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12 Days of Handmade Christmas|Day 1 Crayon Roll

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Welcome to my 2nd Annual 12 Days of Handmade Christmas Tutorials!

Spread the word on twitter and facebook that we’re under way with handmade creativity.

You are in for a treat! I am giddy to be able to bring you some of the most talented and inspiring women in the blogosphere,

many of whom I am blessed to call friends.

I couldn’t be more thrilled to showcase my friend Lindsey from The Pleated Poppy.
I met Lindsey last year when we were roomies at Blissdom and she is one creative and productive lady. She will forever be endeared to me as a kind, funny, and genuine soul whose gifts and talents are many. You’ll love her blog and her shop!

Welcome Lindsey 🙂

hi! i’m lindsey and i’m a stay-at-home, part time home schooling mama of 3 littles, 7 and under. when my kids are all snuggled in bed, i am the owner of a small business called the pleated poppy, where i create fun handmade goodies and pretty accessories for everyday, from zippered pouches to checkbook covers and so much more! i am so blessed to be able to spend my days with my kids, and my nights with my sewing machine! being creative recharges me for my days ahead and having a supportive husband who i am madly in love with makes it all the more better!

one of the long time staples in my shop has been crayon rolls.
these are perfect for gifts!
each of my girls have one and silas (2 1/2) has been begging for one, so i made up this adorable one for him. these are great for throwing in your purse, for keeping the littles busy in the car, waiting rooms, restaurants… and when they’re done, they love that each crayon has its own little home
and they can roll it up themselves and secure it with the elastic.
so, are you ready for the tutorial? here you go!
supplies:
2 pieces of same fabric for outside and inside – 5″ x 16 1/2″
1 piece of coordinating fabric for pocket – 6″ x 16 1/2″
1 piece of flannel for lining – 5″ x 16 1/2″
1 coordinating hair elastic
1 button
needle and thread
1 box of 16 crayons (i get mine at walmart)
disappearing ink fabric marker

1. cut out all 4 pieces of fabric

2. fold pocket piece of fabric in half length-wise and iron flat.
i have found that it helps to actually PLUG IN the iron, and not the nearby vacuum cord.
crazy how that works!

3. lay out flannel piece.
its just a lining to give the roll a little more stability.
then lay one of the 5″ wide pieces on top of the flannel (wrong side down),
then pocket piece on top of that, lining up all bottom edges.
pin at the ends.
4. find the midpoint of the pocket at 8 1/4″.
with your fabric marker and a straight edge, mark the middle line.
5. then make a line every inch, until all 15 lines have been drawn.
see how the space after the last lines on each side is a little wider than 1 inch?
that’s to allow for the seam allowance.
6. now stitch down the pocket.
i start at the center line, 1/4″ below the top of the pocket, and back stitch (very important!),
then run your stitch all the way down.
work your way down the lines to the right, then to the left, until all lines are stitched down.
trim threads.

7. if you have a tag to add, do it now.
also stitch down the elastic on the far right side.
i take the seam part of the elastic (where its melted together) and pinch it.
i stitch it down just inside the edge, about a 147 times.
ok, not really but i really want to make sure the elastic holds when little hands are tugging on it.

8. now lay the outside piece on top of all that you have just attached together,
right sides together, and pin at each corner.

9. next stitch all pieces together with a 1/4″ inseam.
start at the short end without the elastic, leaving about a 2″ opening to turn right side out.
i marked my opening so you could see my placement.
clip the corners.

10. turn right side out and gently poke out corners. i like to use a chopstick for this.
11. spray your stitched down pocket lines with water before ironing crayon roll flat.
sometimes if you don’t spray the marker lines,
when you iron it it makes the ink permanent rather than disappearing.
12. press all the edges flat and tuck in the edges of the opening.

13. starting just below the elastic, stitch very close to the outer edge to hold all the pieces together.

14. organize your crayons (my *favorite* part!) and tuck into pockets.

15. roll up tight.
gently stretch the elastic to find where the button should be sewn down.
sew on the button securely.
16. you’re done!
find a cute little one to give this to and make their day!

i so hope you enjoy this little project!
thank you for reading through this very long tutorial,
and thank you edie for inviting me to be a part of your fabulous 12 handmade days of christmas!
xoxo
lindsey

Mini Me

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There’s no danger of  losing this one in the airport.
mini me
Just look for the girl with the flower pin in her hair, jeans-tucked-in-boots, various colorful bags,  bohemian layered clothing,  taking  photos of EVERYTHING.

That, my friends…..

is my mini me.

Do you have one too?

12 Days of Handmade Christmas Preview|Rosette Tutorial

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It’s almost that time!

I can hardly wait til Monday.  We’ve had a few glitches but I don’t function well unless there’s a healthy amount of controlled chaos.

Thank you for your prayers.   We’re enjoying time with our family after the passing of Steve’s 95 year old grandpa—who lived a long, wonderful life and died with faith in Christ as his Savior.

This ‘preview’ tutorial is brought to you by Emme, our energetic and crafty ten year old.   She’s our official rosette maker and loved making this tutorial for you.

I helped a little but I’m thinking pretty soon those little girls will be able to run this blog for me.

Maybe that’s how Pioneer Woman does those 12 posts a day!

Materials:

long strips of 1 inch fabric (it doesn’t really matter how long they are because the longer they are, the larger the rosettes)

hot glue gun

willing and able 8 and 10 year olds

We lucked up and found huge bolts of premade bias tape at our fabric store.  I think this store custom-makes their won bias tape to use on quilts.

rosette tutorial

Just keep wrapping and wrapping until it’s the size you like.  You can turn the fabric with every 1/2 twist around the rosette or fold it in 1/2 as you twist it.   Folding it in 1/2 (which is how emme makes them) results in thin rosettes.

I turn the fabric first one way and then the other as I twist, which makes them ‘poof-ier’ and less perfect (which is what I like).

(i just realized I don’t have the last 2-3 pics with me at present so I’ll just explain it and upload them later—and we made a very long video but i don’t have it with me either 🙁   i’ll have to upload it later this week)

Then cut our felt circles that are slightly smaller than your rosettes and glue them to the back of the rosette.

Add a pin or a hairclip with a dab of hot glue and you’re done!

or you could make a smiley face pumpkin

P.S. You could be fussy and take the time to remove all the glue that shows through. Or you could be fussy and glue mostly to one side so that it doesn’t show through. But we’re not fussy crafters. We’re a little chic and a whole lot of shabby.

……I and love and you……..

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This is my favorite song of the week. Just thought you might wanna know.

Our  family could use your prayers today.

Which bring me to my last point:
if you’re participating in the 12 days tutorials and I haven’t talked to you in a week or two, do you mind to shoot me an email to assure me your tutorial is-a-comin’.
pretty please and thank you  🙂

and the winner of the dishmat is Deb from NotInadequate !!!!  Yay for you Deb! And you can email me too with your address and I’ll make good on my promise.

Have a grace day!

on a monday

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in my hand…..

on my nightstand….

on my desk…..

on my camera strap…….

on my sewing machine…..

off my sewing machine……

on my sidewalk…..

on my cakestand…..
in our art class (we did art first today because—-well, it’s monday) rainbow leaf painting  found via whatever……

from my deck…..

on my thighs…..

the end.