Ruffled Tree Skirt Tutorial and GIVEAWAY!

For the past month or two I had seen lots of ruffled Christmas skirts on Pinterest that I loved. 

{I big puffy heart ruffles of all kinds!}

So when my sweet cousin Amy and I planned a craft day for the Sat. after Thanksgiving,

 it was the first thing on our list of crafts to make.  

After spending quite some time figuring the best way to make ruffles on a sewing machine 

{tightest tension, longest stitch length} 

and fighting with Amy's sewing machine bobbin- 

we had finished our two ruffled skirts and they were super cute!  

And truthfully, super easy!

For those interested in making your own, here's how: 

Supplies:

• Canvas drop cloth or piece of canvas fabric {large enough to have a 4 ft x 4 ft square}
• 3 yards of fabric {I used muslin but cotton or linen would also work}
• sewing machine and thread
• glue gun and glue sticks {lots of glue sticks}
• scissors

1. Lay out your piece of canvas. We used a tree skirt of Amy's as a pattern, traced it, and cut it out.  If you don't have one to use as a pattern start by making sure your fabric is a square, fold it into quarters and then into a triangle. Then cut a piece off the end in a semi-circle. 

2.  Take and cut off the tip in a semi-circle for the center of the tree skirt. Choose one of the sides to cut up so that you have an opening in the skirt. 

3. Take your fabric and cut it into 3 inch strips.  I used a rotary cutter and mat which made  it go much faster.  If you don't have one- I totally suggest you add it to your Christmas list! 

4. Get your sewing machine out. I filled three bobbins so that when I needed them I could easily and quickly change them.  Set the tension to the highest and the stitch length on your machine to the longest.  Stitch about 1/2 inch from one side. As you sew....voila! You have ruffles.  Continue stitching until you have a pile o' ruffles!!!

5. Starting at the outside edge of the canvas circle, hot glue the ruffles onto the canvas. Once you finish one layer, start a new one that slightly overlaps the previous one- covering the stitching. 

At the end of each row, I went over the edge of the slit a bit,

 so that it was more finished on the edges of the opening. 

My sweet friend Dory loved the ruffled skirt

 {she loves ruffles as much as I do}

 so I decided to make one for her.  

Since I was going to purchase the supplies to make one, 

I decided to buy enough and made a second one to give away! 

So if you'd like a chance to win your very own ruffled tree skirt, 

just leave a comment telling me your favorite thing about Christmas! 


*Only one entry per person please and if you comment anonymously, please make sure to leave your name and email for me to contact you if you win!

The giveaway ends at 5pm on Friday. 

I'll pick a winner that evening 

and get it in the mail to the winner on Saturday morning! 

DIY Bow Tutorial

I am a girl that loves bows- in all shapes and sizes.

And so when I saw a way to make bows using a page

 from a magazine I just had to try it.

And when I did and I found out how SUPER simple and fast it was-

I just had to share with you.

Here's what you'll need

(all of which you probably have in your house right this minute):

-a page from a magazine, a piece of scrapbook paper, a piece of wrapping paper or any other kind of paper you might have

-a pair of scissors (or a paper cutter)

-tape (regular Scotch tape or double sided  tape)

-a stapler (I used this type of stapler and it worked fabulously because I could open and close it without squishing the paper)

-a ruler

Step 1:
Use the ruler to mark the back of the page at 3/4 inch intervals and cut out 9 strips.
Set three strips aside as these will remain full-sized. Take three strips and cut 1 inch off of each strip and throw scraps away. Take two strips and cut 2 inches off of each and throw scraps away. Cut a three inch piece from the remaining strip to use for the center of the bow. When you finish cutting your strips will look like this:

Step 2:
Take each of the longer 8 strips and twist each one to form a loop at each end. Make sure that the side of the page that you want to show up is on the outside, not the inside. Staple each piece in the center after making the loops. Take the last piece- the smallest piece- and make it into a circle and tape it closed.

Step 3:
Lay the longer of the 3 strips over each other, spacing them apart. Staple them together in the center. Add the next three in the same manner, and secure with another staple. Repeat with the last two strips and staple one final time. Use a piece of tape rolled up (or use double sided tape) to secure the round loop in the center of the bow.

A few hints:

• scrapbook paper makes a fluffier bow which I love
• you can make a larger or smaller bow- just extend or shorten the length of your strips
• using a stapler that opens and closes easily is helpful because it keeps you from crushing the loops

These are so easy peasy and so inexpensive and quick! I don't think I'll ever buy another bow again. Trust me, if you make one, you'll want to make another and another and another and another...

 

Pincushion Jars- How To (and a jar winner!)

Several people asked for directions so I made a few more jars and took pictures along the way.

To make one jar you will need:

-a jar (any size will do but you probably want a rather short one). I really like these cute new wide-mouth jars)

-a 6 inch x 6 inch piece of fabric

-a piece of cardstock (in a color that matches your fabric)

-batting or cotton balls (I used batting the first time, cotton balls the second- like the batting better)

-a pencil

-a glue gun

-scissors

1. Take the lid off of your jar. Trace it on the cardstock and cut it out.

2. Lay your piece of fabric face down on the table on top of the ring of the lid. Place cotton balls or batting on top of fabric- inside of ring. Try to arrange balls or batting with the most in the center of the ring.

3. Place lid on top of cotton- and press down to push cotton through the lid ring.

4. Holding the bottom, carefully turn lid over to check to make sure the cotton is arranged correctly. You will want to adjust it so that there aren’t too many gathers in one place and so that the cotton isn't bunched up.

5. Carefully holding the lid- flip it back over. Pull one small section back and use glue gun to place a small amount of glue close to the inside edge of the lid. Quickly and carefully (so you don't burn yourself) glue down the piece of fabric- pulling tight. Continue in the same manner to glue down the rest of the fabric- checking often to make sure that the fabric isn't bunching up.

6. Once you are finished gluing you will have some excess fabric remaining. Cut off any fabric that is sticking up. This will help your cardstock to lay flat when you glue it on.

7. Take cardstock circle and cover one side completely with glue. Carefully flip it on to bottom of lid and press down firmly. You need to press as hard as possible because if you don't- your lid will be too fat and will not close. (Trust me.................I learned this the hard way)

And that's all there is to it! Now just fill it and embellish it as you would like!

If you are interested in making a Joy Jar let me know. I'd be happy to share the verses and quotes I included in the one I made.

And the WINNER of the jar is..........................

My sweet friend Shannon!

Shannon, you can choose any of the jars pictured in this post or in the first post I made. Just let me know which one you would like and I'll bring it to you this weekend!