Lucky You!

This shamrock pillow is a cheeky way to let your husband know that he might not want to wear green on St. Patrick's Day this year... To make your own draw a heart. It can be any size, but it should be broad with a shallow middle dip. Here's mine with my hand to show scale.

Take your heart and rotate it as you trace it as each of the leaves (you can do three or four). I used a disappearing fabric pen. Then I cut it out with a rotary cutter.

Here is the whole cut out. You can kind of see the traced lines here. This green felt was left over from a Christmas craft and was purchased in a package I got at Roberts Craft. The wrinkles steamed out easily.

Next I stamped my message (as I am probably the only crafter who has not yet used freezer paper) with white acrylic paint.

Next I added a little decorative flourish with white embroidery floss. I used one of my favorite stitched called the split stitch.

To balance out the flourish, I added a red heart button. You could add a leprechaun-themed charm or gold buttons here instead.

To finish off the pillow, I pinned wrong sides together and used a zig stitch around the edge. Stuff this pillow lightly or it looks all warped and you lose the shamrock shape. I had to work a bit to get the stuffing to look just right. I closed it with the zig stitch when I was done.

From start to finish, this easy project took me just under two hours. If you have any other fun ideas for a good phrase for this pillow, leave it in the comments. -C

Wearing Art

My little girl has been drawing this simple flower and variations of such since she was four.

I found them immediately appealing and so cute. I encourage all my children to draw a lot and this is the first image I feel like she invented as part of her budding signature drawing style. To me it's very cool and I thought she'd really like it if I embroidered her 'pinwheel flowers' onto a shirt for her. She most definitely does!

I couldn't resist doing one for myself.

I tried to keep the look in line with a child's crayon drawing.

I just used three-ply embroidery floss and a back stitch. Here's a brief explanation of how a back stitch is created:

To start this stitch bring the thread up from the back of the fabric on the line that you want to create. Make a small backward stitch through the fabric. Bring the needle through the fabric a little in front of the first stitch and still on the line. Pull the thread through the fabric. Make the second stitch backward, bringing the needle out a little in front of the second stitch and still on the line. Repeat this movement and continue sewing in such a manner along the line. (I got this explanation here)

--C

Texturize your Fabric

In continuing with our Countdown to Crafts, I would like to talk about local Quilt Shops/Fabric Stores... not your national chains. I tend to like the fun designer stuff. For instance, this Thanksgiving Table Runner is made from the Pumpkins Gone Wild line by Moda. I can not find this fabric at any of my chain stores. I purchased this fabric last year at Pine Needles in Gardner Village. The local Quilt Stores don't have a 40% off coupon like many of the chains. However, what I have discovered is that many of them having mailing or emailing lists. Get on Those!!! That is where they will advertise their sales and often times email out coupons. Now, let's talk about texturizing your fabric. Fabric is fun... especially all of the bright cotton prints, but they don't have a lot of texture to them. I bought this fabric to make a table runner. I didn't want to quilt it because it was going to be on my table, but I wanted to give it a little texture and make it a little more fun. So, the first thing I did was to put it together using ric rac as the trim. Then I did a little hand stitching with embroidery floss down the pumpkins that had a stripe pattern. On the pumpkins with dots and flowers, I sewed buttons. Then on one of the leaves, I cut out a piece of felt to put over the leaf that was printed on the fabric and machine sewed on that. It was really fun to add texture to the fabric this way. You could do this with almost any print... what doesn't have dots, flowers or stripes?

If you would like to purchase a table runner like this, check out my etsy shop here.

-Anisa

Seed Beads

We didn't receive any seed bead projects from our readers this month, but we hope you'll join us in next months' challenge! Below are some beautiful items I found on http://www.etsy.com/ (complete with link to seller) that use seed bead in wonderful ways. Seller's link here Seller's link here Seller's link here Seller's link here

I began using seed beads on a canvas bag I've been embroidering and I used them on this scrapbook page about my daughter's newly-discovered love of beading.

Hey, speaking of scrapbooking...

Did you notice our new links section (to the right) that puts blogs for specific craft types in to various categories? Well, under the Scrapbook and Photography Inspiration is a link to Twiddle-Scraps. Click on it (or here) and you'll be transported to a gallery of our personal scrapbook pages that you can scroll through for ideas on scrapbooking your own photos and memories. Check it out!

Blank Canvas

Canvas Bags.

Really.

They aren't much too look at.

They're sturdy.

They're practical.

They're good for the environment (as shopping bags and library bags).

They are also brimming with possibilities!

They come in a lot of shapes and sizes.

For this bag (which is little more than 7" tall) I used die-cut felt from Fancy Pants designs. I used a simple running stitch to applique it onto the canvas bag. You can't see it, but I wove embroidery floss through the braided handle to add a touch more color.

They come in a small variety of colors.

I did not want to buy a $14+ backpack for my new preschooler, so when I saw a colorful canvas bag I decided that this would be perfect for my little girl. It didn't take much convincing her. She loves it! The solid shapes are painted with regular acrylic paint and outlined with fabric paint. (Before you paint on a canvas bag, make sure you have a piece of cardboard inside the bag to prevent the paint from seaping through to the other side) The buttons are attatched with glittery fabric glue. The fluffy pink trim was simply attached with hot glue and it has held up perfectly.

And you can embroider them, paint them, sew on them, attach iron-ons, appliques, buttons... Craft with one today!

This is my new reuseable library book bag. I love it, but I'm also far from done with it. It seems like a fun project that I can add on to indefinitely and yet still use it in the meantime. It's mostly embroidery, but I'm beginning to add sead beads to add a bit of sparkle. Love it!

--C

Easy Baby Gifts (with tutorial and free pattern)

First, we have a felt toy. This can be used in a variety of styles. There is a basic oval shape which can be used for a bear or a spaceman (see below) or a monkey or a rabbit. Endless possibilities...First gather yourself a bunch of felt. I used for a template my Creative Memories cutting templates and traced them with a fading fabric marker. The measurements of the ovals are: Bear is 6 3/4" x 4 1/2" and Spaceman is 5 3/4" x 3 1/2" (starting dimensions).

Before cutting begins, draw a single antennae or ear for what ever you're making. Cut around the shape, but only until you can match up the widths' ends and trace around the one cut out antennae or ear so that you have a matching set (I use this method because it's hard to get a matching set, especially free-hand as I like to do).

Cut out the same shape out of another color for the back, but do not cut out the smaller inner circle. Choose a piece for the face (it doesn't have to be pretty) and free-hand cut out some hair for the spaceman, or none for the bear. Then line them all up, pin together and front sew them all together with just a tiny seam. Draw a face on the felt with your fading fabric marker and embroider it BEFORE you sew the piece together.

Place right sides together, pin and sew with a 1/4" seam.

Stuff it (sorry, switching to the bear) with Poly-fil AND the secret ingredient...a used baby-wipes wrapper or other crinkle-y, plastic-y type item (not shredded, whole, for safety) and give the baby the noise he wants!

Second item: a crocheted baby wash-mitt.

Using COTTON yarn (I used The Original Sugar 'n Cream cotton yarn in Cool Breeze Ombre) and a size H hook, chain 21.

Turn and single crochet (sc) in first chain from hook and in every chain across.

*Chain one, turn and single crochet in first sc from hook and in every sc across.

Repeat from * approx. 44 more rows (total 46) or the measurement of the adult had it will fit with the crocheted strip folded in half. After the strip is at the desired length, do not finish off, but leave approximately 32" of extra yarn attached. Pull it through the last sc so the strip doesn't unravel. Thread the yarn into a large eye needle, fold the strip in (over the hand) and whip stitch up on side. So that we don't have to cut the yarn and weave in multiple ends, lead the yarn over the top of the mitt uniformly in the loops all the way across, then whip stitch down the other side. Weave in any stray ends and your mitt is done. Put it over the top of a bottle of baby wash and it makes a charming gift. (If you want a bit more of a decorative touch, I replaced two sets of two rows with one row each of double crochet following a pattern (from the regular sc row) chain two, double crochet in first sc from hook. Double crochet in next two sc, *chain two, skip next two sc, double crochet in next two sc. Repeat from * three more times (end) then continue the sc pattern. I only recommed the decoration for the back of the mitt and not the front where you'd use to wash baby. )

email us with any questions: twiddlethumbs@rocketmail.com

--C

Quick Felt Checkbook Cover

I was getting tired of the checkbook cover that came with my wallet. Not only was it a boring taupe, but that taupe also acted as a type of camouflage, constantly preventing my husband from being able to find it. He won't have trouble finding it now! I used that old taupe cover as a template to cut out my felt. I kept the width the same, but increased the length a bit to allow for folding it in half, etc. The embellishment is just embroidery and a bit of applique. It took me just over twenty minutes of actual work to make this happen.

Pins and Needles

If you are here for the giveaway, there is still time to enter! We hope you'll look around our blog a bit too, starting below.

I have been on pins and needles wanting to share these adorable bottle-top pin cushions.

They are made with felt, embroidery floss and the tops of plastic bottles (water and soda pop). They are totally fun and quick to make and they are very handy while sewing. They are also very tiny. I love them! I think you'll love them, too, and they're going to be part of another give-away coming up in the near future.

I put magnets in a few of them so they can stick to a sewing machine. However, if you don't sew, they can be used on your refrigerator.

See tutorial here.

-C