March Craft Club Creations!!
If you haven’t started a craft club yet, what are you waiting for?!?
This month our craft club joined the Madness with a little foray into diamond painting. I have never tried diamond painting before. People love it, but honestly, I was worried that my 50+ year old eyes couldn’t handle the tiny numbers and letters and that my slightly shaky hands wouldn’t be able to handle the dexterity needed to place the little gems onto my project.
Poor eyesight. Shaking limbs. Getting old is wonderful isn’t it?!?
So, here I am wearing my readers staring at a Van Gogh Starry Night bookmark. Every inch of this bookmark requiring a gem. Would I even have the patience to sit, and work on this project until it was completed???
Perhaps it was the homemade cider provided by our host, Carrie, that I really started to believe that, “yes, yes, I could do this thing.” At the very least, I could give it a try.
For those of you that have never diamond painted before, it’s a bit like paint by number. Each project kit includes: a pen, wax, gems differentiated by letters or numbers, a tray, and your project piece.
I found it easiest to place my gems in individual containers with snap-on lids (link below). I labeled each container with the gem letter/number.
After sorting and labeling my containers, I was ready to begin. This was my process:
- Peel back a portion of the protective coating on my bookmark. The bookmark is sticky, to hold the gems, so it’s best to not peel the plastic off all of the way.
- Choose a place to begin.
- Pour some of the corresponding letter/number into the tray.
- Poke your pen into the wax. This helps the gem stick to the pen for ease of placement. You don’t need to do this every time. I only re-waxed when the gems stopped sticking to the pen.
- Pick up a gem.
- Place it on the project.
- When I got my project home, I drenched it in Mod Podge to seal the gems onto the bookmark. No way did I want to lose my gems after all of that work! **Note** I used the original Mod Podge because that’s what I had at home, but I have since learned that there is actually diamond art-specific Mod Podge. I put the link for that on the shopping list below.
Easy. Peasy.
I tend to choose projects that are a bit advanced. The Van Gogh bookmarks are not for the faint of heart. It took me 3+ hours to complete mine!! While other craft clubbers were finishing their second or third project, I was finally ALMOST finished with my first!
The weather this past week in this area of Northern Michigan was atrocious. We were stuck in our homes for days. Trees were down. Power lines were down. Many of us did not have power. It was really great to be able to get out and craft with friends. Diamond painting is one of those crafts that allows you to craft and catch up all at the same time.
If you enjoy doing puzzles, you will enjoy this craft. Diamond art is fun! Despite the fact that my eyes are failing me, and I have shaky hands, I was able to create a successful finished product fairly easily. It was so relaxing. My only complaint is that after three hours hunched over my bookmark, my neck, shoulders, and back were killing me. Nothing a little ibuprofen and heating pad magic won’t fix, though. I will definitely be doing more diamond art in the near future. In fact, I have already purchased a coaster kit and serving tray kit (don’t tell Chuck).
Your Diamond “painting” Life Shopping List:
containers for gems: https://amzn.to/4ss4CzR
heating pad for back, neck, & shoulders: https://amzn.to/4dCs74K
corner bookmark kit: https://amzn.to/4bZSvnW
fun cat coaster kits: https://amzn.to/4bs0qua
wooden serving tray kit: https://amzn.to/4dDEUnv
Van Gogh & Monet bookmark kit: https://amzn.to/4sWtZd2
Butterfly bookmark kit: https://amzn.to/3Njk16z
A variety of bookmark kits: https://amzn.to/4lHCMgq
Mod Podge diamond art sealer: https://amzn.to/3NFovUX
Shoe Dog by Phil Knight, the perfect book for my bookmark: https://amzn.to/4spVX0N
***Disclaimer*** As an Amazon Associate, if you click on a link and order something, I may receive a commission. Please click and order! Momma needs to pay for her trip to Spain, AND has an addiction to ordering too many craft supplies!
Hive & Seek 
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