{scissor variations}

mini garland for a mini tree

always save your paper scraps.

no matter how small.

 

 

this is my version of the basic garland that you see everywhere. nothing new. just fun to sit down and create.

 

i think the photos are self explanatory, but a brief description:

 

i made a small triangle template out of chipboard and traced this onto any paper scraps where it would fit. then i got tired of tracing and just free-hand cut around the chipboard template while holding it over top of the chosen paper scraps.

 

i then glued all of the paper triangles onto chipboard and cut them out.

 

my chipboard template also had 2 small holes that i used as a template for punching the holes into my triangles after i had cut them out--these of course, became the stringing holes.

 

i used a silver thread for stringing. the thread had a lot of toothiness to it so i did not need to do any knotting in between.

 

(mini tree is from IKEA)

updated: a few folks have asked about the FEJKA tree. they couldn't find it in the seasonal section at Ikea. it is actually located in the plant pots/twiggy greenery etc section--usually close to the framing section in most of their stores. it was approx. $15-i love mine!

 

mini disco ball garland

 

 

Last year during the holidays I filled a large glass bowl with some of these miniature "disco" ball ornaments I found at the local bargain shop. They reflected the tree lights nicely especially in the evenings. So this year I thought I would make some into a garland.

 

 

Gather together:

 

miniature mirrored ball ornaments (mine were $1.00 for 8 pcs)

screw eye hooks

craft glue

paint brush or tooth pick (for glue application)

metallic cord, fishing line or ribbon (for stringing)

 

 

1.

Cut off any hanging loops from the mirrored ball ornaments.

 

(the first ball has the 1/2" x 1/2" screw eye hook. my garland used the middle size hook)

2.

The mirrored ball ornaments that I found had a styrofoam base, so they are light weight. The downside is that when you stick your screw eye hooks in they do not have anything solid or toothy to grab onto. Before inserting your eye hook, brush a bit of glue onto the screw portion of the hook and then insert into the mirrored ball. Allow to dry.

 

3.

****Thread your mirrored balls onto your chosen hanging cord and knot at the top of each ball to avoid the ornaments from sliding together. I left about 3 1/2" - 4" between each mirrored ball.

 

....................a few further tips...........................

 

Putting a bit of glue on your eye screw hook is essential when the base of the mini disco balls is styrofoam as the screws will slip out--especially when you are tying them onto your ribbon or string.

 

****You can tie the screw eye hooks onto the fishing line/ string/ ribbon first and THEN insert the hooks into the mini disco balls. This makes easier work then trying to wield the disco balls that are already tied onto the ribbon, and making knots and flipping the ribbon and the balls around. This is a tip worth trying--trust me.

 

I found that tiny 1/2" x 1/2" screw eye hooks while they may look the best they can be the priciest (over $2 for 6!). If you don't mind going up a size look for picture hanging kits at the bargain shop--quite often they contain the screw eyes and for a fraction of the cost ($1 for the kits which usually includes 15-20 screw eye hooks) you can make a full length tree garland using a couple of these kits. You will often find these in a silver OR gold finish.

 

I first made a garland using a light weight ribbon for stringing, but liked the nylon fishing line a bit better--- for a tree the nylon fishing line would disappear into the greenery + the focus would be on the reflective disco balls.

 

Given that these mirrored balls are so cost effective I could see doing quite a lengthy garland that could wrap around a fairly large tree--white lights + a mirrored ball garland,who needs ornaments?

 

(here is another seasonal garland that uses eye hooks + pine cones)

details

DIY: bargain box make over (before)

 

i love the shape of these boxes as well as their nice snug fitting lids. they were reasonably priced between $1.50--$2.50 for various sizes.

 

but i wanted something a little less "busy" when it came to pattern + design.

 

inspired by last winter's house box make over i set to work to create a pattern make under on the box exterior.

 

i began by removing the ribbon handles + taping over the side grommet holes, as well as the lid edge.

 

 

be sure + check back for the after!

DIY: cotton ribbon

 

a lot of people make their own torn cotton ribbon, so this is not new. this is a photo of my latest 'batch' and a few tips. no rocket science happening here this early Monday morning.

 

if your fabric is not too wrinkly to begin with once the cotton strips start over lapping on the spool the fabric will naturally flatten out. and a little wrinkle here and there only adds to the casual charm of the ribbon.

 

the first time i ever made fabric ribbon--i ironed all of the strips before winding them on the spool*. i've since skipped that step.

 

 

scour the thrift store for cottons.

when fabric is between 75 cents and a $1.50 a yard i don't feel so "attached" and it makes it easier to rip the fabric up. i also try to find cotton fabric in at least 2 yard lengths since i do not sew the strips together (some people do. i'm not one of those people).

 

this way you will have a nice wrapping length to work with for your gift packages or hand-tied bouquets.

 

 

tips:

if you are drawn to a certain color, but the fabric is a bit hideous, go for it! often once the cotton fabric is torn into strips, it will become much more appealing. 

 

do not over-look the cotton sheets in the thrift store bedding department--even the pillow cases have potential when cut open into a larger piece of fabric, then torn. 

 

did you find some fabric or sheeting only to find a stain somehwere on it? rip your strips and discard the stain portion of the affected strips, by cutting around the stain and creating shorter strips-you can also stitch these shorter strips together.

 

if your fabric is indeed extremely wrinkly--iron the piece before you start tearing your strips. not after*.

 

if you happen to have access to a thrift store that receives lots of cotton saris (luckily, i do) these make gorgeous ribbons

 

keep an eye out for smaller size prints and designs on fabric as these work particularly well for ribbons

variations on scissors

 

an easy painting project is to color code your vintage metal scissor handles for specific use: fabric, paper, yarn, etc. since i am not much of a sewer and i have no personal attachment to these thrift store scissors i assign them to paper cutting and other such blasphemous craft tasks.

 

before i set about painting i usually take them in to be sharpened and tighten the center screw as they may have been sitting idle in someone's sewing basket for several years.

 

i prep them by washing them and drying them thorougly, then i tape off the entire lower blade portion. i use a spray paint suitable for stainless steel. allow to dry according to manufacturer's directions. then repeat on the other side.

 

i prefer the feel of metal handles over molded plastic, there is something so much more tactile about them, don't you think? and often you will find that the vintage metal scissors have been made by noted manufacturers in England, Germany and Switzerland---this is usually noted near the center screw, squinting may be helpful.

 

 

i have always meant to have this as my blog banner. september always feels like my official fresh start. so there it is. 4+ years later...

DIY: ombre string 3 ways

 

1

this method produces subtle color variations reminiscent of tie dye

 

 

• you will need some dye (i used a powdered Dylon dye left over from a previous project)
• cotton kitchen string (2 balls for $1 @ the bargain shop)--not the skinny one, you want to be able to see your color gradations + they show up better on thicker string
• bamboo skewers (or a pencil or piece of dowel)-long enough to rest on top of your bowl
• glass bowl, aluminum pie plate/dish or an old yogurt or sour cream container

 

1. add cold water to the dye (or warm water according to directions on pkg) leaving about 1/4" - 1/2" from top of bowl
2. insert bamboo skewers through string ball + suspend over bowl, so that 1/2 of the ball of string is submerged
3. submerge for 10 minutes
4. rotate string ball to the other side + submerge for 50 minutes
5. unravel + hang to dry
6. once dry, you can submerge again for 10 minutes if you want to dye any white sections of the string.
7. experiment with "dipping" times for desired color hues. typically for ombre the first dip should be for the least amount of time, then keep dipping for longer periods to develop the color gradations that are typical of 'ombre'.

 

 

• let dry completely + rewind into a ball or onto a spool, card or bobbin

 

 

when i was unwinding the "dipped" string to allow it to dry i could see how saturated the color was and when it started to fade that is where i cut the length off.

 

then i dipped the string ball in the dye bowl a second time

this time i let it sit for 50 minutes almost entirely submerged except for a small section. then i dipped that section for 10 minutes.

 

2

 

this method is not a true ombre, but will give you a small ball of string with a distinct color variation on both ends.

 

unravel your string in a bunch

submerge half in your dye bowl for 10 minutes

 

remove + squeeze out excess dye under running water.

then submerge the other half for 15-20 minutes.

remove from dye bowl-do NOT squeeze out the excess.

let drip dry overnight ( i left it outside to dry on a metal fence)

 

3

dye color makes all the difference--choosing lighter colors such as orange + pink will produce a lovely ombre effect in this quick dip method.

 

 

unravel string into a long coil

 

with a small piece of string, tie off in the center, so you have 2 loops.

 

using the tied off center as your guide-dip one half of the string loop into your dye bowl for 10 minutes.

remove + squeeze out excess dye under running water.

then submerge the other half for 15-20 minutes.

remove from dye bowl-do NOT squeeze out the excess.

let drip dry overnight ( i left it outside to dry on a metal fence)

 

 left bundle is half way through method 3; the right side is the two halves dipped in method 2.

 

experiment with dipping times + colors.

no matter the outcome you will have some lovely, solid color string for craft projects such as pom poms, tag ties and gift wrapping.

DIY: past project "up do"

 

A few years ago I created a couple of quick jewelry projects for Creature Comforts and I thought I would share a quick photo of a little "up-do" of one the pieces:

 

 

 

i decided to change out the vintage button for a small vintage charm box that i had in my supply drawer. 

 

i wear this bracelet often and i love how it sits on the curve of my wrist because of the open lockets.

 
-these tic tac boxes top my list of absolute favorite vintage finds of-all-time-list

 

although the locket bracelet is an extremely easy project + not especially "finished" looking, when I wore it out to the Anthropologie UPPERCASE evening last month, 3 Anthropologie staff members at different times during the evening commented on my bracelet and wanted a closer look. and yes, that did secretly make my day. and i am okay with admitting that.

 

on the weekend I started making some fabric "baubles" to use interchangeably- I will keep you updated on those pieces.

 

original tutorial for the linking locket jewelry on Creature Comforts can be found here.

lockets used in the above bracelet can be found in our shop.

 

[w.i.p.] creamsicle tassels

 

Inspired by some tassels I saw on the Whisker Graphics blog I am working on a quickie decorative  project using some Divine Twine--super quick + easy to make.

 

DIY: ReadyMade folding screen project

 
 

several years ago i tore out an article in ReadyMade Magazine  that showed how to make a folding screen. it sat for a long time in my "things to do" binder. then a few years ago i came across the article again and decided that i needed to make one (or several, as it turned out).

 

the article showed some variations on the materials used for the panels. i wanted all of the panels to be pegboard so i could "hang" various things such as craft tools and clipboards for inspiration. i decided to only cover about 3/4 of each panel (as opposed to the entire length), as i knew in some cases the hinged panels would be placed behind tables and the lower portion would not be used.

 

(reverse side of chalkboard)

 

the ease of building this project is that it uses 4 IVAR frames from IKEA as the base. you hinge them together to create the folding function of your screen.

 

then you put your "panels" (in my case pegboard) on top + fasten with screws. 

 

i purchased the pegboard at the local hardware store and had THEM cut it to the measurements i needed--totally worth it to have all of your pieces sized correctly, cut, and ready in less than 15 minutes.

 

screw the panels into place on top of the IVAR frames, screw in your hinges between the panels and you're good to go. add your pegboard hooks, also available at hardware and industrial/organizational supply stores. you can also use molding trim to create ledges to lean items.

 

we made 4 of these-- 2 panels for each screen, using a total of 8 IVAR frames.

 

(sorry, poor lighting...)

 

the screen is super sturdy, and because the IVAR panels themselves are slim it folds up neatly for storage. i move mine around depending on where i may need them. currently i use them in my office, my craft room and behind our shipping counter. these are now several years old and are as sturdy as the day we made them.

 

 

the chalkboard i made late last summer and it was made using the same technique. i had plywood cut to fit at the hardware store--this time cut a wee bit wider so it would fit exactly flush with the IVAR frame (see above). i also kept the plywood panel full length, so it would run all the way down the length of the IVAR frame leaving 2" of the legs showing. i painted the plywood with 3 coats of chalkboard paint and then screwed the painted plywood onto the IVAR frame.

 

 

i had been saving a Shanna Murray decal specifically for this project and i love how it turned out. i plan on making 2 more chalkboard "panels" to compliment this one and of course the fun part will be choosing 2 more of Shanna's decals to spiff them up. she has new decals debuting in April, so my prepped chalkboard panels will just have to be patient a wee bit longer. i like the idea of maybe getting one in the silver and maybe another in grey. i like the idea of a bit of shimmer paired with the matte of the chalkboard.

 

FULL Instructions for the ReadyMade Folding Screen project --see the other suggested materials used to build their screen project as well as directions and measurements to complete the project.

 I used the 20" x 70" IVAR shelving frames

**i am not sure when the original article was published for those of you who keep your ReadyMade magazines, as the link i found on their site did not give a date. unfortunately I can't find my "torn out" article for reference. but it was several years ago.**