A Face a Day - 7/4/12

(Sharpie, Prisma marker and Prisma colored pencils, paint)

4th of July Centerpiece with Fabric Pom Poms Tutorial

Just got my new Clover XL Pom Pom Maker. It is so fun! I've make pom poms with tulle, yarn, and fabric.  I specifically bought it to make fabric pom poms. I saw them here on Prudent Baby and loved them.

I made mine with red (striped cotton blend), white (cotton) and navy (polyester) fabric for a fun 4th of July centerpiece.

A few tips for the fabric pom poms:
1. At first I was really careful to wrap the fabric flat so there were no twists. Well, then my pom poms looked like stacks of fabric--not puffy pom poms. So as you wrap either your pom pom maker or whatever else you use, let the fabric twist and overlap a bit.
2. I cut the fabric into 3/4" wide strips. You could certainly go thinner, but thicker may make it harder to tied the knot around the center. I just cut them as long as my fabric and then overlapped them as I wrapped them onto the pom pom maker.
3. I tied these with matching yarn. It seems to tie a tighter knot than other things I tried.
4. For a solid color pom pom, it's best to use solid fabrics or fabrics that are printed on both sides. You can use cottons that are printed on one side. It just gives it a different look--more homespun/country.

To Make the Centerpiece:
I just stuck dowels into the yarn at the center of the pom pom. I didn't even glue them  because I use these dowels for other things. I put floral foam in the bottom of a pot I already had. Again, I just stuck it in and didn't glue is since this pot is usually my pencil holder by my computer. I stuck the dowels in the foam at different levels and filled in the top with floral moss. No glue, just tucked it in. A little jute bow around the pot finishes it off nicely. And everything is removable after the holiday. :)

I tried the pom poms outside first in my planter, but I thought they sort of got lost in the mix. I'm thinking of taking out the pinecones and filling the entire planter with floral foam so I can add all sorts of fabric flowers and pom poms. What do you think?

Rag Wreath for 4th of July

I've been seeing these everywhere online and I love them. So I had to make my own. And with the 4th of July just around the corner, red white and blue was my theme.

I bought 2 wreath forms. The green one is for a future wreath for my daughter's room. For this Patriotic Wreath, I used the 12" craft ring (macrame--anyone remember that?). The benefit of the craft ring is it's $1.99 (the green floral form was $3.99). And with the thin metal ring, you don't have to have very long strips of fabric--I cut mine to be just 8" long. I will have to cut them quite a bit longer when I use that green wreath from!

I got 2 or three styles of fabric in red, white and soft blue. I used some printed cottons (the whites do have a slight print to them), gingham, solid linen, seersucker, striped, polka dot and solid cotton.

I ripped the fabric into strips of varying widths--from 1/2" to 1-1/2". I then cut them down to be 8" long, using pinking shears to give the end a bit more interest and to avoid more fray. I tied the strips on in good ol' American Red, White and Blue order varying the fabric each go around.

The wreath is hung by a long strip of gingham torn fabric.

Memorial Day Mini American Flag Bunting

I saw this little tutorial on Salt Water Kids. I decided to make my own no sew/no wash/no iron (yes, I AM a lazy crafter!) version using ribbon trim instead of fabric.

I used 1-1/2" wide white and red striped ribbon/trim that I had on hand. I cut 3/4" squares of denim fabric. I glued (glue gun) the denim to the ribbon and did a fabric paint star. I let that dry over night and then glued the tiny flags to some jute twine and tied it to my front door grapevine wreath. 

These little cuties will be perfect for Memorial Day and I'll leave them up through the 4th of July!