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.

Go green this Christmas

Go green this Christmas and make your own gift bag rather than use wrapping paper that will be ripped and thrown away.

Anyway, if you haven't noticed how I make stuff by now, I'm winging this. That's why there are no specific measurements. This also means that you can make it any size you like as long as you know the ratios and what to look out for.

Material

• 4 pieces of fabric - outer (1pc), lining (pc), top (2pcs) - the outer and lining are large rectangles, twice the size of your final bag when you fold breadthwise, meaning breadth meets breadth and length is halved. The top parts are as long as when the outer is folded half, as wide as 4 times the cords / ribbons you're going to use. Please remember to include sufficient allowance for sewing.
• cord or ribbon for drawstring top
• bells, charms (optional)
• label (optional)

Method

1. Prepare the materials above
2. Fold in the breadths of the top pieces and sew near the edge. This is so that the ends won't fray. See yellow arrow.
3. Take the lining and fold half breadthwise (breadth meets breadth) and crease it along the length. See red arrow. Fold both top pieces into half lengthwise (length meets length) and place them along the edge of the lining, one on each side of the half where you just creased. All frayed edges need to be aligned.
4. Place the outer piece on top so that you have a sandwich. Bottom - lining, middle - top piece folded half lengthwise, top - outer piece. Sew along the frayed edge of this 'sandwich'.
5. Open the 'sandwich' and top-stitch near the edge. See red arrow. You may wish to add a label at this time.
6. If you want squared off corners, open them up and fold them 45-degrees across. Think tetra packs or milk cartons. Same concept. Trim off the excess. See red arrow.
7. Fold the whole thing such that the outer is folded half on itself, and ditto the lining. Sew round the 3 edges. Remember to leave an opening for turning. Trim the part where the outer and lining meets. See red arrow.
8. Turn it proper way out and sew the hole closed. Cut 2 pieces of cord or ribbon. These will be longer than the length of the outer or lining. Thread one through one of the top pieces and out  the other and knot it. Thread the other through the other end and knot it. Add charms or bells, if you like.

Have fun!

Tutorial - Elastic hair tie with fabric covered button

1. Gather your items for making the fabric covered button - lime green cardboard disc for measurement of fabric circle to cut out, clear plastic mould, green pusher, button cap and bottom, fabric circle (already cut in this case. A note about cutting the fabric that you'll want to centre the cardboard disc so that the picture you want is centred.

2. You'll need the mould, fabric circle and button cap.

3. Place the fabric in the mould and the cap on top and press down.

4. Fold the edges in neatly. Press tightly.

5. Flip over to check that the picture is as desired, else redo steps 3 and 4.

6. Place the button bottom on top of the folds like in step 4.

7. Press the pusher on top till you feel the button bottom click into the cap.

8. Pop the fabric covered button out of the mould.

9. Gather elastic, needle and thread. If your elastic in a long strip, tie a knot first so you have a loop.

10. Thread the needle through the loop of the button bottom, through the elastic loop and back through the loop of the button bottom.

11. Pull just a bit of elastic through.

12. Remove the needle and thread and thread the larger loop of the elastic through the smaller loop and pull tight.

Email me if you get stuck at any of the steps.

Have a blessed day!

Brights!

We were sorting out our zips, trying to sort them into colour zones but there were some that stood out. DD asked for a coin purse made from them. The camera can't represent the colours properly and the colour of these zips are really bright. 

Make your own...

Choose 5 8" zips.

Sew them together lengthwise (I chose to sew them alternately head to tail)

Half them and sew the edge (pink and purple in this case)

Sew the other edge close. You might want to hand-sew the open ends together first.

Flip it inside out.

Voila!

Have a blessed day!

Cheapest clutch ever?

Few NDPs ago, I ripped out the velcro from the funpack. I can't remember which year it was, perhaps the 40th? The one with the Crumpler-like sling bag that had a velcro flap that you could rip off and exchange with another person for a different colour. That was how I ended up with brightly coloured velcro and that was when I realised that velcro can't be recycled for 2 reasons. The sides have too many holes pierced through the plastic and the furry bits get too furry to stick well.

Sadly, it was with this recycled velcro that I used in DD's earlier clutch. After constant heavy-duty use by her, it started to give way and she was asking for replacement of the velcro. Hmm. To do that, I'll have to find the hole that was hand-sewn, unpick it, flip it inside out, remove the flap or rather take it apart and the body too. That's just to get to the velcro. It's almost like making a new clutch.

So, in the meantime, I made this, while I contemplated replacing the velcro.

This is really simple and you can DIY.

Materials

2 pieces of felt from Daiso. I used lime green on the outside and forest green on the inside.

strip of velcro

Cut out 2 rectangle pieces of felt enough to fold over and cover the contents of your clutch. DD's is A4 papers so I used a stack as a guide. The Daiso felt is 60cm x 70cm so I just used 70cm for the length.

Sew on the velcro and then the top of the inside.

Sew the side and flap and then down the other side.

Blanket-stitch.

Have fun!

Tutorial : Flexframe pouch

Have you been to Daiso? I'm not a regular but I'm a fan. Since everything's $2, it's easy to get carried away and buy stuff that I don't need. Like the printed ribbon below and the flexframe. Again, I don't remember when I bought these so I can't tell you if they are still available at Daiso. You could always try :-)

So, with these 2, I decided to make this into a tutorial, as a giveback for those times when I've learnt how to sew from others'  blogs, LOL! Do email me if the instructions are not clear.

 I used 3 different fabrics - plain green for the exterior, checks for the top and florals for the lining. Cotton Ribbon and Spring Frame from Daiso.

 And made this.

 Which opens like this.

 Cut 1 piece for exterior, 1 for lining and 2 smaller for the top. I didn't measure 'cos I'm not using a pattern. Estimate using the spring frame, as in, the width of the top (checked fabric) is about a third longer than the length of the spring frame.

 I quilted the exterior fabric and sewed on the cotton ribbon. You can omit this if you wish.

 Fold in the sides of the top pieces twice and sew the edges.

 Fold the sewn top pieces in half and sew with the edges facing top of the exterior piece.

 Place the lining on top and sew together. Open up and top-stitch it down like this.

 Fold the whole piece in half (exterior to exterior, interior to interior) and sew all 3 sides. One side would be the folded side. Remember to leave a gap for flipping the pouch right side out.

 Square the corners and sew. Think tetra pack drinks.

Flip the pouch right side out, sew the gap close and attach the spring frame. Instructions would be with the spring frame packaging.

Have fun!

Tutorial : Round bottom crochet tote

I completed this at the NUS bazaar yesterday, in between sales. Made from Lion Cotton that I found at home that I cannot remember when I bought. I thought I'd share how to make this with you 'cos I've had some queries but the thing is, I don't have a pattern. I crochet on the go so if you have any doubts about this pattern, send me an email and I'll try to paraphrase. The assumption is that you know the basics of crochet. Else, I suggest you pick up some books from the library like how I learnt or watch youtube :-)

ch - chain stitch

sc - single crochet

hdc - half double crochet

dc - double crochet

Summary : This base is 10 concentric circles followed by a sc and then hdc's till the desired height is achieved and then the rounded handles are made.

Base

Round 1: Make a loop, 2ch then 15dc. Pull loop to close gap. Total 16 stitches.

Round 2 : 2ch, 2dc into next hole, (1 dc then 2dc)*repeat till end. Total 24 stitches.

Round 3 : 2ch, dc, 2dc into next hole, (2dc then 2dc)*repeat till end. You'll realise that you've been increasing stitches above the previous row's increased stitch. Continue like this till Round 10.

Side

Sc then hdc till desired height is achieved.

Handles

Turn work to back and sc 9 sts back and forth for 4 rows. On 5th row, instead of flipping work, join other side to make a round and continue like this till desired length of handle achieved. Turn work over and sc back and forth for 4 rows and sc onto the side of the tote. Sc along the rim till location of next handle and repeat. Cut yarn and weave in.

Enjoy!

Try something new : Birthday card candy box

I don't get many greeting cards today. Well, not the physical card type. In this day and age, either the cards are electronic or scrapbook type. I much prefer the scrapbook type :-)
Anyway, when you do get a birthday card, or a condominium project launch card, credit card marketing event card etc, try making this today.

Equipment used: cutting mat, metal ruler, penknife, awl, double-side tape and the card, of course :-)

1. Cut the card in two down the fold.
2. Score a margin round the rectangle using the awl (or any sharp object like a fork). I used 3cm (3 squares on the cutting mat).
3. Cut 4 slits at the corners at both ends of the card and crease all scored lines.
4. Stick the flaps together using double-side tape (or glue. Tape is faster and less of a mess).
5. Do the same with the cover but have a smaller margin. I used slightly less than 3 squares this time.
6. Repeat steps 3 and 4 for the cover.
7. Fill with candy and voila!

Have a blessed day!

Christmas mood

I like Christmas. It’s a time for family and friends, fun and laughter, lots of food. It’s a time to reflect on the year, to be thankful for everything that has happened. It’s also a time to prepare for the new year.

DD’s looking forward to honey baked ham. I think we’ll have glazed honey pork ribs too. DS would prefer the ribs. I used to like roast beef but it wasn’t easy getting the meat just right.

Maybe we’ll catch the lights at Orchard road this year on the front seat of a double deck, like we planned for years. We’ll go kettling, for sure. DS’ looking forward to the free flow sugared and carbonated drinks with his hot dog.

Made this on a whim. It’s pretty simple and you can make it too. Have fun!

Sew 2 triangles with interfacing on the inside. I used the thickest interfacing I had so this is sturdy and can stand on its own. Place 1 triangle on top of the other, flat sides together and sew down the middle. That way, it’ll become a 4-part tree. Sew on some buttons and thread some beads for the garland. I added a string at the top so I can hang this. DD has claimed this though.

Have a blessed Christmas :-)!

Tutorial: ‎7-hole saddle stitched notebook with tie inside

1. cut pages and cover to desired size
2. poke 7 holes (doesn't need to be uniform distance apart)
3. thread needle as follows: in/out d, out/in c, in/out b, out/in a, in/out b, out/in c, IN/OUT e, out/in f, in/out g, out/in f, in/out e, out/in d where in/out means from inside to out
4. tie and trim .... and you're done :-)