A Quick Pick Up For Threads Yarn and Floss

If you have a lot of scrap yarns, floss and threads sitting around in a huge pile you know you have always wanted a solution to your problem. Do your children make friendship bracelets from floss, do you have scrap booking threads, twines and other strings. This is so simple and so cheap and it will make you organized in no time……. that is if you can get the knots out right? Just buy a bag of wooden clothes pins and clip one end of your string and wrap around the top part and clip the end keeping both clipped pieces together. A large bag of these clothes pins can usually be found in a dollar store and don’t forget to keep an eye out for them at yard sales. They look great as well as it will be the end to such a chaotic problem.

Tomato Sewing Pincushions

1. Cut a rectangle of fabric on the bias that’s twice as long as it is wide (the largest we made was 3 1/4 inches in diameter and required a 10-by-5-inch piece).With fabric facing right side up, fold in half as shown, and join ends with a 1/4-inch seam. Sew a running stitch around the top edge; tightly pull thread to cinch fabric, and secure with stitches.

2. Turn pouch right side out. Stuff with batting (cotton batting is firmer than polyester). Sew a running stitch around the open end; pull thread to cinch fabric. Tack shut with a few stitches and knot. To flatten, double-thread a cording needle with crochet thread and pull it through the “core” a few times. Mimic a tomato’s fluted details by wrapping the thread around the cushion and back through the core several times. Knot thread at top to finish.

3. For heirloom tomatoes, cut a circle of fabric (the largest we made was 3 1/2 inches in diameter and required a 10-inch-diameter circle). With fabric wrong side up, sew a running stitch around perimeter. Place batting in center of fabric, and gather into a pouch. Stuff with more batting, pull thread to cinch, and tack with stitches. Flatten cushion and apply details as in step 2.

4. For tops, photocopy template, enlarging or reducing as desired; cut out. Trace template onto green felt with a disappearing-ink pen; cut out. Using a single-threaded needle, sew a loop onto top. Glue top to tomato.

Note: To sew cherry-tomato pincushions, start with swatches of fabric that are 2 3/4 by 4 3/4 inches. Follow steps 1 and 2 below, but don’t flatten cushion or add fluted details. For tops, cut symmetrical, six-pointed stars from green felt. Add loops, and attach them as in step 4.

Ribbon Storage

To demonstrating this project to you we show it uncovered... but you can cover it with fabric, paper, paint etc. This can also be made with any type of box or hinged container you can find at a dollar store!

I became so tired of spools of ribbon coming undone and digging through drawers to see if I had ribbon that matched that I made a storage/dispensing box for my ribbon spools. The plus side of these boxes is that the ribbon stays neat and organized, you can see what you have a glance, the ribbon pulls right through the hole in box (no need to open lid to use), and because they are covered in the fabric of your choice, they can fit into any decor without being obvious.

Directions:
1. 1 shallow box. Baby-shoe boxes work well.
2. Spray box and lid with spray adhesive and cover with fabric of choice.
3. Using a razor blade to cut a narrow dowel rod the length of the box.
4. Thread spools of ribbon on the dowel rod.
5. Using a hole punch, punch as many holes as you have spools of thread/ribbon down the length of box.
6. Place dowel rod with spools of ribbon in box and thread an inch or 2 of each ribbon through hole.
7. Replace lid on box.

Christmas Trees on Mirror

Materials:

Felt Squares – Orchid, Yellow,
Blue, Pink, Neon Green
Pom poms – 10mm Bright
Big Bag Buttons – Carnival
Dance Self-Stick Gems
Colored Dowels
10″ Mirror
12″ Floral Craft Ring-Wood
Poly-fir
Craft Designer Cup Sequins
Felt Snowflakes
Star Buttons
Glitter Glue – Opal
Floss – Assorted Colors
Needle – Large Eye
Lara’s Crafts1 1/2″ Wood Flower Pot (3)
Scissors
Paintbrush
Craft Glue
Low Heat Glue Gun and Glue Sticks
Flower Pots

Instructions

Step 1 Using printed patterns from the website, cut your trees from desired colors of felt (2 for each tree).
Step 2 Use desired colors of floss and stitch lines on trees.
Step 3 Cut assorted circles of felt and stitch to tree with buttons as toppers.
Step 4 Cut ‘A” of felt for line garland as shown on pink tree, stitch with pink floss as shown.
Step 5 Add sequins and buttons to embellish as desired.
Step 6 Stitch trees together using floss, place dowel in between felt and lightly stuff with Poly-fir.
Step 7 Turn flower pots upside down and insert dowel into hole and glue to mirror.
Step 8 Glue mirror to wood ring.
Step 9 Cover pots with pom poms adding colored ones as desired.
Step 10 Cut shirt pieces from felt, stitch together and glue to outside edge of mirror.
Step 11 Embellish skirt with felt snowflakes.