Smile And Wave

40 Projects Just For Fun: Lighting Solution

I have been missing having a designated studio pretty bad since we've been in our current house. I've been housing my fabric stash and sewing machine in the laundry room add-on at the back of the house and keeping random craft supplies on the dark, scary side of the basement but I'm always pulling things to the dining room table to work-so much so that we've been eating dinner in the living room around the coffee table! 

I've had this vintage kitchenette since our last house but originally took the legs off to make our dining room table. Then last summer I stopped in at a garage sale while my family was in town and happened to find a desk with hair pin legs for $3. They were moving and I was thrilled! Anyway, I put the new legs on it, added my rug, and brought my wall map back in to create my very own studio space. Well, it's at least a new surface for all the piles.

I love wire baskets and was thinking about doing a pendant light but the opening wasn't going to work with my plug size so I got the idea to wrap twinkle lights around it and just hang it from the wall. I made a similar one in our old house but it was too big for the space. This vintage egg basket was just right but the color wasn't so I spray painted it yellow, then white, and then cut up a bunch of white floral wire and wrapped the twinkle lights around the basket making sure to end them near the back so they could stay flush with the wall on the way down to the outlet. 

I need to trade out my bottom row of twinkle lights with a regular white extension cord and just tuck it under the rug but I love having some extra light in this space when I work after everyone is tucked in. 

Also, I love when solutions present themselves so easily! Don't you?

-Rachel

40 Projects: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six

Woven Rug DIY

This may be my favorite thing I've made for our home yet! Well, besides our table, bed, clothes rack, and swing. Ha! 

Get my full tutorial and a little pep talk about making your own over on A Beautiful Mess. 

You can do it!

-Rachel

Three-Tiered Lampshade DIY

Necessity is the mother of invention, right? I had originally thrifted a few lamp shades in similar shapes trying to get the right proportion but ended up deciding to ditch the lamp base altogether. I purchased a cord kit from ikea and used some white floral ties to connect the shades and then added a hook to the ceiling and I had myself a new light fixture.

I love the extra layer it adds to this side of the room and how it works with the lamp on the other side of the piano. If I was going for more pattern and color I think this kind of tiered lamp shade would look fun in three coordinating patterns (gold stripes in different widths) or some sort of ombre. 

Tip: If you're on the hunt for shades at a store and aren't getting them from the same place just note the shape and sizes to make sure they're going to look good together. 

-Rachel

Straw Bunting DIY

I was making a himmeli last week and had a ton of pink and coral straws leftover and suddenly I realized I could string up a bunch of triangles and have a new kind of bunting! I love that it's got negative space, is three dimensional, and won't get easily ruined in storage or if used outdoors.

1. Decide how long you want your bunting to be and multiply by three to get your twine length. I used pink twine from Lowe's but you could also use embroidery thread or really thin rope. You just need something thin enough for two pieces to fit through a straw. You'll also need three straws for each triangle. I used 6" coral straws for the bottoms and 4.5" pink straws for the tops. I placed my pink straw on first and then two coral straws and pushed them to the left end. 2. Then I bent my straws around to arrange a triangle shape. 3. Take your long end and string it back through the top straw as shown. 4. Add your next triangle in the same order of size/color and restring that long end through the top to get your next triangle. Continue until you're out of room.

I hung mine up with glittered tape from the Martha Stewart line and cut little triangles into the ends. I found my straws at Target but you can find darling striped and spotted ones on Etsy or large party stores. Spray painting is always an option if you can't find the perfect shade of mint!

 Now, go make some bunting.

-Rachel

Customize Your Kitchen With DIY Hot Pads and Oven Mitts

I've got a really simple hot pad and oven mitt tutorial over on A Beautiful Mess for anyone needing a little more pretty in their kitchen. The best news is it's another sewing project most beginners can tackle in one afternoon!

Head over for the full tutorial.

-Rachel

40 Projects Just For Fun: Himmeli

The next project on 40 Projects Just For Fun is a pink straw himmeli. I've always thought himmelis were beautiful and realized it'd be really easy to make one from some of the pink straws we always seem to have in our cupboard. This project took about 20 minutes including taking photos and cost about $2.00. I found these straws in an assortment pack at Target but you could use any kind of patterned or striped straws or spray paint them upon completion to get the look you want.

1. You'll need 20 ft. of twine, 20 straws, and a pair of scissors. 2. Cut twelve straws just under the bend, cut the other eight 2" shorter. The size of your straws will change the shape of your himmeli so you can vary your silhouettes easily. 3. Cut your twine into four 5' sections. Take two and two and tie them in the middle. 4. Stick one of the longer straws over each of the four sections. 5. Take one strand from from one of the sections and another strand from an adjoining section and stick them through one of the short straws in opposite directions as shown. Repeat for the next three sections. 6. You should have the shape shown above. You have four new sections. 7. Add one long straw to each new section. 8. Repeat step five with the next layer of short straws. Finish with the last layer of long straws and bring all of the twine together at the top in a knot. Hang with another length of twine.

Himmelis are fun sculptural elements to hang in a corner of your favorite space, make beautiful modern ornaments at Christmas time, or a sweet mobile for a child's room. I think I'm going to make a bunch of miniature versions for our tree next December in gold.

What have you been working on lately?

-Rachel

40 Projects: One, Two, Three

40 Projects Just For Fun: Wall Hanging

I've been wanting to try my hand at weaving again so when inspiration struck this month I knew I had to make this one of my 40 Projects Just For Fun. I had a little loom as a kid and made beaded bracelets and pot holders but I hadn't really thought much more about trying this medium as an adult until I saw the giant loom someone had made to make a rug out of cut up t-shirts. I still want to try that but this is a little more realistic for now.

I've been really drawn to natural elements and textures lately but still love how they look along side bold colors and patterns so I gathered some supplies I had on hand and then did a little browsing through Instagram to see what I'd find under #weaving. There were a lot of hair photos but then there were some beautifully modern, kawaii influenced pieces by a few users in particular that seemed to be fiber artists.

One of the women I was most impressed by was @cathymcmurray. Her work is fresh while still maintaining an ethnic vibe. I didn't find her woven projects on her site but they're in her IG feed. Then I discovered the wall hangings from Mimi Jung at Brook and Lyn and fell in love with their colors and patterns. My most favorite fiber artist on IG, though, is @houseofmaryannevintage. Her designs feel young and modern. I feel like I just discovered of a whole new world of fiber art and design. Here are a few more beautiful pieces I found through Pinterest.

This one was really an experiment but I love how it turned out. I used supplies I already had on hand so it cost nothing to make and was therapeutic enough to work on while listening to some Ted Talks on YouTube. I learned a few things as I went like starting and stopping thick fibers near an edge but not worrying about where you start and stop weaving with smaller ones. It's not as noticeable. I learned to not pull too tightly else I end up with an hourglass shape rather than a straight one, although I did get a little of that near the bottom. I learned there are so many ways to make patterns and use colors that I'm surely going to have to make another one or two. Here's what the back of it looks like.

Above shows how I skipped a few rows to get a diamond shape of negative space. 

Here's what I did in case you're wanting to make your own:

1. I didn't want to invest in a loom since this was an experiment and I knew from a previous project years ago that I could essentially make my own kind of loom with a frame and some nails. I had an old drawer that I knew was a good size for a wall-hanging so I gathered some supplies. I had regular brown twine that I used for my base and then gathered some pink plastic twine (Lowe's), woven pink cord (also Lowe's), and dark pink chunky yarn. I recommend a range of thicknesses if you can manage it for more interesting textures. 2. Then I nailed 13 nailes into the top and bottom of the back side, tied a knot to the top left nail and wove my brown twine up and down the rows until I got to the other side and wrapped the twine through the top loops and knotted it again where I started. 3. Next I cut a length of pink plastic twine and started a few rows in from the edge so as to hide the end and wove over and under until I ran out. Then I switched to the next material and did the same. I tried a few different things I saw in images online but wanted to keep it pretty simple for my first time. 5. When I was almost to the bottom I tucked in my last end of pink twine and then cut my brown twine where it was at the nail and tied two rows at a time into a knot to secure the base. 6. I added a dowel rod through the top loops at the ends and another piece of twine to hang it to a screw. Ta-Da!

It took me about 8 hours total split between other responsibilties and sleeping and I kept at it until I was done so as not to lose motivation. I'm really proud of how it turned out and have it hanging on our wall in the dining room. 

Here's one great resource for doing something much smaller with children. I joined some new friends at a local Forest School gathering and the project that day was to make our own mini looms from sticks and yarn and to weave in different things we found in the woods. There were some really beautiful creations made by those mamas and preschoolers and I found myself way more intrigued by it than Ruby. We ended up with sticks and leaves tucked in between different colors of yarn and fabric. I kept it for her in hopes that she'll remember what a fun morning we had with our friends exploring the woods. 

I may not be the best resource for further questions since I'm still just figuring it out myself but if anyone else has anything to add in the comments about their experience or any sites to check out, feel free. 

Have you ever woven something? How did it turn out?

-Rachel

40 Projects: One, Two

Pretty Pillow DIY for A Beautiful Mess

I contributed a very simple sewing tutorial to make your own pillows on A Beautiful Mess last week. It's aimed at those just starting out and would make a great first project. It's also really fun to make a ton of pillows for your house to give it a nice little face lift.Find the full tutorial here. 

-Rachel

DIY: Fancy Nutcracker Army

I had great plans of repainting my rag tag collection of thrifted Nutcrackers in bright colors last Christmas-reminiscent of Alexander Girard's wooden dolls-but time got away from me. I set them out on my dining room table hoping to do something with them this year and enjoyed watching Ruby line them up and act out silly stories. A few lost their precious arms, one lost a nose, and two had their hair pieces rip off. I finally salvaged what I could one day from the sad lot of them and came up with something pretty.

1. Gather yourself a few nutcrackers. I always look for them at thrift stores around Christmas and I bet you can find some majorly discounted the day after at retail stores. You'll also need tacky glue, scissors, light grade sandpaper, and spray paint. I used Valspar Metallic because it's the best metallic on the market. 2. Remove the hair pieces and possibly clothing from your nutcrackers and lightly sand their faces or other large, round surfaces. Wipe clean and then apply two-three thin coats of spray paint. Let dry. 3. Reattach original hair and beard pieces with tacky glue. You may want to use felt instead if their hair is in bad shape. 4. Let dry and either leave as is or continue to paint and decorate your nutcrackers. 

I wanted mine to look a bit anonymous but these would also be fun to personalize according to your own characteristics or those of a friend. Let little ones decorate their own for their room. 

Smaller nutcrackers may be less expensive and easier to finish. Nutcracker ornaments are another way to customize this craft.

I was originally thinking about a high gloss white similar to the ones sold at Target but had this gold on hand so this project cost me nothing (at least this year). It's another way to add some charm to our long, dark mantle without breaking the bank.

I told you I couldn't stop with the gold, didn't I.

-Rachel

Winter Wreath DIY

This wreath is a project I contributed to an e-course in 2009 and have continued to hang in our home every Christmas since. It's one of my favorite wreaths because of all of that winter white mixed with those shades of pink and green that I just can't get away from no matter how my tastes change. It's an easy one to recreate whether you can crochet or not-simply substitute any crocheted flowers with something similar in felt. 

To make your own wreath you'll need a foam or straw wreath form, 6-9 strips of 3" wide felt or fabric (depending on the size of your wreath), felt in assorted colors, yarn in assorted colors, crochet needle, embroidery thread and needle, buttons, bells, or other embellishments (doilies, ribbon, pom poms, etc.), and scissors.

1. Wrap your wreath with your strips of felt or fabric making sure to wrap over the loose ends tightly or stitch them together. 2. Secure the last strip at the end by stitching it to the felt underneath. Trim the end off. 3. Crochet a few wagon wheels in different sizes.  If you're not sure how to make one, try out this tutorial. For really advanced flowers, check this one out. Once you get the basic circle down, you can experiment with adding a second row. Cut out felt leaves and little flowers in differing sizes to fill in the blanks. 4. Add stitching to your leaves and flowers. 5. Decide where you want to start one of your larger crocheted flowers. Thread your needle and knot the other end. Stitch through the felt and using a small stitch through both of your crocheted pieces, stitch through the felt again. Secure in three little spots and tie off. Continue with each of your pieces.

Use another strip of felt or some pretty ribbon to hang on your wall.  Make a few for friends to give out before the holidays are over or create a few in different sizes to place around your home.  It took me about an hour to put it together after I had finished crocheting my flowers.  If you aren't comfortable with crochet work, you can still get a fabulously full wreath with felt flowers, pom poms, and other adornments.

Enjoy!

-Rachel