Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Tutorial Tuesday: Gilded Lace Crowns



These pretty crowns are great for costumes (Halloween princess, anyone?), fairy house decorations, and the tiny ones could be cute tree ornaments. They are deceptively easy to make, and could be a fun project to do with little ones.

Materials:
Lace, modpodge, gold acrylic paint, gold leafing powder.
Tools:
scissors, paintbrushes, wax paper, optional hair dryer


1) Take your lace and make a crown shape.

The laces I used have one flat side. That really helps the structure.
The width of the lace and the pattern will help you determine the size of your crown.



2) Trim lace to size with a 1/2 inch or more overlap, matching pattern.



3) Paint with gold acrylic paint. Be sure to cover all surfaces.
Paint both sides of the lace.Let dry.
You may want to do more coats of gold paint.
I mixed an iridescent gold and a flakier gold for a
deeper look.



4) Place on wax paper.



5) Coat with ModPodge until well saturated.
I recommend you seal with, at least, 3 more coats of Modpodge.
Move it around while its really wet,
to keep the holes in the lace from becoming windows



6) Enhance the color with gold leafing powder
dabbed onto wet Modpodge with dry brush.
You can skip this step, but I really think it makes all the difference.



7) Dry completely flat. A hair dryer can speed the process.
Brush dry crown with a dry brush to remove excess leafing powder.
Peel off of the wax paper.



8) After all of ModPodge dries,
use craft glue to attach the ends of the lace together
to form the crown.


8.5)Pinch ends with fingers until set, wait overnight, until dry.



If this crown will see heavy use,
some stitches on a sewing machine might also be a good idea.


9) Place crown on head and have fun storming the castle.

84 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is the most fantastic idea I have seen in a long time, thank you for posting it!!
Diane

Anonymous said...

brilliant! if only HMB would keep anything on her head without tearing it off, i would make her one... perhaps i need a tiny fairy-sized one for myself :)

Anonymous said...

Fabulous! How wonderful are these!
So much nice than the tatty plastic crowns we have in ourdress up box.

Anonymous said...

What a great idea!! So clever :)

Anonymous said...

wow I love these! So gorgeous!

I have never heard pf Hodge Podge, I wonder if I can get an aquivelent here or in the uk?

Anonymous said...

These are so charming and gorgeous! I would have treasured one as a child and worn it every day--heck, I would probably still wear it today! :-)

Rachel@oneprettything.com said...

WOW! Those are gorgeous, super, SUPER creative! I'll be linking to this.

Amy @ Living Locurto said...

What a great idea!!!

Heidi Ann said...

Such a lovely idea - everyone needs their own crown - thank you for sharing with us!

Knit - R - Done said...

Very cute and much faster than knitting.

Sonya said...

So lovely. I broke out the modge podge today, I raise a brush to you for the inspiration.

Bridget said...

This is wonderful! I never would've guessed the Modge Podge would keep it stiff enough! but with three coats . . . Brilliant! And I really, really want one . . .

Jessie said...

Oh my goodness! This is a fabulous idea! The first girl I have is totally getting one of these for her dress up bin. :-)

Anonymous said...

that is absolutely beautiful omg

kelly said...

This is beautiful! Thank you for sharing this most excellent tutorial.

the author said...

So fabulous! Thank you for the little tutorial!

AllThingsHomey said...

This will look so cute on my adorable 4 year old grandaughter who believes she is a princess.
Thank you for the awesome tutorial.

Anonymous said...

Regular White glue, or carpenters glue can be substituted for modge podge. Mix it with a bit of water and it should work the same.

Anonymous said...

thank you for the kind words and yay ^_^ i'm glad to know SOMEONE will be reading my blog
i always love sharing ideas and getting inspiration which your page has a lot of
once i'm done with cleaves other than another knitting project i'll start on this
possibly use this for halloween ^_^
after all my full name means rebellious fairy goddess (name backwords) thea means goddess in greek, faye fairy in french, and my last name is arcaik french for rebel
heheh

Tonia said...

Thanks so much for sharing this brilliant idea! -tonia

Maria-Thérèse ~ www.afiori.com said...

OMG this is the most brilliant thing I've seen in a long time!!! I've been looking for a new crown but keep thinking metal. Narrow-minded! This is sooo beautiful - glad you came to my blog!

♥ visit me at www.afiori.com ♥

Liz said...

Love Love LOVE it! My kids love to dress up and I'm going to make a couple of these - as soon as I finish up their Halloween costumes. Thanks!

CountessLaurie said...

Wahooo! Can't wait to try this. Thanks for sharing!!

JenC said...

This is such a fabulous idea!!! I've been looking for fun crowns to make ever since I was a little kid and wanted to be princessy... for part of that it was Princess Leia, but that's another story... Anyway, I'm loving this idea to pieces and can't wait to try it out! Thank you so much!

Shelley Noble said...

Tuly great idea and tutorial. Thank you!

Unknown said...

I saw the link of this over on Ravelry.com, so you're practically legendary. =)

Your work is inspiring, fun and wonderful to look upon. Thank you for sharing this with all of us!

Anonymous said...

WOW WOW WOW! they are so great... I can't wait to try this. Isn't modge podge just one of the most fantastic substances on earth?

Lynn O. said...

We love this crown!! My princess is dying to wear it this Halloween! I have been Mod Podging the thing like crazy and it is still not stiff enough to stand alone - I am going to apply the 5th coat this morning. Any ideas? The color is beautiful - the lace is beautiful we just lack stiffness. What could I be doing wrong? Thank you so much for sharing your fabulous ideas! You make me look so very clever!!!! ;)

You can call me Betty, or Bethany, or Beth ...Just don't call me late for dinner. said...

Oh Lynnolekas! (Blogger won't give me your email so I hope you check back!!)

Can you send a picture? My crowns are a little on the small side. The "perch a-top" variety, they are still pliable, but they stand.
Liquid starch might work too. Do you remember the old yarn around a balloon trick craft from Kindergarten?
As a last resort... how about a framework of gilded pipe cleaners glued to the inside? Should work like a charm.
You can white glue or stitch it in place.

Anonymous said...

Thank you so much for sharing this tutorial. I am not a crafts person at all, but this seems doable for a person like me. I was wondering where do you get gold leafing powder? - is it available at art stores like Michaels? Which section would I look? Thanks

You can call me Betty, or Bethany, or Beth ...Just don't call me late for dinner. said...

Hi JD,
I think that it would be more likely found in an art supply store or possibly at a paint store.

Mica powders available here:
http://www.goldleafcompany.com/italian_gold_leaf.html
would work well.

Red Hen (dette) said...

Very very clever! and very effective!

Anonymous said...

Wow, these are beautiful! I will definitely put this on my crafty to-do list.

Lori said...

These are incredible! What a great idea... Thanks for the tute.

Wildyfraise said...

What a fantastic idea ! I will make one for my little doll, she will be great with !

Unknown said...

This is such a lovely idea. I'm keeping this bookmarked! Little tiny crowns would be so lovely decorating a Christmas tree!

Also, I'm sure that, for those of us who can't get a hold of gold leaf or are utterly lost as to what to do with it, gold and silver spray paint could work just as well. Also, they make glitter spray paints! So if a person wants to make a fairy crown, they can give it that extra little bit of magic.

-Brynne

Anonymous said...

This is really handy, I am definitely going to try it out for my Othello performance. Thank you so much! Also, where do you find the thicker lace that you have in the photo?

You can call me Betty, or Bethany, or Beth ...Just don't call me late for dinner. said...

oooh! I love Shakespeare..
I got the lace at a tag sale. Because you don't need much, you can splurge of the antique stuff.

fawndear said...

I'm so going lace hunting now. Thank you for the fabulous idea. I hope you don't mind that I posted a link to you on my blog.

www.mommyblessings.com

pren said...

brilliant! i featured you on my blog. i hope thats ok. if not just let me know. heres the link to the post. http://convivialcrafter.blogspot.com/2009/05/national-tiara-day.html

Rebecca Ramsey said...

Oh beautiful!
Louise at the fairy's gate sent me, and I'm so glad I came!
Becky

Pocket Full of Prettys said...

A Fairy sent me from the Fairy's Gate. Love the sweet crown. Renea

fen said...

thanks so much I am going to try to make three of these but in silver and you will not believe what I will use them for .... my wedding!!! woo hoo, well if the come out right- one for me and two little one for my flower girls I think I will use the spay paint which is more cost effective for me thanks again Fen

Serendipity Handmade + Vintage said...

Amazing! I love them! Now to find the right piece of lace.... Thank you for the post!

fen said...

k so I went to Micheal's today and found liquid leaf in silver they have it in cold too and also the silver acrylic paint too.. do you think the liquid will work just as the powder? thanks again fen

You can call me Betty, or Bethany, or Beth ...Just don't call me late for dinner. said...

Hi Fen..

I think the liquid leafing will work well. I do however recommend doing a trial run on a small scrap or scraps to determine which will look the shiniest!

Send me pictures if you can... I'd love to see them!

Alexis said...

I'm so excited to try this. My daughter wanted a "Kings and Queens" birthday party and these will be perfect crowns for the guests. Thanks for posting, I will send you pics when they're finished.

Kimberly said...

This looks totally fun and do-able! Thank you!

Jennifer @ No Place Life Home said...

I can't wait to make these for my princesses. They will love them!

Anonymous said...

Fantastic idea! I am having a costume party soon, and in preparation had attempted to make myself a crown out of painted foam and glitter. It turned out rather gaudy and ugly to look at. I am definitely going to make a variation of one of these lace ones. Thanks for the inspiration!

sandra said...

Your crowns are so pretty. I'm really inspired to make some though I am not so hot at crafting. Think I can do this one. Sandra

Unknown said...

hi betty,
i made a lovely crown n wore it on my wedding day. i would like 2 share it here but i dont know how 2 upload the pic. can u help me thanks fen

You can call me Betty, or Bethany, or Beth ...Just don't call me late for dinner. said...

Hi Mrs!

send it to me via email!
( link on the sidebar!) and I'd love to show what you did!

BB

Unknown said...

i sent an email with the crown i made n a few other stuff.

Unknown said...

HI BETTY
did you get my email with the crown i made?

You can call me Betty, or Bethany, or Beth ...Just don't call me late for dinner. said...

Sorry Mrs.. I sure didn't. Please resend?

Unknown said...

k I sent the mail again to bitterbetty13@sbcglobal.net do hope u get it this time
fen

Unknown said...

hi betty i am guessing that u didnt get my email is this ur email adress i took it from the side of u page as u suggest bitterbetty13@sbcglobal.net
fen

Anonymous said...

I love this. It will be perfect for my Head Start students. thanks.

Vale said...

Hello, I'd like to link this tutorial in my italian blog(www.leideedellavale.blogspot.com ), if possible i'd like to post a
photo too to show the result....waiting for a reply, I thank you.

Anonymous said...

That's gorgeous. I'm off to a masquerade ball soon and your crown fits the bill perfectly. I may add some "jewels" to bling it up a bit, but it's already great. Thanks for the tutorial.

asu said...

çok güzel bir fikir süper..çok beğendim..izin verirseniz blogumda paylaşabilirmiyim.sizde bana gelin

Milli said...

fabulous! will try this and credit your idea on my blog :)

thanks!

Nathalie from France said...

fantastic thank you very much.

blancommelelinge said...

Very nice thanks!, i will try as soon as possible.

garigo said...

Magnifique! merci!

garigo said...

Merci pour l'inspiration! (une note chez moi dimanche)

Dana said...

I love it!!! Thank you so much for the tutorial! This will be my next diy project (a lace bracelet).

Miss Pippi said...

Thank you for sharing! I never would have thought to use lace for a crown.

Anonymous said...

I think it's completely ridiculous that you left negative feedback on an Etsy member's profile, who sells these, and then posted the link to your blog to make the same item.

You can call me Betty, or Bethany, or Beth ...Just don't call me late for dinner. said...

Hey Anonymous... I don't know where you got your information but I have NEVER left negative feedback on Etsy for anyone. Perhaps a well meaning reader did it? I don't know, but I'm sorry it upset you.

Cheryl said...

What an amazing tutorial! My four year old son made crowns for his sisters this year for Christmas and they are so adored! He loved making them and they both love wearing them. Thank you so much for your instructions; it really made the process so easy!

Antología said...

This seem so great! I definitely need to try it!

Unknown said...

Holy Crap this is soooooo amazing!!!! i LOVE LOVE LOVE IT, im calling my girlfriends to have a gold crown making party asap! yippppppeeeee

SketchyBroad said...

I have been going nuts trying to make a crown for a costume. I have been through so many ideas and materials! Lace! Brilliant!!!! I am so excited to try this, I think it will be perfect! Thank you thank you thank you!!!!

Anonymous said...

omg, this looks awesome. I've been wondering what to do with all my scraps of old lace. Gonna give it a try. Thank you for sharing a great idea.

arlene lorta said...

I really liked this idea. now I kw what to do w/all of my x-tra lace. My grndgirls would love this to play princesses.

Sonia said...

That is so lovely! Thank you for sharing <3

Jeans Manufacturers said...

WaO thats some thing called awsomely awsome.

ldudley said...

This brings out the girly-girl in all of us. I've crocheted lace snowflakes in the 70s for my Christmas tree and coated them with Elmer's glue because it dries clear. Sometimes you do have "windows", but back then we didn't have mod podge. So love this!

Scarpetti inclusivity project said...

found a diy post on a blog and kept finding the links of where they saw it from...and i found yours. GORGEOUS! have my supplies ready and will be making tomorrow for friends 21st birthday party <3

Unknown said...

This looks beautiful! Would you be willing to sell these?

Unknown said...

This is gorgeous! Where did you find that lace. I'd love to try one with the identical lace but I've had no luck finding anything close to it!

Mike Rooney said...

I want to twit this to my followers.
Cobra Kai Kenny Vasquez Denim Jacket

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