Warm Rainbows

About a year ago, my mom made my eldest child Katie a sweet hat and hand warmer set from the prettiest Bernat Pipsqueak yarn. I couldn't believe how incredibly soft and warm it was and loved it so much that I decided we should share it with the world.

You can now get the pattern for this cozy set in our Etsy shop!

Happy mid-winter warm up!

Wednesday's Child: Something Old, Something New

You know the old saying about everything that goes out of style always comes back? Out of style for decades, it appears they are now in style again. I’m talking about beautiful beaded doilies which are used as jar covers and as accents on glassware. For some reason I am so inspired by them! Some time ago I stumbled onto a picture of a crochet cake cover and fell immediately in love. I searched the internet for the cake cover pattern and always it would take me back to the same site; http://heirloomtreasuresfiberarts.com/heirloom-heritage-techniques. While I enjoyed the site, I never found a pattern for this beautiful cake cover.

In my quest to find the ever-elusive crochet cake cover I ferreted out some beaded jar patterns. The really neat thing about the beaded jar covers is they are not only pretty; they can be practical as well. Imagine a dainty little jeweled doily covering your pitcher of iced sweet tea, keeping it bug-free while you sit on the front porch with friends. If you don’t crochet, I found this idea from http://www.pompomemporium.com/content/how-upcycle-a-cotton-doily:

In charity shops you can often see a pile of doilies languishing unappreciated in with the linens, it's a shame as obviously a lot of time and effort went into hand-crocheting these cotton doilies. Pondering their plight I had the idea of up-cycleing them into jug/bowl covers, to keep flies off food and drink in summer. All you do to give them a new lease of life is attach, by sewing, glass beads* around the edge.
*Glass ones have more weight than plastic ones.

I found the Bourbon Rose Jug/Bowl Cover here: http://megan.cc/BowlCover/

This is a free pattern for you to download and she not only gives you the pattern, she also has a section which tells you how to do the blocking. It would not be hard to make a fashion statement on your table with these. Beaded covers make the ordinary appear extraordinary!

This vintage pattern below is free from: http://www.knitting-and.com/crochet/jugcover.htm It’s originally from the 1940’s. It is so cute with a little crochet cup and saucer on top and would make a charming display in a kitchen.

But why stop at jug and jar covers? Can’t you just see little crochet beaded snowflakes sparkling from a Christmas tree branch, hanging from a nylon thread in a window, or even from a ceiling, as the beads catch the light? How cool would that be?! Or what about making coasters for parties? How about beaded “skirts” for wine glasses. Throw one over your pie dish or bowl of potato salad! They would make nice gifts too. For those who can’t or don’t want to crochet, what could be easier than to buy one from an internet store such as Etsy or E-bay?

There are even books available with a number of different patterns.

It’s time to re-enjoy old fashioned ideas and traditional crochet by making something updated and fun! If you have some ideas or some cool pictures of how to use beaded doilies, don’t hesitate in letting me know. Who knows, maybe I’ll do a post on it!

Making Ribbon-Covered Butterfly Hair Clips

I haven't been around here for a while, so I thought I would give you something nice. A ribbon-covered butterfly hair clip in six steps.

I came across a crochet butterfly pattern a few months ago called from Everlaughter by Patricia Eggen. She mostly does appliques, but also has a few other patterns for sale. The butterflies really caught by eye, so I saved the pattern because I knew I would find a way to use it.

And so I did.

We're having Katie's and Ivy's birthday party this Saturday, and since I made ribbon rainbows last year for the Rainbow Party, I thought I would continue the tradition this year. What four-year-old girl doesn't love hair clips, anyway?

Want to make some? Super-simple. Here we go! Six steps.

You'll need:
Butterfly appliques (I'm not going to share the pattern - it's copyrighted)
1.75" hair clips--one for each butterfly -- the straight ones are best
Ribbon to cover the hair clips; I used gross grain.
Hot glue and your trusty glue gun

 
Step 1: Pinch a clip open, and, starting on the inside, lay down a nice line of glue all the way to the end of the clip. Take your ribbon and with right side up, insert in the clip and press firmly.

  
Step 2: Now with the clip closed, lay down another strip of glue on the outside of the clip. Fold the ribbon over and press firmly to stick it down.

  
Step 3: Flip the clip over so the top of the other side is showing. Apply another strip of glue, fold the ribbon around the end of the clip and press firmly to he clip all the way to the end.

  
Step 4: Pinch the clip open and add one more strip of glue to the inside of the clip. Fold the ribbon over and stick down by pressing firmly.

There. You now have a ribbon-covered clip.

Step 5: On the top of the clip, you'll put down one last line of glue. Take your butterfly applique and press down firmly so that it's secured.

 Let it cool and it's ready to wear!

I made one or two for each favor bag.

These little applique hair clips are a great way to use up left-over yarn. You could make these clips with any kind of applique type item: fabric flowers, animal appliques, ribbon, etc.

I hope you enjoyed learning how to make a ribbon-covered hair clip with a butterfly applique! Check out Everlaughter for some more really cool applique patterns.And if you make some cool clips, link me up in the comments! I would love to see!