A 'Nifty' Little Nite Lite

Hi Everyone

Crafting season is getting into full swing now so I hope you are all able to enjoy some creative therapy now the kids are well and truly back into their school routine. :)

This week I'd like to share a 'nifty' little idea I picked up from a BuzzFeed Nifty video (you can view the video on Facebook). As I didn't have any food colouring to hand I thought I'd experiment with some Brusho powders and sprays (they are water-based dyes so I figured they'd be ok)...

Nifty's Galaxy Jar

Step 1. If using Brusho powders mix a little powder with a few drops of water before adding some Mod Podge and stirring. If using Brusho sprays, spray a little into a small dish and then add some Mod Podge and stir. (As you can see I used both!)

Also add a few more drops of water to each mix to thin the medium a little.

Step 2. Mix in some glitter and any iridescent inclusions you want to add - I think the more you add the better here as I thought I had added loads but it wasn't as obvious at the end as I'd expected. I added standard glitter, some mother of pearl flakes and some cut up glitterati. If you have large glitter flakes then I would definitely add that - or maybe some Jo Sonja's Opal Dust with it's holographic particles.

Step 3. I also sprayed some Brusho shimmer spray inside the jar in the hopes that it would give a more iridescent finish but again I'm not sure that it was particularly effective.

Step 4. Daub the mixes randomly around the inside of the jar. (I have a feeling that either I didn't put enough red mix in or that the red is more sensitive to the oven temperature than the blue as it wasn't very obvious when it was finished.)

Having covered most of the glass, rotate it in your hands to evenly distribute the medium.

Step 5. Turn the jar upside-down for 5 minutes for the excess medium to drain.

Step 6. Then bake for 15-20 minutes at 170ºC (340ºF).

(Please note that the video has the baking temperatures round the wrong way.)

I noticed that some of the medium seemed to pull away a little from the jar but what I hadn't realised was that my oven got far too hot (over 200ºC) for a few minutes which may have affected the finish.

I ended up mixing the remains of the three colours in one of the metal dishes and popping it in the oven for a few minutes too. I'm thinking I might use it in a mixed media project and even try punching a shape out of the thicker piece. 

You could always plaster a thick layer of the mix onto a poly pocket and leave it to dry naturally and then, when dry, peel it off and punch out shapes as window decals.

And here's the finished jar...

Looking at the final colours of the leftovers and the finished jar I think the answer is to not bake it too long (or even too hot, lol!)

If you want to see anymore Nifty ideas, check out their Facebook page. 

Happy Crafting Everyone!