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I played around with some Plaster of Paris this past week and made some hearts using chocolate molds. I remember my mom making these with different chocolate molds when we were little. She would put hooks made out of wire in them so we could string them on necklaces after we spent the day painting them different colors.
Making the hearts was so easy and practically fool proof. I decided to glue magnets on the back and turn them into a kids craft at a Valentine party. I used strong neodymium magnets with these hearts. They’re small and can hold the weight of the plaster heart. These are my favorite magnets. I never use the big black magnets you buy at the craft stores anymore. They just aren’t strong enough and they are too bulky. To give you a reference of the strength of the neodymium magnets I used, they’ll still stick together with my finger in between them. Amazing!
The best adhesive for the project is E6000. It is strong enough to hold the magnet to the heart, and still held tight even on the porous surface of the heart. Other adhesives, including super glue, soaked into the surface and wouldn’t hold the magnet.
I experimented with several media types on the plaster hearts. My favorite is the one using tattoo paper. It’s not messy and the results are perfect. I was disappointed in the results of the crayon/oil pastel and watercolor heart. I thought it would create a higher contrast like it does on Easter eggs. The surface of the plaster hearts is so porous, that it just sucked all the water color in. This porous surface also made for an extra fast dry time on the craft paint and glitter hearts, which is always a plus in my book. I hate waiting around for projects to dry.
Tomorrow on the blog I’ll be sharing step-by-step instructions for creating the hearts with the tattoo paper. I have a free download of the designs I used so you can print and use them yourself! I also have a fun printable Valentine card I’ll be sharing later this week that goes along with these darling heart magnets. Are you feeling the love?
This is so cute! Such a great idea using chocolate molds. Love it!!
These are super cute amy. And tattoo paper?? Is that a new silhouette thing?! I am sure I will find out today! ;) Excited to see you. I am even pulling Emery out of school for it.. haha!
Silhouette has had the tattoo paper for a while. I just started playing around with it, and it amazing! You’ll love trying it out today. Glad to see you have your priorities straight between school and a party. haha
Amy, these are adorable!! I might need to make some for myself :) Let’s do craft night… Soon!
What kind of printer are you using?
I have an inexpensive Canon Pixma MP495 that I bought at Walmart for around $60. The key is to read your manual and play around with your printer. I print at the highest quality it allows. Using your printer on the highest quality does use more ink, but the results in printing are definitely noticeable. I hope that helps. -Amy