Shoe Box Weaving

We've been doing some weaving with shoeboxes this year for our handicrafts class. I found several great video tutorials on youtube (embedded below), but I made a loom on a shoebox instead of a flat piece of cardboard (as shown in the video). Mostly we've just been experimenting with techniques and having lots of fun doing it.

Air Fresheners

Our little house doesn't have air conditioning, so we have some areas of the house that get stuffy easily - especially in the summer. So, I bought a bunch of baking soda last week to place around the house.

I thought I would pour some in my vases and other pretties sitting around, but then I had the idea to put it in canning jars. I used a little square of fabric with the metal band and left the lid off so that it is breathable. An occasional shake will stir up fresh soda, so you don't need to stir. Makes a fun way to use pretty jars and fabric.

I'm sure people have been doing this forever, but I felt pretty clever for thinking of it.

Spring Cleaning Dust Mitt Tutorial

I went to a great local rummage sale recently where you can get a bag of clothes for a dollar. I was a little gluttonous and grabbed everything that I thought I could cut up and use for something else - although I didn't have anything in mind at the time.

Later when examining some of my finds, the materials dictated the project - and I ended up using three different garments together for this project. I used a sweatshirt, a terry cloth shirt (who wears terry cloth shirts?), and the cuffs from a shrunken sweater. You could do this same project with just a sweatshirt and a hand towel if you wanted. Or if you have a swiffer, try this similar tutorial.


Typical of my sewing style, this tutorial has few actual measurements - just deal with it.

First I cut the terry cloth shirt into a rectangle that was a bit wider than my hand and twice it's length. Then I cut four - four inch strips the same length as my rectangle from my sweatshirt. Next cut slits along both long sides of each rectangle, towards the middle, but not quite touching so that your rectangles are shaped sort of like a pipe cleaner. You can see mine aren't very straight.


Lay one strip fuzzy side up, towards the left side of your terry cloth rectangle, and sew down the middle. Lay the next strip so that it overlaps the first and repeat, making sure you don't sew down any of the fringe from the first rectangle. Repeat this with the next two strips so that you have spaced the four strips somewhat evenly across the width of your rectangle. It should look like this:


Now fold the fringe on each long side in like this:


Now you will fold the terry cloth rectangle in half with your fringe inside, and sew up the side seams. Folding the outer fringe in will insure that none of it is caught in the seams.


Once you have sewn your side seams, with the mitt still right side in, place the cuff from your sweater (or take one from your sweatshirt) and put it inside the mitt. With a zig zag stitch, sew the edge of the cuff to the edge of the mitt. My cuff seemed a lot smaller than the circumference of the mitt, but I stretched it as I sewed and it ended up fitting fine. If you're worried about this, you could pin it first. It should look like this once you have sewn it on (sorry for the fuzzy picture).


Turn the mitt right side out and trim any stray threads. Ta da!


Now get dusting!

Made one? Add it to the wewilsons pattern pool.

Doll Basket

This was another of my childhood toys that L has inherited. Like the Bunny, it's gotten a little worn out, especially the elastic. The basket cover used to be held on by drawstrings (now missing) and elastic - now it is pinned together with about 18 tiny saftey pins (I vaguely remember doing this in my bedroom one summer). I couldn't find any patterns for basket covers, although I did find this nice one for a cloth doll basket.


I kept the handle cover and the pillow the same, but I whipped together a new cover for the basket out of a green sheet - less ruffly than my grandmother's version. It needs to have some pretty ribbons sewn on to hold it together around the handles, but right now it just has safety pins. Some things never change.

Experiment: Fiber Content

I like to be thrifty, so I frequently buy scraps and yardage at rummage sales, yard sales, and goodwill. This can be a problem whenever I want to make something for L, or something to sell, and I want to know what kind of fabric I'm using.

I recently found this experiment in 101 Sewing Secrets from the Singer Sewing Reference Library, and I knew I had to give this a try. Below is my paraphrased version of their experiment.

Here are the fabrics I used:


1. Birdseye Pique 100% cotton - this was my control fabric, since I knew for sure what it was.
2. a remnant bought at local craft store labeled "assorted flannel"
3. a scrap that I have no idea where I got, that seems kind of wooly
4. a nice piece of yardage I got at a rummage sale that I'm thinking is linen or cotton (I'm wanting to make a new baby blanket from this.)
5. cute patchwork print that feels kind of scratchy, I've had it forever, but never used it because I figure it's polyester
6. some kind of satiny feeling synthetic, I bought for a project in college before I paid attention to what it was made of. I have tons of this and like to use for linings and tags.
7. a grey fabric that feels like men's dress pants, I got it at a locally owned craft store going out of business and it had no labels

To start: get a candle and matchces, tweezers or tongs, a glass bowl or other non flammable surface, your fabric scraps and pen and paper

Next: Hold a piece of each scrap (one at a time) in the fire for a moment, then drop in the glass bowl and watch.


Note how it burns. Does the fire go out as soon as you remove it from the flame or does it keep burning? Does it catch fire or just melt? Does it smell like burning leaves or paper, or chemically and plastic?

When the fire is out and it has cooled to the touch, note what's left. Is it soft and ashy, a charred ash, or a hard melted bead?

Take notes and compare to the list below:
Cotton, linen, rayon: will burn vigorously, smell like burning paper, and leave a soft gray ash

Wool and silk: will burn well, but more slowly. may go out after taking it out of the fire, smells like burning hair or feathers. will leave a crushable ash.

Polyester, nylon, and other synthetics: will burn or melt only while in the flame or shortly after being removed. has a chemical smell and will leave a hard bead.

Acetate, and acrylic: burn and melt in the flame and after being removed, have a chemical smell, and leave a hard bead.

Blends will burn like the dominant fabric, although you may see signs of both types.
Obviously this won't give you very precise information about blends, or distinguish between two types of fabric in one group. But it's very helpful if you can't tell by sight and touch what it's made of.

Here are my results:

1. I was glad I used a control fabric, because it gave me a good idea of what burning "vigorously" and "soft ash" meant. It would have been smart to do this with wool and polyester, too.
2. My flannel acted just like the birdseye, so it seems to be cotton or at least a predominantly cotton blend.
3. My "wooly" scrap seems to be wool! Or maybe a wool/cotton blend.
4. I was surprised that what I thought was linen seemed to have some wool in it. I feel pretty confident it is all/mostly natural fibers. It wasn't quite as crunchy as number 3, so I'm guessing some kind of wool/cotton/maybe linen blend.
5. This one sort of half melted, half burned, but stopped as soon as I took it out of the fire. It had a little ash. It smelled chemically, but didn't leave a hard bead. I'm guessing it's a blend of polyester and cotton.
6. This one melted in the flame, and stopped as soon as I pulled it out leaving a nice plastic-y bead. Clearly a synthetic, who knows which kind.
7. This one burned a little and melted. Also, clearly a synthetic, but I'm not sure what kind.

Bunny Revamped

I have this bunny that my grandmother made for me when I was little, and L has really taken to it lately (See her sharing her sippy). It's looking a little sad because it's elastic is all stretched out, so I decided it to give the bunny a little make over.



First, I carefully snipped out the old neck elastic and the worn lace (does anyone else have trouble keeping up with their seam ripper? I mean, where is that thing?). When I did the pattern became really obvious - it's basically just a T with a little neck. The elastic in the neck gives the dress it's shape. What a great idea for when you need a little doll dress in a jiffy (and who doesn't?).



I had this handmade bias tape on hand from that phase I went through last year when I decided I must make all my own bias tape. I whipped the bias tape on and put some fresh elastic in the neck. Then I used a little scrap of bias tape for an ear bow. Snazzy!

Makings

I usually like to make stuff for Christmas gifts, but just didn't have the energy to do much this year with the jolly sickness and all. I did manage to make L one gift at the last minute, this sweet fabric dollhouse (pattern here), and a little wooden family (inspired by this etsy shop). I would have loved to do more embellishments on the inside, or make some furniture or something, but I was lucky to finish this on Christmas Eve. I thought it would be a good way to start talking to L about the new baby!





Before Christmas, John built L a new bed, which we have all been grateful for. I thankfully started this little blanket for it before I got sick and finally finished before Christmas. I wanted something sweet and girly, but not too bright since we already have a lot of furniture in our one little bedroom. It has little birds, leaves, mushrooms, and flowers appliqued on some of the blocks. I used some bits of my vintage flour sack fabrics to do some details on the birds and flowers. Hmmm... I should get a close up shot.



And finally, I made these wool longies for L some time ago from an old sweater - and aren't they cute?

Craft Swap Underway!

I put my Craft Swap glove animal in the mail today. I'm a little jealous of his trip across state lines to make a new friend. I've been so excited about sending mine that I kind of forgot until today taht I should be expecting a package in the mail, too! I'll be sure to share all the images I get as they arrive.

Crafting can be a great vehicle for creating community I wanted to do this swap to take my blogging experience from a one sided exhibition to a community activity.

Betsy Greer, from craftivism, in her thesis "Taking Back the Knit" on the current resurgence of craft, said:

I am re-establishing a connection via my own channels, reclaiming something that was lost in the postmodern quest for more more more. We are no longer knitting together out of a necessity for basic clothing needs, we are creating together out of necessity for closeness.

I guess there are lots of ways to create closeness, but I thought a craft swap would be a fun one. Let's do it again sometime!

Orange Number 20: Shoes

I got this pattern from Craft via Make Art Not Trash, which is full of good upcycling links.

I used Whitney's suggestion and put the rubber side down on the sole, so no slipping. I didn't realize the straps were crooked until I was finished, which is pretty typical of me. I guess it wouldn't be too tough to fix it now, but I'd have to find my seam ripper, and that could take awhile...

I thought these would go on Etsy, but I guess I'm realizing I can't expect to make something well enough to sell the first time I try the pattern. But it was a pretty simple and fun pattern, so I may try it again in the future for Etsy. Though not with the Orange fabric because I'm running out!

We're going on vacation next week, and I thought it would be great to finish this project before we left. I've got the next four orange things cut out already, so it's possible. We'll just have to see how much time (and motivation) I have to sew this week.

Craft Swap - Last Call

Tomorrow is the last day to sign up for the sock and glove animal craft swap. (see details here).

We still have a few spots available. See the instructions and links to patterns in the initial post. If you want to join in, comment here or email me quick!

wilsonlauralynn[at]gmail[dot]com

Orange Number 18 and 19: pillow cover, and yet another sketchbook cover

I made this little pillow cover quickly last night. It lays so nice and tight - I was just so pleased with it. I may have to make a second.

I hope it isn't cheating to keep remaking the same thing - because here I am with my third version of the sketchbook cover. This was supposed to be like the second one with a few minor improvements to put on etsy - but i liked it so much more, I decided to keep it myself. Who knows, maybe etsy will still get one.

This one fits the journal a little more snugly. I also had a small pocket for an eraser above the pencil pocket. On the outside, I added a small pouch for holding other odd things that won't lay flat on the inside (oops, I forgot to sew the button on!). Plus, this version is blue and orange which is only my favorite set of complementary colors - how could I not keep it? So, remember the other two? I don't have a use for them, and they aren't sell-worthy. Anyone want one?

Upcycling Craft Swap anyone?

My friend Julie showed me this beautiful little book on making animals from old socks and gloves.

I thought this would make a great idea for a craft swap! This will be the first swap I've ever hosted, so I'm going to limit it to 10 - 15 people. Want in? It's open to anybody who likes to sew and get stuff in the mail! This is what you do:

1. Email me at wilsonlauralynn[at]gmail[dot]com. include your name, address, and blog link (only if you have one, so I can link back to you!) by next Tuesday, July 15th.
2. At the end of the week, I will email everyone back with someone else's name and address.
3. Everyone will make some kind of stuffed animal (or person!) out of an old glove or sock - be creative!
4. On July 29th, everyone will put their stuffed sock animal in the mail to their person. This gives you about two weeks to make yours.
5. When you get yours in the mail, jump up and down with glee, then take a picture and send it to me.

Please, only sign up if you can follow through. It's easy to keep everything you make, so I think its a fun challenge to make something with the idea of giving it away. I've put some links below for ideas, or check out some in my etsy favorites (in the left sidebar).

Hurry up, and email me, I'm eagerly waiting!

Inspiration:

three dogs and a cat via schmeebot.com
sock monkey tutorial via crafster.com
bunny and dog from Kanamori's book from marthastewart.com
octopus sock puppets from objektknot

Orange Number 17: Giraffe!

This is a good one. I am thinking of naming him Sunkist, since I stayed up late randomly drinking orange soda while sewing him together. But we'll let L decide (sorry, this one isn't going on Etsy).

It was one of my first ideas, but I was a little nervous about tackling the whole making of the pattern. But after my bit of experience with elephant making, it came together pretty well with a few revisions. I have some ideas about how to make it even better (don't I always say that), and I may try to make some more one of these days in some fun fabrics for etsy. (My very own pattern - I've come a long way!)

Here's my submission to the Living Creatively competition. I had such a blast making it, and I loved the way it turned out - especially the way the metal wire and the soft quilted fabric contrast with each other.

It is a little notepad from upcycled materials, similar to the little notepad I write my to do lists on.

It's obviously a little more theoretical than functional, but it exemplifies the preciousness of our resources by giving new life to old materials and giving them a form that encourages keeping rather than disposing. But also, by requiring me to embroider my to do list, instead of scrawling it carelessly, it causes me to slow down and interact with my resources in a more thoughtful and deliberate way.

I've enjoyed browsing the Living Creatively zine - check out the cool winning entry to the Creatively Competitive competition - a scarf made from selvedge!

Orange Numbers 15 and 16: sketchbook folios

Okay, my chronology is a little mixed up, because I actually made this first sketchbook cover last week sometime, but I wanted to wait to post it for a couple of reasons. The first one being that I didn't like it so much.





The little flap that holds the sketchbook is too thin and doesn't really account for the width of the book. Also, I decided I'd rather have the book on the right side rather than the left, and the pencil pocket is lumpy where it is, so I thought putting it on the "spine" of the cover might make the whole thing lay better...

So here is the second version:





I like this one much better, although I made it just a little too roomy. There's plenty of pocket space for tucking in notes and images for inspiration - so maybe I'll stuff it up soon.

I used to have a big corkboard full of images to look at when I painted (because artists should always have a visual base to draw from). Since I've scaled down my studio, I don't have one anymore, so I put some of my favorite images into a little book to tuck into the sketchbook case. I glued images to blue typing paper and then covered each whole page with contact paper, finally stitching all the pages together with a little yarn. You can see my Vuillard's showing here. I just love him.



I'm thinking of using the first one for a coupon organizer, except I never have any coupons... I might make some more like the second one to go on Etsy, we'll see.

The second reason I wanted to wait to post about these is because I have a whole new project in mind - but it will have to wait until I finish the orange project. 9 more to go!