Category Archives: My Favorite Things

Last minute gift ideas

Zipper Headbands –

The moment I saw a headband like this in a store, I instantly thought that I could make it at a fraction of the retail cost. And I did!

With a gold zipper, a skinning black headband, a square of black felt and a sewing kit, I was able to pull this off.

And it cost me less than $4.

I do warn that it is not the easiest of crafts. And I had to be very patient at times, but your work pays off. Give yourself about an hour to make it.

You’re going to be working with one side of the zipper. And basically, it’s a spiraling effect.

As you wrap the zipper around, sew in and out of the outer layer and the next layer in. To make it easier, you can cut some of the fabric attached to the zipper but make sure to leave at least an 1/4 inch.

When I was finished with the zipper, I used a hot glue gun to attach it to the headband, using a piece of black fabric as a backing. (I chose to use a thin, black headband.) And then as a finishing touch, I used black felt around the edges to cover everything but the zipper.

My zipper was a gift for Kathleen (pictured above). The small circles I maded looked good with her haircut, but for me (with longer hair), I would probably have made them larger.

A little bit of Outer Space

My final project for my Physical Geography class this semester was to make something creative. (And yes, I am in college). Being the person that I am, I fully embraced this project and made something that took far longer than the 4-hour minimum…

The Solar System made out of felt!

I tried to make each object look as realistic as possible (when made out of felt). And I added some other materials to add a touch of detail. For example, each rocky planet (aka Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars – along with the moon) is outlined with cardboard. And each gaseous planets and the Sun are outlined in toile.

I just felt weird not included Pluto. I grew up being told it was a planet, and I guess I just haven’t been able to wrap my head around the fact that there are only 8 official planets. So Pluto was included, but note, it was optional.

And just in case people didn’t know which planet was which, I did a little embroidering on the back side to clarify.

My professor hung it up in the classroom after I presented it, and yes, I will repeat, this was for a college class. Figure that out for me, then figure out how I got a 99 on the project. (After working on it for 2 week, I feel like I have to right to be a little bitter!)