Ribbon Wreath

I couldn’t help  but squeal when I saw the ribbon wreaths on Little Birdie Secrets.

I LOVE ribbon and I’m really getting into decorating…at least I’m trying. I often explain to people that I am NOT an interior decorator….I mean, I have a thermostat centered over my piano, for crying out loud.

But…I saw these and fell in love with them and decided to make one for myself.  Although I ended up making mine a little differently, I think it still turned out fairly cute.

What I did differently:

• Instead of using the wire for the base of the wreath, I used one of those wreath bases made of “twiggy” looking stuff. I actually found mine at the dollar store. It was about seven-eight inches in diameter.
• 
• I used three spools of ribbon in coordinating colors. My ribbon was all 1/2 inch wide and each spool had five yards. It ended up being a little “thinner” than what I probably would have wanted, but it wasn’t thin enough to constitute a trip back to the store.
• I used a lighter to burn the edges of my ribbon. After tying them to the base, the edges were starting to fray. Of course, I have yet to do a project and not have a ribbon that gets “burned”.

I ended up hanging my wreath at work on the wall of my cubicle. Today was the first day it was there and I got quite a few compliments!   I’m finding that it is adding the perfect amount of happy to the workplace.  I can’t wait to make more for each new holiday!

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Tags: Crafts, home decorating

Lots o’ Alphabet Letters

When my sewing buddy E sent this link to alphabet letter similar to these (I can’t find the original site she sent but the letters were similar to these), I thought she was nuts!  Like I said before, I do not sew on a regular basis.  I can attach ribbon to a burp cloth and I can sew a patch but I don’t consider myself any more than a total amateur.  E decided to give it a try and I LOVED the way her letters looked so I decided to go for it!  I am actually really happy with the way the letters turned out and they are going to be a perfect gift for my sweet baby nephew!  

First, we decided to get rid of the magnets.  They were going to little ones and we didn’t want to take any chances with the stitching opening up and the magnets falling out.  Our letters are just to play with.

To make the letter template, we chose a Cricut font that appealed to us.  We made sure that it did not have twists and curls and would be easy to stitch around.  Once we decided which size and font, we cut out each letter of the alphabet onto cardstock.

Using the template, I traced each letter onto batting.  **E and I each used a different batting.  After the letters were finished, we decided that we liked the thicker batting better.

I gathered up 26 different scraps in boy-ish fabrics (not easy to do since lately all of my projects have been girly projects!) that were large enough to fold over the batting.  This is where I need to mention that E did all of the legwork here.  She practiced with several different techniques until we decided what looked the best and was the easiest way to mass produce these things! 

I started with the letter A.  I took the batting for the letter A, placed it in between two scraps of fabric (right sides out) and pinned the cardstock template A on top of the fabric.  E was able to just stitch the letters but when I tried to feel the batting through the fabric to guide the sewing machine, my letters looked ridiculous!  Pinning the cardstock template to the fabric gave me a sewing guide.  Be sure to pin the cardstock in several spots because the cardstock had a tendency to slip if not pinned properly.

Once the letters were sewn, I used pinking shears to cut the letters out. 

They are definitely not all pretty and not all perfectly shaped letters, but I love them! 

These are headed to my sweet little nephew’s house, but my four year old has been looking at them all day.  Methinks I will be making another set in the near future!

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Tags: Christmas, Crafts, Jennifer, Sewing

Crayon Apron

I wanted to make a crayon apron for my daughter and my niece. I had my heart set on the cutest crayon apron, Simplicity Pattern 2295, but every time I went to Joann’s they were out or the pattern wasn’t on sale.  I refuse to pay 15 dollars for a pattern when they sell them for 99 cents every other week!  The last time I went looking for that crayon apron pattern and it was still out of stock, I saw Simplicity Pattern 2555 for $2.50.  I decided to give it a try and make my own version.  I am not fabulous at the sewing machine so I was a little worried but it was very easy!

First, I used Pattern B but all I did was cut out the apron part.  This pattern had an adjustable neck and I wasn’t ready to try that so I just cut out fabric for apron strings at the neck and the waist.  To make the front of the apron, I cut out a pocket that was about 6×6.  I sewed the pocket, right sides together, turned it and attached it to the front of the apron with a zigzag stitch.

To make the crayon holder part of the apron, I used the crayon hold part of this Coloring Caddy at The Crafty Cupboard.  I have made several of these crayon bags, so I figured that it would be easy to adapt it to the apron.  I made sure that the crayon part was longer than the apron.  I attached it to the apron and stitched the crayon pockets.

I followed apron directions to stitch the neck and waist strings.

I put the lining and the front of the apron right sides together, stitched them together and left a hole to pull it through.  I pulled the apron through and finished it with a stitch all the way around for a finished look. 

My niece is going to love the pinks in this one!

Tags: Crafts, Jennifer, Sewing

This Turkey is Stuffed

I had hoped to have this up on the site BEFORE Thanksgiving, but it was not to be … but, this stuffed meal (as opposed to the condition you’ll be in — stuffed — when you finish your Thanksgiving feast) would still be a fun gift or centerpiece for the Christmas table!  Thanksgiving is about family, food, and fun … so, since part of the “family” could only be here the weekend before Thanksgiving this year, that is when we celebrated! I did tell Jen that my universe feels a bit like it is tilted since everyone else is in the kitchen making their big Thanksgiving meal and I’m putting together a leftover turkey sandwich … homemade pizza at her house later today for the shopping strategizing session!

I downsized my diningroom furniture a few years ago, and “the grands” are “upsizing” so we decided to have our first “kids’ table” this year (Josh suggested that next year it be moved to the patio!).

This fun little centerpiece idea came from Smashed Peas and Carrots, a young mother’s fun blog full of recipes and craft ideas. You’ll see from my close-up pictures that I made a few changes, mainly for simplicity’s sake (and because I have limited time and need to make two of them!).

Bottom piece, cut one (1)

Drumstick pieces, cut four (4) of each

Body Piece, Cut two (2)

1.  Draw the pattern pieces freehand (no kidding!) on paper.

2. Cut out fabric pieces (I used felt for all pieces).

3. On one of the ”meat” pieces for each drumstick, sew velcro.

4. I topstitched the “bone” pieces together without stuffing. May insert a bit of stuffing or a piece of interfacing for the second one I made since the bones are a bit floppy.

5.  Pin together two meat pieces (inside out, making sure the velcro piece is the one you want stuck to the side of the turkey body), with a bone inserted.

6. Sew the pieces of the drumsticks together (inside out), leaving an opening to insert stuffing. Stuff, and whipstitch opening closed.

7. Repeat with the second drumstick.

8. Sew the matching velcro in the appropriate place on each of the body pieces.

9. Sew the two body pieces together, inside out.

10. Sew the body to the bottom piece (you will probably have to do some adjusting here, I ended up trimming about 1 1/2″ off one end of the bottom to get the body to fit the right way), leaving an opening on the rear end to stuff. Stuff as tightly as possible. Whipstitch closed. Using dark embroidery floss or perle cotton, stitch “Xs” across where you whipstitched so it looks like he’s been stuffed and sewn shut (since that is exactly what has happened!).

11. Attach the drumstick pieces.

12. For the other veggies, use your imagination! I made carrots by sewing together triangles and inserting the “top” after stuffing, then tied it off with embroidery floss. The green beans are just two strips of felt sewn together with a bit of stuffing inserted (used the eraser end of a pencil to do the “insert” part!).

13. I purchased a pack of 3 inexpensive foil pizza pans to use as the serving tray.

This little guy was a big hit, especially with the girl “grands” … they entertained themselves and the family for about an hour that evening “serving” up turkey dinner!

“Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a present and not giving it.” — William Arthur Ward

I certainly have much to be thankful for, so hope that everyone has a Happy Thanksgiving (no matter when you celebrate or what you eat)!

Tags: Crafts, Holiday centerpiece, Sewing, Thanksgiving

Pinecone Place Card Holders

Hello again everyone!  Today I am highlighting the pinecone place card holders originally featured in our 100th post with Thanksgiving table designs.  I had a lot of fun making these, mostly because they were SO easy to do!  I pulled out the materials and from start to finish I don’t know if this even took me ten minutes.

Materials:

• Designer stones with flat bottoms, usually found around the stepping stone area of your local craft store or Wal-Mart
• Glitter in the color of your choice – I used gold to make it look more Autumn-ish
• Pinecones – I just picked mine at the local park! but you can also buy a bag for usually $1 -3
• Spray adhesive (you will also see regular tacky glue in the picture…I didn’t use it)
• Glue gun and sticks
• Container to work on/put glitter on – in our family we use recycled meat and veggie trays as can be seen in Jen’s post
• Card stock

Pinecone Place Card Holders VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

Directions:

1. If the bottom of the pinecone is not level, pull or cut off excess pine spokes
2. Pour a small amount of glitter into your container
3. Spray pinecone generously with spray adhesive, coating entire cone
4. Roll pinecone in glitter making sure to thoroughly cover the outside of the cone and allow to dry
5. Using glue gun, put a dime-sized amount of hot glue on the bottom of the pinecone and immediately place pinecone on rounded part of designer stone; hold steady in place until glue dries, usually less than one minute
6. Print out or hand-write the names of your guests on 2 x 3 inch pieces of card stock and place holder at the top of your place setting

At the end of this project, the design was SCREAMING Christmas tree at me, so I guess I will be making these again at Christmas time with green glitter instead.  I will probably still use the orange stones though because they will make great “tree trunks!”

Tags: Marissa, quick., table setting, Thanksgiving

Appliqued Toy (or anything) Box

My sweet baby is now at the age where he is on the floor, rolling around, and playing with toys.  I was keeping the toys in a small basket on a shelf (to keep the dog from thinking they were his toys), but the basket is now too small to hold everything.  Thus, I decided it was time for a toy box. That and…if you don’t remember to turn some of them off, you get to hear “Row Row Row Your Boat” in the middle of the night when you hurt your toe after accidentally kicking a toy while looking for a pacifier…at 2:36 am. Fun!

This toy box is really simple to make, however, the trick is to take your time.  Major tools are an iron and a sewing machine capable of sewing a zig zag.

Here’s what you’ll need:

1. Some sort of canvas or fabric covered bin. I found mine at Hobby Lobby in the purse and tote bag section.
2. Fabric scrap: Size depends on how much of the bin you want to cover.  This piece will be for the backing.
3. Fabric scraps: These will be for the letters. I used two fabrics, but you can use whatever suits your fancy.
4. Fusible Web: Also called Wonder Under, this stuff really is “wonder”ful. :-)
5. Matching thread.
6. Scissors
7. Sewing machine and iron.

Step 1:  Cut out your letters.  *Personal piece of advice: Iron your web on the fabric before you cut out the letters.*  I was so excited about this one, that I forgot to iron mine on first. After I cut out the letters, I was afraid that I wouldn’t be able to make them look as good the second time around so I took little pieces of web and “pieced” them on the backside of the letters. Not ideal, but it worked.  But…the best way to do it is to iron on the fusible web and then cut out your letters.  I always like to free-hand my letters. They’re never perfect, but I like that.

Step 2: Iron/attach the letters to the “back” piece of fabric.

Step 3: Hem the edges of the backing fabric.  Be sure to press the sides under before you actually sew the sides. If there’s anything my Granny taught me in sewing (she’s taught me many things, actually), she says to “Always press your hem first…then the job is already half done.”

Step 4: Applique the letters. I used a simple zig zag stitch, but I did practice on a piece of scrap fabric to make sure my stitch length and width were what I wanted.  *Another piece of advice: Line up your needle placement so that the zig zag is ON the edge of the letter. If you can keep the stitch ON the item being appliqued, it will look much cleaner and almost give the item a “puffy” look. I tried to show it in the pictures below.

Step 5: Attach backing fabric to the bin: With your backing fabric edges finished and hemmed, cut out a piece of fusible web to fit the size of the backing fabric. You’ll want to get it as close to the edges as possible as this is what will actually attach it to your fabric bin.  Once the web is on the bin, peel the paper off, line it up on your bin, and iron it on. I made sure to give mine a little extra time to ensure it set properly.

Step 6: Fill that sucker up with the toys (or whatever) and enjoy a (somewhat) clean room.

This is the first one of these I’ve made, but I’m hopelessly in love with it.  It might be an “organizing” themed Christmas this year…if ya know what I mean…

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Tags: Baby, Crafts, decorating, Kids, Sewing

Perfect Little Leg Warmers

I have an adorable little ballerina at home.  I also have two adorable little niece ballerinas (at least I think they are both still ballerinas!).  What more could a little ballerina ask for then cozy little leg warmers to cover her skinny little legs in the wintertime?!  Leg warmers aren’t a tough pattern to create.  It really was just a matter of decided on the right number of stitches to cast on.  The rest kind of took care of itself!  So here is a quick and easy knit for anyone who knows how to knit in the round.

This is going to make a great gift for all the little girls in the family, even if they aren’t ballerinas.  I’ll probably knit a pair up for myself too!  Each leg warmer only took me the length of one movie to knit!

Leg Warmers

• Skill level:
  • Intermediate (knitting in the round with dpns required)
• Materials:
  • Size 8 dpns and size 10 dpns (US)
  • 2 small/medium skeins chunky yarn
• Directions:
  • Using size 8 dpns (US) CO 38 Stitches.  Join, being careful not to twist
  • Row 1 – 8: Knit rib stitch: *k2, p2 *repeat to end
  • Row 9 – 63 (or desired length): Change to size 10 dpns and knit every row
  • Row 64 – 72: Change back to size 8 dpns (US) and resume rib stitch *k2, p2 *repeat to end
  • Row 73: *K2tog, yo, p2 *repeat to end
  • Row 74: *k2, p2 *repeat to end
  • Weave in ends
  • Thread a ribbon or threads of yarn through eyelets and tie in a bow

Tags: ballerina, knit, leg warmers, quick.

Clothespin Mirror Makeover

I’ve had this boring mirror sitting in my garage for about four years now. I had the best intentions when I rescued it from someone’s donate pile. It’s been shuffled around with every “garage-clean-up-day” since we got married. I finally decided to do something with it.

I’m somewhat pleased with the finished product, but wish I’d done a few things differently. Here are my steps (and personal recommendations for things I would change):

Basic supplies will be:

1. Paint-I used two different colors but later wish I’d used the same for the mirror and pins. Just do what suits your fancy.
2. Clothespins-I bought the cheap ones but later wish I’d splurged the extra dollar and gotten the nicer ones.
3. Sandpaper-Any kind will do.
4. Paintbrushes-I used the cheap-y sponge brushes…I ended up just throwing them away in the end because the clothespins ate them up so much.
5. Glue-I used wood glue because that’s what we already had, but you can probably use any kind.
6. A mirror-Mine had a wooden frame.

(Forgive the Hamilton Beach box in the background. I had to do this project in the living room while watching a movie and playing with the baby and it was my “table”. Go multi-tasking skills, go!)

Step 1: Sand down the frame (if wooden). My frame was wooden with some sort of varnish or glossy finish. I should have taken my time with it and sanded more, but I was in a bit of a hurry and didn’t. Wish I had, though…it makes a big difference when painting.

Step 2: Paint your clothespins. This is undoubtedly the most annoying step. I’m not a big painter and painting twenty-something little things with lots of angles and sides is, to me, annoying. Plus, the rough edges totally ate up my sponge paintbrushes. At the end of the evening, I just threw them away.

Step 3: Paint your mirror.  Again, this will go a lot better if you take your time and do a good job of sanding the frame. Seriously. Trust me. My mirror has about EIGHT coats of paint on it.  Also, I didn’t tape the edges of the mirror. A few years ago we bought a big mirror to hang over the bed (clean thoughts, please…it’s hanging at the top of the bed as our headboard). It was marked down because of a few scratches, but it was a really nice, heavy mirror. We decided to get it anyway and paint the whole frame. We taped the edges where the wood meets the mirror but didn’t realize that the paint would bleed and run under the tape in some places. So even when we pulled the tape off, we still had to go back and scrape it off. So…this time I didn’t tape at all. I painted it and didn’t worry about the edges. When the paint was dry, I scraped it off with a straight edge (mine was actually a plastic shim) and it looked very neat and clean. Go me!

Step 4: Position your clothespins on your mirror and glue them in place. Again, I used wood glue, but I’m sure any kind of glue will work. The ticket is to use just enough and not a huge glob because it will squish out the sides. (I swear I can still hear my elementary art teacher telling us, “A little will do. A lot…will not.”  I ended up pointing my pins grab-y side out so that I could put pictures in them, but I kinda wish I’d put them the other way around. I also wish I’d put more pins on it since it looks kinda skimpy. But…it’s done and no longer being shuffled around in the garage.

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Tags: Crafts, decorating, Painting, Repurpose

Spooky Mummies

Like Marissa, in her previous post, I can barely get my act together to craft the necessary gifts for birthdays and holidays much less think about Christmas.  I haven’t done anything, even though I said I would.  The husband and I are going on vacation to celebrate our anniversary and then it is a race to the finish where Christmas trees, stockings, and wrapping paper await!

But back to the holiday at hand…Halloween!  I haven’t even finished decorating for Halloween but I saw these adorable mummies over in the archives at Inspiring Creations.  I ran right out that same day and picked up all the supplies.  Then, the supplies sat on my table.  I finally got around to making them the other day and they are SO cute! 

I followed the tutorial directions step by step with the exception of step 5.  I had some distressing ink but I didn’t like the way that it looked when I started to distress the fabric so I skipped it.  I am not sure if the color I was using was too light but it just didn’t look the same as hers and I like the bright white fabric.

One little guy is sitting on my mantle, one is sitting on my mom’s mantle, and one is in a shipping box making a trip up north!  I love them and my daughter wants me to make a family of mummies! 

Tags: Crafts, Halloween, Jennifer, mummies

Homemade Birthday Treat Bags

To continue with a post about my daughter’s birthday, I wanted to share with you the treat bags I sewed.  This was not a project I had intended on completing for the party.  I did not want to buy the cheap little plastic bags to put the treats in for the guests, but I also thought I would be able to find something cute to put them in!  While I was searching for inspiration, I found some wonderful small canvas bags online that had drawstrings to pull them closed.  Alas, I was doing this mere days before the party and would not have enough time to order them.  I went to every craft/fabric/grocery store in my area and they did not have anything close to what I was now bound and determined to have for the party!  So, I did what any other Martha Stewart mom would do and decided to make them myself!

I have tons of leftover fabric from previous projects/projects I never finished.  Since it was a princess party I went with pink fabric for the girls and green fabric for the boys.  Initially, I was going to throw the things together, sew them really quick up the side and tie a ribbon around them.  After speaking with my super sewing mom, I was talked out of that!  She convinced me of how easy it would be to take a few quick extra steps to make the bags look cute and better put together.

First, rip the fabric into elongated rectangles, about 10 inches by 16 or 18 inches.  Fold in the edges of the two elongated sides, approximately 1/4 inch, and iron (this is to create a clean edge).  Fold the rectangles in half along the short sides, with the right, or front sides, facing each other.  Iron along fold.  Fold down the top of each side so there is approximately a 1.5 inch “cuff” at the top of each side. 

*to save time to not have to feed a drawstring through later, I tied the knot in my cording and tucked it under the flap on one side.  Leaving a 1/4 inch edge, sew across one side of the cuff.  Flip the bag around and repeat on the other side, tucking the cord under the flap and sewing across.  Make sure you are not yet sewing the two sides of the bag together!!!  OR you can just sew across each cuff and feed the cord or ribbon through later.

Last – holding the folded piece of fabric together, sew up each long edges to close the bag, stopping just at the seam on the cuff.  Turn bag inside out and have some fun! 

This, of course, still does not produce an amazingly well made bag, but the kids loved them, the adults thought they were great, and it only took me watching the entire movie of Moulin Rouge to finish 24 bags from start to end!  Thanks for the help mom!!!

Tags: birthday, Craft, Homemade, party, recycle, Repurpose, Sew, Treat Bags