As much as I can't stand the heat, Summer without a doubt makes me happy. The sun is out and spreading its rays of . Birds are chirping at all times of day. My cats are no longer restless from being cooped up all winter. And the cobwebs are clearing from my brain.
However, even just a few weeks ago I was battling a bout of lingering winter blues. In an effort to raise my spirits, I sat down one day and browsed the internet for books with fun little crafts, which is when I came across You Are Awesome: 21 Crafts to Make You Happy by Abbey Hendrickson. Sounds like the perfect medicine.
You are awesome combines a beautifully designed book with content that is whimsical, colorful, and quirky. The projects look fairly easy and seem to come together pretty quickly too.
Since I'm thoroughly in love with gems and geometric shapes at the moment, the "Faceted Necklace" project spoke to me loudly, saying, "Go ahead and make it for yourself. We both know you'll rock it."
Instead of black, I choose an assortment of neon and pastel colors. Narrowing down my color combinations and refining my palette instead of making hundreds of beads of every color possible ended up being the hardest part of the project. Once you get your clay and your colors all figured out, the rest is easy peasy. Roll some balls, skewer them to make beads, bake them and use a craft knife to shave of bits and pieces to make facets. My favorite part is shaving the facets into existence. In fact, this project fullfilled its creator's promise and made me happy.
There's a w-i-d-e variety of things to do in this book. It's not just for kids or just for adults, or just for women, or just for men. These are rainy day crafts, last minute gifts to make for friends who appreciate a little handmade smile to brighten their day, crafts to spark the imagination and be silly, and crafts to fill a nice summer afternoon with fun and happiness.
Try these other books out for more quick, handmade happiness:
Stay awesome!
Malia
You are awesome combines a beautifully designed book with content that is whimsical, colorful, and quirky. The projects look fairly easy and seem to come together pretty quickly too.
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| Cardboard mailbox. |
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| Ring toss! |
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| Yes, yes I will. |
This project uses polymer clay to simulate gems. In the book they use black clay and it ends up looking like shiny chunks of coal, which is pretty cool if you ask me!
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| I wouldn't mind finding this necklace in my stocking! |
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| Polymer clay in a few of my favorite colors. |
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| Shaving the beads. I found this to be the funnest part. Goes pretty quickly once you get the hang of it. |
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| Wanted to keep the flakes but I made a deal with myself that I could no longer save anything unless I had a clear idea of what to do with it. Alas, I do not. |
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| I call this my Wilma Flintstone necklace. |
Try these other books out for more quick, handmade happiness:
- Oh Joy! 60 Ways to Create and Give Joy
- Materially Crafted: A DIY Primer for the Design-Obsessed
- Make & Give: Simple and Modern Crafts to Brighten Every Day
Stay awesome!
Malia
