CasaSugar

DIY: Fabric Wall Art

CasaSugar — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 07:45:11 -0700

One of my very stylish friends has assembled several cool stretched fabric panels, which are hung in her home. I love the big, bold statement that this fabric art creates, so when I recently found directions on how to do it, I thought I'd pass it along to you. This tutorial is for a 20-inch-square fabric art piece.

What You'll Need

Four stretcher strips, 20 inches long (prices range from $2-6 each), available at art supply stores.
One yard of fabric or a remnant of fabric approximately 30 inches by 36 inches
Flat top push pins, approximately 30
A hammer, which will help if you have problems pushing in the pins
Picture-hanging wire and screw set

To find out how to make it, read more.

Here's how, from Jen at Sew Mama Sew:

Cut the fabric into a piece approximately 30-by-36-inches in size. This will give you some wiggle room to decide on placement on the 20-by-20-inch frame
Join the stretcher strips to form a frame. The pieces just slide into place at each of the corners.
Place the fabric on top of the frame, to get an idea of what will display. You may want to tuck the edges around to get a better idea.
Once you are happy with your fabric placement, carefully turn the fabric and frame over, keeping the fabric in place.
Starting with one side, fold the fabric over the edge of the frame, and use the push pins to pin the fabric to the frame. I pinned the middle first, then the corners, and then filled in along the rest of the edge with as many as I felt was necessary.
At this point, you should have the fabric secured well to one edge. Pull the fabric taut and pin to the opposite side, in the same manner as before. Check the front of the frame to make sure the fabric has not shifted.
Trim the excess fabric along the two pinned edges of the frame.
Now, pin the two remaining sides, making sure to pull the fabric taut and check to insure the placement is correct. Trim the excess fabric from these sides as well.
Fold the corners neatly, so you don’t have too much fabric bulk, and pin in place.
Attach the screws and picture wire in place.
Hang your work, and enjoy the oohs and ahs from your friends!

For even more details, including a great pictorial, go to Sew Mama Sew.

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Cool Idea: Fabric Easter Eggs

CasaSugar — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 06:45:00 -0700

Kristin from Sew Mama Sew has presented an adorable project just in time for the Easter bunny. She writes,

A couple of years ago I started sewing fabric eggs. I love the feel of them and so do kids. When you get some in your hands you can’t help but toss, catch, throw and juggle. Every year I try to replace a few more of the plastic eggs that we use for Easter Egg hunts with cloth eggs.

Kristin has sewn secret pockets into these fabric eggs that can hold wee chocolate treats or coins. Ingenious! Have basic sewing skills and want to try this project? You can download the pattern here.

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Assisted Living: Help Me Find Fabric For Dining Chairs

Casa Community — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 11:00:28 -0800

CasaSugar Community member Lauren posted in the Assisted Living group looking for help finding fabric for her dining chairs:

My husband and I have started on a pretty large refinishing project! It is an old dining room table with six chairs that belonged to a friend of the family's grandmother! It is a beautiful set but it definitely needs a lot of work! So we are in the process of removing both the stain and varnish on all of the chairs and the table. I want to stain the table with a really dark almost black stain to update the old style. Along with staining, I need to recover the seats. I wanted something bright and most likely green but I am open to other colors. Does anyone know of a good place to look online for fabrics? Here are a couple of the fabrics I was thinking about!

To see my suggestions for Lauren and post your own, read more.

Hi Lauren,

Looks like you found Calico Corners - that's definitely a great fabric shop!

Here are some others I like:

Sew, Mama, Sew!
Purl
Etsy has lots of fabric retailers (dozens). Sew Love Fabrics is a good one.
Ballard Designs
Design Diva Fabrics sells designer fabrics at discount.
House Fabric
Reprodepot
Ikea
And here is a huge list of online fabric retailers.

Do any of you have any favorite online fabric shops you can recommend to Lauren? Or do you know of any bright green fabrics she may like? Please comment below!

Have a question of your own? Be sure to post it in our Assisted Living group!

Nice and New: The Puff Mama

CasaSugar — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 05:30:40 -0800

Remember when I told you about the Puff Daddy? This DIY version of DWR's spendy Flocks Pouf ($800) is now within price range of all patient knitters, thanks to directions from Heidi and Anna at Norwegian craft and decorating site Pickles.

Heidi and Anna offer free patterns for knitting, crocheting, and sewing, as well as a bunch of other craft projects on their site, with Norwegian (as well as English) directions. And now, to add to the family of pretty poufs, the Puff Daddy is joined by its partner, the Puff Mama. You can get all of the directions for making this new knit pouf here, as well as buy yarn through Pickles's site.

Lil Links: A Perfect Peter Pan Party

babysugar — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 11:00:22 -0700

A perfect Peter Pan birthday party - Cookie
Musical mama Martina McBride cuts back on touring for her family - Celebrity Baby Blog
How to sew a swaddling blanket - CafeMom
Pre-schooler parallel parks car like an ace - ParentDish
Tori and Liam keep cool in their shades - Celebrity Baby Scoop
How do you pay attention to your kids? - The Poop
The facts about asthma - Health
Know your boob rights - Alpha Mom
Would you ever spy on your babysitter? - Momversation

Link Time!

CasaSugar — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 09:15:05 -0700

Apartment Therapy checks out some crave worthy escapes.
Craft finds indie prints for the nursery.
AT:SF tells you about a great sale at Underdog Ink.
PoppyTalk takes a peek at a cool studio space.
Re-Nest checks out functional landscapes.
Style Files looks at pretty dining rooms.
This Old House has a variety of kitchen backsplashes.
SavvySugar helps you cut your biggest budget drain.
Sew Mama Sew interviews Amy Butler.

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Lil Find: Playdate NYC Birthday Shirts

LilSugar — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 05:00:00 -0800

New Year's Day gets mamas thinking about upcoming events and that inevitably includes their children's birthdays. Lots of moms spend a good deal of time searching for the perfect outfit for their tots to wear on their special days. These adorable, handmade number shirts from Playdate NYC may make them the easy answer to this year's attire dilemma. Founded by two working moms who met during a playdate in NYC's Central Park, the company hand-sews felt numbers and designs onto various cotton-shirt options like three-quarter-sleeve jerseys, long-sleeve thermals or short-sleeve tees, offering enough customization options to allow you to create the number shirt of your darling's dreams.

Tricks My Mama Taught Me: Duct Tape

LilSugar — Wed, 05 Mar 2008 06:00:03 -0800

Not much of a seamstress, my mom's sewing skills end at threading a needle or reattaching a button.

So when we were lil and our hems needed a quick fix, she came up with a sticky solution - duct tape.

After unwinding the roll and quickly snipping the scissors, my mom shortened our school uniforms. To learn about this trick, read more.

This is definitely a temporary solution as my siblings and I still laugh about how the adhesive used to stick to the back of our legs on hot days! But for a busy mom who hasn't had time to get clothes to a professional, this trick is tailor made.

If you have a tip you'd like to share or have featured on lilsugar, submit it to the Tricks My Mama Taught Me group on TeamSugar. Or post it in the comments.

GiggleSugar Reader Spotlight: Freegracefrom

GiggleSugar — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 15:00:00 -0800

I almost can't write this intro to FreeGraceFrom's spotlight because I'm too distracted by her ridiculously cute baby photo. No doubt that the baby in this pic turned into a cute, funny, and conscientious lady! If you'd like to find out more about FreeGraceFrom read more

GS: What's your motto?
FGR: "We must become the change we wish to see in the world." I stole that from Gandhi. I aspire to be more like him, but without the hunger strikes.

GS: Where are you from?
FGR: I live in this coastal town in south Florida. I'm in hell.

GS: What do you do?
FGR: At the moment, I'm wasting away in the insurance business. I'm an aspiring "professional do-gooder," but having a hard time finding someone to pay me for that at the moment.

GS: How would you describe your sense of humor?
FGR: Always sarcastic, often silly, and sometimes a little naughty. (I get that last bit from my mother. She may look like a sweet, little old Asian lady, but she has one sick, dirty sense of humor!)

GS: What's your favorite GiggleSugar post?
FGR: I love the If You Had To . . . feature. Men play that game all the time - it's the ladies' turn! But I forward nearly all of Giggle's posts to family and friends. The Japanese game shows have the boyfriend and I longing for a trip to Japan, if only to spend an entire day just watching television.

GS: Who's the cutest funny man and funny woman?
FGR: Ryan Reynolds and Tina Fey.

GS: What's your favorite comedy of all time?
FGR: Tough one! I never get tired of Coming to America. but Friday and The Big Lebowski crack me up every time, too.

GS: Who are your favorite male and female comedians?
FGR: For female, I think Wanda Sykes. For male, I love Ron White and Dave Chappelle. But my favorite funny person is Christopher Walken! If he's hosting SNL, I'm watching!

GS: If your life were a comedy, what would it be?
FGR: Office Space. I daydream about taking my dot matrix printer out to an empty field and smashing it into little bits. My co-workers help the day pass by more quickly with many a WTF moment with comments like: "You know, people that have tattoos are always on lots of drugs." (She was serious!)

GS: Do you look like someone famous?
FGR: I can't decide if I look more like Jessica Alba, Audrey Hepburn, or Grace Kelly. Hmm. . . let me get back to you.

FreeGraceFrom Free-For-All: I'm a 20-something who, like all other 20-somethings, is just trying to find my place in the world. I've been engaged for about five years to a great guy who always makes me laugh. (For the record, still no date set. We'll get around to it!) I'm also mama to a loving beagle that I mercilessly force to wear silly Halloween costumes every year. I'm happiest when I'm exploring some new city/country or learning something new. Right now, I'm learning how to sew and looking into sailing lessons (finally!). I can be extremely opinionated and passionate about certain issues, so please forgive me for any heated rants elsewhere in the Sugar network. Remember, folks . . . jury duty is your civic duty.

View 9 Photos ›

(FGF as a wittle, bitty thing surrounded by a coterie of dolls, Jeffrey and Baylee, Baylee the Beagle in silly clothes, Dave Chappelle, Ron White, Tina Fey, Wanda Sykes, Ryan Reynolds)

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Fabulous Fabric Wreath Roundup

CasaSugar — Mon, 17 Dec 2007 10:00:53 -0800

I've been seeing some great fabric wreaths around the Internet this past week, and thought you might appreciate a peek at some of them, too.

I love SouleMama's wreath that she made from cotton, rickrack, and buttons. The little stuffed bird hanging from the wreath's center is precious.

To see two more lovely fabric wreaths, just read more.

Then there's Betz White's pretty woolen wreath, which she made from a stash of ribbing pieces left over from felted wool sweaters that she rolled up and secured onto a straw wreath with floral pins.

I'm also partial to these handknitted wreaths from Lulubeans. They look so lovely and wintry cozy hung together.

The great thing about these wreaths is that even if you don't have superb sewing skills (or any at all!), you can still make these wreaths with only a few simple supplies. With a foam or straw wreath shape from a craft store, some fabric or floral pins, and scraps of fabric, you're well on your way to having a unique and nonperishable wreath that you made yourself. If you've made any fabric wreaths this holiday season I'd love to see them!

Source, Source, and Source,