When I was a kid, Easter was serious business in our family. My grandmother is a devout Catholic and sang in the small church choir so she had the perfect view to make sure EVERYONE was at church and paying attention. These days, Easter is that time of year when my diet goes out the window and I find myself sitting in my car devouring Cadbury chocolate eggs and wondering where it all went wrong. Despite all that, I love all of the egg crafts surrounding this holiday. Who doesn't love a beautiful egg? These (no calorie) fluffy egg pillows are the perfect way for me to celebrate. My favorite part was stenciling my own fabrics! If you can't find what you need, my sweet friends, figure out a way to make it yourself and don't forget to
My tree is all about bright colors this year and these soft, boho heart ornaments are just the ticket to make it POP! I used neon colors on my Gel Press and embellished them with glitter Allure from
E-6000. I'm excited to be bucking tradition this year and going nuts with a tree that is filled with things that make me feel the joy of the season. I say, do what makes you happy and
don't forget to Make Your Mark!
Watch how to make them here!
STUFF I USED
Gel Press
Cotton fabric
Sewing machine
Poly-fil Premium Polyester Fiber Fill
Allure Dimensional Design Adhesive Paint in Lime Glitter, Metallic Orange and Pink
Americana Acrylics in Sizzling Pink, Pink Explosion, Scorching Yellow, Torrid Orange
Electric Blue, Laguna Blue Aqua Sky
Pom poms
Beads from BeeBeeCraft.com
HERE'S HOW
1. Dot your Gel Press with Americana Acrylics in Sizzling Pink, Pink Explosion, Scorching Yellow and Torrid Orange
2. Distribute evenly with your brayer
3. Press & pull the cotton fabric
4. Dot the Gel Press with Americana Acrylics in Electric Blue, Laguna Blue & Aqua Sky
Hedgehogs, squirrels and baby possums just do it for me. I have no idea why, but I find just looking at them makes me happy. Set me in front of a baby hedgehog taking a bath in a kitchen sink and I'm done for. DONE FOR! Well, now you see why I needed to make these hedgehog pillows. Instructions and pattern are included in this blog. Make them any size you want and don't forget to Make Your Mark!
I buy postcards wherever I go. I can't help it. My photos are all terrible and postcard pictures are always perfect! I love sending them to friends, too. Now, I'm not the first one to make a postcard pillow, but I really wanted to see if I could print fabric on my home printer....You know what?! YOU CAN and it's fantastic! The key is using a thin, flat cotton and lacquer fixative to set the ink when you're done. I can't wait to use this technique on anything and everything! Remember to experiment until you come up with something amazing and always Make Your Mark!
Sending these out in little boxes!
Watch how I made them here!
STUFF I USED
Spray Adhesive
Vintage Postcard Images
Sewing Machine
White cotton & colorful cotton fabrics
Poly-Fil Stuffing
Home printer
Spray Lacquer
HERE'S HOW
1. Press your white cotton fabric as flat as a sheet of paper
2. & 3. Spray a sheet of copy paper and adhere it to the fabric
4. Carefully cut around the fabric so it's the exact same size as the copy paper
5. Print your image as large as you can on the fabric on your home printer
6. & 7. Peel the paper away from the fabric and fix it with a clear lacquer
8. Cut colorful pillow backs in cotton fabric
9. With the postcard facing in, stitch around the fabric leaving a 3" opening for stuffing
Because I live in a small house, I get bored with my decor quite easily. Since I can't switch out my sofas and chairs (like Oprah) I have to settle for small things like a coffee table or throw pillows to change things up a bit. This week I decided to switch out my big coffee table and toss in an ottoman to double as seating in a pinch. I was able to customize it to the exact size I wanted AND pick out a fabric I loved, too. You can't beat that with a stick! Remember, if you dream it, you can MAKE it! Also, if you can make it, you can certainly Make Your Mark! Have fun and write if you have any questions. I'm always around.
My new centerpiece...At least for now
A coffee table you can sit on, too!
This ribbon detail was all E-6000 glue and some clever pinning!
1. Nail the 1" x 12" pine boards into a 24" x 24" square
2. Nail the 24" x 24" plywood on the top and bottom
3. & 4. Measure, cut and glue the 3" foam on top of the box
5. Cut a piece of high loft batting to go up one side, across the top and down the other side and then staple in place around the base and up the sides
6. Cut another piece of batting to cover the remaining sides, doubling the batting across the top of the ottoman and stapling in place on the base and up the sides
7. Flip the ottoman and secure the batting all the way around the base, folding in the corners to keep it neat
8. Pin the fabric over the top of the ottoman to keep it in place
9. Flip the ottoman and staple the fabric to the base making sure to pull taut as you go and stapling up to, but not exactly to each corner
10. Fold the excess fabric like you are wrapping a present and staple it across the bottom of the ottoman and then secure each corner with more staples
11. Optional: Glue a piece of fabric (about 23" x 23") to the base of the ottoman to cover the staples and raw edges
12. Screw in the furniture legs on each corner
13. - 15. Pin, iron and glue ribbon in a square across the top of the ottoman
16. Glue ribbon and fringe along the base of the ottoman with more E-6000 Fabri-Fuse and pin in place until dry
A few weeks ago I decided to treat myself to an outdoor movie projector and I LOVE IT! My first movie night was a smashing success with all of my friends drinking wine and snuggling up in blankets on the lawn in my backyard. The entire night I kept thinking how much I would LOVE to be sitting in a beanbag chair......So I thought, how hard could it be to make one? Let's just say I was not prepared! Sewing a pillow is one thing. Sewing a pillow the size of a human is another thing altogether! If and when you tackle this project, give yourself some time and some room. In the end, I'm really glad I challenged myself. The most crucial part of a beanbag chair is the insert (aka bladder) for your beanbag filler. It's crucial if you ever want to wash the beanbag cover and it keeps the beans nice and safe. Remember, challenge yourself, go BIG and always
Make Your Mark!
Just in case you're wondering....
Julie is sitting BY the beanbag chair so that you can see it!
Did you know that you can dye fabric with Unicorn SPiT? Well, you can! It's easy and soooooo much less messy than traditional fabric dyes. The colors are beautiful and vibrant, too! There are several methods used on these pillows, but my favorite was the plastic bag method, which I'm sharing below. Have fun! Make summer pillows! Oh, and always Make Your Mark!
For this pillow I painted stripes on moistened cotton fabric....Easy!
A little plastic bag and you're ready to "print" your fabric for this version!
