Personalized MagicBands

What's up, everyone? We haven't been on here in a little while but I had an excellent idea that I knew I would need to post about! First of all, I'm obsessed with Disney's MagicBands... Need more information? The Walt Disney World website has some excellent information on the subject! And this is a pretty picture-heavy post, just a fore-warning!

Red, Green, and Blue MagicBands with Magic Bandits

Between my husband and I, (Whoa! Is it possible the last time we posted we weren't married yet?! Crazy!) we have almost every color! I received my pink MagicBand in November of 2013 when we were staying on Disney property to celebrate our one year wedding anniversary (they were still in testing at this point), and Josh received blue. Earlier this year, we received our annual passholder bands and I chose yellow for me and orange for Josh. We stayed on property again, this time with family, and I selected red for me (Josh reused one of his MagicBands - Yes, you can do that!), and finally we will be staying on property with more family in the end of June, so we ordered green for me and red for Josh.

I love our MagicBands, but sometimes there's just something missing, and since we're well into our collection I decided I'd do some research on personalizing my MagicBand! Pinterest gave me some excellent ideas on what I could do to decorate them, and most of the ideas came from this post on DISboards. I couldn't wait to try it out! So far, I've decorated three of our MagicBands and they've turned out pretty great!

Not many supplies needed!

You'll Need:

• A MagicBand
• Nail Art Pens
• Clear Nail Polish

Make sure your MagicBand is clean and you have a good work surface available! (I tried doing some designs last night when it was dark... Yikes! Good lighting is definitely key.) For my first design, I went with swirls, so I started to lightly sketch it out on the MagicBand with my white nail art pen. 

Sketch your design

Continue on with your design, adding or taking away as needed.

Continuing the sketch

At this point, after I switched to the other part of the MagicBand, I messed up my design! Oh no! It's completely permanent! What are we going to do?!

Nail. Polish. Remover. Easy as that! 

Nail polish remover works wonders!

After you've got the basic design you want, add little details! (And remember, when doing designs, you have to add a Hidden Mickey! I don't make the rules.)

Swirls & dots

After I got the main part of the MagicBand finished, I outlined the Mickey head (where the RFID chip is located) and added my initial "S" into it.

Outlined Mickey and "S"

I continued by adding glitter to a few of the dots and the other Mickey head... Then finally covered it in clear nail polish (after it dried for about a day) to seal everything in and give it a bit of a shine!

Add a bit of sparkle!

Here are some of the other designs I've created, as well! For the yellow/bee design, I simply used my black nail art pen and clear nail polish. For Josh's orange & blue striped MagicBand, I used tape (to created the stripes) and blue nail polish, then outlined the Mickey head using a nail art pen... Go Gators!

Can you spot the Hidden Mickey?

Not sure why the middle looks yellow... It's definitely orange!

But, it's definitely times like these that I wish Bonnie were here! She is so much more gifted with paint and definitely more patient than I am! If you paint your own MagicBand, post a picture in the comments so we can see! Have a Magical Day, everyone!

Birdbrain

It’s Bonnie!  I’m terribly sorry for the long wait y’all have been going through.  But hey, here’s one to get the month of September rolling!

I’ve always been very partial to feathers in the hair, and I’ve noticed recently that it’s become a fashion statement once again.  Of course, I’m not going to spend twenty dollars to put a chicken feather (we all know they’re not really eagle feathers, people) in my hair.  So here’s my hair-ornament for the birdbrains out there :)

What you will need:

• A package of feathers (you can get these for about $3-$4 – try to make sure you get the ones that have a wrapped base)
• Large clasps (I used a medium one, and you can see that it was just a wee bit too small for my feathers)
• Needle-Nose Pliers
• Scissors
• Embroidery Thread (or hemp, but don’t forget that hemp is more likely to pull at your hair)
• Tape
• Bobby pin or Barrette

Step 1: Lay the base of the feathers in a clasp.  Using the pliers, force the edges of the clasp to fold down over the feather until they’re flat, and the feather is sturdy in the clasp.

(I forgot to photograph this step, but you should be able to see the clasp in the next pictures.)

Step 2: Cut two strands of thread at about twice the length that you want the “rope” part of your feather ornament to be.  String these threads through the hole in the clasp until the clasp is exactly half-way down the thread.

Step 3: Tape the clasp to a flat surface.  You can do this project without taping it, but this will make it a lot easier.

Step 4: Take one of the two sides of thread and pull it OVER the other side, hold it down with your finger, and pull it back to the side it started on.  It should look like a four. (4 <-- Just like that, but with a feather on top!)  Then, put it under the side of thread that you didn’t move, through the corner of the four, and over the far corner of the four.  Pull it tight.  Repeat this with alternating sides until it's reached the desired length.  It will form a mottled spiral.

Step 5: String the thread through your bobby pin or barrette.  This is basically the easiest step – double knot the thread, and then cut off any excess.

Step 6: Place in hair!

I tried a few different ways to see what looked best, and my personal favorite is the underlayer of hair right behind my ear with the thread in front.  It peeks out of your hair, but it’s not sticking out to the point where it’s screaming “Hey, look at me, I’m a birdbrain!”

Enjoy :)

Strings and Beads and Butterflies, Oh My!

Okay, so unfortunately I lied (this is Bonnie, just so no one thinks Shelby lied!).  There was not a post yesterday, because something came up (something fun, so I actually feel guilty about not posting haha)!  But, here’s a post now, and I might actually put up a post later!  Or I might save it for later this week. (As an added bonus, it won't even be jewelry!)

I’ve been on a jewelry spiel lately.  I visited my grandma (I love visiting my grandma and grandpa <3 ) this last weekend, and we made bracelets together.  Usually I use wire, but she showed me how to make them using stretchy string, which I like even more.  Also, I love wearing bracelets.  On a given day, I’m usually wearing at least five.  Plus, this type of bracelet is easy to slip on and off!

Here’s what you’ll need:

(You can get this all in the beading section at Walmart or an art store.)

Stretchy string

Beads (I use assorted sizes…this time I used medium red and small turquoise)

Spacer beads (the silver butterflies in this case, but they have tons of options)

Scissors

 Step 1:

Cut off about fourteen inches of string.  If you want to measure your wrist first, feel free to do that.  (I’m not putting in measurements because I have tiny freaking wrists.  I read in a jewelry-making magazine that the average is between 8-10 inches.)  If you measure your wrists, make sure you leave AT LEAST THREE INCHES extra to tie, because this is slippery string.  You definitely want enough to get a grip on it!

This is steps 2 and 3

Step 2:

Pick out the beads you are using, as well as the spacers, and separate them.  Line them up in the pattern you want, so you can figure out about how many you will need.  As you can see, the pattern I used went T-R-T-B-T-R-T-B-T-R-T-B-T-R-T-B-T-R-T-B-T-R-T-B-T-R-T-B.  (T=Turquoise, R=Red, B=Butterfly.)  

Step 3:

Now that you have the beads laid out, you can start putting them on the string.

Tip: Hold one end of the string while you do this, so the beads don’t slip off.  You can see in the picture how I do it.  The end I have between my fingers is not the end I put the beads on.

Tip:Make sure you put the beads on in order!  I always try to make it a full circle with the pattern, but if you need to add more or less of the pattern to make it fit your wrist, don’t be bothered by two beads of the same color being side-by-side.  One of my other bracelets has that, and I always just face that side down to the inside of my wrist.

Step 4:

Wrap the beaded string around your wrist, but be careful because you don’t want to accidentally let go of one end.  (And no complaining that it’s difficult…I did it while taking a picture.  THAT was difficult =P)  If it fits well, you’re free to go on to the next step.  If it’s too small, add on a few beads and then repeat this step.  If it’s too big, take off a few beads and repeat this step.

Step 5:

Tie the knot!  I use a normal knot, and I usually tie it about five times so I’m sure it’ll stay tied.  Here’s the best way to do this: tie it to the person’s wrist, or tie it to your own wrist.  That way, the knots are nice and tight.  I didn’t have another person to tie it to (haha) so I just used a chair leg.  If you do this, make sure you can slip it off – don’t tie it somewhere that’s blocked on both ends!  

I slipped it around the chair leg, pulled it tight, and tied about five knots!  It might be hard to see in the picture, because I used clear string, but you should be able to make it out if you squint and tilt your head to the left (not the right…but I jest.  You should just be able to see it!).  

And now, place the bracelet on your wrist!  Yay, you have a bracelet!  (I made mine for my roommate Amie…she doesn’t know it yet, but here’s a few other bracelets I’ve made that I’m still in possession of, and how they look on and off the wrist.)

Don't Forget To Be Green :)

Here’s an interesting fact about me: My favorite holiday is St. Patrick’s Day.  I’m not even kidding!  I love Halloween, I enjoy Christmas, and I think Thanksgiving is great, but St. Patrick’s Day is the absolute best.  I don’t know what it is about dressing up in all green and teasing (most of) my friends who don’t wear green, but I look forward to it every year.  

One of my friends looked at me yesterday and said “I just realized St. Patrick’s Day is on a Thursday this year and I got really depressed.  You’re going all out again, aren’t you?” (To put that statement in context – we don’t see each other in class on Thursdays.)

And yes, yes I am going all out (again).  I’ve had this outfit planned for months now (because I’m sort of a dork like that).

But this wasn’t a huge tangent or anything.  This entire little explanation had a purpose.  St. Patty’s Day is in two days, and I’m helping you guys get in the cheer!  It’s a simple, little necklace to add green to your Thursday!

What you will need:

Wire (if you remember the fish bowl project, I used the same wire I used there.)
Small Green beads
Small Yellow bead s
Even smaller White beads
A necklace clasp
Two loops
A Shamrock Charm!!! (Also, another fun fact: My mom calls me Clover.  I have a huge attachment to Shamrocks/Clovers, etc.)
Needle Nose Pliers and Wire Cutters (or scissors if you don’t want to be fancy.)

Step 1: Loop a bit of the wire around your neck to determine the desired length.  Add a little bit of extra length (less than an inch) because you will probably trim/twist it down a little.  Clip the wire.  On one end, it doesn’t matter which, twist the wire into a loop (it should be somewhat small) and twist the end of it down a little, along the length of the rest of the wire.  Trim off the extra, and use the needle nose pliers to flatten the trimmed part, just a little so there aren’t any sharp edges.

Step 2: Use one of the loops.  Find the recess in it, and pull both ends of the loop sideways – you should not be pulling them apart by moving them back from each other!  One should be going left, the other right.  Slip the clasp onto this, and then move it onto the loop you made with the wire.  Using the needle nose pliers, press the two sides of the loop together.  

Tip: I tend to press the ends of the loop together so they overlap a little bit before I press the ends flat together.  That way, the way I see it, the clasp is less likely to slip off!

Step 3: Decide on the pattern you want.  You can lay it out before hand if you want, although for a necklace with beads this small I tend to not do that.  If it were a longer necklace, with a larger variety of beads, I would.  The pattern I chose was this: 9 Green – 2 Yellow – 9 White – 2 Yellow – 9 Green – Etc.

Keep slipping the beads onto the wire using this pattern (or whichever pattern you choose to use) until there’s about 3/4 of an inch left of the wire.  Just like the first step, you’re going to loop the wire and twist it around.  If you have an extra loop like the one you used with the clasp, you can put it on the wire-loop.  I didn’t, because since there’s already a loop on the wire now, you can just hook the clasp to that.

Step 4: With the last loop you have left (like the clasp-loop, not the wire-loops you’ve been making), use the pliers to open it up.  Hook your charm to it.  I added a little green bead behind the charm, just as a personal touch, but that’s all up to you.  Put the loop around any part of the necklace (I put it around the white beads since they’re smaller) and close it using the same technique you did for the clasp.  Try to leave it enough lee-way to move around a bit on your necklace; that way, even if the necklace twists behind you or something, the clover charm should still hang in the front!

 

Voila!  A little green necklace to keep you from being pinched by St. Patty-Day lovers like me ;) 

And just for fun, here’s a few other jewelry items I’ve made:

I’ll probably end up doing a tutorial on one of them at some point, so if you’re interested in any in particular, let me know!

-Bonnie (Clover)