Merry & Bright Garland Tutorial

 

The grey days of a Midwestern winter are here, but inside my craft room, things are Merry and Bright. Long awaited arrival of October Afternoon fulfills my wish to make a most wonderful countdown garland to share with you! Every saved scrap of greeting card and items sent in the mail are perfect for this project. A how to for you!

STEP ONE - GATHER on your craft desk everything you like! Letters that don't have go-afters, odd buttons, favorite scraps saved from greeting cards, embellishments that hadn't the right Place to Be, anything at all that pleases your eye.

 
STEP TWO - ORGANIZE BY COLOR all of the items you have gathered. By doing this the color scheme of your garland will emerge. Anything that did not fit into one of these piles, I did not use. Sandy, 521 Lake Street, sent me the wonderful vintage wooden Christmas ornaments which will remind me of her each time I look at my garland.

STEP THREE - GATHER YOUR SUPPLIES Craft tip - Do you have a spool of wire and needle nose wire cutters? I don't think a crafting day goes by that I don't use these. I will make little loops to hang each tag from my garland.

STEP FOUR - CLEAR YOUR WORK SPACE   I have gathered all of the items I will use in my garland and placed them on a small table to my side. I have put away everything that I will not be using. This helps bring out my creativity.

STEP FIVE - DIVIDE AND CONQUER! A garland no matter the length can easily be managed by repeating a pattern within uniform lengths of space. My garland is six-feet long; so I will have six areas that will repeat the same pattern. MAIN FOCAL POINT - One LARGE tag made for each divided space. CRAFT TIP - Because my garland hangs in a window, I have sandwiched cardboard between front and back printed papers.

MEDIUM AND SMALL tags are created enough for each divided length of space.

VARY YOUR SHAPES - Because most of my tags are square or rectangle, I have made small silvery "coins" to give the garland sparkle. CRAFT TIP - Create one large and small sized cardboard circle for each divided length of garland. Place cardboard behind image and hold up to the light to center. Glue stick in place and THEN trim. Repeat with back image.

STEP SIX - TIME FOR FUN! Oh my gosh! I can't express enough how much fun it is to use all of the Inside Images of vintage greeting cards I have saved from all of my paper projects. They are my very favorite. I was so excited that this delicate card border found the perfect Place to Be. Beautiful!

Little ornament stickers left over from my Mitten Garland fit right in with my color scheme. Left over flowers, jingle bells, and Greetings are used in such a happy way.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!  A most favorite story ever shared, here ,is represented with this tag. CRAFT TIP - Vary the types of numbers used in your Countdown Garland. Coming across unexpected numbers in unexpected places will draw the viewer in for a closer look.

SEE THE PATTERN? Focal Point, medium and small tags, something rectangle, something round large and small, wooden ornament, and countdown number "8".

GARLANDS - I have purchased my vintage plastic garland several times now on Etsy or Ebay at a very minimal price. I have also used Ric Rac for this type of garland on several occasions. Use What's on Hand!

I'm giggling that this may very well be my lengthiest post ever as my garland is so very long! SIGH! Another inside scene used on the "4" tag.

I'm often asked how I can possibly cut into my beautiful vintage greeting cards rather than use copies. Do what feels right for you. For me, I am creating art by using the originals in a way not intended but none the less in a way to still enjoy the beautiful workmanship.

I hope these many examples of my own garland will perhaps inspire you to create one of your own. Making each tag special will result in something to enjoy year after year.

And please if you should create a Merry & Bright Garland, I do hope you will share it with me!

Mitten Garland

I could not live in a more perfect state for me than Ohio as I am someone who loves weather. Living in the Heart of Ohio, the weather can change drastically in a single day. In a single hour. Warm and 70 degrees one minute, 32 degrees and snowing the next. A garland of mittens tutorial and Giveaway is just right for today!

GOLDEN RULE - I love the paper packs and embellishments from K and Co. as carried by Michaels. They are all 40% off this week. Don't be overwhelmed by the array of patterns, they are all designed to go together. Instead think DARK, MEDIUM, and LIGHT. Each mitten will repeat this Golden Rule.

ONE VINTAGE FEATURE - added to each mitten will make modern papers take on a nostalgic feel. TIP: Look for plastic candle wreaths at your local Goodwill. Nothing says vintage like plastic! (Cardboard is "sandwiched" between front and back printed papers.)

TELL A STORY -  My mittens recall for me my first married Christmas. A corsage from my husband for my winter coat, greetings at my new In-laws doorstep, decorating our very first tree and the joy of a holiday now shared by two.

CREATE FOCAL POINTS - The eye will be drawn to embellishments or images that are clustered together. Here the pink rosette and leaf stems are my main focal point.
ANCHOR YOUR EMBELLISHMENTS Please never let them float! Notice how the lower leaf stem is anchored by the focal point rosette but leads your eye to another area of interest. The little blue flower is anchored to the greeting, the red flower "waterfalls". Had I placed them in the printed area to the left they would "float" and have no meaning.

REPEAT - Dark mitten cuff, Medium image and birds, Light mitten. Focal Point doorway, right bird Anchored to branch, greeting Waterfalling. I love this mitten!

CREATE MOVEMENT WITH DIRECTION - With each mitten I have positioned embellishments that lead the eye both upwards and downwards. This makes your paper art lively.

CREATE MOVEMENT WITH COLOR - Your eye will move from dark to light. By positioning my mittens Dark, Medium, Light, Medium, Dark, the eye will swing back and forth between the dark anchoring mittens.

With one paper pack and two embellishment packages, you can create this nostalgic garland..

CROCHETED GARLAND INSTRUCTIONS:
Chain (Ch) 32 stitches.
Leaf: Ch 8, Single Crochet (SC) in stitch next to hook. Half Double Crochet (HDC-Yarn Over, insert hook in stitch, pull yarn through all three loops on hook.) in next stitch, Double Crochet (DC) in next stitch, Triple Crochet in next stitch, DC in next stitch, HDC in next stitch, Slip Stitch (SlpS) in next stitch. Leaf made.
*Chain 16,  pull loop of yarn through hole in mitten Chain 16, Make Leaf*
Repeat between *'s until last mitten has been attached.Chain 16, make last leaf
Chain 32 stitches, cut yarn and pull through bottom of last leaf to create hanger. Cut yarn. Repeat at beginning of garland.

 Print/Full Size Paper


GIVEAWAY WINNER: DAMITA'S PRETTY WRAP - Holly

ME Star Garland

I just know cute minds think alike. You do pull out your monthly corresponding ME magazines, don't you? It's always my favorite day of the month. A chance to recall and be delighted yet again by the pages of my most favorite publication ever.

 

I like to think love for our blogging community is an extension of our affection for turning pages knowing something wonderful will be revealed; and because of our community, we now know how to get the "look" for ourselves!

 

 Simply sweet paper stars, vintage as can be. I always hoped I would have some of these one day!

Empty cereal boxes, what would we do without them! Position your image over your cardboard shaped star.

Turn over and trace. Cut out printed paper as well. I adore the writing on vintage cards. Perfectly perfect for the back of the star.

Glue stick in place, nearly there.

Hot glue two pipe cleaner stems around the edges or glitter as in the magazine example.

Hanging from the tree or strung on a garland. the magic of these nostalgic images is all that is needed to create holiday cheer.

Another project admired so many times were the various wooden containers in cherry red and white.

A .50 cent thrift store find, a knowing smile. Magazine Christmas on a Red Wednesday!

Halloween Garland

A garland needed for my craft room window for the holidays, a Halloween Garland Along begun.



Click on image, File, Print Preview, select percentage size right for you! My ornaments are about four inches tall.

Repurposing last year's Christmas pattern, a candy corn cut out, each color layer butted against the next and button stitched in place.




With one ply basting thread, fold under the tip of the corn and slip a hanging cord between folded over felt, and baste closed. Starting at the bottom with matching thread, button stitch sides together without catching any of the white felt. Notice what a nice point the folded down tip has resulted.

Lightly stuff candy corn with fiberfill. In a counter clockwise direction, whip stitch between pinked felt edge.

Make two candy corn for your garland.

I love Halloween because it is the only time of the year you can legitimately decorate with purple, green, and orange. A cute witch for my garland, the only type to know!

Cut out one pattern in purple. Cut out face opening by folding felt in half, fold round pattern piece in half and lay over fold for guide. Button stitch face in place and embroider details 2 strands floss. Lay on top of white felt and pink at bottom edge. Cut white sides slightly smaller than purple pattern. Baste purple to white. Tack stitch belt in place with one ply thread.

On backside, cut away white felt at tip of hat. Following directions from candy corn, bend tip of purple hat down, position hanging cord, fold over, baste closed. Beginning from pinked edge, button stitch closed making sure white felt stays hidden.

Cut out felt hat brim, cut opening in center, slip over hat point.

A garland for hanging ornaments is as wide as my window opening. I have single crocheted a chain using cotton yarn. The tassels at the ends are made by winding yarn around three fingers, tying in the middle, and cutting loops.

I used my rotary cutter to cut lengths of felt 1/4" wide. (NOTE: pattern says, 1/2". I found this size to be too wide) Lay white strip 1/8" in and on top of orange strip of felt. Fold 1/8" orange over white, jelly roll five rotations. Cut white end slightly shorter than orange for smooth appearance. Use 1 ply thread to tack end. Insert needle through all thicknesses to secure.


Cut a total of ten green leaves, five white pinked leaves. Sandwich white felt between green leaves, use 2 ply white thread to whip stitch between pinks catching green felt on the edges. Tack leaf to back of crocheted garland, tack jellyroll to front of garland securing it firmly to leaf.

There you have it! I just adore purple, green, and orange!