Textile Bracelet Tutorial

Just a quick how to:

You will need some...

memory wire

wire cutters

round nose pliers

scissors

fabric strips or ribbon (1/2 to 3/4 in. wide and 1 yd. long)

glue

embellishments

 Cut a piece of memory wire 2 inches more than the circumference of your wrist.

Using the round nose pliers, curl a loop onto each end of the wire.

 Place a dab of glue next to one of the loops and anchor the end of your ribbon.

Wrap wire tightly, overlapping as you go.

When you reach the other loop add another dab of glue and anchor your ribbon at this end too.

Wrap again in the opposite direction.

 When you reach the end or beginning, depending how you look at it...anchor with one final dab of glue. Trim off any excess ribbon. They should look like this.

You can either leave them like this

or add whatever  you like. I embellished mine with beads and wire.

 I apply a jump ring to each of the end loops to keep the charms and beads from sliding off.

Here are some made with torn strips of cotton textiles.

You can see I over wrapped some with flax, hemp, ribbon and wire.

Here you can see the jump rings and some beaded wire wrapping.

Another set with just bright copper wire wrapping and some simple silver beads.

If anyone decides to make some of these I would love to see them.

I think the possibilities are endless.

karen

Tossed Salad Afghan

Happy New Year All

The holidays are over and the kids have all gone home.

It's so quiet around here.

It's like empty nesting all over again.

I miss the Grand Baby most of all.

Who knows when I'll see her again.

The long winter will linger forever as it does every year.

I must keep myself busy.

In the evenings while the kids were visiting.

When everyone had settled down to watch TV.

I worked on a simple project to keep my hands busy.

 When I first started to crochet I bought mostly acrylic yarn from the craft stores.

Natural fiber yarns are a bit costly and since my crocheting wasn't all that perfect back then, I figured acrylic was the way to go. Over time, I've accumulated quite the stockpile of partially used skeins.

I found enough greenish ones to fill a laundry basket.

 Using 2 strands throughout and a simple ribbed double crochet, I made this super thick afghan.

It's warm and machine washable.

I plan to do this with the rest of my scraps as well.

I have a basket filled with purples for the next one.

It's a good feeling to use up some of the supplies that I've hoarded over the years.

And...it keeps me busy while I wait for the snow to melt.

I should have quite the stack of afghans by the time that happens.

Keep warm everyone.

It's cold outside!!!

karen

Spring

Thinking of Spring....

and fresh green herbs.

karen

Moss Pie

Hi everyone!

I hope you are having a wonderful weekend where you are.

The sun is shining here today and I couldn't be happier.

Jack needed to be walked, so we bundled up, I stuffed a plastic bag in my pocket (no, not for Jack's poo), and we set out to take in some nature.

I've been wanting to gather some moss to incorporate into my creative projects and since there is no snow I thought today might be a good day for it.

We  found lots of beautiful moss, but it was frozen and difficult to gather.

We brought back enough to fill this old pie pan.

With a little left over to fill this recycled candle jar.

I love the way it looks in this jar!

The fragrance is so fresh and earthy.

On our way back the wind was blowing and it felt more like a day in March than a day in January.

Jacks ears were flapping in the wind as he pranced along, happy to be out in the fresh air.

He's content to nap now and I feel energized enough to clean up some of my crafting messes that I've made this past week. 

If the sun is shining where you are, I suggest getting outside for a while.

It really does make you feel better.

See ya soon.

Karen