Flowered Bag

 Hello! 

This month for my Gwen Studios project I created a flowered bag using their ribbons, buttons and iron-on patches.

Flowered Bag

To make this bag, you'll need the following:

A bag, canvas or burlap 

Gwen Studios 3/8" ribbon, pastel buttons, bee patches 

Hot glue, Felt Glue

The following are links to Walmart.  

Pastel Buttons

Solid and Polka Dot Grosgrain Ribbon

Bumble Bee Patches

Instructions:

For the flowers, choose your buttons.  Cut matching or contrasting ribbon in 3" pieces.  I used 8 per flower and hot-glued them to the back of the flower.

I added a smaller button in the center of the larger one.  

Arrange your flowers on the bag as desired.  Mark the stems with a fabric marker if you like.

For the stems and leaves, cut green grosgrain ribbon in the lengths to fit your design.  To adhere the ribbon to the bag, I used Felt Glue from Beacon Adhesives.  

Adhere the stems first aligning them with the bottom seam.  I tucked the ends of the ribbon into the seam.  If your bag doesn't have a seam, you could fold under the end of glue some buttons over the ends.

Hot glue the flowers over the ends of the stems.  Use felt glue to adhere the leaves.  I overlapped the leaves and tucked the ends into the seam.  I left the top of the leaves unglued.

To finish, glue the bumblebees among the flowers.

Valentine's Day Garland

 Hello Everyone!

This month I'm creating a Valentine's Garland for Gwen Studios using their ribbon and their new buttons.  It's a fun project that will brighten up your Valentine's Day. It's easy enough that everyone can make it.

You'll need:

A large sheet of stiff felt in red (Kunin Friendly Felt)

Gwen Studios Button Favorites in red and white

Tacky glue

Gwen Studios red and white Taffy Stripe ribbon

Cut the large sheet of felt (12" by 16") into 4 pieces (each 6" by 9").

On each piece, outline the letters for "LOVE" in white buttons.  I did this freehand, but you can make a pattern by writing out the letters to get the sizing as you like it.  I made the "O" in the shape of a heart.  My letters are about 3 1/2" high, but there's room to make them larger if you wish.

Glue down the first set of buttons along the letter.  After outlining the letters with white buttons, add a second layer with red and white buttons.  When you are satisfied with the look, glue these to the first layer.  

Cut eight 3" pieces of ribbon.  Fold each in half and glue the ends together.  Glue these loops on the top of the flags even with the sides and 1/2" down.

Cut a strip of ribbon about 8" long for each flag.  Glue this across the top and even with the top edge.  Fold the ends to the back and glue.

Cut two more 6"pieces of ribbon for each flag.  These will be crossed on the end of the flag as shown.  Mark the center of the bottom of the flag and cross the ribbons on that point.  Place the ribbons 2" above the corner and crossing at the center point.  Glue down and fold the ends to the back and glue.

Here are all the flags.  I was going to trim off the corners on the bottom to create a more pointed flag, but I decided I liked the look.  There are a long of possibilities for finishing the bottom edge.

Glue buttons in the top corners.

Here's the garland strung on a red bead strand.  You could use ribbon also.

Here are some links where you can find the materials I used. The buttons can be found at Walmart and the ribbon at Michaels.

Gwen Studios white buttons

Gwen Studios red buttons

Gwen Studios Red and White Grosgrain Ribbon

For more Valentine designs using Gwen Studios ribbon and buttons check out the Designer Crafts Connection blog.

I'm a member of the Gwen Studios design team and receive product (which I love and recommend) as part of my compensation.

Decorate with Ribbon Scraps

Hi Everyone!

It's less than a month until Christmas and time to decorate, send greetings and wrap some gifts!

It's a good time to use up some of my leftover ribbon scraps from the projects that I created this year, too! I can never throw them away. I put them in a baggie and save them for projects like this. 

 I started with some simple shapes that I cut from felt. This is stiff felt (Friendly Felt from Kunin), but you can use regular felt, too. Shapes like a stocking, a tree, an ornament or a gift are simple to cut out and decorate. If you need more shapes, use cookie cutters.

Besides felt shapes, you'll need:

Thick tacky glue or hot glue and glue gun

Ribbon scraps (Gwen Studios)

Tags, bags or blank cards

Backing fabric or paper

Glue the ribbon scraps onto the felt.  Use binder clips or clothespins to hold while they dry if using tacky glue.  Glue to your surface. or create a fun garland by tying them onto more ribbon.

Here's a gift bag that I created with a green square of felt, ribbon scraps, a chipboard word and a rectangle of cardstock.

Ribbon Scraps Gift Bag

Here's a card with felt trees, sparkly Gwen Studios trim, cardstock and a chipboard word. I cut strips from the wide trim at the bottom of the Gwen Studios trim and glued it on the trees.

Trim Scraps Card

It's easy to make ornaments or gift tags.  Here's a circle with three rows of ribbons across the red felt circle.  For this tag, I used double-sided tape, pressed on the silver ribbon and then the red/silver ribbon.  Press the ends down on the back and add a loop for hanging.  Cover the ends with another circle of felt.

Ribbon Scraps Tag

Don't have ribbon scraps? Look for Gwen Studios ribbon at your favorite craft retailer:  Joann's, Walmart, Michaels or Amazon.

Looking for more holiday ribbon ideas?  Go to the Designer Crafts Connection blog.

Happy Holidays!

Breaking News!!  Gwen Studios now has Buttons!

Gwen Studios Round Plastic Sewing Buttons Value Pack, Assorted Sizes, 1 LB, Solid Christmas Colors - Walmart.com

I can't wait to design some projects with these!  Of course, you can add them to any of the designs above.  As a member of the design team for Gwen Studios, I'll be receiving some soon.

Over the Rooftops

Hi Everyone!

 Just in time for Christmas crafting, Herrschners released a new design of mine.  Look for it in the plastic canvas section on Herrschners.com or click on the link below the frame.

Over the Rooftops

Happy Stitching!

Pinecone Turkey

 It's almost November and time to talk turkey! Or, make a turkey!

I love to make turkeys. They are fun and usually pretty silly things.  This one is no exception. 

Start with a clean pinecone. Lay it on your surface and see how it sits. Determine the head area and back of the turkey.

Cut pieces of ribbon 3-4" long. Fold each piece in half, add glue to the ends and insert between the scales starting at the back.

I used Gwen Studios brown burlap ribbon for the back row and pieces of grosgrain ribbon for the front row.

Glue wiggle eyes on the face. Paint or add ribbon for the beak. 

Silly turkey!

Schedule some family craft time and make a whole flock of these!

Look for Gwen Studios ribbon at Walmart, Michaels and Amazon.

Falling Leaves

Hi Folks!

 The feel of fall in the air - cooler nights, leaves turning color and flocks of birds preparing to fly to warmer climes.

It's one of my favorite times of year for decorating. I love the mix of colors! This year I'm making a fall leaf spray to hang on a door. 

I'm using stiff felt (Kunin Friendly Felt) and Gwen Studios ribbons. I'm cutting the leaves using my Sizzix Big Kick and a leaf die from Tim Holtz. If you don't have a leaf die, head outside and pick up a few leaves for patterns and cut them out freehand.

In order to make the flat leaves more dimensional, I folded them in half and sewed a line down the back.  If you don't have a sewing machine, hand stitching will work, too.

I used hot glue to tack the leaves together.  I cut a total of 24 leaves for this spray.

Then, I cut off the tails on one of the pre-made bows.  I undid the second one and added the length to make longer tails.  I also added lengths of grosgrain ribbon in red, yellow and brown and hot glued them to the back.

I added a hangar at the back of the bow.  I used a paper clip, but you can use a loop of narrow ribbon or string. Although I made a spray to hang, these look great as a centerpiece for your holiday table.  Intertwine the leaves with colorful ribbons.

You can find Gwen Studios ribbon at your local craft and hobby store (Joann's) or at Walmart or on Amazon.

Look for these ribbons:

Brown Plaid Burlap Ribbon

Grosgrain 3/8" Ribbon

Look for more fun ribbon ideas using Gwen Studios ribbons on the Designer Crafts Connection.

(I receive the Gwen Studios ribbons as part of the perks of being a member of the design team.  They have a wide variety of high-quality ribbons, which I am very pleased to use and recommend.)

New Designs from Herrschners

 Hi Plastic Canvas Stitchers!

Here are a couple of new designs in plastic canvas from Herrschners. Look for them under Plastic Canvas Kits.

Retro Recipe Box

Garden Greetings Gift Card Holders

I hope you enjoy these.  Happy stitching!