Melted Plastic bead Star Earrings

Celebrating the 4th with some big plastic star earrings!
Have you tried this? It is so easy and fun. Can be a bit smelly but recycling is recycling.
How to make recycled melted plastic bead earrings:

Place a cookie cutter on a piece of foil on your toaster tray.
Fill with plastic beads.
Bake until melted. The time will depend on how many beads and the size of the shape.
When cool pop from cookie cutter.
Drill holes in the plastic.
Link a earring wire to the star with a jump ring.

All American Crafty Blogger Links

This is the Ferris wheel down at the beach, the moon and the American flag whippin' around in the breeze. Do you know how hard it was to get a shot with the flag somewhat showing and the lights on the Ferris wheel on in a circle?

Crafty Princess Diaries
Tammy uses her jewelry making skills to create some beautiful and functional stitch markers.

CraftyPod
Sister Diane reviews an intriguing new book: Micro Macrame, by Annika DeGroot

Cross Stitch at About.com
Work at Your Own Pace - An encounter with a critter in the yard has Connie thinking about Cross Stitch (imagine that!) and speed.

Mixed Media Artist
Have you been wondering what happened to "Layers Upon Layers"? Cyndi's still hard at work, but has moved to "Mixed Media Artist". This week she's got a a round-up of fabric painting ideas for you!

Naughty Secretary Club
Arty Masterpieces are overrated, it's all about the Glittery Crafterpieces! Take a peek at the handmade art around my house and try your hand at making a fun glittery deer picture!

Craftside-A behind-the-scenes peek at a crafty world
This week at Craftside you can watch the latest Look, Learn & Create video that includes tips on drawing, two techniques and projects for cutting photos up, a bit of fabric eye candy, and a free paper stencil and project from the new book The Art of Decorative Paper Stencils 2 and if you leave answers to the day's questions you are entered to win free books!

The Artful Crafter
“Panadieres for Zambia” is a neat story and one small example of crafters helping crafters – all around the world. As Eileen likes to say, “Crafters are just the nicest people.”

The Crochet Dude
Read Drew's first installment supporting the 3/50 grassroots project!

The Impatient Crafter
Madge shares a technique in this post about embossing on slick surfaces!

Vickie Howell-Craft.Rock.Love
Keep your kids busy this summer by setting up a Crafty Challenge for them!

About Family Crafts
What are your cleaning tips for crafting with kids? Please take a moment to share your tips and then browse through tips shared by others.

Aileen's Musings
Hard as it was, Aileen has narrowed down the playing field and needs your help again to choose from her favorite sayings that have been posted for her blog giveway! Stop by and pick your favorite.

Cathie Filian
If you are wondering what to eat, craft and play on the 4th of July then head over to Cathie's blog for ideas.

The Card Album decorated for a baby shower gift for Rock and Roll Mom to be

I have a baby shower coming up for a first time mom to be that's a bit on the rock and roll side and so I wanted to decorate The Card Album I was giving her to put all her baby shower cards in not too cute but still "baby boy" like. I went through the paper stash and found this cool black paper that was printed with the definition of baby all over it-perfect! Then onto the die cut stash and I thought the Hello Kitty tiny bunnies and the winged heart was a great combo of cute and tough.
So I simply went to town die cutting up a bunch of the cool papers. Then I just started to play around with all the shapes. Oh I should mention I inked the edges of my die cuts with silver, black and blue inks to outline them and make them pop a bit.

Here is my final The Card Album with a matching gift card that I used the same baby printed paper and die cut bunny.

I am really looking forward to this shower. I was put in charge of the memory game (30 or so items on a tray that everyone gets 2 minutes to look at, then it's taken away and then they have to write down everything that was on the tray), it was requested that it be all baby themed items so I am on a mission to gather up only baby items, not too easy of a task in a house that has never had a baby inside of it!

Upcycling election signs for a senior prank and crafty blogger links

This is so cool! My cousin's high school senior prank was to gather up all the election signs and put them on the high school lawn! I don't remember my high school having a senior prank. But I kinda wish it did. Click on the link to see a bit of video on it.

The Artful Crafter
What new mom would not be delighted with this precious keepsake pendant? Eileen gives you step-by-step instructions for making it using polymer clay and decal paper.

The Impatient Crafter
Madge went on a bead buying trip to NYC! Get the scoop!

Vickie Howell
Craft Corps Stencil Kits are in! Check out Vickie's How-To on making your own, stenciled gear. Stand up, shout loud, you've joined The Corps and you're proud!

About Family Crafts
What is in your craft cupboard? What craft supplies can you not live without? Has there been a craft item that your purchased thinking it was the greatest invention of all time and then never used?

Aileen's Musings
Aileen needs your help! She's created another whimsical character in her curalicious series and needs a saying or quote to go with her! Post your quote or saying and enter to win a curvalicious coffee cup!

Alexa Westerfield a.k.a. Swelldesigner
Create fun and graphic letter & number decopauge jars in a flash!

Cathie Filian
Recycle old jeans and fabric scraps into a quilted 4th of July Table Runner in under 2 hours!

Crafty Princess Diaries
Cat Domination at Jewelry Bench! Where or where can I work on jewelry, Tammy asks?

CraftyPod
Take a handful of buttons and some craft wire, and make charming button monograms to wear as jewelry.

Cross Stitch at About.com
Dinosaurs rule in the Land of the Lost and they also rule at About.com Cross Stitch. There are three of them stalking through Connie's latest free pattern collection.

Mixed Media Artist
Here's a way to combine planning with serendipity when you paint fabrics!

Naughty Secretary Club
Think all the marketing at a craft show is already taken care of for the vendors? Think again. Jen shares some marketing tips.

Craftside-A behind-the-scenes peek at a crafty world

This week at Craftside there is Jenn Mason's episode of Look, Learn & Create where she shows us how to make a fun matchbook card and dyed plastic tube necklace, a window-screen art journal tutorial from the new book Re-bound and a mini journal with a recycled scrapbook paper catalog, a discussion of rule breaking in logo design and a recipe for roasted chickpeas.

Another of Stefanie's Happy Bunnies-This one created using the help of the cool book: Stray Sock Sewing

Happy Sock Bunny on my cairn basking in the southern California sun. (Finally)
I am starting to wonder if there is anything I haven't cut up yet?
The photography in this book is so cute, I loved it as much as I loved the sock animals!Stray Sock Sewing: Making One of a Kind Creatures from Socks

Great for beginning sewers - includes basic techniques and simple projects that are fun, fast and unique.

Stray Sock Sewing is a lovable Asian-flavored craft book that blends how-to projects with a whimsical narrative. Readers will learn how to make odd and endearing one-of-a-kind creatures from a variety of sock styles. Eight step-by-step projects are easy enough for beginners, yet so adorable advanced crafters will be eager to make their own cuddly toys.

After spending 20 years in professional advertising, Dan Ta left the industry to become a full time artist. He is currently collaborating with a creative group based in Los Angeles to import and market his handmade sock dolls. He is also working on a sock doll character that will appear in an upcoming animated film.

I have already shown you my little Happy Sock Bunny, here is how I made her.

First I found a stray sock.

Then following the great directions in Stray Sock Sewing; a little from each of the designs in the back, because with most recycling projects you rarely have exactly what is being used in the book, I made long ears.

I then stuffed and sewed a cute face on. Again I took features from several of the different creatures to make my own face.

I really want to go out and find some really crazy socks to see what other wild and cute bunnies I can sew.