Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Can Tab Crownlace

After Jeudi's outfit and the start of my mom's corset/bodice, I offered to create a crown for an unofficial illustration contest on iStockphoto.com.

The first attempt is modeled by Jeudi:

crown of can tabs

We added some soup/fruit cans to the mix, as well as some cheapy rhinestones and a couple gold shoelaces.

can tab crown/necklace

can tab necklace/crown

Being flexible, it also doubles as a wonderful necklace!

Breakdown of costs:

Can Tabs = FREE
Jewels with rims = $1 per pack of 6 jewels (clearance at hobby store)
Gold shoelaces = 30 cents a pair (eBay lot)
Clasp finding from old belt = next to FREE
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Total = $1.30

18 comments:

  1. OMG! I am totally lovin' the soda tab garb projects! Too cute and clever! I can't wait to show my girls and find out if they want to give it a try.

    Sealion

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  2. Lover of the websiteApril 28, 2009 at 3:03 PM

    I absolutely love all of these things... I am only 14 I have no idea how to create the more complicated creations. Do you think you could create a page just showing the basic weaving patterns for the can tabs? I would really appriciate it! You are amazing!!!!!

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  3. Hey, LoverOTW. There is a basic illustration of how to start on the shoe page or email me from my profile page to swap for a step-by-step illustrated tutorial. I will organize this site some day, I promise. ;)

    Mieljolie

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  4. Where do you get all your can tabs? These projects seem to use massive amounts of them.

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  5. Hi, Reesa.

    Well, most of our tabs are stolen from the greedy gnome living in a tree stump in our backyard. We must wear gloves when retrieving them because his bite is vicious, you know.

    Hehe Just playin'! :)

    Though we do aquire a few ourselves directly from the can, we get many from local people and businesses and people over the internet who send them to us. We have a recycler near us who contributes quite a lot of them. And, yes, these projects do require MASSIVE amount of tabs. The crown above is probably like 100 tabs or more. A sun hat can take over 1500. That's a lot of drinkin'. I don't recommend trying it alone. ;)

    Mieljolie

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  6. Hi Megan! I think it was about 100 tabs of various sizes and shapes.

    Mieljolie

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  7. hi, i`m from mexico and i`m asking if u can tell me how can i join the little cans, i want to make a sweater to my boyfriend because he need looks like medieval gentleman but i can´t join the cans, i`ve tried but i can`t can u help me please??i wish can make it to my boy :)...thank u

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  8. Hello, Shsl in Mexico! Besides having a detailed tutorial on etsy.com, I've got an illustration showing how to join the can tabs here:

    http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee2/thinnen/can%20tabs/can_tab_staggered_weave.jpg

    Good luck with it!

    Mieljolie

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  9. Hy, your creations are trully amazing (as you surely know :D ) and very inspiring! I must admit I am going to steal some ideas, the easy ones to begin with, because I can't master the craft yet, but I own a large box of cat tabs that I've saved up in highschool, for a chain I never made (I quit drinking beer and started working my way through college, no time for being creative, unfortunately) But this will be the desert of my day, in the evening I'll unwind with this new awesome activity and hopefully have some cool rockstar accesories for the weekend :D Thank u for posting, sharing and inspiring us all!

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  10. Thank you and your welcome, Alex the Cat. I'm happy to share my ideas to inspire you. And, I'm honored you want to try them for your own use. I'd love to see what you create! Have fun!

    Mieljolie

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  11. Oh, my! The time, effort and creativity you put into these projects!! They're incredible!!
    I have to ask - where in the world do you get the bigger tabs for this project? I'd like to make one for a friend, and have plenty of tabs saved. But I haven't a clue where to get the bigger Tabs.
    Thanks! <3

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    Replies
    1. Hello, Amanda! You're too kind. Larger tabs like these can be found on canned soup, fruit, meat and cat food. They vary in size, color, shape and metal content which each brand and food type. I can't remember exactly what these are from. Maybe tuna.

      Good luck and hope your friend loves it! If you have any other questions, feel free to post them.

      Mieljolie

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  12. Hi ! I've just finished to make this wonderful crown (for a school play) and I wanted to thank you for the idea. Just a question, the larger tabs, which are hold only by the bottom hole, seem to have a huge tendency to move on their own. Did you use any tips to prevent this ? thanks !

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    Replies
    1. Good for you! Glad you gave it a try! You're very welcome.

      My only suggestion to keep tabs from turning would be to weave as tight as possible so that the material keeps the tabs in place, and use a material that doesn't stretch much. With the material locking the large tab in on both sides of the back, it shouldn't turn more than about 45 degrees even with a loose weave. Though I've never myself, why not try tacking the tabs in place with a tiny dab of craft glue.

      Best of success on the school play!

      Mieljolie

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