I love making the memory magnets . . . and finally, here is a picture-by-picture demo of how to make them. You saw me talk about making them on AM Northwest a few months ago, but I think this is a little easier to follow . . . Get Crafty!
You'll need: large clear flat glass pebbles (at least 1" in diameter) or flat glass marbles, a cutting implement, Diamond Glaze glue, heavy duty ceramic magnets, and either E6000 or Goop glue. If you're local to Portland, you can get all these goodies at Collage. If you're not, JudiKins makes Diamond Glaze and you can get a free sample here. One good on-line resource for the glass pebbles is Stampington. They also carry Diamond Glaze. Most of the ones you get in the floral supply sections of craft stores are glazed or cloudy: some bubbles are to be expected, and add to the effect, but try to find the clearest ones you can!
1. Make color photocopies of your favorite family photos.Ink jet prints don't work well, as the glue can make them bleed. I also don't recommend using originals - photocopies will protect your originals, and allow you to reduce the images to a variety of sizes.
2. Position the pebble so you can get the best composition, and position any flaws or bubbles in the pebble away from faces!This is part of why it's nice to have reductions in a variety of sizes.
3. Then trace the outline of the pebble and cut the image out.
4. Assuming an image that's 1" to 2" in diameter, squeeze a dime-sized dollop of Diamond Glaze brand glue onto the image.
5. Place the glass pebble over the image. Press the image into the glass, starting with your thumbs at the center. The glue will start to spread!
6. Once the image has started to dry, you can clean any gluey fingerprints off of the glass with rubbing alcohol. It gets harder to do after 24 hours.
7. Let the glass-glue-image sandwich dry for about 15 or 20 minutes. Then squeeze a blob of Goop or E6000 glue onto the back of the sandwich.
8. Press a heavy duty ceramic magnet into the glue, and let it dry. And it's done! Using a slightly heavier paper is a good choice, as with very thin paper, the E6000 or Goop can bleed through the paper leaving a little bit of a dark shadow on the front of the image.This is just a taste of the techniques I cover in my memory jewelry class . . . intrigued? There's another class starting in February . . . Until then, make merry with the magnets! And I love to get photos of what people make with the DEMOS!
8 comments:
very nice, bridget! a graceful, clear tutorial! thank you for sharing.
suggestion: the steps are embedded in the image, but i would recommend also including them in the body of your text so they can be copied/pasted with greater ease -- or seen without the photos (there are lots of times when this is handier or more necessary than you'd think, and is also more accessible for users with disabilities).
Hmmm . . . . more juicy theoretical territory! Familiar ground for gl and I . . . this raises some interesting questions about copying on-line material in general, though I gotta say I print out a lot of stuff that I find on-line for my own use and reference later, and that text-only versions are a lot easier (and less paper and ink intensive) than ones that include photos. And, the issue you raise about folks with disabilities is a valid one - as is the one about getting the gist of the instructions without the photos - and both bear consideration.
I'm really curious to know what other people think about this - particular issues related to making it easier for content to be reproduced in other places. Anyone?
"I gotta say I print out a lot of stuff that I find on-line for my own use and reference later, and that text-only versions are a lot easier (and less paper and ink intensive) than ones that include photos."
yes! i didn't quite know how to say that, but these are my feelings exactly. i can only imagine how horrible it must be for someone to steal your stuff and use it as their own, but it makes me queasy to feel like a thief because i want to copy & paste the instructions into a "projects to do later" file -- especially given the volatile nature of the web, you can't be sure you'll ever find it again!
also, text is searchable: via google or one's own filing system. :)
Arg! I certainly don't want anyone feeling like a their for using something I've put out there for people to use! This is good, though, because it's made me think more about the whole issue of reproducing content . . . I think I've heard too many horror stories from artists about their work and handouts being reproduced without credit, and too many horror stories from students about teachers being ungenerous in sharing materials and techniques . . .I know there's a balance here. In the meantime, I'm going to update my demos in the next few days to include instructions in the text. Thanks, GL!
i really appreciate your flexibility, bridget! i like how you are actively searching for your own balance between extremes.
(i brought up the disability thing because i used to work as an ADA rep for the web team i was on, and text-in-graphics is a frequent issue for web designers. :)
Phew! Ok, I got this one updated with separate text instructions, as well as the Foam Stamp DEMO from November. It'll be a new standard going forward! Thanks again for raising the issue.
bless you, bridget! crafters everywhere will be signing your praises (i hope!).
....or laser print your images first/no more bleeding colors!!!!!
Post a Comment