HOUSTON – Homemade crafts are thoughtful presents for teachers.
And if you’re looking for some ideas for Teacher Appreciation Week, Alexis Geissler, Owner and Founder of CraftWorx, stopped by Houston Life with 2 projects you can do at home to make your favorite educator feel loved!
CraftWorx is now a mobile DIY studio and can be booked for events, parties, and any creative fun you can think of.
To check out the complete instructions for Geissler’s crafts for teachers, keep reading below.
DIY Teacher Appreciation Gifts
Pencil Bracelet Sets
Materials:
• 0.8mm stretchy, clear plastic cord
• 6mm Pink, gray, yellow, tan, and black Heishi clay beads
• 4mm or small gold beads
• letter beads to spell out Teach or names
• Polymer clay apple beads
Directions:
1) Tie a knot on one end of the string to secure beads as you string them onto the cord.
2) String beads in order of pattern (you can start with either end.)
3) Once all beads are on the cord, tie them off with a surgeon’s knot to secure them (instructions can be found easily online.)
4) Wrap up and gift to a special teacher!
Looking for a pre-made option? Purchase them here.
Resin Coasters
Materials:
• Art Resin brand resin
• Silicone coaster mold
• Heat gun
• Gloves
• Mask or respirator (optional)
• Disposable cups for measuring and mixing
• Popsicle stick
• Decorative items to go into the coaster
• Vinyl (optional)
• Cutting machine (optional)
Directions:
1) Cover your work surface.
2) Put on your gloves. (You can also wear a mask or respirator but this brand of resin is low VOC.)
3) Arrange all items on your work surface and plug in the heat gun (you can leave it turned off.)
4) Pour equal parts A and B into SEPARATE cups based on your desired volume. You will be combining these parts so each part will be ½ the volume needed. It’s extremely important that part A and B volumes match for proper curing.
5) Pour each part individually into a larger cup to mix. Use the popsicle stick to make sure you get all resin out of the cups.
6) Mix for 3 minutes with the popsicle stick being sure to mix all the way to the bottom. Bubbles will appear and that is normal.
7) At this time, you can portion and add pigments, if desired.
8) Pour resin into the mold, filling it halfway.
9) Take your heat gun and hold it over the resin going back and forth to pop any bubbles that may be present. Please do not hold it too close to the resin or for too long or it will burn. This process takes about 20 seconds.
10) Add in your decorative items as desired. Remember, you are looking at the bottom of the coaster so it is a mirror image of what will appear from the top.
11) Cover the items and fill the rest of the mold with resin.
12) Repeat the process with the heat gun.
13) Note, as your resin is curing, you may need to push your decorative items down with a toothpick or your popsicle stick as they may float toward the surface.
14) Let your item sit in an area it will not be disturbed for at least 24 hours.
15) Take the coaster out of the mold and turn it over.
16) Cut your personalized name out of vinyl on a cutting machine if you wish to personalize your coaster.
17) Wrap up and gift to a special teacher!
Instructions provided by Alexis Geissler, owner and founder of CraftWorx.
To connect with her, click here.