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12 Days of Handmade Christmas Tutorials Day 6 {Tassels}

November 6, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 25 Comments

Thanks to Darby, The Nester (Day 2), Sandy (Day 3), Denise (Day 4), and Heather (Day 5), we’re all ready to make this years’ Christmas gifts a little more ‘from the heart’. I love the ideas so far and can’t wait for you to see what’s still to come. Yesterday, my computer server was down from 8a until 8p! I felt like I was locked out of my own house while there was a fabulous party going on—-standing at the window knocking, begging to come in—watching while everyone sipped champagne and laughed and hugged and visited. I even had to call my sister (who lives an hour away) and have her hack into my blog to publish the post! Then, to add to the fun and distraction, the fed ex man delivered my new (used, bought on eBay–with my yard sale money) sewing and embroidery machine. The girls and I have been in heaven— trying all the funky stitches and even embroidering a tea towel. This is gonna take some practice but we’re giddy about it and ready to sew some more handmade Christmas gifts. The girls were teasing their dad about embroidering his scrub shirts for him. Just dandy! BTW, I got a Viking Designer 1.

Now, without further delay, meet my dear friend Mandi, who is a wonderful mom and fellow creative spirit. She has been so encouraging to me over the past year and I’m so excited to feature her here on my blog. Welcome Mandi!!

Hey friends! My name is Mandi and I have a little blog called Mandi Shandi’s. The fabulous Edie was one of my very first “Blog “friends, and we all know how super cool she is (no editing Edie!), so when she asked me to take part in this fab 12 Days of Christmas Party she is having, I was thrilled! I will warn you that I am not typically the best tutorial writer.I am super-busy mom of 2 young boys,

(Me above, and those rowdy boys below.)

and I get distracted easily, but I’m taking extra care this time to make sure I get enough pictures and give detailed instructions. If I manage to leave out any details that you need, feel free to hop over to my blog or e-mail me. Who am I kidding? I hope you come over and visit my blog regardless! I love making new friends!

Let’s get this party started! This is what I am calling the Ultimate Tassel Tutorial because I am gonna give you so much info. that it may qualify as overload, but you will be able to start making decorative tassels immediately.

I recommend you start off by gathering your supplies. You will probably need to shop for a couple things, but most crafters already have a lot of this stuff on hand.

Wood Candle Cups– Available at all craft stores in the unfinished wood section.

Small Screw Eyes– Available at Target, Wal-Mart, or any hardware store.

Ribbons, Trims, Fringe, or Yarn– I am a Hobby Lobby girl. I think their prices are just hard to beat, so most of my embellishments come from there when it is on sale. You can also find nice fringe at Hancock Fabrics.

Hot Glue Gun and LOTS of Gluesticks.

Maximum Adhesive Glue– I use E6000 (not pictured b/c I ran out, but you can get it at Wal-Mart or craft stores.)

Topper or Small Figurine– I pick up small figurines everywhere, even the Dollar Tree at times. I also like to use Christmas ornaments because they already have the eyehook in the top.

Drill– Ideally you would use a jewelry drill, but I use a regular drill and am very careful.

Since this is a Christmas party, I am gonna make a Christmas tassel using an ornament. I can skip the drilling part. Normally though, you would start off by drilling a small hole in the top of your figurine. I always put a little glue in the hole to make sure the eye hook stays in. Screw in your eye hook.

Next glue your topper to the candle cup. I use E6000 for this and usually let it dry for atleast an hour. Run a pretty ribbon through the eye hook and tie it in nice bow or knot. Make sure it is long enough to hang properly after tied. I cut my ribbon between 10 and 12 inches.

Now the fun starts. I line up my trims and get busy picking colors. I have found that my tassels look most balanced if I use the widest trims on the bottom and work to the smallest ones on the top. I line my trims up in this order.

Once I have picked the bottom layer, I take it and roll it up to see how much it will take to fill the inside of the candle cup. When I get a good idea, I cut the fringe at that length, add a strip of hot glue and roll it back up.

Then I thoroughly glue the interior of the candle cup, and stuff my rolled up fringe inside. It should be a tight fit.

I cut my ribbon in equal lengths and get it ready to glue. It typically takes between 4 and 7 strips of ribbon, depending on the diameter of the ribbon and the candle cup or dowel rod you are tasseling. The hot glue dries fast, so it is best to already have your ribbon cut. Make sure if you are making loops and your ribbon is printed, that you glue the printed side down so when you loop it the print will show.

Keep adding layers until you reach the top of your candle cup. At this point you will need something nice and fluffy to round out the tassel. I say fluffy, because that type of fringe is the most forgiving if you don’t get it just perfect. It also covers the bond between the topper and the candle cup so you want something thick. You could also add bows or ribbon. The sky is the limit.

Last but not least, carry your new tassel into the bathroom and blow it with the hairdryer. This eliminates all those pesky hot glue strings. Now its time to find a home for your new beauty. Hang them on doorknobs, lamps, furniture, or even ceiling fans.

And just in case you need a little more inspiration to get you tasseling, here are a few favorites that I have made recently.

There you have it. The Ultimate Tassel Tutorial. I hope I was clear enough on my instructions, and if you make some tassels stop by my blog and let me know. I’d love to visit you and see them all!

Hugs! Mandi

12 Days of Handmade Christmas Tutorials Day 5 {Buntings}

November 5, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 27 Comments

As I was humming the ’12 Days of Christmas’ last night while I was making dinner, my husband said to me,

“Um, do you realize you keep singing the 12 days of Christmas over and over. And over? And it’s November 4?”

“Oh, sorry, see it’s just that I’m having the ’12 Days of Handmade Christmas Tutorials’ on my blog, and it’s so neat to see all these cool handmade things from all these talented women.”

Emme chimes in, “It’s really cool dad, did you see the birds Ms. Denise made out of fabric? We’re gonna make those later for our art class. “

He politely {fake} smiles and prays that some other song—-any other song—–will catch fire in my head. {5 minutes of restrained silence}

“It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas!” I’m sorry. Now you’re gonna sing that all day. I am loving this series and I’m contemplating my Christmas decor as we speak. If you’re just joining the party, first visit Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, and Day 4!

Welcome Heather from, All a Flutter Designs, who is a 30 something wife and momma, maker of handmade goods for children, a lover of all things vintage, and an amateur home decorator. She also has an Etsy shop so be sure to support her by visiting and shopping.

Hello all you beautiful Life in Grace readers!
My name’s Heather and I ‘m so excited to be participating in the
12 Days of Handmade Christmas!

For my contribution I’d like to offer up my

Simple Little Buntings

These are not Martha Stewart’s buntings! No offense Martha.

I like having these hanging up in my house year round with fun and inspiring words.

I create these easy buntings using freestyle stitching and simple fabrics like burlap, seer sucker, and felt. Then I throw in a little velvet ribbon, vintage seam binding, and vivid vintage fabrics
to finish off their one of a kind look.

My favorite part is that you don’t need to be a seamstress to create one of these beauties,
just some simple sewing skills will get you in on the fun.

Here are a few bunting word ideas-

For a child-

A Child’s Name, Dream, Bebe, Learn, or a Child’s Initial

For a family-

Family’s Last Name, Hope, Live, Home, Merci, Love, Pray

For the holidays-

Joy, Noel, Jesus, Christmas, Peace

This photo shows some of the supplies you’ll need.

You’ll also need straight pins, your sewing machine, and a safety pin.
Just a note- when you make your letters out of fabric instead of felt you’ll want to use lite heat-n- bond so that the fabric is stiff enough to cut, but light enough to stitch through.

You’ll start by cutting your flags. Each of my flags are 8″ high by 7.5″ wide.

I use these corrugated cardboard scrapbook letters I found at the craft store.
I like them because they’re a font I like, they’re durable enough for repeated use, and thin enough that I can pin through them when I’m using fabric that doesn’t show outlines very well, like felt.

Next you’ll pin or outline your letters onto the fabric.

Cut each one out and set them to the side.

Fold the top portion of your flag towards to back to create a 1″ seam.
This is the channel the ribbon or twine runs through for hanging.

Flip the flag over to the right side and pin your letters to the center of each flag.

Time for the fun stuff!

You’ll want to leave an 1/8″ seam allowance around each letter.

Remember to stitch slowly! Even though we’re freestyling we don’t want to loose control.

When you come to a corner or curve be sure the needle is in the fabric
and then lift the foot so you don’t skip a stitch.

I like to go around 2-3 times, sometimes switching up the colors in between.

Admire your work.
Sigh.
Finish the rest of the letters.

Pin decorative ribbon to the front of the banner so that it lines up with the bottom edge
of the back seam. This will seam up the channel for hanging the flags.

Pull the loose threads at the edges to create fringe.
This works with all fabric and makes for much cuter flags!

Tie ribbon or twine to a safety pin and feed through the flags.

Be sure to start with your last flag and work your way up.

Now make one for yourself, for your kids, for your kid’s teachers, for your friends!

On second thought, you better just go ahead and make one for everyone you know because once

they see yours they’ll be asking you for one.

Merry Christmas!

They also make sweet gift tags, too!

I can’t wait to see all the fun buntings y’all make!

Thanks Edie for letting me share my simple little buntings with you and your readers.
This was really fun and I can’t wait to try all the other amazing handmade goodies from these 12 days!

xoxo,

12 Days of Handmade Christmas Tutorials Day 4 {Fabric Birds}

November 4, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 248 Comments

Sing it with me, “On the fourth day of Christmas, my blog friend gave to me, 4 calling birds“, 3::coasters from Sandy, 2::garlands from Nester, and a dishmat made by Dar-by. My friend Denise has that song ‘playing’ on her blog and now you are lucky enough to get a tutorial of her famous birds. And you better act fast because I’m not sure she’s gonna give us unlimited access to her pdf pattern. Print, people, print.

I am fortunate to be friends {in real life—aka—IRL} with Denise and always enjoy the chance to chitty chat with her about a myriad of topics from theology to blogging to crafting. She actually is partially responsible for my new life; she introduced me to blogging and has been instrumental in mentoring me as a homeschooler. I’m so excited she’s agreed to show us her birds and even though I have one of the ‘real’ ones—made by her—-I think I’m gonna give this craft a try! Welcome Denise and thank you for teaching me so many wonderful things!

PAPER AND FABRIC BIRDS

I created my version of the little paper/fabric bird after seeing some out of my price range on Etsy. It took many tries–which you can read about here, but I think I finally *landed* on the perfect little decorating accessory.

Step 1: Pick out cute fabric and cut out pieces.
(Get a PDF of the pattern by contacting Denise)

Note: I would not attempt a paper bird first; but when you are ready, make your pattern out of something clear so that you can place it over the area of the map that you want to show. I used the plastic that was the window on some packaging. It is easier to see if you outline it with a permanent marker.

Note: I use quilter’s thread, small black beads, and old lady glasses for the next step. And in case you are wondering, in the above photo, LB stands for Little Bird. There are BB pieces as well. I used a small hole punch to make a template for the eye placement.

Step 2: Sew on the small beads for eyes

Step 3: Line up the small head piece for sewing first.

Step 4: Sew in the directions of the arrows on the pattern.
(Back of head to front of head to back of head to tail to beak to middle of belly.)
Clear as mud?

Note: I’m not sure I have ever sewn a bird the same way twice. Do what works best for you.

Step 5: Stuff bird.

Note: Use a pencil to get the stuffing in the tail. Poly-fil works fine for the fabric birds, but you will want to use a pulled apart cotton ball for the tail of a paper one. The Poly-fil will just keep sliding out and it will bug you.

Step 6: Sew shut.

Step 7: Make legs.

Note: I use 24-guage wire, but I think a large paper clip could also work–not a small paper clip because the legs would be too short. I know that because I tried it today when I couldn’t find my spool of wire. I use a jewelry tool, but needle-nosed pliers would probably work. I made the shape below out of a thicker wire to show the shape more clearly–actually, I made it because I couldn’t locate the missing spool of wire.

Step 7: Glue in legs.

Note: There are dots on the pattern to give you an idea of leg placement. Believe me, this is not an exact science. Getting the balance just right takes a bit of patience. I roll the ends of the wire in some tacky glue and then shove them through the holes that I make using a bigger needle–you know, stick it in and then just roll it around to make a bit of an opening in the fabric. I make sure the legs are about the same length and then allow the glue to dry. I then balance the fellow by holding down the feet and making slight adjustments to the angle of the legs. Sounds more complicated than it is.

Step 8: Give as a present and make people smile. See for yourself here.

More birds can be seen in this post.

12 Days of Handmade Christmas Tutorials:: Day 3 {Coasters}

November 3, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 126 Comments

Thanks so much to my friend, The Nester, for her great tutorial and for the way she graciously shares herself and her gifts with others. Day 1 and Day 2 were a huge success and I can tell by my emails and comments that you’re busy already crafting away.
I’m so excited about ‘Day 3’ and Sandy’s Coasters. I met Sandy {from 4 Reluctant Entertainers} last year at Blissdom. She is beautiful and gracious and I know you’ll love her tips on how to become a welcoming hostess. Her posts make me wanna invite people over, make delicious food, and set a gorgeous table. The coasters project she is showing us today would be so fun to do with kids. And if mine weren’t sick and whiny , I’d probably start today. Instead, I’ve propped them up in the craft studio, with blankets and pillows and tissues handy, and in between fetching them drinks and Halloween candy, I’m sewing up the cutest-somewhat-Christmas-y-tote {to be shown later}. So, make Sandy welcome and visit her blog for oodles of holiday entertaining ideas.

Last year when I invited my Balcony Girls into my home, our craft for the day was to make coasters for the holidays. I even got in on the fun myself, and made of list of which friends to give to at Christmas.
So when Edie asked if I’d share with her readers, I was delighted because the process is so easy! And I found that my friends who received these gifts loved them!

The craft began as we created stamped coasters.

Using these supplies:

3 ¾” x 3 ¾” unglazed tiles

Rubber stamps and ink pads

Felt or cork (sticky sided)

Spray fixative/varnish

The cost per tile was 32 cents from Lowes. Each girl made “4” coasters!

We made fun designs

Spraying, drying and putting 4 felt squares on the bottom

All tied up, ready to give away!

I asked my Balcony Girls girls to think of grandparents, teachers, music teachers, a neighbor – to keep in mind who they’d want to give this gift to at Christmas!
What I love about homemade gifts is the love that goes into them. And when you’re working with young girls, they take the task at hand so seriously!
Giving is a beautiful thing. And that is why I love the holiday so much. Not only do we get to focus on the Giver of Life, it’s just way more fun to give than to receive!

12 Days of Handmade Christmas Tutorials:: Day 2 {Ragamuffin Garland}

November 2, 2009 by Edie Wadsworth 164 Comments

Wasn’t Darby wonderful on Day 1? Why did it take me so long to find her? Have y’all been holding out on me?

And my friend Denise {who is guest posting soon} is ‘singing’ the 12 days of Christmas on her blog for us. It made me chuckle.

Our next guest poster needs no introduction. You know her and love her and I’m thrilled she’s been so gracious to post her ragamuffin garland tutorial for us. I haven’t tried this one yet but am gathering my fabric scraps as we speak. When I met The Nester last year at Blissdom, I was so impressed by her approachability and her kind, sweet spirit. She’s the real deal. And we all have learned some valuable decorating tips from her, but more importantly we’ve learned to be content with what we have, to repurpose old/tired objects into beautiful new creations, and to shop the house before we shop the stores. I love her motto: it doesn’t have to be perfect to be beautiful. Thank you Nester for joining our party!

I’m thrilled to share my ragamuffin garland over here at Edie’s blog. If I could pick 5 bloggers and visit their homes to get inspired, Edie would be one of them! I first published this tutorial in May 2008 at Blissfully Domestic and then I republished it on at Nesting Place in November, 2008. It remains one of the most popular posts. The beauty of the garland is that any fool can do this!

To make a plush, fat, beautiful full garland all you need is fabric, ribbon, ring clips and time–lots and lots of time.

Here’s the finished product it is captivating, fluffy and adorable.

I make my garland with long strips of ribbon, fabric, fringe and anything else I can get my hands on. I never measure but here is a close up of a few strips so you get the idea of how long. I would err on cutting your fabric too long. That is if you had to err.

You want to have one base ribbon that is the one you tie everything else to. I used a long pink one here and I usually make it about as long as my arm. You can make them as long or short as you want.

And you tie the strips on. And you tie the strips on. And you tie them on. You keep doing it until you want to curse me and anyone who you are making this for and then you look at it and you are almost half way done. And you keep doing it. Your kids can help too. You cannot tie wrong.

For my boy’s garland, I used some old shirts from my husband’s teaching days. Look, there’s a cuff. I also cut up some sweet little jeans they all wore and a blanket and even one of their little shirts. I even had extra fabric left over from a window mistreatment that I threw in there.

It’s like making a big soup. You just keep adding all sorts of stuff until it magically looks right. You are thinking that I don’t
really make soup and you are right.

As you are tying and tying and cutting more stuff because you didn’t dream it would take so much fabric, just remember how adorable this is gonna look. You really want to pack the fabric and ribbon in. That’s how it looks so fab. Do not skimp on this, you will just be wasting your time.

Once you get to the very end, you tie the ribbon that is the base onto the ring of a ring clip. Do the same for the other end. I actually do this first so I can see where my start and stop are easily.

I like to add clips or clothespins in every 6 or 8 inches so you can hang stuff in the garland. You can hang photos or baby shoes or grocery lists or Christmas cards or ticket stubs…
Look how cute this one is in my old kitchen. And yes, those are napkins used for window mistreatments. I’m so glad you noticed!

I hope you have fun with this project! It’s like a quilt only easier and you don’t have to sew and you can’t cover up with it.

This garland would be adorable hung over a changing table, window or bed. Make a Chirstmasy one and hang your cards on it. Use your babies old clothes and hang it in the playroom.

This is the perfect time of year to make a garland for someone. Need more inspiration? Google “Ragamuffin Garland” and get inspired by what others have made as well!

Here are a few other ideas of what you can do with some ragamuffin scraps!