Corn Husk Poinsettia

Simple and biodegradable DIY decor for Christmas.

An almost costless Christmas is not impossible if we'd only look around for materials to recycle.

For the all-natural category, corn husks may- if not top the list for the most flexible. 

Materials needed:
~ dried corn husks
~ floral wires
~ pair of scissors
~ gold spray paint (optional)

 Step 1: cut into shape 5 petals

 Step 2: take a thin strip of corn husk and make a loop
 Step 3: make 3 pcs. of looped strips
 Step 4: arrange the 5 petals around the loops

 Step 6: secure the corn husks with floral wire

Create several others depending on the arrangement of the decorations that you've decided to make.

 Step 7: embellish with spray paint or glitter dusts for a more festive effect.

DIY Christmas 'Cookies' Ornaments

Only two ingredients plus a sprinkle of creativity.

Actually, this project happened because I found a pack of expired crushed graham that I wouldn't want to go to waste. If you do not have one in your pantry, don't fret because you could do with any store-bought air-hardening clay or visit my post about homemade bread clay to be just as economical.

To start off, you only need to mix these two ingredients to make a dough.

A pack of expired crushed graham and white glue.

Mix in the white glue slowly, checking out the consistency as you knead till everything clump together and nothing sticks on your hand anymore. Put the dough inside a plastic bag and let it rest for about thirty minutes.

Roll it flat then open up the plastic bag and you are ready to cut away.

Very much like preparing a real cookie dough.

Christmas cookie cutters would come in handy at this point but there's no reason to not use a craft knife when cookie cutters are not available.

Time for the fun part.

Decorate your 'cookies' with glitter dusts, tiny beads, shiny little trinkets and whatnots. Don't forget to pierce holes for the tag strings.

'Bake' or dry them cookies, beside the window maybe facing the sun.

Not forgetting to dry the underside of course.

Christmas 'cookies' ornaments looking good to eat.

DIY Large Royal Crown

1.5' in diameter crown for church pageantry

I was recently tasked to make a large royal crown for our church anniversary's opening pageantry. For this I needed about 1' x 5' of metal sheet. I was only able to buy a 3' x 3' stucco embossed aluminum sheet that I had to cut in half to make two 1' x 3' pieces.

Materials and tools used:
~ aluminum sheet
~ plastic gems
~ large sheet of paper (manila paper or an old calendar page)
~ marker
~ metal cutting/heavy duty pair of scissors
~ electric drill
~ several rivets and a hand rivet gun
~ pliers
~ gold paint spray (18k gold)
~ contact cement
~ safety gears(glasses and gloves)

Because I had little time to create it, I was not able to take a lot of pictures.

The Paper Pattern. Since I worked with a two-piece aluminum sheet I had to make a paper pattern for a half part of the crown. Take 1' x 2.5' paper and fold in half. Fold each half - in half. Draw  pattern on the folded paper and cut.

Transferring the Pattern. Trace the paper pattern onto the aluminum sheets (two of them) then cut with a metal cutting pair of scissors. Do wear gloves and glasses.

Folding the edges. To make the aluminum sheet appear thicker I slightly folded all the edges using a pair of pliers

Rivets. To connect the two sheets, first drill tiny holes and apply rivets using a hand rivet gun

Gold Paint. After folding all the edges (which will also make it easier to hold the crown) apply the gold spray paint in several coats, take care to read the instructions on the paint can.

The Plastic Gems. Plan the placement of the plastic gems before attaching them on the crown. Arranging them beforehand will make the glue-ing  a lot smoother. Because the surface of the crown is embossed and its structure itself is curved, I chose to adhere the gems using contact rubber cement.

Contact Rubber Cement. Carefully put this adhesive on the back of each plastic gems. Wait till the rubber cement becomes a bit cloudy and therefore stickier and no longer runny, then stick them on the crown.

Finishing Touches. While the rubber cement is drying some of the gems might slip a bit and that would be arranged as long as the adhesive has not yet dried completely. Carefully go through the gems from time to time to check, and that will make for the finishing touches and its done.

The finished crown.

DIY Ice Cream Tub Bee Planter

DIY ice cream tub planter.

A variation of my last blog post DIY Ice Cream Tub Butterfly Planter- is its garden companion bee this time.

Things you may need:
     ice cream tub/s
     extra lids
     screw driver
     pair of scissors
     cutter
     nylon cable ties
     marker
     tie wires
     acrylic paints

Some of the things that you may need.

To make the wings:
~Take the lids assigned as wings and cut off the hard edges using a cutter. You may be surprised to find how easily it would cut through.

To make the head:
~Draw a pattern on paper and cut. Trace its outline onto a lid using a marker and cut.

Prepping the Tub:
~For proper drainage, the tub needs holes at its bottom; that's when the screw driver would come in handy and again you would be surprised to find how easily it is to poke holes through with a little force and twisting of the tool.

~Here then enters more assignment for your screw driver.

The Head:

~For the head you would need to poke four holes on the front of the tub for two cable ties to pass through, the head would need four corresponding holes too. 

Here it is with all the parts attached to the tub using nylon cable ties.

Now your planter is ready for painting, have fun with it using the colors of your choice and before planting do not forget to attach wires for hanging.

DIY Ice Cream Tub Butterfly Planter

DIY Ice Cream Tub Planter

If you are an icecreamavore like me and you get to dig your hands in these tubs on a regular basis then why not salvage some and try out this project. To add fun and colors to your garden you can DIY this butterfly planter out of an ice cream tub.

Things you may need:
ice cream tub/s
extra lids
screw driver
pair of scissors
cutter
nylon cable ties
marker
tie wires
acrylic paints

Some of the things that you may need.

To make the wings:
~Take the lids and cut off the hard edges using a cutter. You may be surprised to find how easily it would cut through.

You would need a pair of these

~For a butterfly's double wings, another pair of smaller lids would be necessary. They would then need to be cut into shape.

Prepping the Tub:
~For proper drainage, the tub needs holes on the bottom; that's when the screw driver would come in handy and again you would be surprised to find how easily it is to poke holes through with a little force and twisting of the tool.

~Here then enters more assignment for your screw driver.

~The wings would need to be attached to each other with a little overlapping of the larger lid.

Using nylon/ non-corrosive material would be the best choice for the plant.

Here is one side done.

The Head:
~For the head you would need to poke four holes at the front of the tub for two cable ties to pass through and cut a round shape on another lid that would need four corresponding holes too. To do this, trace the holes on the tub onto a paper and that would serve as the pattern for the head.

With added materials for the antennae your planter is ready for painting, Have fun with it with the colors of your choice and before planting do not forget to attach wires for hanging.

Check out its garden companion: DIY Ice Cream Tub Bee Planter.