Fabric Roses

I am still working on the dressform angels but got sidetracked (happens often) by these little fabric roses.

The instructions for these fabric roses came from Sew Pretty Homestyle book by Tone Finnanger.

Although the pattern and instructions apply to fabric, I will have to try this technique of making roses with felted wool.

Here is a picture of the book cover....Sew Pretty Homestyle...

Cupcakes....

About two months, after reading my friend Rachel Carlson's blog, I decided to go check out one of her favorite shops .... Fancy Tiger Crafts. The Fancy Tiger blog is a favorite of mine as well. This wonderful shop is located near downtown Denver. Such a fun and creative place. I spent alot of time going through their huge selection of books. I purchased a book by Tone Finnanger.... Sew Sunny Homestyle.



Staci and I loved the book so much, Staci went on Ebay and found two other books by Tone Finnager. Staci purchased Sew Pretty Christmas Homestyle and Sew Pretty Homestyle. I have borrowed the books from Staci, so I currently have all three books!


More recently, Donna Downey also posted some projects on her blog from Tone Finnager. This is my version of these cupcakes! I struggled with the bottom part and finally accepted they were not going to be perfect looking cupcakes!

Here is the cover of that book with cupcake instructions and pattern.

Here is a sneek peak at another Tone Finnanger project I am currently working on.

Paper Music Roses, Inspired by a Friend

My dear friend Staci is always inspiring me to create new things. She has also taught me everything I know about felted wool sweaters. That has lead to her teaching me about the art of shopping at the thrift stores.

Initially, when I would shop at the thrift stores, I was only looking for wool sweaters. Now, I explore the entire store. Aside from being relaxing, it feels like I am on a treasure hunt.

Recently, Staci did some wonderful projects using music sheets from a vintage music book.

I also recently came upon a blog by Helen Croft (Scrap a Little) with numerous flower tutorials. Among them was a tutorial on paper roses. That blog stated she "stole" the idea from another talented blogger, Nancy Burke.

Between the paper roses blog and Staci, it inspired me to created these "music" roses. After seeing Staci's project, I went to the thrift store and found a wonderful book of music for $1.00. Almost 200 sheets of wonderful music paper! So, here is the result:




After I completed my roses, I added extra ink to add some more color.

I also love that the music paper is thin, so it made rolling these roses pretty easy.



I Could not stop at just roses. So using my circle scallop punches. I used several sizes to create these layered flower. Since the music paper was in really good condition, I antiqued it by spraying them with Walnut Ink from Tsukineko and Glimmer Mist for a subtle sparkly effect.


I added some pin packs and made pins. My daughter, Laura, loves her new pin. Although, initially she was a little horrified I was tearing sheets from a music book. She plays the violin....so I had to explain, it was not one of her books and I purchased this book with the intention of using the music sheets just for this purpose. Afterwards, she asked that I make a pin for her Orchestra teacher as well.

I just love paper. Back in the day, I only purchased scrapbook paper from the craft or scrapbook stores. Now, I am purchasing some of my paper from the thrift store. I will have to try this with the dictionary paper. Yes, Staci also introduced me to the concept of purchasing a huge Webster dictionary at the thrift store....$2.00!

I am working to convince Staci to take pictures of some of her projects and let me post them on my Blog. Hopefully, she will and you will see what she can do with music sheets, among other things.

A Twist on Rolled Roses Tutorial -Using Felted Wool

I love flowers, those created by nature and those created with paper, fabric and felted wool. One of the flowers that I like, is the frayed rolled roses. I have made a couple out of fabric. One of the library books inspired me to try this type of rolled rose with felted wool. So here is the result, along with a few photos of the process.

This technique worked great for this particular felted wool sweater. After I washed the sweater in hot water to felt it, I discovered it was peppered with lot of holes...this is problematic. I could not use this felted wool sweater to make a handbag/purse or even layered flowers.

However, by cutting the sweater into strips of 1.5 by 18 inches I was able to conceal the imperfections of this sweater and make something out of it.

I folded the strip in half (length wise) and started twisting...

As I went around, I started stitching it to secure the flower as I went along. When I was done, I tucked the tail to the bottom part of the flower. I added beads to the center of the flower. Handstitched each bead.

I also used my Sizzix Die cut Machine to cut leaves.

I cut circles using my Sizzix Die cut Machine. These would be on the botton of the flower. I attached the leaves first, using hot glue. Then the pin and felt circle to the bottom of the flower. The picture below illustrates the back part

Thanks to this technique, I was able to salvage a felted wool sweaters that was not suitable for many felted wool projects. Upcycled something that definitely would not of been usable!

I will be posting these new flowers on Etsy in the coming weeks.

A trip to My Local Library

Not only do I like to craft but also love to read books. I love to read non-fiction novels and craft related books. I love going to Barnes & Noble, perhaps too much... which is why my husband recently reminded me that our local library is a great source for books. In search of inspiration for felt projects, I decided to check out our local library rather than the bookstore. Here is a sample of what I found:



I also checked out some books on sewing. My knowledge of sewing is limited and I would really like to learn more, especially what I can do with some of the accessories that came with my sewing machine.

Another interest of mine, more recently is Aprons. Vintage aprons and how to incorporate vintage materials with new materials to create unique aprons. This is the other reason I want to improve my sewing skills. Found more books for inspiration:

Now, the best part...read and enjoy these lovely library books.

My First Post!

I have been thinking about starting my own blog for sometime. I hope it will be a place where I can share the creative venues I explore. In the coming weeks, I will add photos of some of the projects I have been working on.