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Monday, July 19, 2010

CRAFTS WITH ANASTASIA--ESPRESSO BEAN TOPIARY

Before I talk about today's craft project, I have a little shout-out for author Lois Winston because it's really all about me. For those of you eager for a little taste of ASSAULT WITH A DEADLY GLUE GUN, Lois has launched her newly redesigned website, and you can now read an excerpt from Chapter 1. Just click on over to http://www.loiswinston.com -- AP


Now back to our regularly scheduled blog post:


Did you know that July 24th is Coffee Day?  Anyone who knows me, knows how much I love my lattes, but I’ll bet you didn’t know you can craft with coffee, too. Here’s a quick and easy project in celebration Coffee Day. 

ESPRESSO BEAN TOPIARY
Materials: 3” x 6” craft foam cone; 6” cinnamon stick; dk. brown acrylic paint; satin finish acrylic sealer; ¾ cup espresso beans; tacky glue; 3” clay pot; floral foam; Spanish moss; 1” foam brush; 4 strands raffia in color of your choice.

Note: Allow paint, glue, and sealer to dry between steps.

1.  Poke a hole for cinnamon stick in bottom of cone.

2. Paint cone with dk. brown paint.

3.  Glue cinnamon stick into hole in bottom of cone.

4.  Beginning at bottom edge of cone and working up, glue beans side by side in rows around cone.

5.  Apply sealer to beans.

6.  Glue Spanish moss over floral foam.

7.  Tie raffia into a bow and glue to front of pot.

Since Coffee Day falls on a Saturday this year, why not throw a Coffee Day party? Invite your coffee loving friends. Make one Espresso Bean Topiary for each guest.  Group the topiaries in a row down the center of your table as a centerpiece. After the party, give one to each guest as a gift.  Tomorrow Cloris will have a to-die-for dessert you’ll want to serve at your Coffee Day party. And of course, it’s made with coffee.


Have you ever used an unusual material in a crafts project? Let's hear from you. 

5 comments:

Kathye Quick said...

This would smell great in the kitchen or dining room.

Now I'm clicking on over to Lois.

Babs in Alabama said...

They call me the fabric sniffer at LNS. I love to open a package of coffee dyed fabric. This topiary might satisfy the craving to smell coffee without actually haveing to make a pot, lol. Thanks for sharing...just might have to try this one.
babs in alabama

ANASTASIA POLLACK said...

Kathye and Babs, if you do make a coffee bean topiary, let us know how it turned out.

Janet said...

What a good idea. We have a local family who roast their own beans and the smell is heavenly. Imagine those beans on the topiary. It would work much better than those reed diffusers too.

Thanks.

Crystal said...

I'm go to the grocery store in about an hours time, just added coffee beans to my list.

Thanks for another great craft idea