Ancient Sword Prop

All throughout the internet are a thousand and one ways to come up with a pretend sword or weapon of some sort. Being someone who has been fascinated with sword fights in movies, I found my son's need for a prop blade to be an opportunity for me to (likewise) pretend to be ~ a sword-smith.;D

A prop weapon inspired by a traditional Filipino sword the talibong.

 I practically did not spend a thing for this project. For the 'blade' I used a thin but sturdy PVC material that I covered with a silver paper salvaged from a chocolate box packaging.

You had only need to look around to find PVC on used folder, clear book or notebook covers and other office supplies. I found it better than using corrugated board because it is thinner and stronger and much easier to draw from sheath if ever your prop sword would require one.

For the sheath and handle I used corrugated board covered with paper and decorated with aluminum inner milk-can seal with pressed-in design to resemble engraved metal. A heat glue gun should easily hold all the materials together.

Foil Lid Christmas Angels

Christmas is truly that time of year for crafters to get into creative mode and turn virtually anything into an ornament or a seasonal statement. Here are some tips to turn that aluminum foil lids from your children's formula into whimsical Christmas angel decors using only a pair of scissors.

(1) The pull~up ring is the reference point and will serve as the head. (2) Cut small slots on both sides of the aluminum one~third of the way from the ring. (3) Turn the whole thing into a cone, pinch the lower part of the ring a bit and (4) cut an inverted v-shape at the back of the angel.

 (5) Lay open and flatten out the cut portion. (6) Interlock the slots at the front. (7) Using the half part of another foil lid, cut the shape of the wings. (8) Fold at the center and cut an upright v-shape.

(9) Attach the wings to the back of the angel by interlocking the v-cuts on both. (10) Now the general basic shape of the angel is completed and you can proceed to embellishing and decorating it to your taste. (11) Aluminum foil can be embossed over any intricately designed finding like a perfume cap (12) or you can hand emboss it by using any sharply~pointed object.

You can decorate your angels further with other materials like craft beads or glitters and you can either hang them up on your tree or prop them on dainty bottles.

Tin Foil Decorated Jars

Here is something for jar recyclers...

it's tin foil this time~ cut, painted and glued to the jar lid.

And I think it's quite promising.

Most of you moms are familiar with this. It's a fun material to work with. It can be smooth out with any flat object, cut and then painted with enamel afterwards. I painted mine with nail polish, they come in all fabulous colors imaginable after all. 

Tin Can Votive Project

Adding ones magic touch on something common is often the challenge to any crafter. Here is a way to use a discardable object such as a tin can to create something really special.

You  need a couple of tin cans, some ordinary glasses, old nail polish,a heavy duty pair of scissors, a sturdy glue and lots of patience...and you need to protect your eyes and hands too.

Take cues from nature when thinking up your design.