Crafty day

So I have been working on another pair of socks and got to the point that I needed to do some grafting. Problem is I lost my yarn needle (major bummer since I haven't been able to find one quite like it and I loved that needle). I went to Joanne to pick up a replacement and of course I wander when I go there. I saw something that inspired me while there and I picked it/them up... A couple of doughnut beads. I grabbed two of them, a couple of dowel packets and a packet of cup hooks. Oh and the sandpaper. I am so glad I remembered the sandpaper even though it meant getting out of line.

So I got home and started to assemble...you can do this too...all you need is:

-a donught bead with the most centered hole you can find or a wooden toy car wheel.

-a wooden dowel in the same diameter as the hole in your bead...just eye it, it will probably work.

-a small cup hook

-a thumbtack and/or drill with a small bit.

-sandpaper

-small saw

-pencil sharpener (the handheld kind with 2 size holes)

-superglue or other strong bonding agent.

Slide the bead onto the dowel. I buy the 99cent packets that come with 12 dowels that way I can find the best fit as they vary ever so slightly in size. It should be a pretty tight fit - you might have to wiggle the bead with a little pressure to get it to slide on.

Next I used the push pin to mark the center of the top of the dowel and pushed it in as deep as my cup hook. At this point you may drill a pilot hole for the cup hook but I found the push pin hole was enough for me to start screwing the hook in. Not too tight or the wood might split on ya. Even if you drill, use the pin to make a starting poing for your bit so it doesn't skip around on you. Also you are less likely to split the wood if you drill the hole first.

Now I saw the bottom of the dowel off so it is a length I am happy with - its subjective, you might like a longer shaft than I do, you might like a shorter one.

These next couple of steps are optional - I put the bottom of the dowel in the pencil sharpener and 'sharpen' it to get a tapered end (you don't want it pointy) Then I sand. I sand the tapered end so it's smooth and also the shaft and the top above the whorl (bead). I just smooth all the edges out.

You can totally be done at this point, however depending on how tight the bead/wheel fit on the shaft you might want to secure it. I slide the bead up, run a ring of glue around the shaft where I want the whorl to sit and then slide it back down. I hang it from the hook so the whorl is not skewed by laying on it's side. You can also stain and/or varnish or wax the dowel too for a more finished look. I choose not to do this last part but the beauty is I can always do it at a later time.

So, here they are!

Wood:

Amethyst:and Stone:

The other little project I have been working on for about a year (well I started it a year ago and put it down until last week) is a mini scrapbook about the little things I love that my son does. Nothing fancy just some pics, patterned paper, eyelets and a ring from the office store.Did not turn out exactly as I'd imagined, but it works.
So, there you go, a few crafty things I have been working on. Next up is probably some spinning or socks. Course I should really be packing...