Christmas Gift Bag Tutorial

Hello my friends, hope you are all well.

Christmas is fast approaching and I so enjoy making things for this holiday. 

I thought of making these sweet little gifts bags and paper ornaments, and after I had finished the first I decided to take photos for a tutorial, but first a few finished pictures :)

 The Ginger is made from a scrap of brown kraft wrapping paper. Same for the start and I also made a heart. Punch tiny holes and add a hanger for your tree.
It's easier if you draw your design on the doubled paper first, then stitch around it before cutting it out. As I was sewing them on the machine, I poked in a little stuffing so they are not so flat. You don't need much.

This is the paper bag I used to cut out
my first tree. I just lined it with sheet music.

I hope you enjoy this tutorial, it's been ages since I made one. You can make these bags with regular paper of any kind really, just be creative and make it your own. Enjoy.....

This is what you will need to get started.
Paper bags X 2 if they are flimsy like mine.
Paper bag x 1 to cut out Christmas Tree.
Old book paper
Sheet music
Burlap or Cheesecloth or other
Twine for handles
Buttons and embroidery floss
Thread and glue gun

The paper bags I used are not lunch bags, they are from a gift
shop and much lighter.
so I had to double up and in using old book paper as a lining
 it makes them nice and strong.
I first cut the edges so they were even, but his step is up to you.

Lets get started :)
This tutorial shows me using cheesecloth which is laid down
first on one paper bag. This will be the front.
Add some sheet music that has been torn on the edges.
Now stitch around the sheet music in a random line.
You don't have to be perfect. I go in a curvy line.

Cut a Christmas Tree shape or other shape from another
 paper bag.
Now, it's back over to the machine to sew it on.

Cut your twine or whatever you have for handle into two pieces.
Can you see how I have placed them inside the bag?
It's about an inch in on each side.
Now you are going to sew along the top of the paper bag
and seal in the twine for hanging or carrying the bag.
One straight line across the top.

Cut your old book paper to fit the size of your paper bags.
Now sew it along the top edge of bag on both paper bags.
On the inside. This is going to make a lining.
When you have done this you are ready to stitch
the two pieces together.

We are almost done :)
I used some wooden buttons which I had dyed with coffee.
Using some embroidery floss I made stitched
through the buttons so it looks as if they are
attached this way. You could stitch through the paper
but I decided to glue mine on with the glue gun.

Your inside will have old book paper, or whatever
you choose to use. I think it gives it a nice finish, it
just seems to add some strength too.

Now you have some sweet little gift bags for that
special small gift :)
I made some little paper ornaments too using brown kraft
wrapping paper, they will be nice to pop in the bag.

Happy Kindness Day to you all,

Lynn

Make a pretty pink Valentine Card

I am just dropping by to let you know that I have updated my tutorial on making the folded Valentine Heart Card, and it is now on my Squidoo page here.

I made this pretty pink card with lace :)

I mentioned Squidoo on a previous post and it is something very important to me. I get to write about things I love, have fun, and I get to help my favorite charity. I will tell you more about that soon, I am so excited and feel very passionate about charity work, and I want to make an entire post about the one I am supporting the most now.

Head over to my page where I have instructions and the free cliparts I used :)

If you have a Squidoo account please give me a thumbs up, if not you can still leave a comment.
Thank you, be back soon,
Lynn

Pressed Wildflower Bookmark Tutorial

I have had lot's of questions about this technique I use for my bookmarks, and also asked if I have a tutorial, well now I do.
I decided to put it all in one post for you and keep a link under "tutorials" on my side bar.

First let me say, this is a tutorial on " how I make my bookmarks", I do not claim in any way at all the wax paper and tissue technique as my own. As I have said in a previous post I found this technique in an article by Susan Hannen in the Spring 2008 issue of Somerset Life magazine. It really is a beautiful issue, I look at it over and over and never get tired of it.

Susan had found this technique in a 1950's Boy Scout handbook and then went on to fiddle with the recipe until she got it right. I have done the same thing, you may need to fiddle, or experiment with amounts of glue and water used to achieve the look you prefer.

Here are the products I use, 3 ply tissue, Aleene's tacky glue, and Reynolds wax paper which I purchase at the $1 , I hope you can find it at your dollar store too, I use wax paper all the time for working on when I am making a mess, and as a paint pallet, it's great stuff :)

The glue I have used just happened to be the brand I had at home when I first tried this, I am sure you can use any regular glue, but you will have to play with it and see how your brand works for you.

In the second stage of the bookmark I use these products, or gloss gel medium, depends what I feel like. Bits of fiber, and the ink for edging.

So let's get started. Combine a mixture of approx' 60% glue to 40% water. To be honest I just guess. You don't want it too watery and you don't want it too gluey either.
Mix it really well with an old brush. This is the one I use below just some old thing but the bristles are still soft.

For my bookmarks I use a piece of wax paper from the roll wide enough to make several at a time. Then position my pressed/dried flowers the way I want them.
You can add some fiber at this point too so it is under the glue mixture, or add it later with gel medium. I do it both ways.
I use the shinier or top side of the wax paper to lay my arrangement.
(Val has asked if freezer paper would work, but to be honest I have no idea. I have a feeling there would not be the waxiness in it, but let me know if you try it please :)

Grab a tissue from the box and separate it into 3 ply's, you are only going to use 1 ply. This part I find important because I tried using a 2 ply and I really didn't like the look, it wasn't as transparent.

Make sure you are not in a breezy room to do this, or have a fan blowing :)

Take your tissue and gently place over your arrangement. I hold a section of it lightly with a finger tip as I apply the solution to the tissue.
Dab it gently and not too much, don't over do it or the tissue with split open on you. I first do the section where the flowers are and they don't seem to move once that is done.
Then I work around the arrangement as shown below. I need enough to use as a bookmark so I cover a good area and then I will trim it later. I usually do a row of these so I can use up all the glue/water mixture.

Now you have to be patient and let it dry all day or overnight. Then it will look like this ....

Next step: If you are making a bookmark, cut out two pieces of white "watercolor paper" in the size you would like your bookmark. I am using 140lb cold press which is a heavy weight paper, and sturdy enough for bookmarks.

Using a metallic gold thread I now take it to the sewing machine and with one piece of the white watercolor paper I stitch the wax flower paper to it, around the edges.

Tidy up your threads and bring it back to your glue table :)

Turn over the piece you have stitched on and place some ribbon as shown below. Glue this to the paper and then glue your second piece of watercolor paper over top of this.

(Another option is to punch a hole in the bookmark when it is finished, then add ribbon. I do it both ways.)

Now I edge the back with the green ink and sign it if I remember. When that has dried which isn't long, turn it over the front again.

Now you can edge the front with the green ink too.
Don't forget these are just my steps, you can do whatever your little heart desires, use any ink, any thread etc etc, just do your thing :)

If you didn't add any fibers under the tissue, you can still do it now. Take a very teeny tiny amount and lay it where you like the look of it. I stick my little finger in the gel medium and rub it right on top of the bookmark. Make sure to let it dry well.
This is usually when I add "words" if I am going to, do it at the same time.




Now you have a pretty bookmark, which would make a lovely gift with a book or for a garden/nature lover, for anyone really, wouldn't you love one?

Here are two that I finished and put in plastic sleeves. I try to make them skinny enough to do this so it protects the bookmark, that way you can actually use it and not worry about it getting dirty, but sometimes the flowers I use are too wide for these plastic sleeves :)

I use a microwave flower press to dry my flowers and this is my wildflower series, but you can use whatever dries nicely for you, or has been in a flower press long enough to be dry.

Here are the links to my other posts featuring dried flower art....

Flower Art Continues
Flower Art and gifts from friends
Cut dried pressed and preserved
What are wildflowers anyway?
Microwave Flower Press

Hope you enjoyed my tutorial, and will show me what you have done with it :)
Lynn x

Altered Tin Tutorial and Friday Challenge

Mixed Media Friday Challenge at ECS this week was to alter a tin using a Spring theme and this is what I came up with using only half a tin. I glued a BIG black button to the bottom to help it stand on it's own.

I wrote a tutorial on altering tins last September and it was posted on another blog, which has since that time been deleted. So this is for a friend who asked how I make my tins, and I hope that those of you who have never tried this fun project yourself will take advantage of this tutorial, they are so quick and easy :)

I will go through the steps I take, but you may like to do things a little different of course, that is up to you. Remember that if you need to see any of the photos close up just click on them and you will get the full size image.

First of all you will need an empty, clean tin. I use an Altoids tin, I just love the mints, but any tin will do.
What I do is scruff up the tin a bit with some sandpaper, any kind , not too rough. Then I take it outside and spray paint the outer parts of the tin to give it a clean finished look. You could also use a metal paint from the craft store and brush it on, but I have not tried that yet.

Ta da..... blank painted tin.

Sand lightly the parts of your tin that you will be gluing anything to. Usually the front, and two insides . If you don't take this step the glue may not adhere properly.

Take your tin and draw around it on a plain piece of paper, and keep it as your template, or if you prefer just draw right on to any paper you have chosen. I chose a vintage clip art for my fairy child then decided on this paper for the front of my tin. Place it on top of the tin to see how it fits.

NOOOOOOO.. no glue yet please!
If it fits perfect you are lucky, if not then you need to trim it a bit all around until you can see it is going to fit properly on top of your tin.

What I prefer to do is work on my front paper before gluing it to the tin, just incase I either make a mess or don't like it. So let's start adding our clip art.

Here is the vintage image I chose of this cute little girl. I chose some butterfly wings to make her look fairy like, and gave her a little crown too.

Once all my pieces are together I will then glue her on to the paper. I use a regular type glue stick for this part, it works great, just a UHU or Elmers glue stick.

Now you are ready to glue this piece on to the front of your tin.

The inside of the tin is fun. For this one I chose a green paper because I am going to put a baby fairy in the forest. I then used my glue gun and used this burgundy trim around the deepest part of the tin. Make sure you don't go too near the top edge or you won't be able to close the tin after. You can see the other side of my tin is sanded and ready for something.

Here is my baby fairy all glued together. You will see her in a minute but I wanted to show you what I do to the back of her. First I will fold a piece on the bottom edge for sitting her down, and to make her more 3D I used 3 pieces of sticky foam which comes in strips. It depends how deep your foam is, you will have to judge how much to use.

Before you see the baby fairy I want you to go out into the forest and collect some natural dried pieces of nature.
Just kidding! Although I do like to hunt for little bits and pieces at the park here to use in mixed media, only at the time I am posting this, it's still way to cold for that.

I use spanish moss, just a tiny bit and I got the other drieds from some potpourri I made last year. The little orange things that look like pumpkins are Pudka Pods if that is how you spell it, I am unsure. I will be showing you what I used them for later, but really, whatever you can find, even a tiny craft bird would be nice in there too.

Ahhhhh there she is, my baby fairy :) Just waiting to sit in the forest.

I glued the dried berry thingies and even some very vintage cotton flowers I have in my stash to the top side and up over the top a bit, with the glue gun. Then I put a few spots of the same glue and laid down a very light amount of moss. Baby is going right inside, and on top of that piece of moss. Either glue your foam and press it against the back of the tin, or just use the sticky part of the foam. This gives you more dimension rather than just a flat look.

I used the foam again today on my new Spring themed tin to add the little butterfly.

Shown below, she is glued in, I glittered her crown , added some more moss in front of her and glued down some more dried pieces.

For the narrow inside of the tin I have printed out a fairy poem and aged the paper them simply glued it in. You could add another fairy there, whatever you feel like.

ta da, you have a cute little altered tin :)

Here is the front of another one I made for a swap, it's pretty much the same inside.

Below is a Halloween tin I made last year , see how the little Pudka Pods look like little pumpkins, they are so cute. Mine smell good too because they were in a potpourri mix. Here is the front of that tin. As you can see, I used a black spray paint for this one.

I hope this tutorial was fun for you, if you have any questions just ask and I will try and answer them.

Credits: Some clip art from my own collection, and others can be found at the sites below

Digital Collage Sheets
Shabby Cottage Studio

From The Craft Room
This tutorial is not to be used on any other site, it is copyrighted. A link to this tutorial is fine, please do share on your blogs, and feel free to print it.
Copyright Sept' 12th 2008 revised Feb' 2009

Folding Heart Card Tutorial

Several of you have asked or said you would like to make one of the folding heart cards, so I took some photos today so I could give you a little tutorial on the folding of the card. I have to tell you I messed up the first time, it is a bit tricky when you havn't done one in a while, and I hope I can explain it well enough for you to understand.
So, here goes........

Take a piece of 12" x 12" cardstock.
I suggest trying it on a piece you don't mind messing up the first time, just incase :)
Fold your card stock in half... ok that part is easy.

See how in my photo you can see the crease? Well make sure you now turn the paper over because you need to fold it the opposite way in the next step.

Fold this time from corner to corner, then keeping it on the same side of the paper, fold the opposite corner to corner.

It should now look like the picture below.

Note, it might help to click on these pictures and view the full size photo.

Holding one of the larger unfolded portions in front of you, fold the card inwards until it lays flat like this one below. I will show pictures of my finished card on the inside below so you know what I mean, and how it looks, just incase you did not see it before.

Use something like paper clips or clothes pins to hold paper together for drawing and cutting.

Using a heart shaped template, (I have no idea where I got it from, but it fits perfectly.), trace around the heart with pencil incase you need to erase some later. I always do.

You can also draw your own heart.

Next step is to cut out your heart. The edges may look a bit rough but you can tidy them up after it's cut.

Now it should open up and look like the picture below.
If not, then I am terrible at explaining this, or you did it wrong *giggle*

I cut out heart shapes in patterned paper and glued inside of mine, but on the heart shapes that fold inwards you will need to cut half a heart for those or it will have trouble folding in afterwards.

I then collaged mine using gel medium to glue everything, but, you can do whatever you want to decorate it.

Below you can see the inside of mine.

I also punched holes through all pieces except the very front, threaded some red seam binding and tied it.

Please, let me know if it works out for you :)