simple Analogy

DIY: Simple Leather Bracelet

Isn't all the leather jewelry that's out there just beautiful?  I especially like it mixed with metal.  In all my jewelry making I've never really worked with leather, but there's always a first time.  You know my affinity for all things Vintaj...  I mixed turquoise colored leather with antiqued brass findings for a perfectly simple leather bracelet.  Here's how.

***Note:  Please forgive my dry, snarly hands.  I know I need lotion, but I can't stand the slimy feel of it.

Supplies:

Four 9" lengths of 1/8" wide deerskin leather lace (Hobby Lobby) or other very soft leather

One 2mm circumference hammered ring

small lobster clasp

2 small jump rings

Two 9mm  crimp ends

beading glue

ruler

beading pliers

Directions:

Start with two of the leather strands.  Find  the middle of both and center the middle over the middle of your hammered ring.

Pull the ends around the back of the ring and through the loop of leather on the front, making sure that the shiny side of the leather (not the suede side) is the side you see.  Pull tight.  Repeat with the other two strands of leather on the other side.

Now center your brass ring, which is almost an inch wide, on your ruler.  Measure from the ring about 2 3/4" and cut all the strands.  This measurement is for a 7 1/2" bracelet.  Adjust your length here if you want a smaller/larger bracelet.

On one end of your bracelet, gather all four ends of the leather into a nice neat stack.

Place your stack shiny side down into the crimp end lining up the ends of the leather with the top of the prongs.

Add a little bit of glue to the sides and top end of the leather/crimp end.

Using needle nose pliers, crimp one end down tightly over the leather.  Then crimp the other end over.  Give it a good squeeze and add a jump ring.

Repeat with the other end attaching the lobster clasp along with the jump ring.

This bracelet is so lightweight you'll hardly even know you have it on.  Looks perfect with jeans and a t-shirt or more dressy attire.  I'm pretty sure this will be my go-to bracelet for the spring/summer!

Lunch Sack Flower Tutorial

The tutorial as promised!

Six lunch sacks, a bit of scrap fabric, some of those white circle stickers that are use to enforce the holes of notebook paper, and a little elbow grease... that's all you need to make a beautiful gift presentation.  Actually any kind of double sided paper could be used to make these, but for all practical purposes we'll use lunch bags since that's what I have on hand.

Ready?

Cut the bottom off of six brown paper lunch bags.

Cut off both folded sides of each bag.  This will give you twelve rectangular sheets of brown paper.

Fold each sheet in half making the short ends meet.

Fold the top down to meet the bottom.

With the folded corner on the top left, fold the left edge up to meet the top edge.  This will give you a sort of triangular shape. 

 
Fold the top layer of the triangle back to meet the bottom edge.  All twelve pieces of paper will be folded this way.

Now, we'll cut the petals for four large flowers:  I drew the shape of half my petal as close to the edge of the top layer as possible.  Do this on four of the folded papers.  Cut the shape stopping at the fold of the top layer.

  

Unfold the top layer and finish cutting the petal by following the cut edge.

Make a small snip to cut off the tip.

Unfold.  This is what your large flower shape will look like.  You should have four of them.

Medium flowers:  On four pieces of the folded paper, draw the petal shape 1/2 inch below the edge of the top layer and follow the steps above to complete the four medium flowers.

Small flowers:  On four pieces of the folded paper, draw the petal shape 1 inch below the edge of the top layer and follow the steps above to complete the four small flowers.

At this point you should have four of each size flower.

Now take the reinforcement circle stickers and place them around the hole in the middle of each flower.

Stack your flowers according to size.

Cut (or tear for a frayed edge) your fabric into 1/2 inch strips.  You'll want one strip that is long enough to wrap around a gift box plus a few inches.  The other strips should each be at least three inches long.  You'll need about 6 to 8 of the smaller strips.

Using the long strip of fabric, thread it through all four large flowers.

Continue threading through the medium flowers and last of all through the small flowers.

Leaving a loop in front of the topmost flower, begin threading back through all layers of flowers.

Insert the small strips into the loop and pull the strings in the back to tighten loop.

Give the smaller strips a haircut.

Fluff the layers.

Tie onto a package and you're done!

Little Chocolate With That Sorbet?

I hosted craft night last week.  Fun, fun, fun as always!  I was in the mood for an ice cream dessert and went to the store with no flavor in particular on my mind, just ice cream.  I came home with Keebler waffle cones and a carton each of mango and strawberry sorbet.  Then I got to thinking about the chocolate dipped waffle cones at Marble Slab and wishing I would have thought to stop by there and buy some of those instead. 

What?  You didn't know that you can just buy the cones?  Actually I wouldn't have known either, except for the fact that when Noah was younger he didn't like ice cream.  Whenever we would stop at Marble Slab, or any ice cream place for that matter, his standard order was "just the cone".

Back to the point, since I already had the plain waffle cones, I jazzed them up with some Baker's chocolate I had in the pantry.  Now that was easy!  And cost effective, too!  One Marble Slab chocolate dipped cone back in the day was $1.50.  My cones came to a total of $.50 each!  And yummy......

What you need:

One box of waffle cones (12)

One box of Baker's chocolate

sprinkles

a handy dandy popsicle mold set from Target  (See my set here.)

Set up the empty popsicle molds.  Melt the whole box of chocolate according to directions on the product.  Dip the top of the cone into the chocolate and garnish with your favorite sprinkles.  Set in the popsicle mold and repeat with remaining cones.  If you don't have a popsicle mold, you could also turn an egg carton upside down and cut holes in the egg "cups" and use that to hold the cones.

 
When all the cones have been dipped and are resting in the molds, spoon a small amount of leftover chocolate into the bottom of the cone to prevent ice cream drips.  Because who wants a drippy cone, and who doesn't LOVE a little bit of a chocolate surprise in that last bite!

Place in refrigerator until chocolate is set.

Spoon one scoop of strawberry and another scoop of mango sorbet into the cone and enjoy a very special treat!

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And now for the Runaround Bag pattern giveaway winner.....

# 2 - Katie -  "I love Anna's patterns, but haven't taken the chance to purchase this one yet. I would love to win it. Thanks!" 

For those of you who loved this pattern, stop by and purchase yours from Anna!

Finger Knitting Necklace

 
The scraps from the skirt... they went toward another worthy cause - my newest necklace!  I used every single piece of that fabric.  No waste!  Nada!

 
Follow the directions from V and Co. for knitting with two fingers (video tutorial here), but leave a little bit longer of a tail to begin with - say 7-8 inches.

 
Knit until your chain is about 10-11 inches long (or however long you want it).  I like shorter necklaces, so 11 inches worked for me.

 
End your chain following the directions in the tutorial making sure to leave a long tail.  Mine was about 17 inches long.

 
Put the longest tail around your neck and adjust the necklace to the length you like.

 
 
 
Tie both tails in a bow right next to the end of your chain.  (I added an extra length of fabric to the bow part to fluff it up a bit.)  Cut the tails to the desired length.

The knit I used was a really soft cotton/spandex mix which gave me a really floppy bow.  If you want the bow more defined, use a thicker/stiffer knit.

Ruffle Stripes Heart Pillow

 
***If you're just popping in for the week, this is a three part tutorial.  Make sure you read the first and second parts so that you'll know what we're talking about here in the third part!***

At the end of the last post I left you with a picture of my turquoise ruffle stripes sewn onto a piece of tan fabric.  Here's where some pent up creativity came in... 

The whole family had been down with the flu for a week and a half (which included Valentine's Day).  About the only thing we had the energy to do was lie on the couch, play games on our phones/ipods, read books, or watch Bewitched.  So when I started feeling better, the first thing I wanted to do was sew.  Do you get like that?  Since I was cheated out of being creative for Valentine's Day I decided that whatever I did would include a heart.  The Ruffle Stripes Heart Pillow was the result.

How to make your own-

 
Make your own ruffle stripes by sewing them onto a piece of foundation fabric.

Turn your stripes over so that you are looking at the back side of the fabric.  With a fabric pen, draw a heart (or any shape you want to use).

Sew 1/4 inch away from the inside of your drawn heart.

 
 
Cut out the heart on the line you drew.  Make sure that the edges of your stripes are sewn securely around the edge of your heart.

 
Now following your favorite pillow tutorial, pin and sew your heart onto the front of your pillow fabric following the outline stitches on the front of your heart.  Complete the pillow as directed.

You'll end up with a nicely textured heart pillow.

I can think of so many other ideas for using this technique...  sew shapes or initials onto shirts/bags/towels, add a textured border onto a plain quilt or blanket, add a small row to the bottom of a skirt for added color/interest.  The list goes on and on.  Hope you all have had as much fun with the ruffle stripes as I have.

Ruffle Stripes - The Tutorial

Wondering what I did with those new fangled ruffles...  I made a tutorial for you on how to make ruffle stripes.  Remember them on this purse?

 
First of all pick out several fabrics you want to use.  They could all be in the same color family, or mix and match.  Cut them to the width you want for your ruffles and two times the length you need. 

 
Then ruffle them with your sewing machine using these directions.  Make sure to leave long threads on both ends!  (We'll pull them out later.)

 
Next, iron your ruffles flat.  This makes them much easier to sew.

 
Place your ruffles onto the surface you will be attaching them to.  Make sure you have made plenty of ruffles to cover the entire surface.  Find the color order you want your stripes in.

 
 
Making sure to keep the strips in order, remove all the ruffles except for the first one on the left side of your suface.  Pin the first strip in place.  Sew 1/8 inch away from the edge of both long sides of your ruffle (not the top and bottom edges) making sure not to sew over the long threads from the ruffling.

 
Pin your next ruffle strip in place by placing it right next to the one you just sewed.  You want to try to cover the surface so that you don't see the surface fabric peeking through.  Continue sewing strips in place until you have completely covered your surface.

 
At this point your surface should be covered with stripes and have a ton of threads at the top and bottom. 

 
 
Find the long ruffling threads on each strip and pull both the top and bobbin thread out.  Usually they come out easily, but if you have one that's giving you a hard time, gently use your seam ripper!

 
Now cut all your top and bottom threads.

 
If you're adding these to something that already has a defined shape, like the flap on a purse, sew the top and bottom edges of your stripes 1/8 inch away from the edge of your item.  Then cut your stripes along the edge of your shape. 

There you go - ruffle stripes!  I did a little something different with my group of turquoise stripes.  Next up, the reveal (and another tutorial)... a mini ruffle stripe series!  

Machine Gathered Ruffles Without a Ruffling Foot

 
My former method of making ruffles was:

1. Cut strip of fabric.
2. Sew a basting stitch (longest stitch length) down the middle of the fabric.
3. Pull the top string and hand gather, adjusting until ruffled as desired.

All in all it's a great way to get the job done, but it does require time and effort. 

Somewhere in the dark recesses of my brain, I had a hazy memory that you could use your machine to make ruffles without a ruffling foot by adjusting the tension.  I googled this, but couldn't really come up with hard cold facts on the first page of possibilities.

I did some experimenting.  Woo hoo!!!  It works!  Here are the hard cold facts on how to machine gather ruffles without using a ruffling foot...

 
Cut strip of fabric to the width you want and twice the length you need.

 
Set your machine to the longest stitch length (in my case a 5).

 
Adjust your machine to the highest tension.  (I set mine for an 8 or 9.)

 
Sew down the middle of your fabric and watch those gathers appear.

Ruffling just got easier!

Falling Bag Applique

 
As promised, here is the Falling Bag applique tutorial.  This applique can be added to ANY bag with a plain front panel.  Plain as in no pleats. It should also be added BEFORE you sew your bag pieces together.  OK, here we go...

Supplies:

main bag panel

fabric for tree

several scrap fabrics for leaves

wonder under/heat 'n bond

water soluble fabric pen

brown variegated thread

This is the original drawing that I used for the Falling Bag.  Click on the picture to see original size and print it.  Enlarge or reduce the image to fit the bag you will be applying it to.

To make the tree applique, first apply wonder under (or another iron-on adhesive) to the back of your fabric.  Follow product instructions!  Tape the original image to the window then tape the fabric in all four corners over the top - or just use a light box. 

Trace the outline of the tree ONLY (not the leaves) onto your fabric with a water soluble fabric pen.

 
 
Cut out the traced image close to the lines.  A damp cloth can then be used to erase the outline.

 
Peel off the backing paper, place the tree in the desired place on your fabric, smooth all branches flat, and iron by pressing down on the image.  Do not slide the iron back and forth!

Now that your tree is attached, you can free motion stitch!  See the manual for your machine for directions.  Make sure to stitch as close to the edge of your tree as possible, then fill in the trunk and branches using up and down motions.  I used brown variegated thread to add a little bit of extra interest, but plain brown would work just fine.

 
Apply heavy heat 'n bond to the back of the leaf fabrics.  Cut out leaves in the desired shape, arrange them on your tree, and iron by pressing down on each one.  I used about 26 leaves.

 
 
Sew a straight line down the middle of each leaf.

 
And there you have it! 

 
 You could also use this applique on a pillow or wall hanging.  Have a fun and happy fall!

Celebrate Yellow: Fabric Flower Tutorial

Welcome to the party!  I'm Celebrating Yellow as a guest blogger today over at MADE.  Dana always has the best celebrations!  If you haven't peeked in yet, make sure you clear your schedule for an hour and plan to spend some quality time. 

 
My yellow contribution?  Fabric flowers.  What better way to include a bit of yellow to your outfit than by adding a handmade flower accessory.  Let's get started...

Supplies:

3 1/2 x 16 inch strip of knit material (edges won't fray)

needle

thread (I use buttonhole thread for its strength, but use whatever you have on hand!)

small scrap of felt

hot glue gun

Optional:  pin back, bobby pin, headband, barrette, t-shirt

Directions:

Lay your strip of knit fabric right side up on a flat surface.

 
Pinch the bottom right corner and swirl it clockwise into a tight circle.

 
Holding your swirl tightly, flip over and sew a few stitches through the layers on the underneath side to hold it in place.  Flip it back over to the right side.  This is the center of your flower.

Twist the long end around and to the back to form a petal.  This part is very free form.  If your petal doesn't look right, re-do it.

Once you are happy with the look of your petal, secure it with a few stitches on the back side. 

 
Continue adding petals in the same way, securing with stitches after each one, around the center of your flower until you come to the end of your fabric.

 
 
 

Tuck under any unsightly raw edges and secure with a few stitches.  Use a double knot to tie off your thread.

 
 
Cut a small circle of felt and hot glue to the back center of your flower to hide all the stitching mess.

 
Your flower is now done.  Practice makes all the difference in the world.  So if at first you don't succeed, give it another go!  Also, remember no two flowers will be exactly the same.

Now for all the options...

Attach a pin backing for a removable accessory.

 
Attach flower with a few stitches to a bobby pin, barrette, or headband to wear in your hair.

 
 Sew a few onto a fabric notebook.

 
For a more permanent embellishment, sew several flowers tightly together on a t-shirt or cardigan.  Washing instructions:  Wash by hand or on delicate, arrange flowers, and lay flat to dry.

 
Ok, now it's your turn!  Go drag out those old t-shirts/scraps and have fun!

  

Corsage Tee

Embellished tees are all the rage and I needed to make one.  Yes, needed!  Ergo my corsage t-shirt...

Ingredients:  one white t-shirt, left over knit scraps (from Magdis' dress), button hole thread...

Cut out thirty hearts.  Mine were about 2-3 inches tall and different widths.  I chose the shape of the flowers based on an image I had seen in a magazine.  My 34 year old brain can't remember which one.

Stack two hearts on top of each other.  You can just use one heart, but I liked the way that two looked together.

Run a basting stitch up the middle of the heart.

 Gather heart.

Tie threads in a knot to secure gathers.

Pin onto shirt starting at the shoulder.  Repeat this process until you have about 15 gathered hearts arranged how you like them on your shirt.  I turned my hearts at all different angles so that they would look more like flowers. 

Use the button hole thread to secure the "flowers" to the shirt.  I put the knot end of the thread on the front of the shirt with a 1/2 inch tail.  Kind of looks like the stamen and it adds some character.

You might have noticed my new banner...

For a truer flower version, see this tutorial.  Washing/care instructions here.