Official NEC-magical gift post

[craftinggranny]

Kathy....
The more you do something the faster & better you get. I do all of my projects in assembly line style and can whip them out pretty fast.....EXCEPT for those little snowmen critters....lol
Have you made any of the new cd cases yet? If so, do you like making them....are they easy or frustrating?

[kcduffer]

I've sent in one of the new cd cases for approval. I didn't find them frustrating to do. Once you figure out how to do some of the trickier parts, it's just a matter of being precise with them. I think I'll like doing them. One of the big pluses with them is that since they hold a cd disc, they're not tiny.

You're absolutely right about assembly line style being much faster than 1 at a time. To all of the newbies--just because it takes 2 hours to make 1 piece doesn't mean that it will take 20 hours to do 10 pieces assembly line style. Also, the more you make of a project, the faster you will get.

[tiffap]

it took about 2 weeks and 3 days to get my first sitting poodle critique back. Not too bad of a wait. I failed on the polka dots, The felt and backing needing to be cut neater. Im not sure with the felt if i can cut neater I still think it looks pretty good. I wish there was more detail on where they think it is messy so I can judge better. I knew the backing was a mess so thats alright. I'm not quite sure on how to make the polka dots neater. I thought they were pretty good to. I used a stencile and started at the middle and worked my out to the edges. I'll have to practice on that. Also I missed for the glue showing from the gems on the collar. I had such a hard time trying to glue those little things. Any one have any suggestions on doing the little gems? I would appreciate that. Well off to start my second attempt!

[reford01]

I am getting ready to order my first kit. Which one do you guys recommend? Thanks for your help!

[kcduffer]

That's such a difficult thing to do to recommend what would be good for someone. It all depends on what you would like to do. I would suggest that you look over all of the projects and see which ones interest you. Take a careful look at them and try to see what could be involved in making them. Nec also gives a rating, Beginner, Moderate, and Advanced. They are pretty good assessments of the difficulty ratings. I think it's very important to pick one that you think you would enjoy making since after approval, you'll be making a lot of them.

[thanymom]

Hey everyone!!! I have been researching NEC for about two weeks, and am so glad I found this forum!! I have read through a lot of the pages, and found th info very helpful. I think I am ready to make the leap, but I am not sure what I want to start with! Any suggestions? I was thinking maybe the birdhouse, has anyone done that one. At first I thought maybe the toe ring, since it had a B for beginner, but I am not sure now after reading posts of people who have tried it. Any suggestions would be appriecated

[dawnhasclass]

Thanymom, see the message just above yours. Great advice. Search for what you like to do. Painting? Clay? Sewing? and so forth.

Well, I got back my nest and my birdhouse with most everything in great shape, but you guessed it, the glue! I'll keep practicing. I know it will be worth it in the end!

[kcduffer]

Good job, dawnhasclass. It takes practice to control the hot glue, but you'll get it.

Thanymom, from some of the other crafters I've talked with, I think the toe ring is one of the more difficult beginner projects. It sure has given a lot of them a lot of trouble.

[reford01]

Can anyone tell me what exactly is involved with the making of the magical love birds? Any info would be appreciated...thanks!

[dawnhasclass]

For the lovebirds you must paint the perch and two beads that you glue on the ends of the perch. You must also paint the birds. The two birds must have feathers glued on the heads and tails and a bead on the head, and they must be glued onto the perch. Also a ribbon is folded over the perch and glued together. You must use glue and glitter to write a fancy letter on both sides of the ribbon. You must also tie a cord from both ends and knot it together at the top with a bead.