DIY Raggy Fabric Vines by Lesli ~ My Old Country House

Posted on December 14, 2011 by Roeshel

Guest Blog Post –

Lesli from My Old Country House

– My Raggy Fabric Vines!

HI, this is Lesli DeVito, from

My Old Country House and Lesli DeVito Paintings

and I am thrilled to be a Guest Blogger for

Roeshel

on the DIY SHOWOFF.

I have loved getting to know Roeshel

and she is one of those amazingly generous

Blogger Sisters

who has helped me share my little fledgling blog

with everyone!

When Roeshel asked me if I had any Holiday DIY ideas to share

I knew immediately what I would show you.

…but first, true confessions.

I confess…I have a

“LOVE/HATE”

relationship with Holiday decorating.

There, I said it.

With three kids, who are getting bigger every day…

decorating for the holidays means

More work…

MORE stuff, MORE clutter,

MORE clean up.

But more than anything, I think the reason why I get a bit

apprehensive is that every year…when Dec 1 rolls around,

and I pull those boxes out

I have to take a deep breath and sigh

as I realize how FAST the years are going.

Too fast. Just too fast.

It, for me is bittersweet.

There you have it.

…and yet…when my home is all done.

…all decorated, and the tree is up.

I LOVE IT!

I ADORE IT!

I wake up every morning before the kids get up, make my coffee

and sit and just stare at the tree.

It is almost

like a meditation.

and I LOVE LOVE LOVE

to listen to my Christmas music…

everywhere,

until

the kids beg me to stop.

Last year, in the interest of saving a few pennies

on Holiday decorating,

I started making these Raggy Fabric Vines

and this year I am selling them at

my friend Jill’s annual Holiday craft show!

They are super dooper easy, and fun to make.

so here is your tutorial!

DECORATIVE RAGGY VINES

Time to make – 30 minutes to 1 hr/each.

supplies needed:

1. scissors

2. fabric scraps or yardage (approx 1/2 to 2/3 yrd per vine)

3. rope- I use twisted sisal rope that I got at Lowes, about $6.50 for a 100ft roll.

4. cutting board or surface to work on.

(warning- this is a very “thready” craft, you will want to do a vacuuming afterward…but it is all worth it!)

Instructions:

gather your supplies…

…score your fabric on the sides and then tear into long strips. The width is up to you. I usually do about 1.5 inches

stack your strips

…and then cut them into the length you want. For smaller vines, 6″ will do, forlonger, fatter, raggier vines, 12″- 15″ strips is good.

…tie off the end of your rope pieces. I cut mine pieces about 70″ each and then tie off about 1 foot on either end.I used white duct tape to secure the ends.

…lay your fabric piece under the rope

tie it on…

…and so on and so on…until you reach the other end! You can design a patternor do it all the same…have fun with it!

I love Greenery.

The look of it…the smell of it. I LOVE IT!

I usually put it everywhere, on the mantles, on the porch and

stair railings…over the windows.

But as much as I love it….it can get expensive.

What I LOVE about these Shabby RAGGY fabric vines is that

we can use them over and over again, every year.

They have become part of our Holiday decorations.

Part of our tradition.

…on the stair railing…

…along the mantle…

…over the windows. I have even done these in pastels and have used them to decorate kids rooms…the possibilities are endless!

anywhere….

So go grab yourself some rope and some fabric and your other supplies and have fun!

It is a great craft to do with the kids of all ages!

They can put them in their bedrooms or give them to the teacher for a gift!

My 2 year old niece even helped me stack the fabric this past weekend!

Thank you Roeshel for inviting me to be a Guest Host

on the DIY Showoff

I have loved sharing this easy and thrifty

Holiday craft with you

and your wonderful followers..

HAPPY HOLIDAYS to everyone!!!

I invite you to stop by

My Old Country House

and Lesli DeVito Paintings

so we can share my ART and more decorating ideas!

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Pinterest PinFest Linky Party ~ December

Posted on December 13, 2011 by Roeshel

Pinterest is not only a place to keep my favorite sites organized, it’s an awesome place for inspiration for delicious recipes, fun crafts, home improvement projects, storage and organization ideas, home decor, DIY, pretty clothes, gorgeous hairstyles and Christmas eye candy! Here’s my Pinterest dream this month (please click the links for the original source found via Pinterest):

Today I woke up to the aroma of this sweet holiday breakfast…

Make-Ahead Blueberry French Toast Breakfast

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And after looking outside to see this:

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I sat around in my warm fuzzies all day long…

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Mesmerized by this glowing site…

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Watching Christmas movies…

Sometimes listening to Christmas music…

Sipping warm holiday cheer…

{source}

Smelling these in the oven…

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Occasionally, with my design loving streak, I tweak this and decide it looks good just the way it is…

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And I’m especially thankful for the entire reason for my Christmas spirit…

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Wishing you a very Merry Holiday Season!

{source}

Do you have visions of Pinterest dreams dancing in your head?

Follow and peek at my Pinboards here.

Link up your Pinterest related blog post:
1. Please copy and paste the code above into your post to automatically add the button and link back.
2. Add your Pinterest related URL POST (not general blog address) into the linky party by clicking “click here to enter” shown below.
3. Add a title. (Your blog name, the topic of your Pinterest Pinfest post, etc.). Click add picture from the web.
4. Select a picture that best fits your post to use as a thumbnail.
5. Let me know if you need help. 🙂
6. Party stays open for one week.
7. Pinterest PinFest is not sponsored by Pinterest. I doubt they’re even aware that we Pinterest party at the DIY Show Off.

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DIY Clay Ornament Tutorial by Tammy from Type A

Posted on December 9, 2011 by Roeshel

Happy Holidays to all of you at The DIY Show Off and thanks Roeshel for inviting me to be a guest! When Roeshel asks you to be a guest, it’s one of the biggest compliments a blogger can receive, I love her and her blog! Thanks for the invite!

I’m Tammy from Type A, your basic wife, mother, crafter, painter and blogger. I love blogging and all the new folks I have met it’s been a fabulous creative outlet for me. I have two amazing children and one adorable puppy. My hubby works in Afghanistan as a contractor so I wear all the hats, even the unflattering ones!

I hope you enjoy my ornament tutorial.

All of the tools can be bought at your local craft store. I bought some of mine online, because I was too lazy to drive to Joanns, but in my defense it’s pretty far away and it saved me in gas.

So here I have my cookie cutters, clay, clay rolling pin, embossers and awl. The only other things you need are a pan to cook the clay on and some twine to make a hanger for the ornament.

I used gold polymer clay, the kind you bake, not the air dry variety. The reason for this is simple, the baked kind comes in many more colors, and I wanted gold. You can use any color you like.

Cookie cutters are the perfect tool for working with clay and come in a variety of sizes. I wanted doves so I bought a 1.75 in and 3.5 in cookie cutter. I have a smaller tree so the 1.75 in ornaments are perfect for me and don’t require as much clay to make them. Two packs of clay made 12 ornaments, where1 pack of clay made 3 of the larger ornaments. Which were a gift to my sons second grade teacher.

First you roll out your clay till it’s about 1/4 of an inch thick, then you can emboss it with any design you like. Then I take a cookie cutter and cut the shape out, I use my awl to make the whole for the twine.

Bake for 30 minutes at 230 degrees. Let them cool and then you can run string through them. Pretty easy really, however the clay isn’t all that soft so your hands and triceps with get a workout rolling it out!