Sponsored by readers like you: Polymer clay

The youth in our groups are so creative! It's been a few weeks since we had our polymer clay class, and I'm still blown away by the amazing things they created! I adore Michael's little brown puppy, Melissa's Disney princesses, and Emily's polymer clay Kurt from Glee! (Chayla's pokemon character was definitely photo worthy, but my picture was blurry!) They came up with some amazing stuff, but I can't post them all here!

If you'd like to get into using polymer clay, check out the Sculpey site for some beginner, intermediate, and advance projects or check out Beady Eyed Brat for a list for great tutorials!

As you know, our youth groups are funded by readers like you who donate by buying the e-books, Back to Basics, Hair Care Products: Shampoos & Conditioners, and Lotionmaking 101. If you'd like to learn more about our groups and what we do, please click here.

I post these pictures as a thank you for all the support you've offered to the kids who attend our groups at the Chilliwack and Yarrow libraries. This morning, I'm offering a parent-child class for Mother's & Father's day cards and gifts, then video game club at the Chilliwack library. We're making cards on Tuesday and Thursday as well!

I also want to encourage you to try new things. If the kids can come up with these amazing creations when they've never used clay before, imagine how great they'll be when they have some practice!

Oh, I couldn't forget Abbey's cupcake key chain! You know I was coveting that one. And although Jay made me some great pink bob-bombs for earrings, I haven't had a chance to turn them into jewellery yet!

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Sponsored by readers like you: Fabric stencilling with freezer paper

I admit I'm addicted to stencilling because it gives me a chance to make funky personalized t-shirts and other fabric items with an X-acto knife, some freezer paper, and fabric paints. My How's That Made group has spent the last two weeks stencilling. Week one, we learned how to make stencils. Week two, we decorated some shirts! You can see some of the wonderful designs the kids made the in the group. (This adorable Hello Kitty is courtesy of Chayla!)

I didn't get a picture of Greg's fearsome Dalek or Samara's two shirts of zombie doom or many of the other 20-odd shirts that were created, but I think you can get a good idea of what is possible here.

I've found that Speedball inks are a good investment if you really want to make some serious stencilled items. They're cheaper in the long run - about $7.00 for a container, but one can last for years as you use so little - they're longer wearing, and they look nicer on the fabric as they sink in, rather than sitting on top. I've noticed the freezer paper is thinner than it used to be - Reynold's is now plastic instead of wax backed - so if you want to make a few copies of a shirt, visit your local butcher and get some thicker, wax backed butcher paper (ask nicely and they'll give you some for free!)

If you want to make your own freezer paper stencils, here are my instructions:

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Some cute little stencils - great for newbies and kids! I love the little robot! He's so cute!

As you know, our youth groups are funded by readers like you who donate by buying the e-books, Back to Basics, Hair Care Products: Shampoos & Conditioners, and Lotionmaking 101. If you'd like to learn more about our groups and what we do, please click here.

I'm posting these pictures here to encourage you to make these projects for yourself or share it with others in your life, and to thank you for all the support you've given to our youth groups. We couldn't do these programs without the donations you've offered, and we can never thank you enough for all that you've given to us! This is our way of showing you what you've given to our youth and how well they're using the resources! Aren't they fantastic?

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