Creativity has pretty much always been a part of my life, having loved cross stitch since childhood, studying creative subjects at school, and founding my own craft brand in 2017.
The beginning of a new year is the perfect time to try a new craft, or to get even better at something you already love - the weather is often pretty grim, so staying cosy inside and getting your craft on is very appealing.
One lovely craft to while away the hours on a rainy afternoon is diamond painting - it’s a lovely, mindful way to spend time, and you get something beautiful at the end of each project.
Diamond painting is the art of placing small, colourful resin rhinestones with flat bottoms (otherwise known as diamonds or drills) onto an adhesive canvas printed with a design that tells you where to place each colour.
If that sounds like something you’d like to try, here are 5 fun diamond painting projects for a cosy crafternoon, no matter your skill level.
1. World Cities Diamond Painting Kits from Figured Art, £27.90
These mini diamond painting kits from Figured Art are great for beginners and experts alike. At just 15x18cm each, one of these canvases is perfect for a crafternoon activity.
You can travel the world from the comfort of your sofa or craft station, as these diamond painting kits feature iconic buildings and monuments from capital cities.
In the kit you get 10 adhesive canvases, each one printed with a key so that you know where to place each diamond. You also get an applicator, tweezers, diamond tray, wax and a colour chart, as well as eco-friendly diamonds.
2. Mandala Penguin Diamond Painting Kit by Meloca Designs, £21.95
A medium-sized diamond painting is a great activity to do over a few crafternoons, or take the whole weekend to diamond paint to your heart’s content.
Our Penguin Diamond Painting Kit is a super cute wintery design in our colourful mandala style, and the shiny drills really bring it to life.
This diamond painting kit comes with everything you need, including 23x23cm adhesive canvas printed with a colour-coded design, instructions, and round 5D diamonds (frame not included).
3. A large diamond painting kit from Diamond Art Club, £14-114
If you like having a big project on the go that you could do over several weeks (or even months) Diamond Art Club makes some brilliant larger diamond painting kits.
Whether you like flowers, mountains, dragons, or anything else for that matter, I’m pretty sure you’ll find a diamond painting kit that suits your interests in the Diamond Art Club shop.
All diamond painting kits come with the equipment you need to complete your sparkly artwork, including an adhesive printed canvas with clear film, diamonds, applicators, inventory sheet and chart.
4. Lovely Cats Diamond Painting Coasters from Diamond Art, £21.99
Why not get a group of your creative friends together for a crafternoon, and diamond paint one or two coasters each? After all, an activity like this is even better when you can chat to your friends and drink cups of tea.
This diamond painting kit comes with 6 different cute cat coasters with a wood-effect back, and everything you need to finish them, including drills, an applicator, and a wire coaster-holder to store the finished coasters when you’re not using them.
Alternatively, you could buy small frames for them, and all take a dinky piece of art home that you created yourself.
5. Leather Bookmark Diamond Painting Kits from Diamond Art, £14.99-24.99
These leather bookmarks are another diamond painting kit you could do with a friend or two, or finish them yourself and then give them as gifts to your book-loving pals.
In this kit you can either get two or four bookmarks picturing different animals - a deer, red panda, owl, and lemur - and they have a cute beaded tassel on too. These diamond painting kits have everything you need, including drills, a tray, wax, and an applicator.
If you’re totally new to diamond painting, it might be helpful for you to check out my beginner series of blog posts:
- 6 diamond painting tips & techniques for beginners
- 6 diamond painting mistakes every beginner makes, and how to avoid them
- 5 small projects to get beginners started with diamond painting
Hope you have a fun crafternoon, whether you’re going solo or having fun with friends. I’ll be back soon with more diamond painting and cross stitch tips and tricks, and in the meantime, follow Meloca Designs on Instagram for regular updates.