Tutorial for Handmade Cardmaking: Personalized Lab Coat Card for Doctors

I enjoyed my first attempt to card making (here it is), I thought I will try to make an another. This card is for my twin sister who always sends me beautiful cards from Turkey. Mehpare, my sister, is a doctor and currently doing her residency at a hospital southeast of Turkey as a physical therapy and rehabilitation specialist. I saw this card on the web and thought it will be perfect for her: shaped as a white lab coat.

Whether you already make your own cards or just a beginner like me, this personalized lab coat card is doable. It took me two tries to get it right since all I had a photo of it but, I have all the instructions for you with detailed measurements in case you would like to try to make one as well.

Materials: Scissors, A4 size white paper, one white button, adhesive, colored paper of your choice, pencil, ruler, eraser, printer for name tag printing (optional)

Step 1: Fold the A4 sized white paper from both sides in a way that the width is a total of 5" and the two front closures overlap by 1" as shown in the photo #1.

Step 2: Cut the paper vertically to 6". You can make it longer if you are using a large envelope.

Step 3 and 4: Mark 1" from the top and 2 inches from the bottom of the rectangular on each of the two closures, using a pencil.

Step 5: Fold the corner so that the corner will meet on the pencil marks at the top and the bottom. This will be the collar of the lab coat.

Step 6: Apply the same folding technique on the other side. Your card should look like the photo #6.

Step 7: Mark 1" from each corner of the collar with a pencil.

Step 8: Draw a horizontal line from the left corner of the collar to the right as shown in dotted lines below.

Step 9: Cut the squares. Then, draw another line from the bottom end of the collar to where the line in step #8 touches.

 Step 10: Cut the small triangle that is left on the right of the dotted line you draw in step #9.

Step 11: Embellish your card by adding a pocket, putting the button, name tag and the stethoscope.

Step 12: Fill the inside of the card with your warmest wishes and mail/give it to that special person...

I have used materials and papers I already had home. I even re-purposed a paint chip for the red pen and a thick brand tag from a jean for the gray paper for the stethoscope. The black paper is cut from a folder I also had at home.

Tip: You can use this tutorial to make a card for anyone that wears uniform at work: scientists, nurses, chefs,  or doctors.
I have already filled my card and will mail it on Monday. I cannot wait to have it delivered to my sister. Hope you enjoyed this DIY. Please let me know if you decide to make it or have any questions.  

How to make mosaic artwork with glass - A Tutorial for Beginners

Hello my dearest readers and HAPPY MONDAY!!! I learned to make mosaics couple weeks ago at a class held by a mosaic artist in Seattle. Her name is Laura Wright. It was such a fun evening... Laura was so kind to open her house for this class. I thought I will share with you what I made and what I learned.

My A Cup of Sparkle Laboratory walls were quite naked so; I thought I will make a cup with sparkles... and write my jewelry shop's name with glass.

I made this mosaic artwork  on a 8"x12", 1/2" thick wood board.  I used black, red, soft pink, white colors of recycled glass and mirror for sparkles. The corners are pre-cut square tiles.

Materials: Recycled glass, wheeled glass nippers, substrate, adhesive-thin set/concrete or a tub of pre-mixed AcrylPro ceramic tile adhesive, sanded grout, a plastic knive for spreading, a cup to mix the grout, tile cleaning sponge, bucket of warm water for cleaning the grout on the mosaic, gloves for grouting and a picture hanger to hang your finished mosaic.

Step #1: Draw your design on paper. We will do an indirect method so; you need to draw the mirror image of your design. Place your sticky tape over your picture sticky side up.

Step #2: Place your glass pieces face down accordingly. Cut the glass to desired shape for your design. If you want to make changes, the glass pieces come-off easily. So; don't worry. This step took me around 3 hours... Writing letters was quite hard, but; FUN! :)

Step #3: Place your adhesive on the wood board (substrate) by completely covering it.

Step#4: Flip your design on the board with the adhesive.

Step #5: Gently tap in each piece using your fingers; especially the smaller pieces.

Step #6: After 30 minutes or so, gently pull away the tape from bottom to top. Move around any pieces that need adjusting.

 

Grouting: Wait 24 hours. Place your mosaic on a newspaper. Fill a bucket with warm water. Put your gloves. Spread your grout well-mixed with water on your mosaic. Cover it very well. Wipe off the extra grout. Wait 5-10 minutes. The grout will dry fast and you can wipe it with a towel until your mosaic looks shiny and smooth. Here is a video that explains the grouting part pretty well.

VA-LAaaa!! Your mosaic is complete and ready for hanging. I hung mine already that matched so well with my red wall paint. I am so happy with it :) Let me know if you have any questions on the tutorial. There are also many youtube videos that might help you visualize what I am talking about. 

Wishing you all a great week!

Pinecone treats with snowflakes... More fall cooking at A Cup of Sparkle kitchen

Once again, I wanted to take you to A Cup of Sparkle kitchen for more fall season cooking. If you have not seen fall leaves ice-cream sandwich tutorial yet, you should take a look at it! I got so many good reactions from you that I thought I will share another fall recipe with you.

Pinecone treats



Today's cooking recipe is very simple, fun and chocolaty.This pinecone treats are great for thanksgiving and christmas celebrations.Very eye-catching! It will be also a great cooking activity you can do with kids.

Here is the recipe for this nature inspired pine cone treats which I found from Turkish blogs:

Ingredients for ~10-15 pinecones
1/2 packet of rice krispie (~60g)
1/2 stick of butter
2 tablespoons of honey
1 tablespoon of cacao
2 bars of chocolate (~100g)
1-2 tablespoons of powdered sugar

Preparation:
1- Melt the butter in a pan. Add the honey, chocolate and cacoo. Melt them all together in low heat.
2- In a large bowl, add the melted chocolate mixture on the rice krispie and mix them.
3- Fill inside of a lemon squeezer to give the shape of a pinecone. Press it and invert it upside down on a serving plate.
4- Let it cool down.
5- Sprinkle powdered sugar before you serve it to make winter snowflakes effect.

Your pinecones are ready in a very short time without baking! I hope you will enjoy making the pinecone treats as much as I did...

AFIYET OLSUN!  (BON APPETIT!)

TIPS: You can add pinenuts, crushed walnuts or sesame seeds to your pinecones to obtain extra flavor and crunchness. You can also use cupcake sleeves to serve it instead of a platter.

Summer Shorts Making Tutorial: Round #1

Like all of us, I had a pair of jeans that needed to be retired. To repurpose my jeans, I made them to shorts and customize them with some jewels. Here is the easy 6 step tutorial on how to make shorts from jeans. I am thinking I need a Round-2 on these shorts so; stay tuned!

Materials: Scissors, old jeans you are tired of wearing, sew-on jewels or buttons, matching thread, needle

Step 1: Lay down the jeans on a flat surface and  cut your jeans to a desirable length - make sure to cut it 2" or so longer, if you are going to cuff them.

Step 2: Decide where you want to sew your buttons or gemstones and sew them on.

I hand-sew them on around the pockets.

Step 3: Sew the other side symmetrically with your preferred material.

Step 4 and 5: Fold the bottom of legs inwards in two layers.

Step 6: Put more sewable jewels on the back.

I had two remaining sew on jewels and I decided to use the couple only in one of the pockets.

Step 7: Try them on and enjoy the sunny days wearing your unique pair of shorts with a personalized touch of sparkle!

Party Ideas: Red and White

Last week, I mentioned that I was going to host a Turkish theme party in my backyard. Here are some of the red and white party food and decorations I prepared.

  
Turkish flag cupcake toppers are made of red velvet textured paper glued on toothpicks. I made the flags double-sided. Cutting the tiny moon and stars took a bit of time; but, I really liked how they came out.
The coconut covered carrot bon bons were a bit hit.
Aren't they cute?


I also printed turkish flags and made a banner that my husband hung on the plum tree in front of our house. The paty menu consisted of selection of traditional Turkish cuisine; lentil koftes, kebabs, Meditterean salads.. The main dessert was my strawberry-banana vanilla cake. The fresh, seasonal strawberries really helped the theme. Most of all, Seattle had a great sunny day for our BBQ party.  I really enjoy eating outdoors.

I hope my red and white party ideas will give you some inspiration in your upcoming parties or gatherings.
Happy Tuesday to all of you!!!

Handmade Glass Charm Tutorial

Many people have parties and festivities to celebrate the 4th of July. Are you having people over or going to a party for the independence day holiday?

My husband and I am inviting a big group of people on the July 1st, just before the holidays. We are doing something non-USA-traditional though. To make this bbq party memorable for our guests, we thought of a unique theme: Turkey. That includes Turkish food and Turkish decorations. The party colors will be red and white, which is the Turkish flag colors. Lately, I have been working on different party favors. (Stay tuned...this week!)

   Here is my first project; glass charms with famous evil eyes. You can make your own glass charms with this simple tutorial.

Materials: artistic wire (I used 20 gauge), variety of beads, wire cutter, round nose pliers, a round shaped object - I used a nail polish cap

 

Step 1: Curve your wire in between 1- 2 inches in diameter. I used one of my favorite nail polish caps to create even circles. Then, slide the wrapped wire from the circular object you used. 

Step 2: Cut the circles by keeping around 1/8" overlap in both ends to leave space to curve the ends. 

Step 3: Using your round nose pliers, curve one end of your circle peace inwards so that the ends are not sharp. 

Step 4: Slide the bead from the other end through the wire.

Step 5: Repeat the step #3 for the other end of the wire. Make sure there is no sharp edges on the charm.

Step 6: Place the glass charm to a glass and squeeze the ends slightly with your hand. That way the charms will not fall. 

Step 7: Repeat the steps with the number of glass charms you wish to make.

Step 8: Now, enjoy your cup of drink from your charmed glasses with extra protection with the evil eyes. 

Handmade Modern Succulent Planter Tutorial

Succulents are really the perfect plants to have; especially in an office environment. They are very charming and very low maintenance. Succulent plants only need water every three to 10 weeks, depending on the temperature and lighting.

I wanted to make something special for my husband's new office this weekend. I decided to try making a planter after reading the blog post from Craftberry Bush featuring her homemade tiered terrarium. Initially I was going to make it a tiered planter more similar to hers; but, I ended up with something different with the sizes of ceramic bowls I could able to find after visiting 4 stores around my neighborhood.

    I picked a deep, round white baking bowl from the kitchen department and a toothbrush holder from the bathroom department for this project. I glued the toothbrush holder; which is tall and deep in the middle of the round bow with epoxy glue.

I added a layer of gravel, sand, and wet cactus soil in order. I didn't spend much time to think about the design; I just went to my garden and picked out some of the succulents I already had, pulled out some moss - which is easy to find in rainy Seattle and found some rocks; then, did some trial and error by placing the plants randomly on the bowl. I just kept stuffing moss, rocks, plants until it looked pretty.

My first version didn't have the tall plant at the top of the bowl. I thought I needed something taller to advance the look; so, I picked this red sensation-dracaena from a store.

I am really happy with the outcome and my husband really liked it. It was a fun weekend project! Happy Gardening season to all of you!

I hope everyone is having a fabulous weekend!