Headband Holder from Oatmeal Container

Hey folks!  I'm blogging over at Sugar Bee Crafts today at 3 p.m. so be sure to check out my recipe for mouth-watering Butternut Squash Pot Pie.  Thanks to my friend Katie at Off The Hook Crochet for her help with the photos for that post.

Now, as promised here's my headband holder tutorial.

I love crafts of the trash-to-treasure variety.  It feels good to make something purdy from something otherwise destined for the recycling bin.  This is one of my favorite projects so far and it's the perfect time of year to make it.  This requires a HUGE oatmeal container.

See that?  42 oz of Oatmeal! That could take a long time to go through, but a few batches of yummy oatmeal cookies this holiday season and you'll finish it in no time.

Peel the label off so it won't show through your fabric.

I chose to cover mine in burlap, but you could use almost any fabric, paper, or wallpaper.  If you use burlap find the somewhat finished end.  That will be the top of your container.  I trimmed the burlap so it was easier to work with.

Once your glue gun is hot put a bead along the top of the container just under the lip where the lid goes.

Work your way around the container until all the fabric is attached along the top.

I decided to use spray adhesive to attach the rest of the of the fabric so I moved the project outside.  Working in small segments spray the adhesive and smooth the burlap as you go.

Trim the excess off the bottom and using spray adhesive tuck the ends.

Am I the only one who can't use spray adhesive without being covered in the stuff by the time I finish?

I decided to finish the bottom by adding a circle of paper using regular glue.  This step is totally optional as you'll never actually see it.  

Put the lid back on and glue a fabric flower, crocheted flower or other topper.  Put your headbands on.  There you have it!  

You can store hair bows, hair ties or other accessories inside the container.  Who doesn't love hidden storage?  If you make this let me know.  I'd love to see pictures!  What are you upcycling these days?

I'm linking to: Frugalicious Friday, Romantic Home, Fabulous Friday, Flaunt it Friday, The Shabby Nest, Shabby Art Boutique, The Humble Brag

Rainbow Hair Bow Holder

When I saw a tutorial for a rainbow travel pillow over on Prudent Baby I knew it would make a perfect hair bow holder.  Last week I finally got around to making it for my sweet girl for Christmas.  To make this bow holder you'll need:

• Ribbon in the colors of the rainbow.  2 in each color - 1 at 5/8" and one smaller
• 3/8 yd White fabric.  I used a plush, cuddly fabric that reminded me of clouds, but you could use almost anything.  You'll have lots left over.  Probably enough to make 2 more clouds.
• Buttons in the colors of the rainbow (I chose a sweet flower shape, but any reasonably sized shape will work.
• Beads in the colors of the rainbow
• Stuffing
• Cloud pattern or draw your own

Measure (or add) the width of your ribbons to be sure they'll fit on your cloud.  

Cut your ribbon to the desired length.  I started with about 17 inches so that I had plenty of room to trim them evenly at the end.  Place the thin ribbon on top of the wider one and center.  Also cut a piece of yellow ribbon for your handle to your desired length.

For each color, glue the thinner ribbon to the wider one on only one end with just a small dab of fabric glue.

Prudent Baby has another step which uses heat n bond to keep the ribbons in place while sewing and I think it's a great idea.  I wish I had reread her tutorial prior to making this.

Download my cloud pattern here or make your own .  If you download my pattern you'll find the shape differs slightly from the one I made because I decided the bottom should be a bit more straight and the top should be slightly less curved since the ribbon handle pulls upward just a little while hanging.  You could also use the one from Prudent Baby, which is super cute, and just shrink it a bit.

Trace it onto your white fabric using a vanishing fabric marker making sure your fabric is doubled so you'll end up with two pieces and cut.  

If you squint you just might be able to see the cloud outline.

Place one cloud piece right side up on the table.  Then arrange the ribbons how you like on top of the cloud piece but backwards so that the ends that will hang down point towards the inside of the cloud.  If this is confusing you can again refer to the Prudent Baby tutorial (she's a pro and her tutorials are so easy to follow - I'm still learning).  Lay the handle in place on top of the cloud piece with the ends touching the edge of the cloud fabric and the handle portion facing the middle of the cloud (it should look like a u).  Lay the other cloud piece on top with the right side down.

Here you see the ribbons pinned inside the cloud pieces.

Sew using a 1/2" seam allowance making sure to leave a few inches open on one side to turn it right-side out.  I stuffed it enough to hold it's shape, but not so full that it is puffy, which might make it lay funny against the wall.  Then sew the hole closed.  Close the turn hole with a hidden stitch for a seamless looks.  Check out this tutorial here if you need help with this step.  I trimmed the ribbons so they were even and touched them with fray check.  You could also use a lighter (briefly and carefully) or pinking shears to prevent the ribbon from fraying.  Choose where you want your buttons.  You could line them up straight across the ribbons in neat rows or stagger them like I did.  Sew the buttons on to the top of the smaller ribbon so that you're sewing the two layers of ribbon together.  I then strung a few beads in coordinating colors and sewed them through the bottom of the ribbons.

Hang your bow holder, clip your bows to the skinnier ribbon and you're done!  I absolutely love it.  And I think it looks great in her room.  If you know my little girl, you know she's a bit lacking in the hair department so this bow holder may be wishful thinking for now, but when her hair does come in I'll be ready!

Remember, I am new to this tutorial thing and only an average sewer.  If you find an error, an overlooked step, or an easier way to do something please let me know.  Part of the reason I am blogging is to learn and grow.  Now go make a Rain-Bow Holder for the special girl in your life and stay tuned for a simple headband holder tutorial coming up after Thanksgiving.

Tell me, how do you keep all your little girl's accessories in order?

Linking to: Make Something Mondays, Craft-O-Maniac, Just Something I Whipped Up at Project Inspire, Made By You Mondays, Romantic Home, Chic on a Shoestring Decorating, The Humble Brag at One Project Closer, Tatter Tots & Jello, Sew Cute Tuesday, House of Hepworths

Receiving Blanket Photo Album Tutorial

My baby girl turned one in August.  1. ONE!  For real.  She's been a perfect addition to our family and her big brothers adore her.  A few weeks before her birthday Leon told me that he wanted to make her a photo album with pictures of our family.  Ada loves to look at pictures of faces so I thought this was a great idea.  It's so like Leon to know exactly what a loved one would like.  He is extremely thoughtful and empathetic.

Well, I dropped the ball.  I completely forgot about his photo album idea until he asked about it the day before her birthday. It was important to him and I've been trying to instill in him the value of homemade gifts so I wanted to make it happen. (You can read about more of our homemade gifts here.)  So, while the other kids napped we got to work.  Thankfully, when he first mentioned the idea I daydreamed up some plans.  Despite my persistent baby brain, I was able to quickly recall my original thoughts and our project was on.  Now I'll share it with you.

What you'll need:
Flannel receiving blankets in fun, coordinating prints.  I used 4 different blankets, but had lots left over. (I have a ton of these saved up)
Vinyl (I used the packages that sheets and comforters come in which made it free - yay!)

Decide on a size for your album.  This will largely depend on what size photos you want to use, 3x5, 4x6, 5x7, etc. I decided on 4x6 because that's what I had the most of.  I found a book that looked good with the photo in the middle.  It had just enough fabric on all sides keeping in mind the vinyl will be cut an inch larger than the photo to allow for sewing.  So, if your photo is 4x6 you'll need to cut your vinyl to be 5x7.

I was nursing in this photo and while I think it's beautiful it's not essential to the tutorial ;)

Lay your book on your receiving blankets and use an invisible marker or chalk, to create your pattern (you can also make a pattern on paper, but this is so simple that I opted not to).  I let my son do almost everything for this project.  It's very forgiving so let them at it.

Fold the outer edge over on the fold line so that the fabric is doubled.  Make sure that the orientation of the fabric is the way you want it before you cut.  Cut on the line, but do not cut the fold line.  It should look like the picture below.

When opened it will look like this.

I let my son experiment with the rotary cutter and scissors.  We were both more comfortable with the scissors.  You know the ability of your child so you be the judge and it goes without saying, but I'll say it anyway, supervise your children during this project, especially when sharp objects are involved.  

Using the first one as a pattern trace and cut out three additional pieces (or however many you want).  I used 4 coordinating patterned blankets for each piece, but you can cut your pieces from the same blanket if you prefer and have enough fabric.  His edge is uneven, but because we will be creating fringe on the edges it won't be noticeable.

Using your photo as a guide, cut out your vinyl pieces.  You will want to add an inch to the length and the width to allow room for sewing and to allow the photo to slide in.  So, if your photo is 4x6 you will cut your vinyl to 5x7, which is what I did.

If you cut four pieces it will make 8 pages including the front and back covers.  We chose to leave the inside of the front cover and one other page blank so we used 6 vinyl pieces. Sew the vinyl pieces to the flannel.  You can measure the make sure you are in the middle (or wherever you want to be) but we just eyeballed it. Remember, this is a kid-friendly project that happens to turn out super cute so don't get too stuck on making it perfect.  I used a zig-zag stitch about 1/4 inch from the edge of the vinyl.  The vinyl can be tricky to sew cause it can stick.  I'm sure there's lots of tricks out there, including putting a little corn starch on it.  I chose to loosen the pressure on the sewing machine foot and then I helped my son guide it through the machine at a mostly steady, even pace.

We then chose our layout.  Which piece we wanted for the cover, the inside cover, etc.  Lay them flat and pair them up.  I apologize, but I don't seem to have pictures of this part.  If you are using 4 pieces you will have two pairs.  Place them WRONG sides together.  So you will have two double sided rectangles.  Using a 1/2" seam allowance zig-zag stitch around the rectangles. Remember, you should be sewing on the RIGHT side of the fabric.  Once both rectangles are sewn together simply fold in half, iron the fold and sew a straight line down the middle to create your book.  

Now time for the finishing touch.  On the edges of the rectables, very carefully cut in towards your stitching all around the outside approximately every 1/2" or so to create the fringe.  I did this part so that my son wouldn't accidentally cut the seam.  Wet it or throw it through the wash and then dry on low heat or air fluff to give the fringe that messy shabby chic look.  Add your favorite pictures and you're done.  Seriously, my 5-year-old handled this like a pro.  I'm new to the whole tutorial thing so if you have questions just ask. 

This is the inside of the front cover and the first page.  We used fabric markers to personalize it.

Middle pages

 We used fabric markers to draw Ada a picture and write her a little note towards the back of the book.

Does she like her new photo album that her sweet, thoughtful brother made for her?  Yes indeed.  She plays with it all the time and it has held up wonderfully so far.  Obviously you'll want to take the pictures out before you wash it.

Ok.  I got a little photo happy there, but how could you not?  The cuteness is just too much.  I hope you enjoy making this as much as we did.  And please do contact me with any questions (or better ways of doing something - I'm no expert).  If you make one leave a comment letting me know with a link to your photos!!

I'm linking up to:
  


Kammy's Korner