Today on My Craft Table I am making crafts with seeds. Perfect for the coming Mother’s Day Holiday.
Seed Paper :
Gather Paper, Tear, Put into Blender
You will first need to gather together a large pile of recyclable paper. Some of the best sources for this paper include newspaper, egg cartons, tissue paper, phone book pages, paper grocery bags, scraps of unprinted computer paper,
Pour in Warm Water, Blend into a Smooth Pulp : Next, pour some warm water over the pieces of paper in the blender jar. Continue pouring the water into the blender jar until it has filled the blender to the top line. Now you will turn the mushy mess into a fine pulp by turning on the blender to a low speed for about ten seconds. After ten seconds on a low setting, increase the speed for about thirty seconds more. After this there should be no visible paper flakes remaining.
Now comes the time to add the seeds. Sprinkle about a teaspoon of flower seeds into the mixture and stir them in. DO NOT BLEND! Stir them only. As for the type of seeds to use, it would be a good idea to use a wildflower seed blend that is adaptable to the type of climate in which the seed paper will be planted.
You will now need to lay out a piece of terry cloth, microfiber towel, or flannel on a flat surface. Dump the pulp onto the fabric and use a spoon or spatula to spread the pulp over the fabric. You can spread it into any shape you want, just be sure to spread it as thin as possible to ensure it dries quicker. After you have spread the pulp, use a sponge to flatten the mixture and soak up more water. After the pulp has dried on one side, turn it over and allow the other side to dry completely. Once both sides are dry, your seed paper is ready for use.
Seedpaper Makes Great Note Paper, Invitations, Post Cards
Paper Seed Bombs :
Start by cutting your construction paper into one-inch squares. Place each color separately in a container.Once you have cut up all your paper squares and each container is ready, add water. Cover the paper completely and allow to soak for 20 minutes.After 20 minutes squeeze the excess water out of the paper. Place the paper in a food processor and pulse until the paper becomes pulp!Add seeds to mixture and form balls and let set up and dry. You can also put them into mold for different shapes.
Seed Bombs with clay :
- Natural clay – you can find this at most stores that carry art supplies
- Top soil – pick this up at any gardening shop
- Regionally appropriate seeds – see step one below for advice on how to find these
- A bowl of water – you probably have a pretty good idea of where to find this…
- A work surface that you don’t mind getting a little dirty…
Forming the Ball
Take a small lump of clay and combine it with some soil in whatever ratio is necessary for everything to stick together and form a quarter-sized ball. If it’s too dry, add a little bit of water. The mixture should be damp, but not dripping wet.Add just a few seeds and use your fingers to thoroughly work them into the clay and soil mixture. Really stick with only 3 to 5 seeds per ball, because if you add too many they won’t have enough soil and clay to grow.Roll the ball between your palms until it forms a nice, smooth, quarter-sized sphere and… Voila! You have yourself a seed ball. Time to set it aside and repeat these steps until you have enough seed balls to share with all your conservation-minded friends and family members.When you’re distributing your seed balls, try to toss them onto well-lit patches of soft dirt where there aren’t already a lot of other plants, as that’s where they really tend to thrive. If you want to plant them in a grassy part of your yard, scratch up the dirt a bit before you set them down.