surreal.  Thank you Nate-Dog for calling.  And thanks everyone for the loving emails and comments.  XX.

Seed Bead Loops and Links...

It's Sunday and my coffee cup is still half full as I write this.  I love a slow morning.  I was just looking back at the pictures from the wire wrapping workshop.  The kids made some great pendants that I want to share with you so I'll post pictures this week.  I really like this seed bead loopy loop embellishment (see detail above).  Must do some more experimenting with that back in the laboratory.  Speaking of, it's time to clock into my little work room.  I hope you're having a wonderfully creative weekend.  I'll see you tomorrow. 

Here's this week's Bead Blogger Links....

About.com Jewelry Making
So, you finally have a jewelry web site up now. But why don't you have any sales?

Art Bead Scene
Shakespeare inspires April's Challenge theme.

Earthenwood Studio Chronicles
Melanie ponders acceptance, as well as rejection, as it applies to submitting beading articles to magazines

Jennifer Jangles Blog
Jennifer shows off a necklace made with her new ceramic beads.

Jewelry & Beading
How do you learn about designing if you didn't go to art school? Check out all these online resources and see how you can learn about the principles of design and apply them to your jewelry making!

Katie's Beading Blog
Katie wrote an article about vintage style for Craftrends magazine and it hits mailboxes this week. Are you a subscriber?

Make It Mine Magazine
Even jewelry-making gals need to fix their britches once in a while. Check out the videos.

Naughty Secretary Club
Wanna win a contest or host your own craft show? I thought so. 

Savvy Crafter
Candie’s been “wrappin’” with the high school kids this week to create wire and found object pendants.  

Snap out of it, Jean! There's beading to be done!
Whoa! What have we here? Jim's "lightshow garden" and a pair of chandeliers!

The Impatient Beader Margot received a lovely hand crafted gift from her good friend Jean Yates, come see and hear Jean talk about the gift and the materials she used to create it.

Surpise!

I mentioned before that we were lucky enough to catch a tour of the guitar factory in Cebu.  But!  I haven't told you that one lucky reader of this blog won a surprise from there.  Congratulations to Jean, aka my mom, the lovely winner of a coco-lele as seen on the right of this video.  Surpriiiiiise!  A cocolele is like a ukulele, but it has three halved coconuts on the back side.  They played this little number and then when we said, "we'll take it!" an encore of Rock Around the Clock was played.  I love that kind of enthusiasm.  Velmer (if you listen to the video) was our driver/tour guide and.....hula dancer on the side.  They were a fun group of peeps.  I just hung up on the phone with Jean.  A little history; she has been playing the guitar since 3rd grade.  She owns all sorts of stringed instruments and teaches guitar lessons today.  However, I learned tonight that she is taking lessons again to learn how to play "lead."  Here's what she's working on at the moment-Proud Mary, Come Together and my favorite- Crazy Train.   If you saw my mom walking down the street, she is probably the last person you would expect to know the lead guitar part for Crazy Train.....and that's why we love her.  Can't wait to give this to you!   Hugs   :-) Candie

P.S. It's back to school tomorrow to teach the high school kids how to do wire wrapped found object pendants.  I've got to get to bed!  Stay tuned for pics tomorrow!

DIY Bedazzled-Motorcycle...

The other day I was with my friend Doveen in Hong Kong and we both stopped, jaws dropped when we saw this machine rocked out in studs and crystals.  Top to bottom, end to end, helmet, gloves, every square inch embellished and this was no mini-bike!  It was a lot of bling.   Shamelessly, I whip out my camera so I could show you all.

Those gloves were totally scary.  I later came across one of those silver index finger cover thingies.  Somehow, I just don't think it would have the same effect with my knit gloves from Nepal.  The rider loved the attention as he asked, "do you want to take my picture?"  I got a muscle power pose and I think Doveen maybe got a peace sign.   Dude, you are so cool!

Soup and Links....

It was a fast weekend.  My lease is up on the studio so on Saturday I moved out and into the spare room of our apartment.  Sad?  A little.  But, there are a few headaches caused by my landlords that I will not miss.  It got really cold here again and as you know we have no heat.  Marble floors, cement walls do not go well with not having heat.  I feel like I'm in a cooler.  What does go well with "no heat?"  A sweet little lap dog, a nice blanket, tea, and soup.  I tried a new cream of broccoli recipe after the big move---it was delicious and soothed the aches of the day.  You can get the recipe here.  Note* I may have done a hit and run on the recipe with a Kraft single.  ;-)

Bead Babe Blogger Links...

About.com Jewelry Making
Not feeling inspired to make any Valentine's jewelry? Tammy's got some ideas to get your heart jewelry going on.
http://jewelrymaking.about.com/b/2008/01/22/some-heart-jewelry-ideas.htm
Art Bead Scene
Art Bead Scene has the scoop on Spring jewelry trends!
http://artbeadscene.blogspot.com/2008/01/2008-spring-jewelry-trends.html
Jewelry & Beading
Deborah Kwitney is the featured artist this week on Jewelry & Beading. You'll be amazed by the wide range of styles that Deborah has mastered!
http://www.jewelryandbeading.com/2008/01/24/artist-profile-deborah-kwitney/
Katie's Beading Blogs
If you're going to the upcoming gem/bead shows in Tucson, don't miss Katie's workshops at the Swarovski Event!
http://katiehacker.blogspot.com/2008/01/swarovski-tucson-workshop-2.html
Savvy Crafter
XOXO! Love is in the air over at Candie’s blog as she kicks off the first installment of “Heartsy and Artsy”; Valentine Ideas for your Friends and Family. XOXO!
http://candiecooper.typepad.com/savvycrafter/2008/01/heartsy-and-art.html
Snap out of it, Jean! There's beading to be done!
Jean has a son getting married and her thoughts turn to wedding jewelry: specifically, one of her Party Dress Charm bracelets entitled "Marry Me". It is a dream all in white: Venetian heart shaped beads, Swarovski Crystals, white pearls, sterling, and a sweet special charm which is an "open heart": always let the love in!
http://prettykittydogmoonjewelry.blogspot.com/2008/01/so-happy-to-be-receiving.html
The Impatient Blogger
Going to a big tradeshow for some shameless self promotion? Margot has a little hard earned advice to share about how to maximize your time and energy.
http://margotpotter.blogspot.com/2008/01/show-prep-101-with-your-host-miss.html

Ring-a-ling...

I've been collecting big and funky rings since high school---essentially 10 years.  I find them in thrift stores, garage sales, boutiques, and many have been gifts.  Old and new, I love them.  This is my latest find from Pylones, one of my favorite stores on the planet. I have four Pylones rings now and I adore them because they are fun and cost friendly-my kind of style.  I think the collection of rings started because I wore a lot of vintage clothing from the thrift store.  With a love for jewelry, I was always picking up chunky bracelets or dinner rings.  The rings stuck and after all these years I have quite a stash.  I think Carrot Box's "before and after" is the best illustration of why I think big rings are so cool.  Check it out here.  Every time I see her photos, I think, "exactly!"  Check out her fabulous collection too!

P.S. Off topic, check out Ornamentea's Hearts page....some perfect valentines for your favorite jewelry maker.

Beads On the Beach...

Who doesn't love bead shopping on the beach?  Really!  What's better than having beautiful beads brought to your doorstep?!?!  Vendors at the beach walk around with their baskets of sunglasses, fruits, and my personal fav, pearls and funky shell jewelry.  The last time I was at the beach, I only brought home a few bracelets.  Not this time!  Check out my loot!

Needless to say, I stocked up.  I will stash a few pieces away for gifts and the rest I will cut up and use the parts.  Those green shells in the front are calling my name right now, "Charm bracelet, charm bracelet."

It's always fun to use beads that remind you of a place you visited.  I will associate these with the sounds of waves, the sandy beach, my friends, the cabin where we stayed and so on.  Even though they didn't cost a fortune, I know whatever I make with them will be a treasure of beach-side memories.

Doin' the DIY Shuffle...

Make that Crafty DIY shuffle.

Yesterday a friend and I hopped the 8:30 ferry to Hong Kong for a day of crafty shopping.  Mission accomplished.  We checked out the new Spotlight store, which reminds me of a JoAnn Fabrics Bed, Bath and Beyond fusion.  It was a solid hour of pouring over all things lovely and crafty.  Then we had lunch at the California Pizza Kitchen.  3 words.  Crunchy Thai Salad.  Awesome.

After lunch we road the MTR over to the DIY market in the Sham Shui Po district; several rows and blocks of craft supplies.....in bulk.  Yes, it makes your eyes bulge.

Do you know the scene in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory where Willy Wonka shows them the candy room? Yeah, it's like that.  The sun always shines on this place.

Bags, buckets, baskets, drawers, and more are loaded with beads and charms.  Reel after reel of ribbon and trim.  Countless bead woven creatures made with Swarovski crystals.  It is insane.

Here's a few of my favorite finds from there. If you are crafty and heading to Hong Kong, you don't want to leave this off the travel itinerary.  Give yourself at least two hours to take it all in....if not a day!