Recycled Crafts

I love upcyling old items into new pieces. Instead of recycling an empty peanut butter jar, I washed it out and used it as a base for a pencil holder. I hot-glued thin sticks that I broke into smaller pieces to put around the jar. The sticks are all different lengths, but are all long enough to completely cover the plastic. I also added little  feathers to the crevices between the sticks. To prevent scratching the table I put the jar on, I spiraled a long piece of cream-colored string and glued it in place on the bottom of the jar.

My suitemate Amanda covered a large pinecone with feathers to make a little owl. For eyes, she glued on little yellow half-marbles.

These natural treasures adorn our humble abode. I love that they are made from things we found outside or already had.

<3 Mandy

Braided Leather Bracelets

I recently bought some swatches of leather in cherry red and beige from a reuse store because I had some craft ideas in mind. I cut the leather into 1" by 9" or 10" strips, and in each strip made 2 slits so I could "magic braid" them. Here are some photos of the bracelet-making process.

special thanks to my sister, the hand model

  
With some leftover leather I had, I also made a little bow for my hair by pleating and sewing a rectangular strip onto a barrette.

<3 Mandy

Sharpie Mugs

At school, we had a floor event of decorating plain white ceramic mugs called "Mugs and Hugs". After drawing on our designs with Sharpie permanent markers, we baked our mugs at 350°F for 30-45 minutes. The colors slightly changed, with the yellow changing to a burnt brown color, for example, but I don't mind the different look; I actually think it makes the mugs look more homey and less preschool-scribbly. We washed the mugs with soap and hot water, and even scrubbed with them with a sponge, but the designs still held out. Here are some of the designs my friends and I drew!

Here are two mugs I made:

 

 

  

 
Christine:

 

Amanda:

 

 

 
Sequoia:

 

We love sipping tea from our handicrafts, as it feels especially special to put something we made to good use.
<3 Mandy 

First Anniversary!

Today marks the first anniversary of my blog. YAY!
Recent happenings in the past week include valentine-making and birthday-celebrating in this lovely month of February.

Love,
Mandy

Homemade Cheesecake and Peppermint Bark

My suitemate's and hallmate's birthdays fell over winter break, so I wanted to bake a cake for them when we returned to school. The last time I made cheesecake I was in 7th or 8th grade, so I decided it was about time to make one again!

I even had enough leftover cream cheese and graham crackers to make a second cake...

The only downside to making cheesecake is that it takes a LONG time to set. It already takes a few hours to prepare, and on top of that, it has to cool down and then rest in the fridge for another few hours. While a long process, however, I do believe the end product is well worth the effort.

 

♥♥♥

Inspired by the holiday season, I also wanted to make some peppermint bark. Though I had never made it before, this treat was extremely quick and simple to prepare. I just microwaved a (large) handful of semisweet chocolate chips, spread the melted chocolate onto a foil sheet, and crushed peppermint candies to sprinkle on top. After allowing the chocolate sheet to cool in the fridge for two hours, I broke the bark into smaller pieces.

Here it is wrapped with a bar of Godiva peppermint chocolate, which I gave to my suitemate who likes peppermint.

<3 Mandy