painting Chrysnbon: Certain of the Chrysnbon sets are made with a different type of styrene than the paper packaged dish sets for four and the chamber set. The white dishes that are plain and come with wine glasses have the slippery surface as are the cake stand candlesticks.

There are a few ways to deal with this. One is to lay down a base coat colour (if you want a mottled, marbled affect in the background) and just keep dabbing until the paint dries enough to stick. Then you can paint flowers or what ever with no problem on top.

Another way is to spray a thin layer of gesso onto the pieces. Has to be the spray on kind. I guess there's something in the aerosol can that helps to melt the surface of the plastic so it can grab? This method is one of hit and miss though.

Third way is to get some ultra fine, wet/dry sandpaper and give the surface a very light sanding under water.

On my web page http://www.embraceables.com/accessories.htm , Chelsea 4 and Lilac Time 2 show the troublesome pieces painted along side the more cooperative ones.

Debi in Quesnel

Painting Chrysnbon plates: if the paint is not sticking to the plastic, it is probably too thin and watery. try a brand that is thicker. not all acrylic paints are the same consistency. after you paint with acrylic on smooth surfaces like plastic or metal, you should spray it with a coat of something clear to protect the paint. otherwise it can be rubbed off while dusting.

Judy London

Candle smoke: I have used the following method using candle smoke in decoupage classes:

(Have everything ready before starting) Brush a layer of podge (clear, non-yellowing, waterbased varnish) on to your item to be smoked. Before it dries, hold the object over a burning candle and "cut" the flame with an old knife. This produces a lovely column of smoke. Move your object to direct the smoke to where required. If you do not like the effect, quickly wipe off the podge before it dries. Once dry, it is not necessary to use fixative. If you move the object fairly quickly, you can produce a lovely "marble" effect.

***BRAINWAVE OCCURRING***!! Black & white marble floors, columns etc.... Use white cardboard, paint with podge, smoke and move item fairly rapidly (the slower the movement- the denser the smoke) cut into tiles, lay down whole or roll into tube for column!!!

Note: this method does take some practice.

Sharon in S. Africa

Tiny Hidden Hinges: I made kitchen cabinets and faced the problem of invisible hinges.

After beating myself to death over it, I finally just drilled a small hole in the edge of the door, then a corresponding hole in the frame,. Added a bit of glue and inserted a tiny piece of floral wire (fabric coated) Then after it dried, I faked a tiny bit of hardware (actually it wasn't necessary) After considering this problem, I wondered just how often one opens and closes a miniature kitchen cupboard door? This works wonderfully, looks fine and the door stays just where you put it. Open or closed.

After this, I began to wonder how many other doors could be hinged with just a poke of wire. . . . and windows and French doors, and cabinet doors and bathroom cabinets etc. Most of them I suspect. They don't get flapped in the breeze and should be good for many,many years.

They hang straight and look good. What else is there?

Judie

Concealed hinges: To the person wanting to source hinges that don't show:

For completely invisible hinges that are very economical: - use dressmaker pins or the slightly thicker office type pins!

I have recently purchased some furniture kits where the doorframe is constructed around the door, before adding on the top shelf base. Tiny holes are drilled at the top and bottom of the frame door together where the door is to swing, so that the wood does not split when pounding in the pin. A dressmakers pin is inserted and the excess is cut off. The rest of the kit is then constructed with the front (with door) viewed as a "whole" piece. I find these to be as sturdy as any glued on hinge; and besides, who is going to constantly open & close the doors in our precious dh's. Some purchased doors (internal & external) are also constructed in this manner, although I have noticed that on the thicker doors the hinged side has been rounded off to facilitate opening and closing.

Sharon from South Africa

Candle sconces: Couldn't resist doing a bit or research for you about how high the candle sconces should be, so I contacted the International Guild of Lamp researchers and here is their replies:

Alex Marrack (alexmarrack@aol.com) wrote: it varies, there is no fixed height. Both gas and oil lamps tend to be fixed so that one can reach the taps, or wick winder, but not always. In the domestic setting they are often lower than in public buildings, where it is necessary to keep them out of the way of being walked into or tampered with. the only thing you can say is that the lamp was always far enough from the ceiling to avoid the fire risk. with candles this could be as close as, say, two feet from the candle cup. Most oil lamps need two feet from the top of the chimney, gas lamps ditto, though the later mantle lamps produce less heat and can be put higher. I have a house built in 1807 and fitted with gas in about 1860. upstairs in the bedrooms the brackets were fixed, one per room, at one side of the fireplace, at about four feet from the floor, (this in a room that is nine feet six inches high). downstairs there were two brackets, one either side of the fire and about five feet up, plus a pendant in the centre of the room. a wall bracket placed over a desk might be very low down. .

On Jan. 07, 2002 @ 20:27, Fil Graff (fgraff@epix.net) wrote:

Non-electric Wall lamps are generally about adult head-high on a wall, as they have to be LIT and occasionally tended. Head high in this period would be 5 feet or a bit...Wilt Chamberlain's Grandpa might have lived in one of these homes, but he didn't have Wilt's height or reach. A seven footer in those days was probably Dad standing on a stool! Electrickeral lights don't need tending, so they can go anywhere in a wall.

Just be sure the Dining Room chandelier is high enough not to scorch the occupant's hair while at table.

By the way my house (shell) builder has put the light cable channels 6ins up the walls in 10 ins public rooms.

Pauline Mansfield UK

Green Carnations: I'm sure that most of you remember how to make the tissue flowers we made for our mommies when we were little? Making these is the same principle! First, cut lengths of green floral wire, a thin gauge, into pieces about 1 1/4" long, one for each flower you want to make.

Cut strips of white tissue paper (the kind that's used to wrap gifts) about 1/2" wide by 1 1/2" long.

Layer three strips, and pleat the paper and then wind a tiny length of green wire around the pleated piece at the center to secure it tightly.

Fluff up the paper to form the flower. You may need to experiment a bit with this. Some people like to rip their paper along a straight edge for a less 'cut' looking edge. After creating the blossom, glue the center of it to the stem with Tacky glue.

Now, here's the neat part! Using a green magic marker, touch the edges of the petals. If you do this right, the color will bleed down into the flower, making it look just like those carnations they dye green for St. Patrick's Day!

You could also do this with red, for Valentine's Day, or experiment with other colors! Have fun!

Alice Zinn

Kids Project: I used to run a 4H group of the same age range, and one of the projects we did that was very successful was to decorate eggs for Christmas tree ornaments. I realize that this is a little seasonal right now, but you might do the same thing for fancy Easter eggs (or any other motif that suits your group).

Anyway, we coated the outside of an uncooked egg with Elmers glue, and when it was dry, we poked holes in the eggs and drained out the liquid egg (I'm sure there must be a more ecologically sound way to save the egg, but this is how we did it...

We then cut the openings out to accommodate a mini scene, and coated the inside and the outside with another layer of Elmers'. I can't remember exactly what our Elmer/water ratio was, but my best recollection is that we did dilute the glue to a small extent. The girls then chose pictures from Christmas cards or magazines, and 'decoupage' them to the eggs (more glue), both inside and out.

Then they made little vignettes inside the eggs that matched their individual decoration (Tiny Christmas trees, wrapped packages, teddy bears, etc)and put the little things inside the eggs.

More glue on the outside, to hold the glitter that everyone sprinkled over the outside of their eggs, and finally, some pretty narrow trim glued around the opening of the egg and around the fattest part. A loop of trim was made to attach the ornament holder.

Did they last? I can only attest that, almost 20 years later, the three ornaments made by my daughters and myself are still part of our ornament collection. It was a lot of fun for us, and perhaps your group will enjoy this project, as well.

DeeDee in Carmel Valley

Here's how I make "potting soil"... I collect scoops of sand and gravel from anywhere I can find it.Use a fine strainer to sift it until you get really minute grains. Put your fine sand on a paper plate and add a couple drops of acrylic paint.

Burnt umber makes a nice rich potting soil. Use whatever you have on hand. If you are potting cacti, use a lighter color. I use a finger to rub the paint and sand into a uniform paste. Spread a small portion out thinly on the plate and let dry. On another plate or tile, mix the larger amount of sand with some tacky glue until you get a good stiff

"mortar". I use this to fill pots and containers. It should be stiff enough to support plant stems as you arrange them. When this as set a little, dab some tacky glue on the surface of the soil and sprinkle some of the dark grains on top, letting them pile up in a fluffy manner. It will resemble freshly potted potting soil.

Kathy in Wisconsin

Popsicle stick floors: I made a floor for my very first project out of popsicle sticks. I used Elmer's wood glue and stuck them right to the floor of the project. It never occurred to me that I might want to redecorate someday. That floor has been serving my little family well for over 22 years, now.

Pat, Huntington, NY