Proper Way To Store a Necklace

 Mom has lots of beautiful and even some valuable necklaces, collected from all over the world.  Naturally she knows how to best store these pieces that she loves.  Ah, not so fast.  Some might be in the odd pouch but most are wrapped in a fragment of tissue paper, jumbled in a bathroom drawer.  Yet she was deeply distressed when a handful of her favorites disappeared.  Who knew how long they were missing?  And there was an inkling that perhaps Mom had "hidden them" in a secret place.  Ugh.  How many important things I've lost when I put them in hiding: Hiding them from myself it turns out.  This was the catalyst toward a solution to "what to make for Mom for Christmas". 

 I so enjoy making these drawstring pouches.  I follow a tutorial from a private blog and have made quite a few of these over past several months.  For the focal point I used sections from the vintage sweater I bought at the Rose Bowl Flea with ivory satin as the pouch itself.   Looking at these pictures takes me back to mid-December when I made them.  They were a goodly amount of effort.  And such a pleasure to complete. 

While I sewed the pouches, I used Fabritac to attach the sweater piece and most of the decorations.  Too late I realized that I really needed to stitch around the sweater and trims for both appearance and longevity.  It would have been easier to do before stitching up the sides of the pouches...but I did figure it out after the 2nd one.  I am really pleased with this trio.  They are different enough that Mom will have no trouble recognizing which pouch holds the particular jewelry she is looking for.  Right? 

Turn This Into That

 Last December I was crazy enough to brave a day of shopping at a distant high-end outdoor mall.  Crazy because it was cold (the water in the mall's fountain was frozen solid), it was far (about 2 hours each way to get there what with getting lost a couple times, going way off route for gas at CostCo, a vegetarian menu instead of the pasta I craved...and NO I wasn't driving) and it was crowded.  Still...there was Anthropologie, there was L'Occitane, there was Williams-Sonoma and so much more. This year I have not entered a single shop except Michaels to buy Christmas cards and a few craft supplies.  Instead of shopping, I got out this felted wool garland I bought last Christmas; and I altered Anthropologie. 

 I cut all of the decorations off of the garland.  There were 4 owls and 6 or so of the acorns.  Glitter, mica, glue, some scraps, some pearls...a recipe for hours of fun.  Only 2 of the owls would stand on their own so I attached those to die-cut chipboard rounds. 

 I stayed true to the A Gilded Life style when decorating the acorns. 

The owls were all given as little token gifts.  The acorns were sent to dear friends from OR, CA and TX.  If you want to see the other 2 owls, click on this pic.  So, from a $40 garland I got hours of entertainment and some cute trinkets for friends and family. 

$100 Wreath

 Yesterday I declared a craft day since my menfolk were out of the house for most of the day.  I was late getting the November kit from The Stash Society .  So worth the wait.  I fell in love with the accompanying tutorial for this wreath. 

 I can't share the tutorial since The Society is only for members who pay $100 per month for a curated kit of supplies from the fabulous Gilded Girls, Shea and Debbie.  However, I can get you started on making your own wreath:  12" Styrofoam form; 4 strips of silk or other fabric, each strip a yard long and 2 1/2" wide; 3 yards of 1 1/2" wide cotton lace; 6 additional pieces of assorted beaded trim and lace, varying in length from 16" to 26"; a couple dozen pearl top pins; a bunch of dressmaker pins and some bling and ribbon.  Look at those cool "flowers" made from ball fringe.

 You start by wrapping the form with the background fabric, each strip covers approximately 1/4 of the wreath.  Pin a strip to the back side as you start, and then secure with pins as needed. From there wrap on the longest length of cotton lace on top of the background, then fill in by wrapping the wreath with your best trims.  The flowers above were made from slightly gathered pieces of narrow cotton lace trim, wound, pinned, then a crystal button glued in the center.  I only used glue on the crystal accents.  Everything else was attached with pins. 

 I followed along with the tutorial almost exactly, except I modified the center of this bow to use these 5 vintage drops.  Initially I looked thru my supplies for another length of ribbon to make the bow, but decided Shea really did know best so I used her selection of this cotton lace.  I love the fuzzy chenille ribbon.  Really there were some fab trims used on this wreath. 

I used everything in the month's kit except these odds and ends.  Voila! 

Brand New AGL for Spellbinders

 At Spellbound we were lucky to be able to purchase some of the upcoming AGL for Spellbinder products.  My purchases are pictured above. Though the 3 bezels on the bottom left were gifts in the swag bag.  Nice!  Notice that ivory colored locket in the middle?  That is a reproduction of a Victorian mourning locket owned by Shea. 

 Here is an example of what can be done with the shield die set. The center shield shape can be used by itself and/or framed and sectioned by using all pieces of the set.  Very versatile and isn't it gorgeous all glittered and spangled?  This is a sample that was on display. 

The ballerinas are so glamorous.  Add some glitter, tulle and seam binding, the mount on a rosette and what package or tree decorations these will make.  This picture is from AGL's facebook page. 

Spellbound 2014 Shopping

I can't go to CA, especially Spellbound, without shopping.  On Sunday Spellbound chartered a bus to take us to the nearby Rose Bowl Flea Market.  I learned last year to head straight to the vintage area.  It was hot, crowded with vendors and shoppers, there is no place to sit down plus there is no shade.  Still!  I found the guy with the $1 trinket trays; my purchases seen above.  $12 for all.  The people watching is fascinating with plenty of movie and music industry types. After 2 hours I was done but the bus back was not for another 2 hours.  What to do?  Call Uber!  Five of us wilted Gals shared a ride back to the hotel in a beautiful big SUV for $7 each. 

My splurge this visit was the beaded shell sweater for $20. The appliques in the center are from a lady who I bought from last year, too. Her appliques, laces and fabrics are all displayed nicely, which is not typical at the flea. I paid from $3 to $6 each for these lovelies. That black silk embroidered fragment was a table runner. I don't know if it is hand embroidered, but it will make smashing drawstring pouches. On the far left is a silk velvet scarf for $4. The bits of lace were $1 each. When I got home I immediately hand washed the lace, sweater and embroidered silk.

Ah, The French General. The wide ribbon is actually old french hat labels...impossible to find elsewhere. I bought 2 grab bags of fabric; a strand and a hank of beads, plus a large strand of rhinestone montees, shown on top of the old chenille ribbon. I really didn't need more charms but FG's are special so I added in a few, plus the peacock cabochon mounted in it's own bezel. Stay tuned for my AGL for Spellbinder's purchases

Spellbound 2014 Projects

 My first class at Spellbound 2014 was Pamela's shadowbox. We started with a Riker's shadowbox and perfectly packaged elements that Pamela prepared.  This was some glitter and glue fun.   PS  By clicking on the Spellbound link you can see a photo of each class that was offered this year, along with the teacher's name. 

My second class was Coleen's snowman.  This was a pretty intense couple hours.  The kit was perfectly organized with just the right amount of each element provided.  The class was full, the room was not large, Mod Podge, mica and glitter were flying.  Isn't he adorable?  He started as a couple toilet paper rolls, a styrofoam ball and natural cotton batting. 

My last class on Friday was the sparkle charms bracelet with Riki.  Hmmm, this was not my most successful project.  We soldered using a small butane torch which was a first for me. We started by shaping a bezel from metal, then set it absolutely flush on a copper or brass charm. We filled in the inside of the bezel with solder.  There are a couple of tricks to this, and I didn't mess up completely, but more practice would be beneficial. Lastly we stamped the hardened solder, then glued on the bling. 

 First thing Saturday morning I took the crown class from Shea and Debbie.  Their project was for a large crown but I decided to make 2 small ones to use on a Santos or for tablescaping.  We started with two different A Gilded Life for Spellbinder's dies, cut from thin metal and from chipboard. 

We glued, wrapped and blinged for the next couple of hours.  The best! 

 My last class on Saturday was Riki's rhinestone bracelet.  Everyone who took this class loved the bracelet...in fact most students made 2 bracelets as they go together quickly.  Fail proof and Fab. 

Instead of taking a 3rd class on Saturday I signed up for the "Craft All Night Party" from 8 pm to midnight.  I didn't make every project that was available, but I sure had fun making: (from left) the scrap fabric ornament; the lace tassel; the glittered ballerinas, the shaker necklace, and on the bottom, the stenciled tote.  Between each project I snacked from the buffet.  Fried mac and cheese squares with chipotle mayo were addicting.  Any why oh why did I not eat more of those French macaroons?? 

Welcome to Spellbound 2014

 

 Aww, another step outside of time for Spellbound has come and gone. Five days at the beautiful Langham Hotel in Pasadena. Five days of 85 degree warmth. Five days spent with lovely ladies. I will be back! At the registration dinner we were greeted with these beautiful necklaces. After the delicious meal we altered the small metal "dance card" with rhinestones and baubles, A Gilded Life style. 

Lots of goodies were loaded into this gorgeous tote. There were Spellbinder's dies (love the feather), a colorful scarf from Gudrunsjoden, (thank you Betti Zucker) plus lots of glues, paints, stencils. 

 

Table mate gifts are always fun.  Judy Lewis made the ribbon tassel from vintage salt and pepper shakers.  Robin Somers packed a little glassine bag full of pretty buttons, lace and bling.  Dalia Blevins joined in with a cute stamped envelope containing a vial of mica.  Thank you, ladies.



TaDa!  Here (on the left) is the chatelaine Teresa Young gave me for the swap.  She found a couple of these small mesh purses at brocantes during her France vacation.  (PS another lady at Spellbound is also just back from some French flea market shopping; she said she bought about a dozen of these for around $5 each. Gah!) I have not seen this size on my Internet shopping sorties.  It is small enough to wear as a necklace, and personalized just for me with a frozen Charlotte!!!  Next to it is a chatelaine I made for myself using a teeny mesh doll's purse.  It was good to be welcomed back to Spellbound magic. 

Spellbound 2014 Chatelaine Swap

 I joined one swap for Spellbound 2014.  I didn't intend to but when the swap was for a chatelaine, and the accompanying photo made me swoon, I jumped on board.  First I had to find a suitable vintage, small mesh purse.  Thank you eBay and etsy!!!  Then I picked my swap partner, Teresa Young who was in France on vacation at the time.  I had to use that French charm I got last year at The French General.  Plus as many rhinestones and sparkles as I could cram on. 

 The chain is around 50" long so that it can go over the neck like a messenger bag strap.  I worked on this on/off for weeks.  In fact I totally revised the color scheme at one point when I realized the old milkglass beads I wanted to use were too large for the scale of the small purse. 

 You know that packaging for swaps is important.  It really adds to the experience to have a pretty presentation.  The chatelaine will be tucked into this drawstring pouch. 

Then, the whole mess goes into this altered book box.  I followed a design from A Gilded Life Stash Society (a private blog) for the front of the box.  I used fabric, paper, lace, buttons and a jeweled applique from Stash kits.  By now Teresa and I will have exchanged our purses.  I hope she will like this and I already know that what she made for me will be fabulous, because, well, it's from Teresa! 

Spellbound Table Mate Gifts

In 3 days I leave for my second Spellbound.  Yesterday I decided to make a little something for my dinner table mates.  Last year I made bookmarks, I had a couple left over, so I kept it simple and made a few more. 

I started with 1" wide vintage velvet ribbon.  I wanted to add a bit more fun to the design so I glued on trimmings to the backside of each bookmark.  Which sort of turned the back of the bookmark into the prettiest side.  LOL. 

Then I got busy with my jewelry findings for a very enjoyable couple of hours.  I need to start thinking about my wardrobe.  It is 40-50 degrees home and 60-80+ degrees in Pasadena.  Now where are my summer clothes...

Let's Do More

 I am having so much fun with these drawstring pouches.  I followed a tutorial from Lynn Stevens who designs for A Gilded Life's "Stash Society", which is a private blog, so I can't share all the details.  My sewing machine gathers dust much of the year, but for this I pulled out the machine and fumbled through.  The project isn't difficult, just a piece of fabric 10" x 20".   You may already have a favorite pouch "recipe", or there is always the possibility of a YouTube tutorial. 

Once the pouch is constructed, it is all about having a bit of fun.  I glued a frill of lace to the top of this pouch.  These are cute left alone, but heck, I've got all this stuff...might as well use it.  Thank you Lynn and AGL. 

AGL Style Travel Document Holder

 

 A few years ago Karla's Cottage posted a tutorial on a handy travel document folder made from a 12" x 12" page of pretty scrapbook paper.  I have used this type of folder since then each time I travel.  As I begin to think about attending Spellbound 2014 I decided to make a folder using fabric.  I hope that you will find these little folders as useful as I have for organizing boarding passes, hotel and car reservations, etc. The folder does take a beating pulling it in/out of my purse and tying/untying numerous times during a trip.  Therefore I've never gone big on embellishments.  Here is Karla's original tutorial Karla Travel Folder 

 I started off with a vintage napkin; it is larger than I need but I didn't want to cut it.  Instead I folded, ironed, pinned until I had the size approximately 9.5 inches tall and 14 inches wide.  You could go so many ways here with your choice of fabric, but it does need to be reversible so that the bottom pocket looks pretty.   If this is your first attempt at this project, it will be useful to make a pattern from a 12x12 scrapbook paper and use it as a guide as you proceed. 

 I decided to add chipboard panels for sturdiness.  My chipboard pieces are 2.5" x 9", 4.5" x 9" and 4" x 9" from left to right but this is all based on the size of fabric you work with.  The middle panel is where I keep my travel day papers, which are folded in 3rds.  The right most panel needs to be wide enough to hold the documents, too.  This is where I move documents after I've used them but don't want to throw away just yet.  The left most panel I've never used but could certainly hold travel receipts you collect along the way.

 After measuring and pressing all of the folds, stitch on a piece of ribbon across the back of the folder about 1/3 of the way down from top.  Do this before adding in the chipboard panels.  Do not stitch all the way across; you need to be able to tie the folder closed.  I stitched just over the fold line as seen above; reinforce your stitching at beginning and end. 

My linen napkin looked plain on the inside of the folder so I cut a piece of contrasting fabric for lining.  Then with the panels and the colorful lining in place, I stitched vertically along the 2 fold lines, plus both the side edges.  You are creating the pockets and joining the napkin to the lining on the sides. Do be careful to not catch the ribbon in these vertical seams, like I did. 

Here it is loaded with some preliminary papers...Spellbound here I come. It would be interesting to use cotton batting around the chipboard panels.  It would be gorgeous and so AGL to layer some lace or organza before stitching.  I know I don't have to tell you AGL gals how to have fabric fun. 

Fabric is my Muse

 When I saw this from A Gilded Life Stash Society tutorial I had to start making it right then.  First I needed a 10" embroidery hoop so I concocted an invite to my husband to go see The November Man at the cineplex adjacent to a Michael's.  Then the fun began using some lovely supplies from the August kit. 

The diecut shield and crown are cut from fine wool felt (sorry these dies are not on the market yet).  I decided to glitter the small crown rather than embroider it with gold thread.  Well...it's OK but may not be the best way to go.  First the glitter stiffens the crown a lot; second glitter gets all over everything.  Other wise I followed along with the tutorial exactly. 

I love how abundant seam binding is in AGL projects.  Here is is joined with some velvet ribbon and lengths of gold embroidery floss. 

I also made this tassel from another Stash Society tutorial and the goodies from the July kit.  It was simple with a pretty result.  I started another one using some soft old barkcloth.  These tassels are fun. 

August Almost Gone

 I was able to squeeze in one Gilded Girls Stash Society project so far.  I made this from elements in the July kit using a 8" x 10" artists' canvas.  I love those paper fans made from vintage French book pages.  See those 4 small gold rosettes?

 Those are made from the rick rack that came in the kit.  I am crazy about the color...brassy, as though the gold has developed patina over the years.  I was able to find a bit narrower version of the rick rack on ebay.  The rosettes are made by tightly rolling a length of the rick rack and gluing the bottom.

I ordered 3 rolls of seam binding, different shades of off-white.  Here I've coffee dyed some from each roll.  I spritzed on some walnut ink finally to get the darker shade I wanted. 

Now that we are near the end of August, I'm turning my attention to the August Stash kit.  There is some wonderful old bling along with the mandatory linen and laces.  Hmmmm, what to do what to do?