Tag: Tutorial

Crafts & DIY · Tutorial

No Sew Fabric Flowers, two ways: A Tutorial

ladybeezdesignsLeave a comment

Hiya Folks!

I’m back with part two of the Handmade flower tutorial that I talked about on Local 5 Live yesterday morning… Seriously, did that really happen? I’m so glad to have video proof!

I’m still getting over the craziness of it all! Pic above….but here’s the video if you missed it.

So let’s Talk fabric flowers! Both types of these flowers are made the same way… But I will walk you through them step-by-step! I promise anyone can do this!

Let’s start with the One Colored Rose Type, shall we?

Supplies Needed:

Duct Tape

Wooden Dowels

Fabric strips

I spray painted my dowels ahead of time… This is a quick and easy way to do it. However, you are more than welcome to leave them plain… Paint them by hand… Or even cover them with other colorful tapes

Next we are going to start creating the rose.

For your fabric strip you can experiment with different lengths and widths… The width I would say use between 3-5” ….for length, the longer the strip is, the FULLER your rose will be. I like about 25-30”.

Below I am showing how to fold the fabric: fold over the end about 1/2 inch and then hot dog fold it in half.

Before you go any Further you want your tape ready. Now, you can buy smaller duct tape… But the large duct tape will work just as easily if you cut it in half. Make pieces about 1 1/2”-2” long and your last piece should be about 3”.

Insert the dowel and tape to secure.

To create the flower, you’ll pleat the Fabric three times, and then secure with tape. Rotate the dowel, and repeat this process until you reach one inch away from the end of your strip of fabric.

Here you’ll want to fold the end in so it looks clean, and the end won’t fray.

Almost there!!!! Now take your last longer piece of tape and finish it off by wrapping it tightly around the dowel.

YOU DID IT!

If you’re more of a “moving picture” kind of crafter….I attempted a video of this process below 🌸 🎥

Practice! practice! PRACTICE! Soon you’ll have a vase full!

Now, once you’ve mastered that idea….you can make this second daisy-like flower in the same manner…..the only difference is you’ll have two colored fabrics, and wrap them either tighter or looser.

The center will look best cut about 2- 2 1/2” wide and 10”-12” long. You’ll do exactly as above for the first 3 pleats, but then you’ll just wrap the remainder tight in the circle and secure with tape. It will look like a BUD.

The second fabric should be 3- 3 1/2” in width and 15”-18” in length….and you’ll perform the same pleating/taping as above with the rose…..juuusst a little looser.

And there you HAVE IT!

TWO FLOWERS, one method!

Please share pics of you make some of your own!

AND HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!!!

Crafts & DIY · Tutorial

Button Flowers Tutorial

ladybeezdesignsLeave a comment

Aren’t these flowers just as cute as a button?

OK, I know that was horrible… But I couldn’t resist.

Hello! and welcome to all of my new friends that might have stumbled upon this little blog after seeing me this morning on Local 5 Live! I’m so grateful to have had the opportunity to return and show you a couple easy crafts that are so easy you could even make them with your kids…

You did remember that Mother’s Day is Sunday, right?

Supplies needed:

BUTTONS of all shapes and sizes

WIRE: prefer 22 gauge as it’s easy to work with, yet still has a little strength

To assemble the flower simply weave your wire up through one hole of the button and down through the opposite hole. You will do this with all of your buttons at the same time so stacked two or three together.

Next twist your wire… The trick I told my kiddos is to hold the wires while twisting the button… It makes it’s a lot easier.

Now if you want to stop here and just stick these in a potted plant… It adds a fun pop of color.

However you can continue and add some leaves to your button flower by attaching two buttons to the end of a piece of wire and wrapping it around the center stem.

Then your button flowers can be the star of its own show!

Since I come from a long line of women that had button collections… An added super special piece to our button flowers is that they contain buttons from my grandmas and my mom who are celebrating their Mother’s Day together in Heaven. It’s so nice to be able to look at these button flowers and remember them ❤️

I’d love to see the Button Flowers you make! Feel free to comment with pictures!

And I’d love to have you come back and visit tomorrow when I post the No Sew Fabric Flower Tutorial!

Crafts & DIY · Tutorial

Fabric Cross Decor Tutorial

ladybeezdesigns2 Comments

This past weekend as I was changing out St. Patty’s Day decor with Easter….I realized I needed a new art piece to hang above our mantle.

Thing was, purchasing one wasn’t in the budget….so I went on a treasure hunt in the house.

I found some old frames: one for me & one for Georgia.

We each picked out the fabric we wanted and cut strips out leaving just a few inches on each side of the open frames.

Next up: STAPLE GUN!

I tried getting Georgia to use it, but it packs too much of a punch for her (little scary 😧 to me too, to be honest…you could totally hot glue too) Since we had one, I stapled the strips to the back of the frame to hold in place.

Now to make the cross….flip the frame over and use wire to tie at the place the fabric intersects. Don’t have wire? Got any old bread twist-ties? Those will work too! Or, I suppose string would work as well….wire just makes the next step easier.

And the finishing touch: COMPLETELY up to you! Use some Ribbon and tie a bow, use the wire to add a flower, glue a BIG BUTTON…or like we did: add a broach or pin.

Ours are a little extra special to us because they were our Grandmas’

The Pearl one from my Grandma Flo…

And Georgia’s pin was her grandma’s (my mom’s)

I’m super happy how these turned out. Plus they put an added smile on my heart when I see a part of my family in them.

Sewing · Tutorial

Make Your Own Boo-Boo Bags (Rice Freezer Bags)

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My kiddos and I don’t start our Homeschool Journey until next week, but that doesn’t mean we haven’t had lots of learning happening already.  In fact, I want to remind all of you out there in the Internets: I love seeing everyone’s schedules and ideas/tips/tricks/fun, and I will be sharing ours….However, please remember:  WE ONLY POST THE HIGHLIGHTS! I’m not sharing to make you feel bad because you didn’t let your kids so nuts with corn starch mud….or make a scavenger hunt for them….or to make you think I’m not losing my mind like the rest of you.  I’m just trying to stay positive.  We all need a little bit of that right now!

So, let’s see.  Our family of 6 have been “Social Distancing” ourselves since Friday.  We are on Day 7.  Since then, we’ve had 17 cases reported to be in need of a Boo-Boo Bag.

A Boo-Boo Bag?  It’s what we call our Rice Filled Freezer Bags that can be used on “OWWEEEE”s.   And, I am telling you, they are so easy to make, your 7 year old can do it!

Supplies Needed:

Cotton Fabric, Rice, Sewing Machine & Thread.  (Optional: Essential Oils for “Smell Goods”)

 

I hope you don’t mind…I’m not going to be super specific with measurements.  It really doesn’t matter at all.  Use what you have…I let my kids pick the fabric they wanted….and they all turned out to be different sizes.

You are going to sew the pieces together inside-out, and so you have 3 sides closed and one side open.

Flip it right-sides out.

“Fill” with rice.  I put fill in quotes, because you don’t want to fill it all the way….I recommend about 1/2 full (or less)  You want them to be very flexible and cushion-y

Then take the open ends and turn them into the inside…..

Sew it closed.  (Make sure you back-stitch at the beginning and end)

Put them in an air-tight bag or container and store in the freezer for the next “BOO-BOO”

 

  • HOT BONUS TIPS:

  • Add Essential Oils to the rice for aromatherapy….you can also just drop some on bag and let dry.

  • Make LARGER bags for Adult size Boo-Boo’s

  • Use said Larger Bags as HOT PACKS by microwaving them for a couple minutes

 

I’d love to see if you make your own!  Please comment and show us!

Sewing · Tutorial

Tutorial: Sew a Custom Dog Collar

ladybeezdesignsLeave a comment

After having a request from one of my very loyal customers to make a custom dog collar, I went back and forth as to how I was going to tackle it.

Do I search for a pattern?

What if I make this and then other people are interested in ordering one?  (that’s usually my motivation for purchasing patterns)  I’m a stickler for reproducible results!

What I ended up deciding on was purchasing a collar and deconstructing it to make a new one.

The bonus to this method is:   1. You have a pattern.  2. You have all the “hardware” you’ll need.

Then, I thought, maybe my sewing friends would like to do this too!

So, here is a quick Tutorial for you to make your own custom dog collar

  1. Look for a collar you love.  Maybe it’s the one your dog is already wearing?  Maybe it’s a brand new one.  (as long as the “hardware” is good, they have collars everywhere…even the dollar store)
  2. Open the collar up and take a picture.  You’ll want this for reference when you are sewing your new collar back together.
  3. Cut off all the hardware

4. Measure the length of the collar all stretched out straight.

5. Choose the fabric you love.  My customer happens to LOVE Star Trek, so that’s what I used.  If your print is larger, you’ll have to pay attention to placement of the print.

6. You’ll cut your fabric 4x the width of the collar you are copying, and Add 1 inch onto the length.  (the collar I copied also had a tag ring, so I cut an extra piece to attach that)

7. Cut Iron-On interfacing 2″x Length of collar and iron it on down the center.

8. Fold your collar to the center twice so that it’s 4 layers.  You’ll also tuck in the ends so that they are finished nicely.  Sew around this whole piece with 1/8″ seam.

9. Reconstruct your collar by referencing the picture of the one you took apart.10. Pop that puppy on your Pup, and enjoy!

Just think of all the fun collars you can make for your Furry Friend!