Tutorial How To: Make A Needle Felted Crown

Here is a great way to use up some of your fiber that you have left over from other fiber projects.   Make a needle felted crown!

What you will need:

A crown shaped cookie cutter

  Felting needles or a Clover Felting tool

A Clover Felting Mat or a piece of thick foam

    Embroidery floss and an embroidery needle

beads

a tiny satin rose

optional - any other embellishments that you would like to add such as buttons, sequins, etc.

Directions:

1.  Place your cookie cutter on top of your Clover felting mat or a thick piece of foam 

2.  Place some fiber into your cookie cutter. 

3.  Using your Clover Needle Felting Tool or felting needle begin to poke gently at the fiber, being careful not to hit your felting tool on your cookie cutter.  Watch out for your fingers!! Those felting needles hurt so be extra careful! Ask me how I know........

4. Continue poking your fiber with your needle felting tool or felting needle,  turning it over and poking your felting tool on both sides until the fibers have felted together nicely.

5.  Now make a second felted crown.  

6.  Enjoy the stress relief that all of that jabbing and punching is freeing you of! 

7.  Embroider, add beads, and a tiny satin rose, or other embellishments if you would like such as buttons, sequins, etc.  I only embellished one side of the crown because I wanted to add a pin back to the back side of the crown so that it could be worn as a brooch or to be able to use it as a removable embellishment to a bag, scarf or whatever.  

 8.  Place the two crowns together.  I took a single felting needle to slightly felt the two hearts together, a bit.....being careful to not jab my felting needle into my embroidered design, beads or little satin rose. 

9.  Sew the two crowns together using a blanket stitch or whatever stitch you would like to use. 

10.  Sew a pin back to the backside of the heart if you want to make it into a brooch or a removable embellishment that you can pin onto a scarf, hat, bag or whatever!

Have fun and happy needle felting! 

How to: Make a Needle Felted and Embroidered Heart - A DIY Tutorial

 

 

 



So, you have a bit of fiber and want to make a quick something?  Go grab yourself some felting needles or a Clover Felting tool, a Clover felting mat or piece of  thick foam, a heart shaped cookie cutter, some embroidery floss and an embroidery needle, and let's get started!

 

 

1.  Place your heart cookie cutter onto your Clover Felting Mat, or a block of  thick foam.

 

2.  Place some fiber into your cookie cutter. 

 

3.  Using your Clover Needle Felting Tool begin to pounce gently at the fiber, being careful not to hit your felting tool on your cookie cutter.  And be extra cautious to keep your fingers out of the way of the felting tool!  Let me tell ya, that thing hurts!!!! It has lots of little barbs on the needle and is very, very sharp! OUCH.......

 

4. Continue pouncing and punching (don't get aggressive now.....haha!) your fiber with your needle felting tool, flipping it over and pouncing both sides until the fibers have felted together nicely.

 

5.  Now make a second heart.  

 

6.  Enjoy the stress relief that all of that jabbing and punching is freeing you of! 

 

7.  Free hand embroider a design onto one or both of your hearts.  I only did one side because I wanted to add a pin back on the back side so that it could be worn or added to a bag, scarf or whatever.  But if I were going to make an ornament or something out of it, I might have chosen to embroider both sides.  I just embroidered a few little leaves, a vine and embroidered French knots to represent flowers.  Do whatever you wish! It's yours to play with and have fun with!

 

 

 

8.  Place the two hearts together.  I took a single felting needle to kind of felt the two hearts together, a bit.....being careful to not jab my felting needle into my embroidered design(s). 

 

9.  Sew the two hearts together using a blanket stitch or whatever stitch you would like to use. 

 

10.  Sew a pin back to the backside of the heart if you want to make it into a brooch or an embellishment that you can pin onto a scarf, hat, bag or whatever!  

 

You can also add beads, buttons, ribbon or whatever other little embellishments that you wish to incorporate into your design. 

 

Just have fun and enjoy being creative!!

 

Happy needle felting!

 





Knit Stuff Owl Toy A Handmade Gift Idea

Cute owls..... they are everywhere! On bedding, purses, clothes, socks and so much more! And it is no wonder! They are adorable!  So, while I was over on Ralvery I saw the cutest little hand knit owl pattern.   Wouldn't it be cute to knit up several of these and attach them to a knit I-cord for an owl banner for the baby nursery!  Or as an owl ornament!  Cute, cute cute!!!  And they don't take very much yarn or very much time at all. A very thrifty gift that is sure to be loved by a wee one on your gift list!

Instead of using felt for eyes, as the pattern suggested, I just hand crocheted a circle and added cute buttons to the center. Make sure to use safety eyes if the owl will be used by a child. 

Want to make a knit stuffed owl for someone on your list? You can get the knit owl pattern for FREE!   Many thanks to Jenna Krupar for sharing her pattern! You will need to sign up for Ravelry first to access the pattern.  It's free to join Ravelry and there are lots and lots of free patterns there and many that can be purchased too.  You should check it out!

Have you made any handmade toy gifts this season? I would love to see if you want to share!

Happy knitting!

How To Tutorial: Basics for Painting on Glass

Hand Painted Glassware

Want a fun crafty project that is quick, easy and also makes a great gift idea?  Paint this simple cherry design on ice cream sundae or dessert glasses.

Basic Preparation for Painting on Glass:

Wash in warm soapy water

Wipe down the area you are going to paint with alcohol and allow to dry. I usually allow them to dry for 15 to 30 minutes before I paint.

Supplies:

Clean Sundae Glasses (See basic preparation directions above)

Suggested Folk Art Enamels Paint for Glass and Ceramic in the following colors:

  Engine Red

  Evergreen

  Fresh Foliage

  Licorice

  Umber

  Wicker White

Folk Art Enamels Clear Medium

Small Artist Brushes, I used a small flat brush and a liner brush

Foam plate

Disposable cup for cleaning brushes between paint changes or

  a brush basin

I freehand painted the cherries around the glasses. But if you don't feel comfortable with freehand painting you could first draw the design on paper and tape it to the inside of the glass and paint the design on the outside of the glass. 

Allow the paint to dry for 24 hours.  Apply Clear Medium over the painted design only.  The Clear Medium will help the paint adhere to the glass. (The Clear Medium can also be used for shading and to for transparent effects.)

To cure the painted glassware air dry for the specified number of days or bake in the oven by following the manufacturer's directions.  I chose to bake according to the manufacturer's directions.

I always hand wash my painted glassware but the manufacturer states that the painted glassware is top rack dish washer safe.  I figure that if I took the time to hand paint them that I will also take the time to hand wash them.

Caution:

Do NOT allow the painted glassware to soak if you are hand washing.

Do NOT microwave painted glassware.

Do NOT allow food or liquids to come into direct contact with painted surfaces. Therefore for example if you are painting a plate you would need to paint on the backside of the paint using a reverse painting technique or if you are painting glasses you would need to paint on the outside of the glasses.

DO allow a 3/4 inch border ( the lip line area) at the top of painted glasses to assure that lips do not come in contact with the painted surface.

Do NOT use Folk Art Enamels for Glass and Ceramics on plastic.

Follow all manufacturer's directions and precautions for safety and use of product. 





 Hand Painted Wine Glasses



Here is another example of hand painted glassware.  These hand painted wine glasses were also painted according to the basic directions above.  Wouldn't these be a great thrifty handmade wedding gift or bridal gift?  You could paint them in the colors that the bride chose for her wedding colors as a sweet remembrance of her special day! 

Hand Painted Glass Cheese Dome

Have a friend who loves a cottage style kitchen?  Hand painted glass cheese domes, cake domes, water glasses and much more can be custom painted to match her cottage chic decor!!

Hand Painted Glass Cake Dome

I find that the Folk Art Enamels for Glass and Ceramics do an excellent job and hold up very well to every day use when the glassware is prepped, cured and cared for according to the manufacturer's directions. 

Have fun and use your imagination to create some beautiful hand painted glassware that might possibly become an heirloom gift!

You are welcome to Pin to Pinterest! Ma

Many thanks to Maria for featuring this tutorial on her lovely blog:

Linked in with:  Time To Shine, Frugal Days, Sustainable Ways, A Bouquet of Talent, Tuesdays at Our Home, Nifty Thrifty Tuesday, That DIY Party

Decoupaged and Glittered Eggs Egg Art and a DIY How To Tutorial

Glittered Easter Eggs

Better late than never I suppose! I was really pushing it this year to get the childrens keepsake Easter eggs decorated in time for Easter!  It is a family tradition each year that I make some sort of keepsake eggs for them. The children look forward to them and each year they bring out their past years eggs to display. Each year I gift them a new Easter egg to add to their collection.  Eggs from the past years have included hand sequinned eggs and also hand painted eggs.   This year I opted for a quick way to decorate the eggs since I was so pressed for time.

Here is a DIY egg decorating tutorial for decorating your own eggs and a list of supplies that I used, but use your imagination and choose what you like!  

Large Wooden Ostrich Eggs with Flat Bottom
Folk Art Acrylic Paint
Martha Stewart Glitter Paint
Jolee's Butterfly Stickers
Collage Pauge Matte Finish
E6000 Glue
Recollections Adhesive Faux Pearls Flat Back
Crystal Clear Glitter
Krylon Glitter Blast Sealer
Sandpaper
Foam Sponge Brush

 Shabby Cottage Style Easter Eggs



Sand the eggs with sandpaper to ensure a smooth painting surface.  Paint the eggs using a foam sponge brush applying a couple of coats of the Folk Art acrylic paint until complete coverage has been achieved.   Allow paint to dry between coats and sand slightly between coats for a smooth surface.  Next I painted surface with the Martha Stewart Glitter Paint to add a bit of glittered shimmer. Allow to dry thoroughly.  

Keepsakes Easter Eggs

If your stickers have any mounting tape adhesive on the back remove them so that your stickers will lie flat on the eggs. Apply a small amount of Collage Pauge to the eggs wherever you would like to place the Jolee's stickers and also apply a small amount of Collage Pauge to the back of the sticker and apply the sticker to the egg.  Press the sticker firmly onto the egg. This may take a while to get the sticker to adhere.  Once adhered to the egg, apply several coats Collage Pauge over the stickers allowing to dry between coats.  

Shabby Cottage Style Pastel Easter Eggs

During the final coat of the Collage Pauge  and while the egg is still wet with the decoupage medium sprinkle the crystal clear gitter over the egg covering the entire surface.  Be careful in handling the egg taking care to not remove the glitter during handling.  If some does get removed allow the egg to dry and reapply more decoupage glue and more glitter on the places that have lost the glitter through handling.  Allow to dry overnight.  Seal with several coats of Krylon Glitter Blast Sealer, allowing to dry between coats.

Egg Art 

If you wish to add the Recollection Faux Pearls add a dab of the E6000 clear glue to the back of the faux flat back pearls and press firmly in a pattern of your choice.  Allow to dry. The faux pearls already have a sticky back but the E6000 glue should hold the faux pearls more securely. It's strong stuff!!

Decoupaged Easter Eggs

Enjoy your decorated eggs! Great for collecting or Easter gift giving! And a sweet little keepsakes for the children!

Easter Crafts

 

Did YOU do any Easter crafts this year? I would love for you to share!!

 

 

*Always follow manufacturers safety directions for their products! Be safe!

 

 

 

Linking in: Shabbilicious Friday, EBTKS Link In , Lovely Crafty Weekend, Frugal Friday, Sunday Show Off, A Bouquet of Talent , DIY Show Off,  Nifty Thrifty Tuesday Pink Hippo Party, Crafty Confession Tuesday Knick of Time Whatever You Want Wednesday Wow Us Wednesday Creative Things Thursday Transformation Thursday Under $100 Linky Party Frugal Days Sustainable Ways #68

Thrifty Homemade Powder Laundry Detergent

All around the internet you can find recipes for homemade laundry detergent. I have tried both the  liquid and the powder laundry detergent  and for now I think that I prefer the powder version mainly because it is quick and easy to make and I don't have a big mess to clean up when I get thru! Ok, maybe I'm sloppier  messier  more neatness challenged than some of you (smile) but the powdered version is currently my preference.

I can easily find all of the ingredients that I need to my make my homemade laundry detergent recipe in the laundry aisle at my local Walmart and also I usually don't have a problem finding them at the grocery store.

All you will need to make your own thrifty laundry detergent are three very inexpensive ingredients: Borax Laundry Booster, Arm and Hammer Washing Soda and a bar of soap.  I have used various types of soap ranging from castille soap bars, soaps I have found at the Dollar Store and laundry soap bars in the laundry aisle of the grocery stores so you too can just experiment to see what you like.

 

So I was out of my laundry detergent. While in the laundry section of Walmart buying my supplies I decided this nerdy girly girl (don't hate me) needed some PINK soap and picked up Japon ZOTE Laundry Soap.

I have also  used a brand called Fels Naptha Laundry Soap Bar. Cost wise they were about the same price, currently at $.97 per bar.  But the Zote bar is a LARGE bar of soap. I also found Zote Laundry Flakes, which is a nice option  if you don't want to spend the time grating your own soap or if arthritis of the hands limits your ability to grate the soap easily! The box shows that two bars of soap is equal to the box of Zote Laundry Flakes wasn't too much more expensive than two bars of the soap. 

The Zote site lists their ingredients as follows:

"MAIN INGREDIENTS The main ingredients are beef tallow and coconut oil,which are neutralized with caustic soda for the saponification process. It contains salt (sodium chloride), glycerin, perfume, optical brightener and dye, in the case of pink ZOTE and blue ZOTE." OPTICAL BRIGHTNERS ZOTE soap contains an optical brightener which bleaches clothes without fading their color. Optical brighteners are the compounds providing clothes with brightness. Their function is to absorb light with certain wave lengths in the washed garments and thus reflecting a visible blue; its work is most noticeable in white clothes."  Here is the recipe I used: Homemade Laundry Detergent Powder 2 Cups Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda 2 Cups Borax Laundry Booster 2 Cups Grated Zote Laundry Soap or Zote Laundry Flakes  ( I added about 3 cups since my soap didn't grate as finely - explained below)* Use 1 to 3 tablespoons of laundry detergent per load depending on size of laundry load and how soiled your laundry may be. This laundry detergent will not suds up in your washer. But don't think that no suds means ineffective cleaning.  Grate the laundry soap.  I used a hand grater.  *I find that it is so much easier to get a nice finely grated soap bar when I take the soap out of the wrapper and allow the laundry soap to just sit several days prior to grating the soap. The soap will harden a bit and will result in a finer grated soap. Since I was out of laundry powder and since this was a new bar I didn't have several days to let the soap sit for a few days, so you will see that it is not as finely grated as it could have been if I had allowed it to sit out a few days before grating. The above picture shows my grated laundry soap used for this recipe: And the picture above reflects a much finer grated soap due to me having unwrapped a bar of soap and giving it a few days to sit out and harden a bit before grating. I think the difference is significant enough to remember to do that!  A finer grated soap will dissolve easier in your wash! Mix the washing soda, laundry booster and washing soda together. I keep mine stored in a glass storage container with a lid. Again..... you don't need much of this laundry detergent to get clean clothes!! So remember to use very little! Only 1 - 3 TABLESPOONS per load depending on load size and amount of soiling. The Zote soap has a nice delicate, clean scent that is not overpowering to me.  The Zote website states the following: "Another of the distinctive features of ZOTE is its fragrance: essential citronella oil, a plant that originally came from Europe, which posseses a pleasant smell similar to lime; thanks to this ingredient, the clothes washed with ZOTE smell fresh and fragrant for several days." So there you go!  Clean laundry, delicately scented, cost effective,  very little product required to get clean, fresh laundry, quick and easy as it doesn't take but about ten minutes or so to make.  It's all GOOD in my book my friends!  Add a pretty label and directions for use and you also have a nice, useful, and thrifty gift idea too! Let me know if you decide to give it a try! Do you use homemade laundry detergent?  What is your favorite homemade laundry detergent recipe? I cannot speak as to the safety of use for washer or septic systems. As with anything do your very own research, read cautions and literature that may have been given to you upon purchase of your products used and or your equipment or consult professionals with any concerns you may have.   You may also  go to the following websites for information regarding ingredients listed in this recipe: Zote Laundry Soap, Borax Laundry Booster, Arm and Hammer Super Washing Soda Linked in with the following: Frugal and Sustainable Thursday, Nifty Thrifty Tuesday, Frugal Crafty Home Wow Us Wednesday  Whatever You Want Wednesday Farmgirl Friday

Keepsake Gift Box Tutorial for Valentine's Day or Little Ballerina's Birthday

 

With Valentine's day just around the corner I thought I would share with you how to make this cute little keepsake heart shaped gift box that would be perfect to hold tiny little Valentine's gift for a sweet little girl.

DIY Keepsake Gift Box Tutorial

Supplies:

Paper mache heart shaped box available from craft stores
Acrylic paints: White, Pink, Aqua Blue
Paint brushes and paint dauber
Extra fine sandpaper
Glitter
Hot glue gun and glue stick
Trim
Matte sealer
Cupcake topper - ballerina or whatever you choose

Remove any stickers from the box.  Paint the box white with several coats of white acrylic paint allowing each coat to dry thoroughly between coats. With a very fine sandpaper sand between coats and remove the dust from sanding.

With a flat paint brush paint the pink stripes spaced evenly around the box lid.  Use the size of paintbrush that you would like for your stripes to be.  Allow to dry and then paint a second coat.  While the paint is still wet from the second coat sprinkle glitter on the painted stripes for a bit of sparkle.

With a paint dauber dip the dauber into the paint and paint the polka dots around the box bottom alternating between pink and aqua blue.  Paint a second coat and while the paint is still wet from the second coat sprinkle glitter on the painted polka dots.

With a hot glue gun go around the perimeter of the top of the box with glue.  Place pretty trim on top of the glue and allow to dry.

Adhere ballerina cupcake topper to the center of the heart lid with glue from the hot glue gun.

Seal with a matte sealer if you want.

Add a small gift tucked neatly inside and surprise your little sweatheart not only with a gift but also with a sweet little keepsake box!

Warning: Use caution! Those hot glue guns do get very hot!! Paint and seal your box in a well ventilated area and avoid fumes.

I'm joining in with the following link ins:
Frugal Days, Sustainable Ways
Coastal Charm's Nifty Thrifty Tuesday
Free Pretty Things for Whatever You WantWednesday