Drawstring Bags

I have inherited a sewing machine. And I am *so* excited to start learning the ins and outs of this hobby. In the past, I have hastily thrown together some sewn projects ALWAYS with the help of someone else- and have almost always given up before the project was complete.


Needless to say, I attempted to make a stuffed owl this morning- only to repeat history and give up when things got tough. Ahem- I stitched over its wings and one foot and began the painful process of ripping the stitching out... Needless to say, this lasted for about 2 minutes and the ugly/ half-finished owl remains face down on my desk.


Later in the evening, I was feeling quite discouraged about my sewing endeavour. I called my Aunt in hopes of gaining some expert advice on a simple project- she mentioned the drawstring bag. After about 15 minutes of confusing explanation of directions, I told her I thought I could figure it out and set out to yet again begin another project.


Thank goodness for the internet these days- I had no problem getting a tutorial on making drawstring bags on youtube. I highly advise looking up "novice sewing projects" on youtube, you would be amazed at what you can make!!! 


Drawstring Bags
14 x 16 inch piece of fabric (Fabric Land $2/ metre)
Sewing Machine
All purpose thread (matching to fabric)
You can choose to use ribbon or cut pieces of the fabric for the "string"

Look it up on youtube.com

Homemade Stamps

I have recently developed a huge satisfaction from "stamping". I love adding these little embellishments to cards, gift wrapping, notes, etc. The best thing about them is that they are reusable...


A few weeks ago, I was given a pile of magazines to browse through and I found a fantastic article about creating your very own stamps! The idea seemed so terrific and, of course, thrifty- so I decided to give it a whirl.


Corks (you may have these on hand, know a family member or neighbour who may have some old wine corks OR you can purchase a package for $3.49 at Michaels).
Glue Gun/ Glue Sticks
Buttons (flatter ones seemed to work better)


TOTAL cost being FREE or less than $5 depending on what you have on hand


Glue a button onto the skinnier end of the cork. Allow glue to set. Blot your stamp in some ink "stamp away". Your stamps may work better when a piece (or 2) of felt is placed underneath the paper you are using.

Flashy Headbands

I was bored a couple of weeks ago and since I have a crazy love for ribbons and buttons, I was searching the web for crafts involving just these two items and found the prettiest headband!


Actually, I had been wanting to attempt crafting headbands for quite some time because I had seen a gorgeous one made with scrap pieces of ribbon at a store in Niagara-on-the-Lake months ago (reminder to self- I must go back there and look at it again, I can't find a photo of one similar anywhere!).


Flashy Headbands
Elastic (2 yards for $1.49) at Lens Mill- you can choose the width of band you would like and colour
Ribbon (3 for $1) at Michaels OR they have plenty at dollar stores in various colours/ sizes
Felt (3 sheets for $1) at the dollar store
Glue Gun and Glue
Thread and Needle
Buttons


In hindsight, it was much easier to purchase a package of headbands- either plain ones or the full elastic ones available in plenty of different colours for both children and adults at the dollar store in packages of 2-8 for $1. Buying the separate elastic and sewing the ends together would only be beneficial for infants, so you could measure the correct size.


Use the ribbons/ buttons and anything else you may like to decorate your headband (feathers, flowers, felt pieces, etc). Attach to headband using a piece of felt- use LOTS of hot glue and be careful not to burn yourself!!!


You can use different styled ribbons with patterns for Holidays as well. This past St. Patricks day, I wore a green ribboned headband with green and white feathers- it looked great!

Fresh Salad

Remember when I was talking about the joy of having fresh herbs at hand? We reaped the benefit of that tonight when I made a salad and added some fresh parsley and chives- YUMMY!

Herbs

I have always loved the idea of having fresh herbs on hand, especially if you have them growing in your very own kitchen. I have attempted herbs numerous times (and have succeeded) but only for a couple of months before they end up sadly over or under-watered.


I decided that I would attempt to gain the skill of herb-growing once again. However, I did some research and chose some of the "heartier" herbs. The final candidates being: Rosemary, Lemon Thyme, Chives and Parsley. I also bought a Bay Leaf tree- these are very hearty and easy to tend to. I have also started some oregano and basil from seed- we'll see about those!!


I wanted to show off my herbs in a different sort of way and was meandering around Michael's when I found some "Chalkboard Paint". I had seen some crafts using this sort of paint before and had loved the result, so with my coupon in hand, I picked it up and headed to the check-out!!


Chalkboard Paint Terra Cotta Pots 
Chalkboard Paint ($6.99) at Michaels- brought a 40% off coupon
Terra Cotta Pots (2 for $1) at the dollar store
Terra Cotta Bowl- for catching water (3 for $1) at the dollar store
Paint Brushes (10 for $1) at the dollar store
Thin Coloured Chalk (99 cents) at Staples


TOTAL cost was about $8


Simply paint a couple of layers of the paint on each pot. Allow to dry for about 2 hours. Wipe off and VOILA! Label your plant pots accordingly- time and time again!!

Spring

We sure have had some beautiful weather the past few days! It has really got me thinking again that Easter will be popping up rather soon...


After searching for yet another Spring/ Easter craft, I thought "why not use up some of my scrap yarn for something useful" and found the CUTEST butterfly and flower crochet pin patterns! So, here I am on my day off making about 30 of these pins for the residents who live at the Nursing Home I work at- for them to wear on Easter weekend.


FUN! Each pin only takes about 2 minutes to make- easy, eh?!


Butterfly Pin
Crochet Hook 3.75 ($2.29) at Walmart
Light Weight Yarn (worsted) in pastel colours
Safety Pin


TOTAL cost- depends on how much scrap yarn you have lying about!! At Zellers, they have 150 grams ball of yarn for $1.79 in plenty of Spring pastel colours.


Chain 4
Slip stitch into first stitch to make a ring.
*Chain 4, 3 triple crochet in ring, chain 4, slip stitch into ring.*
Repeat * x1 (this will be the two largest wings of the butterfly)
*Chain 3, 3 double crochet in ring, chain 3, slip stitch into ring.*
Repeat * x1 (this will be the two smallest wings of the butterfly)
Fasten off.
Take another colour yarn to wrap around to make the body of the butterfly/ antennae
Attach safety pin to back of brooch.


Enjoy!

Easter

Well, Easter is just around the corner. I was searching for some ideas on Easter crafts and found a couple of quick and inexpensive ways to jazz up your Easter decor. 


Easter Eggs
Balloons (25 for $1) from the dollar store
Plaid Fabric Stiffener ($7.99) from Walmart
Embroidery Floss (6.99 for a package of 24 various colours) from Michaels bought with a 40% off coupon to make it only about $3.50
Scrap Yarn (free)


The first craft was making Easter Eggs using balloons, embroidery floss and fabric stiffener. At first, it seemed that it would be pretty simple to create, but when I actually started getting into the craft- it was very messy and difficult to maneuver the wet floss. Blow up some balloons to the sizes you prefer. Tie each balloon with a small piece of scrap yarn (for hanging up later). Pour some of the fabric stiffener into a container. I suggest unravelling the embroidery floss to prevent knotting. Start dipping the floss into the stiffener and gathering it up, ensure you remove the excess stiffener with your fingers. Begin wrapping the balloon with the floss- you can mix up colours if you wish. Hang to dry overnight. Pop balloon with a pin in the morning and pull out of hardened floss egg. Voila! Hang up with fishing line OR put in a basket...

Sparkled Eggs
Foam Eggs (6 for $1 for the large ones, 8 for $1 for the small ones) from the dollar store
White Glue ($1) from the dollar store
Sparkles in various colours ($1 each) from the dollar store
Paint Brush (10 for $1) from the dollar store


TOTAL for craft (14 eggs, various sizes and colours) was $8.


The second craft used some foam eggs. I brushed thick white glue on the eggs with a foam brush and then used various colours of sparkles to spice them up a bit!! Fun craft, you could probably manage to do this with children, however I would advise to make sure the glue is dry before completing them (do one half at a time).