OBC – Lace and the Dreaded Hot Glue Gun

ONE BOOB CHRONICLE – Lace and the Dreaded Hot Glue Gun

I think for the 1,000th time I’m going to once again say “I HATE THE HOT GLUE GUN”!

Blister burns from the hot glue gun

I spent yesterday assembling the wands as far as I could go with them.  I found a bolt of lace at my local Hobby Lobby in the Clearance Section.  Using my nemesis to attach the lace to the back side of the rosette was an all day affair.

Strings of hot glue webs everywhere, poking in a fresh glue stick for each rosette, and generally having my fingers of both hands sensitive to heat by the end of the day was rewarding to see the pile of wands completed.

Stage one of the wands

I used up the entire bolt of lace with this project so far.  I have six remaining and will need to get more lace.

The bolt of lace I used

Time to get more lace

The back side of the wand needs some work.  I have to work some more with the hot glue gun to add some decorative lace to  hide the band which shows around the back cover.

Desperate need of something

I’m wading into unfamiliar territory here.  Using lace, and soon flowers, is definitely in my DIS-comfort zone.  Maybe by the time I get finished with these wands I will be a well seasoned craft person who can bravely tackle anything.

I thoroughly enjoyed your comments and advice yesterday on using intricate dies.  Thank you all for sharing your experience and wisdom.

Do you use the hot glue gun?  Do you have a “Go To” formula for hiding the lace edges?  What do you recommend for making this task a bit easier?  I look forward to your comments and advice.

Leslie

 

OBC – Trouble With Intricate Dies

ONE BOOB CHRONICLE – Trouble With Intricate Dies

Recently, I received a package in the mail from Katinah Walker.  In the massive box of wonderful things was a Sizzix die set.

Sizzix die set

I have used two of the dies for the “Wands” I am creating.  One is a scalloped circle and the other is a very intricate “doily” die.

Scallop circle die and intricate doily die

I didn’t have much trouble with the scallop circle die.  I cut some DCWV paper to 4 inch squares and ran the die and paper through my Sizzix Big Shot.  It didn’t take long for me to make 26 of these.  The doily die….that is another story that I have video of my many trials in getting the right set up to work well.

For the doily pieces I cut two sheets of Colorbok white textured card stock into three inch square pieces.

Let’s just say that I nearly gave up after struggling to make five of the doily pieces.

Die cut scallop circles and doilies

During the time I have been absent, I have watched a lot of YouTube videos on die cutting intricate dies.  Some people use dryer sheets during the cutting to make the dies release, some people use waxed paper.  I’ve also seen videos that strongly urge the viewer to not use either method.

Since I did not own any intricate dies….before Ms. Katinah Walker blessed me with this set….I just only half paid attention to the video instructions.

I don’t own dryer sheets so I attempted to use a paper towel.  FAIL

I changed the position of the die on the cutting plates.  Face up and face down.  FAIL

The die did cut the doily, to be sure.  Releasing the die cut from the die is another story all together.  Then spending a lot of time poking out the holes with a piercing tool was not my idea of an enjoyable process.

Then I read the instructions on the Sizzix packet.

The instructions suggest using waxed paper on the intricate die and run it through the machine three times.

BAM!  Only a little bit of poking with the piercing tool to get the holes open.  That worked so well, I was able to complete all the doily pieces in a couple hours.

The intricate doily die

The conclusion of the die cutting day resulted in a three hour nap.  Good grief!

What are your stories or advice in using intricate dies?  I would really like to know so tell me in the comment section below.  I will be having a video up HOPEFULLY by Friday.

Leslie