In search for fun ideas...

Two weeks from now, I'll be celebrating my birthday. Those days usually pass like any other day as every day is a celebration for me. However, I like to do something different this year. Something extra-ordinary or just something silly. But what?
I have been thinking and thinking but have not come up with anything more clever than this... (as I know it would make me extremely happy)

Just send me a note or a card (no presents!) with a suggestion what I could do the 13th of December.
Jip, via snail mail.
Because I love to open the mailbox...

In return, I'll give away this special feeling to the most awesome idea/card.So, let's go! :)
Mitsy Sleurs | Spaarzaamheidstraat 20 | 3500 Hasselt | Belgium

How to make a tutorial?

This has got to be the strangest tutorial I will ever make. Dotty from TotallyTutorials asked me if I could make a tutorial on how to make a tutorial. While we discussed it we were picturing a tripod taking photos of a tripod taking photos of me working! Haha!
This won't be happening since I only have one tripod, one camera and jip, unfortunately, only one pair of hands... So, this will be more tips & tricks rather then a step by step tutorial. Feel free to add tips in the comments, the more the better! :)

Idea
Of course you start out with an idea you want to make a tutorial about. Don't be afraid of making a tutorial about something that you find super easy to do. It's not ridiculous to post a tutorial about something you have done a million times, someone else might never have heard about it or even seen it.
Google your subject and see what's out there already & make your tutorial better and completer. This is one of my favorite tutorials ever, it's so simple yet so effective:
Tripod & Camera
This is the most important thing to have to make a tutorial. People love to see lots of pictures on the subject, preferably close ups. A tripod is essential as you need clear, steady shots. Besides, sometimes you need both hands while making something so you can't hold the camera at the same time.
It's essential to use the timer-function on your camera. I always set it at 2 seconds. That usually gives me enough time to get my hands where they need to be on the picture.
Act as if you are making the subject but keep your hands as still as possible while taking the picture. Preferably, zoom in when you are making something small so that you can show the details. Don't be afraid to make enough pictures as once the process of making is finished you don't want to start all over again because one shot is not good enough to publish. Look at the pictures when you have made one and decide right away if you need more.
Materials
Get all your materials ready before you start making the tutorial. The first picture of a tutorial should always be the materials I think.
That way, people can see right away what they need and decide if it's within their reach.
If possible, try to use as little materials as possible, that way people don't feel like they have to go out and spent a fortune on supplies trying to make what you show.
Think about alternatives. If you don't have lime paint for example, use yellow and green and mix it yourself. This adds value to your tutorial.
Surface & light
Use a non-distracting surface. If you try to show something when the surface is a granny blanket, people won't see what you are doing. Use a large paper sheet, a plastic (no prints) tablecloth, a piece of cardboard, a clean table,... to work on.
Make sure you work in a room with direct daylight as otherwhise your pictures will be dark and not attractive to look at.
Step by step
It's best to take pictures of every step you do when making the subject. If you are uncertain about what they can be, you can write them down beforehand. I ususally just start and take enough pics of all that I do and decide later whether a shot is neccesary or not.
Prepare beforehand what you are going to do. For example, if you are going to make scratch off lottery tickets, skip the part where you cut all the paper. It doesn't add value to your tutorial if you show it as it's obvious that the paper needs to be a certain size.
In case you need to show different steps along the way, while it will take you a while before arriving at step 2, make the steps beforehand. For example, you want to show how to make a granny square. Make steps out of every row you crochet, so that you have a few squares at hand to stick underneath the camera while making the tutorial.Upload pictures & crop
When you are done with all your pictures, upload them to your computer and crop them!
I use Picasa to do this. Picasa allows you to easily make square croppings which is a great size for a tutorial. When you crop a picture, it will also show clearer what you are doing.
You can also adjust the light balance in Picasa. It's a free and easy program to use.
Photoshop is an option too if you know how to use it of course.
Add text to the pictures
Don't make a book out of your tutorial. Keep the text limited to the most essential words. A tutorial should be able to be quickly scanned by the brain without getting too much in detail.
The pictures should speak for themselves rather then you giving a lecture on how it's done.
For example, you use a stamp and stamping pad for something. Just say you use a stamping pad without getting into detail why exactly you use that certain brand or pad. When people have questions, they will leave a comment or contact you via your blog.

Add labels to your blogpost
Once you have everything written down in your blogpost, don't forget to add labels to your post.
The search engines will pick up on the labels and generate traffic to your tutorial.
I have a bad habit not to label my blogposts but I try not to forget when making a tutorial.

Promote
After you have put in all the effort of making your tutorial, of course you want people to see it. Therefore shout it out on Twitter, post a picture with a link on Flickr, start a thread in the Etsy forum, send a link to TotallyTutorials,...
When people like your tutorial, perhaps they will suggest it to other people or blog about it. Never ever copy/paste an entire tutorial, but add a link to the author's blog to give them credit for the hard work they put in. You can find a tutorial on this here.

Just for the record, my blog traffic has increased significantly because of the tutorials I post in my blog. I love blogging and sharing ideas and it makes me happy and content to know that readers out there enjoy perusing my blog for fun stuff to make or do.
I enjoy reading every comment that is left & sometimes it leads to new ideas so keep them coming! :)
There is also a reason why Dotty asked me to do this. She recently started this awesome exchange program on TotallyTutorials. Basicly, supply sellers offer free products to those promising to create a unique tutorial using the supply given.
How cool is that?
Dotty heard from a few people that would like to participate but they didn't know how to do a tutorial... so that's why she came knocking at my convo door.
Make sure to check this out as this is a fantastic opportunity to test new products or techniques and share your knowledge!

How to make a sketchbook?

Did you know I am really terrible at drawing? I am!
But sometimes, there are so many ideas in my head that I just need to scribble them down somewhere. I really wish I could draw better but hey, I've got other qualities I suppose... Anyway, I needed a little sketchbook at a certain size and decided to quickly make myself one.
And while I did that, I took some pictures so I could share this with you.

Here is what you need:
A cutting mat, a cutting liner, a cutting tool, a scoring tool, a pencil and eraser, paper, cardboard, book screws and a hole puncher.
I wanted a sketchbook in the size of a square of 15cm by 15cm or 5,91" by 5,91" so I could scribble my wall art ideas in there.
I cut my paper larger because I will make folds in them: 15cm by 19cm or 5,91" by 7,48"
From the cardboard I made a template of 15cm by 17cm or 5,91" by 6,69"
Put the template on top of the paper and make a scoring line.
Fold the paper back on the scoring line and go with your scoring tool over the paper.
Use the template to cut out the cover of the sketchbook. Make it a tiny bit larger then the paper. That way, it will cover the paper that is not folded or cut nicely. You won't see it on the outside.
Tip: I go to home decoration stores and ask for wallpaperbooks that they are going to throw away. In those books, there usually are some very cool designs paper which are a much heavier quality then the wallpaper. You can use them perfectly for little projects like these. Fun and free!
Mark on the template where you want the holes to be. I did this 2,5cm or 0,98" from the side.Then punch a hole in the template and put the template on the folded paper. Trace the hole.
Now you can clearly see where to punch the holes.
Take your hole puncher and take the back part off so you can see where to punch.
Put a bunch of papers in between and punch the holes.
Make sure to do the same with the front cover of the sketchbook and also add a scoring line.
For the front cover, you also need to score over the paper to make it easy to open up your sketchbook.
Now you have everything ready to assemble.
Take the bookscrew and put it through the holes.
Close it up on the back of the book.
An now it's ready for me to draw. :)
Thank goodness I made this babushka stamp so it saves me to draw that shape each time! I just stamp it in the sketchbook. :)
I made numerous guestbooks and picture albums this way. Instead of using the cardboard cover, I used a thick piece of felt for it to make it prettier.
This kind of bookmaking is an easy way to add more pages later on as you can buy larger book screws.

How to make a scratch off lottery ticket?

You probably know the scratch off lottery tickets? Ever wondered how to make them? Well, they are very fun & easy to make.
I used to make greeting cards from them but now I'm going to use this technique as a promotional tool.
I made 25 scratch off tickets and will include 1 ticket with every order I ship.
On one of those tickets, there is a coupon code and a value of 25 dollars to spend in my shop on Etsy. Waaaahhh, exciting! :)

Here is what you need:
cardboard, a print-out of your lottery ticket, glue stick, sticky back plastic (contact paper), metallic acrylic paint (preferably silver) and washing liquid.
I prepared the paper cutting beforehand so I'll skip that part in the tutorial. :)
Beforehand you print out a design that you want to be on the scratch off lottery tickets.
If your printer can take thick paper you can print it directly on the cardboard and skip this part. If you do it in two steps, it is nice to get a fun color background paper and glue the design onto the card.
Then you take a piece of sticky back plastic and put it onto the design.
Mix some metallic acrylic paint with washing liquid. Try to use 1 part washing liquid and 2 parts of paint. Mix the substance.
Paint the plastic part on the ticket and let it dry.
Make sure that the picture underneath the paint is hidden. Add another layer if this is not the case.And then... scratch! Oops, no luck for me! :(
But you can certainly win a 25 dollar certificate if you are one of my next 25 customers in my Etsy shop. Happy shopping! :)

How to make a plaster stamp?

Since I was making a few moulds today, I remembered that I planned to make a tutorial on how to make a plaster stamp. Plaster stamps are not hard to make and they are great fun to use in your modelling projects. You can use regular stamps too but they are much softer so somtimes it's hard to use them for pressing into clay.

Here is what you need: a rolling pin, a cutter, a stamp and a piece of plasticine.
Plasticine is soft clay made of plastic so when you poor the plaster in there, it will come off very easily afterwards.

Take a piece of plasticine and kneed it a little bit.
Make a flat piece with a rolling pin. Make it about 0,5cm or 0,2inch thick

Press a stamp into the flat piece or plasticine.

Make it nice and round with a cookie cutter.

Roll a flat piece of plasticine and twist it around the stamped piece.

Let the ends cross each other and cut the excess plasticine away with a knife.

Press the plasticine clay firmly together on the bottom so no plaster will be able to escape.
Make some plaster ready. Mostly it is made with 1 part of water and 3 parts of plaster but it depends on the kind of plaster you use.
I always go with the pyramid method: you poor the plaster into the water at the same place and a pyramid will form. When the pyramid doesn't suck any water anymore, it's enough plaster and you can start mixing it with the water.
If you like that the plaster will set quickly, you can use lukewarm water or add a pinch of salt.
Poor the plaster into the plasticine mould.
You can also poor liquid (porcelain) clay in there and fire the stamp.
Let it set for a while and take the plasticine away. Cut away the rough edges with a kitchen knife.
Now you can stamp your heart out in any modelling material. :)