AMANDA'S BASKETS: INCHIE CHALLENGE 2

Friday, August 2, 2013

INCHIE CHALLENGE 2

Someone asked me why I would go to all the trouble of doing an Inchie Challenge.   At first I thought, well, I enjoy making inchies and wanted to share that with others.

Then I thought, it may encourage others to learn about inchies, maybe even try making some.

Finally, I realized that what I really wanted to do is show everyone that making inchies can be as easy as cutting out some pictures and stickers and gluing them onto a one inch square canvass. (Like yesterday's inchie.) Or, as intricate as drawing a tiny masterpiece or even making a book.

I really wanted to encourage folks to try it.   The cost of supplies can be practically negligible.   A scissors, ruler, pencil and glue are the basics.   Most everyone has scraps of paper and fabric (and I do mean tiny scraps) to use.   For the base, check out the cardboard boxes that tissues or cereal come in.

So, take today's inchie.   I call it Fireworks...

If you really look at it up close like this...

...you will see that it is made up of a base (three squares of lightweight cardboard glued together) covered with white paper with a sun burst design,   The edging is 1/4" copper adhesive tape (Check out the stained glass craft section - one role lasts a long time.) Then I added three shiny star stickers, some beads and glitter.

It is very dramatic and yet there was very little to making it.   I will be doing more intricate inchies later this month, but I wanted folks to realize that it's an easy craft to do with great results.   AND, you can store all your supplies in a shoe box.   Really, you don't need much space at all.

So, how is August going for you?    I decided it was time to begin my summer reading so I've started reading Diane Mott Davidson's Crunch Time. I really enjoy mysteries and especially Ms. Davidson's books.

I'm also reading John Spong's Eternal Life: A New Vision.   Very challenging!   So, what's on your reading list?   Anything good?   Let me know if you find some great mysteries.   I'm always looking for suggestions.

Thanks for stopping by...
See you tomorrow (Yes, I know it's the weekend, but I did say an inchie a day during August!)
Enjoy your evening...if the weather's nice, spend some time outdoors...

CRAFTING IDEAS

I am always looking for a small piece of paper to write down something which will later be disposed of. I decided to use some of the scrap paper of which I have a ton. I mostly use the paper for glueing projects. I decided to cut the paper into a small size. (Six pieces from a piece of copy paper.). But just having them sitting on my desk would get messy without a container. So, using a cardboard box, I cut it down to size and using a hot glue gun I glued the ends together. Using a picture from a magazine cut into pieces and stick craft glue, I glued the pieces to the box inside and out. I also used some decorative tape for the outside edges. And to finish the top corners which were not covered, I used straight pins with colorful tops. Looks nice and works well.

MAGAZINE IDEAS

(New) One article in the Farmer's Almanac 2024 is a list of trends. One I knew about is the trend to downsize in just about every area. Another trend that I was surprised about was called ''The Human Library' which offers people on loan to talk about specific subjects. Finally, more folks are adding pets to their family and as a result, stores are adding more pet food, toys and medication to their offerings. There's also a nice garden article which suggests mixing vegetables and flowers together for success.

RECIPE IDEAS

Have you every made Cherry Dump Cake. It calls for 2 cans of Cherry Pie Filling (21 ounces), a white cake mix, 1/4 -1/2 cup butter, melted & 1/2 cup coarsely chopped pecans. In a 9 by 13 pan, spread both cans of cherry pie filling. Add the melted butter to the cake mix and break apart the resulting mixture and crumble it evenly over the pie filling. Sprinkle the pecans evenly over the mixture. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 35 - 45 minutes until the topping is golden brown. Serve with vanilla ice cream. Fast, easy and very delicious.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY

What if you want to establish better habits, then decide what habit you want to work on. Again, try an easier one first for that good feeling of success. Let's consider more exercise. Start small. Don't try to run a marathon right away. Set the amount of time, the type of exercise and when to do it to begin making sure that it is within your reach. If it works for you each week add a bit more. Walking is one of the best ways to get good overall movement but there are many exercise videos on YouTube of varying lengths and difficulty to check out. Change your exercise routines to eliminate getting bored. For hardcore exercise with weights, give yourself a day in-between to recover. Even on days you would rather not exercise, do it and see if you feel better. It takes an average of 66 days to establish a habit. Just think 66 days to establish a good habit for a lifetime. Sounds like a good thing to me...how about you?