Getting Crafty with Burlap Flowers

Karli and I are going to decorate/host a tea table for a function her church is having. We brainstormed how we wanted our table to look (color, texture, theme, etc.) and we loved the idea of using burlap and getting crafty. It seems only fitting that our Spring Tea Table should include flowers. 

So, we bought several yards of the natural color burlap and then I checked out different blogs and sites for flower making advice. I found some wonderful ideas and instructions, but after trying several methods, I ended up doing my own thing! 

Let's get started making "Kandy's Burlap Flowers":
Here is what you will need:  burlap, scissors, sewing machine, glue gun, cardboard circles (cut 2" diameter for small or 2 3/4" diameter for large), an old magazine (for gluing on top of...tear off page when gets messy), the lid of a spray paint can (works well to glue on, turns easily), clothespin (and anything else you see in the photos that I failed to mention). 

Here are the steps:
1. Cut fabric into strips 2" wide 44" long (the width of the fabric). 
Tip:   Pull a thread just beyond 2", then cut along this line. This helps your fabric stay square and straight.

          

2. Cut this strip in half (22") for a small flower or leave the full 44" length for a large flower.

3. Fold the strip in half lengthwise and sew along the two edges.

              

4. Fold one end over and use the glue gun to glue it in place. 

Tip:  Use a clothespin to hold it in place while it dries. This end will become the center of your flower

 

5. Pull one thread (from the other end) and start gathering or ruffling up the fabric. 
Tip:  Pick a thread above your line of stitching. Don't pull it completely out. Your clothespin and glued end should hold it.

 

6. While keeping tension on that thread and keeping your fabric ruffled up, fold the remaining end under and glue it. 
Tip:  This is going to become the bottom of your flower.

7. Now glue that edge onto the outside edge of your cardboard circle. Your cardboard circle should be sitting on your spray paint can lid. You can take the clothespin off of the other end. It should be secure by now.

8. Continue gluing that ruffle onto the circle, turning as you go, working your way inside your flower. (Be careful not to burn yourself.) You can cut off the end of the thread that you gathered with. You may also need to trim some threads as you work...burlap frays out easily.

 

9. Continue gluing, forming the center of the flower with the very end of the fabric. This should look somewhat like a flower by now.

10. Carefully hold the very center for a while till the glue has all set up.

If all went well, you should have a flower that looks like this or similar!

If this hasn't been enough steps for you, we can keep going.....

You can cut a circle of burlap, the same size as your cardboard and cover the underneath side of your flower (just so it looks nice on the bottom).

You can also glue on a magnet or whatever else your little heart desires (like a clothespin or brooch pin or hairclip), depending on what you plan to do with "your" flower.

Karli and I are using our flowers on napkin rings and for table decor. We'll be sure to take pictures and make a post about our tea table.  I bet you can hardly wait to see it!!!

Later, Kandy  

Flea Market Favorites: Top 7 Best Finds

Spring and summer are just around the corner and to me that means garage sales, flea markets (here's one of our favorites) and farm auctions. I get excited just thinking about the bargains and make-over projects I can find. I love the thrill of the hunt.

I have several collections that I'm always willing to add to. Here's the list of what I'm always looking for.

Old Doorknobs and Door Hardware

Great for display as well as projects (like doors)

Vintage Suitcases 

These are all over my house. See my earlier post for some of my favorite ways to use them.



Old Frames     

You can see more of these put to use here.

Framed Relatives 

They don't have to be "your" relatives, just love the look.

Old windows, doors, and shutters

So many uses, you can't have too many of these around. See how we used an old door at Karli's house here and here.

Vintage Ironstone, Platters and Pitchers



I'll never quit adding to my collections.

Furniture Projects

A rocker awaiting its transformation. See more of my favorite chairs here.



A sweet little table just waiting...

See more of my past furniture finds here, here and here (this last one is all about color!).                         

I don't know about you, but just talking about this makes me anxious. I can hardly wait to get out there!  

Happy Hunting!
~Kandy 

A Bathroom Makeover: New Curtains

The curtains in my bathroom have always been an issue. You can see by my photos that I have the tub area and the window all fighting for space. This part of my bathroom is quite small consisting of the tub, window, toilet (which you can't see), and even a doorway.

You can see some of the "issues" in these photos.


The window encroaches on the tub area



The tub area


I love tubs draped all the way to the ceiling and on both sides, but adequate lighting in my tub area becomes a problem. At one time I had black and white toile curtains here but that made the area seem even smaller and was a little busy with the granite on the vanity.


You can see the vanity and the black and white toile curtains, which I moved to the guest bedroom in this post. You can also see in this post that my granite has a lot "going on" with it's pattern.  

My solution for this area was to simplify, adding more white and creating a crisper, cleaner feeling. I found white patterned panels at Target. I got two, 84" in length, on sale for $17.99 each.

A close up of the fabric

I used one panel for the tub area, with a white shower liner behind it and only had to shorten the hem a little. I cut the other panel to create the valance for the window.  Since it was a little sheer, I lined up the fabric pattern, and folded the fabric in half to create my valance. This made both areas look similar.

In the tub area I used the shower tension rod, which I already had. I decided in order to get both window and tub rods to match, I had to simply use another tension rod. The only problem was when I found another one like mine at WalMart, the color didn't match. Not a big deal. A friend of mine had given me several packages of metal clips rings and curtain brackets that she didn't need. They were a copper bronze color that didn't match. Still not a big deal. Hubby hammered the metal brackets into the correct size, (1"). And then I just spray painted everything to match! 

I clipped all the curtain rings on to a hanger for easier spraying. I used Rust-oleum Hammered Black Spray Paint for everything.


This was an easy way to spray paint the rings

After all the paint was dry, it was a matter of hanging the "shower tension rod" turned "curtain rod" at the same height as the real "shower tension rod." Everything matches and looks pretty darn good.


The painted rod and clip rings



The two areas now look great! Like they belong together


I decided to add this vintage Victorian Frame above the tub area. I've had it for years just waiting for the perfect spot.
 

The old frame adds a fun touch of whimsy

   
And Voila!.......Bathroom Curtain project completed!


I love what adding more white to the room has done

The curtains go so well with the fluffy white towels

I'll do another post at a later date and describe how we made the bathroom vanity from an old buffet.......


The vanity area (a repurposed buffet) was updated a little bit in this makeover too. I moved the candles to complete my "simplify" plan.

Until then,
~Kandy