DIY Ornament Christmas Wreath

Recently, I've seen ornament wreaths everywhere.  I think they look so fun and festive, but I also like the traditional look of a greenery wreath.  So, I busted out the hot glue gun and came up with this great combo wreath.  It only took a few minutes to make, and then a few more minutes to make the bow, so it was a quick-and-easy project!

I took a box of cheap ornaments, and moved them around my pine wreath until I was happy with the color distribution, then hot-glued them on.  I pointed the ornaments in all different directions to get a fun, random look.

Then I made a bow with wire-edged ribbon and hot-glued it to the wreath.  I'm sure there is official ribbon-attaching wire that I was supposed to use, but I just went for it and hoped that my ribbon wouldn't melt.  It worked, I think it turned out awesome :)

-Lily

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Christmas Wreath Ribbon Bow Tutorial

Last week I was trying to make a wreath with one of those really big wreath bows on it, but I didn't know how to make one.  I couldn't find any good tutorials, so I came up with a super-easy way to make a ribbon bow.  You can also check out my tutorial for making the ornament wreath.

To make the bow, all you need is a 12 ft spool of 2 1/2" wire-edged ribbon. 

1.  Cut a 9 ft piece of ribbon and a 3 ft piece of ribbon.  Hold one end of the long piece and make a 4 or 5" loop.

2.  Make a 4 or 5" loop on the other side of your hand.  Your bow will be about 8-10" across, depending on how large you want it.  Wrap the ribbon around 4 more times, making sure that the end is in the back.

3.  Find the middle of the short piece of ribbon.  Fold it in thirds and wrap around the center of the bow.

4.  Tie the short piece in a knot at the back.  Arrange the ends so they are both on one side of the bow.  Trim the ends at an angle.

5.   Slightly fan out the loops of the bow, and you're done!
-Lily

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Nativity Markers for an Advent Calendar

 A few weeks ago I posted a tutorial for my advent calendar.  A few days ago, just in time for December, I finally finished it.  I decided to put a baby Jesus in the December 25th pocket and move the star each day--when the star reaches baby Jesus, it's Christmas!  Each night this month, we'll read part of the Nativity story with the kids, then move the star a little closer to Jesus and talk about how on Christmas we celebrate his birthday.

I put a piece of Velcro on the back of the baby and the front of the hay, so the kids can have fun laying him in the manger.

 Now I want to make a flannel board and a whole Nativity set like this, since they're so cute and I think the kids would love it.  But, I don't think I'll have the time before Christmas--maybe next year??

What you need:  I used felt for the front and an extra-heavy stabilizer for the back, so these shapes are pretty sturdy.  Hopefully they can withstand a one- and two-year-old.

•  Peltex sew-in ultra firm stabilizer
• scraps of felt
• embroidery floss

Let's get sewing:
1.  Cut out a manger shape, an oval, and a star from the peltex.  Use these as templates to cut out shapes from the felt: yellow star, brown manger, yellow straw, and a white oval.  Also, cut out a peach circle for the baby's face.

 2.  Pin or hold the peltex and felt together, then use embroidery floss to sew them together.  I used a blanket stitch around the edges with 2 strands of embroidery floss, but you can use more strands if you'd like more noticeable stitches.

3.  To attach the baby's face and the straw that overlaps the manger, I used a simple running stitch.  Then I added half-circles for Jesus' closed eyes, and a few lines of blue backstiches to look like he's swaddled.  Last, I attached the velcro to the manger and the back of the baby.

-Lily

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32 Upcycled Sweater Tutorials

I have several old sweaters sitting around in my closet, and I thought it would be fun to upcycle them into some cute handmade Christmas gifts.  Here's a round-up of the best tutorials I found!

Around the House:
1.  Flower Pillow
2. Christmas Stockings
3. Christmas Ornaments
4. Sweater Pumpkins
5. Recycled Rug 
6. Plastic Bag Holder 
7. Wine Bottle Cover 
8. Hot Water Bottle Cozy 
9. Felted Sweater Quilt

Kids:
1. Little Girl Leggings
2. Kid's Pants
3. Little Boy Cardigan
4. Owl Hat and Scarf
5. Little Man Sweater Vest
6. Baby Girl Dress
7. Kid's Jammies

Accessories:
1. Adult Hat (free pattern)
2. Sweater Bangles
3. No-Sew Hair Clip
4. Sweater Boots
5. Scarflette
6. Leg Warmers
7. Hooded Scarf
8. Earwarmer/Headwrap
9. Anthro-Inspired Scarf
10. Sweater-Sleeve Socks
11. Felted Bag
12. Mittens
13. Sweater Hat

Pets:
1. Dog Toys
2. No-Sew Dog Sweater
3. Pet Bed

Advent Calendar Tutorial

Sometimes, projects can sit around waaaay too long.  For example, I started this advent calendar last November...and I just finished it.  But, it's the end result that matters, right?  And it did turn out really cute, so I'm glad I didn't try to rush it.  Don't be alarmed, it's a pretty simple project.  About 98% of the time I took to finish it was spent procrastinating.  

Now all I have to do is make a felt marker to move from pocket to pocket.  Hopefully that doesn't take me until next Christmas!  (Update: Check out the tutorial for the felt star and baby Jesus markers I made)

What you need:

• 1 main fabric, 24 x 22 inches
• 1 backing fabric, 24 x 22 inches
• 1 piece of batting, 24 x 22 inches
• 4 pieces of fabric 8 x 8 inches, for the tabs.  I don't recommend a directional fabric, or you might have upside-down trees like me, oops.
• 5 pieces of white fabric, 9 x 20 inches, for the pockets
• Red felt
• White and green embroidery floss

Let's get sewing:  I used all-purpose white thread and a 1/2" seam allowance.

1.  First, make the pockets.  I decided it was a lot easier to make 5 long pockets and divide them with quilting lines, rather than sew on 25 separate pockets.  Fold your rectangles in half, right sides together, so that you have 4.5 x 20" rectangles.  Sew around the 3 open edges, leaving a 3" opening for turning.  Clip your corners (see pic) so they'll lay flat when turned out.

Turn out the pockets, press, and topstitch 1/8" and 1/4" away from the folded edge.

2.  Next, make the tabs.  Fold the squares in half, right sides together.  Sew along the open long side of the rectangle formed.  Turn out and press. 

3.  Place your backing and main fabrics right sides together, and place the batting on top.  Pin the the tabs along a short end.  Place between the main and backing fabrics, aligning the raw edges.  Place the two outer tabs 1" from the edge and leave about 2.5" between tabs.

Sew around all four edges, leaving a 5" opening in the bottom for turning.  Turn out, then topstitch 1/4" and 1/2" away from the edge.

Your calendar should now look like this:

4.  Cut out 40 1.5 x 2.5" rectangles from red felt, then cut out all the numbers by hand.  (I started with rectangles because it helped me keep the numbers a consistent size.)

5.  Lightly mark the pockets about every 3 3/4"--that's where the dividing lines for the pockets will be.  Use these lines to help center your numbers.

I couldn't decide whether to use white or green thread, a running or blanket stitch, so I used all of them to attach my numbers.  You can use your preferred hand stitch, or even attach the numbers by machine.  I used 2 strands of embroidery floss.

6.  Now attach your pockets to the calendar.  Note that in my pic, I don't have the numbers attached.  I added them after sewing the pockets to the calendar, which I think was a bad idea.  It was really hard to get my needle in and out behind the pocket without sewing through the main fabric.  If I did this again, I would attach the numbers first, then attach the pockets second.

Pin your pockets on the calendar and topstitch along three edges to attach, leaving the top of each pocket open. 

7.  Using your marks as a guide, topstitch about every 3 3/4" to form pockets.  I did this with hand-quilting, but you could also use a machine.

Have fun counting down and preparing for Christmas!
-Lily

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