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Wednesday 1 July 2015

DIY clay bells. Easy project



School holidays are happening! So I thought that I might share a craft that kids of all ages (& parents too!) can do. It's pretty cheap, very easy & you will be happy to show it off in your home. It is also the very first time that I have done a video tutorial. One that does not feature my head! Thanks to Miss Gracie dog who bumped the camera!! So you will just have to imagine that my head is there. You will even see Miss Gracie make an appearance! And please tell me, does anyone else say completely random things while recording themselves??? Apparently I do! OK, so now onto the project!!

D.I.Y. Hanging clay bells. 

What you will need:


  • air dry clay. I find it cheapest at discount stores. You can also find it at hardware & art stores.
  • a skewer
  • paints. I just used water colour paints
  • paintbrushes
  • 1m of twine/string/leather. Something that is quite strong.
  • marker pens
  • A couple of bells. I found these at a discount store for $2 a packet.

OK, so first things first. Here is a video on how to make the clay bells/pinch pots. Excuse me while I go hide....




So now you have some clay bells. Make sure they are fully dried and hardened before painting. This may take 24-48 hours depending on how thick you made them. Once they are dry, it's time to decorate!! I am completely in love with the water colour look at the moment so I just used a kids water colour set. You could use acrylics, water based paints or even spry paint them if you want.




If you are using water colours, just dip your paint brush in some water and wet the paint block. I have found that if you then let the water sit on the paint block for 30 seconds or so, you get a deeper colour. 

   



Once you have painted your bells, let them sit till dry. With water colours, it only takes a minute of so.




Once the paint has dry, grab a permanent marker & get busy! You can draw any design onto them.





Then it's time to get threading. Leave a tail on the end of the leather/string/rope/twine that is about 20cm long. tie your first knot at the 20cm mark. thread the smallest clay bell onto the top off that knot. tie another knot so that the bell is secure. Measure 5cm & make another knot. Thread the next bell & secure with another knot. Continue until all of the bells are threaded. Finish off with a loop at the end so you can hang them up.



With the 20cm tail at the bottom, secure the bells. 





And there you have it. A set of clay bells to hang wherever you wish. If you want to hang them outside, you would need to seal the clay as to not be affected by the weather. But if you are hanging them inside, like I am going to, they don't have to be sealed.


I am going to hang my set in the bay window so they spin with the wind when the windows are open.


From Jos with love. xx








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From Jos with love. xx