12 Weeks of Christmas Tutorials #11

Today I wanted to give you a tutorial for a "Gift For Him", but I've been racking my brain trying to figure out what I can make for the three adult guys in my life - hubby, brother and dad. So instead of sending myself to the looney bin I went hunting for ideas in blog land. I've found some really cool gift ideas for guys, along with their own craft tutorials so I can make them myself!

Here are the links to the blogs and the tutorials I like best:

Every man has a desk, right, so how about a pencil and pen cup? Here's a fab pencil cup from How About Orange (love, love, love this blog!)

Every man has a gadget he carries around with him, right, so how about a gadget case? Here's an excellent tutorial on repurposing a tie into a gadget case from Luvinthemommyhood (a blog I'm newly following!)

Every man needs to be reminded to put on a scarf when it's cold outside, right, so how about a snuggly flannel-backed scarf? Here's a great scarf tutorial, that with the right fabrics, a man could proudly wear into the cold winter weather from Max and Ellie (two sister-mommies who make, and blog about, items for little ones!)

There we go - I'm covered! Three great gift ideas for the three men in my life. I hope I saved you some time in your perfect-gift-idea-hunting!

Happy Thursday! Amy

12 Weeks of Christmas Tutorial #10!

Here's an easy peasy gift wrap option that will take you no time at all to whip up. The best things about these bags - they're reusable, you can adjust the dimensions to make them to fit your gifts perfectly, they'll hold the homemade delectables and handmade goodies you're giving this year :o)

For this 8.5"x11" bag, take a 1/4 yard cut of 44" cotton fabric, press and fold selvedge to selvedge right sides together.







Sew the short edge, leaving a hole for turning.


Then stitch up the two long sides.




Turn right sides out.







And top stitch the turning hole closed.








Using both hands, pinch the middle, and tuck the end with turning hole inside the bag - making the end seams meet at the bottom of the bag.






(The middle of the untucked piece becomes the top edge of the bag).

Cut a 30" piece of 1" wide grosgrain ribbon, and after filling the gift bag, tie up a nice bow to finish off a fabulous gift!

12 Weeks of Christmas Deal of the Week #10!

Hello! This week's SewArtsy Deal of the Week is: A Buy Two Get One Free sale on Hair Clippy Caddies! 11/30-12/6. Just use the coupon code 12WOC10 in the comment section at checkout, and I will refund you the cost of your third Hair Clippy Caddy to your Paypal account. These make great gifts for all the girls on your list - no matter what age! Hope this helps with your holiday shopping!









Come back on Thursday when I'll be sharing a quick gift wrapping option -

Happy Monday! Amy

12 Weeks of Christmas Tutorial #9

One of my favorite memories from childhood was making cookies at the holidays with my mom. We made several different kinds, and had wonderful spreads for the holiday dessert tables as well as cookie exchanges. Today I want to share with you my all time favorite cookie. It has a wonderful flavor. It's easy to make. They are cute, and require no baking!

I'm not sure where my mom got the original recipe - it's still just a list of ingredients on an index card. Here's how we make our Lime Balls.

Ingredients:
1 box vanilla wafers
1 stick butter
1 lb. powdered sugar
6 oz. limeade concentrate, thawed
1 bag coconut flakes

1. In a big zip lock bag, crush the vanilla wafers into very small pieces, almost a powder
2. In a mixing bowl, cream the butter.
3. Beat in the powdered sugar and the limeade concentrate
4. Fold the crushed vanilla wafers into the butter mixture.
5. Using a small spoon, scoop a bit of the mixture out into your hand, and roll into a ball (the batter is very sticky! Have your container ready before starting this step!)
6. Drop the ball into the coconut flakes and roll around to cover.
7. Place finished balls into your container, and as you work through the batter, separate layers with a sheet of wax paper. Cover container and stick in the refrigerator overnight.


Enjoy!

Happy Thanksgiving! Amy

12 Weeks of Christmas Tutorial #8

I promised you two tutorials this week to make up for last week, so here's another quick fabric treat for you! A fun and quick patchwork bookmark I'm fixing up for my book club girlfriends.

I know you have fabric scraps, so grab a few that are still in strips. Iron on some fusible interfacing - the stiffness is up to you, however you like the feel. Sew your strips together vertically, and iron flat.


Grab your two-inch ruler and cut strips on the diagonal. The length of your bookmark depends on the width of your pieces sewn together.


Find another scrap of fabric the same size as your diagonal cut. Iron on interfacing to that piece. Place the two pieces right sides together and trim the 2nd fabric to a matching size.


With the two pieces still together, sew around three sides. Flip the bookmark right side out - make sure to really push on those sharp corners to get them nice and pointy! Give the bookmark a really good press to get all the wrinkles out. Top stitch all the way around to close the 4th side.


Use your eyelet hole-punch to make a hole. Push in the eyelet and give it a squeeze with the pliers. Add a little ribbon, and voila! you've got yourself a quick, easy, funky patchwork bookmark!


Happy crafting! Amy

12 Weeks of Christmas Tutorial #7

Today I'm going to share with you an easy fabric craft that requires little to no sewing. It's a sweet little wall hanging using two of your favorite fabrics, an embroidery hoop, and some bits and baubles you probably already have hiding around your house.

Embroidery Hoop Wall Hanging

Materials List:
*1 8-inch embroidery hoop (You can find these in wood that are quite lovely in their natural state or painted. I found these colorful plastic Hoop-la hoops in-store at Joann's.)
*1 scrap of fabric at least 10" square for background
*1 scrap of a second fabric the size of your applique design
*iron-on webbing such as Steam A Seam II
*coordinating bits and baubles - ribbons, buttons, crystals, rosettes
*scissors
*glue
*needle and thread

Instructions:
1. Iron all of your fabric pieces. Separate your hoop. Flip the background fabric right side down, and trace a circle about an inch wider than the inner hoop. Cut that circle out with your scissors.


2. Use the inner hoop with the iron-on webbing to figure out how big your applique can be. Draw or trace the reverse onto the webbing (I used a light box which makes tracing very easy!). Peel back the paper backing and press onto the wrong side of your applique fabric. (I'm doing initials for 2 little girls' Christmas gifts, so I found the font I wanted to use, and printed out the letters, then traced the outline of the reverse).


3. Cut out your applique, and position onto your background fabric, checking the placement with your inner hoop. Use your iron to steam set the applique.


4. Now's the time to decide on your embellishments, and truly make it your own! I suggest you play around with your layout to get it just how you want it to look before you do anything permanent. Sew on some buttons, glue on a bow, rosette or flower, hot set some crystals. Voila!

5. Lay your piece over the inner hoop, and place the outer hoop over top of the fabric. Be sure to keep your design centered as you tighten the screw. Tug your fabric every couple of turns to make sure you don't have any bunches. Once you are sure you like the placement within the hoop, use your scissors to trim away the excess fabric from the back side. Hang and enjoy!

Happy crafting! Amy

12 Weeks of Christmas Tutorial #5!

This week's tutorial would be great for the kids! I wanted my boys to be able to make ornaments for their grandparents, and together we decided we wanted to decorate Christmas trees. Here's what we came up with.

Christmas Tree Felt Ornaments
(tutorial makes 3 ornaments)

What you'll need:
Christmas Tree Templates (or draw your own shapes!)
Sharpie
3-9x12 sheets of craft felt, in three different colors
Felt glue
Ribbon
Thread
Various embellishments - we used silver star sequins
Various colors of glitter glue

Step 1
Print and cut out the Christmas tree templates. Use the Sharpie to trace the templates onto the felt. One of each size on each piece of felt.

Step 2
Cut out the shapes. You should end up with 9 felt pieces.

Step 3
Layer your pieces, and set them aside in three groups.







Step 4
Take you largest tree (this will be your bottom piece), and dab some glue at the top. Cut your ribbon to your desired length, and fold it in half to make a loop for hanging. Place the two raw ends into the glue.

Step 5
Take your middle tree, turn it over and cover the backside with glue. Flip and position on top of the largest tree. Press down to secure.

Step 6
Take your spool of thread, and wind around your smallest tree like tinsel. Add a couple of inches to the length, and cut.

Step 7
Hold about one inch of one end of the thread to the back of the smallest tree. Add some glue to the top of the tree, and a dab for the extra inch of thread.





Step 8
Start winding the "tinsel" around the tree, and add your sequins as you go. Add glue to the backside as you finish each section of "tinsel" to adhere to the rest of the tree. Leave an inch at the other end of the thread to go to the backside of the bottom of the tree. Secure it with glue, and gently press all around to make sure your smallest tree is secured to the rest of the ornament.


Step 9
At this point, go to town adding a splash of color with your glitter glue! Let the ornaments dry overnight so that the glue sets. Hang on your tree, and enjoy! Or wrap up and give as a wonderful handmade gift from the heart!

Happy Crafting! Amy

12 Weeks of Christmas Tutorial #4!

This week I'm offering some practical help, but with a purpose. As a family we support the Samaritan's Purse Operation Christmas Child. As an option families can wrap their shoe boxes in wrapping paper, but I've not done this before because I thought it would just take too much time figuring out how to make them look really nice. This year I challenged myself to figure this out, and grabbed my most sturdy wrapping paper, my shoe boxes, tape and scissors, and set out to tackle the project!

1. Lay the box lid on rolled out paper. (a) Cut it wide enough to completely cover the inside edges. (b) cut slits in the paper, width-wise at ends. This eliminates the tearing that can come with box edges. (c) Secure paper to sides with tape.

2. (a) On one end fold the paper sides in, just like you would wrapping a gift box. (b) Secure loose ends with tape inside the box. (c) Fold up the triangle and secure inside with tape. Repeat on other end. And repeat the same process on the box bottom.


One of my shoe boxes had a hinged lid, instead of one that comes completely off. Below are photos of how I measured the paper, and worked the paper around the box, folding and taping as I went. (Click the photos to see the images in a larger, more detailed size)



Once the box was completely covered with paper, before closing, I snipped the paper at the hinge, and secured it well with tape to make sure it had both a nice fit and a nice look.


This tutorial will come in handy whether you are participating in this year's OCC campaign, or whether you'd just like to wrap a lidded box for the gift-giving season.

It's so easy to bring a smile and a heart full of joy to a child on this enormous planet of ours who otherwise will not receive anything for Christmas this year. If you feel called to participate - get out and do it! National Collection Week is November 16-23! Click here for ideas on how to pack a shoe box, and here for drop-off locations near you.

Happy Crafting! Amy

12 Weeks of Christmas Tutorial #3

I've been seeing lots of flowery embellishments on bags and blouses lately, and I've loved trying out some of the ways I've seen to make them. What I really wanted was something that didn't look too frilly- I'm not a super girly girl - but that used my favorite fabrics. I'm much more about construction and line, not so much softness and drape. So here's my version of a flowery embellishment that can be sewn onto another piece, made into a hair clip, or attached to a pin back so that it can be moved from item to item.

Step 1: Choose your fabrics
I used a mixture of twill, denim and cotton quilting fabrics, and mixed and matched until I found combinations I liked.

Step 2: Cut to size
I cut strips at varying widths, 2 or 3 inches, and didn't worry about the length at first. At this point I also pinked some of the edges, fringed one of the edges, and cut a petal pattern into one of the edges.


Step 3: Layer your fabrics
I used the strip as it was when I wanted a raw edge, and folded the strip when I wanted a finished strip. Then layered the pieces one on top of the other, marking where I wanted to run the thread through, close to the bottom edge.

Step 4: Add your running stitch
Using a needle and thread, knot the end of your thread and sew a running stitch through your layers of fabric. Pull the thread tight to create the gathers every once in a while. This is how I eyeballed the length of the strips - when the piece got to about the right size I just cut the length off there.


Step 5: Decide how you want it to look when finished
In 2 of my pieces I stitched the two raw ends together at the back once it was fully gathered. For the gray twill piece I twisted it so that it overlapped, making it a double-decker flower. Once I liked the way it was twisted I ran a few stitches through the piece front to back to secure the two ends in place. And to pull the center in tight I ran several stitches through the backside from side to side.


Step 6: Embellish!
Since the gray twill flower was more formal looking, I went with three hematite beads sewn into the middle. It looks pretty organic to me, and they were just big enough to "pretty-up" the raw edges in the middle. For the orange and denim I added a piece of orange grosgrain ribbon and a gold flower button. (Very cute!) The dark fringed denim piece still needs something for the middle, but I like how the fringed edges turned out. Of course this idea can also be used with softer colors or fabrics for a much more feminine look, so work them out to your hearts content in whatever fits your personality best!


Step 7: Decide how to use them!
Here are some ideas I came up with: attach to a strip of fabric and tie on a nice wrist corsage; attach them to your mary janes; attach to a blouse, scarf or purse; glue or pin several to a foam circle for a decorative wreath; place each one in a small dish and make an arrangement for your table; attach to a bobby pin to beautify a pony tail; or attach to a clip or headband.


Have another great idea for how to use your fabric floral embellishments? Post a comment here to share!

Happy crafting! Amy

12 Weeks of Christmas Tutorial #2

Here's a cute Cake Quilt that I've put together that can be sewn up for any occasion. Have a wedding or birthday you need a gift for? How about Halloween or Thanksgiving right around the corner? This would also make a really cute hostess gift if you'll be spending the holiday at someone else's home.


I'd love to see pics if you do up this centerpiece for yourself!

Happy sewing! Amy

12 Weeks of Christmas Tutorial #1

Today’s 12 Weeks of Christmas tutorial will hopefully help you with some gifts for your crafty, on-the-go friends! I share my free pattern for the SewArtsy Card Case Key Chain. Just click here to open the pdf document!

Don’t have time to make these for yourself? You can see some ready-made over in my ArtFire shop – only $9.95 each, comes wrapped in tissue and ribbon perfect for gift giving!

Happy sewing, my friends! Amy

Super Easy Fabric Cuff!

I set out Monday evening to fashion myself a cuff using this awesome Andalucia ribbon from Patty Young! I paired it with this beautiful solid teal cotton. Once you've gathered up your supplies this cuff should take you about 15-20 minutes to make - so easy!

For a cuff that will be 6.5" long by 2" wide, gather up:
* 1 piece of 1 1/2" wide ribbon, 7.5" long
* 1 piece solid cotton, 7.5" long by 8" wide
* 1 piece of elastic cording, 2" long
* 1 button
* coordinating thread
* sewing machine
* needle for hand sewing
* straight pins


Iron your cotton, then press under 1/2" on each side to reduce the 7.5" length to 6.5". Then fold the width in half and press, then open up and fold in the edges to the center crease. Press and fold again, reducing 8" width to 2". Once you've pressed the creases, open it back up to 4", and lay the ribbon across the right side of the fabric on one side so that it overhangs the cotton 1/2" on each side.

Wrap the ends under and secure with straight pins.

Topstitch the ribbon to the cotton. I did one row of stitching on each side of the ribbon so that I wasn't sewing over too much of the print, but a fun, random stitch pattern could be lovely in its own right!


Flip your cotton over to the wrong side. Fold your 2" piece of elastic cording in half, and tack it down to one end with a small stitch.


Fold the cotton back to a 2" width, and topstitch around the entire rectangle.


Wrap the cuff around your wrist to feel the fit. Hand sew your button to the opposite end of the cuff from the elastic. Button placement will depend on where it feels comfortable on your wrist.

Voila! Finished project. I can't wait to make more, and try out some different embellishment ideas!

Enjoy making your own! Try layering different ribbons, using a patchwork of fabrics, or embellishing with buttons or crystals - the possibilities are endless when you are the artist!

Happy Tuesday! Amy