...Christmas 2010...

I've been saying how I wanted white & gold and may be silver or burlap for decorating the Christmas tree this year (...saying and not doing hem hem). Well, I tried to resist buying more commercial decor stuffs, and instead, went through my stash of ribbons (I don't hoard, I... collect some hehe). I found these perfect vintage white cotton trims (they are left-overs from my mom's sewing projects back when she was actually sewing clothes for herself!). And several pieces of white/off-white satin/organza ribbons. I was planning on making new ornaments with white felt,using this tutorial. But look at how 'charged' the tree is already. The 'skirt' is actually a white cloth and a gold voile superposed and just draped.

DIY: Basic Cubic Ottoman from wooden crate

.: Ottoman After:.

.:Crate Before:.

Materials needed:
-Wooden Crate (Any dimension)
-Piece of Plywood (Saw a piece of 1/4 inch plywood to cover up the crate if it has an open side)
-Glue (All-purpose is ok)
-Felt (Thick enough for padding the sides)
-2 inch foam (The kind for padding sofas, to make the "seat") I also padded the bottom side with 1/4 inch foam (I used a kitchen knife to cut the foam & scissors to cut the felt)
-Staples, Nails (Let's say I want a staple gun for christmas)
-Fabric (Sofa quality, but thick curtain fabric should do), Matching Thread.

I won't talk about dimensions, since it entirely depends on the type of crate you can lay your hands on!

Step 1: Close up the crate by nailing the plywood. Step 2: Measure& cut the foam and felt for each side

Step 3: Glue the padding materials. A small amount is enough

From here on, it seems like I'm missing a few photos (oops!). Step 4: Sew a cover, but making sure the sides are slightly longer than the actual height of the ottoman, so you can tuck the excess fabric under and staple it in place. Step 5: To make the bottom side, you can go lazy easy like me and simply sew a square piece of fabric and glue it. Or go with a suggestion I had [oh yeah, this ottoman gave way to an animated discussion on the design, the making of, the choice of color, the... pretty much anything! It was a Freakin I’m not doing another project with you again fun family DIY=)], which was to make use of rubber strips to make "legs" for the ottoman.

We've been enjoying this ottoman very much at home, especially on movie nights. And talks of making a second one might or might not have been heard...If any family member is reading this, you know who you are, YOU can add the piping, the tufting, the legs...

Repurposed Bag

DIY Flower Pin

You'll need:

-Pieces of fabric. You'll laugh when I tell you where mine are from. The hem of a maxi dress that my mom cut out when re-adjusting her dress, my old voile curtains. Just to say that the more scraps you have, the better off you are, more choices and more designs.

-Beads
-Needle
-Thread
-Scissors
-Paper
-Pencil
-Pin

(1) Cut a square the size of the flower pin you want. (2) Draw a leaf on paper(the shape of your leaf determines your flower design, so play around with it and find what suits your purpose) and cut out to make a stencil

(3) Fold into quarters (4) Pin your stencil

(5) Cut out the leaf, being careful not to snip away the middle part of your square.

(6) You want to obtain a four leaves flower shape on opening the "square". Duplicate this as many times you want

(7) Repeat using a smaller square and a smaller stencil. Again duplicate the shape you obtained

(8) Layer the shapes. Sorry there's no proper picture of what I actually did. But you should get the idea from the above one.

(9) Press all the layers and sew a cross shape in the middle. The tighter you sew it, the more "bud-like" the flower pin will look like. I made mine practically flat.

(10) Then sew the beads to hide the stitches on the front. You can also use felt, buttons, etc.

(11) You can glue/stitch to a pin. Or like me, stitch directly to the "make-up bag" I made from old jeans.

Sorry for the quality of the images, the weather is crappy today, while the flash is blinding.

DIY ruffles cushion cover

.:Made from T-shirt scraps:.

My raw material was these small (approx 25x 25 cm) jersey squares. I chose hot pink for this project, since it'll go well with my decor. And who can resist a girly ruffles pillow in hot pink! But two old xxl tshirts in any color should do.
Obviously, it was a bit of a maths problem figuring out how to make use of these small pieces of fabric. I started by sewing 2 squares together (x2 for the other side of the cushion) to obtain the base for my cushion cover (40cm x 25 cm) and got cracking for the fun part, ruffles. Here's a step by step for making ruffles...

(1) Start by cutting strips, 1 inch large. It's better to scale up or down depending on the size of your cover, etc. For the length of each strip, the basic rule is that the length of the strip should be twice the length of your ruffle.

(2) Set the tension on your sewing machine to lowest. I used white thread so you can see the stiches, but of course use a matching thread color. Stitch down the middle being careful to leave reasonable amount of thread at one end so you can pull. I find that sewing by machine yields a better looking ruffle, which won't disintegrate. But in any case, it should be fine if you use a needle+thread.

(3) Pull on the bottom thread (4) Spread the ruffles along the length of the strip


(5) Pin the first row, leaving a bit extra fabric over the edges (6) Set the tension back to normal, sew over the middle of the ruffle, closest you can to the stitches holding the ruffle.

(7) Repeat until you have enough rows and then you can assemble your cushion cover. I simply sewed it like a pillow case, without any buttons or zippers.

Voilà!!!

P.s: I am no expert at sewing (self-taught). However, I'd advise you to practise making a ruffle or two beforehand. As for fraying, I haven't washed yet, but I'm confident it should stay put. Do sew the rows as close as possible though. Oh, this isn't the first or best tutorial on ruffles cushion covers, still hope you like it:) Don't hesitate to ask if you have any question.

Playing with paint

Repainting things white is strangely addictive. I discovered this when I decided to try out my new paint on small wooden objects before tackling bigger stuffs like..shelves..chairs ...and all wood surfaces I could think of.

Mauvilac in Snow white Mat emulsion

In the process, I also learnt what NOT to do. Silly stuffs you pro's already know. 1) Do not dilute paint too much 2) Beware of coat thickness which can be troublesome when re-assembling pieces (especially when dealing with drawers)

Point-in-fact, the poor little one almost had no lid. Once I was finished, I had to sand, again, but it would still not close properly.

Now, with fevicryl, which is a great acrylic paint for fabric, I use to stencil on bags etc, but which I used on a paper canvas I had since forever & just wasn't inspired to do anything good with.

...some of my fevicryl pots are new. Collecting them is also addictive. haha

Chain Necklace

"P.S - I made this..." tutorial on Shoulder Pads

You know how strong shoulders have made their comeback (Yes, sometimes I still shudder at the thought), well, I think I've found a way to rock em! And it's with utter delight that I came to discover uber fabulous designer Erica Domesek's site P.S - I made this... which is all about the 3R's, re-imagine, re-use, and re-invent. Her motto defines her work perfectly, I see it. I like it. I make it. Do visit her![here]

(Source: P.S - I made this...)

Branch Decor for Christmas

Why buy expensive artificial bouquets? Nature provides...branches, twigs than can be arranged/painted into unique creations. Chandelier! Wreaths! Floral arrangements!

The Extra Touch for Christmas Decor this year

Via marthastewart.com

What could be better than to go DIY-way for little trinkets that can be used to add a special touch to Christmas decor? After a visit to Martha Stewart's, I have only one word in mind, doily papers! They really can be turned into beautiful things...

Alphabet from Recycled Jackets

I found these fab repurposing projects from Stilsucht, where I can't understand a single word, but the images speak for themselves, it's packed full with great design stuffs. With these, I think I might jump on board the alphabet decor trend...What say you?


p.s: I keep meaning to post on LiveYourStyle, but then I get inspired for L'Atelier. End-point: you can't force inspiration, it comes when it comes.

Look! Pallet Furniture

Before/After

D.I.Y

• Roughly sand the wood using low-grade sandpaper.
  
• Under the boards, attach two pieces of thin hardboard or a similar material. The hardboard should be cut to completely cover the cracks between the boards, but underneath the edge boards, they should be slightly shorter, so they won't be seen. The grainy side of the hardboard should face upwards.
  
• Glue and nail down each piece of hardboard.
  
• Then nail some cheap wood (such as wood from a wooden crate) along the ends of the pallet boards, to create a makeshift formwork.
• To help fill in the cracks, nail down a few pieces of scrap wood. These strips of wood will disappear in the mortar. Make a thickish mortar and smooth it on with a knife. You may need to apply a second layer.
  
• Once the mortar is dry, remove the formwork and carefully sand the table top.
  
• Cut out some new pieces of hardboard to support the drawers. You can also add drawer stops.
  
• Measure the space and make drawers of the right size or buy them.
• For this coffee table, Fira drawers from Ikea were used. The drawers were simply turned around and a knob added on the side. The drawers are both practical and decorative. You can either paint the mortar or leave it as is.
  
• This table was decorated with natural ochre-colored potato paint. The finish is two coats of standard linseed oil.
• To make "legs" for the coffee table, attach two thick boards, such as formwork planks, to the sides of the pallet, using 80 mm (3 in) screws.
  
• To make the table even sturdier, fasten corner brackets, such as those used to brace chairs, to the palette and the inside of the "legs".
  

(Instructions are from Esprit cabanne)

Speaking of cabanne, look at what can be achieved with what should have been scrapped pieces of wood. Amazing Treehouse!

Sources: 1.&2. from Not Beige and 3. from AT