DIY Crochet Bunting!!

 

 

Hiya guys!  Happy Sunday!  Hope you’ve all had a good week!

 

I’ve had a busy past few weeks, and totally struggled to do a wee crafty project last week to post to the blog – which I’m totally gutted about L, naturally.  But I decided I’d rather post up something I enjoyed making rather than doing something in a rush just so I had a new post up!  I’m such a perfectionist and it’s rather annoying at times, ha!

 

Anyways…I had a few wee days off this week (yay!), so I had a good sit down and did this week’s project.

 

A couple months ago, when I went into town to do one of my crafty shopping sprees, I decided I’d get a couple crochet tutorial books.  I’m quite a visual learner, I’d rather watch a YouTube video tutorial about new stitches and patterns, but I thought ‘Why not get a book about crocheting instead?’  I did realise though, once I got home and tried one of the designs, that reading patterns is quite tricky!!  I got a wee bit stressed out to be really honest.

 

However, this was only because I was new to reading how to do a pattern.  Like anything you are a beginner at, it just takes time and a lot of patience - just keep at it and you’ll get there!!

 

And…getting back on track…when I was flicking through the pages of the book - which is listed at the bottom of the post, as usual – I came across this pattern that is really neat…bunting!!!  Those super-annoying but equally festive multi-coloured, decorative flags that you see everywhere at celebrations and outdoor events, as well as indoors for parties!

 

So, I made my own crochet bunting!  It’s really quite cool and definitely an alternative to the plastic versions. Plus, it adds a homemade touch if you use it for parties!

 

  

 

What I used:

 

 

·         A variety of bright coloured yarn: white, neon yellow, pink sparkle and blue sparkle.

 

 

 

·         4mm crochet hook

 

 

 

·         The book, bunting tutorial.

 

 

 

 

 

I’m not doing a tutorial for this wee crafty project as I’m still a beginner at crochet and wouldn’t be able to explain it properly, so it is just photographs of my finished bunting.

 

 

 

A close up of the yarn strands.

 

 

It didn’t say how to join the little triangle blocks, so just made a chain

then used the same stitch as was used in the main pattern

to attach the triangle to the chain.

 

 

The chain between the triangles.

 

 

The stitch attaching the triangle to the chain.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And here are some photos displaying the bunting in use:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have to say, I think the bunting is quite funky!  You can use any colour you like as well, which is fab!  I think next time, though, I will make the triangles a bit bigger?  Should be pretty easy(ish) to do ha ha!

 

Anyway guys, thank you SO SO much for reading!  I hope you enjoyed this post J and I will catch you all next time!

 

As always have a fab week and take care!  Xxx

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sources:

 

500 Crochet Blocks by Hannah Elgie & Kath Webber

DIY pompom rug!!

 

 

Hiya guys!  Happy Sunday!   

 

Okay, so this week I thought I would make use of an ah-MAY-zing little contraption called a pompom maker!!  I bought this about a month ago - I posted a photo on Instagram about it (obviously!)

 

 

 

 

This was one of my best buys that week!  I know, you’re probably thinking, why spend money on this if you can make pompoms by hand.  To be honest, in the beginning I was thinking that too, but I saw someone use one of these in a TV programme…and I was amazed, because they made a two tone pompom – one half one colour, the other half a different colour.

 

After I saw this I knew I had to get a pompom maker as it would be soooo much easier to make them!  Plus, there are many different sizes of pompom makers, so they can be used to make anything from hats and decorations to…what I made this week, a pompom rug!!

 

When I researched how to make t-shirt yarn a couple weeks ago for my post about what you could do with old t-shirts, I ended up coming across a pompom mat/rug, so I thought I’d give it a try!

 

Originally, I was going to do a ‘5 things you can make using pompoms’ post, however I seriously underestimated how long it would take me to make all these pompoms, on top of working lots the second half of this week…but I did manage to make one of the things on the list!  So, definitely expect another pompom post soon.  Watch this space!

 

Anyway, I shall get on with is week’s DIY!  Unfortunately I didn’t have time to make a little video to show you how to use the pompom maker, but I have posted a link below that explains how it’s done.

 

 

 

 

I have four different sized pompom makers – 35, 45, 65 and 85mm.  For this DIY I used one of the smaller ones - the 45mm – because I didn’t want the rug to be too thick.

 

 

 

 

I decided to go for a monochromatic (or is it achromatic?) colour scheme.  I thought the black and white worked together nicely.  So I made 30 of each colour!  The rug ended up being quite small, about A3 size, when it was all completed.

 

As I couldn’t find the right underside material for the rug, I decided to try using needlecraft fabric, which is used for cross-stitching, to attach the pompoms to...it did work, the only thing was the fabric was not very big.

 

I attached the pompoms onto the fabric using a needle and thread.  It was a wee bit fiddly, but if you take your time you can get it done in a couple hours.

 

So this is my finished rug!!

 

 

 

 

Because of the pompoms, the rug is so soft and fluffy!!  Imagine if your whole carpet was like this?  I think I’d probably sleep on the floor if it was - haha.  Sooo fluffy!

 

Anyway guys, I hope you enjoyed this post, and as always thank you SO much for reading!

I’ll catch you all next Sunday!

 

Have a fab week and take care guys! Xxx

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

YouTube sources:

 

Clover pom pom maker review by B.hooked crochet

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znBxw-TZ0-A  

DIY idea: A fun alternative use for photo frames!

 

Hiya guys!  Happy Sunday!  Hope you’ve all had a good week!

 

In this week’s post I will be showing you a few wee ideas about how to use photo frames, other than the conventional way of displaying your fave pictures.

 

I will show you three different ideas I have used with photo frames! 

 

 

 

Photo frame idea #1

 

 

 

 

This one I made last year.  I really love this fabric.  It was originally from a maxi dress I found in the sales a few years ago – one of those things you buy because you like it, but end up never wearing it :/ However I upcycled it and used the material to make a couple of different things.  So it didn’t go to waste!

 

All I did was cut out a piece of the fabric and put it in the frame but instead of putting it the right way with the print on display, I put it the other way so the print would be less harsh.  I wanted to use the frame as a sort of ‘quotes board’, so the words had to show up over the design!

 

 

 

Photo frame idea #2

 

 

 

I found this photo frame in a pound shop.  I originally bought this for my ‘Crafty Christmas…’ post but didn’t use it as the display was too small for the lyrics.  So I decided to use it for this DIY.

 

To make the frame more decorative I added a piece of a gold glittery card to the inside – you can use any kind of printed card or paper you like.  I wasn’t too happy with how it looked with just the card as I thought it looked a bit plain and boring, so I decided to decorate the white frame…with more gold.  I used a permanent gold ink marker to create lots of different sized polka dots!

 

 

 

 

 

Photo frame idea #3

 

 

 

 

 

For this last frame I decided to do something arty!  I bought this inkpad last Christmas when I was in town.  As usual, I forgot I had it, so when I found it when rummaging through my craft supplies I decided that this could be another idea for the photo frame.  Remember what you were like when you were wee opening Christmas presents?  Yep, that was me when I found this inkpad!  Dropped everything I was doing to try it out…muchos excited!

 

I had seen on Pinterest that someone had created a painting using the bottom of a bottle with paint, so I found an empty water bottle and decided I’d try to see if it worked with the ink...and it did!

 

  

 

 

 

It actually turned out quite cool - it didn't create the same design as I had seen on Pinterest but created a broken circle look that ended up looking quite arty!

 

I thought it looked good as it was and there was no need to do anything else, but if you wanted you could add in other pictures/words and create a collage of some sort.  It’s all about what you think looks good!  Try out different ideas when creating something - some things will work, some things won’t…it’s all about experimenting, trial and error, and learning!

 

So basically, what I’m saying is you don’t have to just use picture frames for holding photographs!  Be unconventional and use them for anything…message boards, for favourite quotes or shopping lists!  (But just remember to use white board markers or acetate pens so you can easily wipe off the ink!)

 

I hope you enjoyed this post and thank you so much for reading!!

 

I will catch you all next week with my usual Sunday post!

 

Have a fab week and take care guys! Xxx

A super easy how - to / idea for beautifying a boring wall!!

 

Hiya guys!  Happy Sunday!  

For this week’s post I thought I would do a how-to/idea post on how you can decorate a wall for any room in your house or office…or shed….anywhere you’d like!

And this is pretty much the easiest thing to do to give your wall a wee bit of character! 

I had been thinking of doing this to a wall in my room for ages and thought ‘why not! I'll do it this week and post about it?’

 

So, here it is an example on how you can beautify a drab bare wall.

 

 

 

I am a sucker for postcards!  Whenever I go travelling or visit a new touristy/museum place I ALWAYS have to get a bunch!  These, by the way, never get sent to friends and family though - they get filed away for interior décor ideas like this!!

 

Okay, for this ‘wall art’ you can basically use anything - from photographs, magazine images, printed out quotes to drawings.

 

I would say this is one of the easiest things to do because all you really need are the things you want to display and some blue tack.  Easy peasy!
 

 

This is a before and after picture of my wall, you can see that the wall looks so much better now.

  

                                

 

 

 

 

 

 

You can stick the images directly onto the wall or stick them onto some nice card then stick that to the wall, or lean it against the wall…again it’s entirely up to you and what you think works best in your chosen room!  

 

There are so many layouts and ways images can be displayed on the wall.  It all depends on your preferences. I’m a bit (maybe an understatement?) obsessive about thinks lining up and having the same amount of space between images etc.  You should see me trying to do a PowerPoint presentation…takes forever!

 

Well, thanks for reading my post!  Hope this has given you some ideas if you are stuck on how to decorate and jazz up a wall.

 

Okay, I will catch up with you all next Sunday!  

 

Have a fab week and take care guys! Xxx