Ready for Spring - You're Own Little Flower Box

Vintage craft magazines can be such great sources of inspiration! McCall's Needlework and Crafts magazine from 1967 is the source for this charming little project.

It's a trinket box, but what I like about it is the technique can be adapted to so many materials end uses. They suggest you use felt for the flowers and leaves, but you could also use different types and colors of paper, fabric, leather or even rolled fondant! Here's the template for the flowers:

Just right click, or command click on the image above and choose save to download them for your own use. You can resize them as needed in photo editing software.

I did a needlework project based in part on this idea. Instead of glue I used french knots to embroider the felt flowers to the surface. Here's the end result:

What would you do with this idea?

Faded Faux Finery - Vintage Artificial Flowers

I've always been enchanted by vintage artificial flowers. They have a subtle, faded beauty to them that has a very nostalgic quality.

These beautiful roses are made of cotton tinted pink. They have fuzzy chenille stems! These and the other that I have are called millinery flowers. They're made of paper or fabric, have flexible stems that were wire or bias tubing and were sold in dime stores for use in hat making and other crafts.

I was very lucky to run across a large stash of them years ago at a thrift shop. I snatched them up and stored them away for future use and we found the perfect opportunity for them in the Shower episode of my show.

We used them to create a charming party room for the fictional guest of honor for our shower.

The art department created a nosegays like these...

...to use for trimming the banquet table and decorating gifts.

They also trimmed up some darling decorative umbrella frames I had found at a thrift shop as well to use as a centerpiece.

These lovely little decorative objects can be found on eBay and Etsy. Search for "millinery flowers" and all sorts of options come up. Right after the war they were made in occupied Japan and some of the ones I have still bear that label. They're not outrageously expensive and are perfect for little accents in your craft projects. You can even find them new at floral supply houses, though I don't think they're quite as charming. Do you use artificial flowers in your crafting? If so, how do you use them? I'd love to see some pictures!

Trim and Tubing - A Match Made in Heaven

A few months ago I featured a craft project from Conso Trimming's 1001 Decorating Ideas Magazine. While leafing through another issue I came across this project which is reminiscent of both that project and the Mexican style terry cloth mirror from a few weeks ago. This project has so many possible applications and is such fun to make!

These columns are perfect for framing a window or doorway, but they can also be used as posts for a headboard, table legs or on a smaller scale as accents in a centerpiece or even candle holders! They're made with heavy weight paper tubing - the kind carpets are rolled on. You can usually get the carpet cores from carpet and rug stores, stop by and ask.

Once you've gotten your tubes, test them out for height. If you want them to be a specific length you may have to cut them down to fit. This can be done with a saw. This project is great if you have lots of trims left over from other projects. It doesn't take a lot of trim to encircle the tube. Keep in mind that if you want two tubes that match you need to have twice as much trim. The trimming used in the above picture is all about bright colors, but imagine how beautiful it would be done in monochromatic white or even all black!

Wrap your tubing with the trims and glue them in place with Aileen's Fast Grab Tacky Glue, then stand them up in place and you have an instant statement! As shown in the picture, when put at a window they can dramatically increase the height and add some drama to your architecture. I like the table leg idea also though. If you have a table with 4 ordinary legs just sheath the legs in the trimmed tubing for a festive touch for a Mexican dinner, or for good!

The sale continues on eBay. New listings go up tonight (7/21/10) at 9 eastern! Be sure and have a look!

Summer Fun With Terry

No, I don't mean Terry Bradshaw, or Terry Garr, or Tarrytown - This terry is cloth! Something about terry cloth just makes me think of summer. It's a great fabric for easy living and has had it's place in beach and poolside entertaining for many years.

While looking for a project for my post today, I was leafing through a McCall's 1968 You-Do-It Home Decorating magazine and came across some fun terry projects. One of them reminded me of a project we did on my television show - terry cloth pillows!

These pillows from the magazine are made with Pucci washcloths and tea towels and they said you could find them for between $2 and $5. Good luck with that. You can still find fun printed towels at thrift shops and bright solids, which can be found anywhere, can be fun too. The process to make them is super simple. Just stitch them together around all the edges with wrong sides together. If you're feeling ambitious you can make them a little more special by stitching them together with right sides in and putting a velvet welt in the seam as shown above. Leave a 5 - 6" opening at the bottom for stuffing and when stuffed, just stitch the opening up. You can stuff them with polyfill or if you'd like to be frugal, do what we did on the show and use old nylons that have been laundered. The nylons won't rot if they get wet by the pool.

Another charming project is a terry cloth tea cozy.

It's made from two printed washcloths and backed with batting and lightweight cotton. You can use an insulating fabric for more heat retention, if you prefer. Stitch around the pattern for a trapunto effect.

The piece de resistance of these projects from 1968 is the terry cloth covered mirror frame.

This one is a little more complicated. It's made up of 7 different brightly colored wash cloths that have been cut into rectangles and wrapped around a plywood frame. I just love how it looks, don't you?

You'll need:

7 washcloths, each in different bright colors
2 18" square pieces of 3/4" plywood
12 decorative nails with 3/4" heads
8 1 1/4" finishing nails
1 8x8" mirror
12 large head tacks
Aileen's tacky glue
18" of decorative chain to coordinate with your decorative nails
2 3/4" round head wood screws and washers

Draw lines 3" in from the edge of one of the plywood pieces and then cut out the resulting 12" hole. On the second piece draw a line 6" in and cut out the resulting 6" hole. On bottom frame, draw a line 2" in from edges. this designates where the fabric will end. Extend the inner edges of the cuts with lines drawn out to the outer edges of the bottom and top frames. On the top frame, draw lines bisecting the center of each side.

The corners of the bottom frame will take 4" squares of terry. The sides will take 6" squares. Mix and match your colors for a pleasing effect. It's best to plan the arrangement out in advance to avoid having colors overlap between the top and bottom frames. Cut the squares of terry out carefully making sure the edges are straight. The fabric is too thick to seam in place, so the raw edges will be exposed. Using the tacky glue, glue down the corners on the bottom frame first, following the guide lines you drew on the wood. Then move on to the edge pieces and carefully glue them down and wrap the edges around to the back of the frame. Set the bottom frame aside to dry and move on to the top frame. The corners of the top frame will be 6" squares, the edges of the bottom frame will be 6x8" pieces. Repeat the process of glueing the pieces down to the face of the frame, but only wrap the fabric around the inner opening edges, don't wrap the fabric around to the back on the outer edge.

After your glued frames have dried completely you can connect the two with the finishing nails. Nail the frames together in the four inside corners and on the seam lines between the fabrics along the edges. Keep the nails close to the edge. Turn the frames over and carefully wrap the loose edges of the top fabric around both layers of plywood and glue them in place. After they dry you can attach the decorative nails to the front at each inner seam edge covering the finishing nails used to hold the frames together. Place the mirror over the opening in the back and hold it in place with the large head tacks. The last step is to attach the chain using the round head screws and washers. Screw it into the back corners and hang your mirror!

Vicky Howell had a fun terry cloth project on her blog recently. Have a look at that one too!

Fun with Yarn - Tassels and Pompons

My trip to Denver was very successful! Over a hundred people had a wonderful time making tassels and pompons at the Denver Public Library. I think what's fun about the projects are they're easy to make and you see results so quickly. For those of you who weren't able to join us for the event in Denver, here's a short tutorial on how to make pompons.

Your first step is to choose a yarn that has some loft to it. The ball or cone should feel spongy or springy to the touch and have some give to it. Then you're going to choose something to wrap the yarn around. I chose a mini-DV tape box. The larger form you use, the more yarn you'll need to make the pompon fluffy. Wrap the form with the yarn until you have a nice bulky hank on it.

Next, slide the hank off the form and tie it tightly around the middle so you have loops on both side of the tie. It's important to use a strong yarn or string for tying your pompon. It has to be tied tightly and it puts a lot of pressure on the yarn.

 Once it's tied, cut the loops on both sides

And fluff out the pompon

It's going to look sort of lop-sided initially, so you'll need to give it a haircut to even it out. It makes a bit of a mess, so it's best to cut it over a plate or tray. Leave the tails from the tie on it to attach to your project.

My friend Marisa Pawelko is putting together an event for the Craft and Hobby Association summer trade show, CHA, to raise awareness of the delicate balance of the worlds oceans and has asked me to help by making two projects for it - one for the home and one to wear. Inspired by the pompon my friend Trish wore in her hair at the Denver event, I decided to make a pompon headband for the latter

...and a key tassel for the former.

If you'd like to learn how to make tassels have a look at this video on the subject from several years ago:

Pretty Little Package - Vintage Crafting Kits

Hi people! I love vintage craft kits. I have a nice little collection of them. They represent pure potential when they're in their uncompleted condition and I'm afraid I haven't tapped that potential in a lot of the ones I have. Here are a few of my favorites:

This one is so cute for a boys room! It's from Avon (who knew they made embroidery kits?), and it features antique cars on a linen ground.

It's unusual in that it's designed to hang as a strip from a simulated wood mount that's included in the kit. It's all about crewel work. I picked this one up at a thrift shop on Long Island years ago.

Here's another crewel kit. This one features flowers in a basket.

This one is unusual in a number of ways - the dark linen ground, the variety of stitches including the pompon centers and, perhaps most notably the three dimensional butterfly that's worked separately and then applied to the surface of the finished piece. This was an Etsy purchase.

This last one was quite an inspiration to me. It's a multi-media kit that features felt applique and embroidery.

I love the dimensional flowers made of felt and accented with french knots. Look at the little jeweled centers - so cute.
This was the basis for a kit I designed myself.

It's a felt applique kit with embroidered stems and leaves.

 I loved the idea of anchoring the felt flowers with french knots so that's how I designed the centers of the daisies. 

Vintage crafting kits are such fun to find and work. They hail from the past, so you can be reasonably assured that you won't find a lot of copies around. They can be found on Etsy and eBay, as well as at thrift shops and yard sales.

If you don't have the patience to go digging around for a vintage one, you can find my daisy kit in two different colorways on Etsy and in my Brini Maxwell Shop at Felix Populi. Do you like crafting with kits, or do you prefer to design your own projects?

Happy crafting!

Needlepoint - Not Just for Men Anymore!

Back in the 60's and 70's needlepoint was as popular as knitting is now. It was enjoyed by housewives, celebrities, free wheeling single girls like myself - even football players! And the interest in the medium made fertile ground for talented designers who created beautiful projects for themselves and others. It was such a popular hobby that books were published and magazines had countless features on the craft.

What I like about needlepoint is it can be easy or difficult, simple or complex. You can decide how involved you want to get in fancy stitches and shading, but simple projects can be equally as compelling.

This bandana pillow is a good example of simple. The design is easy to recreate. It's from one of my favorite needlepoint books from the 70's - Better Homes and Gardens Needlepoint, 1978.

Slightly more complex are these needlepoint flowers from the same book. The petals are each done individually, then wired and taped to a stem - such a pretty detail in a room!

Of course you can get as complex as you want to. Also from BH&G This freeform design breaks all the rules and is a lovely example of needleplay.

Our last Better Homes example is the beautiful kresh done in an abstract style. The detailed shading and elegant painterly quality of the faces is just lovely - so modern and sophisticated, yet still retaining a sense of humor.

Men took to needlepoint in the 70's, like they're taking to knitting now. There was quite a faction of male needlepointers, The most famous was perhaps Rosey Grier, the LA Giants tackle.

He loved the art and published a book all about it and the men who do it.

Here's Rosey with some of his projects

Another talented male needlepointer was Louis J. Gartner, Jr. He published a book in 1970 (Needlepoint Design, A House and Garden Book) that featured some of the beautifully detailed work he did.

This is a good example of his work. Notice the sense of depth he was able to achieve in a medium not unlike digital photography. Each stitch is like a pixel. Take note of how he uses the diagonal tent stitch (the basic stitch in needlepoint) to his advantage by lining them up to create a pin that holds objects on the wall. I particularly love the shadows cast in this still life.

Needlepoint is due for a revival. It's languished in the land of teddy bears and folk art long enough. If you're interested in the more creative side of needlepoint look on eBay or Amazon for the books mentioned above. I also have a few books on the art for sale on Etsy. Have a look at those too!

We did an episode on the art of needlepoint a few years back. Here it is again if you missed it:

Sartorial Splendor for the Mile High City

Hi People! You may remember my mentioning that I'll be going to Denver to do a demonstration for the Denver Public Library - a Tassel and Pompon-a-Thon. I'm really looking forward to it! Tickets go on sale tomorrow, for those of you who are in the area. Be sure and join me!

For the trip, I want to make myself a new suit. It's important to always look your best! I found a fun vintage hat a while back on Etsy and when it came I was inspired by it to put this outfit together.

The hat has a very peculiar texture to it. Here's a close up of it:

It reminded me of silk noil. Noil is a fabric that was popular in the 70's and 80's. It's made of the ends and scraps of silk fiber left over from making other types of silk and has a rough, nubbly texture and in the natural color, it has some flecks of brown in it.

It's a very nice weight for a suit and has a casual quality while still looking smart. I decided to use noil for my suit. Now this choice is "forward thinking" for the 1960's style I have selected to make to go with the hat, noil wasn't used regularly until the mid 70's, but that's fine. I've always been a trailblazer... I had some trouble finding silk noil in the market today. It's fallen out of fashion, I'm afraid. None of my favorite stores in the garment district stocked it in the colors I wanted. So, I turned to the internet. I eventually found it at a silk importer called Thai Silks. They have a wide variety of silk fabrics, and a nice collection of noils. They also have a 1/2 yard minimum, and their prices are very competitive. If you're looking for silk, it's a good source. (This is a genuine review of the company. I paid for my fabric purchase there)

The style I decided to make is a smart, boxy 60's suit. The jacket will be cut with a kimono sleeve. I looked for this pattern for quite a while. A kimono sleeve is cut in one with the body of the jacket, and I wanted a pattern that was fitted to the body with princess seams and an underarm seam. I eventually found it on eBay. I was lucky enough to find a pattern with the trimming detail I was looking for, so I didn't have to create it myself. The jacket will be cut in the natural color and trimmed with contrast piping in one of the colors. The sleeveless blouse will be made of the other color and trimmed in the natural. The skirt will be a simple straight skirt in the same natural as the jacket.

My first step is to make a muslin of the jacket, to make sure the pattern fits me well. Then I can cut and sew the fashion fabric. I'll be sure and check in with you to show you my progress in the coming weeks, and you'll see the final effect at my appearance in Denver - in person if you're in town, if not then in the subsequent video we shoot out there!

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Fashion A La Mode - Modes Royale Patterns

There's a lot of joy for me in the art and craft of sewing. I've been indulging in it quite a bit lately and have been buying not only vintage fabric, but vintage patterns as well. I've come across a brand that I hadn't heard of before, and it's become a mini-obsession. The brand is Modes Royale.

What's so wonderful about these patterns is the attention to detail. The styles frequently features 3 or 4 dressmaker details on one dress alone. Flaps, bound buttonhole slots through which scarves are threaded, peplums, odd shaped pockets, the creativity boggles the mind! I've been looking on eBay and Etsy for examples of them and recently came across some of the pattern books from the late 60's.

By that time, the brand had become somewhat more subdued than in it's heyday of the 40's and 50's, but there are a few fun styles in the catalogs that I thought I'd share with you.

One of my favorite styles is the shift. It just looks good on me, so I tend to make a lot of them. These two feature details that are common for the brand - slot seams and a flange on a side closing

Another shift with a dramatic keyhole back and attached scarf.

Here's a fun halter with a pert little collar.

I love this chic tunic with the low belt.

This little dropped waist number has port hole pockets!

I love a chic shirtwaist and this one has very nice lines.

Modes Royale patterns can be found on auction sites and if you're lucky in thrift shops. The more outrageous ones can be quite sought after by collectors and can fetch a pretty penny. If you're an experienced pattern maker, you can use the illustrations as inspiration for your own garments. If you're interested, MyFrockShop.com has a PDF file of several of the catalogs from the 40's and 50's. It's great resource material for the flashier garments of the period.

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Forget the Carpet, Does the Dress Match the Drapes?

Last week I featured a craft project from 1001 Decorating Ideas - the magazine from the 60's featuring Conso trimmings. As I was leafing through them looking for projects I came across some of the fashions they created. They're a little... Well, judge for yourself:

Swathed in mushroom ribbon, this chic model is just the thing for a casual lunch. Is that Maude Adams behind those enormous sunglasses?

Hit the courts in this snappy tennis outfit lovingly trimmed with tassel fringe in blue and green - note the matching racket cover and sock pompons...

What better way to greet your guests for alfresco dining than in this yellow brunch coat? What hostess doesn't want to match her pillows?

...Or her drapes? This middle eastern inspired hostess caftan is made of the same fabric and trimmings as her draperies. Just the thing for the woman who never knows what to wear.

For those nights when you have to play Juliet, what could be better than this stunning white Empire gown?

And where for art though Romeo? Right here! Note the matching trim on the shades. I have to say, I love the creativity involved here. Can you imagine the joy these stylists must have felt going into a room completely stocked with every kind of trim imaginable and being told to use as much of it as humanly possible in every project? Sometimes restraint is a good thing...