Cool Bean Critters
By Sarah Hodgkinson
For the last three weeks I have been whipping up Cool Bean Critters on both cards and layouts. Cool Beans are the name that Jillibean Soup has given their red, green and brown button sets. Here’s a list of supplies that you need to create Cool Bean Critters:
- Jillibean Soup buttons (also known as Cool Beans) or other such buttons of various sizes and colours
- Jillibean Soup felt flowers and leaves (also known as Bean Seeds) or felt that you hand cut
- Jillibean Soup red, green and brown twine (also known as Bean Stalks) or other coordinating twine, ribbon or string
- Glue Dots
- googlie eyes of various sizes
The trick is then to think of critters that are red, green or brown in colour. The largest buttons make great bodies and the smaller ones can be used as other body parts. Then, considering the shapes of the Harvest (darker) and Spring Fling (bright) felt flowers and leaves, create additional body parts for the critter (i.e., claws, wings, antlers, and paws). The twine can then be used to create legs and other extensions to the body (i.e., legs and arms).
A frog, for example, can be made from a large green button and then two medium sized green buttons. The googlie eyes were attached with Glue Dots, as were the webbed feet. The arms and legs were created with the green twine and a flower was cut up to make the webbed feet.
Cool Bean Critters can then be added to both cards and layouts. They also make great fridge magnets if you attach a magnet to the back using Glue Dots. Here is the layout that this frog is featured on:
For a turtle, you need one large green button, and two and a half small Harvest green leaves. One half of a leaf becomes and tail and the other two become the four feet when folded in half. A small amount of twine was used to pass through the holes of the button. You only need one googlie eye and, for this partying turtle, I jazzed her up a bit with a flower that has a brad through the middle. Half the fun of making Cool Bean Critter cards is coming up with the sentiments that play off the critter. For this card I replaced the word “shall” with “shell” given its turtle critter. Fun!
Here are some other Cool Bean Critters that I have created. Be sure to drop by my blog and check out the cards and layouts that feature these critters.
