More buttons, with a little paper mixed in

My focus at the desk this week has been nil. Checking my spring seedlings only takes 10 minutes and I haven't had to water in days. Even after exercise, chores around the house, and seeing some of my kids, I've had a hefty chunk of time I "should" have been writing but knew nothing was going to come. And again, the lack of focus makes working through a narrative slump even harder. So what to do? Make more things with buttons (okay, so I got a little obsessed).

First off, I made a different kind of button tree:

I used sturdy scrapbook paper, sketched the shape lightly in pencil, and started gluing. Put it in an open frame and the random width and texture of the buttons create a subtle 3-D effect in a mostly 2-D picture. I've seen this technique used for button letters on fabric, hearts, and other shapes.

Another day, while indulging in one of my guilty pleasure t.v. shows (my most recent obsession is Xena, Warrior Princess, which I've never seen before), I made pastel flowers in honor of Spring:

Similar technique as the felt flowers and button wire tree of the previous post, it's as simply as stacking buttons, threading wire, and twisting.

To top everything off, I also made these paper birds (last weekend, I found fantastic scrapbook paper stacks on sale): 

By far the fastest craft I've ever made - and I think they look so cute! Spoiler alert - friends and family may very well be seeing this later as gifts. Cut out tear drop shapes and use a pen to draw the sparse details. I saw the idea here: http://www.creatingreallyawesomefreethings.com/2010/07/annie-inspiration-5-simple-birdies.html

As always, thanks for checking in. My goal after all this handmade crafting is to get some brain babies on paper. There's plenty mulling, just not much coming out. I have a few great kids to see in the next couple days, however, and time pretending, getting on different age levels, and talking about life with a teenager often gets me in a jazzed, creative space. Go out and make something - or grow something. Do something creative. It's good for you!