Mousy Brown's House-Creating, crafting and collecting. Enjoying Life.

Tutorial to make a simple Easter hanging decoration.

Last week Kate, at Marmalade Moon, asked in a comment if I had any plans to adapt my Christmas decoration for Easter.  I am ashamed to say that despite all I said yesterday about how important Easter is in our home, that was an idea that had never passed through my head!  Lots and lots of homemade goodies have been given at this time over the years - these were last years gifts:

But for some reason the boys new decoration has always been bought from a shop.  Well this year I am glad to say Kate has inspired me to make their decorations and here is a tutorial so that you can all have a go too if you'd like to. 

To make your decoration you will need some felted wool ( an old sweater washed on a hot wash is great), some fabric scraps (one solid colour -one shear), a piece of yarn/ coloured string/ribbon and some dried lavender.

Start by cutting out two identical egg shapes from your felt.

Next place your layers of fabric across the centre of one of your egg shapes (laying horizontally).   You can do as many layers as you like and use any combination of colours.  I used a solid purple underneath and a chiffon layer on top.  Stitch a straight line across your layers again horizontally.

 

Stitch two lines diagonally forming a 'x' across your fabric (see above) - all three lines should meet in the centre.  I did my lines freehand but feel free to draw your lines on with tailors chalk first if that helps.

Using very sharp scissors cut away the triangle of fabrics that has been formed above and below the centre line.

This will leave you with a bow shape on the front of your egg.

Now cut carefully between your lines of stitching towards the centre point - cut through all the layers.

Take your other egg shape piece of felt and spoon in some dried lavender (or other dried fragrant herbs).

 
Lay your piece of yarn, ribbon or coloured string over the lavender and form the hanging loop.

Place your top piece of felt (with the bow) over the lavender and stitch the two layers together carefully with a running stitch all around the outside of your egg shape.

 
   

Finish off by cutting into your bow to release the edges you have just stitched and ruffling up the layers underneath.  You can also snip all your loose ends of cotton if you wish.  I used a high contrast white cotton on this version so that the stitching was easy for you to follow but if you use a similar colour to the bow or a decorative thread you can leave the ends to hang attractively each side.

Your decoration is now ready to be hung on your tree or branch, where it will gently perfume your room.  Feel free to adjust the size of the bow, what cutting you do or the number of lines of stitching. You could also embellish it with beads or sequins once you have finished - just have fun and enjoy yourselves and don't forget to show me what you come up with!

Easter tree and decorations.

Easter is a celebrated in a big way in our home.  A time to recognise and celebrate re-birth and Spring.  The return of light after the Winter dark, growth after the stillness of the colder months and plenty after the harshness of the frozen ground.

 

This weekend our Easter tree was decorated - using ornaments collected together over the years.  A tradition that was started long before the children were born and has grown with them each Spring.

 

We cut a bough from our apple tree - its buds tightly furled and hang on it's many twigs, eggs and chicks of every colour and description.  Each year we gift the boys a new decoration each and our tree becomes heavy with ornamentation.  They receive their new eggs on Easter Sunday which we try to share with family or friends.  A giant egg hunt in the garden is always a highlight of the day - even if we have to wear our coats to do it!

Usually our tree is positioned by our front door to welcome everybody as they enter but this year the number of eggs has become so huge that a lager branch was needed and we have placed it in our sitting room window to glow in the sun.  That doesn't mean that the rest of the house has been neglected - rabbits, chicks and eggs have found their way to the  kitchen dresser:

 
The heart shape lights:

 
The kitchen table:

 
The windowsill by the door:

 
My plants:

 
and the shelves above the sofa:

 

This year, inspired by a comment last week I have made a felt egg for each of the boys, based on my Christmas decoration and tomorrow I will post a tutorial so that you can make some too.  What special traditions do you and your family keep to celebrate this time of year?

Happy Valentines day.

 
 

Some of the Valentine crafting that has been going on around here this year - hope your day is full of love and beautiful things too!

Grandma's treasures.

Inspired by one of the books I received for my birthday, Kata Golda's Hand-stitched felt, I have just completed and sent a parcel of goodies off to my Mother for her birthday.  One of the projects was for a hand stitched felt photo envelope.  As my parents live in the south of Spain and don't get to see their Grandsons as much as they would like, I thought a hand stitched envelope, containing some up to date photo's of the boys might make a good birthday gift.

I didn't have everything I needed to make the project from the book but instead used it for inspiration and working with the materials I had to hand I am very pleased with the results.  After all what Grandma could resist that smile?

 

The second half of her present is inspired by something else connected to my birthday.  A few years ago I had a solar rainbow maker  as a gift from my boys, which my Mother loved as much as I did.  I later bought her one of her own and she now wakes up to a rainbow filled room almost every morning.   To complete her gift I have made another rainbow star, using Gardenmama's lovely tutorial  which I hope will allow her to enjoy rainbows even on the days when the sun isn't shining.

This home made / hand stitched gifting is becoming a comfortable habit, so much nicer than tackling shops and spending money we just don't have.  The pleasure in the making hopefully obvious to the recipient and the gift of a bit of time spent creating benefiting both of us.  Now let me see who's next?

Achieved!

Presents for teachers - Tick.

Decorations for friends - Tick.

 

A winter display - with favourite decorations - Tick.

A walk in the sunshine -Tick.

Checking progress on the nest - Tick.

I have decided to enjoy a day looking at all I have achieved - rather than what is left to do.  It does make me feel better and I truly believe that the best present we can give or receive at this time of year is to go gently and be kind to ourselves.  It is so easy to get caught up with all the things we feel we must do or make and miss the joy in just being.  So I am telling myself that my 'to do' list is a 'might do' list and enjoying the things I have already done. Try for yourself and pat yourself on the back - you are doing a fantastic job!!

Christmas decoration tutorial.

Today I want to share with you a wonderfully easy way to make a beautiful hanging decoration, which also smells divine.

 

To start, cut two identical shapes out of your chosen material, I used some felted, dyed blanket but a felted sweater or just some bought felt would be just as nice.  Felt is ideal as it holds its shape and does not need hems but you could use any fabric you have and allow the edges to fray or you could make your shape slightly bigger and tuck under the edges as you go.  The shape you choose is also totally up to you, I did a circle but a heart shape or bell are equally nice.  Just keep it simple, as the next stages don't always work on something too complex.

Next, cut a slightly smaller version of your shape from some contrasting, silk, satin or fancy fabric.  This can be a solid colour or patterned, I used up scraps of some raw silk that I had found as samples in a fabric store.

Then cut another similar sized piece of voile type fabric, a metallic shade looks particularly nice and catches the light when it is displayed.  I am using a 1950's gold metallic scarf that I bought in a very tattered state from a vintage clothes shop.

 

Using your machine (or hand stitching if you prefer), sew straight across all three layers a number of times, leaving equal gaps between your lines of stitching.  I did this three times on this decoration but you can do more if you like, just try and keep the spacing even.

Using small, sharp scissors cut from the edge towards the centre, between your stitch lines, stopping before you hit the middle.

Do this in each space and then ruffle your cut edges to create a 3D shape.

Take your plain circle of felt, which will become the back and lay a loop of yarn,ribbon or fabric on it.  This will become the hanging loop when the decoration is finished.  I took this opportunity to use some of the warp threads that we had cut off the loom when weaving.  As you only need a small amount of whichever material you use, it is an ideal time to use up scraps that might otherwise go to waste.

On to the centre of this piece, add a small amount (don't add too much or the next stage gets difficult!)of something fragrant - I used lavender that I had gathered in the garden and dried but a favourite pot pourri or a mixture of cloves and cinnamon stick would work just as well.  This is a point where you can really personalise  these for a gift, choosing some fragrance that you know the recipient will love.

Place your front piece on top, like a sandwich and stitch carefully around your shape as close to the edge as you can, avoiding the edges of your decorative materials if possible.

Tidy up your threads and the decoration is complete and ready to be hung on the tree.

The combinations of these are endless and no two ever look the same.  They are a perfect way to use up scraps and don't have to be exclusively Christmasy,  I have some lavender filled ones looped off clothes hangers in my wardrobe, releasing a lovely perfume every time I open the door.  I am sure you can think of many other uses for them, which is just as well as once you have had a go it can become quite addictive - have fun!

Guild competition bag.

Back in October I mentioned a competition at our Guild of Spinners, Dyers and Weavers Christmas meeting.  We had to make a bag using one or more of the Guilds techniques and it would be judged at the December meeting.  Well the secrecy is at an end, last night was the meeting and today I can finally show you what I made. 

 

I dyed and felted an old wool blanket to make the main body of the bag, then using wool I had hand dyed and spun, I knitted flowers to decorate the front.  Using that same hand-spun yarn I braided (I was hoping this would count as weaving and thus mean I used all three techniques!) a 'ribbon' to hold a decorative rosette I stitched by hand.  The rosette is similar to the badge I made here and combines felt, printed images, buttons and embroidery.

I am so glad the competition is over as I love my little bag and can't wait to use it, I have shown great restraint up to now in case it was damaged before the judging took place, but today it is coming with me to be shown off to everyone I see!

A simple gift bag.

 

I have been making some simple bags to put 'treasure' in for Christmas and thought I would share this idea as a mini tutorial.  These are so easy to make and could be modified to suit any size of gift.  They re-use old materials or scraps and are re-usable after Christmas, the perfect answer for an eco-friendly present season.

I started with a piece of felted blanket that I had previously dyed in the washing machine.  I cut it into an oblong, twice the size I wanted for the finished bag.  The nice thing about using felted wool is that you don't need to worry about hems or fraying, so it is easy to judge by eye the finished size you want and just add a little for joining and the channel at the top for the tie.

The next thing I did, using fabric ink and some stamps, was to print the name on to a scrap of fine linen I had found in a bargain bin at a charity shop (it was an old table cloth that was stained and damaged beyond repair but is perfect for projects like this!) I then folded the felt in half and positioned the label, adjusting by eye until I was happy with how it looked.  Using a small straight stitch on my machine I attached the linen, stitching fairly close to the edge.  I didn't hem my label as I quite liked the damaged, well-loved look but it would be very easy at this stage to just turn all the edges under and stitch them in place to avoid the fraying.

The next step is to sew a channel across the top of your bag - leaving enough room to push a ribbon or cord through at the end.  This is simply achieved by folding over about 2cms on to the wrong side of the fabric and stitching in place with a small straight stitch.

With the fabric still inside out, you then fold your fabric in half and starting at the bottom folded corner, sew across the bottom and turn at the open corner and sew up to the top, stopping just as you hit your folded channel.

Your bag is nearly finished, all it needs is a tie, I used a piece of ribbon that had been saved from wrappings last year.  I fixed a large nappy pin (kept especially for this kind of job) to the ribbon and fed it through the channel.  Using sharp scissors I snipped the ends to give an attractive finish and turned the bag the right way out to complete.

You could make these bags using any fabric but I love the way the old blanket doesn't fray and that it has enough weight to make it hold it's shape nicely.  You can personalise these any way you like and with machine dye you can easily make them any colour in the rainbow. They are great for birthdays, toy storage or for keeping all those nature finds in too (wonderful for conkers!).

I hope you have enjoyed this idea and tutorial? If anything in the explanation is confusing please let me know.  I'd love to hear if you give the bags a try - Have a fun and creative weekend!

A crafty day off.

 

I don't know if you feel the same but I never like to send my children back to school, when they have been ill, until they have had one normal day at home.  My little one has been off for nearly a fortnight with what may or may not have been swine flu. The Doctor felt he was obviously getting better and didn't need treating but suggested that it could take some time for him to feel back to normal.  I have kept him at home, snuggled and warm, waiting for him to bounce back.  Yesterday , for the first time, he complained about being bored (that hinted at getting better) so today was the day where we had a trial at normality!  We got up at the normal time for school, waved his big brother off to the school bus, we showered and dressed (well before lunch time!) and walked our dog through the fields.  I had also promised we could do some craft together. So I was over the moon to find this post from Enchanted Mama which inspired an afternoon of creativity.

We measured and cut and planned and stitched and at the end of the afternoon we had completed a mini book each.  We are both so pleased with the results and have lots of plans to make more as gifts.

Why don't you visit the link above, join in the fun and make some too? 

Look who has come to live at our house.

I created these little fellows this weekend - they were from 'Feltcraft, making dolls, gifts and toys' by Petra Berger. 

They were super easy and quick to make and are on our Autumn display plate in the kitchen.  I have plans for Winter/Christmas colours next and both my boys have put in requests for Christmas!