My Toaster Cover Is Inked!

Mommy has asked me to sew my sis's toaster a cover. And I inked it!





I used stencils, fabric ink and stamped on the patterns!


Here's what you need:


cloth
stencils (you can make them yourself or use a ready made one)
fabric ink
brush dauber (or what I call a sponge on a stick),(it is to apply the ink onto the cloth)


Here's how to prepare your cloth:



You need to measure your toaster first, then get the 3 dimensions and transfer that information onto your piece of cloth.
I added an extra inch so that my cover will overlap one another.
So now, you have your 2 pieces of cloth all set!


Now, to apply your design.
First, spread your cloth on top of some rough paper. This is to prevent any ink from transferring onto you table (or floor).
Then, prepare your items.

If you want, you can draw a line as a guide for your design.
For my case, well, the flowers are all on different levels. hehe.


Use the brush dauber (sponge on a stick), dab it slight (only slightly) with some ink, then dab it onto the stencil that is put nicely over your cloth.



Your finish design will look something like this.



Now you can sew it up!
First, pin up and sew up all the corners of the cloth except the top that is to be sewn to the top piece.



Align one end of your cloth half way through the shorter side of your top piece.


Pin them together then sew.


When you have secured that part of the cloth together, pin up the other sides and sew.


Sew it up one side at a time. It would be easier. :)


Turn it around and it's ready to use!


About fabric ink:
I'm using Versa Fabric Ink which should be available at art stores like spotlight, or scrap booking stores.
Iron the piece, with a piece of paper under the iron and over the inked part, to let ink sink into cloth.


About the stencil I used:
It is from the book Great Paper Crafts by Ritchie and Kilmartin, 2004.

Flowers for my Mother

It's my mother's birthday tomorrow and I wanted to give her something she likes and would never not find a need for.
So I made her tulips that will never wilt with my super duper jumping clay! :)





OKie. There are 3 parts to making this bouquet of flowers:


1) the flowers
2) the tag
3) decorating the vase.


Lets start with the flowers. Here's what you need:


Jumping clay (or any other clay that you are comfortable with)
Green coloured wire for stalks


Here's how you do it!


Firstly, take a tiny bit of green and cover the tip of the stalk with it.
Roll some (maybe 3) thin white 'snakes' to make the pollen.
Stick them onto the green.



Next for the petals.
Take some red and more white to make pink.



Take a small amount and roll it into something like a diamond, with 2 pointed edges.



Flatten it to make it look like a petal.



Roll it around the pollens.



Make a few more and keep rolling it around.

You can choose to make 2 to 3 more layers of petals.
Make a few flowers, as many as you like :)


Now for the tag.
Here's what you need:


Jumping clay (or any clay that you are comfortable with)


I got this idea off the "Cake Decorators Motif Bible" by Pageone.



First, take some black and flatten it into a rectangle.
Take some white and flatten it into a curved-bottom triange.

Use a blade (or anything flat like a ruler) to draw the lines on the white.


Take some leaf green-coloured clay and roll them into shapes of teardrops.
Flatten them to look like leaves.
Place them onto the white clay.

Once again, use the blade to make a line in the middle.


To make the roses, roll a tiny amount of red clay into thin long snakes.
Press them flat,
Then curl them up.



Take some brown and spell out the words of your choice, rolling the clay into thin snakes.



Add some flowers and leaves onto the words.



Now for the tiny bow, or ribbon, at the end of the bouquet.
Take some brown (some colour clay used for the words) and roll them into the shape of a diamond.
Flatten it.



Fold it into half.

Make 2.


Then place them onto the tag.



Take another small bit of brown clay and shape it into a square.
Put it in between the 2 triangles that make up the bow.



Do this only after you tag is dry.
Use a pen knife to make a hole at the top corner of the tag.




Your tag is done!
Now to put them all together!
What you need:


Some thin coloured paper
Strings
Small vase



Stuff some paper into the vase.
This is to make sure that the flowers stay in position.



Take another piece of coloured paper and place the vase on top.



Wrap it around the vase.



Thread the string into the tag.

Tie the string, which is attached to the tag, around the vase to secure the paper.



Voila! You're all done!


TIps!
Vase can be anything from a recycled jam bottle to an old Coca Cola bottle!
If you do not have a green wire for the stalk there are a few options:
use a satay stick and wrap it around with green paper;
use the jumping clay and roll it into a stalk (allow it to dry for about a day so that it is easier to work with);
Tooth picks!


Information about materials
Clay can be bought from ArtFriend and Popular at Bras Basar. Book "The Cake Decorator's Motif Bible" bought from Pageone.
Clay takes about a day to fully dry.
For more information about jumping clay, I found 2 websites:
www.jumpingclay.blogspot.com
www.jumpingclay.com

Laptop Wire Bag. Unplugged.

First and foremost, I would like to say that I am thrilled Ellen is going to be the new judge on American Idol! I like Paula but the humour Ellen's going to bring is one I cannot miss!


Anyway, I have been packing Lao gong's laptop for him a lot and when I pack my own laptop, I realised he had a tiny pouch to put his wires but I don't. So I decided to make my own one!






I used a different way to make the flat bottom base.I decided I needed a way of making the bag retain its squarish shape. The other box pouch (the coin pouch) only retained its horizontal shape. This one will also remain upright vertically. So look closely. You might be able to use this to make other things too! :)


There's what you need:



Here's how to prepare your cloth:



After you're done, here's what you have to do.
First, place the 2 inside and outside bag pieces together, with their back facing out.
Looking at it from a landscape view, sew only the left and right side.
Leave the top and bottom, which is the opening of the bag, unsewn.
Do not sew all the way; leave at least half a centimetre on the top.



Now, turn the cloths the right way round.
Fold the unsewn cloths down and tuck them in.
Sew.

Do this for both the top and bottom.


It should look like this.



Now, fold the piece horizontally into half. Then unfold.
All you want to do here is to make a crease.
Then, fold the top and bottom to meet each other in the centre.

Sew it up.


Next, draw squares along all for corners.
Draw on both front and back. That means you have to draw them 8 times.



Fold the tip into a triange, where the corners of the square meet.
Then, sew along the line.



Cut the excess part off.



Turn the bag the right way round and now you are ready to make the flap.


Place your wire into the bag then use the ruler to measure the length and breath of the bag.


I measured mine as 11 x 3.


Cut out a piece of inside cloth and a piece of outside cloth with the dimensions you just got.
Draw and sew the design on.



Then, use your fabric ink to stamp on the words.



Now you're ready to sew.
Place the 2 pieces of cloth together, their backs facing out.

Pin it up all around except the top.


Prepare 2 elastics.
Measure them from the bottom of the flap all the way under the bag of wires to the top of the flap.
Make sure they are not too long, or the bag would not be secure.



Sew all the way around the flap except the top.
Make sure you place the elastic bands along the bottom of the flap when sewing.

The end of the elastic band should be at the end of the cloth, like in the picture.
The elastic band should be in between both the cloths.
Here's a closer look.

Sew over the elastic band a couple of times.


Turn it the right way round.
Tuck in and pin down the top of the flap.
Then pin it onto the bag and sew it on.



With the wires in the bag, pull the elastic bad under and to the top of the flap.
Make a mark on where you want the button to be.
Sew on the buttons.




In no time, you're all packed and ready to go!