thumb-washipencils

Washi Tape Pencils

Washi Tape Pencila from www.highwallsblog.com

So, maybe I have a washi tape addiction. If you’ve been with me for a while you might have noticed that this is my 4,372nd DIY project featuring washi tape (a totally accurate estimate) I just can’t seem to stop finding uses for the damn stuff! It’s not my fault I swear!

I don’t have any children of my own, so I’ll be the first to admit you won’t have seen many kid-friendly DIY projects around here. That said, I now have many friends with children, whose never ending cuteness is a constant source of  inspiration. This DIY is all thanks to an adorable conversation I had with the young boy of a friend, who was lamenting on how his pencil’s always get stolen at school because they get all mixed up. His mother suggested putting his name on each pencil with a label maker, but Ugh. How boring!

I had a packet of coloured pencils lying around looking equally as boring and lame, so I decided to give them a little personality and maybe give her some ideas to ensure all of his pencils always come home.

Washi Tape Pencila from www.highwallsblog.com

What You Need:
Pencils – preferably round, plain colours
Washi tape – all different patterns and colours
Scissors
Pencil Sharpener or exacto knife (optional)

What You Do:
1. Start by pairing up your pencils with a matching tape. As Washi tape can be relatively se-through (especially your lighter colours) you will want to put similar or darker colours onto your pencil.

2. Take your tape and cut the end diagonally across the tape leaving a triangular shape.

3. Line the diagonal edge around the top of the pencil, along where the pencil tip begins. Wrap the tape around to create a flush line around the tip.

4. Gently pull the tape tight and slowly and carefully twist the pencil so the tape continues to wrap around, travelling down the pencil as you twist.

5. After a couple of turns you will be able to see if the tape is going to cover the pencil evenly. You will need to experiment with how much to angle this cut depending on how you want to wrap. For example, some of my pencils I left a gap in between the twist to leave the under colour showing through, for the patterned tapes I preferred to overlap so that the pattern was solid the whole length of the pencil. Washi tape sticks quite well, so don’t worry if you need to pull it off and try again once or twice. Just take your time so you don’t crease the tape.

6. Smooth the tape as you twist and continue until you reach the bottom of the pencil.

7. Once you reach the end, line up the base of the pencil and pull out and cut the tape around 3cm from the end. Then cut a diagonal line like we did in step 1 so that the tape wraps around the base neatly.

8. Smooth any bumps as necessary. If you find the tip is a little messy you can trim it by sharpening it with a (sharp) pencil sharpener or neaten it up with an exacto knife.

9. Repeat with all of your pencils until you have a whole set of unique and fun pencils!

Washi Tape Pencila from www.highwallsblog.com Washi Tape Pencila from www.highwallsblog.com

Most simple patterns will line up nicely as you wrap, but if you find that some patterns do not lend themselves to this method, you can always wrap the tape horizontally, cutting small strips and wrapping them individually. Just ensure that your strips are the same size so you don’t end up with a weirdly shaped pencil that is thicker in some parts.

These pencils would make a great gift, for the little ones upon their return to school or even for that crafty friend you know. What do you think? You could even use them to jazz up your plain old lead pencils!

Washi Tape Pencila from www.highwallsblog.com

Letters to Friends

Living interstate from most of my friends and family means that I’m always trying to keeping in touch with everyone… well, you would think so… I’m actually terrible at keeping in touch with the people back home! I don’t mean to be so useless, I just get carried away in my day to day life, plus I’m really forgetful with these things. Oh dear!In an attempt to make up for the minimal frequency in which I make contact, when I do get around to sending out some letters, I try to make what I send just that little bit more exciting…

Sunday Sessions 18.02.12

 
It’s all about brilliant use of colour this week….

LINE ONE: If you do one thing today, make sure you check out Zander Olsen’s ‘Tree Lines’! Zander wraps trees with white material lining up the tree and the horizon to create this amazing effect. I can only image the time and care it would have taken to set these photos up! WOW!

LINE TWO: My love for Japanese washi masking tape is no secret to anyone, so I’m sure you can appreciate my excitement when I found out MT tape has brought out giant wallpaper MT ‘tape’ for your home! Imagine the possibilities!
LINE THREE: These Ally Capellino Bags are two parts perfectly simple designs coupled with one part pop of colour; in short, everything you could want in a bag!
LINE FOUR: Well if colourful walls weren’t enough, how do you like these amazing floors by Swedish geniuses Carl Larsson and Josef Frank! The apartment that plays home to these floors overlooks
Humlegården park, the seasonal changes in the park have inspired the amazing floors!