DIY Craft: Wooden Beads Keychains

We are loving the things that we can do with wooden beads. Here are a couple more keychains that we have made. Enjoy! =)

The beads are painted with acrylic paint. Pastel and metallic are a perfect couple!

If you are interested in organising a workshop to make these crafts with wooden beads and/or need the supplies, feel free to contact us at hello@wahsosimple.com.

Alternatively, you can purchase a DIY Craft Kit for Wooden Beads Keychains and do it yourself at home. =)

Till the next blog post, make something with your hands! =)

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DIY Craft: Wooden Beads Necklaces

Wooden beads and acrylic paint is the perfect combination to make pretty things. We made a couple of necklaces with wooden beads to jazz up our outfits. #OOTD

It is easy to do this DIY craft. Just paint and string. =)

Just paint ....

and string! 

Check out our shop for the DIY Craft Kit for Wooden Beads Necklaces and DIY your next accessory!

Till our next blog post, craft something! =)

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DIY Crafts: Use Cloth, Not Plastic ... Tutti Fruitti Fabric Bags

Say, you are about to go leave your office for lunch. What do you do? You grab a small bag and put in your wallet, your hanky and perhaps an umbrella.

Say, you are about to take a quick trip to the nearest hawker centre to buy some breakfast. What do you do? You grab a small bag and put in your wallet, your hanky and your keys.

Here at WahSoSimple, we love these small environmental-friendly bags. So love them that we hand-painted our small fabric bags with tutti fruitti designs. =)

If you are interested in hand painting these bags and would like to organise a private craft workshop or get the supplies for this craft, please feel free to contact us at hello@wahsosimple.com.

Till our next blog post, make something with your hands! =)

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DIY Craft: Wooden Beads

We are totally in love with wooden beads. The things we can make with them are just so many. Here are 2 craft ideas which you can consider. We have used 16mm in diameter wooden beads for both the crafts featured below. 

Key Chain: If you love to add some colour to the beads, acrylic paint will be just what you need. You can paint the beads with various patterns, string them together with a suede string and you have your very own handmade keychain! 

Love the splash of pastel green on the beads

Glass/Cup Coaster: If you love the natural wood colour, you can skip painting them. Thread 5 rows of 5 beads. Glue them together with a hot glue gun and lightly burn the ends of the cords to prevent it from fraying. Your coaster is all ready for use. 

A handmade glass/cup coaster

Till our next blog post, make something with your hands!

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Craft Workshop: Painting Tropical Fruits on Fabric Bags with Seniors

Nobody can resist a wedge of red juicy watermelon nor a ripe and golden pineapple, especially with the recent hot and humid weather. We handpainted our favourite fruits into vibrant designs on drawstring fabric bags at our recent customised craft workshop  - specially designed for our student volunteers to bond with the lovely seniors over an afternoon of craft session. 

Stroke by stroke, we created the ripe and juicy fruits together with the seniors with the help of the student volunteers. Painting is indeed an avenue of unique self expression and no two creations were the same; as we gazed around the room at the dozens of painted watermelons and pineapples fabric bags. We found the sight amazing as the bags from the same set of stencils and shades of acrylic paint.

Happily painting and chatting away

The completed creation

Every painted piece we saw was a unique creation

Till our next blog post, make something with your hands! =)

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DIY Craft: Earphone Cord Holder Made with Air Dry Clay

When I saw the earphone cord holder / keeper on Pinterest, I got really excited! This is exactly what I need to keep my earphone cord neat. I always squish and squash my earphone cord into a small bag and when I need it, it is almost always tangled up in knots. Then I have to spend a minute or two untangling it before I can use it. This is too much work for me. Hope my new clay earphone holder can help to keep the tangles at bay! =)

This is what I used:

• Air dry clay
• Rolling pin
• Clear sheet of transparency (or you can use any type of smooth surfaces to roll your clay on)
• Clay slicer / pen knife / cutter
• Heart-shaped cookie cutter
• Drinking straw
• Alphabet stamp
• Sandpaper
• Acrylic paint
• Tape
• Paint brush
• Paint palette

This is what I did:

1. Shape: Knead and roll the clay on the clear transparency sheet to about 3 to 5mm thick. Use the cookie cutter to cut out a heart shape. Then use the drinking straw to pierce 2 holes about 5mm away from the edge and use the cutter to cut from the holes to the edge (see picture above). Gently remove the excess clay.
2. Stamp: Use the alphabet stamps to stamp in your name or words to make your holder more interesting. This is optional.
3. Dry & Sand: Gently lift the clay off the transparency sheet and place it at a safe place for overnight drying. Let the clay dry for about 24 hours or until it becomes dry and hard. Once the clay is dry and hard, use a piece of sand paper to smooth out the rough edges, if any.
4. Paint: Paint the holder in any colour you like with the acrylic paint. I have chosen to paint one in pink and gold and the other in blue and silver. I used a piece of tape to help me keep the line between the colours neat.

 I hope you will have fun making this!

Till the next blog post, craft something with your hands! =)

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DIY Craft: Air Dry Clay Dish

Here's a DIY craft idea to help you stay organised! =)

Have you ever had the experience of opening up your dresser drawer and all your stuff (ear rings, bracelets, coins, keys, buttons, etc) are in an unorganised mess? And you cannot find that red bracelet that would go so well with your outfit today? Sounds familiar? I also have the same problem with my dresser top. I pile everything up and clear it up when I cannot tolerate the mess. New year resolution is to get organised so I decided to make some clay dishes to organise my stuff and make my dresser top look pretty at the same time.

Time to whip out the air dry clay that I bought months ago and my acrylic paint to make some clay dishes! This is what I used:

• Air dry clay
• Rolling pin
• Alphabet stamp and cookie cutters
• Clay slicer  (or you can use a knife)
• Clear sheet of transparency (or you can use any type of smooth surfaces)
• Small dishes (I used sauce dishes)
• Acrylic paint
• Paint brush
• Paint palette
• Sandpaper

This is what I did:

1. Open up the pack of clay and take some out. Store the remaining clay in an airtight container. The clay will feel slightly wet and when it dries when you are working with it, it will stick to your finger tips. So, it will help if your fingers are slightly wet when you are kneading and rolling the clay and have a damp towel at arm's length.
2. Knead and roll the clay on the clear transparency sheet to about 3mm in thickness. Place your small dish bowl upside down over the clay and cut around the edge of the dish with the clay slicer. It will be good if you can do the cut crisp and straight so that your edges will look neat.
3. It is time to be creative! Stamp in any words that you want or use your cookie cutters to create some designs.
4. Gently lift the clay off the transparency sheet and place it into the dish. Gently push the clay into the dish until it lightly touches the bottom. Smooth the edges with your fingers. Tip: please do not push the clay too hard into the dish, it may get a bit challenging to pop it out of the dish tomorrow.
5. Let the clay dry in the dish for about 24 hours or until it becomes dry and hardens.
6. Gently pop the dried clay out of the dish. If the edges or any part of the clay dish is not smooth, sand it down with some sand paper.
7. It is time to be creative again! Paint the clay dish in any colour you want with the acrylic paint. 
8. Let the acrylic paint dry and TA-DA! you have your own clay dish now! =)

Hope you will enjoy making these clay dishes. My dresser top is certainly much neater and prettier now!

Till the next blog post, make something with your hands! =)

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DIY Craft: Print Your Own Wrapping Paper

Want to make your gift wrapping unique from others? Consider this simple DIY craft of printing your own wrapping paper with hand carved rubber stamps and acrylic paint. =)

It is quite simple to do ... All you need is some brown paper, a rubber, some acrylic paint, a small container to hold and blend your paint and a paintbrush.

I used a cookie cutter to get my rubber to a heart shape and used a cutter to to cut out some diagonal lines to give the heart some texture. Blend the paint to a color that you like, use the paintbrush to smear some paint on your rubber and start stamping away. Easy as ABC, right?

Add in a ribbon and I am done. Finally, my gift can be the unique one that stands out from the crowd.

The blue and yellow gift tag is made with oven baked clay. Check out how you can also make one here.

Till the next blog post, make something with your hands! =)

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DIY Craft: Easy DIY Coasters

This is a super easy DIY craft to do on a rainy day at home. It makes a great gift to brighten up someone's day!

Acrylic paint + cork board + your creativity = COASTERS WITH YOUR OWN EXCLUSIVE DESIGNS! =)

This is what I used:

• Cork sheets / boards
• Scissors
• Tape
• Acrylic paint
• Paint brush
• Paint palette

This is what I did:

1. Cut the cork sheet to size.
2. Paste the tape on the cork sheets to create the design of your choice.
3. Paint the areas that are not covered by the tape. Be creative with your colours.
4. Wait for the acrylic paint to dry.
5. Remove the tape.
6. Ta-da! Coasters with your own exclusive designs!

Till the next blog post, make something with your hands! =)

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DIY Craft: Paint Your Own Fabric Bag

I am not an artist or painter but I love DIY crafting with acrylic paint. It is very versatile as it works with many types of materials (wood, fabric, glass, plastic, paper, etc). And when you buy a box of acrylic paint, you have a lot of it and when you have a lot of something, you experiment and have fun. =)

I also love small bags to keep my stuff organised. I have a small bag for my on-the-go toiletries, a small bag for my tech stuff (chargers, wires, thumb drive), a small bag for my stationery and the list goes on. 

Acrylic paint + small fabric bag = My Own Customised Bag!! I am so excited!

This is what I used:

• Fabric bag
• Red acrylic paint
• Stencils
• Paintbrush
• Paint palette

To make, just place the stencil on the bag and start painting away! 

I love the bag. You know what? I am going to give this bag to a friend of mine who is always jovial and positive. 'Laugh lots' fits her so well. Hope she will like it!

Till the next blog post, make something with your hands! =) 

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