‘What’s Mine is Mine’ and ‘Yours is Yours’ Giveaway on Stash Books Blog!

Contests, Crafts, Kid's Crafts, Sewing No Comments

We Love to Sew

FunStitch Studio and Stash Books make it easy and fun to teach kids how to sew. From the We Love to Sew Book that is full of pretty projects that your child will be proud to show off, to the Forest Fairy Crafts Book with projects to spark their imagination, you’ll find the perfect start for your beginning sewer.

You might find yourself with a dilemma on your hands once your crafter can start working without supervision. Should you let them use your nice fabric scissors? What if they waste that precious thread that matches your favorite print perfectly? Stash Books and CreateForLess are here to help you build a sewing kit for your kids and take that worry away. They’ll love having their own supplies and you’ll love that your favorite scissors will stay safely tucked away.

Head over to the Stash Books Blog to see some recommended sewing supplies for your little one and enter to win a CreateForLess gift certificate to help build your sewing kit!

Neon Crochet Jar Cozies

Bath and Beauty, Crafts, Home Decor, Knitting and Crochet, Needlearts, Techniques and Mediums No Comments

By General Crafts Contributor Monica from the blog Mon Makes Things.

Free Crochet Pattern for a jar cozy using nylon rope. ThinkCrafts.com

Use neon cord to crochet these fun jar cozies. Pattern at ThinkCrafts.com

This craft combines a few different trends: neon, cording, and jar cozies! With summer upon us here in Michigan, I have been more reluctant to get out my crochet hook and work with wool and yarn (it’s always been such a winter craft for me). And as I’ve seen a number of crafts around the blogosphere utilizing neon cord from the hardware store, I thought I’d try crocheting with that! I had some extra mason jars lying around and decided to whip up some pretty jar cozies!

This is not so much a crochet pattern, however, as it is a tutorial. You will need: quilted mason jars in three sizes (small, medium, and large), twisted mason line/nylon cord, size I (5.50 mm) crochet hook, lighter

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Learn How to Crochet

Crafts, Crafts to Wear, Featured Crafter, Guest Bloggers, Knitting and Crochet, Needlearts, Techniques and Mediums No Comments

By Guest Blogger Emi of Hectanooga Patterns

basic banner

I am passionate about designing easy crochet patterns, that use the easiest methods to accomplish a finished project that has charm, fashion, style, and of course, “the cuteness factor”!

Chunky style crochet has a magnetic draw, because of the lightning speed at which they can be finished. Often, 2 strands of worsted weight yarn and a large hook are used, which means you can probably crochet an adult hat in about 20 minutes!!   Now that’s what I call immediate gratification when it comes to crochet!

I have a YouTube Channel full of crochet tutorials and free patterns… approaching 600 videos… not all crochet, as I delve into many areas of artistic endeavors, such as jewelry making, knitting, sewing, paper crafts, fabric flower making… and many other off-shoots of creative surges!  You can learn lots of new things, maybe some you didn’t even know you might like!!

I also run a knitwear pattern shop on EtsyRavelry, and Craftsy!

Come on in, learn to crochet, brush up on your skills, learn new ones, and find lots of interesting patterns and new designs…many designed just for the YouTube channel!

Today, I’m going to show you my “Learn How to Crochet” videos to get you started…

 

Learn How to Crochet 4 Basic Stitches

Learn How to Crochet in the Round

Use These Skills to Make your Own Beginner Scrunchie!

The International Quilt Market in Portland!

Crafts, Needlearts, Quilting No Comments

By Crafts-a lot Contributor, Mable who is an avid reader of craft blogs & magazines and is always looking to improve her crafting skills. Join Mable on Facebook to socialize and share with other crafters!

Last weekend, here in Portland, quilters and manufacturers from all over the country had the opportunity to meet up and share what they love. Here are some of the highlights:

Poppy Quilt

Right when we walked in to the quilt market, there were so many beautiful quilts hanging up around the booths. I absolutely loved the watercolor appearance of this quilt, with the intricate floral stitching. It’s absolutely gorgeous!

Quilts

We very quickly started to notice a theme with all of the lovely quilts hanging up, lots and lots of color! There were bright neons and rainbow quilts everywhere!

Colorful Quilt

This quilt quickly caught my eye. It is so colorful and I love the pointillism effect used with the background. I also love the fact that quilts don’t necessarily have to be about piecing together blocks of fabric anymore. You can create a scene and really tell a story with them.

Once we got into the booths, we had a lot of fun trying out the Sizzix Big Shot  and AccuQuilt Go Die they make cutting your fabric so easy and precise!

Cheep Trims

A lot of the booths had more fun notions and products than imaginable. It was so fun to look through all of the ribbons and trims that Cheep Trims has to offer.

Fairfield Batting

The award for booth creativity definitely goes to Fairfield Batting. All of the decorations are made entirely from quilt batting!

Batting
 They dyed, felted, crimped, and ironed everything together to create this beautiful forest scene. It was really inspiring to see a creative way to use batting outside of quilting. Fairfield carries natural cotton batting, which they said was the easiest to dye. It’s so hard to believe those flowers are made from felted and dyed batting.

After many hours spent looking at new products, playing with new tools, and chatting with quilters, I think this photo best sums up how we felt when we left:

Sew Happy

This decal was too cute!

 

10 Creative Ways to Use Leftover Fabric Scraps

Crafts, Crafts to Wear, Green Crafting, Guest Bloggers, Kid's Crafts, Needlearts No Comments

By Guest Blogger Paisley Hansen

About the Author: Paisley Hansen is a freelance writer and expert in fleece fabric and beauty. When she isn’t writing she can usually be found reading a good book.

Be honest with yourself, how long has that basket of rags and fabric scraps been sitting with your craft and sewing stuff? If you are anything like me, you have probably been collecting enough fabric over the years to reupholster an entire mansion. That is, if you could do that using just scraps. Well, you may not be able reupholster your house, but there are plenty of things that you can create to make use of your leftover fabric scraps. Here are 10 neat ideas.

Rag Quilt

Rag QuiltImage Source

If you have a lot of scraps, one way to use up just about all of them is to make a rag quilt. This might turn into quite the project, but you can watch tutorials such as this one online to help you out.

Blanket

Fleece Edging

Image Source

If you have a lot of leftover or cheap fleece fabric, you can easily make it into a blanket by cutting tassels around the edge. Tie a knot in each one to give it a more finished look.

Wreath

Scrap Wreath

Image Source

If all you have are a lot of smaller scraps, you can make them into a wreath for your door. All you have to do is use a metal coat hanger, and bend it in whichever shape you desire. Then cut the fabric into smaller strips, and tie them around the hanger using a cow hitch knot for each.

Cleaning

It would be a shame to use nice fabric for cleaning, but if you have random scraps of old, useless material, or it is ruined for whatever reason, they make good cleaning rags.

USA map

Have you ever seen the maps of the United States, made from license plates? A cute idea for a family home can be to do the same thing, but with fabric scraps. You can either cut the states out and stick them on cardboard for your wall, or you can sew them together and mount them on a canvas.

Canning

If you want to try canning, scraps can be a cute way to brighten up jars. Secure a small square of fabric over the lid with a rubber band.

Flip Flop Redesign

Create an original look with scrap fabric on flip flops

A fun way to use old scraps can be to redesign old flip flops for a new season. Make sure that you use strong glue.

Bracelet

There are a lot of creative ways to weave bracelets using strips of fabric, for use as a friendship bracelet, or simply a fashion statement. One good way can be viewed here, along with a step-by-step.

Pincushion

For the avid sewer, a pincushion might just be the perfect way to use your scraps. There are a number of different ways to make one, in fact, here are just 10.

Dog Toy

 Dog Toy

For your dog that likes to destroy your furniture and clothes, why not give them something that they can destroy? Some fabric might be fine as it is, but here is a step-by-step guide to make a fun little toy for your canine friend.

 

Craft Supplies in Fashion

Crafts, Crafts to Wear, Needlearts, Seasons, Sewing, Techniques and Mediums No Comments

By Crafts-a lot Contributor, Mable who is an avid reader of craft blogs & magazines and is always looking to improve her crafting skills. Join Mable on Facebook to socialize and share with other crafters!

DIY fashion has become more and more popular over the years, and we’re so glad! The latest trend in fashion now seems to be the creative use of craft supplies to make your own fashion statements. From basic supplies like fabric paint, to surprising uses of zippers, we’ve found some of our favorite craft supplies used in unexpected ways. Make a statement with these DIY projects!

P.S. I made this color block tank top

P.S. I Made This proves that you don’t need to sew a color block blouse, you can paint it with some fabric paint!

Ashley Benson - Yarn in hair

Glamour Magazine says that the next big hair trend is yarn in your hair. It looks beautiful and bohemian.

Lovely Indeed Pom Pom Shoe Clips

Lovely Indeed brings yarn from your head to your feet with these pom pom shoe clips.

The Experimental Home

The Experimental Home uses zippers in a unique way. Show off your craft skills this summer!

Plan B Anna Evers Zipper Blazer

Or, check out another creative way to use zippers. Plan B Anna Evers adds them to a blazer to give your outfit a pop of color, and you can lengthen or shorten your jacket!

Lana Red Button Cardigan

Use buttons to create a colorful design on a cardigan like Lana RedIt’s a great way to use up your leftover buttons!

Embroidered Gift Wrap

Birthdays, Christmas, Crafts, Father's Day, Holidays, Mother's Day, Needlearts, Techniques and Mediums No Comments

By Crafts-a lot Contributor, Mable who is an avid reader of craft blogs & magazines and is always looking to improve her crafting skills. Join Mable on Facebook to socialize and share with other crafters!

Create your own one of a kind gift wrap from ThinkCrafts.com

I hate shopping for wedding wrapping paper. Finding great wedding wrapping means handing over a lot of money for fancy glitter or foil accents and I can never settle for not-so-great wedding wrapping. When I was getting ready for my friends Mike and Laura’s wedding, I knew that I wanted to do something special and personal. I love the idea of monogrammed wrapping paper so that you don’t have to use gift tags, and I wanted to add a little something extra for Mike and Laura’s big day. This idea would be great for Christmas too. A little monogrammed letter in the corner in lieu of gift tags will add a special personal touch to all of your gifts!

Here’s What You Need:

  • Craft Paper or Thick Wrapping Paper
  • Embroidery Floss 
  • Tapestry Needle
  • Printed Template or a Pencil and Good Handwriting
  • Painter’s Tape
  • Optional: A Piece of Styrofoam or Corrugated Cardboard the size of your template (It makes a much better, sturdier base when poking holes through the template, but carpet works okay as well and is what I used)

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