Tassel Inspiration

 Having fun looking looking through old craft magazines and unearthing 'mythical treasure'....

Easy DIY for Kids - Castanets

We had so much fun making our very own castanets the other day.

We got our inspiration here but I've seen other versions on pinterest since.

 They're super easy to make and lots of fun to play with.

All you need for each castanet is a strip of fairly sturdy cardboard and two bottle caps. 

Recycling diy at its best!

It's really easy to replicate from the pictures but I'm including instructions -because some days you'd just rather follow instructions!

1. Cut a strip of cardboard to your required measurements (ours is just over 13cm by 4cm or just over 5 inches by 1.5 inches)

2. Fold the cardboard strip in half. 

If desired, you can decorate the cardboard: draw on it, paint it or do whatever you latest craft-crush dictates.

(Alternatively, you can leave this step for after the castanets have been completed.)

3. Now you want to glue the bottle caps onto the cardboard.

If your little crafters are very little, make sure they are gluing them on the inside of the folded cardboard piece. 

Put glue on the jagged edge of one bottle cap and place it on the edge of one end of the cardboard strip. If your cardboard is the thick kind you can press the bottle cap into the cardboard for a better grip.

Let it dry.

4. Glue the second bottle cap on the other end of the cardboard strip, in the same manner. Make sure that it is aligned with the first bottle cap. You want them to click together when you're done, so they have to be positioned to correspond.

Let the glue dry.

If you've left the decorating-your-castanets part for last, now is the time to go wild and have fun with it.

That's it!

They are finished and ready to play with!

Definately a minimum effort, maximum fun kids craft.

If you are looking for more fun craft inspiration, you can find lots on my Kids Crafts pinterest board.

Linked to:
Annemarie's Haakblog, Today's Creative Life

Natural Flower Dyeing

While browsing through Pinterest the other day, a bunch of images showing flower-dyed fabric caught my attention. This has been on my to-do list for a while, but as that list is pretty much endless, I have yet to make a dent in it and have yet to try flower-dyeing fabric.

I was so captivated by these images and their promise that I started a new Pinterest board with all kinds of natural dyeing techniques and methods.

milesoflightprints blog

 Above you can see just one of the many inspirational photos that piqued my interest.

milesoflightprints blog

Click on any photo to go to the link.

You will find more natural dyeing methods and techniques in my Dyeing Pinterest board.

How To Make Fabric Flowers - a DIY Tutorial

This is a picture tutorial on how to make your very own, easy but fabulously pretty fabric flowers. 

In three different versions.

Just follow the step by step instructions.

These are the three different versions of the flower:

The cut of your petals decides the resulting look.

 Step 1. To make one flower, cut at least 9 circles of fabric, all in the same size and give 8 of them the shape you prefer. (The 9th petal will be used as your base and you need that circular.)

Tip: The more petals you add, the fuller the resulting flower.

 A simple circle gives you this flower.

A simple circle cut with pinking shears gives you this flower.

A star shaped petal gives you this flower.

  Step 2: Take the circle of your fabric designated as the base. You will be sewing all the flower petals on this base, one by one as shown in the following pictures.

Tip: You can use any fabric of your choice for the base.

Choose the base according to your needs. 

For example, a thin fabric choice for the flower might need the base to be sturdier for a  better result.

Step 3. Fold all your petals in half and then in half again, until you get the folded 'quarter' petal shown in the pictures. 

(Four of these 'quarters', will make up one layer of petals.)

Step 4. Proceed to sew four of them onto the centre of your base -as shown in the pictures- one by one until they have filled the four quarters of your base circle.

I found that they are sewn on more symmetricaly if you sew the second petal  opposite the first petal.

Then continue sewing the third petal and fourth petals in the two gaps left by the previous two petals sewn opposite each other.

Step 5.When the first layer of petals is sewn on, you need to sew one more layer on top of that to complete your flower.

You do the same thing as in the previous layer of petals and sew four more folded petals on top.

Try to position them slightly rotated, by half a petal, over the original petals. 

This will discourage gaps in the finished flower.

If your fabric is a bit hard to handle or if this your very first flower, you might need the help of some pins keeping the lower layer of petals in order, ie out of your way....

When you sew in the very last of your petals, your flower will look something like this.

Congratulations!

You've done it!

Now you can use your lovely handmade flower in any number of ways.

You can make your very own fabric flower accessories, sashes, headbands,hair clips,  pins, brooches, shoe clips, wrist corsages, garlands, table decor -the sky's the limit really!

They make great last minute gifts too, as they are so easy to make.

I added a brooch back to these and made some spring gifts I needed in a pinch.

Last but not least, they also make great Mother's Day gifts. 

How can you beat flower keepsakes that will last and be cherished for a long time!

Especially if there are little hands involved in the making.

 This could be a great project to ease kids into sewing or if you want a more child-friendly version, you could use glue to secure the petals onto the base.

 Extra tips and notes:

The fabric I've used here is a vibrant coral synthetic fabric which doesn't fray. 
These would look great in felt or any non-fraying material but I've made them in natural cotton as well -which frays fatser than you can look at it- and I loved that look too.
Just decide what works for you and the rest is easy.

If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask in the comment section below and I'll get back to you.

Linked to:

Annemarie's Crochet Blog, I Heart Naptime, Homework, My Creative Space, Chase The Star