A Touch of Green

I never can seem to knit along to Project Spectrum. My stash just isn’t big enough to manage that, and with no yarn store for 200km, shopping just seems difficult. Besides, I enjoy a chance to focus on photography and other crafts for this part of my creative life.

This time, since green is one of the colours I am most attracted to for fashion these days, I thought I’d make some buttons. Thanks to my daughter’s help, we have a few photos. Here was my process:

(Please keep in mind that I am a rank amateur and have no idea just how durable these will prove to be, although I’ve done some reading and they should hold up fairly well. It’s not like I’ll be using them for any Extreme Buttoning Championships.)

Materials:

• polymer clay
• rolling pin protected with plastic wrap
• stamp
• circle cutter-thingamy
• skewer or toothpick
• paint
• tissue or rags
• sealant

Roll out the polymer clay.  I found the plastic wrap left wrinkly lines, so I just flipped it over and used the back side that was smooth from the waxed paper. Impress it with the stamp.  This is a snowflake stamp that has pleasing curlicues on it.

Cut out button-sized circles.  I used a round yellow plastic thing from the kids’ old playdough drawer that’s about the size of a quarter.  I’d like to hunt up something smaller for even smaller buttons.

Use the skewer to make button holes. Flip them and tidy up the back side.

Roll them sideways along your work surface to flatten the little ridge that forms when you press the cutter down on them.

Bake. Cool

Rub paint into the impressed pattern, then rub off the paint on the top.  I used Kleenex because I didn’t want to stop and find rags. When I was rubbing off the unwanted paint, I found it useful to use a dampened tissue.  I blotted it on, then rubbed the surface.

Let dry.  Seal.  I had glossy outdoor sealant for birdhouses and such like.  So I used it.  After all, I’ll wear the sweaters I knit or the tops I sew into the outdoors, right?

Drag everyone in the house to your buttons and point in their direction. Say, “Look, look! Buttons! I made them and they’re surprisingly awesome.” Bask in the glow of your awesomeness.

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I also took advantage of the chance to make a pendant. I used the same process with a different stamp. The paint here was diluted with water to be more of a wash and I applied at least 2 layers of different colours: gold over green, green over deep blue.  The end result is about 4cm square.