Shabby Sunflowers with Gwen Studios Ribbon

 Happy Fall!

Besides pumpkins, sunflowers are my favorite fall decoration.  Here are some Shabby Sunflowers made with Gwen Studios ribbon.  

Shabby Sunflowers

I like the look of raveled edges, so I thought I'd try that with the Gwen Studios grosgrain ribbon.  It worked!

To make a sunflower, you'll need:

Print cotton fabric for the center (5"square)

Sewing thread and needle

Small amount of stuffing

12" of 1 1/2" grosgrain ribbon in yellow or orange; 9" of 3/8" ribbon to match from Gwen Studios

Bamboo skewer

Green paint

2 1/2" terra cotta pot

Moss

Twine for bow

Buttons (your choice)

Felt in green or brown to cover back of flower

Hot glue and glue gun, scissors, paintbrush

Instructions:

Trace and cut a 4 1/2" circle from print fabric.  Sew a running stitch around the edge and gather.  Add a small amount of stuffing, pull up your threads and tie them in a knot.  Trim.

From 1 1/2" wide grosgrain ribbon, cut twelve 1" pieces.  Trim to a petal shape and fray the edges with your fingernail.  Make 12.

Paint the bamboo skewer green. Trim the skewers to the height you like.  I like to make them different heights.

Glue petals around back edge of fabric center.  Glue stick to back of flower.  Layer and glue buttons to center of flower.  Glue a circle of felt to cover back.  

Here are the sunflowers without the buttons, which I also like. Other options:  sew a button in the center to give it more dimension; add small buttons in a ring or randomly.

Glue narrow ribbon around top of pot.  Add stuffing to pot.  Push stick into the center and glue.  Glue moss over the stuffing.  

Tie a twine bow to the stem.

You can find Gwen Studios ribbon at Michaels and Walmart.

Fall Gingham Set in Plastic Canvas

 Hi everyone,

I'm ready for fall.  The weather has cooled and it might rain next week!  That will be very welcome here in dry California.

Here's a set that has just come out on the Herrschners website.  It's perfect to decorate your home for fall.

 Happy (almost) fall!

Floral Birdhouse with Gina K. Designs

 Hi everyone!

Today the designers on the Designer Crafts Connection are sharing their creations made with Gina K. Designs stamps and ephemera packs.  Each of us designers received these with which to design. Here's what I received:

I immediately fell in love with the Watercolor Floral Ephemera Pack, but I'm not much of a card maker, so I debated as to what to do.  

Then, I realized that they are the colors of my living room and I decided to make an accessory for that room.

I found a birdhouse in my stash, 

which I painted in pink and green.

I added some dark pink accents to this.  Then I decoupaged the ephemera to the birdhouse. I added a few Dew Drops for accents.

The ephemera worked very well for decoupage.  When adhering a motif around a corner, be sure to make a good crease before gluing.

I hope you like this idea for using ephemera.  For more Gina K projects at the Designer Crafts Connection blog.