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Carved Heart Ornament

19
Dec 2011

I have been having a blast this year making new things for Christmas!
I will confess. My ornaments had gotten kind of sad and shabby. And not chic.

So I’ve been making some new ones this year to freshen things up!

This little ornament is fun and easy to do – it looks so cute on the tree. It would make a great hostess or neighbor gift too!
Here’s my Carved Heart Ornament:

Ok – so it’s not a real carved heart – but it’s just as sweet, embroidered on linen in this little Mason Jar lid!

Ready to make your own? You’ll need:
linen
embroidery hoop
floss – brown & red
Mason Jar Lid – wide mouth (both ring and top)
cardboard or chipboard for backing
glue (I used hot glue)
jute or ribbon for tie
optional – drill
Ornament Pattern – click here to open

Start by tracing the pattern onto your fabric. You’ll need to write in your initials. You can easily trace your pattern if you tape the pattern to a window, then tape your fabric over it. The light will shine through and you can trace the design onto your fabric with a disappearing ink pen.

Place your fabric in an embroidery hoop.

For the entire ornament you’ll be using a stem stitch. Here’s a quick how to.

Thread your needle with three strands of brown embroidery floss. Bring your thread up from back to front at the top of one of the pattern lines.
Put your needle back in about 1/4 of an inch and then back up about at the middle point of this stitch.

Pull the needle through. Then make another small stitch in the same direction, about 1/8″ away, coming up at the base of this stitch.
Keep the loose thread up above your stitches.

Continue with the stem stitch, following the lines of the pattern.

Stitch all the wood grain lines of the pattern. It might help to do smaller stitches on the curves.

Use the same stitch and outline the heart and arrow and sew in your initials with red embroidery floss.

Using your jar lid as a pattern, cut out batting and a cardboard or chipboard circle.

Optional – You can drill small holes in the top of the Mason Jar ring to thread jute for hanging the ornament.

Cut a length of jute and thread it through the holes and knot it.

Trim your fabric so it is a few inches larger than the jar lid.
Place the batting on the lid and then the embroidered fabric. Wrap it around to the back and glue down.

Glue the embroidered circle into the jar ring. Glue the cardboard circle onto the back.

If you didn’t drill your holes, glue a length of jute/ribbon to the back for hanging.

Hang your cute new ornament on the tree!

What do you think?

I’m linking to Sunday Scoop, Today’s Creative Blog, Met Monday, Skip to my Lou, Tutorials & Tips Tuesday, Funky Junk Interiors, Quilt Story and some of the other fabulous parties on the sidebar – make sure you check them out!

This was originally a guest post over at Miss Lovie. :)

Category: Holiday, Sewing Tags: Christmas, Embroidery, Ornament 14 Comments

Transforming My Clock with Color!

13
Sep 2011

Beverly

Do you remember back when I posted about wanting to add more color to my house?

Well I’m steadily working on it. Verrrrrry slowly. ;)
I’ve made a push this week to finish two projects that are going to brighten up my front room and I’m so excited to show them to you!

I’m starting off with my cute new Transformed Clock!!
I was going for kind of a Retro-y Vintage feel with lots of color. Hopefully I hit it!

Isn’t she bright and cheery?

Here’s how she looked before I gave her a bright yellow spray-on tan.

Not bad – but not very colorful.
So I took her all apart and hosed her down with Rustoleum Sunny Yellow.

I wanted something unique for the clock face – and I’m working with a turquoise, yellow and red color scheme – so I decided to embroider the face of the clock.

I cut a piece of fabric larger than the clock face and drew out a spoke design with my disappearing ink pen.
Which has almost disappeared in this photo.

I stitched over each line with 3 strands of embroidery floss using a stem stitch. I used that same stitch to sew circles at the end of each spoke.

I filled in each circle with a satin stitch – basically rows of straight stitching to fill in a space.

Once all the spokes were stitched, I glued the fabric around the piece that had been the face and added it back to the door of the clock.

I put everything back together and now I have a cute, sunny little clock that makes me smile every time I see it!

It’s little door even opens – and since the windows up top are so small, you can stash all kinds of things in there.

Like chocolate bars or bags of m-n-m’s or maybe surplus packages of ric rac.
I’m very low (obviously by my lack of stash) of Chocolate right now. Seriously. It’s like Defcon 1 on the emergency scale.

I do have a question though. I am fairly new to the spray-painting thing. The first time I’d spray painted something was back in April after I started this blog.
So I still sometimes get eager and glob on too much paint – or end up with little drips. I have slight coverage issues.

But I’m hoping you can help me out - what did I do to cause this crackling?

It’s just this tiny bit on the inside of the door, so won’t ever really be seen. But I don’t want to get all eager and spray paint a ginormous piece of furniture and end up with this not-so-snazzy cracked egg effect.
I appreciate any advice you have!!

Crackling aside – she’s super cute isn’t she?

It looks so cute sitting on my little antique radio. I’ll show you the big picture later in the week when I reveal the curtains that are on the window right next to this.

You want a sneak peek? Sure! Here you go . . .

Fun right?? And see how the flower has a big spoke design in the center?? LOVE how it matches the face of the clock.

So I’d love to hear what you think!! Crazy and Over the Top? or Bright and cute?
( I really hope you say the second one. . . . :)

I’m linking to Sunday Scoop, Today’s Creative Blog, Met Monday, Skip to my Lou, Tutorials & Tips Tuesday, and the other fabulous parties on the sidebar – make sure you check them out!

Category: Home Decor Tags: Embroidery, home decor 43 Comments

Pretty Windows Dishtowel

11
May 2011

Beverly

So I was in Joann’s last week, minding my own business.
Well, not really. When I’m in Joann’s I tend to mind THEIR business.
After managing a fabric store for several years, I tend to be a compulsive straightener while I’m shopping.

I’m the fairy godmother of my Joann’s.
“How did the fabric in this aisle get so tidy??”
*| Bling |*. (those are my magic wands)

So while minding MY business, I stumbled (literally) across the most adorable bolt of fabric.
It’s from Heidi Grace’s line - called House Windows.

And somehow magically the whole bolt came home with me.
*| Bling |*

So in the first of what will apparently be many “Windows” projects . . .
Here’s my new dishtowel!

I love to take the designs from fabrics and bring them up for the appliques in the dishtowel!
And even if you can’t find the windows fabric, I think the windows appliques would be so cute with a pretty print fabric border too!

Here’s what you’ll need to make your own dishtowel.

• White fabric, or purchased dishtowel
• Fabric for bottom border – 1/2 yard
• Fabric scraps for windows, curtains, shutters, etc.
• Trim scraps – rick rack, tiny pompoms, etc.
• Embroidery floss for window boxes

Alot of this is whim – see what looks good to you and follow designs you like in the fabric.
Here are my steps just to give you an idea . . .

Cut out your fabric pieces. You’ll need a large rectangle for the dishtowel (30″ x 21″), pieces of the window fabric for the bands at the bottom (2 of 30″ x 7″), and small pieces for the windows, curtains, etc.
I didn’t use patterns for these, just cut out squares and rectangles from the white and added print fabrics for decoration similar to the Heidi Grace fabric.

Remove all the top pieces from the windows and set them aside in the same layout so you won’t forget where they go.
Pin on the bottom pieces and begin sewing them on with a contrasting thread. I used a dark gray.

If you do the round window, add the rick rack under it as you sew.
Don’t worry too much if your lines aren’t perfect. Part of the cuteness of this is the “hand-drawn” look to the windows.

Start adding in the fabrics over the windows. Add in lines, swirls, or trim as you want for decoration.

Once your windows are sewn on, add on your bottom panels. Sew the panels to each short side of the fabric, right sides together.
Make sure the windows will be facing the right direction.

Fold the printed panel in half, right sides together, so that the ends match up.
Sew along both short sides, until you reach the top seam. Use a 1″ seam allowance.

Trim off the seam allowance but don’t trim throught the seam that attaches the panel to the dishtowel.

Turn the folded panel right side out. Now the front will be sewn and the back will be open.

Tuck the seam allowance down and press under the top edge of the back of the panel, so the fold is just above the seam.
Turn under your dishtowel sides twice to form a hem and sew.

Sew along the top front of your panel. This will sew closed the opening in the back.

Add in any final embroidery details to your windows.
I put some french knot flowers in a couple -

A little birdie in the round window and bows for tiebacks.
I tied these bows but then added a drop of unique stitch to each to help hold them on.
I also fray-checked all the windows. I like them frayed but not out of control. ;)