Showing posts with label kawaii. Show all posts
Showing posts with label kawaii. Show all posts

Monday, October 24, 2011

Candy Button Resin Necklace Project!

If you're a DIY-er like me, you're always seeing inspiration everywhere. I'm going as Katy Perry for Halloween this year, probably my most involved costume yet. I'm altering my costume (I got a white tutu and am putting sparkly dots on it) and making my jewelry. So if you want to make your own candy button jewelry too, here's how I did it!

Get your Candy Buttons (the kind on the white paper) and clean them up a bit, as they have a tendency to take some of the paper with them when you pop them off.
You'll want to seal the candies so they don't disintegrate in the resin and the color doesn't bleed. In an area with lots of ventilation, spray them with at least two coats of an acrylic spray, I used Krylon. Let dry between coats.



They'll move around a bit but make sure they're coated well!



Make sure they're completely dry, mix up your resin (I use Castin Craft's clear epoxy) and only fill your molds about 1/4 of the way full, just enough to cover the candies. Put your candies in the resin the way you want them. I wanted them to look just like the real thing so I went with the pink/yellow/blue situation. Let cure for as long as required, most require a day to cure.




Now for your final resin step, you can do this in many ways. You can use more clear resin in the last layer and put glitter in it, sprinkles, whatever you want! I used a resin type that cures white, just because I wanted it to look like the candies were on the white paper tape.
Additionally, I wanted some sparkle, so I used a glittery varnish over the piece.




And just because I wanted something fun on my own piece, I put little crystal hearts on the chain and made myself a ring too!




You can make these your own in so many ways, so as long as you have time (and the patience!), you can make tons of fun, unique pieces!

P.S., if you don't have the patience, I have one made up for you to buy in my Etsy shop!
http://www.etsy.com/listing/84580068/sweet-tooth-candi-button-resin-necklace

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Loving Google's Logo Again. It's Murakami!

I was introduced to Takashi Murakami's art because of the first Louis Vuitton collaboration in 2003 (the candy colored Multicolore line.) From there, I immediately liked the adorable Cherry Blossom line, Cerises (cherries), Panda and the elusive LV Hand logo that appeared on pieces exclusive to the MOCA exhibit in Los Angeles. So of course, I am loving the Google logo today, which features KaiKai and Kiki as well as lots of the adorable smiling flowers! Murakami does do more...shall we say...risque work (Hiropon is quite odd and makes me uncomfortable) and they have their own dedicated fans, as expected. But I'm into the adorable big-eyed characters like the ones on the logo today!

Here's the logo:



And to find out more information on Murakami, click the link below (site is available in English)!
http://www.kaikaikiki.co.jp/c-murakami

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Katy Perry Concert? Okay!

A friend has been wanting to go the Katy Perry concert, her sisters are going but when they offered her tickets awhile back, she didn't want to go. Well, she changed her mind and needed a companion, so I'll be going! I'm not a huge fan but I know it'll be fun seeing all of Katy's costume changes. All the crazy cute food clothing and accessories she has worn are things I'd love to wear but don't have the guts to do it!
The concert isn't until August but I know I'll have fun figuring out what to wear myself. I'll definitely be making some jewelry pieces, obviously something fun with sprinkles inside!
I was looking around on ebay for different ideas and came across this seller with this adorable costume! If I had the nerve and some money to blow, I would SO wear this because it's too cute.



If you want to purchase it yourself, just follow the link!
http://cgi.ebay.com/WOW-Katy-Perry-California-Gurls-Candy-Dress-Costume-/150593663922?pt=UK_Women_s_Dresses&hash=item231014f3b2

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Ice Cream Pins on Must Have Cute!

I submitted my mini ice cream pins a long time ago to this website, Must Have Cute, and I never heard anything or saw them on the "finds" page so I figured they weren't accepted.
Well lo and behold, I was on the site's voting page today and saw them waaaay back on page 18! As more items are added, they'll move further down, but for now they're on page 18. Please check them out and give them a "thumbs up!"

http://musthavecute.com/vote/page/18/


UPDATE as of 9/28: You can vote from here instead! http://cheezburger.com/View/3231431680



Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Gold Glitter Resin Torso Pendant!

It seems like lately I've been prefacing every post with how busy I am, I feel bad about it! But sometimes life has a way of sneaking up on you and piling everything on at once; the last few weeks have been no exception.

I did manage to get lots of my new absolute favorite items poured, my resin torso pendants! I think these are the most unique things I've seen in a long time, hence the reason why I was so excited to get the mold and get started! I was a tad hesitant at first because as resin jewelry makers know, different molds can affect the curing process of the resin. For example, the mold I use for these torso charms is silicone (rather than the non-stick plastic of the Castin Craft/ETI molds) and will sometimes give the resin an opaque appearance. I fixed this by using a layer of Diamond Glaze over the piece which works out really well, as it brings out the sparkle and color more!

Here's a group picture of all of the pendants I've completed so far:



And my first one I'm trying out on Etsy, hopefully people like these as much as I do! I have many more ideas for colors and things to embed in this particular mold, I might just have to buy more molds to try all the ideas I have in my head; I can't wait a whole day for them to cure before wanting to try something else haha.



Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Spam Spam Spam

I had a lovely morning trying to figure out why my mom's email was sending out spam to everyone. Think I got it figured out, hopefully it was a one-off and it won't happen again. If it does, then I'll delve into it more but I hope I won't have to. *fingers crossed*

Other than that...here's a newbie I posted yesterday, a fun "Sorry...closed" sign resin pendant. I think it's pretty funny. Click the picture to be taken to the listing!

Thursday, April 8, 2010

New Stuff!

In the midst of lots going on, I've been able to make a few new things. I've been making lots more resin pieces and finished a few that I am REALLY happy with. The heart is kind of an "oops" because there are 2 pieces of glitter in it that shouldn't be there, but it's still cute. I'm partial to all the sign pieces!
Additionally, the felt pieces are of a nesting doll/matryoshka and one of the well known "We Are Happy to Serve You" takeout coffee cups.




I did get my very first resin piece listed on Etsy today, just click the picture to be taken to the listing!

Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Trying Something New...Resin Jewelry!

I've decided to try making resin jewelry! I love how quirky the pieces are and I also love the idea of embedding practically anything in the resin to be preserved forever! I tried to make a few pieces last year but it was one disastrous FAIL after another. So after making cloudy piece after cloudy piece, I gave up and put my resin away. It wasn't until my mom was looking for something a few weeks ago that she found my resin and molds and it sparked my interested again so I tried to give it another go.
Oddly enough, it was on my second attempt that I realized it was actually the mold release that was making each and every one of my pieces come out cloudy in some spots. Plus, I didn't have my hardener/resin mixture exactly evenly measured so everything was turning out sticky. Unfortunately, when you don't get the resin mixed properly, you're wasting a good chunk of money (depending on your brand, I use Castin' Craft) on failed batches of resin and hardener. So needless to say, it makes me wince every time something comes out less than perfect. *Fingers crossed* that I have it figured out now! Here's a little progress timeline:

Here was the first batch, before I realized the mold release was making them cloudy...



Then the second, no mold release, trying out separate layers of glitter with the sticker in it's own layer in the front!





And third...trying transparent color resin dye...another thing that kills me to waste..too much and the resin will not fully cure, but turn out flexible instead. Too little and the color is barely visible. These turned out great!





And just a few of my latest! I actually colored a couple with just a touch of tempera paint to make them opaque and did more layers of glitter on the others since I'm a sparkle girl. I already put necklace findings on the rectangular ones and a ring back on the green glitter one. LOVE them, may list them soon. Or not. ;)





Any thoughts?

Thursday, February 25, 2010

To Make More iPhone/iPod Cases...Or Not?

I'm in a bit of a conundrum as to whether I should make these a part of my shop. I made one case as an experiment last night and just finished it a little while ago. I wanted it to fit around the clear plastic iPhone cases as well since I want to keep my phone covered but still keep the protective case on it too. Anyway, here are the pictures...any opinions would be great!



Sunday, February 21, 2010

Latest, "Happy Weather" Pins//2 More Treasuries!

I've really been feeling the creativity bug this weekend and have been coming up with lots of ideas for new things! It mostly happens in my twilight stage of sleep lol, so I have to remember the ideas in the morning.
I made these up last night and then had to get pictures taken quickly today since it has been raining on and off!

My "Happy Weather" pins, as always, click the picture to be taken to my Etsy listing!




And I'm featured in 2 more treasuries, TheEverydayDiva_Co's "Spring" treasury:




And WomanwithTools' "Sunset" treasury:

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Friend's Blog Giveaway & New Items

First off, I want to promote a friend's giveaway for some of her adorable pinwheel business cards! She is giving away 10 of these, can't you just imagine setting up a table at a craft show and having these cute cards spinning in the breeze?



Click here to go to Jessica's blog and follow the super simple instructions to enter: http://craftyblabberings.blogspot.com/2010/02/pinwheel-business-cards-giveaway.html



Secondly, here are 2 new items of mine, I made a custom order for a friend yesterday, a pink elephant coin purse. Contact me if you'd like your own!:




And a dice pin, which is now available in my shop! Click the picture to be taken to the listing. ^ . ^

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Rainbow & Clouds Card Holder// New Treasury!

I've been wanting to make this one for awhile now, but I knew it was going to take some time (2.5 hours to be exact lol). So while watching American Idol last night, then The Good Wife, I worked on my rainbow and clouds coin purse/card holder! I LOVE how it turned out, it's probably my favorite one so far. Of course, it's the one that takes the most work haha. Anyway, I've listed it on Etsy already, click the picture to be taken to the listing.




And I woke up this morning to a convo on Etsy from a sweet friend who included me in their treasury!



Also just an update, I FINALLY got another "accepted" notification from Craftgawker, this time for my mini ice cream cones. Yay!
http://craftgawker.com/post/archive/ritzee-rebel/

Friday, February 12, 2010

Treasury Time/// New Listing on Etsy!


I snagged a treasury last night and featured some of my friends from the Hearts and Hands United group. I named the treasury "Animal Instincts" because I found lots of nice animal-related items to include. Just click the picture to the left to enlarge it and take a gander at all the great items!




Secondly, I've been inspired by the upcoming Alice in Wonderland movie as many of us have! I decided to use a well known icon from the movie rather than using a picture or direct graphic in my work; that icon I used is the Mad Hatter's hat!





See the listing here for more info: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=40536876

Monday, February 8, 2010

Bunny and Heart Felt Coin Purses & Link to Kim Smith Bracelet Giveaway

Here are my newest listings, bunny and heart felt coin purses! You can use them as mini wallets or card holders as well so they're multi-use. I'm just getting started with these, I think I may end up doing more of these than pins, since pins haven't been selling that well.
I suppose I'm getting a late start for Valentine's Day and a REALLY early start for Easter lol but I like how they turned out anyway.









See the listings here:
Bunnies- http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=40309548

Heart- http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=40310179




Additionally, I found a giveaway on a blog I follow, she's giving away a beautiful Kim Smith bracelet of your choice:


http://melaniescrafts.blogspot.com/2010/02/kim-smith-charm-bracelet-giveaway.html

Visit and enter, good luck!!

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

For the Ice Cream Lovers...Mini Ice Cream Cone Pins

I've been dying to post these because I'm so happy with how they turned out. I actually wore them on my jacket today when I went out and got lots of compliments on them! They're 2 little ice cream cone pins and I can make them in lots of "flavors" if you have another you prefer. A "mint chip cone" (minty green with brown beads for chocolate chips) would be so cute too! If you love ice cream or just want to be reminded that you already HAVE ice cream so don't need to eat it, these are perfect for you! Just click the picture to be taken to their link on Etsy.