Tutorial: How to make a Mexican Chilli Bangle

Too hot to handle!

For me, chilli's are the most iconic motif of Mexican & Latino culture. Not just because they feature in the cuisine (one of my fave holiday memories is eating fresh mango sprinkled with chilli powder on the street markets of Mexico) but because they have so much personality. I love their graphic shape, the bold, bright colours they come in, and the way they embody fire and passion. I designed this chilli bangle project to celebrate Crafty Chica's National Craft Month celebrating 30 days of Latino inspired crafts. Here's my contribution - check out her blog for more HOT inspiration from other designers who love Latino flavoured crafts, every day this March.
To make a chilli bangle, you will need:

Shopping list

Sheet of red neoprene (craft foam)

Red glitter

Green glitter

PVA/white craft glue

Paintbrush

Plain paper

Pencil

Scissors

End roll of sticky tape

Yarn

Strong glue or glue gun

Sticky situation

1. Start off by making Glitter Foam. Paint a layer of PVA glue over the whole of your foam sheet, ensuring every bit is covered and that it's even and not too lumpy. Lift it up and place it on a clean paper surface.

Shake it!

2.  Pour red glitter over the glue, shake it off and pour the glitter that falls off, back into the jar. When dry, you can use glitter foam in any number of craft projects not just to make sparkling chillis!

That's a wrap

3. While the glitter foam is drying, prepare you bangle. Use the card roll that is left over from sticky tape as the bangle base, or a plain wooden or plastic bangle if you have one. Cut off a long piece of yarn, tie it to the bangle and then wrap it around until you reach the end. Tie another knot and feed the end into the bangle so it's hidden and secure.

4. Draw a chili shape onto paper to create a template and cut it out. Lay it on the back of your foam and draw around it several times, enough to cover the bangle. Then cut them out.

Chillis to go

5. Paint the tops of each chilli with PVA glue, then pour on green gitter to ensure each chilli has a green stalk.

6. When completely dry, glue the glittered chillis along the bangle using a strong glue. 

Hot stuff

See more Latin crafts on Crafty Chica's blog.  I guarantee you will get hooked!

Spice girl

Now then...who fancies a burrito??

Waking Up In The Land of Glitter

I'm the kind of person who always has a 'To Do' list the same size as my height. I even have a separate 'To Do When I'm Ill' list to the extent that I wish I was ill just so I could do some of those things - they tend to be the fun stuff that I wish I could do every day but feel guilty doing them as I should be working instead. Well this weekend I actually fell ill and so rather than doing my usual 

( I had three articles to write) I decided to turn off my computer and head to bed with a good book - No 1 on my list of things to do when I'm ill!

Reading 'Waking Up in Land of Glitter' made being ill so worthwhile - it is a truly inspirational book and has given me a whole new motivation and energy for life. Sometime I am so caught up in deadlines and paying bills  that I forget to stand back and do things like appreciate my friends and indulge in what I love doing most which is making stuff and this book reminded me of those things.

It is written by my all time craft heroine The Crafty Chica, Kathy Cano-Murillo. She is an absolute legend of the craft world and everything I aspire to be. She's a writer and artist and like me a sexy Saggitarian, the author of several fantastic craft books, hosts crafty TV, sells her own range of crafty projects, runs crafty holidays, has two children and 5 pets and has managed to squeeze in writing craft themed fiction, which is what this is. 

A book about three women who all have different relationships with crafts and it follows their friendship, love and family lives. It's a truly complete novel, all tied up with no loose ends - a vivid insight into characters who just seem so real. The attention to craft detail is so endearing, the craft references are in every page of the book and it's so exciting and enticing to read.

I have wondered many times if I could ever write crafty fiction - it's always appealed, I've written some drafts but nothing I would ever want to share with anyone. But looking at Kathy's writing blog which she runs alongside her fabulous crafty blog I feel so inspired. She has just finished her second crafty novel which she sat down and wrote in a mere few weeks just through sheer determination and discipline. You always hear people say things like 'anythings possible', 'if you work hard you'll really achieve your dreams' etc and it sounds so cliched but so what, it's better to be inspired by such positivity then not try and be who you want to be.

I feel proud to have this book on my shelf, and I aim to bring myself back to it every time I have any self doubt. I have goals and ambitions and  when they seem a million miles away I'm going to think of Kathy's dedication for the book 'to all the creative individuals out there who have a vision to do something great. Whether it's on a public or private scale, I hope that the characters in this book will inspire you to reach your goals....remember no idea is too big or too crazy.'

Thanks Kathy x