Heather Shore: October 2011 Archives
Autumn and the Holidays. I've been seeing lots of wreaths in the stores, but nothing has caught my eye. I thought back to decorations that my mother used at the house or the office and remembered a fabric wreath that she used to make. After a quick call to mom, I was ready to make my own creation.
You will need fabric, a Phillips head screwdriver, a straw
wreath (8 inch, 12 inch), a cutting mat and pinking sheers/rotary cutter. You
will also need ribbon to tie a loop around the wreath to hang on the wall.
I began by cutting 4-inch by 4-inch squares with my pinking
rotary cutter. It's the first time that I have cut fabric this way. For the 12
inch wreath, it took 350 squares and for the 8-inch wreath it took 220 squares.
I wanted the wreath to look full. Since this was my first time, it actually
took me six hours to cut the squares. After another consultation with Mom, it
turns out not every square has to look perfect. With the next two set of
squares, I was able to reduce my time significantly. I wished I had a 4-inch
pinking block for my Big Shot machine!
Before starting, I added a second layer of plastic wrap to
the wreath. This helped hold the fabric in place. I just used ordinary cling wrap
from the kitchen. I took my Phillips head screwdriver and pressed the fabric
into the straw wreath. This took a little strength in my hand to push it in. I
used no glue or hot glue - the fabric will stay in unless you pull it out. I'd
advise a Phillips head screwdriver to prevent a tear in the fabric. Anything
sharper will cause a rip.
I wanted variety so I didn't use any particular pattern in
my wreath. I was worried as I was putting it together, but by the end was
pleased with the results.
Safety first! Pinking rotary blades are extremely sharp! I learned this the hard way - make sure you cut away from your body.
Samantha Gale
Carla Monson
Brianne Cherry
Jessica Perez
Jessica Vilardo
As always, follow us @Fabricdotcom and Happy Sewing!
Have you ever wondered where you placed that list bill? Or how about that birthday card that just came in the mail? Where are my stamps? I needed something to hang items on to ensure I didn't misplace them at home. This is an idea board for the kitchen, front hall, bedroom... it can hang anywhere!
I located fabric out of my stash, Modge Podge, spongebrush,
wood, small clothespins, glue, acrylic paint, paint brush and nails. This
project took me several days to ensure that the decoupage dried.
I used the sponge brush to paint the wooden board with decoupage and placed the fabric on top. I smoothed out the fabric with my fingers to avoid any air bubbles. I decoupaged on top of the fabric as well to ensure that the material stuck to the wood. After letting the front dry, I decoupaged the sides and wrapped the fabric around the back of the board, continuing to use decoupage on the fabric, smoothing down the fabric. I put several coats of decoupage on the material.
To decorate the clothespins, I used regular acrylic paint. The lighter colors took several coats. When this is drying, you have to open the clothespins several times to prevent the clothespin from drying together.
I nailed the hanger to the back of the board before adhering the clothespins. I put two on the longer board to hang either way (horizontal or vertical). The green owl fabric that I used for the smaller board wouldn't have warranted turning the board vertically. I would suggest watching out for that when you select your own fabric for your Fabric photo board.
I glued the clothespins to the fabric and was done - make sure that the clothespins are facing outwards - I got comments about putting them on wrong, but you want them to face away from the board so things won't be crammed inward.
I got lots of positive responses at work so have decided to make some of these as holiday gifts for friends and family. Look forward to hearing how things went for you!
