Welcome back to McCall's Summer Make-It Ideas from 1966! These two projects — the pop art cards and the paper mobiles — share a spread and a text box, I guess because they both involve paper and wire. I like the simplicity of the girl on the cards: Just a half-circle for a head, sequins cut in half for eyes and mouth, and then a yarn hairdo. And the perfection of the paper mobiles is pleasing, and is certainly on-trend (would something like this ever not be on-trend? I hope not). Need directions? Here ya go! I did google Margreet Akkerman, the craft designer for the mobile, and it looks like she designed a bunch of crafts for McCall's over the years. Unfortunately I can't seem to find out more about her! If anyone knows Margreet's history, drop me a line and satisfy my curiosity.
xo! More eco-friendly-ish goodness from the 1960s! Would you believe these character caddies are made from empty detergent bottles? (Ok, yes, I would.) Here are some directions to help you make them. Note: The Styrofoam-ball heads take away some eco-friendliness from these crafts. If you're not in the market for a caddy, and would rather have some fun, turn your containers into fun cut-ups! Need directions? And a nice pic of those owl and pussycat wind bells? I got 'em. xo!
From another McCall's Summer Make-It Ideas mag! I do love a mod, pop-py tissue paper collage project. Excuse me: not collage, "tissue painting." I like the blue lady, the sun, and the small flowered boxes the best. The instructions call for generous amounts of rubber cement and aerosol sprays of various kinds, none of which are kid-friendly. You can skip all of that and use Mod Podge. If you want to seal the surface, however, I do think a spray sealant would be best—brushing on a top coat could make the tissue paper dye bleed and get smeared around. Happy tissue painting! xo
Here's a few more pages from Alkema's Scrap Magic. This time, the topic is metal — wire, in particular. And even more specifically, wire covered in papier mache. I love the little pig, below. But I disagree about using a tuna can for a bangle. Too sharp, too wide:
Oh readers, did I find a treasure for you this weekend. It's Alkema's Scrap Magic, printed in 1976. (And yes, that is a link to purchase a copy. The internet is magic.) The back cover sells the book better than I can. Wondering who Prof. Alkema is? Hoping there's an author photo? You are in luck. As you might imagine, this book is full of vintage style and weirdness, as well as actual, legit great ideas. Today's excerpt is taken from the latter half of a chapter about weaving. I want to try the "Montezuma's Bench" thing, and then sell it via Anthropologie for $500. "If you happen to have some deer antlers hanging round the house." Ah, the 70s, when everyone had so many deer antlers lying around, they didn't know what to do with all of them. The next two pages are in color! Though, again, it's the 70's, so it's all a bit drab and earthy. I like the idea in Illus. 203, of making smaller 2D "weavings" using wheat paste (or watered-down tacky glue, or wallpaper paste, as I prefer) and then stringing them together. Neat!
More to come. xo! What's this, another 'i love vintage' this week? Yes, why not? I do, after all, love vintage. And three of my favorite vintage issues are specifically Summer themed, and summer has just officially begun. Don't you want to be as happy and self-satisfied as the woman in that wooly pink sweater is on the cover? I love the wacky, off-the-wall typography at the bottom. I pulled out Nature Crafts and did a wee bit of clean-up work on it in PS. It's just so majestic. This particular two-page spread has both vegetable and mineral-based crafts. First, there are stone creatures, designed by Ruth and Bill Miller. (I am assuming the linked-to obit is this Ruth Miller. She died only recently, in April of this year. Bill, however, left this mortal plane back in the 1980s.) And then there's a more refined, serious project, paper rubbings using leaves and flowers.
What, you want directions for these two projects? Of course you do. Look for "STONE CREATURES" and "PAPER RUBBINGS" for helpful tips. Happy summer nature fun! xo
This is a two-page spread from 1966's McCall's Summer Make-It Ideas. Things I like about this: "Droll hanging pot people," as a phrase; the little granny pot with the reading glasses; the jaunty fellow with the comb mustache; and "A craft idea from which you can take off on your own imaginative bent," a sentence I should put as a matter of course at the end of each of my project posts. And here are directions, if you truly feel you need them. (Look for "WIND BELLS" in lower left.) As usual, the directions make these projects seem ten times as difficult as they actually are. (YMMV.) xo!
Because you simply can't have enough Patterns for Better Living. Here are some more gems from the handicrafts section of this 1966 catalog of DIY plans. I did not know that decoupage was an "ancient art." Also, I am totally into the string art designs, especially the owl and the sun. Those tissue boxes, however... Let's just move on. Yarn art! And a replica balalaika!These women are so happy and glamorous! OK, these four I actually like. The "antique train & car" is especially ripe for appropriating for modern use. There are some anachronistic materials issues (pop-top can tabs), but the general idea — assembling flattish junk to make a machine or vehicle — is a fun one. I do like the two sailboat projects. And if you haven't been reading these closely, notice the skyline promo copy at the top of each page. They're quite charming. Also charming? The four bespectacled fellows who own and operate U-Bild: I want these guys to be my grandpas.
xo! Do you want to live better? Just, you know, have your whole "living" trip be improved? Time to take up a hobby, with the help of U-Bild Enterprise's 1966 catalog. In this catalog you'll find 88 pages chock full of patterns and plans — mostly for woodworking projects, but also some for paint-by-number wall murals, string art, leather goods, and other crafts. Many of the accompanying photos are populated by models in period costume. $1.50 for a salt dough recipe and $2.00 for advice on putting a terrarium together feels a little steep to me, but who am I to judge? I am a fan of the headline copy on the top of every page. Also, from below: "These are the days when leather is again riding high in the saddle." Here's the back of the catalog, but that's not to say you've seen the last of U-Bild... More will be shared, soon! xo
I am a fan of "The How and Why Wonder Book of..."series. They have a consistent illustration style that feels very of-an-era. I dig it. I picked up The Microscope and What You See this past weekend (at a steamroom-esque old barn packed to the gills with books and ephemera). Just look at all of the things you can see/get freaked out about under a microscope! Seriously, though, I want to make a stuffed version of the ostracod. Or the cheese mite. (I'm going to go ahead and remain ignorant about whether or not there are actual mites living in the cheese I consume.) I like this topic — microscopic life — generally, so finding it in a How and Why book is icing on the cake for me. I find the shapes of the creatures inspiring. Any creature-creating kid would find a wealth of material to pull from here. The main illustration below looks like the cover of a mass-market science fiction paperback from the 60s or 70s. So gorgeous. xo!
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AuthorI'm Debbie Way, an artist and writer who enjoys making things. |
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