Another Experiment : Craisin Beads

What do you think these little jewels are? I was going for a dried cranberry. Did it work?


This was my workspace as I was making these little jewels.
Would you believe, they are crumbled up bits of a Coldwater Creek catalog?
The basic ingredients are :

• Ultra Thick Embossing Enamel (UTEE)
• Glossy ad or catalog on shiny paper--Pick some colors you like!
• Parchment Paper
• Melting Pot

I started with the roses page from a Coldwater Creek catalog. I tore off bits and crumbled them up. Then I dropped them into a pot of melted UTEE. Then I dropped the coated nuggets onto the parchment paper. Once they were cooled and dry, the excess UTEE can be cut off and thrown back in the pot to melt another day.

I still need to figure out how to apply them to my quilts ... Glue (GemTack?) or other adhesive? I'm thinking a hot needle would melt the UTEE again enough to pierce a hole though it.

One thing about these little gems is that you can't iron them--the heat will melt them, and you'll have a gloppy mess.

Here's what did NOT work with this little experiment :



This little potpourri cooker never got hot enough to melt the UTEE--even after 2 hours. Good thing it was only a $1.79 purchase at the thrift store. I was hoping it might be comparable to Ranger's Melting Pot. Be advised--it won't work for melting UTEE.

Next, I tried a little candle burner with a little potpourri pot. This also did not work very well. The candle flame seemed too concentrated in one place. I was hearing cracks and pops and afraid the whole thing would break and really make a mess ...

What worked best : putting the little black crock pot directly on the gas stove over a slow, simmering flame. All the UTEE melted in less than 5 minutes.

I'm hoping to use the same technique to "finish" some rolled beads I made last summer. The UTEE can make them look like glass or amber beads. Stay Tuned!