scarf season. my favorite. there’s just nothing cozier than being bundled up in a soft scarf, and no outfit that doesn’t deserve one. when ez over at creature comforts posted this video on 25 ways to wear a scarf, it reminded me of a tutorial that my sister did, which has become my favorite way to wear my scarves.
note: i might have watched that video twice, and then disappeared into the world of wendy for a bit. i could watch her youtube channel for a century. i have since resurfaced though, but with a new found blogosphere love!
i’ll be getting back to my mission shortly, but first i must introduce you to someone very special.
meet my sister, becky:
isn’t she beautiful? a good friend of ours took the photos for this tutorial, and you can see more of her work at {rik-see} photography.
now, back to scarves! this easy to do ‘braided look’ is so comfy and chic, don’t you think? now that my thoughts have been on scarves all day, i can’t wait to try my hand at some new techniques!
so we’ve been talking a lot about hair lately, but i just keep running across the most beautiful do’s! these three beaut’s come from a new blog-love of mine, a cup of joe. aren’t her pull-backs pretty? click over to see each of them in more detail (from left to right) the chestnut bun, a braided crown and the gibson roll.
happy friday dear ones! today i have a very special guest post for you from sharon of farm and fru fru! when i saw her circle skirt i knew i wanted have her share the tutorial with you. farm and fru fru is where sharon attempts to mix the craziness of farm life with the simple beauty of fabric, ribbon, fibers, paper and whatever else she can find to live creatively…with cows. enjoy!
My circle skirt began with a thrifted 100% cotton skirt which I cut the sewn hem from, leaving the edge raw because I like the look and knit doesn’t ravel.
The circle details were added using a reverse appliqué technique. This simply means you will have two layers of knit, the top layer (the skirt itself) stenciled or drawn with the circles then stitched to the bottom layer which is sewn to the reverse side of the skirt. The interior of each circle is then cut away revealing the bottom layer on contrasting color. I used three colors for my circles…gray, white and khaki.
To begin the reverse appliqué, stencil or draw the circles onto the outside of your skirt. I did a wide border of circles that went up about 8” from the hem. Since my skirt was black, I used chalk to free-hand draw circles all over in varying sizes. You could use a disappearing pencil if your skirt is light. When you have drawn all the circles you want, cut circles of colored knit (in my case, gray, white and khaki) at least 1” larger than your drawn circles. Pin your colored circles onto the BACKSIDE of your skirt…you can do all of them at once or pin a few, stitch, then pin some more. I just scattered the colors randomly along the border. When the colored circles are pinned to the back of the skirt, stitch on the FRONT SIDE around the outline of each drawn circle using a simple running stitch in the thread color of your choice. I used white thread on all my circles because I liked the contrast. You make a knot at the beginning and end of each circle…do not try to join all the circles…stitch each separately. I like for the ends of my thread to show on the outside of the skirt so I leave a little ½” tail of thread at the beginning knot and at the ending knot, but if you prefer you can start on the back side, and your knots won’t show.
When you’ve stitched around each circle, you will cut out the inside of each little circle on the front of the skirt about 1/8” from the outline stitching to reveal the backing color! I use very sharp tiny scissors and clip a little hole in the center of each circle to give myself a place to start…be very careful not to cut the backing fabric.
When you have revealed all your colors, your skirt is basically done. I did add a contrasting 1” gray border around the bottom of my skirt using a running stitch, then a 11/2” black border under that. I cut that border wide enough to cover all my little colored circles on the reverse side of the skirt and tacked it in place just to give it a neater more finished look on the inside. That’s it! Of course, if you prefer, you can use other shapes like leaves or squares instead of circles.
If this project interests you, I highly recommend Natalie Chanin’s beautiful book Alabama Stitch which teaches lots of hand stitching techniques and includes a ton of projects, each beautifully photographed. I use this book all the time and am amazed and inspired each time I open the cover.
for summer parties, birthdays, craft booths or decor- i thought this tutorial for printed paper garlands would be perfect for sprucing up a room or get together. with a couple of old books and some ordinary supplies, you’ll have dainty, vintage library feel in no time!
i finally had to make my self stop perusing the many pages that geninne has to offer, so that i could get this posted to share with YOU! geninne has just about everything i like when it comes to art, blogs, and style. i haven’t come across anything that didn’t make me go, ‘ooo, ahh, oh!’.
for starters, her etsy shop boasts watercolor after watercolor that are simply splendid. with everything from shrooms and birds to owls and piles of wood- what more could i ask for? they’re evenaffordable.
she not only logs her art projects, but also keeps a different blog for her son’s illustrations and another one for her puppy, turbo. to say the least, there’s enough here to keep you busy day dreaming, taking notes and getting inspired for hours. enjoy!
making a banner for your etsy shop can be a bit of an overwhelming task at first- but after this post (hopefully!) you’ll be able to make one with ease! before we get to the nitty gritty- let me show you some of my favorite banners first.
katy daisy does a great job here with the wheatfield by setting the tone for her shop. her banner coordinates with the shop and gives you a sneak peek of what’s to come!
lorasea intrigues the viewer with this banner. not giving too much information but just enough to get you curious and clicking for more!
rust belt threads gives you bold and bright- and it certainly catches the eye.
lost and fawned’s banner is straightforward and simple. simplicity in itself can sometimes be the most intriguing- leaving you wanting more.
be happy now gives you insight into their shop and what you can expect. a great way to show off your best work and let the people know what’s coming!
finding a photo or scanning one in and then cropping it to fit (760 x 100 pixels) can be an easy way to get the look you want- without much hassle. {shop :: photographic artwork}
the house of hearts did a wonderful job with their fun banner. banner’s that change with the season and/or annoucnes a sale you have is eye catching, fun and a wonderful marketing technique.
simply taking a picture and then cropping it to size can be a useful, easy, and fun way to get exactly what you’re looking for in a banner. {shop :: miniature rhino}
no matter how you get your banner- it can be an important step in setting up you shop. your avatar is just as important as well- because it’s seen on every page of your shop as well in the forums, workshops and the like. your banner is also shown on your facebook page if you use the my etsy facebook application.
here’s a quick tutorial that you can use to make an easy (and free) shop banner- as well as an avatar!
aviary - web-based photo editing with lots of fun tools
gimp – free image editor, alternative to photoshop
last but not least! if you still don’t feel comfortable creating your own- do a simple search for ‘etsy shop banners‘ on etsy to find tons of designers that will make one for you!
hope this helps! please share any advice or extra links you have in the comments!
hi lovelies! here’s another one of my holiday diy projects! first of all, please excuse the not-so-great photos- my camera is getting worked on right now so i’m having to ‘make do’!
i used wool felt for this project- i love felt because it doesn’t fray and it’s so easy to work with! i cut out three stockings by tracing the outline of an older stocking i had lying around.
next, i cut out the embellishments. the first is the most difficult so i explain that one a bit more below.
-cut the toe and heel by tracing from the coordinating stockings so they match up.
-cut the bone or other applique in contrasting fabric (i traced mine from the computer screen after searching for ‘dog bone’).
-to make the ruffles: cut four white strips 2″ x 10″ each. pin each of the four strips in ruffles, by folding and pinning, folding and pinning. once pinned in place, sewing one line at the top is quick and easy!
for the snow stocking- i cut the snow pattern out by hand. i didn’t use a pattern, but rather just went with whatever felt right! after the cutting is complete, pin it to the wrong sides of your stocking (bottom left picture). after you sew it to the top (bottom right picture), you’ll sew around your stocking and then fold the snow down and over the top.
to sew the stockings, i just top stitched around both the toe and heel as well as the stocking itself, so no inside out and turning to mess with!
does all this make sense? sorry if my instructions are a little haphazard! leave any questions in the comment area and i’ll be sure to help!
aren’t we always trying to find ways to use up our scraps? that last 4 inches of lace that we simply can’t throw away? visit a few of these ideas below and you’ll be scrap-free in no time!
some extra inspiration? flickr photos show us the results of a pretty cool ‘lovely package swap‘. what a great idea!
i always try to use recycled, or otherwise landfill-bound goodies to wrap my gifts with (sorry everyone)- but by adding some fresh fabric scraps and some yarn or stickers- you can literally turn drab into fab!
do you have any ideas? share with us any tips or pics! hope to see you back here on monday! xo, bonnie
welcome lovelies! my name is bonnie and this is where i roost. i hope you'll grab a cup of tea and make yourself comfy- we look forward to getting to know you! you can learn more about me and why i love to blog here.
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now, back to scarves! this easy to do ‘braided look’ is so comfy and chic, don’t you think? now that my thoughts have been on scarves all day, i can’t wait to try my hand at some new techniques!
welcome lovelies! my name is bonnie and this is where i roost. i hope you'll grab a cup of tea and make yourself comfy- we look forward to getting to know you! you can learn more about me and why i love to blog 
