200th post!!! A Big thanks to all who stop by!!

A Spoon Full of Stars 

It's my 200th post and in honor of that I am doing a free little tutorial called "A Spoon Full of Stars "  . With this post I will also  be giving the finished piece away, picking randomly from those who   leave a   comment . If you feel like making this whimsical little piece but want to make it easier I am also  selling kits  ( see the side panel ) . But most of you may have  the  supplies for this piece  hanging  around  your studio and in this case maybe your kitchen. Hey!!!all of us  know we have far more "stuff" then most of us will ever use in our creative life time!!!  So here we go !!
Materials Needed.
1=wooden spoon and wooden knob
2=19 gauge  annealed steel wire ( ace hardware -it is bascialy a blackened  wire that is heated /annealed  so it bends easily)
3=silver and gold paint
4= 3 colors  of glass glitter, gold, clear and silver
5 =Paper Clay
6=white glue optional Mod Podge
7=drill and small bit
8=Paint brush
9=Exacto knife and pencil
10= Lettering stamps black ink and charcoal
11=sand paper med. grit
12=clay roller
13= paper for making templates and scissors
14= needle nose pliers and wire cutter 

Step 1= Roll out Paper Clay to about 3/8 " thick( I use a piece of plastic plumbing pipe cut to size). 

 Draw 3 different stars sizes  on paper and cut out for templates  . Place  you star templates on the paper clay and cut them out cookie cuter style with an exacto knife. Set them aside to dry . Paper Clay is an air dry clay and so it does not need to bake  in the oven  but you can  speed up the drying time by heating   in the oven at around 225 degrees .

                              
Step 2= Roll out another sheet of Paper Clay  about 1/2 " thick and then make a banner shaped template from paper . In the same way you cut the stars out,  cut  you banner shape  out too. I  then bowed it and set it under pencils to dry.

Step 3= When the Paper Clay stars and banner are dry, sand then and then paint  the spoon and the stars . I painted  some  stars gold some silver and left several white .I  glued a fun wooden craft store knob on the end of the spoon  and painted it with  silver and  2 types of gold paint.

Step 4= Drill  2 tiny holes through  the  edge  of the  banner and 2 holes through the spoon . These will be for the 19 gauge wire hanger so you will need to  use a dill bit big enough for the wire  to pass thorough. Make sure the holes on the banner line up on the holes on the spoon.

Step 5= I took the sanded Paper Clay banner and rubbed charcoal on the edges and smeared it with my finger . I then took lettering stamps ,black ink and stamped the words " A Spoon Full " on the bare Paper Clay. If you make a mistake simply sand it off and start over . You can also cut the letters out of paper and glue them on to the paper clay or hand write them onto the Paper Clay.  When this was done I sealed it with matt  spray fixative . You can use regular hair spray if you do not have spray fixative .

Step 6= Using matt Mod Podge as glue I added 3 colors of glass glitter to the stars and spoon . I used clear , gold and silver glass Glitter. If you do not have Mod Podge you can use watered down white glue . I like Ultimate  Glue .

Step 7= Now it is time to take  the 19 gauge annealed steel wire and  wrap it around a pencil, making a curl for the wire hanger . Insert the ends into the holes you drilled in the spoon. 

Step 8= Run the end of the wires thorough the holes you drilled in the banner and with a pair of  needle nose pliers  add curly cues to the ends . Snip any excess wire off with wire cutters. 

Step 9 = Drill two more holes . One through the spoon bowl and one into the edge of one of your larger stars. Wrap  a  short piece of wire  around a pencil again making a curl and insert one end  of the wire  into the star  adding  bit of glue . When the wire in the star is dry, make a little hook with the other wire  end and  insert it into the spoon bowl so that it  creates a hanging star.

Step 10= Now just glue your stars in the spoon and add a ribbon to the knob . I then   glued some german gold dresden paper to the spoon handle . When all is dry you can hang your finished  piece.

Now once again if you feel like making this little bit of whimsy yet do not want to gather all the stuff . You may  buy one of my pre made kits!!! They come with everything pictured plus written instructions.

1-spoon and glued on knob , pre drilled

2= pre-made paper clay stars( one with drilled hole)  and  one drilled pre-made paper clay banner.

3= 3 bags of glass glitter- gold ,clear and silver 

4= ribbon and german dresden paper

5=Ribbon and wire 

6 = gold and silver "Golden" brand cups of paint.

You will need the following supplies with this kit..........

1= white glue and optional mod Podge

2= needle nose pliers and wire cutters

3= paint brush ,pencil for twirling wire

4= Charcoal , lettering stamps  and ink pad or just cut your words out of old books 

and glue on to the banner .

Kit is $25 and includes  shipping . There  is a Pay Pal, " Buy it Now" button on the right side panel if your wish to purchase a kit. Thanks and hugs, Julie