Share a lasting Gift of Hope and Recognition to the one who inspired you.
We will donate $1 for each Icon of Hope that you purchase to Big Brothers Big Sisters.
Your entire package is made of recyclable natural materials - a cardboard box, a burlap sack, a paper card, and six pieces of hand-hewn granite.
Make Your Own Icon of Hope
Don't want to spend the money to buy an Icon of Hope? No worries.
I will help you make one like I made my first ones that made and gave to those to those people who have helped guide me along the way.
Buying an Icon of Hope isn't nearly as important to me as you being able to express your gratitude to the people who have helped you. You can still be apart of the movement to share 1,000,000 Icons of Hope around the world.
Two things I ask:
- Go to Share Stories and tell your story of the person or people
who have helped you.
- If you are a Facebook user share your story by copying and attaching the link below to your Icon of Hope's wall. It is the icon
of the Icon of Hope.
Here is how to make your own Icon of Hope with your own hands.
What you will need:
- Granite or Very Flat Rocks
- Hammer -optional if you are lucky finding rocks that easily stack
- Chisel - optional if you are lucky finding rocks that easily stack
- Paper
- Burlap bag - optional
- Box or Bag
Granite
I tried every kind of rock and found granite to be the easiest to break, stack and the most appealing. Working with flagstone is possible but getting the legs to be stackable never proved out.
So I stuck with granite. I went to a company that cuts granite for granite countertops. They always have scraps. They let me dig through the left overs.
Google “granite countertops” under “Local”. Places like Home Depot and Lowes won’t have what you need. You are looking for the places that actually cut granite. Call them up and ask them if you can have a few scraps of their waste granite.
After working with granite to make my own Icons of Hope, I learned what to look for. Pick granite not marble. Granite is much easier to control the breaks. Get pieces that are ¾ inch to 1 inch thick.
For the head, arms, and torso get some large pieces because you will be breaking them with a hammer and chisel to get the right shapes. For the legs look for pieces that were cut for a sill or backsplash. They will be about two inches wide cut flat on both ends. You need them flat or they are difficult to stack.
Tools you will need are a hammer and a chisel. Put the granite on a flat hard surface like cement. It is trial and error. It is hard to predict how it will break. My garage floor was littered with broken granite pieces that didn't work. I used a 2 inch chisel to cut the legs and a 4 inch chisel to break the arms. A chisel will cost you about $10.
Card, Labels, Bag or Box
You can copy the pdf's below and print them on paper that you like. I glued the labels to a craft box or bag that I purchased at an Arts and Crafts store like Hobby Lobby or Michael's.
For the Card, you will have to print one side first then arrange the paper to get the other side printed properly. There are cut lines on the pdf to help you cut everything well. I use an exacto knife and a straight edge to make good clean cuts. Glue or use double sided tape to adhere the labels on the box or bag you are using to carry the granite pieces.
Put It All Together
Stack the granite so you know that it will be stable and look good. Put the granite pieces in a box or bag. Now you are ready. Please don't forget to write a story on this site.
Yes, this is a lot of work. But it is worth it. It is a lot of work for us to make them and sell them to you. But for us, we wanted to keep the price as low as possible because we believe in this. We believe we can change the world with the Icon of Hope and we want you to be apart of it.
