Plaid Infinity Scarf | Tutorial | DIY | Handmade

I love this beautiful wool infinity scarf or cowl. It's very easy to make too; I've already made one this morning (in my mind).  I have some red silk and might make one to wear with my black velvet blazer for an upcoming affair. These would be great made from a light flowery fabric for dressing up spring outfits, especially on a chilly morning. One in a madras plaid would be fabulous too. I like the way this one looks on the headless mannequin. Happy sewing!

Tutorial from H is for Handmade.

DIY Boot Scraper

Here's a great winter project to get ready for the mud season that will be here before you know it. Check out The Project of the Week from MaryJanesFarm and make yourself one of these Boot Scrapers. 

Sailor's Knot Bracelet Tutorial

Why knot make a bracelet this weekend? Tutorial here. All you need is 3.5 yards of twine but please don't cut down the clothes line :-) Have fun. 

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Another Paper Snowflake Tutorial [Origami]

Garland made from origami paper, dental floss and tape.

So this is how it's done?

I really love the red snowflakes on brown paper tied with string.

Aren't these red snowflakes beautiful? I can't take credit for the photos or the instructions either. Head on over to How About Orange for all that.



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Paper Snowflakes Tutorial

Instructions via a YouTube Video.

Make some from tissue paper too.
It's so much easier to cut.

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How to Make Your Own Seed Tape | Tutorial DIY

I've spent quite a lot of time lately cleaning up all my bookmarks. I ran across this site I've been saving forever and it's the perfect time to post this wonderful tutorial since summer's over and there are tons of seeds to be saved. This is the ultimate recycling project that looks like a lot of fun.

"The intent of seed tape is to make planting easier when you have teeny tiny seeds that need to be planted just inches apart (like carrots and radishes). But it’s also fun for gifting flower seeds or giving away seeds you’ve collected from your own garden. And it’s a pretty simple and very kid-friendly project." How to Make Your Own Seed Tape

Don't forget this little seed planting rhyme:
"One for the fox, one for the crow, one to rot, and one to grow."

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2011 Calendar 12-Sided Geosphere | Free Download | 3-D Calendar with Tutorial

The photo above is the 2010 calendar. I haven't made one for 2011 yet. I am including pdf templates for both 2010 and 2011 at the end of this post.

This was my #1 most popular download last year. The 12-sided calendar is also known as a regular dodecahedron. The upcoming year (2011) will be my 4th year with one of these on my desk. It's pretty tricky to assemble - especially at the end when you feel you need another set of hands. Do all cutting, scoring, and folding first; then all you have to do is to remember to do NOVEMBER last. It is the only month that doesn't have any fold-over tabs. It is helpful to have a chopstick handy to poke inside to assist in securing anything that's not sticking or properly aligned. This prevents bending the paper. I used card stock and scored all the dotted lines with the sharp tip of a compass guided by a see-thru ruler. Cut out whole design before scoring and folding. Cut solid lines, score dotted lines. I also had to adjust the pdf to "fit to printable area" since without that correction some of the outside edges did not print on my printer. If this is your first attempt you might want to experiment first with regular paper before jumping to cardstock. I am publishing this super early this year in case you want to make some for holiday gifts. People love them and everybody needs one. You can't beat the price either. One sheet of paper, some glue and your time. The ultimate home-made present that will be used every day next year. Perfect!

HINT: Before you start scoring and folding you might want to use a highlighter to mark any dates that you need to remember such as birthdays, anniversaries, etc.

Download PDF 2011 Calendar Template here.
(showing MONDAY as the first day of the week)

Download PDF 2011 Calendar Template here.
(showing SUNDAY as the first day of the week)
I just learned how to make this adjustment.
Most American calendars show Sunday as the first day of the week.
I'm going to use this template to make my 2011 calendar.

Download PDF 2010 Calendar Template here.
(First day of week Monday)

I don't know if I can correctly call this origami because it requires glue.
I highly recommend YES Paste - Acid Free.
An $11 one-pint tub lasts forever.

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Buy or Make Your Own Seed-Bombs

Available from Anthropologie. See how the ones above are made here.

If you want to get down and dirty and make your own, watch this slideshow from The Los Angeles Times showing the step-by-step process of making seed bombs that gardeners-on-the-go can drop into the soil of barren, forlorn spots. I think these are so wonderful. You can be the Johnny Appleseed of wildflowers by throwing these around to beautify the urban landscape. I think I'll throw some around places where I never mow here at the cottage and see what happens.

Here is another pictorial tutorial from Instructables.




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Knitted Easter Chicks + Bunny Finger Puppets

Have you ever seen anything cuter than these knitted Easter chicks and eggs?

These bunny finger puppets would be fun to find in your Easter basket, wouldn't they? Pattern + directions here. Hoppy Easter!


Images from The Purl Bee


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Fabric Basket, Bin, Bucket Tutorials (Sewing)

Tutorial: Fabric Basket

No-interfacing Storage Basket Tutorial

Square-bottomed canvas bucket with TUTORIAL

Collapsible Storage Baskets

I have often admired some of these crafts on Etsy but have wanted to make my own. Now I can and so can you. Thank me later. The first one would be good for Easter. It's not necessary do do the little pieces sewn together if you have a nice print you want to use instead. I'm excited, aren't you?

Original source for these tutorials found @ How About Orange but some were no longer available or missing pages.




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Valentine To Make For The Teacher

We are expecting a snowstorm to hit overnight so I thought this would be the perfect time to show you this wonderful handmade Valentine. Gather all the supplies required while it is still clear outside so you can make some while you are snowed in. I saw this adorable mitten on a blog back in 2008. Luckily I was able to locate the link pretty easily. Thank you Google. Read all about it on a blog that no longer exists so I deleted the link. The red heart was created with a potato stamp and the mitten was crafted from old dictionary pages. I love the glassine envelope. I guess that determined the final size of the mitten cutout. You could also string some of these together to make a bunting to hang somewhere. Feel free to customize any way you want. Let me know if you have fun making these. Rosemary

Build An Igloo Tutorial With Video

It's snowing like crazy at my house and maybe at yours too. The family in the video decided to make an igloo for the kids and it turned out beautifully. They used plastic storage buckets from Ikea to form the blocks. Watch, be inspired, and build one. This will definitely be something these children will remember for the rest of their lives. Agreed? Read the article.






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Moss Chair Tutorial

Step by step instructions for making a Moss Chair. This is so beautiful. Be on the lookout for a good sturdy chair somebody put out at the curb so you can make one of these for your garden in the spring. I have an old adirondack chair that has seen better days. I think I'll repair it and make one of these in about 5 months. Those of you that are already in the "gardening zone" can make one right away. Isn't this a wonderful thing?

Grass chair outside the Hotel de Ville in Paris. I would imagine the same instructions would work for a grass chair too. Just push some dirt in the chicken wire and sprinkle grass seed.

Let me know if you make one! You could use a bench too.




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