Inspiration File

Just a few things to share this week. 

First off, Crafty Sisters made this adorable haunted village.  Isn't that SO fun?!?  She used an assortment of bird houses from the craft store, painted them black and then embellished with Halloween scrapbook paper.  I love this idea.  While I may not make a whole village, I'm totally going to add at least one haunted house to my Halloween decor.

I am Momma, Hear me Roar showed us how to make this adorable petal pillow.  I think this is seriously amazing.  Now I'm not much of a seamstress, but I want to attempt this pillow.  It is just too pretty and would be a great addition to any bed.

And speaking of pillows, look at this one made by Not Just a Housewife.  She painted that fabric BY HAND!  Amazing job! I totally feel her pain when it comes to trying to find the fabric that matches the image in my head, but next time I'll be brave and make my own like she did.  Great Job!

Well, that's all for now.  The project I've been working on this week hasn't turned out like I envisioned so I'm off for round two. 

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Theater Room Pillows

So the other day I was browsing through a Ballard Designs catalog and came across a bunch of really cute theater room stuff.  The funny thing is I had seen this same spread previously and  didn't look twice, but this time something caught my eye.  Actually, it was two things...

I loved the ticket plaque and the movie inspired pillows and thought I'd combine the two ideas.  I ended up with this.

Isn't he the cutest?!?! (Yes, its a he and no, I have no clue why.)  But he was a little lonely down there so I made him these to keep him company.

They are pretty dang cute too, don't ya think?!?

I used about a yard of canvas I got at the fabric store, but this would be a great application for drop cloth.  I found the images I liked online (all through google images) and printed them up on my computer.  I hung them in the window so I could trace them onto freezer paper, used a exacto knife to cute out the stencil, ironed it on and used fabric paint to paint on the image. I used a mix of both brown and black paint to give it a little more depth.  Once the paint is dry you simply pill off the freezer paper and sew your pillow.

If you want more information on freezer paper stenciling, go visit Cheri at I am Momma, Hear me Roar. (Awesome blog by the way, be prepared to stay awhile) She has a video tutorial that will explain everything you need to know way better then I ever could.

While I still have some things I want to do downstairs...

I think its coming along quite nice!

Linking up at...

Pillows!!!

The greatest thing about making your own custom roman blinds is that you can make custom throw pillows that match! And the greatest thing about making custom throw pillows is that you can make them envelop style. So when grimy fingers use your pillow as a napkin, you can put the covers in the wash!

I made four covers to go over some existing pillows using the leftovers from my blind project. I then made two more "basket weave" pillows to accent with. They are so pretty! My pictures really don't do them justice. Isn't the basket weave divine?

So... do you want to make your own?

Supplies:
fabric (I got one yard to make two pillows and had some left over.)
ribbon (I used three spools of sheer ribbon per pillow but it will depend on the size of your pillow.)
pillow form
sewing notions



Step 1: Cut out a piece of fabric for the face several inches larger than your pillow form. You want to consider the fullness of your pillow and hem allowance.

Step 2: Cut out two more pieces the same width and about 3/4 of the length of your face fabric.

Step 3: Starting in one direction pin your ribbon in strips next to each other, pinning on both ends till you cover the entire piece.

Step 4: Start weaving by taking strips of ribbon and place them over, under, over, under... in the opposite direction. You will alternate every other strip. Once it is in place, tuck it next to the edge (or previous ribbon) and pin both ends. (I'm sure all of you know how to weave but I'm trying to make this thing thorough, but man its hard to explain in words!)

Step 5: Sew a top stitch as close to the edge as possible in order to hold everything in place while you work with it. Then trim around the piece. (At this point you could take some binding tape and bind the edge to make a beautiful place mat)

Step 6: Take your other fabric pieces and turn over and sew one of the edges. You may need to trim these pieces as well depending on how much you trimmed your face piece.

Step 7: Place the right sides together with the two back pieces overlapping. The turned edges should be in the center. Pin in place.

Step 8: Sew all around your pillow. Once done, clip the corners so they will be sharp when turned.

Step 9: Turn your cover right side out and stuff your pillow in. You may need to adjust the ribbon when done. And there you have it!

Note: the other pillow covers where made the using the same method as above.



Simply beautiful!