I have two close friends who have just bought their first house together and are having a party tonight. Since we are in full swing of the holiday season a pair of homemade stockings seemed fitting. I recycled 2 great sweaters and added matching red wool loops. I hope Santa stuffs these full!
Posted in decorations, design, DIY, entertaining, fabric, friends, gifts, giving, handmade, holiday, home, living spaces, maine, sewing, textiles
This past weekend I ventured into the fabric pile and started exploring. I began by recycling some old leather and creating the straps for a new bag design, next I pieced together the olive cotton canvas upper with the navy nylon bottom. I finished the tote off with a dark denim lining. Stay tuned for new additions popping up in the shop!
Today my lobster band necklace was featured on the lovely blog, Fore Front Fashion along with 2 other talented jewlers from Portland. Thank you Laura for the kind words!
I finished my sweater quilt this past weekend and it is now up in the shop! This quilt is crafted of beautiful upcycled wool and cotton sweater swatches. Ivory, creams and oatmeal with pops of light and charcoal grays result in a calming organic palette. The quilt has 100% cotton batting, is backed with 100% prewashed cotton indigo gray fabric, and has been finished with hand-sewn edges.
Perfect as a cozy throw on your couch or an additional layer on a twin bed this quilt is ideal for cool, crisp days.
One of my all time favorite blogs, mint posted my denim and chambray zippered pouch today! I am truly honored by Ellie’s post and thrilled to share it with you!
I am pleased to share with you all that my chambray and olive zippered pouch made it to the Etsy hompage yesterday in this beautiful etsy treasury by Alexandra. EKLUND GRIFFIN will be launching some very fun new product this holiday season! Stay tuned!!
here is a snap shot from the pumpkin carving party I hosted last week! Top to bottom: gold fish, kitty, moustache, squirrel, ms. pumpkin head, anchors away!
I hope you have fun and sugar filled holiday!
A little bit of this and a little bit of that…
1. I found this little guy on Pinterest and absolutley had to make him for the pumpkin carving party I hosted last week.
2. While out and about I found some great cobalt blue bulk lacing and knew immediately that I had to have it to spruce up my Bean boots! I love the pop!
3. Packed up and ready to go for our trip up to Bar Harbor this past weekend. But not before a quick pit stop in Rockland for a Peter Wolf concert! (4.)
5. A great anchor spotted while walking around Bar Harbor.
On another note I hope everyone within Sandy’s reach is safe and sound!
Posted in decorations, design, entertaining, fall, footwear, handmade, harvest, island, LL Bean, maine, photography, shoes, travel
Once a delicate layer of frost covers the landscape I unearth my wool blankets and quilts for cozy reading on the couch and toasty nights in bed. I have loved the incredible blankets from Swans Island for years and when the mercury dips it calls to mind their beautiful hand-woven collections. Handcrafted on the coast of Maine, Swans Island has been creating heirloom blankets since the early 1990’s. Their selection of blankets, throws, scarves and more make the crisp weather truly enjoyable. They also offer naturally dyed skeins of organic yarn for your own crafting purposes. Which is your favorite?
All photos from Swans Island website.
I love making decorations for any occasion and this past weekend I had the pleasure of crafting 55 feet of silver garland with a friend for a restaurant’s silver anniversary celebration! Below you will find a DIY tutorial on how to make your very own garland.
Materials: Tissue and Mylar paper, twine, rotary cutter, scissors, ruler, cutting mat, thread & sewing machine.
1. Select your desired tissue paper colors. Consider adding some metallic Mylar paper for extra shimmer!
2. First decide how full you want the garland. I layer 4 pieces of tissue folded in half for mine (so the end product is 8 sheets thick), but you can do more or less. Next take your layers of tissue folded in half and with a ruler, cut your desired widths perpendicular from the fold. I vary the widths for visual interest. Continue until you have all your pieces ready to sew into your garland.
3. Now take one of your sections and place the twine against the fold in the middle of the tissue sheets. Measure about 12 inches in from the end of the twine and tie a knot to keep the paper from sliding; this will also leave enough twine to hang the garland. Set your first tissue section next to the knot and begin to sew your garland. Keep the needle set just to the left of the paper edge to allow enough space for the twine to fit. I also find it helpful to set my stitch size to the largest setting.
4. When you have completed your first section, make sure your needle is in the down position and lift your foot to add your next tissue paper section. You will repeat this process until your garland is the desired length. While sewing, think about alternating paper colors and maybe switching between tissue and Mylar. Note: I keep the ball of twine in my lap so I do not run out while I am sewing. I cut it after I have finished the garland.
5. This is what your garland will start to look like as you add more sections of folded tissue to your twine.
6. Once you have finished attaching all of your tissue sections to the twine use a ruler and rotary cutter to make the tassels. Make sure you leave a inch or so at the top so that you do not cut your twine. The rotary cutter makes this process a breeze! The first garland I made I used scissors and it took much longer to cut out, but it still works.
7. Depending on your chosen length, the cut portion may need to run onto the floor as you move through to the end. Despite being made of tissue paper, the garland is stronger than you might think. It will hold together!
8. Abbie shows off our progress!
9. Go forth and decorate happily!
Posted in crafts, decorations, design, DIY, entertaining, handmade, metallic, photography, sewing, silver, Uncategorized
