Strange craft kits from the 70s

[Throughhistory]

Anyone else remember them?

Plasticraft - I mean who doesn't want to make a penny embedded in a plastic blob?

Enamelcraft - at least that resulted in a few hardly wearable items of jewellery

A board covered in black velvet. You banged small nails in, then wound gold thread from one nail to another to create the illusion of curves in a picture, often a boat. Yes really.

Did I miss out on any gems?

I still have my original Spirograph and Super Spirograph! Also remember Plasticraft and Touch Tapestry. I did a lot of embroider as a child, and got into sewing quite early. I love this thread!

Also my dad got seriously into jewellery making and silversmithing after attending night classes in the 70s. I still have some of the pieces that he made and can remember the stone tumbler machine on the go constantly in the garage (after my mum turfed it out of the kitchen because she was sick of the noise!). He was really rather good at it and used to do stalls at craft fairs. My favourite pieces are a silver and malachite ring, and a silver and tigers eye ring. And I still have a big box of tumbled polished gemstones from that time.

Some things I forgot to mention - pictures etched on slate - someone out there may still have the portrait of my dad etched onto slate and then varnished that was apparently the first item to sell at one of the craft fairs!

DAS clay models - particularly little houses made from the air drying clay (Ma never did serious pottery so had to be DAS) , and painted in bright colours.

Das smelled lovely.

They still sell Das- DH has some!

We got a block of DAS every Christmas in our pillowcase from Father Christmas. Was a silver papered block with red writing I think. I remember the smell. We had all the tools too.

Yes they do still sell it, I was delighted to find when DD had a year 7 project.

I still have a Rupert the bear annual from 1977 with transfers inside!

Love this thread

I bought a block of DAS quite a while ago, from the Works. Haven't had the courage to open it yet though 'cos none of my mum's crafting skills have rubbed off onto me

@RandomGrammarPun

I remember some of these so well, especially French knitting (I'm now doubting its true provenance , straw art and shrinking crisp packets in the oven to turn them into badges.

Not quite a home craft thing, but did anyone used to go the seaside or a fair and have a go at a spinny art thing? Canvas was stuck on a spinning board thing, you chose a few colours and blobbed them down, then they spun it for a few minutes and sold you your amazing canvas for like £5?

I had one of those art sets-I can't remember what they called them. You can still get them on Amazon. My favourite thing was Panorama, by Letraset. You got a sheet of cardboard with a scene printed on it, and sheets of tiny figures to "rub down" onto it. www.google.com/search?source=univ&tbm=isch&q=letraset+panorama&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwib_qiHhsTuAhVPilwKHTBCDiYQjJkEegQIAxAB

Oh my goodness I'd forgotten they were Panaorama, but yes!!

My dad used to make a lot of plasticraft ornaments, we had a house full of insects like cicadas encased in plasticraft.

My dream for christmas one year was a but i dont think i ever made enough to make anything else with it]]

French knitting! What was the point of that... I made a really long multi coloured tube of wool and then had literally no idea what to do with it!

I do this sometimes, I keep it handy for times when I know I'm going to be waiting around, as it small and easily portable. I use the resulting coils for chunky crochet. I struggle to keep my hands still, and this works well in keeping my hands occupied and me calm.

Oh @OliveHenry just do it. It’s the process and enjoyment that matters, not the result. I always think it’s a shame that most children stop crafts once teens because by then they are more skilled. I’m a TA in primary and I love getting my hands on the creative and tasks now my DC are older teens.

I have loved reading this thread. I think I had most of these things - Plasticraft, wire dipping flowers, perfume making, Shaker Maker, Shrinky Dinks etc. One thing I had around 1970 was a set of small mannequin dolls - I feel they were made by Airfix - that I could paint in different colours with modelling paint. You could paint them, leave them to dry then wipe the paint off and start again.

One of my daughter's friends does a lot of resin craft and it's really lovely. I'd love to have a go at it but I haven't found starter kits anywhere.

@EventuallyDeleted the drawing enlarger was, I think called a pantograph. I can't believe how much of this stuff I had. Has anyone ever found a use for french knitting??

I also remember my mum having some Colourmaid fabric paints (or possibly Colormaid as they were probably American).

They came in tubes a bit like oil paint/toothpaste, but the nozzle had a sort of roller ball/ballpoint tip, so you could write/draw with them. I remember that you got a plastic guard to put over the 'shoulders' of the tube so that you didn't squash them too hard when using.

My mum painted a pair of jeans for me, with Mr Happy on one leg (flare!) and Mr Sad on the other (I was about 6/7 at the time). She had a pair of patchwork/chequerboard jeans, and she painted flowers in some of the squares. Got to love the 70s!

I can't find anyone else who remembers Colormaid (or might even be Colormade), but I'm definitely not making it up

Here's the picture copier/enlarger we were talking about upthread

Just remembered another one. I don't know what they were called but they consisted of a piece of card printed with some kind of background scenery (eg a theatre stage) and a sheet of dry transfers of characters/objects that you'd use to complete the scene. Much like sticker books. But you had to work a bit harder, and scribble on the back of the transfer sheet with a pencil to attach it to the background.

I used to get one occasionally as a treat and they'd keep me happily occupied. I remember having a countryside scene, a ballroom and something that involved Paddington Bear, among others.

Shrinky dinks. Piece of plastic with a picture on it that you baked in the oven to make a smaller piece of plastic with a picture on. People also did it with crisp packets to make mini crisp packets.
I remember the plaster of Paris moulds to make figures that you painted

@HearMeSnore those were mentioned at the end of @sueelleker's post at 16:13, called Panorama. I used to get them as treats too but Incan't remember the scenes. Probably something historical knowing me!

Ah so they were- I missed that post somehow. I don't remember the name Panorama but the brand "Letraset" rings a bell.

More have come back to me since I posted. I remember a Wild West one, and a seaside scene. I think there may have been a Disney version at some point, too.

Ah the Wild West one rings a bell with me too

@TurquoiseDragon

French knitting! What was the point of that... I made a really long multi coloured tube of wool and then had literally no idea what to do with it!

I do this sometimes, I keep it handy for times when I know I'm going to be waiting around, as it small and easily portable. I use the resulting coils for chunky crochet. I struggle to keep my hands still, and this works well in keeping my hands occupied and me calm.

Never thought of using French knitting as yarn! Then again, when i was French knitting I didn't yet know how to crochet

@FoxyTheFox

I vaguely remember one from the 80s where you made wire loops and dipped them into coloured liquid then left them to harden to make a sort of stained glass inside the wire loop. The liquid had really strong fumes, like marker pens and glue. Can't for the life of me remember the name of it but I remember my mum standing all the loops of wire with their red "stained glass" in a vase as a decoration.

Haven't read the whole thread yet, but you can (apparently) do this with nail varnish.