White Christmas Crafting...a canvas tree & a mitten frame

Friday was a super fun day for me. I somehow managed to squeeze in a bunch of simple holiday crafts. While I was out Friday morning picking up the styrofoam wreath for my Tassel Fringe Wreath, they had darling little styrofoam tree shapes as well. I wasn't quite sure what I was going to do with it but thought glitter perhaps. Well, as you can see in this photo, I kind of went the other way and just covered it with long strips of canvas. A simple shabby look. I had some canvas left over from my canvas pillow project and thought a monochromatic look would be pretty. To cover the tree, I just wrapped the styrofoam with 1" torn strips of canvas and pinned on as I went. The fun thing is that if I want a different look next year, I can just un-pin it.


And here it is at night. I love that little lamp I picked up at Wal-mart in the fall for my back hall table. It's so much cozier and more welcoming than the bright overhead light. To complete my winter whites arrangement, I added in a candle, a sequin star, an old clock face I purchased on ebay, a little verse quote display that I have on the table all year and tied them together by grouping onto a white plate from my kitchen. I'm pleased with the simple look and of course the price was just right.


I had thought I was finished crafting for the day and went to work sorting mittens, hats and scarves and just getting organized for the colder weather. I guess it doesn't take too much to sidetrack me though as I came across this sweet little hand-knit mitten in almost new condition. Unfortunately, one of my little kittens had lost their other mitten. As I couldn't match it up, I started thinking. Last year I would have sighed and thrown it out. But not THIS year. Now I'm thinking creatively with more than just paper.


A Goodwill frame I picked up made a great holiday accent when spray painted white. I don't recommend you spray paint in the basement like I did because of the cold. Yuck...the fumes were not nice. After taking out the glass, I filled the inside of the frame with yet another piece of leftover sweater from the sweater pillow, tied the mitten with some of my scrapbooking supplies and adhered it to the frame. Super quick and super fun and I love all the recycling I did on this project.



This post links up with DIY Day at a Soft Place to Land





Have a creative day!

Julia

Nesting with a Sweater Pillow

While shopping a few weeks ago...sorry, don't remember where...I came across a gorgeous pillow that looked like it was made from a knitted panel. It was gorgeous and oh so cozy, but the price? $35 was way too rich for my blood. And then I thought...I can MAKE that.

Since I didn't own a sweater that I just wanted to chop up, off I went to a nearby thrift store. Now you know what I decided to do with one of those sweaters I bought the other day, the beautiful cotton knit one. I'm sure the employees were wondering why I was browsing through every single size they had! It really doesn't matter what size you buy. I ended up with an adult small that I picked up for $6. It was in great condition with no pilling. I love cotton and that is a good fibre to buy as it holds up well and works well for all seasons. Wool or wool blends would also be lovely. I'd probably stay away from acrylic though unless it's really not going to be used much as acrylic tends to pill. Here it is...

Sweater Pillow Tutorial



To create the "fabric" for my pillow cover, I trimmed off the bottom of the sweater just below the armpit of the top. This gave me a nice rectangular piece the perfect size for a lumbar style pillow. If you have a longer sweater you may be able to make a larger square pillow. Work around your particular material.


After turning the panel inside out, I stitched one seam with a straight stitch and then again along the seam edges with a zig zag to make it secure and prevent raveling. Turn back right side out and insert your pillow form. I was lucky to get a nice edge on this sweater and so I just hand stitched it closed.


Here it is...the quick project that took half an hour to do and the hand stitching was done in front of the tv. I love fun quick projects and I love how cozy this pillow is. The solid neutral color just highlights it's beautiful texture. Doesn't it look great on this chair? Leather can be a little cool sometimes and I love how it cozied it up.


If this post inspires you to try out a sweater pillow, leave me a link and a comment. I'd love to see what you've created!

This post links up with Kimba's DIY day...



Have a beautifully creative day!

Julia

Canvas Pillow

It's been a while since I've done much sewing except for on paper. I hit the fabric store the other day and had so much fun picking out some new material for some home dec projects. I thought I'd ease back into the swing of things with super easy projects. That fits the pace of my life these days and they are so cozy for fall. I'm nesting.





Why stick with one idea when you can combine two into one? I've also been wanting to try out the Avery Iron On transfer sheets so I picked some of those up as well and went to work. Here's my fall-themed pillow...





Of course, being thankful is mindset that is perfect for all year long so I may just use it all the time. I've written a tutorial for every thing creative about this project here.

Have a beautiful day, Julia