Mesh Ribbon Pumpkin Wreath Tutorial and a Girls Night Out

This craft is really very simple to make.  It will take 3-4 hours to complete, depending on how much crafty experience you have.
My girlfriends and I got together and made these as our Girls Night Out activity, and it was sooooo fun!  The project is kind of mindless so talking didn't distract for the work and we laughed, ate, laughed some more, and left with a cute fall wreath!

You will need the following supplies:

• 18" Embroidery Hoop (see notes at the bottom of this post for supply adjustments if you would like to make a smaller wreath)
• Hemp string (around 2 yards)
• Latch hook rug backing
• 4 rolls 5 1/2" wide ( 30ft. each) orange mesh ribbon
• 2- 12" pieces bright green mesh ribbon (5 1/2" wide)
• 2- 12" pieces black or brown mesh ribbon (5 1/2" wide)
• Approx 75 orange pipe cleaners, cut in half
• 5 lime green pipe cleaners for little vines (optional)
• 1 orange poster paper sheet
• Scissors
• Ruler
• Wire cutters
• Glue gun & glue

Cut a piece of the latch hook rug backing into a square that is slightly larger (about 2" wider) than your hoop.  Using your hemp string, "sew" the rug backing onto the embroidery hoop like this picture.  This does not have to be perfect, just secure.

Now before you attach the backing to the frame, you will want to also cut your poster paper into a square that is about 2 inches larger than the hoop.

Cut 3 rolls of orange ribbon into 10" strips.
Use the instructions in this photo collage for the next steps in making the wreath.

Repeat these steps until you've rolled all of your cut ribbon pieces.
Starting in the middle of the hoop, push the pipe cleaner through the mesh, using two separate squares next to each other.  Pull the pipe cleaners down tight, and twist them together 3 times.
Work from the center outward, You don't need or want to fill every open square in the frame.

I am holding the frame of an 18" wreath

Once you have attached all of the rolls, you will want to cut additional orange ribbon into the 10" pieces to finish up and fill in any gaps (I cut an additional 20 strips and used them all).
Don't worry if you can see through the mesh a little in spots. You will be using the poster board to cover the back of the wreath and it will close up those "thinner" area's.

Using your wire cutters, occasionally, stop and trim the pipe cleaners down to where the twists end. Once in a while stop and pull the orange roll ends up so that they are not trapped under other rolls.
Once you've filled your wreath with the orange rolls you will go on to the leaves and stem.
Using 1 piece of 12" green mesh ribbon, roll the ribbon up on an angle to create a long thin roll with pointed ends.

 Tie the leaf about 1/3 of the way from the end.

This will give you the appearance of 2 leaves in different heights to place next to the stem of the pumpkin.  Repeat this step with the other piece of green ribbon.

For the stem, I used black mesh ribbon, but I think that brown would be really great too. 

Take the 2 pieces of black ribbon and stack one on top of the other (I did this to make the stem more dense and noticeable). Roll these up like you did the orange ribbon.  Use a pipe cleaner to tie the ribbon into a 'stem' shape, then attach it to the top of your wreath.

Make sure you tuck the small end of the roll down inside under the orange ribbon so that it is hidden.

Wire on your stem in the same way as the orange ribbon,  and then leaves in the same way, placing them close to the stem. I like to put the shorter end next to the stem, and then the longer end next to the stem on the other side.

If you want, you can make the cute curly vines to add to your wreath.  Simply twist green pipe cleaner around something small and round (I used a ChapStick tube).  Straighten a little bit of one end of the pipe cleaner, thread it down through a whole in the frame, bend it and bring it back up though a whole right next to the one going in, twist the 2 together a couple of times. and it's finished!  
If you would like a few of the vines to be longer simply twist 2 pipe cleaners together, bend the twisted section down and wrap it around the pipe cleaner,right where the 2 pipe cleaners come together.

2 pipe cleaners twisted together

This is a close-up of the section where I twisted them together

Believe it or not, we're almost finished!
You will need to make a hook to hang the wreath, and here is how I did mine.  I used a pipe cleaner, bent it into a large circle and then attached it behind the stem in the exact same way I attached the vines.  I did give it a few extra twists together for added strength.
Last step!!!!!
Using your glue gun, attach the poster paper to the back of your wreath, placing the glue on the hoop and pressing the paper on.  

Monica, with her 14" wreath

Trim the paper to close to the hoop and...

YOU ARE FINISHED!!!!!

In the top left photo is my daughter Chelsey, sitting on the couch, on her phone.  She claims to have helped us.  Whatever-lol

Tiffany, with her 14" wreath

My crazy friend Katie had foot surgery a few days before our party and she has to use this little scooter thing to keep her foot elevated while she hobbles around.  She made a 12" wreath.

Kylee made the 14" wreath

My wreath is the 18" size

Julie & Beth Anne

Finally, my friend Beth Anne likes to think outside our box, so she did a slightly different take on our wreath, but with using basically same steps.  This photo on the right was her inspiration.  It's adorbs!

I purchased all of the supplies for my wreath at my local Hobby Lobby Craft Store.  You can find the latch hook rug backing where the yarn and embroidery supplies are. I calculated the cost of my 18" wreath at $35.00.

• For a 12" size wreath, you will need a 12" embroidery hoop, 2 rolls of orange ribbon and 50 pipe cleaners.
• For a 14" size wreath, you will need a 14" embroidery hoop, 3 rolls of orange ribbon and about 60 pipe cleaners.
• All the other supplies remain the same.

Craft source:  Fleur De Lis and Football

Halloween Paper Bag Trees

This fun craft would be a great project for your kids on a rainy day!

Materials:

1. Medium-size brown grocery bag
2. Scissors
3. Small beverage bottle
4. Pebbles or other weights

Instructions:
Cut off and discard the bottom of a medium-size brown grocery bag. Then slit open one side so you have a rectangle. Place a small beverage bottle on the center of it.

Gather the paper around the bottle and twist it around the neck. Snip down from the top to create several strips that will become limbs. Twist them to within 3 or 4 inches from the ends.

Snip the untwisted ends, as you did in step 2, and then twist them into finer branches.

Remove the bottle and fill the trunk with pebbles or other weights.

Re-twist the trunk shut.

Tutorial source:  Disney Family Fun Magazine 

Beautiful Necklace Tutorial from My Girlish Whims

It has been almost a year since my last post on this blog!  I can't believe how quickly time goes by.
This past year has brought many changes to my life, some good, some difficult, but I am grateful for the blessings I have received along the way.
I have been dying to get back in the swing of the crafty world, but I haven't had time to really get my craft on, so I'm going to start with sharing AWESOME tutorials from talented and creative people I have discovered along the way.

Rebecca from My Girlish Whims has great tutorials and lots of know-how when it comes to making jewelry. Her teaching style is so easy to follow and her photos are the best!  Step by step, she walks you through the process and you end up with a fabulous piece to wear and tell all of your friends that YOU made it!

Great necklace, right?  I wanted to share it with you, so here is the link to the tutorial and a great blog!

Valentine's Necklace

Free Printable for all Jewelry Lovers!

NO WORDS HAVE EVER BEEN TRUER!  

At least as far as my little company goes...

The Jewelry Jar

Here is a quick freebie printable;  

It was originally posted on one of our other sites, but we haven since closed up that blog.

I have had many requests to make this available again, so I finally got my act together, and here is my jewelry subway art!

{I am by no means a graphics skilled person, so this is just amateur work-but it's fun!}

Simply right click on the image, save to your computer, and then print using your settings for jpg images. This prints best as an  8 x 10  or smaller image.

Pumpkin Halloween Door "Wreath" Decor

This was a pretty simple craft for me to make (that's why I made it).  It took some time, mostly waiting for the Mod Podge to dry, but it went together quickly, and I like the results!

Last fall I created some pumpkins for the Halloween holiday, and this is just a quick take-off from that original idea.

You will need the following supplies:

• 2 Foam pumpkins
• 2- 12x12 scrapbook papers for each 1/2 pumpkin 
• Mod Podge
• Sponge paint brush (or any paint brush)
• Scissors
• Glue gun (and glue-duh)
• Raffia
• Craft wire
• Stapler
• Ribbon(s)
• Something to cover your workspace table (I used a plastic table cloth I had purchased at the dollar store, and had on hand).

Get your pumpkin, and slice it in half, from the middle of the stem down to the base of the pumpkin (I got my father to do this, so it was super easy for me).
He used a sharp kitchen knife, laid the pumpkin on a towel so it wouldn't slip too easily, and wore a pair of protective gloves.  It was pretty quick actually, I had just enough time to pour myself a Diet Coke.

Next, take your 2 scrapbook sheets, cut 1 of them into 4 pieces, and the other sheet into 2 equal halves.

For one of my pumpkins, I actually used a gift/lunch sack that I had purchased at my local Hobby Lobby store. I simply cut the sack open, discarding the bottom of the sack.

Next take one 1/2 sheets of the paper and place it over the top center of the pumpkin, and if necessary, cut a small 'V" so that the paper can fold around the stem.

Slightly press and pinch the paper around the inside edges of the pumpkin. this will help give you a guideline on keeping the paper where you want it. 

 Now, remove the paper, cover the top of the pumpkin liberally with Mod Podge, and start pressing the paper onto the pumpkin.

If you are using a heavier paper, such as card stock, you will need to coat the back side of the paper with Mod Podge before placing it on the pumpkin to help soften the paper and make it more malleable.  Remember to also apply the Podge to the edges of the pumpkin, and inside far enough that the paper can fold over and adhere inside.  Press the paper onto the pumpkin as smoothly as possible, removing all the bubbles underneath.
With the remaining paper pieces, simply cover the rest of the pumpkin.  Coat the exterior with a nice layer of Mod Podge.  Allow to dry.  You may want to apply a second coat to make sure it is well sealed (especially if you are going to use these outside).

I left a small part of my pumpkin uncovered so that you can see  how the pumpkin looked during progress.

 Allow a lot of drying time after this step.  I left mine overnight.

 The next day, I took my 2" wide grosgrain ribbon, rolled out a strip on the floor, put the pumpkin 1/2's on top of the ribbon, decided how far apart I wanted to hang them, measured and marked the ribbon, and went to work attaching them.
I put some hot glue on the back of the pumpkin, and pressed the ribbon on until it was almost cooled.  while the glue was still a little warm I popped a couple of staples in to help make secure the ribbon and pumpkin together.

I had a hard time trying to decide how to finish up the bottom of my "wreath", but finally decided to make some little ribbon tails.

Once I had all the pumpkins attached, I used the trusty glue gun (that leaves awesome blisters on my fingers) to attach my raffia ribbon and a couple of other coordinating ribbons at the base of the pumpkin stem. 

I used my craft wire to make some of those cute little curly-Q things that pumpkins have.  I wound the wire around a marker, and bent one end downward so that I could push it into the pumpkin.  That was my plan. Not a good plan.  I stabbed my blistered fingers with that wire numerous times before the light in my head went on.
I took my bead reaming tool, a small hammer, and tapped a hole into the pumpkin.  The I glued the little curly thing and called it good.

 The final thing I had to figure out was how to hang this on my front door.  My door is 8 feet tall, and I can't use the typical over the door wreath hanger.  Also, I have just had my exterior doors repainted, so there is no way I'm putting a hook on there! I've seen the awesome ribbon idea on Pinterest, so I decided to give it a go.  I used a key ring for my hook, and just glued the ribbon over on itself.

After that, the finish was in sight! I used one of those brilliant removable 3M Command hook things, stuck it upside down on the door, dropped the ribbon over the door top, and I WAS DONE!!!
I am happy with the finished product, and I'm happy with the way it turned out.
What do you think?

Oh, and what did I do with the extra 1/2 pumpkin I had?  I finished it in the same way as these 3 pumpkins, suspended it inside an open back frame, and gave it to a friend for her birthday.  Yep, I forgot to take any pictures of it.  Lame.

I was inspired by a photo on this blog: http://newlyweddiaries.blogspot.com