Easter Chicks in Egg Shells

This chick is made from a compressed cotton egg painted with matt paint, mixed with pop up line. When heated with a heat gun, the surface becomes puffed up, adding texture to the egg. Eyes and a beak shaped from silk clay are then attached to the chick. Finally, decorate it with a bow, a wooden button and feathers.

1. Mix the pop up line with matt paint in the ratio 1:1 and apply a thick coat of the mixture to the cotton egg.

2. Put the painted cotton egg onto a stick. Puff up the paint by moving the heat gun in circular motions over the egg at a distance of approx. 10-15cm. This makes the colour puff up and gives a textured appearance to the egg.

3. Shape the eyes, the beak and wings from silk clay and press them onto the chick without using glue.

4. Paint an egg shell with matt paint and let it dry. Then glue it onto a wooden button for added stability.

5. Firmly place the chick inside the egg shell, securing it with a blob of silk clay. Use a glue gun for attaching a bow, feathers etc. to the chick.

An alternative

Decorate papier-mâché Babushkas following the same procedure as above. 

This Basket Says Anything But Dirty Laundry

We love all the geometric patterns that are in style for spring fashion, and the woven baskets trend sweeping all the interior design showrooms, so why not combine them into a dream storage solution? Just take color samples from the intended room for the basket (like pillows, curtains, sheets, etc) to any paint store and have custom colors mixed to match. It’s a perfectly pretty place to stow away all that dirty laundry. What will you put in yours?

Materials:

- 1 basket with lid

- 2 colors of paint

- 1 paint brush

- 1 roll painter’s tape

Start by coming up with a design and marking it off with your tape.

If you want to follow our design, wrap 5 strips of tape horizontally around the basket, and 2 around the lid in the spots shown. Spacing doesn’t have to be exact, but the top 2 rows should be equal.

Next add the vertical pieces of tape on the basket and lid, as shown.

It’s best to paint on your lighter color first; here we used bright chartreuse. We recommend doing two light coats of each color. Do not glob on the paint so it’s dripping and really thick or the paint will drip under the tape.

Next paint on the blue in the spots shown. Feel free to experiment with your own simple geometric designs by playing with the placement of the tape.

Let the paint dry completely and remove the Painter’s Tape. Ta-dah! (Expert Tip: Depending on the weave of the basket you choose, some of the natural fibers tend to shed. If this happens, just seal it by painting a thin layer of clear wood varnish over entire basket.)

A Felted Bag for an Ipad

This bag is knitted from wool yarn and then felted in the washing machine at 40°C. Holes are cut after the bag has been felted. The shoulder strap and the fastener are made from 3mm thick leather cords. A handmade horn bead is sewn onto the front.

1. Cast on 50 stitches and knit plain stitches back and forth until the knitted piece measures approx. 85cm. Use yellow yarn for the last 2cm of the knitted piece. Now fold the knitted piece so that the actual bag measures 34cm and the flap measures 17cm. Now sew the bag together inside out and felt it in the washing machine at 40°C. Pull it into shape whilst it is still wet.

2.

3. Gather three pieces of 3mm leather cords in a knot and pull through the knitted piece. Plait the cords until the desired length of the shoulder strap is reached. Close at the other side using the same procedure.

4. Use a piece of mercerised cotton yarn for loosely sewing the horn bead onto the bag.

5. Make a fastener from leather cord as shown.