Sewing

Even if you possess the most rudimentary sewing skills, this project will be a breeze for you. Just in time for the holidays, this is perhaps the simplest apron you'll ever make! Let the kids wear them for cookie making or wrap them up as gifts for all the wee ones in your life. Because you begin with a finished square napkin (mine was a 21" x 21" napkin from Pier One), there's no cutting out or turning under seams. It is a one size fits most children. I love this design because the apron covers the child all the way to the neck. Too often aprons hang down in front allowing food stuff to fall behind the apron defeating their purpose. This apron is really so fast to make, it will probably take you longer to read this tutorial than actually make the apron ;)

Start out by picking a spectacular napkin!

Then, pick a corner... any corner. Turn the corner down on a diagonal so the two sides of the triangle are 8" long. NOTE: If you get a woven napkin like mine, the front and back are both finished. If your napkin is finished on both sides, fold the corner so you have front sides of the fabric together. When the apron is done, you will see the decorative triangle. If the backside of the napkin is yucky, fold the corner so you have the back sides of the fabric together. When the apron is done, the triangle will be on the inside, unseen. 

You will be sewing a seam that will create a casing along the fold. This seam should be as wide as your neck ribbon plus a quarter inch. My neck ribbon was 1/2" X 28". I made my casing 3/4" wide. Make sure to reinforce the start and end of your seam so it doesn't come undone. NOTE: I made this apron using ribbon in my stash. If you are buying ribbon, I suggest you use grosgrain ribbon over satin ribbon. It holds its shape and stays tied better.

Using a safety pin, slide the ribbon through the casing. Center the ribbon so the ties are the same length.

To prevent the ribbon from coming out, sew a small perpendicular seam in the center of the casing.

To sew on the side ties, pin a ribbon to the back of a side corner, overlapping the back by 1". (I made each side tie with 1" x 24" ribbon.)

From the right side of the napkin, sew the ribbon to the apron. The seam should be close to the folded edges of the corner, and the seam should be as long as the ribbon. (The seam will be a right angle following the corner.) From the backside, trim the ribbon to prevent unraveling.

To prevent unraveling of all 4 ties, cut the ends on a diagonal.

And that's all there is to it! If you have a young sewer in your family, this is a great project for them. Now... running along and do some baking with the munchkins :)

The adage "necessity is the mother of invention" is never as obvious as when a parent is trying to fashion a toy for a child when traditional toys are unavailable. A hankie becomes a "pew doll", a piece of paper becomes an airplane or a "cooty catcher", and a handful of vines or flowers can be braided into a crown. Children are very good at creating their own toys, too. I read an article that said that most popular outside toy for a child is a STICK. Yep, just your garden variety, backyard stick. Think of the possibilities!

At one time, toys were a luxury to most children. Because of that, resourceful parents made toys from discarded items or items found in nature. Corn husks, straw and other plant fibers were often the basis for toys. Bits of fabric scraps and wood pieces were saved and fashioned into toys. Following that tradition, our dolls are made from raffia, which comes from the raffia palm, indigenous to Africa. Because raffia has very long fibers, it lends itself well to make dolls very similar to the yarn dolls we shared last year. I pulled fabric from my wee pieces stash bin. Although we are sharing our how-to, this is a very "ish" project. Follow our general directions, but delight in the fact that each and every doll will be unique.

Materials:
raffia
embroidery floss
calico scraps
large embroidery needle

Take raffia out of its wrapper and hang.

Find a lid or book for wrapping the height of the doll you wish to make. You can also cut a piece of cardboard to size. Mine is 7 1/2"

Cut off several strands of raffia, and holding it at the bottom of your lid, wrap the raffia around the lid. IMPORTANT: your ends must start and stop at the bottom of your lid. Continue wrapping strands until you are happy with the size.

Slip a thick piece of raffia under all the raffia loops at the top and tie tight and securely. This will be the top of the head. Leave the ends for now.


Using another piece of raffia, create the neck by wrapping raffia around the neck several times. Tie off the neck tight and secure. This should be about 1 1/2" from the top of the head. Thread one end of the raffia tie through a needle, and weave the ends through the neck a couple of times, and clip close to the neck.


Clip the bottom loops of the raffia.

To make the arms, again wrap raffia around your lid. The arms should be about half as thick as the body. Tie off the raffia about 1 1/2" from the bottom of the lid, and then cut through the loops at the bottom. This will give you a long rope of raffia, tied at one end.

Tape the tied end to a work surface, and braid the raffia. You will want your arms to be about 7 1/2". I find it easiest to braid farther, then tie off the end at 6 1/2" and cut through the braid at 7 1/2".




DON'T throw away your scraps! Simply take the raffia you cut off, secure it in the middle, weaving in the ends, and you have a corn stalk bundle! Also, save your little scraps. You can use these in other projects... you never know!

Separate the raffia on the body in two. Slip the braided arms between the divided raffia, and push up toward the neck. Now, tie off the waist like you did the neck.




At this point, weave in the ends on top of the head. (Not pictured.)

Any number of materials can be used for hair: dyed raffia, corn silk, yarn, etc. Staring at the forehead, tack on small amounts of hair using 6 strands of matching floss. (About 9" long.) Keep adding more strands around a center part until you get to the middle of the back of the head. Tie off. You can now "style" the dolls hair into a low ponytail, braids, a nape bun, or leave it flowing. I tied off mine to make a low ponytail. NOTE: If you would like a bun high on the head, tack on hair around the hairline instead of down the middle.


Using 6 strands of floss, add eyes and a mouth. I used straight stitches for the eyes. For the mouth, I used straight stitches, then wrapped the straight stitches several times. Your starting and finishing knots can be hidden on the back of the head.


If the bottom of the doll is uneven, clip the bottom a little to even it out. (Not pictured)

To make the bodice, ripe a piece of fabric 1" by about 15". (You can learn about ripping fabric HERE.)

Lay the piece behind the doll's neck. The wrong side of the fabric should be against the doll. Crisscross the fabric over the doll's chest. Turn the doll over and tie the ends. Clip off the extra fabric, by cutting on an angle or in Vs. 



To determine the size of the skirt, measure from the waist to the bottom of the doll. SUBTRACT 1". This will be the length. For the width, add about 3". (Remember, this is an "ish" thing :) Rip a rectangle of fabric to these measurements.

Along one long side of the fabric rectangle, sew a running stitch using 6 strands of floss. (Not pictured.) Gather the fabric around the waist and tie off securely. You can either work the ends in, or tie in a bow.


Tah dah... done :) Make one or make a whole village. I will share the directions for the boy later in the week.

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You know how we are always saying that our patterns are just a starting point? We encourage our readers to use them as is, but also want you to use your imagination to personalize our designs. Well... I hardly know what to say here, but I got this email from Bonnie, an avid WFA reader. It said:

Hi - Your bookmark/greeting card template gave me lots of ideas.  So far, I have come up with about 40.  Here is a sample of my imagination at play.  (If you are interested in seeing the rest, please let me know via email.  I do not have a blog, so I will have to send the pages one at a time.  I am on dial-up & don't know how to send more than one.  There are 13 pages.  Sorry.)  (((hugs))) Bonnie
This first "installment" was included in the email.

She included these 3 as her first installment.

1 - made from paint chips (you know - those paint samples?)
2 - made from scrapbook paper
3 - plastic canvas; 10-count, I think

Okay, I was impressed and told her we would love to see her other endeavors. Bless her heart, she sent scans of all her projects... through dial-up no less! Well, they were just too impressive for Michelle and my eyes only, so after getting her permission, we are including ALL her gnomes. I asked her to do a little write-up on what made her take this on as a challenge, and here is her reply:

Oh, thank you!  Well, what prompted my imagination...hmmmm..  For starters, I just love your gnome creations.  Your artistry really appeals to me & when I saw the gnome bookmark, I knew I had to play around with it.  Also, I like patterns & things to have multi-purposes.  Once I got into the mode, the ideas just kept coming & coming.  I would be working on one project & another one (or 2 or 3) would come to mind. I like to think outside the box by using different mediums & sometimes mixing them.  I call these gnomie ideas: A-gnomie-lies.  hahahahahaha  Now the gnomies have run their course, I am off to find other challenges.  Thank you for sharing your ideas, patterns & especially the gnomies.  (((hugs)))  Bonnie J.

So, for your viewing pleasure, I give you ALL of Bonnie's little creations. Remember, all of these were made using the pattern from our Gnome Bookmark and Greeting Card. The pattern can be found HERE and HERE.

These are made with Christmas cards.  The one on the left has a little trim.  The one on the right shows the inside of the card.  Could use any greeting card, birthday card, etc.

This is like a paper doll, only made from felt.  Changeable cloak, beard, braids, etc.  Could make any of the costumes featured on your site.

Santa & Elf.  The eyes are punched from paint chips.  I didn't get the bell for the tip of Santa's hat cause it wouldn't copy so well in the scanner.

Ghost & Woodland Fairy.  I love the colors of the fairy.

Taking the hat component & sometimes the head.
Ice cream cone - could also make a snowcone
watermelon slice
carrot
tussie-mussie - lace on top; flowers are punched from paint chips
candy corn

tree
slice of pizza
icicle - there is clear glitter glue on it but you can't see it
mushroom - my 10 yr. old grandson sewed the mushroom & I left his stitches just the way he did them
cornucopia - the fruits are paper punched; could use stickers, buttons, etc.
piece of pie - that white blob on top is sposed to be whipped topping.  the crust is 2 narrow stripes twisted together.
safety cone

These would make cute ornies, party favors, could be made from paper, etc.
clown
hillbilly
leprechaun - clover is paper punched
wizard - on his hat are gold sequins & silver stars; his hair & beard is fake fur

snowman
tomtem - Scandinavian elf
ghost
witch - that is a plastic spider dangling from her hat; hair is separated yarn
princess

ok; these are not perfect but they would make cute dolls or beanbags.

This is the original made so that 2 regular ones would fit on a page.  I made a finger puppet out of it.  Then I used the hat to make a clover & a shamrock from paint chips.

These are using mostly the little hat.  the center of the star is the head shape from the large one.
Kiss - XOXO is punched from paper & mounted on ribbon
angel - the wings are paper punched & the bow is gold ribbon

Large hat - party hat
paper hat
crownie - large head, small hat
fan
flower - large head for center
witch - large hat

Toppers - the large one could be for appetizers or in a bouquet; the smaller one for cupcakes, etc.
Halloween cone
megaphone - put high school initials on it, etc.
Boo banner

I cut 4 stencils from clear plastic, but I would rather have cut them from milk jug plastic.  this could be used on gift bags, a quilt block, etc.  It could also be cut out, sewn & stuffed for a soft doll.

This card will stand on its own when opened.  It could say any message: get well, happy birthday, etc.

This is the last of the gnomie things & by far, my personal fave.
Top left: doorknob hanger.  the leaf is paper punched.  the handle is yarn.  Tip: tie a knot in the ends of yarn, ribbon, etc., as they will grip the glue better & are less likely to pull out.
Top right: Santa hat; great for ornies, small gifts for guests, etc.
Bottom: Advent garland.  Numbers are paper punched, using Tim Holtz Carnivale die.  Candy canes are 4" pieces of red & white chenielle stems, twisted together.  Baker's twine bows (I just learned how to make my own - easy!)  Lollipop is a fabric yoyo on a twig stick.  (you can also use craft sticks, bamboo skewers, or a real paper lollipop stick.) 

So, there you have it. If you loved our little guys, I'm sure you can find plenty in this collection to your creative juices flowing. Thanks so much, Bonnie, for sharing with us. We really were awed and impressed!

This fall I will be teaching a knitting class at my children’s co-op. After typing up my syllabus for the class, it of course occurred to me that this would make an awesome series for Wee Folk Art. And then not only can I share my class with all of you, it will also double as a place for my students to get help between classes. So, if you have ever thought about learning to knit this is your chance. I will take you step by step through a variety of knitting skills to get you well on your way. I am designing each project in this series to focus on a specific skill set which means if you complete all the projects in order you will master all of the skills you need to start tackling knitting projects on your own. Ok, no more excuses. If you have ever wanted to pick up the needles but just haven’t found the time or someone to show you how, get ready to learn this fall.
 
On to the reason we are here today… I sent my mom a sketch and asked her to convert it into one of her lovely appliqué blocks to use as the button for our Newbie Knitting Series. How cute would this be on a knitting tote? Like all our blocks, it was designed to fit on a 6" x 6" block but can be reduced or enlarged to meet your needs. The pattern can be found HERE.

One note from Kimara: Before you begin stitching, pin or staple the pieces together, following the pattern, in the order listed on the pattern.

The other day my sister-in-law, Jennifer, gave me this "swell" (my daughter-in-law Meghan and I have decided to bring "swell" back into everyday use... it really is a "swell" word, but I digress!) Where was I, oh yes, Jennifer gave me this swell bottle top pincushion.
 
Isn't it cute as a bug's ear? I LOVE it. It is a perfect size for hand sewing and embroidery when you only need a few needles and pins. But it got me to thinking I needed a big pincushion for my sewing projects. Yes, I have several really cute pincushions, but to be quite honest, they are more cute than functional. So, I started on a quest to find a container that I could use to a larger pincushion. After hitting my recycling bin and tearing through my cupboards, I decided a tuna can would be perfect.

NOTE: Two very important things to remember when working with tuna cans. First... the edges can be razor sharp so be careful. After the can is buried under felt it will be fine, but while the edges are exposed, heads up! And next... tuna cans STINK! I actually opened a can of tuna just to get the can. (Not to fret, we ate it the next day :) I removed the label and washed the can thoroughly. The can was sitting on my crafting table while I was getting other supplies together and YIKES... it was ripe. I washed it again. Still smelly. Finally, I ran it through the dishwasher and at last it lost the tuna smell!

After your tuna can is stink free, you can get started :)

Materials:
Non smelly 7 ounce tuna can (see note above :)
wool or wool blend felt for bottom, side and top
embroidery floss
stuffing of choice
optional: dried lavender

If you haven't done so already, be sure to check out our tutorial on tips forCutting Out Felt.

Cut out the side (teal). (Don't cut out the bottom yet.) The side should be a strip 1 3/4" x 10 1/2". Note: I came up with the dimension by measuring the circumference of the can and using that as the length, then measuring the height of the can and adding an additional 1/8". Although I think most tuna cans are the same size, you might want to check because you want an exact fit.
Using a 7" plate, trace the plate on contrasting felt (lavender) and cut out. This will be the top. (Note: If you would like to make a mini pincushion, simply use the top of a soda bottle and scale everything else to size.)

There are two ways to embroider the side. You can either embroider it before you sew the side seams together or after. It is easier to embroider it flat, but if you have a design you want to run around the whole can, you will probably do that after. As for me... just learning... I did some before and some after. So... embroider if you want now, or wait until you sew the side together. (BTW... I will have a photo below explaining the stitches I used but go totally crazy with your embroidery. This is a wonderful time to try out new stitches. All of the stitches I used can be found in our Stitch Glossary, but if you want to be adventurous, visit this fabulous on-line stitching guide, HERE.)

Sew the side together using 2 strands of matching floss and an overcast stitch. (Note: After the seam was sewn together I added another yellow chain stitch linking the 2 sides together.)


Slide the band onto the tuna can. Place this on top of match felt (teal) and trace around the bottom. (You want to trace after the band has been added to the can so you get the correct dimension.) Cut out the felt.



Place quarter marks on the bottom and the sides using a disappearing marker.


From the outside (right sides) sew the bottom to the side using 2 strands of matching floss with an overcast stitch. Match quarter marks.

Slide the sleeve over the can, so the opening is not covered.

Using a running stitch and 2 strands of matching floss, sew a running stitch near the outer edge of the top circle.

Gather the stitch, adding stuffing, until it is the size of the inner can. When it is the right size, tie off the gathering, and stitch back and forth over the opening to hold the stuffing in place. (If should fit into the can snuggly.)

Stuff bottom of the can with stuffing or lavender. If using lavender, fill it about halfway. If using stuffing, stuff enough so that when it is compressed it fills half the can.

Place the top in the can so the opening is hidden and centered. If there are any gathers, smooth them out so they are evenly distributed around the can.

Using a blanket stitch and 6 strands of floss, sew the top to the edge of the bottom. Hide all starting and stopping threads inside the stuffing.

Embroider your pincushion any way you find pleasing. I just kept working up the side. Here are the stitches I used, but just have fun embroidering whatever you feel like:)

From bottom of can up:
Chain stitch - 6 strands of yellow floss
Running stitch - 6 strands of lavender floss (I wove it in and out of the chain stitch
Lazy Daisy stitch - 6 strands pink
French knot - 6 strands lavender in the middle of the pink flower
Blanket stitch - 3 strands yellow (used to sew the top to the bottom)
Chain stitch - 6 strands pink ( I made 2 rows, staggering the second row)
3 Detached Chain stitches - 6 strands yellow
Back stitch - 6 strands teal
Blanket stitch - 6 strands pink
Steam stitch - 6 strands yellow for circle and center spokes

Your pincushion is now ready to get busy and hold your pins and needles. They are so cute and there are so many beautiful stitches to try, you'll be eating tuna more often :)

BTW... don't you think these would make great Mothers' Day gifts?