It's been a while...

Look what DS and DD did!

We've been in the braided suede phase for a few weeks now. Mostly making bracelets but I ended up with a few strips with colours that didn't quite go together. T'was only when I chanced upon a pack of large bells at Daiso that I decided to make these. I simply thread 2 strips through the bell's hole and did a 4-way round braid.

DS and DD came home one day and while waiting to get in, went on a challenge - to get the bell as high as it would go by hitting the bell so that the strap would wrap round and round.

DS started with the rightmost 2 - his first try was very good and his second was just a bit longer.

DD started from the middle and worked left.

First try :-(

Second try was worse :-(

Third try was ... well, as you can see, she won!

LOL!

ps: I've not been updating the blog diligently :-( There're lots more pics on Facebook for recent activities. Check them out!

Clearance sale now on on Facebook

I'll be taking on something new from next year for 3 years. It's something I've been looking forward to though I'm still waiting for final confirmation that it's on. It's going to take up most of my time so I'll have less time to craft :-(

I'll still craft though, but I won't be taking any more customised orders.

I'm clearing on-hand stock now on Facebook, selling some items almost at cost.

Check them out!

Shades of purple

Purple seems to be the new black. I get more and more requests for purple items. It's a pretty colour, my mum likes it too. Her favourite colour.

Double-wrap 7-strand suede bracelet with a Love charm.

Have a blessed day!

Starry, starry night

These two emerald green acrylic stars are double-sided and light so they'll not weigh down the dust plug. I only have these two stars and 1 green tassel so it's really OOAK. I might go look for other colours of the stars since they're so big and pretty :-)

Made a bunch of these keychains with 4-strand suede braids and charms. I like the leftmost the most. Christmas colours :-)

The braid and charm are attached via lobster hooks so you can detach and attach to a dust plug or shepherd's hook bookmark.

Have a blessed day!

Afternote: made some in gold :-)

Tassels and charms

Made some bracelets and dust plugs and added charms and tassels.

Have a blessed day!

Afternote: made one more

Point of view

Everyone's entitled to their own opinions despite hearing or reading or even seeing the same things. One man's meat is another man's poison?

I'm musing 'cos there'll be some changes coming. It's not confirmed yet though, but it'll affect BunnyBags. I'm also considering narrowing the range of items I craft for sale and also how they'll be sold.

It's been more than 2 years since I started this. Since then I've lost count of what I've made and sold. I've also forgotten to take pics of them too. I hope many of these items are still in use today. I know DS and DD's items are, many of which are more than 2 years old 'cos I started out making stuff for them.

Random musings aside, I'm still crafting :-)

These are the before and after views of single-wrap 4-strand braided suede bracelets.  

And this is an amazing crystal dust plug. Swarovski elements, the shop said. The shine or bling factor is very high and I don't know how to take a decent pic to show the many faceted capture of light. It's clear when lying on its side but look at it top-down and a burst of colour shoots forth. DD and I were playing with this at the shop. I'll make hers soon :-)

Have a blessed day!

Afternote: made DD's with her choice of size of the Swarovski element which is the largest one I bought. Even the lady at the shop commented that it's a bit big for a dust plug, LOL! I won't take a pic. It's just like this one, but a bit bigger. She chose the multi-coloured one, not the clear one. Bling bling!

Starlight

I said, "Oh my, what a marvelous tune"

It was the best night, never would forget how we moved.

The whole place was dressed to the nines,

And we were dancing, dancing

Like we're made of starlight

Like we're made of starlight

This bling charm reminds me of that song from Taylor Swift's latest album. It's attached via a Byzantine chainmaille weave with a grass green suede tassel on another chain.

Have a blessed day!

Afternote:
Made another one.

Suede straps

Made these suede straps on a whim. The suede was meant for braided cuffs but I took some and trimmed it and made into these straps. In the past, the detachable straps I've made were always from the same fabric as the main body. This suede strap is therefore a stark contrast. I like it anyway :-)

All have a swivel hook to attach to any pouch that has a D-ring.

Have a blessed day!

Tutorial - braiding suede

Braid your own suede bracelet in Christmas colours!

Click on the picture to enlarge it.

Material

12" strips of suede (8pcs)

1" ribbon end (2pcs)

jump rings

lobster hook

Method

Crossing means going under if the one next to it is over, over if it's under.

1. Arrange the strips in the colour sequence of your choice. I used a hair clip to hold everything in place.

2. Clamp on a ribbon end.

3. Cross 5 over 4

4. Cross 3 over 5

5. Cross 6 over 4 and 3

6. Cross 2 over 5 and 6

7. Cross 7 over 4, 3 and 2

8. Cross 1 over 5, 6 and 7

9. Cross 8 over 4,3,2 and 1

10. Cross 5 over 6, 7 and 8

11. Cross 4 over 5, 1, 2 and 3

Repeat steps 10 and 11 with the rightmost and leftmost strips till desired length, cut ends and clamp. Add jump rings and lobster hook.

Have a blessed day!

ps: The finished bracelet was made from a different sequence of colours, not the one shown in the steps. The final bracelet will vary based on the colours you choose and the sequence you arrange the strips. Plain one added for your reference.

In another colour

This reminds me of maple syrup, of pancakes and caramel corn. :-)

I like the simplicity of this bracelet. It wasn't easy at the start but once you get the hang of it, it's rather simple to braid it.

Have a blessed day!

Colour combinations

I didn't think these would go together but these 2 colours were what DD requested. Six braided green and brown. After braiding it like that (3 consecutive green, 3 consecutive brown), it seems quite pleasant. I might try another that is green, brown alternates. I might try an 8-braid, or a 10? I think it's the same method as the 6. I'll need to find the corresponding ribbon ends first though.

 

Remember the top-most gift bag? I used it for the tutorial. Made some more out of Christmas colours. 

Would you have guessed that all these came from a single piece of cloth? It's those 'cheater' patchwork types. The sizes are just nice for these 27mm buttons. Dual loops elastic hair ties.

I just remembered that I'm supposed to update the Pre-Christmas Sale 2012 page with these than post here.

Oh well.

Have a blessed day!

More kits

These 3 are available as a kit. I've just posted them up on Facebook. Found 3 double-sided heart charms to go with them too :-)

These are 3-braid single wrap ones. I don't have other colours at the moment nor others long enough for double-wrap.

It seems that

3-braid, single wrap needs 1 yard,

3-braid, double wrap needs 2 yards,

6-braid, single wrap needs 2 yards and

6-braid, double wrap needs 4 yards.

Anyway, have fun with these :-)

Afternote: I forgot to include instructions (no picture tutorial at the moment)

1. Cut the yard of suede into 3 equal strips. At 12" and even with braiding, this should be long enough for most wrists.

2. Clamp 3 ends with the ribbon end with a pair of pliers. It doesn't matter which end you use, lobster hook or heart charm.

3. Braid

4. When it's long enough, cut and clamp.

Three suede cuffs ready for braiding (18cm, 20cm, 20cm). Affixed with antique bronze rose snap. Make your own following the tutorial I learnt from here.

Have a blessed day!

Braids

Three and six braided suede bracelets. I've yet to attach the lobster hooks and jump rings. There are some other colours that I've yet to make, pinks and purples etc. Two yards are needed for the 6-braided else 3-braided but double-wrap ones. I think I only have 5 2-yard suede strips. There's also the issue of the ribbon ends. I suppose I can sew suede ends so that I can fix a snap onto them but, not now. Not yet, at least? A shipment of delicious fabric arrived yesterday. We were almost home from the iLove Singapore Walk (were you there?) when I saw the Speedpost van. My first thought was, why is it here on a Saturday? My second thought was, what if it's my shipment? We ran to catch the delivery man and lo and behold! It was for us.

Talk about just in time :-)

Have a blessed Sunday!

Green suede bracelets

Braided these two green suede bracelets and crimped the ends with ribbon ends (or what do you call these?). The fixed length one I used a stainless steel lobster hook and rhodium-plated jump rings but the other I used ribbon ends that came with the extension chain. I prefer the extension chain 'cos of the tiny heart but I can't remember where I bought these from :-(

These are so fun to make that I think I'll go back and buy other colours.

Have a blessed day!

Do you like puzzles?

This suede bracelet was made from a single piece of suede. Not 3, not more. Just one. It looked simple enough yet I struggled with it for a while. It's fun so I think I'll make more :-)

I finally started using the antique bronze rose snaps. The one that the supplier shipped only 1 part out of 4 parts of each snap and had to re-ship, LOL!

Have a blessed and very breezy evening.

Afternote: made another one (actually 2 but only 1 pic)

How big is your phone?

In this day and age, the phones are getting larger. What a far cry from the time when I was using my trusty Nokia e61i which was ahead of its time. It was larger than most candy bars or clamshells. Thick too, that some would laugh when I put it to my ear and use it like a super wide candy bar. Well, the phones these days are much larger :-)

Made from a suede-like material and lined with microfibre. Velcro closure 'cos no magnets. Belt loop at the back.

Have a blessed day!