Author Archives: smwaller

A Felt Christmas

20121222-160126.jpg

Merry Christmas Eve!! My parents gave me an old Christmas tree they had to use in my house in Birmingham, but when school let out, I brought it home to decorate my wing of the house (aka the basement).

So with a blank slate, I naturally pulled out some felt.

20121224-134832.jpg

I freehanded each piece. I wish I could give you a template, but the project began on a whim, thinking I could use them as gift tags. Quickly, one or two ordaments turned into twenty.

DSC_0237

To add additional decorations to the tree, I created a very simple paper garland to wrap the tree in. I purchased some Christmas scrapbooking paper and used a punch to make all of the circles.

20121224-141537.jpg

DSC_0246

Using a sewing machine creates a very easy process. Simply slipping each circle under the sewing foot as the machine feeds it through. Once you get the rhythm, you’ll have 6-feet of garland before you know it.

20121224-141632.jpg

The final step (and the best step) is taking everything you have made and adding it to the tree.

20121224-141605.jpg

And there you have it. A tree so simple, you could create it the day before!

From my family to yours – I wish you a very crafty Christmas!!

Two Years In

20121221-235128.jpg

With another year comes another milestone. Today marks this blog’s 2nd birthday!! And all I can saw is thank you.

Following my summer hiatus, I logged back into WordPress and found an average of 30 visitors a day. And this is after four months of posting nothing. I don’t know who all of you are, but I am grateful for your loyalty and encouragement.

I’ll keep posting if you keep coming back.

For the Love of Letterpress

My love for felt and sewing are in no matched to my love for letterpress. It is a skill I have always wanted to learn, and images I have always want throughout my entire home. The problem (as always) is the price. Classes are expensive, and multiple prints cost too much for my college budget to handle.

But that is no longer an issue, thanks to the “LetterMPress” app for my Mac.

LetterMPress is not a new application. It has been available for the iPad and the iPhone for awhile, but recently, it was added for Macbooks. A friend of my informed me of the change (she used it to make her adorable Christmas cards), and hearing the price was only $10, I downloaded the app right away.

USA1

It does take an afternoon to get use to the application. In simulating true letterpress, blocks move when they collide into others, and I struggled with making straight lines for awhile. But thanks to the online tutorial (which I highly suggest browsing through), I picked up several tricks that were helpful.

Just remember, letterpress is all about the layers – meaning, it will take awhile to achieve the image you have in your mind. Be patient. The end result is worth it! And luckily, you are using a computer. The undo shortcut is always there if you need it.

AL1

Xmas1

Up for a Ride

Last spring, I had an idea to create a hot air balloon on canvas. Instead of taking the easy route and using paint, I decided I wanted to embroider the entire thing. Goodness, if only I knew then how long this project would take me.

IMG_0239

Nine month later, I am happy to say the project is finally complete.

IMG_1715

For the balloon, I did not use a special technique. I simply threaded a needle and took in and out, over and over again. I choose the colors one layer at a time. The selection was completely random, and if you notice, some colors repeat often and some are only used once.

IMG_0241

IMG_1611

I love how the wrong side of the canvas really shows off all of the work put into the piece. It took a lot of thread.

IMG_1711

The final touch was stitching the basket. I was nervous about this detail, worried that would take away from the overall look of the ballon, but I am happy with how it turned out. I wanted to basket to have more of a textured look, so I used a darning stitch to make it look weaved.

IMG_1712

IMG_1716

Wishing for Watercolors

IMG_1723

I wish I could master the art of watercolors. I saw a watercolor painting of flowers the other day, and I longed for the day when I could recreate it. But instead of throwing myself a pity party, I pulled out the good ‘0le acrylic paint and made something new.

Inspired by the trip to the Birmingham Museum of Art, I adored the unfinished paintings of Norman Rockwell. Lacking the final touch of detail, I found the incomplete status beautiful.

Exact dimensions

In the midst of stressful times, painting is good for the soul. My roommate laughed at me because she came home the other day and found me painting in bed. I figured when I was painting something so simple (see above), I couldn’t get too messy.

I found the idea from a letterpress print I found online. I didn’t copy the print exactly (that would be rude), but I did take the idea (and the bridge, canoe, feather, ruler and whale). Check out the letterpress shop here. It is one of my favorites, and it’s a great place to look for Christmas presents (hint, hint).

From Napkins to Pillows

Everyone brings an unique perspective to an antique shop. My roommate has an eye for furniture. Another friends has a thing for vintage jewelry. I tend to fall in love with fabric. The other day I was wandering through the rows at an antique store in Homewood, and a set of napkins caught my eye. Naturally, I bought them and a matching handkerchief nearby.

Once I took out the napkins’ seams, I cut them into perfect squares. When removing the seams, I usually lose fabric due to unraveling. I decided to not work with a pillow form, which meant I could make the pillow any size I wanted.

I ironed out the handkerchief, and pinned it in place on my designated “front” side of the pillow. With the lace edges, I didn’t want to compromise the look by using my sewing machine, so I hand-stitched the handkerchief to the napkin.

Once the handkerchief is sewed down, time to make the finishing touches. Take the two napkins and put the two “right” sides together. I used a 1/2 inch seam, leaving a small hole to stuff the pillow. Once the pillow was full, I hand-stitched the hole closed.

Super easy and quick to make.

Crafting Again

When I dreamed about my senior year of college, I never imagined it would be as demanding as it has turned out to be. Leadership in SGA, working at a marketing office and this ridiculous class called “Rhetorical Criticism” has kept me away from my sewing machine and stuck at a desk in the library.

With three weeks left in the semester, slowly, I am coming out of the cave of craft hibernation. Fabric covers my floor and bottles of paint are scattered across my desk. Projects are happening.

Thank you for sticking with me during my prolonged absence. I logged on to WordPress this morning, and saw 58 of you visiting yesterday alone. I am so unworthy.

Summer

I had plans for this summer. I was going to make another quilt, finish a cool embroidery project and spend hours wandering the aisles of JoAnn Fabrics, but obviously God’s plans trumped my own.

I am spending the summer in Washington D.C., and my time for projects are instead filled with work and sight seeing. I’m living in the dorms at George Washington University, and the walls are just to white here. So, being who I am, I couldn’t help but decorate a little bit.

Follow my adventures at my latest blog, http://wallercapitolcampaign.wordpress.com. Though it will be my primary blog for the summer, I will try to post a few things here as well.