So I am much happier with the newest attempt at the handmade clay ornaments. I used my go-to clay that requires baking. This gives me much more time to work with it and is much more forgiving when it comes to redoing one of the stamps. I don't have any good Xmas stamps so I will have to connect with my mom and borrow some of hers.

One of the other things that I tried with these is hand carving my own words. The ones I have done so far, came out better than I expected. Once I finish these with carving and stamping, I will bake them. Then the fun of painting and decorating begins.
With this set I used white and translucent clay I had sitting around. My tray that I am working with is quite messy (as you can tell) and the clay picked up residues from previous projects. This could have been a disaster, but in this case it came out really cool and gave the ornaments a marbled, textured effect. If we don't like the effect after they are baked....well then we can always decorate them and cover up what we don't like.

Happy Crafting...

Accepting the Craft Challenge of 2015

So in accepting the Craft Challenge of 2015, I started with handmade ornaments. In an attempt to save myself some effort I tried a new clay that I hadn't used before. I thought it was okay, but overall challenging to work with since it dried too fast. I am not a fan of the clay color, I would want to paint these pieces if I were to really give them as gifts. I also wanted more consistency in shapes so I think that I will try and find small inexpensive cookie cutters I can use.

From Pinterest, I got the idea to try stamps in the clay. That technique worked really well. I played around with some animal stamps that I have on hand. I would like to use stamps for my handmade ornaments, but want a more holiday themed set of stamps. It will be fun to see how this all comes out in the end.

I will post another update as I get further into making the handmade ornaments. This has been a fun place to start for me!

Starter ideas

- Hand painted ornaments
- Crocheted scarves
- Crocheted ornaments
- Homemade canned applesauce
- Creative use of recycled materials as gift containers
- Baked goods, roasted almonds, toffee
- Customized coasters (with tiles I already own) - Cornell logo/print

Craft Challenge of 2015

75% of holiday gifts, cards, and decorations are homemade using existing craft supplies, recycled material, and creativity.

Goals: 

- Push my creativity

- Give the gift of time

- Save money