Tutorial Tuesday

I try to give you a tutorial on Tuesday, so here are a couple of things I have been working on:

Peeps on a string.  I made this "Peeps" garland because I was going thru my stash and found this alarmingly bright yellow fleece.

I googled peeps on the internet and found this free pattern.  I cut up the entire piece of fleece and got fifteen peeps (doubled), simply sewed them together and attached them to a piece of trim, also already in my stash.  I simply machine stitched them to the trim.  I ended up with three garlands.  To make the eyes and nose, I dipped the end of a sharpie into some black plum paint (you could use any dark color) and then hung them up to dry.  I know these photos are not great, but I wanted you to get the idea.  This would be cute hung over a window, fireplace, or door. 

While going through my stash, I found a small piece of this fleecy white fabric.  Immediately I thought sheep.  So I cut a piece of it (doubled of course) in the shape of a rectangle and sewed it together.  The face and ears and tail were made of black felt scraps.  I simply glued them to the fleecy torso.  For feet, I painted wooden balls (knobs) that are flattened on one side, a matte black and glued them to the bottom.  Add some ribbon roses, and voila, Mary had a little lamb!

 

So here is a tip:  If you are wanting to make some simple or primitive decor, look for simple or primitive shapes.  My two favorite places to look are in children's coloring books and cookie cutters.  You can trace the shapes and add your own details.  And always search on-line for shapes or even free patterns.

 

My last item is a really cute item.  I wanted a running bunny to place on one of my rusty springs but my free-hand was horrible so I found a small shape in a magazine and then enlarged it.  Now I don't have a printer that enlarges, so I just traced around it, over and over, getting bigger each time.  There were definitely some issues, but the end result turned out great!!!

 

 

The bunny was made of batting, has button eyes and an embroidered nose and is trimmed in ribbon roses.  A white pompom is added for a tail.  I used spray adhesive to lightly add a small amount of white glitter. 

So, I know that this is not a step-by-step like so many of my tutorials are, but I just wanted you to know that you should not limit your creativity.  Want a new decoration?  A new houseware?  A new item to introduce to your craft show?  Just open your mind.  Look around at the everyday things around you.  Then look at what you have.  I did not buy a single thing for any of the items above.  They were made from scraps (did I tell you how much I love remnants?), trimmed in trims that I had on hand, and made without spending any additional money.  Gotta love that!

So my friends, I have to run some errands today, but I have several items ready for the sewing machine.  I try to do all my machine stitching and cutting during the day.  At night when I have my butt planted in front of the tv, I do my hand embroidery, stuffing, turning, and trimming.  See ya soon!