What is the most creative thing you have made with your own hands?
@HeavenUnaware (1757)
United States
March 2, 2007 1:59pm CST
Whether it was something really simple or something that took alot of time and planning - what one thing have you made yourself or with the help of someone else that you are the most proud of? Could be something you cooked or it could be something you crafted or built or artwork.. whatever.
Did you surprise yourself by how well it turned out?
I'm a creative person in my head but when it comes to putting my ideas into action they never turn out the way I expected them to or they are never as easy as I imagine it's going to be. I end up trashing most of the things I make unless it's food.
Christmas of 2005 I decided to try my hand at making some little magnets for my sister and two nieces. An online friend had posted a picture and they looked really easy, cute and creative.
You cut out little pictures from magazines or actual pictures. Then you buy those little clear pebbles (used for plants/crafts/fishtanks) and glue. You place a small dot of glue in the middle of a picture and then place one of the stones, flat side down over it and press down. Then you hold it for a few moments until it sets. Then you glue a little magnet to the back and WAH-LAH - instant frig magnets. The picture gets magnified with the stone and it turns out really cute. I was SO impressed with my work.
My sister loves butterflies and baby animals so I cut out alot of those from magazines. I also found her name in one magazine and one that said "sisters".
My niece loves Brad Pitt and a few other stars so I did those for her - plus her name and some other little words that fit for her. She is also very anti-Bush and she knows I support Bush so we have this little on-going joke/war between us where she likes to pick on me. So I made a magnet for her with George Bush's face. It was pretty funny.
My other niece was getting married that coming year so I made her some wedding magnets and some with love/hearts and such. Plus her name and my nephew's name together with a heart.
Everyone loved them and they turned out so darn cute. They were also really easy and inexpensive. I found small little jewelry boxes to package them in with tissue paper and cotton. I really surprised myself!
What about you?
12 people like this
40 responses
@nowment (1757)
• United States
2 Mar 07
I sketch with pencil and charcol pencils, I have done some nice, things and other things I can't imagine that I ever knew what i was doing to draw.
I made a holloween costume it was a giant ice cube complete with the appearance of melted drops.
I also paint with watercolors, crochet, knit, and do other crafts, lately people I know seem to be having babies so I keep knitting baby blankets.
I was told as recently as two weeks ago the blanket I made for one of the babies last year is the favorite and used all the time, most often.
So that makes you feel good when you put that effort into something for someone and know it is appreciated.
5 people like this
@HeavenUnaware (1757)
• United States
2 Mar 07
Ohh I wish I could draw or sketch or paint - I have vivid images in my head but when I tried to put it on paper, it wasn't happening. LOL Looked like a 2 year old took a try at sketching. I think my son has a talent for drawing but he doesn't realize it or believe it. Is in an Art/Film Academy within his high school because he wants to work with cameras in film but part of the class also focuses on art and when he does those assignments, they always turn out so well but he thinks I'm just being his mom and praising him - when the teacher praises him he believes it but not when mom does.
The Halloween costume sounds cute too! My mom was really crafty and she always made my costumes as a child. She once made me a Dice with playing chips. It was really cute!
Thanks for your response!
2 people like this
@DayDreamBeliever (48)
• United States
2 Mar 07
I have been crocheting for many years and really enjoy it. I have written a few patterns myself and enjoy crocheting for charity. I donate many baby blankets for premature/terminally ill babies through Hugs and Kisses Crafters. If anyone is interested in participating, let me know!
4 people like this
@HeavenUnaware (1757)
• United States
3 Mar 07
What a touching and awesome thing to do. Kudos to you! My mom once tried to teach me how to knit and crochet but I wasn't very good at it. I do not have alot of patience and after a couple of rows, I was bored and unhappy with my sloppy work so I gave up. I was only about 10 years old at the time so maybe I should look into classes again to see if I might like it now that I'm older and life has slowed down some. I'd love to be able to make blankets for babies. You should feel good about the work you are doing, that is really a great thing.
1 person likes this
@DayDreamBeliever (48)
• United States
22 Mar 07
Yes, it does feel great to make something beautiful then give it away for free to someone in possibly the most devastating time of their life. I wouldsuggest you try learning again. I find crocheting much easier than knitting and very relaxing too. I learned from a lady at my work, and had a group of ladies there too that crocheted. We had a lot of fun teaching each other during lunch. I really miss that group.
@coolcatzz (1587)
• Canada
2 Mar 07
Probably when I took a class and did a picture in paper tole. For anyone who doesn't know what that is its when you take a picture actually many copies of the same picture and you do a lot of cutting and positioning but you end up with a 3D picture. I did one of a magnolia bush because my Mom has passed away but that was her favorite so it reminds me of her.
4 people like this
@HeavenUnaware (1757)
• United States
2 Mar 07
That sounds like a really interesting and original type of craft. I think I would like to do that - maybe it wouldn't be too hard for someone as uncrafty as I am.
:]
I completely understand about the one you did of the magnolia bush and the importance it must have for you. My mom loved yellow roses and if I could do one like that, I would cherish it so much more than normal because it would remind me of her.
2 people like this
@imsilver (1665)
• Canada
2 Mar 07
Magnets! What a wonderful idea. I think that may be my presents for this year for my family members. Magnets with pictures of my children. Thank you Heaven.
Anyways my most creative project, I made just last year. It took me about 4 months to get it all together and I cut myself twice on it. When I phoned my parents to tell them it was in the mail, I told them that serious blood, sweat, and tears went into it.. LOL.. they'd better appreciate it. My dad absolutely loves it! I couldn't believe his reaction.
For Christmas this year I made my parents a homemade clock. Instead of the numbers each spot had a picture of my children. 12,3,6 and 9 where pictures of the two of them together and the others were alternating pictures of my son and my daughter. The choosing of the pictures was the hardest part of the whole thing. Well that and carving the corkboard because the stem on the clockworks that I bought was too short to go through the whole board. It was alot of fun to put together and I was actually impressed at how well it turned out. I'm not a very artsy/craftsy person but I really did a good job on the clock.
LOL.. I liked it so much I was tempted to keep it for myself and come up with something else for my parents. But I didn't.
4 people like this
@littlemoo (317)
• Australia
3 Mar 07
That's a great idea, with the clocks! I love it! I shall have to keep it in mind! Thanks for that one!
2 people like this
@contuletz2007 (734)
• Romania
2 Mar 07
I'm not the talented kind of person, or at least not in this domain... but the most creative thing i've made myself was a painted Easter egg which i made when i waws in the 2nd grade. i mean i'm not so sure it's so creative but my grandparents keep it safe even now....when i'm a "little bit" older. :)
4 people like this
@HeavenUnaware (1757)
• United States
3 Mar 07
Ohh sounds pretty but was it a hollowed out easter egg? I can't imagine keeping a regular hard boiled egg for this long and it not getting rotten. I bet I would like painting those types of things - like hand painting the hollow egg shell, hmm maybe I'll look into that.
I think that's sweet that your grandparents have kept it all this time - it must be pretty special to them. :)
1 person likes this
@littlemoo (317)
• Australia
2 Mar 07
Very very cute idea! I love it! I shall have to give that one a go!
I'm fairly crafty. A few mon ths ago I got right into the polymer clay thing, making mimiatures of objects into charms for earrings, bracelets, etc. Absolutely adore it! And I've sold a few to friends here and there, too!
More recently, I've got into wire wrapping. If you have a look at my avatar, there's a pic of one of my favourite pieces I've made. I think I still need a lot more practice!
I think I shall keep playing with different crafts for years to come! lol. Jill of all trades, master of none, perhaps? lol
4 people like this
@HeavenUnaware (1757)
• United States
2 Mar 07
Wow, you are creative - I love that picture. I envy those of you who have such great skills at crafting things from nothing. I think that's awesome that you are able to make some money off of it as well. You really should look into selling your pieces on eBay - I bet they would take off really well!
Good luck and thanks for sharing!
2 people like this
@littlemoo (317)
• Australia
3 Mar 07
Thanks! I love working with my hands. I'm sure you can be creative with the things you do! And your story is a great example! You just have to find your niche. I mean, I totally suck at drawing. I can only draw stick figures. Absolutely hopeless with it. I won't even bother competing with a child in primary school! lol.
2 people like this
@LadyLudie (359)
• Philippines
3 Mar 07
I can say that you have an artistic mind,and I admire you that you do not give up in trying creating simple things.you continue doing it because through that way you will discover in which line of art do you belong.All artist have each own forte, I am an artist and for how many years I am in this profession i have already created things remarkable;...writing poems,compose a stage play,painting landscape,craft designing,fashion designing and other more.All of us have an inborn talents,I adviced you to continue discovering artworks so you will understand in which line do you belong,if you fail,try again,if your first work has been thrown in the garbage,create again,never give up!you will succeed.good luck.
2 people like this
@Datingtheplayer (661)
• United States
2 Mar 07
hmm i think for me it would be this one painting i did. i am not very artistic but with this one i took a cartoon and repainted it sqaure by square but with differnt shades of the colors it was supposed to be... its complicated to explain but it came out amazingly and is definately one of the most favorite thing si have ever made with my hands.
3 people like this
@HeavenUnaware (1757)
• United States
3 Mar 07
That's great - I wish I could paint. It seems like such a great talent to have. Keep it up!
1 person likes this
@jeweledbluerose (3061)
• United States
3 Mar 07
The best thing I have ever created was my very own computer desk from scratch. None of those premade all you have to do is follow the directions to put them together ones either. Drew it out on paper and made it come to life by actually building it, turned out better than what I had originally drawn. Even better, cause now I have the space I need without spending hours looking at different offices stores to get the desk I want.
@KetanGulati (579)
• India
3 Mar 07
well i have been very much into arts and crafts,.... since always, i am into makin new models, newer presentations...and have been complimented so many times, for being an extra ordinary talent in almost so so so many fields.... i did a puppet show.... fomr making the structures of the puppets to designing their clothes to sew them and fnally make them dance with the threads -- everything I did myself....and that all i did when I was just 11 !!! Hey now it is not something I am boasting... but my teachers and peers really love me coz i am talented..... thanks to god for his showerings onto me!!!
2 people like this
@slickcut (8141)
• United States
3 Mar 07
I have made lots of things with my hands...I have always been very creative..First off i paint in oils and have painted some very pretty 16x20 oil paintings...I also can draw with pencil or chalk..I have made decopouge trunks that sold for 50.00 a piece..I have made pins, dolls,signs on wood shingles..I have also published poems...and currently writing a book....I can sew and make lots of things...I use to paint on t-shirts and sold lots and lots of them..I love to create and design things in my home...i have had people come into my home and ask if I am a interior decorater....I really enjoy all types of crafts...I have had my friends ask me why i do not go into business selling my things,but i just enjoy anything that has to do with crafts...anytime someone in the family needs to redo their homes they always call on me...its not that i am smart because Im not, but i just love crafts of all kinds and can get carried away with doing them..The one thing that I have never done was guilting,but now I am on my very first guilt,and it is coming out to be very pretty..it is of old timey dolls and the dolls are holding parasols....I love to do a lot of things for friends and family during Christmas time...when I first started creating i suppose i was a child,and from then i married and had a home to decorate and i have been doing it ever since...it really isn't hard to do,it just takes a little imagination and a desire to be crafty...It sound as though you would really enjoy doing crafts too,so i would persue that if I were you..You will surprise your own self when you create,you are probably very creative yourself,just turn loose and let you hands work..
@thyst07 (2079)
• United States
3 Mar 07
I've always been a bit of an artsy person, so I've made a ton of crafts and art projects. I think my coolest one, though, was a leather-bound blank book. I sewed in the pages by hand, and it took a lot of time and effort. I had intended it to be a diary, but by the time I got done with it, I was afraid to write in it, because I thought after all that effort that it should contain something really special.
I kept it for over two years before I found a use for it. I met my boyfriend about five months ago, and he writes the most phenomenal poetry I have ever read. I seriously think he could get published, and I don't say that about most of my friends' poetry. Anyway, I gave him my precious book and asked him to transcribe some of the poems he's written into it. He wrote the first batch in just before I took a long trip, and I took the book with me so that I could read them while I was away. It was so nice to see it in his handwriting.
2 people like this
@paidreader (5143)
• United States
3 Mar 07
It's been a few years since I did it, but I've turned "trash" into christmas magnets. For several years I had a mental picture of the hand made magnet you can see on my profile page. It took some time to gather the necessary items for my idea, but I finally got it done & was very happy with how closely it resembled my mental picture.
I started with a (clean) lid from a can of frozen orange juice and glued left over scraps of wrapping paper to the entire surface. I then hot glued a small pinecone (that closely resembled a christmas tree with well spread branches) to the center. I had plenty of left over scraps from prior christmas projects, so I elected to glue a small 3D star on top and small beads were glued to the tips of the branches for ornaments. I used a tube of gold fabric paint to cris cross the "tree" like a tinsel garland. I had some of the tiny, screw in type lights for outside, glued to the edges around the top half of the lid & when they had dried into place I used gold glitter glue to surround the entire lid. I had some of the tiny christmas packages left over too, so I put a few under the tree and to finish it off, a small scrap of cottonball for the presents to rest on, not really like a tree skirt but something to hold the presents upright.
After I got the first one (mine) done, I made a dozen more to give as gifts for family & friends.
More recently, I got creative this last christmas, but you'd have to read my post "Not like it was pictured" for that story. But the picture for it is also in my profile page.
PS... I like your magnet idea. I'd better start gathering the supplies now. lol
3 people like this
@HeavenUnaware (1757)
• United States
3 Mar 07
You really are a creative one, aren't you? I looked at your pictures and it came out really cute! My mom use to do little crafts like that and I loved how neat and personal they always came out. She did alot of Christmas crafts with pine cones, I remember going up to the mountains with her and collecting pine cones off the ground. It's a special memory I have with her.
Thank you for sharing and I look forward to seeing more of your projects as you do them - so make sure you post pictures in your profile!
2 people like this
@paidreader (5143)
• United States
5 Mar 07
LOL, Only the best pine cones too, I'll bet! Each craft project becomes a personalized work of art. For the background on the ones for the little kids, I used paper that looked like fireplace bricks & set the tree-cone just off center to show both to better advantage.
PS... I just uploaded a better pic of the christmas tree cake. My sister in law's camera has much better detail! ;D
@pearl23 (243)
• United States
3 Mar 07
I'm fond of making crafts. I tried putting a few on E-BAY in the past. If I could I would be a traveling craft show and sale crafts. I usually start a craft and end up having several items. I've given a few away to family and still end up with crafts sitting around. Some are from trial and error sitting around. My last great craft idea was putting artificial greenery around my cat's feeder. I thought he'd like the hidden atmosphere. It work's now he eats his food surrounded by a bush. Magnets are great.You can always use magnets. I've collected a few myself they usually end up on the frig.
@HeavenUnaware (1757)
• United States
3 Mar 07
Sounds like you are really creative! I know alot of people make and sell unique things on eBay - you should really try it as a side career, I bet you'd do well.
I love the cat feeder idea although I'm not sure what my cat would think. *hah* She just wants to get to her food, she doesn't care if it's hidden in a bush or a plant. Cute idea though!
1 person likes this
@koikoikoi (1246)
• United States
3 Mar 07
Well I made a candy dish out of clay. Yeah it was pretty hard for me since it was my first time but I got it done. It came out quite nice. Now when I'm bored or I just feel like doing something I do one. I liked it alot so I design things I want to do.
1 person likes this
@ygkchaitu (387)
• India
3 Mar 07
I sketch a lot and find things and my thoughts to be sketched. Not a great artist but to some extent i am able to express my thoughts well.
And coming to things there is nothing much that i have made by myself except paper boats when i was a child.
@RobinJ (2501)
• Canada
3 Mar 07
I tried to respond to this yesterday and some thing went wrong and it didn't make it, any how I do paper quilling. and the way I started was about 2 years a support group I belong to asked us to paint or do some thing for their annual charity auction. I knew I couldn't paint anything worthy, so I asked if I could do something else, but it would be a new learning project for me as well. I was told yes. About 2 years before this I had seen a book and kit on paper quilling in sale thought maybe someday. bought it, forgot, it. In the book was an idea for a chess board. A very big project but what the heck it is for charity, so I made the 100 medallions that would be the border and 64 squares of a chess board. Phoned my brother to see if he would help me purchase plexi glass and he said sure so we bought 2 fifteen inch square pieces of plexi glass and sandwiched the chess set between the two pieces. It is very beautiful because I hunted down dark green, paper and use a light silver gray for the lite side. I took it in to the next meeting, and every one was very complimentary. but the art teacher said it is lovely but what are you going to use for chess playing pieces, so I went home and designed and made all 32 playing pieces. as well as a box to store them in. The total art project was such a success that the show went on tour, and I am not sure where the chess set is but it is having a grand time . and will go to someone who bids on it, on tour. All told this project took me about 150 hours to complete from start to finish. And all this because many years ago I saw a piece of paper quilling in a museum that was about 125 years old. and I thought it was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen
1 person likes this
@HeavenUnaware (1757)
• United States
3 Mar 07
What a great response - thank you!
I've never seen paper quilling and have no idea what it looks like but it sounds lovely. I was wondering what you made the chess pieces out of?
I hope it raises alot of money for the charity - sounds like you put alot of time and effort plus your own heart into this project, Kudos to you!
@220870 (249)
• India
3 Mar 07
I do keep trying something or the other at home. I make greeting cards at home, I rarely buy them. I do collage, origami, toothbrush spraying, bubble painting etc. on the cards. I have done cross-stitch work on cushion covers,crochet, and embroidery on some of my clothes. Right now I am making a rug out of old cotton bedsheets and cloth.
1 person likes this
@evitatelmo (19)
• Philippines
3 Mar 07
me...
i accidentally cut my hair..
so what i did..
instead of showing the accident i made..
i tied my "bangs" upward so that tajht they csant see it..
and lately..
thats the most creative thing i did.. :)
1 person likes this
@HeavenUnaware (1757)
• United States
3 Mar 07
:)
Well it takes talent to turn something that could be a major problem into something cute. If that is you in your picture, then you did a good job with your hair!
@cayennepepper (266)
• United States
3 Mar 07
I love do all kinds of painting, working with clay, flower arragements and well lots of stuff. But I would have to say one of the most creative things I did was to make ceramic sculpture of an elephant, tusks and all in my high school art class. They told me it was too detailed and the pieces would break off during the firing process. It was about 12 inches long and 6 to 8 inches tall. It came out wonderfully and I ended up getting an A on the assigment. Those were fun times.
1 person likes this
