Showing posts with label DIY. Show all posts
Showing posts with label DIY. Show all posts

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Pretty in Pink. A DIY.

Hello! This week's post is brought to you by creative Kristen. It's been a while since she's appeared in life, but it's good of her to show up for a little while, wouldn't you say?

I started searching for a make up brush roll, mostly because I want to keep my brushes in good shape. The ones I came across all seemed to be too industrial looking. Black...pleather...ugly. Make up is supposed to enhance beauty, so shouldn't a make up brush roll be beautiful? Obviously the make-up-brush-roll-makers haven't done the math.

After digging through some craft supplies, I skeptically started to sew. And it turned out! Here's how I did it.
 Time frame:
Amateurs like me: about 1.5 hours
Pro's: 2.5 minutes


You'll need: 2 colours of fabric (or one. If you're feeling monotone), a plastic sheet protector (or any kind of thin plastic), a sewing machine, stamps (optional), 2 pieces of ribbon, and the tallest items you'll be putting in your roll. 


1. Iron your fabric. See that wrinkly fabric in the first photo? Not nice. 

2. If you've chosen a solid colour for the inside, and wish to stamp it, go for it! I used my new camera stamp from The Plaid Barn (thanks sis!).


3. Cut 3 pieces of fabric, 2 the same size (inside - printed fabric, and outside of your roll), and 1 piece for the pocket (same width, about half the height. Use your brushes to see how tall this piece should be). I chose my outside to be pink, and the pocket to be pink. I didn't measure here, just did some official sewing lady guesswork. 

4. Hem the side edges, and the top edge of your pocket piece of fabric. 

5. Sew the plastic sheet to your inside fabric. This is to protect that lovely printed fabric from getting full of make up dust. My plastic wasn't quite big enough to cover the entire thing, but it works just fine. 

6. Sew the bottom and side edges to the printed piece of fabric. Sew some pockets. I did various sizes.


7. Find your outside piece of fabric and 2 pieces of ribbon. I had to do some more guesswork here to figure out how far to sew the ribbon so it will still tie when rolled. I basically filled my pockets of the inside piece, placed it against the outside piece, rolled it up, then measured the circumference of the roll. Mine was about 20 centimetres. After being unrolled, I decided to sew from about 5 cm - 20 cm, to leave some tying room on the ends of the ribbon.


8. After the ribbon is sewn, place the right sides of the outside piece, and the inside piece together, tucking the ribbons into the centre so you don't sew them! Sew 3 sides, flip right side out, fold last edges inward, and sew.

9. It's done! I filled mine with more than brushes. And it's wonderful.


Here's the little project all rolled up. Works wonderfully at home and for travelling. 

What do you think? Would you try this easy sewing project? My instructions aren't amazing, and I am definitely still learning, but it was a fun project. 

Have a lovely rest of your week!

Saturday, October 13, 2012

DIY Cookbook

Today brings you yet another seasonal themed post! I have a ongoing project this autumn that I have been working on. My cookbook! I have a rule for it. I can only add recipes that I actually have eaten and like. So often, I buy a cookbook that I think looks so delicious, but only end up trying one recipe, and either not being impressed, or totally forgetting about the cookbook and having it get dusty in my cupboard. With my 'only tried recipes' rule, I have a cookbook to keep going back to, and it gets well-used! 


I found this old Betty Crocker cookbook while thrifting, and decided it was really okay to cover up some of these dated recipes with my own. Some of them I'll keep, such as a pie crust recipe! I'll definitely need some help with that - Thanks Betty! 

This project is really enjoyable to me, as I used to be an avid scrapbooker. This got kind of old, as printing off photos seems to be few and far between (and the scrapbooker scene isn't quite as cool as it once was. I'm sure there are cool scrapbookers out there - hello to you!) This scrapbooked cookbook allows me to be creative, which I love. I need that creative outlet! Little drawings, pretty paper, and stamps adorn the pages. Over the years, eventually, my little book will be filled with recipes I love! 




{this peanut butter chocolate cookie recipe is the best!}

Does autumn put you in a cooking mood? 

Enjoy!

Thursday, October 4, 2012

Thanks.

Thanksgiving is nearly here! I love this time of year. I am thankful for a fantastic family, a pretty snazzy boyfriend, an enjoyable job, and a class that I like. I'm also thankful for days off! I started today off with a run outside gazing at the autumn leaves (before you think: wow, she's dedicated. Know that this may have been a one time thing), just took some pumpkin bread out of the oven from this new recipe, and am trying not to be too jealous of my roommates who get to go be with family for the weekend while I work through the weekend. 

As the weather gets cooler, I seem to get craftier. Remember these cute magnets I made with cork? I seem to have an abundance of cork afterwards. So I whipped up an inspiration corkboard! Here's how I did it.


Started off with a cork tile - dollar store. or Kristen's house. I have so many, it's sad -, some paint of choice - I chose metallic silver - and a paintbrush and tape. 


Tape off your design and paint your design! I chose chevron. Cause it's SO in right now. 


I glued mine to a second cork tile for thickness, attached it to my wall with 3-m poster strips, and added a little inspiration. Paint samples for fall wardrobe inspiration, and memories from summer that I want to keep in mind. Easy as pie! Or pumpkin bread.

Where does this thanksgiving weekend bring you?

Enjoy!

Saturday, September 15, 2012

Magnetic Attractions.


There has been lots going on in my end of things, hard stuff. Really hard stuff.

 Here's something easy, fun, and just plain simple to do this weekend. 


Get your supplies together. An old, unused computer keyboard, pliers, magnets, and cork (not pictured). 


Use pliers to get the keys off that you want to use {can you guess what I'm going to spell?}. On some keyboards, it might be easiest to take the back panel of the keyboard off, and pop out the keys from the back. But on this one, it was easier to use my brute strength and ply them off.


Make sure you have the right letters, spelt right...


Glue some cork pieces on the backs of the keys before you glue on the magnets, since they will most likely be hollow. I found this out the hard way. Had to run out mid project and get some cork. 

And stick them on your fridge! An easy way to recycle an old keyboard. 

Any other ideas to use the rest of this keyboard?

Enjoy!

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

5 Minutes to Organized Recipes.


Hello again! It's been a busy week for me. Working lots, celebrating my birthday, and enjoying some fantastic sunshine! 

In my new house, I don't really have a creative space yet, but I was able to start working on some recipe cards, as I've been slowly adventuring into some baking and cooking. For this quick little project, I took a tea storage container, pretty index cards, and a few of my recently tried recipes that I want to keep on hand. 

I simply cut the index cards in half to fit into the tea boxes, and wrote out the recipes! I decided that I am going to add some pretty stamps and embellishments on the cards as I keep working on them. Cute, aren't they?

What have you been up to? Feeling creative lately?

Enjoy!

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Project Inspiration.

I went to Michael's craft store today and spent under $10! So proud of myself. Do you ever go into a store, no list, just looking to buy some super great things at super low prices? I love doing that every once in a while. Not at all budget conscious! I think the trick is to set a budget for the outing BEFORE hand. I didn't do so this time, but as I stood at the till, I quickly tallied up all my finds and was pleasantly surprised! Even more surprised that my math was correct when she rang them in. $9.52! And the inspiration is flowing!


What's your opinion? With these supplies:


What kind of projects would you embark on?

The possibilities are endless!

Enjoy!

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Silky Easter Eggs.

My sister and I tried some neat egg dying techniques on Easter Sunday! I suppose the day has passed now, but bookmark this for next year! It was so easy! 


We used some of my grandpa's ties. Super meaningful to be able to do something with my grandpa's things. 


We cut them apart, so just the silk is remaining. The ties have to be 100% silk.


Wrap the silk as tightly as you can around the eggs. Wrap with a twist-tie.
Side note: silk scarves also work really well. They're thinner than ties so they wrap better.


Add wrapped eggs to a pot of water with 1/4 cup vinegar. Set to boil for 20 minutes. 
Side Note: My sister tried a rubber band instead of twist tie. It made a neat pattern, but cut into the egg a bit so it cracked. If you try this, don't wrap too tightly!


I love dying eggs. 


After eggs are cooled, unwrap!


Beautiful patterns! 


A few of them are done on brown eggs. A neat alternative!

I got the idea here. What are your favourite easter egg dying techniques?

Enjoy!

Thursday, March 22, 2012

DIY Thursday

I finally had time to do something a little more creative than writing papers! I made coasters for my boyfriend. Here's how to do it!






And that's it! They turned out really well. I got the idea here. They screen printed the pictures on, but a permanent marker worked fine for me! And once the mod podge went on, it's waterproof and heat resistant (I'm not guaranteeing this..don't sue me).


He really liked how they went well with his Iphone case. Success!

Enjoy!

Saturday, February 11, 2012

What a Card {No. 2}

You've probably heard, but on Tuesday, there is a certain holiday called Valentine's Day! I actually really like this day, though some people get bitter about it, I think it's fun no matter what your relationship status. 

I spent the day finishing off my valentines that I've been making for some friends. I won't take credit for all the incredibly cheesy (but cute) sayings I used, but I don't remember where I found them all. I had such fun making these! What do you give out on Valentine's Day?




Enjoy!

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

DIY Wednesday.

A new feature perhaps? DIY Wednesday?

I love the look of this! I think I'll try it soon. 

                                                                      Source: witandwhistle.com via Kristen on Pinterest


...when I have time. These past few days I've hardly had a moment to sit! Memorizing lines for a drama production coming up, getting all the syllabi for the coming semester, starting regular classes, and starting teaching again. My goodness, I just want to craft!

What's a project you want to attempt? 

Enjoy!

Sunday, January 15, 2012

Practical and Pretty.

A blustery January day over here! I've been taking advantage of this indoors day to update a few things in the small space I call home. 



1. A practical and pretty way to store hair bands:

Embroidery hoop
Safety pin 
Fabric


2. A practical and pretty way to store sewing supplies:

Mason Jar
Fabric
Stuffing
Minimal sewing supplies



3. A practical and pretty way to store sunglasses:

A wooden pants hanger
Ribbon or String
Your assortment of sunnies.

How do you store things in a practical and pretty way?

Enjoy!