Craft Bins, Post Two

Let me just warn you at the outset that this is going to be a very long post. I have 24 pictures to share (24!) and we're talking about one of my most favorite subjects, so hang on to your hats ... here we go. :)

This afternoon, with Bill's blessing, I poured myself a cup of coffee (well, I reheated what was left in the pot) and sat down at the dining room table to take survey of my craft bins. In order to do this, I pulled everything out, one bag at a time, and wrote down what I have on hand.

What I aim to do is check my list against the suggestions made at 4Real in this thread (how happy am I that a new crafters's forum has opened up there?) and also, to try to forecast, a month at a time, what crafts I envision us doing. Most of our crafts revolve around the seasons (natural and liturgical), so there's the ability (if not always the time) to plan ahead.

Once I have a master list put together it will go inside a craft binder - a reminder of what I don't need to buy at the craft store.

So, here's the rundown ... in no particular order:

1. Cookie cutters ~ Educational, seasonal, holiday and faith-related. Great for baked dough creations (ornaments etc.) and, of course, cookies. The alphabet ones are indispensable. A gift of iced and decorated sugar cookies spelling out Be Mine (Valentine's), Rejoice (Easter), or Peace (Christmas) would be grand. Party favors too - spell out your guests' names and package them up! Or make up a bag of letters to unscramble into a secret message. (Use a sturdy cookie dough.) I don't see any here but I particularly love my mini cookie cutter sets - Easter, Harvest, Christmas and Noah's Ark.

2. Baking paraphernalia ~ Decorator bags and tips for adding a theme to your baked goods. Clear bags are nice for packaging up small treats. I really like the cellophane ones I've seen available at Williams-Sonoma, but they can be pricey. These came from a craft store and there are all kinds of sizes. (A package of homemade trail mix or animal cookies wrapped up and tied with a bow would be the perfect zoo snack.) Also shown, lollipop sticks (I have molds somewhere around here) which also make nice liturgical treats. I love to make white chocolate cross pops at Easter. Here you also see fondant cutters (much like cookie cutters), colored sprinkles (blue for Marian feasts), baking cups in themes as well as gold and white. (Cupcakes are appropriate for any fete in my book.) Finally, those small golden doilies have been great for anchoring a special candle or prayer card display. I usually have more doilies on hand - white, silver and gold in varying sizes. They come in handy when entertaining, especially.

3. Sculpey ~ True confession - I've never used Sculpey! It completely intimidates me, lol! I bought these spring colors last Lent; I remember there was a craft Alice was doing and as usual, I could harly wait to follow suit. Only I never caught up! I will have to peruse her blog to remember what it was she made with that Sculpey! (I want to say molded Easter ornaments, perhaps using a mold from the fabulous House on the Hill? No that doesn't sound right. Hmmm ...) But hold the phone! I just did a quick search at the Forums and found this thread started by Genevieve! Elizabeth's rosaries are gorgeous! Where was I when all that was being discussed? Completely oblivious, obviously.)

4. Natural materials ~ Pretty slim pickings at this time of year. (There were acorns a-plenty last fall. Strangely enough, they did not become crafts but all the same, they are gone.) Here you see seashells (which I bought to make this and never did, but will keep them on hand for summer crafts - maybe something for St. John the Baptist), river pebbles (which I used for our All Souls candles) and pine cones. I so hope to make these with those. Mine won't be nearly as nice of course, but I can try!

5. Assorted greeting cards ~ I'm somewhat of a greeting card junkie. I could spend hours in Hallmark. I buy cards I like in doubles and triples and save them for years. I am partial to a few illustrators - Mary Melcher, Marjolein Bastein and Mary Engelbreit are my top three. I also love any Hallmark cards that feature small sparkly critters. (You know the ones with the soft pretty images and a dusting of glitter for embellishemnt? Love those.) I use these cards in various ways - most recently I used a scanned-in image for my Field Day button.

6. Stickers ~ Well, yes, I'm addicted, as you can see from the pile above. It's so fun to peruse the ever growing selection of stickers at the craft store. I like to have them on hand for all kinds of things - children's crafts (even just for making a picture on construction paper), gift bags, picture frames etc. I also have used these as Field Day buttons! My favorites right now are by Jolee's True Faith stickers. Lovely for religious notebooks.

7. Paper crafts ~ OK, what do we have here? Blank photo cards, plain white envelopes for little notes, small gift tags in craft paper brown and white, a stamp-a-cube (meant to be a gift years ago, and still here it sits), plain bookmarks, memory albums in ivory, cardstock in various neutral/classic shades. Not shown is the rather healthy supply of scrapbooking paper I have amassed. I like to have (and I sound like a broken record here) seasonal, holiday and faith-related themes in ready supply. I use scrapbooking paper a lot. You can scan it in to use on your blog, or to cover a special prayer book and matching frame.   

8. Stamps, ink pads and punches ~ I had these from when I was a wannabe scrapbooker (now I "virtual scrapbook" by blogging, lol). The small punches create a nice look when used on a gift bag or tag. (The apple punch was used for a gift of harvest-fresh apples a few years back.) Or a lot of little punched pieces of paper can be used as party or gift box confetti. I only have a few rubber stamps (not shown is our A-Z collection). A monogram is nice for sealing your family's correspondence and packages. Sayings are great too - and invitations can be made very quickly. (I bought this Thankgiving stamp this year, but never used it - am I saying that a lot?) 

9. Paints, palettes and brushes ~ Oh, one can never have too many of those acrylic paints on hand. There are so many colors, and the bottles are usually under $1. I would suggest buying shades for the season. For instance, this being winter, I would buy frosty blues, silver, gold and white. Pink for Valentine's, too. Very handy to have all kinds and sizes of brushes on hand. My mum bought the boys these palettes. I forgot I had them - I keep using a paper plate for my palette!

10. Adhesives and laminating ~ I am completely at a loss when it comes to glue. There are so many kinds in that aisle I have NO idea where to start. I mostly use the Tacky Glue, glue sticks and my glue gun. I have once used the wood glue (to make this) and never ever used the Mod Podge. The Rubber Cement is too stinky - I try not to use it if at all possible. And as you know, I am a big fan of Scotch tape - both regular and double sided. I also like to have Clear Contact paper on hand for laminating things and stained glass crafts.

11. Yarn ~ In reality, I have much more yarn than this (more, in fact, than anyone who doesn't knit should really have) but I like the mulitcolored kind the best for crafts with the children. They are very nice for small knitted projects and recently we made Mexican God's Eyes with these skeins.

12. Wooden pieces ~ I have lots of wood on hand! It takes up a good deal of room, but it's worth it. Here you see wooden letters - small and flat (like the Blessed above our bulletin board) and large and chunky (like the Joy from Gaudete Sunday). Also, many little items that would lend themselves to a fun craft, a part of a special celebration or even a simple handmade gift. Also pictured - small wooden figures for angels, flat wooden gingerbread for stringing (an eventual tree garland I hope), small wooden boxes to hang on the tree (next year's Advent countdown, perhaps). Bags filled with craft sticks, doll kits, small spoons etc. Wooden shapes embellished with a photocopy can become a creative expression of our devotion. Small wooden needle cases painted and decoupaged would make lovely Mother's Day gifts. The napkin rings in front were going to be painted purple and pink for an Advent table setting, but never came to be. Go figure.

13. Needlecrafts ~ I am no seamstress, believe me, but, oh, how I'd like to be. This has not prevented me from collecting all kinds of needlecraft goodies, however. I find I am drawn to crafts that use these kinds of materials - but without the actual sewing part, lol! Pictured here is embroidery floss in every shade you can imagine. (I love this stuff.) Sheep's wool for stuffing small projects. Wooden knitting needles, size 9. Small things to applique here and there. Stich witchery which was enormously helpful in making puppet curtains last fall. And rounding out the collection are needles, hoops, scissors and thread.

14. Wool felt ~ There is absolutely nothing like woolen felt for crafting. What have I made with it? Not a whole lot, but isn't it lovely to look at? :) Actually, I've lined rosary boxes with it and made fairies with it (and I have plans for more in the future). Little gnomes are very easy to whip up (with just a smattering of stiches and a tiny tuft of sheep's wool) and a couple of years ago I made a small heart-shaped sachet. Dream pillows are on tap for next month and in some fashion I'd like to make a banner for our classroom. I purchased this felt at Magic Cabin by the way. It is so lovely it's hard for me to part with it! I like this book for felt craft ideas; on sale here. Another nice one is here.

15. Ribbon ~ I find all kinds of ways to use ribbon (and all kinds of reasons to buy it!). Presents look lovely tied up with a wide patterned ribbon, and our tree had many gingham and tartan bows tied to its branches. A friend of mine used a wide ribbon as a garland on her tree and it was just lovely. I have wrapped candles with sheer ribbon ribbon and lace. And then of course there are the book baskets. I like to keep snatches of ribbon to remember even after its spool has been emptied (like the red and green gingham above).

16. Sparklies and bendables ~ Meaning, sequins, pom-poms and pipe cleaners. As well as pins, pin backings and key rings. The odd button too. I used the pipe cleaners for that fairy mentioned above - and hope to make more (hence two bags in a hopeful gesture). The silver pipe cleaners and Christmas-y pom-poms were purchased for a wreath that never happened. The styrofoam balls were part of an ornament project. (I'd love to make more for next year.) The sequins might get pressed into service for a Paschal candle craft, as suggested by Mary Theresa at 4Real. And the balls just may become planets before too long. I have no imminent plans for the key ring, but I thought it would be good to have on hand just in case.

17. Canvas ~ Yes, I know, I have far too many of these canvas bags than is reasonable. Well, my idea was to make them into shopping totes to give as gifts for the holidays. (File under: next year!) I bought chunky stamps in the shapes of various fruits and vegetables and brightly colored fabric-ready paints. I have fabric markers, as well as some smaller totes made of denim. No idea what to do with these, but I thought the denim was unique. I also have two plain canvas aprons on hand to decorate for the boys' cooking days.

18. Frames ~ I keep a few mats on hand in smallish sizes. They are nice for lapbooks and notebooks as well as of course, picture frames. The craft paper frame is perfect for a child's gift to a friend or a relative. One year for Crackerjack's birthday, we took a group picture at the start of the party and then had each child decorate a frame with markers and stickers. Meanwhile we were printing off the picture for them to take home in their very own frame. You could also have your children decorate these frames for a special image or prayer card.

19. Packaging ~ Ah, yes, another weak spot of mine as you can see. You'd think I ran a gift shop, lol. These cardboard (or are they paper mache?) boxes are indispensible for gifts and all kinds of crafts. Pretty paper bags are nice for baked goods, party favors, luminaries and gift-giving. I like to have plain brown kraft paper bags on hand for decorating. Something so pretty about such a plain bag with a big country plaid ribbon attached. I love the rectangular boxes - one tiny, one long. Perfect for jewelry. I would love to make a rosary someday and present it to someone special in a such a box, all decorated by hand. The white boxes in back are all I have remaining of candy treat boxes. One Christmas a few years ago we made a LOT of homemade goodies to give as gifts. The boys colored and stickered the boxes to their collective hearts' delight.

20. Floral ~ I'm frightfully low on floral supplies at the moment. A grapevine wreath (which was last year's crown of thorns, I believe) and a swag of craft store ivy pictured here. Also, two half-plucked poinsettias from Christmas. I would like to have a more ready supply of silk flowers on hand for fairy-making this spring.

21. Glitter and tissue ~ Two of my favorite mediums. The tissue paper is lovely for packing up gifts, first and foremost, and of course stained glass crafts would not be the same without it. I remember a candle craft from my childhood (bits of torn paper napkins glued to a taper) which would work equally well with tissue, I think. (A Candlemas craft, perhaps?) And what surface does not look so much the better without a generous helping of glitter? This is my collection at present. I suspect I will add more spring colors in the near future. (The iridescent white is my favorite right now.)

22. Miscellaneous projects ~ In the waiting. First of all tea lights - plain, unscented white - available at the craft store and good to have in bulk. Not pictured are the straight-sided glass votive candleholders I like to keep on hand. Shown are the glass bell shaped ornaments we never did get around to decorating (I wasn't sure what to use for a medium on glass.) I think they would be lovely on a tree or hanging in a window. Also shown are the glass spice jars purchased soooo long ago (I think we have 12 in total) in Vermont. Our plan was to grow, dry and store our own herbs (embellishing these bottles with hand drawn labels of course). Maybe this year. In the background you see not one, but two possible holy water fonts. Ever since I saw these at Alice's I have wanted to make one. But silver or gold? And what color ribbon, which flowers, which prayer card to attach? The small tin sticking out of the silver font-to-be is an International Coffees container we covered in scrapbooking paper and used to collect alms last Lent. It will be recovered and used again next month.

23. Cardboard ~ Letters from the educational store, meant to be used educationally, but so far have lent themselves to crafts now and again. In the (shadowed) background is a small cardboard birdhouse I picked up at an art supply store (another ornament craft that never came to be). As well, there is an empty tin foil tube; I would like to try Cay's Paschal candle craft idea with it.

24. More Miscellaneous Projects ~ Miniature loaf pans make wonderful gifts when filled with a freshly baked quick bread - the clear plastic tops are just the canvas for a few stickers or a handmade label. (A special surprise on St. Elizabeth's feast day, as well!) The cups I bought on sale after Christmas. I am saving them for next year's Advent reading of the Legend of the Poinsettia (and the steaming cups of Mexican hot chocolate that will come with it).

Goodness, if you are still reading this post, I thank you! Step two in the Craft Makeover has been accomplished. Next come the craft shelves ... perhaps a project for next weekend, as this one is already half over!