Feeling Uninspired

Hello Loves,

I have been in a funk lately - I've been uninspired and unmotivated which can really add to one's depressed feeling, especially if you create art as an emotional outlet.  It is incredibly frustrating on days like this, when I am home alone, and have all the time in the world to work on projects.

Some tools that I (and probably most of you) use to become inspired are Pocket, Bloglovin, and Pinterest.

The major downside to these are that you can get sucked into the web, and end up spending hours just browsing, reading, and pinning - AAAHHHHH!  What's a girl to do?

My answer is go back to paper.  Read your craft books and magazines because unlike the internet - they are finite.

 Once you've flipped through the pages it's done.  The End.

My favorite crafts books are:

The Stampin' Up Idea Book and Catalog.  Great for card making layout ideas - especially if you're a Stampin' Up customer.  Because then you can get ideas on how to use the materials and tools that you've purchased.  Mine is an older version but it is still great for looking up layouts.  Another added bonus is that your Stampin' Up rep will often give these to you for free if you ask.

 Button Jewelry by Sara Withers

I found this book at Tuesday Morning and bought it to get ideas on what to do with my button hoard.

Tuesday Morning has REALLY inexpensive books.  Some as cheap as $1 each.

A Jewelry Affaire Magazine by Stampington & Co.

I seriously love this magazine but I only own 2 of them because they are about $15 each.  

Look how many pages I've flagged!

I am always impressed with the artists that Stampington selects for their many catalogs.

The Artful Ribbon by Candace Kling

I absolutely love this book but I haven't actually tried to make anything using it yet.  I bought it because I have a plethora of ribbon, and I figured learning how to work with them would come in handy.  Plus, ribbon embroidery is a dying art.  Let's keep it alive!

I have, however, read through the entire book and I can say that the instructions are very easy to follow.

Pretty Little Things by Sally Jean Alexander

My friend Kate introduced me to this book and I absolutely fell in love!  So gorgeous...

This book is primarily focused around soldering instructions, but on this page they show you how to do mixed media collage, which is useful in all sorts of projects.

Again, I haven't made anything using the instructions in this book yet but I am planning on getting into soldering.  I've received most of the tools necessary but I'm still missing some holders and clamps.

Inspired to Sew by Bari J

I just love this lady!  Not only is she an amazing seamstress but she is also an amazing painter!

You can purchase her fabrics and prints and other items on her website.  Plus if you subscribe to her newsletter she sends you monthly freebie wallpapers for all of your devices.

 This book comes complete with patterns.

So, basically if you actually want to be productive yet still gain inspiration, books can be an amazing tool.

I hope you found this useful!
Love,
Myria

DIY Vintage Handkerchief Pennant Banner - No Sew

Hello my cutesie-tootsies,

I just did a fun and easy decor project in my craft studio that I thought I would share with you.
Over the years I have amassed quite the collection of vintage handkerchiefs.  I had ironed, neatly folded, and stored them in a lingerie drawer for a couple of years.  I recently decided, now that I have this space, to display them.

This is the way that I did it. 

I tied some ribbon to my ceiling fan and tied the other ends to my curtain holders - also ribbons.  

 My mom had purchased several rolls of ribbon second hand for really cheap so I've been using them for ALL SORTS of things.

I used a tailor's tape measure to see how much ribbon I needed.  I tied one end of the tape measure to the ceiling fan and pulled it across the room to the top of the curtains.  I added a few inches so I could have extra for tying.  Cut and hang.  Simple.

 I used mini-clothespins that I purchased at Tuesday Morning and just folded the hankies diagonally.  Boom!  Done.

They are so beautiful - I love vintage craftsmanship! 

I also added some paper pennant banners to my loft lookout, as well as more hankies.  

Comment if you would like for me to post a video on how to make the paper ones too!  

They are super easy.

My ribbon rolls

I also displayed some of my hand-stamped handkerchiefs. 

This is a fun and easy, no sew, way to spruce up some plain hankies.

You have to be really careful and comfortable with stamping before doing this though.

Because it is easy to ruin the handkerchief with a badly stamped image.

Take this one for example - I accidentally stamped one of these Alice in Wonderland images on the wrong side of the handkerchief.  Whoops!  Luckily the fabric is very thin and my image is very dark so it isn't too obvious.

To stamp handkerchiefs you will need some of this Ranger Archival Ink.  It is acid free, permanent, and waterproof.  It is permanent like a sharpie so there is no going back one you've started!

But it is worth it.

Love,
Myria

How To Make Sweater Boots

I found this awesome tutorial at http://www.craftster.org

 

You will need:

1 pair of ballet flats

2 buttons

a glue gun with glue sticks

needle and thread

the sleeves of an old sweater

a bunch of straight pins

Get the sleeves, turn them inside out, and form them to your feet using straight pins

 

Hot glue the sweater to the ballet flats

Flip it right side out and cut the sweater to make a cuff

Embroider it

Sew this part of the sweater onto the boot so that it folds over to make a cuff

And voila!  Sweater boots.  Not good for snow but good for wearing indoors.