Soda Can deco

A few months ago, I decided that I wanted to do something with soda cans (besides the obvious choice of throwing them away). After Thanksgiving (and the plethora of cans it provided), I decided that I wanted to attempt to make some stars. It has taken a bit of trial and error and a lot of work, but they turned out so well, (unlike the following pictures) I think its' all been worth it.

So, here it is. Another tutorial for a craft project using items you probably have sitting around your house.

To begin with, you will need:

a variety of soda cans

(tip- off brand soda cans are thinner and easier to work with. Fresca cans are pretty soft, too)

an exacto knife

sturdy scissors

stencil(s) of your choice

embossing tool or anything with a pointy but dull tip such as a mechanical pencil or medium tip ball point pen

Cardboard or self-healing mat to protect your work surface

gloves if you are concerned about cutting yourself

Step One:

Using an exacto knife, cut the top off of your can. Step Two:
Using your scissors, cut down the middle of your can to the bottom.

Step Three:

Cut the bottom off of your can. You may have to start with the exacto knife, but you should be able to finish this step with your scissors. Careful, this is the point where you could cut yourself I haven't cut myself yet, but while I was working on this tutorial, I did have a shard break off and literally fly into my finger. Check out the pretty jagged piece on the bottom of the can.

Step Four:

Flatten the can on your work surface. You can actually smooth it down and flatten it, or you can just hold it flat against your work surface. The results are the same. Lay your stencil on top of the can and with a very slow and steady hand, trace the pattern onto the can with your embossing tool or pencil. If you are using a pen, be sure to trace on the side that you plan on being on the underneath.

Step Five:

Using scissors, cut out star. You may wish to cut the sharp tips off of the star. They are lethal.

Step Six:

Placing wrong side up, very carefully draw lines down the arms of your star to the center. You may want to use a ruler as a guide. When you turn the star over, this is what it should look like:

Step Seven:

Very, very carefully bend the star on the middle lines.

And you're done! If you would like to make a hole for hanging, I used the tip of my exacto knife and just sort of drilled into the tip of the star.

The following is a wreath that I made a few weeks ago. I didn't love it, but I do love the holly leaves that I cut out of a Fresca can for color.

I don't know if you heard about the fiasco with the holiday Coke cans looking like Diet Coke when they weren't. My brother-in-law had quite a few of these cans left over after Thanksgiving. I love the Coke Bears and thought that they would make such a great addition to my stars. What do you think of my Coca-Cola keepsake ornament?

I also saw a tutorial where a girl used decorative paper punches to cut shapes out of soda cans. I had to try it.

I absolutely love the results, but really don't want to destroy the blades on my good punches. What do you think? What will you make with your soda cans?

Fabric Christmas Tree

My mom loves Christmas trees. Many years ago, she saw a fabric Christmas tree and has wanted one ever since. This year, I decided that it was time for her to get her tree. In this joint effort, I sewed the tree together and she stuffed it. We were both pleased with the final result. Now to convince my nephew that it's not a pillow... or a toy!

Recycling clothes

I love this top! It's so lacy and feminine!

The funny thing is, I loved it when it was a skirt, too!
Unfortunately, it hasn't fit me in a long time. It has always been one of my favorite skirts, and even after it stopped fitting me, I just couldn't part with it. Finally, I realized that I didn't have to! I just had to find a way to make it work for me now.
I love all of the ruffles you see everywhere. They are so much fun! Although I could have turned this into a skirt, in my mind, I could just see it over a pair of jeans.
When it comes to sewing, my sister got my mom's sewing skills. Although I can find my way around a sewing machine just fine, I get really impatient really quickly. So, I try to take on only the simplest of sewing projects. Turns out, this was one of them! I'm not a seamstress by any means, but this is how I did it:
Step one:
Put the skirt on inside out as a top rather than a skirt and pin it where it fits comfortably around your chest.


Step Two:
It's hard to see in the picture, but very carefully fold the skirt in half to meet up with the pin from Step One. Following the line of the opposite side of the skirt, put straight pins in a line on the side you will be sewing (same side as pin from step one).

This is how mine looked when I unfolded it:

Step Three:

Sew in straight line alongside the pins.

Step Four:

Trim off excess material. I chose to trim the material after sewing for the simple fact that if I messed up, I could undo it and all of the material would still be there for me to work with.

Step Five:

Pick out coordinating ribbon. While wearing the top, measure over your shoulder from front to back. Cut the ribbon to these measurements, adding at least 1-2 inches.

Step Six:

Sew ribbons in place as straps.

Step Seven:

Accessorize!!!

Recyled Christmas Wreath

I have been so impressed and excited by all of the blogs who focus on crafting using objects you can find around your home. I craft so much of the time, and my interests are so varied that even if I wanted to, I simply cannot afford to do expensive crafts! Because I do so many crafts with my niece and nephew, I have a tendency to hang onto things like toilet paper tubes, empty cereal boxes, empty pudding/ applesauce cups, Popsicle sticks, etc. My niece practically drools over the bits of yarn I have left at the end of projects and begs me not to throw them away! She is a crafter after my own heart and loves to make do with whatever she has on hand.

It was this sort of thinking that got me all excited when I saw a wreath made up of small wrapped Christmas presents. Knowing that I had all the materials I needed, I couldn't wait to make one all my own.

My favorite part is the yarn ball "berries". However, I wasn't in love with how this came out and decided to make another. This is such a fun project with unlimited possibilities. Do you want to try to make your own? Here's how:

You will need:

A couple of hours

(depending on your level of focus! It took me about 3-4 hours with very little focus...)

6-10 small boxes, according to the size of wreath you want

(I'm addicted to jello, so I had plenty of those boxes laying around)

cardboard (from packing box or cereal box, according to size of wreath you want)

Coordinating colors of wrapping paper

Scissors

tape

glue stick

hot glue gun with glue sticks

Any variety you choose of:

coordinating scrapbook paper

ribbon/ yarn

buttons, rhinestones, pompoms, and/or bells

any embellishments you like

Step One:

Due to the bulkiness of the "gifts", I decided to make a wreath form out of cardboard rather than using an actual wreath. You could certainly use an actual wreath if you choose!!

Decide how large you would like you wreath to be. Before your cut out your circles, make sure that you have enough boxes to go around the wreath . Trace a circle the size you would like onto a piece of cardboard. If you use a cereal box, as I did, you will need to cut out two circles for added strength. Once you have the outer circles cut out, cut a smaller circle out of the center, as shown:

These do not have to be perfect. They are going to be covered, both by paper as well as "gifts". Just do your best!

Step Two:

If you are using cereal boxes, glue your two wreath forms together. If you want even more added strength, you can hot glue Popsicle sticks around the wreath in between the two pieces of cardboard. The Popsicle sticks also give added depth.

Step Three:

Cover your wreath forms in either coordinating scrapbook paper or wrapping paper. I found that the wrapping paper is so much easier to work with, due to the weight of the paper. If you decide to use scrapbook paper, simply trace your wreath shape onto the back of the paper, cut out, and glue to the cardboard.

Step Four:

Wrap your boxes in wrapping paper or scrapbook paper of your choosing. You can use as many color combinations as you would like. I have seen some of these wreaths that use two different wrapping papers and others that use a different paper per box. Make it yours!!

Step Five:

Decorate your boxes however you choose with ribbons, yarn, buttons, rhinestones, bows, etc. Again, make it yours!

Step Six:

Glue your gift boxes to the wreath form. It's a good idea to lay them out first, then glue them down, just to get an idea of how they need to sit on the wreath.
Step Seven:

Glue a looped piece of ribbon or yarn to the back of the wreath form large enough for hanging your wreath.

Step Eight:

Embellish your wreath according to your liking with bows, ribbons, bells, etc of your choosing. I found a wooden snowflake in my craft supplies a few days ago (I have no recollection of it, no clue where it came from) and thought it would be perfect for this project. I painted it white, then with glitter and glued coordinating rhinestones to it. The bells were left over from my Christmas tree.
You could very easily add a smaller, second layer of "gifts" on top of your base layer. I feel that I kept my wreath pretty basic and plain, but there is so much you can do with this!! You can go glitzy glam, cutesy, mod, retro... it's all up to you! Just have fun with this!!
I am not a very good teacher, so if you have any questions or comments, I would love to hear them!!! If you decide to try these wreaths, I would absolutely love to see your finished project! Don't worry, I wouldn't think less of you if you spent money on your project! It was simply a choice to use what I had on hand, especially since I have so much!

Animal Hats

I'm sure that you've probably noticed the growing popularity of animal beanies. My mom and I went to the mall a few weeks ago and I saw them everywhere I looked. Add this to the growing number of babies wearing sock-monkey hats and you simply can't deny that they are "all the rage".

I couldn't help but be excited when I was given a request to make some. There are so many possibilities, so many ways to go! I think that these monkey and penguin hats were a great place to start! After seeing what was out there, I decided against the sock monkey- it is so easy to go wrong with them. But I really like how these came out and am glad I chose to stick to a standard monkey.

I am still in the process of perfecting the pattern, and actually made a second set with some minor changes.

A few more tweaks and I am ready to take on the zoo....

Broomstick Lace

If you think that crochet is crochet and nothing more, let me tell you, there are so many techniques and styles out there! I am realizing more than ever that I have so much to learn!

Recently I came across a tutorial for Broomstick lace in a Crochet Today magazine. I didn't pay too much attention to it and decided right then and there that it wasn't something I wanted to try. It looked too hard and I couldn't think of any reason to learn.

So, imagine my surprise when I was sent a pattern for this Broomstick Lace Bracelet. Pretty, yes? The person who sent the pattern thought so and wanted me to make one for her. Oh boy. What was I to do? Could I possibly learn this difficult technique?

I could, and I did.... once I realized that her tutorial was for left-handed crochet and I am right-handed. Trust me, it makes a difference! Even with a good tutorial, this is a challenging technique, very touchy and easy to mess up. So, I can't help but be proud of my first attempt.I wish that I could have found the yarn that she used for her bracelets. It is smoother and allows you to see the beautiful details of the stitch. I made this one for myself as practice and it is so soft, easy, and fun to wear.

If you are wondering why it is called "Broomstick Lace", it is so named due to the fact that you actually crochet around a broomstick handle. I have yet to try it around a broomstick handle, and actually created this bracelet using a Crayola marker. Someday, I will have to break out the broom!

Dainty crochet Sleigh

Years ago, my mother-in-law informed my husband and I that she would not accept any gifts from us unless they were handmade. She is a very talented artist and very creative, so I have always found this somewhat intimidating. For the first few years, she would ask me specifically for things. In fact, she is the reason that I had to learn how to read crochet patterns. I used to just wing it. Although I still get a great deal of pleasure from looking at crochet items and trying to figure out how it was done, I am very grateful to her for the push to learn to read patterns. It has helped me tremendously. As the years have passed, she has stopped requesting things, and so I have had to figure out on my own what item to make for her each year.

Somewhere along the way, I stumbled across this pattern. As soon as I saw it, I knew I had to make it for her.

All that I ask is that you don't study the picture in the original pattern too closely. This was a fairly difficult pattern and mine does not look like exactly like it. If (or more possibly when) I make this again, I will tweak some things. In the meantime, I think she will love it! I wish I could be there to see her face.

I think my grandmother's Christmas bulbs would look so sweet nestled in this sleigh. Perhaps I will have to make another...