Actually, gentle
reader, this is about Brussels Sprouts and Princesses. OK, not real Brussels
Sprouts, and the Princesses in question are the girls that I scrapbook with.
See, we do a secret Santa for Christmas and of course, we make each other
beautiful cards to go with the gifts. Except I don't. I can't remember which
year it was precisely, but I was very sick of making cards and so I made each
of the gals a small gift that included a tag. The tag says what a card would
say, right? Well, this year, Baker Ross sent me a pack of round craft baubles
to play with.
I did some research.
(I looked at a lot of baubles on a lot of trees in some lovely shops.) I
decided that I would go sophisticated. Paint the baubles with a lovely deep
rich green, maybe add some gold mica, wrap ribbon around and top each one with
a lovely wired ribbon rosette. Sounds terrific doesn't it? Well of course it
does. And of course, it didn't happen!
I found myself
painting dictionary pages with a green squirty paint (from the stash of
no-longer-sprays that I specialise in owning). Then I ripped the pages up and
used PVA to adhere them to the baubles. Takes a bit of patience coz of drying
time (yawn), and for some, it's a bit messy. Ask me how I know. On the plus
side, once it's dry, PVA is easy and fun to peel off your hands!
Suddenly I'm not
stressing about perfectly formed rosettes. I'm ripping half moon shapes from
the painted pages and layering them onto the baubles as if totally inspired. It
was fun! I used them as tags on the little treats I gave the
girls. Because they are
loyal friends and extremely good crafters, they recognised them as paper Brussels
sprouts. Actually, the PVA glue was a great choice too...it dries rock 'ard, so
these are some of the strongest sprouts. It means that the gals will have to hang
them on their trees for decades to come, in case I pop round to check!
Posts
15 comments:
Hi Julia, that has given me a laugh. But we all know sprouts are a Christmas tradition, don't we?All the best gifts have a surprise to them,too. Hugs, Shaz xx
I've seen you use sprouts before, and it must be a British tradition, because it certainly has never caught on here in the states. I DO love them, though. They are truly beautiful "tags" and ornaments wrapped up in one gift that will keep giving for a lifetime.
BTW, I have several of those same no spray sprayers, and they are the ones that were the most expensive, too. I've finally given up on spraying and remove the mister and dip a paintbrush in the mix.
Julia, I nearly spat my coffee over my monitor:) LOL What a fab idea:)
Hope you are having a good week. Sue
Awwwww. I need to make me some of these! And give one to Lil Miss B....
I might up the game a bit and use the sheet music for "Wind through the olive trees" instead of dictionary paper though....
Oh Julia, your Brussels are wonderful - what a fun idea.
Toni xx
You - dear Julia, are a genius! Lots of ho hos from both of us! Hugs, Chrisx
You - dear Julia, are a genius! Lots of ho hos from both of us! Hugs, Chrisx
and these ones won't make them fart... sorry!! love them, they look fabulous, clever you - and all that fun peeling the pva from your fingers!
was already rolling with laughter from your post then read Helen's comment! Now I am definitely howling. Love the little sprouts. We have similar food traditions for the holidays also. I always cook the same foods cause that is the way it is done! btw black eyed peas are a tradition here in the south to bring good luck for the next year so my New Years meal is usually black eyed peas, potatoes, fried okra and a ham...tradition.
I am envious of your sprouts! They have sprouted so well with the paper half moons and I am sure I could no more make sprouts like this than fly to the moon having eaten a load (sorry).
Love them, what talent you have. Not being sarcastic, being honest, think they are wonderful.
Hugs, Neet xx
Oh Julia I specialise in those sprays too, annoying but still rescuable. Your Brussel sprouts are really inspired and I loved hearing how they came to be made, gave me a real chuckle.
Will be back for WOYWW!
Thanks for sharing,
Shaz in Oz.x
{Calligraphy Cards - Shaz in Oz}
OH, loving these unique baubles. Quite the little treasure. Great gesture Julia and thanks for sharing.
Oh these are perfect, perfect, perfect! Much better than a card :D
Oh these are perfect, perfect, perfect! Much better than a card :D
I could not stop laughing and could not believe how realistic they are. You all have so much fun thanks for including us . Will get back to posting once the Christmas spirit passes in the form of too many tuesday and wednesday parties, I might find my desk and find the Christmas fairy clened it up!
Monica
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