DIY Counting Sheep Baby Banner

Posted on July 17, 2011 by Roeshel

It’s rare, but there’s a baby related project in the DIY Show Off house! NO! Not for me! I‘ve been invited to a baby shower and I just love giving handmade baby gifts. (Tara, if by chance you’re reading, please stop right here!) Unfortunately, I can’t make it to the baby shower (my baby girl’s graduation party is the same day) but I have a whole handmade collection planned and here’s the first thing in the gift box:

A sweet baby girl counting sheep banner, inspired by cute bird, butterfly and bunny banners but designed and DIY’d by me with a counting sheep theme.

Not guaranteed to help baby sleep, but it sure is cute.

Materials:

Scrapbook paper (It doesn’t take much. Two 12×12 sheets will work but more if you want more designs.)

2 ribbons (I used almost 1 spool of organza, 1 thin satin)

Baker’s twine (a thin ribbon or twine would work just as well)

Number ink & stamps or stickers #1-10 (or free hand)

Tape

Tools:

Pencil

Scissors

Hole punch

Optional: Xacto knife

Counting Sheep Banner Tutorial

10 steps to 10 sheep

#1 Print a lamb stencil or template from online onto card stock and cut out. (Optional: you could also use your Cricut or Silhouette to make die cuts.)

#2 Trace onto scrapbook paper and cut out sheep shapes. I used an Xacto knife and alternated the direction (flip the sheep stencil) so my sheep were facing each other in sets of two {><} rather than all facing left {<<} or right {>>} or back side to backside {< >}. Trace and cut out 10 sheep. I used pretty paper in pinks for baby girl (to coordinate with other handmade items planned).

#3 Punch 2 holes beside each other near the top of each sheep. Near the top keeps sheep from twirling on the string. I tested punching holes in different areas. Near the top works best. (Optional: reinforce with eyelets. I also punched holes for eyes…animals without eyes make me sad. You could draw on closed/sleepy eyes too.)

#4 Number the sheep 1-10 using rubber stamps, stickers or draw on with markers.

#5 Cut 11 five inch pieces (eyeball it…no need to measure) of pink ribbon and 22 five inch pieces of organza (or do your own ribbon combo/thing). This is tied between each sheep.

#6 Pull a length of baker’s twine. Tape off the end (it keeps the twine from fraying and makes threading easier).

#7 Add sheep. Thread from back to front in one hole. Then front to back in punched hole right beside it. Repeat for all 10 sheep.

#8 Space out evenly. I left about 10 inches of twine on each end for hanging. Cut and tie a loop on the ends of the twine (loose knots to allow resizing the loop for bigger hanging on drawer knobs, smaller loop for thumb tacks or safety pins).

#9 In between each sheep, I took 2 pieces of organza with 1 piece of satin ribbon and tied a knot. (Shabby Chic option: use frayed pretty coordinating fabric pieces or strips of tulle.)

#10 Space evenly again (leave them semi-moveable to accommodate different areas in the gift recipient’s home or tape twine on back to keep in place). Ready to hang!

Isn’t it so cute? I want one for me and I don’t even have a nursery. I love pretty decorative banners and ‘counting sheep’ is perfect for a nursery!

Hang it across drapery
Tie on dresser pulls
Use as wall art
Cute learning to count tool
Baby shower decor.

Lots of options. Now lots of pictures:

I hope she likes it. 🙂

What have you been doing this weekend?

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Brooch Wreath Tutorial/DIY Project Parade

Posted on June 26, 2011 by Roeshel

How to make an heirloom jewelry wreath using brooches, charms, broken jewelry, earrings, etc.

It’s the time of year forshopping flea markets and estate sales this summer and you’ll likely see lots of costume jewelry, brooches, charms, earrings, etc. – CHEAP! Vintage brooches are so pretty but they’re not something I’d wear on a regular basis. Although if you do this project, you’ll be tempted. and develop a new appreciation for these beautiful pins. Inspired by the recent trend of brooch bouquets, I loved the look of clustered jewelry.

I have no need for a bridal bouquet, but a wreath – now that would add a pretty touch to home decor. I could see this in my future vintage inspired dressing room:

My wreath has a 10″ diameter and took over 100 pieces to get to the point pictured. Keep your eyes open at your thrift-hunting adventures and start collecting brooches, earrings, charms, costume jewelry, buttons, any small ornament. You might even have a few pieces lying around that you’d like to include for display rather than hiding away in a jewelry box. Brooches can get expensive. We set a limit of $1. Sometimes we’d go just a bit higher (no more than $3) if there was a pretty one we just had to have but for the most part, yard and estate sales proved to be .25 or 3 for $1. We also scoured the craft section in the thrift stores, scoring large baggies full of jewelry surprises. The local pawn shop/jewelry store gave us a good deal on costume jewelry too.

My daughter, Bri, and I both made wreaths. Mine is done in golds, silvers with a touch of white/blue/green. (Note: Choosing certain colors makes finding pieces a little more difficult.) Bri wanted lots of color and created a beautiful wreath using a variety of pretty mix of costume jewelry baubles.

Materials:

Assortment of brooches, earrings, charms, buttons, decorative pieces, etc.

Straight pins

Hot glue

Styrofoam wreath

Deco Art MagiKote – a mandatory step (see reasons below)

Krylon spray paint or Deco Art craft paints

Brooch Wreath Tutorial:

Apply Deco Art MagiKote to the Styrofoam wreath.

MagiKote has the texture of white paint. I love using foam brushes for craft projects.

Have a larger assortment on hand for crafts like the ones sold in bulk by Rockler.

MagiKote aids in making Styrofoam a paintable surface by sealing the texture, otherwise paint hits the top edges but not the Styrofoam craters. MagiKote also makes for a better pin-able and glue-able surface. Brooches etc. get moved around a lot during placement. If it wasn’t for the MagiKote, there’d be a lot of Styrofoam crumbs and chunks falling out.

Let dry.

2. Paint the Styrofoam wreath form (a Styrofoam square would be cute too!). I used Krylon’s Brushed Metallic. Color: Champagne Nouveau. The MagiKote also creates a protective barrier so that my spray paint didn’t ‘melt’ the Styrofoam form.

I like that Krylon is quick, easy and fast drying. This sets a background for the pins. I painted my to blend…

Bri painted hers using Deco Art Gloss Enamels (Citron Green) to pop and coordinate with other colors in her room…

3. Layout a template to get an idea for placement, favorite pieces front and center. Side pieces can be smaller and aren’t viewed from every angle.

4. Start placement of biggest brooches and pieces including favorites.

5. Once you have the big pieces in place, fill in with smaller pieces. Open pins stick into the Styrofoam.

Earring posts make placement easy.Clip-ons are just as easy but use wire cutters if necessary to cut backings for easier “pinning”.

Use wire cutters to help when needed. Barrets, pins, earrings all have backing that can be used to secure to the styrofoam. Hot glue and straight pins will help too.

My wreath doesn’t use glue but occasionally I used colorful pins, so it can be disassembled if needed…a fun way to display jewelry that is worn or prevent keepsakes from being ruined.

6. Optional: Use a ribbon for hanging.

Here is my finished (almost – a few more brooches needed for the inside of the wreath)…

Bri’s wreath:

All finished! Well, almost. We still have some extra spaces to fill in as summer progresses and I’d like to fill in the inside as well…it’ll take some time. Fun for a game of “I Spy” too! What do you think?

See it on the wall in our guest bedroom.

What have you been doing this weekend?

PB Inspired Easter Decor (updated)

Posted on March 16, 2011 by Roeshel

This page in my Pottery Barn catalog was earmarked. I loved the spring feel. I preferred yellow to pink but “What a pretty Easter vignette”, I thought. Then I added up the cost of things I wanted. “$200!” Yikes. Keep dreaming.

Dreaming can be reality. If it’s too big for your budget, DIY! The result will be more personal and more rewarding (and cheap)!

A trip to Michaels for faux Forsythia, paper mache eggs and ribbon and using things I already had including Deco Art‘s Americana Gloss Enamels, Acrylic and Dazzing Metallics craft paints, pitcher, Sharpie, pins and existing ceramic Easter bunnies