Books, cats and midwestern charm.
I fully realize that unlike other crafts of yore – macramé, cross stitching and the like – plastic canvas is not cool. I’m drawn to it nonetheless – maybe it’s my inner grandma, maybe it’s my 90s nostalgia.
Whatever the case may be, I’m digging it. Making these little houses from the Needlecraft classic “Hometown Villages” is sort of a weird hybrid of needlepoint and putz house making. So when you think about it that way, it makes 100% sense why I can’t stop working away at these.
Are you all ready to hit it with Christmas crafts? I 100% am. This past weekend alone, I made headway on three different Christmas-y DIYs. I got so excited I couldn’t choose just one. Sure, that means I couldn’t finish all three, but I made decent headway on two and completed a sort of spur-of-the-moment DIY: a very sparkly and festive ornament wreath.
I ended up loving the result! How often does that happen? In the ven diagram of crafting, easy, fun, quick and affordable rarely intersect, but this wreath ends up in that impossibly small area.
Here’s what you’ll need:
This is so easy and satisfying and I think it looks like a million bucks. Here’s how it goes:
I seriously love this so so much. Like I said, it was easy, pretty affordable (I think it all cost me about $20) and it packs a serious punch! What I also like about this project is that it’s so customizable. You can easily change up the colors, the types of ornaments or even add lights or a bow.
Happy holidays and happy crafting!
Ever been in a creative rut? I’ve been there lately, and it is no fun at all. But being stuck is all a part of the cycle, so you may as well try to work through it.
Not sure if you’re there? Well, let me know if any of these scenarios sound like you. Projects that typically go quickly or are easy-breezy and ultra-fun seem to take for-ev-er. Starting a new project sounds about as appealing as deep cleaning the basement. Works in progress are going super wrong and you’re getting frustrated rethreading that bobbin for the tenth time. Or, quite simply, you just feel like you’re all out of ideas (and Netflix isn’t helping the case). It’s totally OK. We’ve all been there. Here are my tips to get the ball moving again.
I find that when I’m in a rut, it’s sometimes best to scrap (or just put aside) all those WIPs. Maybe you’ve found yourself stuck because you’ve been looking at the same pattern for too long or trying to perfect the same recipe. Start new. That might just give you the clean slate you need.
I recently tried to start fresh with a new project and I found that pressuring myself to create an original embroidery design was sinking me further into a rut. Instead of forcing myself to sketch out a handful of new designs, I decided to go for something simpler: a counted cross stitch that I didn’t have to create myself. Trying a simpler and smaller version of your favorite craft sometimes gives you that satisfaction of completing a project and the confidence to move onto something new.
Maybe your go-to craft isn’t doing it for you right now. That’s totally normal! Set aside whatever it is you do for a while and pick up a new project. Take a stroll through your favorite craft store and see what peaks your interest. This new project just might get your creative juices flowing again or become a new favorite hobby. Win-win!
Similarly, you could pick up an old project. Whether it’s an old WIP that’s this close to done or a long-forgotten DIY, these old loves might inspire you to get working. I recently picked up an old dress pattern to get me moving again. It’s a simple one – which is perfect for getting me out of a slump – and just the right piece to push me into spring.
Sometimes the solution is just time. Maybe what you love is putting you in a sticky spot because you overdid it. Don’t force it. Give yourself permission to take a break. Sometimes after a marathon sew or days of baking the solution is just catching up on a favorite show or a walk outside. No shame in that game. You’re still a maker and you’re still awesome!
I hope these tips are helpful to all you makers out there that might be struggling. I’m working my way out of a rut right now with a few patterns from Plastic Little Covers and regular Malcolm in the Middle marathons. It’s definitely helping!
A few weeks ago when I was at JoAnn, I saw a wonderfully tacky pom pom wreath. Huge, puffy and gorgeous, it also cost upwards of $50. Since I’m a crafty gal, I decided I’d make my own version only much smaller and more affordable. I figured it would be relatively simple, making it the perfect snowy afternoon-in make.
For this project you’ll need:
I bet you can guess where the first steps of this DIY are going. You’re going to want to start by making a mountain of pompoms. For my 12″ wreath, I used two whole skeins of fluffy yarn. You can pick any kind you like – mine was extra fluffy with a little bit of metallic fiber running through it, but plain old yarn would be equally cute. My only word of advice is to grab an extra skein – you’ll end up needed more yarn than you think.
I’ve never used a pompom maker before, but I know from the interwebs that they make perfectly round product every time, so I popped for the $5 tool, and it was well worth it. I found that the package instructions weren’t quite clear enough, so if you’ve never used one before, you can follow my steps below or watch this video. Making all this puff balls will take some time, but that’s what Netflix and The Great British Baking Show are for. 🙂
So just a quick explanation on the pompom maker – it has two sets of jaws that wrap around the center (which is held together by a pin). To start, open up both sets of jaws and wrap the yarn around and around until it is roughly even with the high ends of the U shape.
Then you’ll clip through the yarn all the way around the circle. I truly thought it was all going to hell in a hand basket at this point, but it’s not. When the yarn is clipped take a length of embroidery floss, pull it through the crevice in the middle of the pompom maker and tie a good knot or two. Be sure to tie it tight! This is going to hold it all together.
After you’ve tied that knot good and tight (that’s where the embroidery floss comes in– I couldn’t get this fluffy yarn to hold well enough), just open up the jaws, pull the two sides apart and there’s your pompom. They come out looking practically perfect – you might have to trim a few stray hairs, but nothing major.
Once you’ve made your batch of pompoms, it’s time to start wiring them to the wreath. To do that, I just cut a length of wire, threaded it through the middle of the pompom and then wrapped it around the wreath, twisting the ends together on the back side. I did this over and over and over again until I had filled the whole circle.
I had envisioned the puffs being a little more randomly placed, but on such a small wreath with only one size pom pom, they formed two rings instead. I don’t mind the look at all, but if you want more of a staggered finish, I’d advise using multiple pompom sizes (probably smaller than my 2.5″ ones) and perhaps a larger wreath.
Once you have all your pompoms wired and spaced how you see fit, you can finish up the back. I simple took those pointy ends of wire and stuffed them into the styrofoam so they wouldn’t poke anyone or scratch the wood paneling. If you plan on hanging this on a more delicate surface, you could simple hot glue a ring of felt over the turned-in wires to prevent any potential scratches.
To finish, I simply took a loop of ribbon and pinned it to the back side with a T-pin. It’s as simple as that!
I have to say, I’m pretty pleased with the way this turned out. It is a tad muted (the shimmery fibers don’t come through on camera so well), but it has that plush look I was aiming for. Plus, it was a breeze and could be easily duplicated in all sorts of color combinations for different occasions. I’m thinking of grabbing a small pom pom maker and some super bright yarn to make an everyday version. Now if only there was a second season of that baking show…
This PSA comes to you after a coworker commissioned a piece of work from me and forgot to pay. Word of this spread to a creative colleague, and she gave me a stern talking to this morning. At first the idea of asking for money – even though it was money I had earned and a price that we discussed! – seemed way too uncomfortable. But she gave me a proverbial shake of the shoulders and said that’s absolutely not OK. Allowing others to take advantage of talent, time and experience without compensation is an insult to not only to the creator themselves but all artists; it discredits their craft and it devalues their work.
And that chat really reignited that sense of creative justice I have in me. So all you makers out there: get paid. Get paid fairly for you time, talent and materials. Settle a price and form of payment up front; it is not acceptable for someone to say they’ll pay you $20 and give that to you as a $20 Starbucks gift card or a $20 shirt – those are not equivalent. Tell your client what your price is, when you expect payment, how you expect payment and, if need be, follow through. I did it today, and it feels good.
This is an important lesson, makers. Now go get it.
This winter, I remember having an unnecessary and incredibly stupid pity party over a bottle of grape juice. After marathon shoveling, all I wanted was some leftover sparking grape juice from the holidays. I grabbed the bottle and twisted – nothing. My cold, weak hands could not grip that bottle tight enough and could not twist that foil cap. I sat on the floor of my kitchen and just let out a big gahhhhhh whyyyyyyyyy like adults do.
This happens.
And it happened this past weekend as I looked at an embroidery project. The project was an odd one from the get-go: a coworker asked if I could stitch a quote from the 1988 thriller They Live for him. Definitely uncharted territory for me. It started out fine – solid fonts, a decent layout, punchy color scheme – and then, after a few days of puttering, I hated it. I’ll admit it – I cried. I sat in the ugly recliner and cried over a satin-stitched quote from They Live. I lost my shit and said to Michael something akin to the following: “It’s boring and lame and the orange is too red and the green looks like boogers and all of it looks like Christmas.” Because he’s sweet and admittedly doesn’t know about colors or embroidery, he assured me it looked nice.
I’m not sure if that’s true, but sometimes you got to work through it.
I strive for perfection. But in this case, I had to take a step back and ask Is there such thing as perfection for this for me? And I had to think about it, and the answer is no. No, there’s not a world in which “I have come here to chew bubble gum and kick ass and I’m all out of bubble gum” is embroidered perfectly. There’s not because this sort of thing would never dawn on me. But, to the person that dreamed it up, the person that commissioned this project, someone that asked for this to be made because he could not do it himself nor would want to, a green and red-orange stitched quote about ass kicking might be just right.
• • • • •
P.S. By happenstance, this post published the day Rowdy Roddy Piper passed away. So rest in peace, Roddy. You were a righteous dude whose memory lives on through this tiny project.
He’s also a little more playful than some cats around here (that’d be my Zara), so we’ve got toys all over the place. But a feisty cat like this needs more than felt mice, so I decided to whip him up something a little more substantial: a kicker-roo. You don’t know what a kicker-roo is? Well, you’re in for a treat. Bonus: this project is super easy to make and your cat will love you.
Here’s what you’ll need:
To start, grab your fabrics. Go for something cat-friendly and fairly sturdy (to withstand all the claws and biting). I went with some fleece and low-nap faux fur that I had on hand.
The construction of this is just like making a pillow… with a tail. That means you’ll want to identical pieces for the body (the pillow part) and a smaller strip for the tail. I cut two body pieces at 12″ by 5″ and the tail 8″ by 3″, but you can cut to any size you like.
With your pieces cut, you’ll make the tail: sew the two sides, clip the corners, turn right-side out. Easy as that.
Then center this on the narrow end of one your other strip and pin it. Then give this a few good zips on the machine within the seam allowance (I just did the standard 5/8). Cats will want to tug on this part the most, so best to reinforce it now.
With the tail in place, pin the body pieces right-sides together. Sew around the perimeter, leaving a gap for the stuffing where the tail is. Same as last time, clip the corners and turn right-side out.
Now you’ll want to stuff your pillow – I mean kicker-roo. First, add a few pinches of dried catnip inside. Is it necessary? No, but it’s more fun for them. 🙂 Then just stuff your pillow with fiberfill. Don’t skimp on this part – you want it to be densely packed to stand up to lots of playtime. If you don’t have fiberfill on hand, feel free to use plastic bags – added bonus: cats love that crinkle.
To finish this project up, just stitch up the open end. You can do this by hand or make it easy on yourself and run it through the sewing machine. And with that, you’ve got your own homemade kicker-roo.
As soon as I trimmed the threads on this project, Mukki was all over it. I think he’s a pretty happy camper right now.
He could hardly stay still he was too busy playing. And below is perfect form for kicker-roo kicking. What a sassy cat.
If you give this silly thing a try, let me know what the kitties out there think!
Here’s what you’re going to need:
Now before you do anything, wash and dry those napkins (no fabric softener) to remove any coating from the fabric. This will make for smooth sailing for that fabric paint. And give them a good ironing while your going through the trouble.
OK, now that you’ve got that done, it’s time to get doodling. For this, you do you. Leaves, cat faces, initials, whatever floats your boat. I’d just advise to keep your shapes about an inch across or more. Tiny designs and ones with a lot of detail can get pretty muddy with this informal stamping method.
So doodle one design, a handful or variations on theme on your craft foam. Clip these out and glue the shapes to scraps of cardboard.
Once you’ve got your stamps in order, you can get to painting. To get a nice imprint that’s not too mottled, swipe an even coat of paint on the foam. You don’t want any globs here. Then give that stamp a whirl on some scrap paper. You want to get a feel for how it works with the right amount of paint and pressure.
I’m sure you can guess what’s next: get stamping on those napkins. Get groovy with this. Multiple colors, multiple stamps, print on one edge, print all over – it’s all you!
And it’s as simple as that. Just let these dry overnight and you’ve got some slick fabric napkins to bust out for your fanciest party or to give as gifts. These are totally washable too, so don’t be afraid to get some use out of them!
If you’ve made printed napkins before or if you make some now, I’d love to see them! Happy crafting!
A few weeks ago when I was in a cookie competition I found myself in dire need of platters that looked at least halfway nice. Well, I didn’t want to invest too much money in cookie plates and cake stands, so I did what any sensible maker would do: I hit my local Goodwill with a plan and a few bucks.
Here’s a full list of what you’ll need when you waltz into your favorite thrift shop:
Now you can figure out the rest of this, I know, but I’ll walk you through it. I grabbed three coordinating plates with the tacky 70s vibe I love and two plain candlesticks. The whole lot was $3.50. I took them home and gave them a good wash and dry.
From there, apply your glue to the candlesticks, press firmly in place and let that dry for a few minutes. Then you can move on to the other tiers, working your way from the larger plates and candlesticks to the smaller ones. Let this dry for as long as the packaging of your glue specifies. I’d also advise that if you plan on using this for serving purposes, to select an adhesive that’s low on fumes (you don’t want to taint tasty treats with that chemical smell).
This project is almost too simple but it’s a great solution when your short on cash or want a more eclectic look for your cookies, cheeses and more (heck, I’d even put craft supplies on here for a craft party).
Hope you all are having a wonderful holiday!
Last week my friend Kat came over for the late night version of the crafternoon: crafter hours. Like me, Kat has an affinity for midcentury homes and oddly specific decor. This means that when she sent me over to Retro Renovation to check out some putz houses, I knew we had to give these a try.
To get us in the Christmas spirit, we cranked up our favorite Christmas jams and poured a few hot toddies. Then I pulled out a heap of craft supplies. Since this is so customizable and detailed, I won’t call this a DIY post (you can check out Retro Renovation for a complete tutorial) but maybe some inspiration/an intro to putz houses (because now I’m obsessed).
I will say that if you are looking to make these little honeys, grab all the things. Between the two of us we used:
That’s a lot of stuff, I know, but chances are you avid crafters have a handful of it already.
For this project Kat used one of the templates in the links because they are adorable and classy. Because I am a fool, I insisted I make a model of my own home. Word to the wise: it will take you five times longer and test your geometry skills. But either way you go with this project, straight lines and careful cutting are key. Kat was very deliberate about her house and I was – despite my perfectionist nature – less interested in straight lines and more interested in getting the proportions right.
You can also see that I was not interested in a clean workspace. We both needed every possible thing at any given moment. In the end though, I was very pleased with my rendition. Cedar siding? Check. Tiny windows everywhere? Got it. New roof? Done and done.
Kat’s turned out so perfectly. I loved the nontraditional coloring on hers and how petite it is! I can’t get over it. Right now we each only have one lonely house, so I think we might need a second session to build up the neighborhood.
Hope this got you in the holiday spirit! Let me know if you’ve mad these before (or are planning on making one). I’d love to see!