DIY Lace Bowls
Question: can you ever have too many little bowls? You know, the ones that can be used to maybe put some jewellery pieces in, or collect lost buttons (that might eventually make it back onto a shirt) in, or just leave on the sides because they look pretty. Well, my answer is ‘no’, you can never have too many little bowls and that’s why I’ve made some more!
At the moment, I’m keep some of my rings and earrings in them. I have so many pieces that it’s easy to occasionally forget them when they’re all buried together. By dividing my jewellery up into various bowls, I can see what I have and decide quicker what I fancy wearing.
I have used a charcoal paint for these, but of course you can use any colour you like – neon pink anyone?
The modelling clay I have used comes ready made and packaged. It can be dried in the oven, but I have found that a little more patience and letting the items dry naturally over night produces nicer results. If you’re interested in making these, read on for the instructions.
Here’s what you’ll need…
Ready made modelling clay
A rolling pin
A dessert bowl (one for each bowl you want to make)
Cling film
Lace cutoffs – the more variations, the better
Paint brush
Water based paint in the colour of your choice
Small amount of water in case the clay gets dry
And here’s how it’s done…
Tear a (roughly) golf-ball size amount of clay off and roll between your hands until you have a smooth ball. Place on your work surface and gently press down to flatten it. Use a little water if necessary to keep it smooth. Using the rolling pin, roll it out until you have a disc shape which is around 2-3mm thick. Don’t worry about uneven edges, they add to the slightly rustic character!
Now place a piece of lace onto the clay disk and roll over it with the rolling pin. You should now have an imprint of the lace. Repeat with different lace pieces, you can use as many or as little as you like.
If you really would like a very smooth and round edge, use a glass to cut out the disk after pressing in the lace.
Line your dessert bowl with cling film. Now place the clay disk into the bowl, but don’t press it down completely as you just want a fairly shallow bowl. Leave to dry over night.
The next day, take the clay bowl out of your dessert bowl and check it’s completely dried. It should now be much lighter than when wet.
Using your paintbrush, lightly apply a fairly dry coat of paint. The aim here is to colour the raised parts and leaving the embossed parts white. Leave to dry.
You can apply a coat of varnish if you would like to, but I have left mine unvarnished because I rather like the matt and natural look.
And that’s it! I hope you like these and will give it a go yourself.
