Halloween 2016

Brown Bag ghost mold-1990
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Happy Halloween!

How To Make Cinnamon Pomanders With Brown Bag Molds

Cinnamon pomanders from Brown Bag molds are
very easy to make and smell wonderful hanging
on the Christmas tree.

   Here's what you need:
mold
bowl & spoon
cookie sheet
sieve
cinnamon
applesauce
wooden or acrylic cutting board
cinnamon oil-optional

I make simple hanging hooks out of

ornament hangers or wire.  I put a little 
bend in the ends of the wire for added 
strength.  Craft glue or hot glue adheres 
well to the hardened dried pomander also. 

 For the most aromatic pomanders

use Saigon cinnamon or add cinnamon 

oil to the mixture.
I make do with the least expensive large jar
of cinnamon and applesauce.

Start with a couple cups of cinnamon and

add the applesauce gradually.

  Mix until it forms a stiff dough similar

to clay, but not sticky.

Dust the mold with cinnamon.

Form an egg shaped ball and

place it in the mold.  Press firmly

into the mold, smoothing the back

and edges of the mold.  Dust with

cinnamon if your hands get sticky.  Add 

the hanger.  I place a small ball of dough

on the bottom of the hanger and

press it firmly, making sure not to

push the hanger to the bottom of the mold.

You don't want the hanger to show on the

front of the mold. 

To remove the pomander, hold the mold

perpendicular to the cutting board and 

rap the edge of the mold hard, the pomander 

should start to come out.  Carefully peel the 
pomander out of the mold and place on the 
cookie tray.  Lightly dust with cinnamon.
If you are unhappy with the casting, just
add to the mix and do it again. 

Brown Bag Molds are extremely durable, 

they can take a hard banging.  Be sure to
use a wooden or acrylic cutting board,
NOT the edge of the sink or counter top!

Bake the pomanders in a 150 degree oven for 2 hours.

After the first hour remove the pomanders from the

cookie sheet and place them directly on the oven rack.

This helps them to dry evenly.  Remove from the oven 

to a cooling rack when they are hard and dry.

OR

 I prefer to let them air dry on the cookie sheet for 

about 24 hours or until hard and dry.  If they dry 
too quickly they will crack and warp.
Finish your pomander with a hanger of your choice!

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 Lucy Natkiel, the designer of the Brown Bag molds,
has a website.  Be sure to visit and download 
her Recipe Book and Brown Bag Idea Book,

located on the right hand side of the cookie page.
Lots of great ideas for the cookie molds!
Lucy's Brown Bag Site-The Cookie Mold Page 

They smell nice hanging in the kitchen too!

How To Make Blackened Beeswax & Natural Beeswax Ornaments With Brown Bag Molds

Beeswax ornaments for the Christmas tree

have a rich history steeped in old world tradition.

German bakers were the first to use intricately 
carved wooden gingerbread and springerle molds 
to make beeswax ornaments.  They are easy to 
make with Brown Bag cookie molds so, I thought 
I'd share how I make them.   

For beeswax ornaments

this is what you need:

Cleaned beeswax

molds

a small level

2 cup Pyrex glass measuring cup

vegetable oil

small brush

paper towels

small wooden spoon for stirring

hot pad

wooden or acrylic cutting board

OPTIONAL-scented candle oil of your choice
OPTIONAL-wax candle color blocks or wax 
liquid color dye of your choice

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For BLACKENED WAX castings

you will also need:

scented candle oil in cinnamon

ground cinnamon 

(Saigon cinnamon is the most aromatic)

black or dark brown wax candle color blocks 

OR

liquid candle dye

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I purchased 1 lb. of natural cleaned beeswax,

candle scent and candle dye at the local

Michael's craft store. 

I make simple hanging hooks from wire or wire

 ornament hangers.  I add a bend at he end of 

the wire for added strength.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Beeswax has a low melting point of

144 degrees F to 147 degrees F.

If  beeswax is heated above 185° F 

discoloration occurs. 

 CAUTION

The flash point of beeswax is 400° F!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Melting beeswax in the microwave is a slow careful 

process.  I microwave in a Pyrex measuring cup, at 

half power for 1 minute at a time, stirring along the 

way.  I chop my beeswax into small chunks to help 

speed up the melting process.

If you want a specific color for your castings, 
add liquid candle dye or wax color blocks to
 the melting beeswax.

Caution!

BEE CAREFUL and use a hot pad

when handling the Pyrex measuring cup,

the handle gets hot.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~ 

For BLACKENED WAX ornie castings, add a few 

drops of black liquid candle dye or wax candle 

color blocks according to the directions.

(I had a couple dark brown wax coloring 

blocks in my supplies, so that's what I used  
for the sheep casting in the photo) 

Black will be much darker than mine.
Add liquid candle cinnamon scent to 
the wax when it's melted and stir.  

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Important tip, if beeswax is heated too 

hot, it will become brittle & be difficult  

to remove from the mold.

So, just melt the beeswax, don't cook it.

When there is a teeny tiny piece of wax
left at the bottom of the cup, it's ready to pour.

If you want scent to your wax casting,
add a few drops of candle fragrance oil and stir.

Cool the mold in the refrigerator for about 
20 minutes.  Lightly oil the mold.  Be sure to

get the oil in all the little details.
Don't put it in the freezer,
the mold should be cold not frozen!

Make sure the mold is level.
The wax will spill out the mold if
it isn't perfectly level & make a BIG mess.
(Voice of experience, don't skip this step.) 

Carefully pour the melted 
beeswax into the mold. 

If a little runs over the edge, don't worry,

  it pops right off the cool mold.

Add the hanging hook just before

 it begins to harden.

 

This photo shows the rustic wire loop hanger 
used for the blackened beeswax casting.

Remove the casting from the mold when 

it is SOLID but STILL WARM.

Hold the mold perpendicular to the cutting

board and bang the edge of the mold hard.

The casting should pop right out.

Brown Bag molds are very durable, they can

take a hard banging.  Be sure to use a wooden

or acrylic cutting board, not the counter or

the edge of the sink!
Smooth any rough edges of the casting
 with a warm dull knife or your warm finger.
Wipe excess oil off with a soft cloth. 

For BLACKENED BEESWAX castings, rub 
cinnamon into the wax as soon as you remove
 it from the mold.  Front and back.

No need to wipe away the excess oil.
Brush away the loose cinnamon.

Add ribbon, raffia, jute, metallic trim, 

pipe cleaner or decorative cloth strip 

as a hanger.

Beeswax ornaments are safe to hang near the lights

on your tree but don't store them in the attic, they'll melt.

Store your scented ornaments in a plastic bag

to preserve the scent.

Beeswax comes in varying natural shades 

of yellow and has a wonderful sweet scent 

that is so yummy.

It's amazing stuff, basically inert, it can
 last forever!  Beautiful examples of early 
wax ornaments can be found in European 
museums that are over 3oo years old.

They smell nice just hanging 
in the kitchen all year round.

Easy and so beautiful, but please

bee careful when working with hot wax! 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

TAKING CARE OF YOUR BEESWAX

Beeswax castings are easy to take care of.

When displaying your beeswax, do not place

near a heat source, such as fireplace or a sunny

window, as the beeswax can soften.  When storing 

your wax casting, wrap in white tissue paper.  

Placing the piece in a plastic bag will help to 

maintain the scent.  Do not store in a hot attic, 

or a heat source, as the beeswax can soften. 

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ABOUT THE BLOOM ON BEESWAX

Beeswax can develop a "bloom" over time.

Bloom is a powdery film.  It's actually an 

indication of the purity of beeswax.  Only 

100% beeswax will bloom.  Heat can also

encourage blooming.  To remove the bloom,

 buff your casting with a soft lint free cloth, or

 rinse it it under warm (not hot) water.  Use

your hairdryer on a low setting a few inches

away from the dryer, until the casting is shiny 

again.  This also helps to freshen the scent of the 

beeswax casting.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 Lucy Natkiel, the designer of the Brown Bag molds,
has a website.  Bee sure to visit and download 
her cookie Recipe Book and Brown Bag Idea Book,

located on the right hand side of the cookie page.
Lots of great ideas for your Brown Bag molds.

Lucy Natkiel's Brown Bag Site
 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Brown Bag Molds- 1993 Watering Can &1988 Ruffled Heart

I've added a couple of Brown Bag 
Molds to my page of molds.
Brown Bag Molds 
  Watering Can 1993

 Ruffled Heart 1988

 The castings on my blog page are cast with 
100% cotton linter and left plain to show the detail.
Brown Bag Molds-How To Make A Paper Casting 
Over the years I've made cookies, chocolates,

 cinnamon pomanders, wax & paper ornaments
 and castings in shadow boxes.  One of my favorite

 things to do is make cards.  The castings can be 
painted with acrylics or watercolors.

So simple, it's a bit like paint by number!  Sometimes,
 I embellish them further with glitter, ribbons etc.

I have card stock in all colors and even

make the envelopes to match.  I glue them to a

 blank card, write my message on the inside 

and I have a hand made personalized card. 

With the range of molds, I can literally make
 a card for every holiday and occasion.

Adding tea to the mix, before I 
cast the mold, gives them an antique look.
Even plain they look striking.  For Christmas 
cards, I add a ribbon or string to the back of the 
casting and it can be removed from the card 
and hung on the tree.

 So Simple & Easy-Peasy!

Brown Bag Mold-Garden Bunny 1992

The hubs goes to therapy on Fridays and I take advantage

of the waiting time to visit the flea markets in downtown

Branson.  Last week's find is the Brown Bag 1992 

Garden Bunny.

He's been very busy digging the carrots in his garden!

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Are you ready for spring and a bit gardening?

An Outing With The Patients-Brown Bag Molds

 Recently we had a beautiful warm sunny day, so I asked the
"patients" if they'd like to take a little drive to one of the local
flea markets and stretch their legs a bit.  I thought they could
use some fresh air, sunshine and exercise.  I know for a fact
the hubs would rather have a tooth pulled than go to a flea 
market & I'm fairly sure my brother had vowed to never set
 foot in one, but with severe Cabin Fever affecting their 

judgement, they happily and readily agreed.  A good time

was had by all and to my utter amazement I found 3 cookie

molds to add to my collection.  Flea market excursions are 

hard on the weak and infirmed of the male species.

The trip home was silent,

except for the sounds of snoring!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lucy Natkiel designed 10 Brown Bag molds in the 
American Folk Art Series.  These molds were inspired
by 19th century butter molds.  Prairie Flowers was the
first design in the series.  This one would make a pretty
cookie or painted in watercolors for an all occasion card.

The 1984 mold Lucy's Cow is an early design.

She's udderly adorable!

Triceratops is one of the 3 dinosaur

designs that were first issued in 1985,

this one has eluded me for years.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The saga of my injured finger continues.  After visits to my

doctor, numerous trips to urgent care (I was on a first name

basis with a couple of those doctors!), X rays, several rounds

of different antibiotics, 2 visits to an orthopedic doctor & an

MRI, I am now being referred to a hand specialist.  Sounds

like surgery is looming in my future, but I am very optimistic

I will get the use of my finger back..........

I miss my dolly makin'!

A Dog, A Frog & Fairies?

When I started my blog back in 2011, I began making

paper castings of the Brown Bag molds hanging on the

 beams in my kitchen.  Spot The Dog and Beatrix Potter's

 Jeremy Fisher are the very last two & a couple of my

favorites (I think I've said that before!).  I sure hope you've

 enjoyed seeing them along the way, but I'm a bit sad

to be done.

Spot The Dog-1988
6 in. tall
4 1/2 in. wide

Jeremy Fisher-1997

6 in. tall

 6 1/4 in. wide

There are well over 100 molds I don't have, so I suppose
I can go on collecting the rest of my life!  I don't get out
as often as I used to & frankly, I rarely see them anymore.
E-Bay has loads of them, but as a collector, all the fun is in
the finding.  Maybe I'll run across one now and again.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
During my flea market cookie mold hunting excursions,
on a very rare occasion I would come across doll house
 furniture I just couldn't resist........30 years of very rare
can sure add up!  However, I have no dollhouses nor any
dollhouse dolls.
One of the blogs I follow is Peggy Flavin's
 Dolls In The Neatest Manner
She makes beautiful little felt fairy headbands.
Her 2 post links below:

A Day For Fairy Making

&

Fairies In Your Hair

I couldn't resist purchasing the the book she suggests.

 This has given me an idea, so, I asked the Hubs this question.

"If I scrounge up some old barn wood, could you

build a simple, sturdy, playable, rustic looking, hillbilly 

fairy dollhouse, with 2 floors that this furniture fits in?
(From an earlier post.)
East German Dollhouse Furniture 

He said, "Sure, I could probably do that".

So, I rushed right out and found some barn wood.

We shall see..............