fort building kit tutorial

I was browsing one of my favourite sites Saltwater Kids, the other day, and found a tutorial for making a fort building kit. How cool is that idea?!! I found myself just itching for the next kid's birthday to come along, and this week it did. Mr T's kindergarten friend was turning six, and I thought "perfect!" I mean, who doesn't like to lay inside a fort and make believe. 

This project is truly SO simple...and thrifty. In all the gift's cost came in well under $20, with a little imagination and handmade love thrown in too.

Interested? Follow along with me.

First you'll need: 

thrifted sheets: I used 3 double size flat sheets

ball of acrylic yarn

fabric dye(s)

a couple of large bowls

a jug from your recycling bin for each colour you intend to use

Get your kids involved! Mr.T and Ms.E gladly helped me with the tie dying part of the project. 

(Also, if tie dye isn't your thing you can skip this step.)

 Cover your workspace, in my case, my basement floor, in plastic sheeting. For this, I cut open 2 large garbage bags and taped them down to the floor. Mix your fabric dye as per manufacturer's instructions in your large plastic jugs: 1 colour per jug. 

Tie thick bands of acrylic yarn around your sheets. If you want some ideas of patterns you can achieve and how to tie them, follow this Link. 

Our prepared sheets from left to right above: 

1: place the centre of your sheet over a large bowl. Grab the centre and twist, twist, twist the sheet in one direction. This will give you a random dyed effect.

2: Fold your sheet in a consertina fashion (that's cat's stairs for north american folk). Tie at regular intervals. This will result in a striped effect. (below left)

3: Starting in the centre of your sheet, pinch your sheet up into a point and tie at regular intervals to the sheet's perimeter. This will result in a concentric circle effect.  (below right)

Place your sheets, one by one, in a large bowl and pour in enough your fabric dye from your jugs to colour the fabric but not cover it, unless you want the colours to mix. Allow to sit for 10-15 mins, checking the dye is reaching into the inner folds of your tied sheets. Rinse in cold water and dry in a hot dryer.

Sew ties to the corners of each sheet and regularly in between. For this project I cut, then stretched strips of t-shirt, as I did earlier in this tutorial from a XL mens' thrifted tee and cut into 16" lengths.

Fold over both ends of the short sides of your sheets, about 2" and sew 3", as shown below, every 12-16". This creates a channel, through which the rope included in your kit, can be thread.

Now it's time to put together your kit.

I included:

3 tie dyed sheets

about 25 pegs

6 suction cups

50ft soft rope

LED flashlight

glowsticks

You can let your imagination run here. I'd love to hear any other ideas of things to include.

I thought it would be sweet to package the kit in a personalised bag for Mr.T's little friend, using thrifted fabric from my stash. You could use backpack, a pillowcase...hmm...now wouldn't that make a great bag...maybe next time. I also made a smaller bag for the accessories, so they don't end up balled up into the sheets...who's kidding who, no kid is going to fold those sheets!

Super easy and fun to make. Great imaginative play for the kids.
What could be better?!

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P.S. now I want a fort making kit! Maybe if I could collect enough afghans...

source

little man party duds

I was contacted by a lovely lady a few weeks back and was set to the challenge of creating a formal vest and tie for her two years old's upcoming birthday. The theme was robots...lucky boy! What a fun project! A different kind of challenge, working to someone else's vision. Hope he likes it?!!

During this project I was with a interesting challenge, when I had to get really creative...I couldn't find robot fabric anywhere!! So I created my own using a freestyle applique technique. 

Stay tuned for an easy tutorial, coming in the next week! Interested?

market days

Well Saturday has come and gone, and all in all, I'm pleased. The stall look came together simply and how I imagined...can you believe I had four serious offers to buy my wheatgrass?! You know it's time for spring to arrive, when? 

I offered hats, t-shirt jewellery, jersey infinity scafs, hand printed bandanas, baby onesies, jewellery holders and tea cup bird feeders.

I had lots of interest in my stuff and sold enough to make the day worthwhile. It was a great indicator of what interests people and what...not so much. I took some interesting custom orders and promoted my seamstress service, setting up some appointments for the week to come. I also made some great trades with some really clever, creative girls and fellow marketers...to be honest, this is my favourite part of doing markets!!

Overall the markets were so very quiet, I think due to the fact most people were skiing the epic powpow at the hill...I know where I would've rather been...winkwink. A little disappointing, but expected. 

Now I'm ready to think SUMMER and get ready for the Canada Day Fair...that will be a good one!

just a little peek...

Apologies everyone...I've been distracted...

There are two reasons I've been offline this week. First: WAY too much snow has fallen to ignore, over a meter in 7 days (!!) and I've been snowboarding every chance I can. I've also been sewing/crafting like a madwoman due to the second reason...this weekend is Griz Days here in Fernie, BC and the Griz Days Craft Market. I committed a month ago to a market table, not anticipating an insane amount of snow would fall the week of the event, and I would leave everything to the last minute. Typical!

Anyhoo, I'm happy how everything has come together, with a few set backs and a few lessons learned along the way. Another day of sewing today, after my epic morning of perfect powder skiing, I think I'll be in good shape.

Here's a sneak peek of some of what I have to share.

Take a break from the powpow and come by and visit me and my fellow crafty folk,

 tomorrow between 9 and 4.

See you there!

BTW...Thanks Griz! You da Man!!!

tee-shirt necklace tutorial

Remember me these?

 Well, I promised you a tutorial and here it is. Come on...pull out those old tees you had set aside for cleaning rags and follow along...it's so easy!

You will need: 

tee-shirt or similar fabric

embellishments if you choose 

(I used some metal, ovoid discs I thrifted years ago, but you could use beads, etc)

long straight edge: I used my trusty yard stick

an olfa rotary cutter (scissors are totally fine)

Lay your fabric out, smoothing away any wrinkles. Cut parallel strips, the more you cut, the thicker your finished necklace. I cut my strips 3/4" wide. It's preference really.

Now the fun part...pull/stretch those strips as much as you can...come on, use those muscles! Your strips will lengthen and curl in on themselves...perfect! You'll end up with a nice pile of tee spaghetti.

Knot your strips end to end. Loop them around and around your neck, a coat hanger, a door knob, alternating and adjusting the length of your loops as you go. I used my dressmaking dummy for this.

Add your embellishments as you go. I knotted these silver discs fairly closely together and added short strips of tee spaghetti in between to create a sort-of-fringe. 

Be creative, the more random, the better...in my mind.

Finished! Now wasn't that so simple!!! I hope you give it a try!

a pinned heart

I forgot to show you these wee pins I made for the children to wear on Valentine's Day. I remembered today, as they wore them again to recognise "No Bullying Day" at school. I thought I should share as they were so simple to make.

Just cut three hearts from crafters felt, of different sizes, using pinking shears...you know the ones that have a zig-zag profile...but you knew that!?! Layer them in order of size and hand stitch them together with contrasting thread. Affix a large pin to the back and voila!!!

Hardly worth describing the "how-to", honestly, they were just...so simple!

I know! I just couldn't get him to lose the lolly pop. "Just take it mum"

heheheh

friday finds

found

thrifted tea spoon displays...

to make more necklace displays.

thrifted pretty, sweet tea cups...

to create more of birdfeeders, like this one, I made 

for my mother-in-law last spring.

One of my favourite sets I've found so far. 

The combination of baby blue and gold stars is so sweet.

I have thrifted close to forty teacups and saucers ready to be upcycled.

Crafty times ahead!

found

some inspiration...

modern

so sweet

so very clever

whimsical tea cup tattoo

poke your pins in me

clever little vase

wow! 

revamped garland

Well I had great plans this year, for a new christmas garland to adorn the front door. I tell you, I have just clear run out of time. So last night I resentfully pulled out our old garland, we have been using for so many years now...sigh... She 's looking tired don't you think. Long gone are the dried flowers, many more pinecones and the sweetest little red robin who perched amongst these branches...hmmm.

Searching through my crafty stash...hmmm...I know! Snow white pom poms, reminiscent of snowballs...so simple!  A little yarn, a length of florist wire, a string of battery operated mini lights...wah lah.

What do you think!?!