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Monthly Archives: November 2009

Works in Progress

This week has been all about finishing up lots of little projects – and I’m still not done. This little finger puppet Advent calendar has been a huge challenge! The puppets themselves are easy and fun to make, the tough part is trying to decide which animal to make next and how to create a recognizable animal with just a few shapes cut from felt. Twenty five animals, done!

And I have a spool rack which will be used for display.

Now to work on painting the spool rack, creating a numbering system and then shipping it off to its new home with a friend of mine. Nothing like a deadline to add a sense of urgency to a project, huh?

I’m also working on several other projects, and they look a little like this:

This features prominently in a huge project I’m trying to complete:

I’ll show you the rest of it later. :)

Here’s hoping for a productive weekend ahead for all of us!

P.S. Did you notice the lion next to the lamb in the top photo? Not sure if that was biblical or to celebrate New Moon’s release this weekend, but it felt right.

3 Comments

Posted by Sarah Cooper on November 20, 2009 in Christmas Crafts

Tags: Advent Calendar, Felt, Works In Progress

Personalized Twitter Tote Bags

18 Nov

In a variation of my Christmas gift bags, I realized that by layering stencils I could use multiple colors. (I don’t know why this wasn’t obvious to me from the start, but it wasn’t.) I was meeting up with a group of good friends I know from Twitter and had such an urge to make them something, but it had to be fairly inexpensive yet worth giving. For each of these I used one canvas bag, two colors of fabric paint (turquoise and brown) and three pieces of cardstock.

I used three cardstock stencils on each of the bags. I snagged the Twitter logo and printed it twice on card stock. (It should be noted that selling someone’s logo without permission is a no-no, but making a small batch of gifts is OK.) On one copy of the Twitter cardstock use an exacto knife to cut out the main part of the branch. On the other, cut out the bird. Careful with those tiny feet and legs! You could stop there if you like and have a very cute bag, but I also printed out each person’s Twitter name and cut it out, too. There’s just nothing like knowing a gift was made just for you!

Warning: it is a huge timesuck to cut out stacks of names. You’d better love these people if you start a project like this with lots of detailed, individual stencils! (Thankfully, I do.)

Next, the painting.

It’s best to paint the bird first, allow him to dry, then layer the branch stencil over the top of his little feet so that he’s properly on the branch. It’s easier to do a quick outline of the branch before removing the stencil and filling in. Freehand the smaller branches as they’re just too tiny to bother with a stencil. I kept the cut out section of bird and used him as a stencil for the eye, but if you’re good with a brush you could freehand that as well. Then line up your friend’s name stencil and carefully fill it in. If your fabric paint calls for ironing to set the paint, please do.

And you’re done! Enjoy the smiles as you pass out your gifts. :)

8 Comments

Posted by Sarah Cooper on November 18, 2009 in Personalized Crafts

Tags: Canvas Tote Bags, Fabric Paint, Gifts, Personalized, Stencils, Twitter

Moo Cards!

16 Nov

I love Moo cards! Through Moo.com, you can create full sized business cards or “Mini Moos”, which are a long, skinny sliver or a card. The magic of Moo cards is the easy customization – a set of 50 business cards (or 100 minis) can each have a different photo or design. You can pull your own photos from Flickr or upload directly, then choose just the area of the photo you’d like to use on each card with their easy crop and zoom. If you’re not much for taking pictures, Moo has a nice selection of graphics and images you can use instead.

The flexibility of ordering in small, easily personalized batches opens up many possibilities:

If you’re a photographer, make up cards for your clients with their own photos to pass out to family and friends.
If you include cards as a thank you in a mail order, adding a coupon code to your cards may bring repeat business.
A real estate agent might want to use photos of beautiful doors or even current listings.
If you’ve ever met a new contact and wished you could hand them more than “just a business card”, consider making a little packet of cards you can stash at the back of your business card case. The next time you meet someone who you’d like to impress on the spot with a little taste of your skills, pass them a little set of five or so cards held in a tiny envelope or hole punched and tied with a ribbon – a mini portfolio in an easy to carry and share package. (Before they even see your beautiful cards, they’ll know you’re giving them special attention. This alone should help impress.)

But I also love my Moos for their craft appeal! I never thought of framing a business card prior to Moo.

A couple brightly colored Moos slipped inside self adhesive luggage tags help me find my bags.

I used Fotoclips from Photojojo to make a collage of Mini Moos above my desk.

I’ve also given boxes of Mini Moos to a bride and her Mom following a wedding. Moos are great for scrapbooking or tying onto gifts, too!

sarahsigres

Sometimes the Smallest Gifts have the Biggest Impact

13 Nov

This little finger puppet was a surprise gift for a five year old friend of mine. It was a “just because” present made from leftover scraps of felt, and even with the postage it was a nearly-free gift. Hearing she had mail was a thrill, then to see her new little toy — that would have been enough of a treat! But her favorite part was when her Mom read to her that the little dog had asked to go live with a Princess. Realizing I meant her made her absolutely glow. The real gift here was the unexpected compliment. Who doesn’t love those?

I made a similar gift for my friend Hal Lublin after he told me he’d been to Muppeteering school. I was thrilled and told him, “You are SO getting finger puppets, Mister!” I don’t think he even remembered that, but the next time we met I had his little dog, pig and bat finger puppets tucked in my purse. I kind of laughed when I showed him that if you layer the pig and the bat, you get “Dracu-pig.”

A tiny felt legend was born.

(And yes, I did happen to have my camera in my hand to capture this momentous occasion.) Now as Hal travels around the country on business, DracuPig tags along and meets some of the most interesting people in social media and beyond. The magic is all Hal, but the finger puppets are a nice foot in the door. Go ahead and Google DracuPig. He’s kind of a big deal. For a finger puppet.

The lesson I’m trying to pass along here? Don’t talk yourself out of giving a gift because it’s just a small thing and you think it won’t be worthy. Even the very smallest kindness can go a long, long way.

sarahsigres

P.S. And in a perfect demonstration of how great a small kindness can make you feel, I *did* Google DracuPig and I found that while I might be writing about him now, Hal had already written about me. :)

2 Comments

Posted by Sarah Cooper on November 13, 2009 in Crafting for Children

Tags: Felt, Finger Puppets, Gifts

Felt House in a Hoop

11 Nov

My little sister in law and her husband recently bought a new house. I was so excited for them and wanted to make them something special for their housewarming gift, something that really celebrated their new home. I decided to try making a “house in a hoop” for them.

I printed a picture she emailed and used it as pattern pieces for the house. Breaking it down to its most basic elements, I cut separate pieces of felt for the roof, main house sections, windows, shutters and so on.

I was reminded yet again that simpler is usually better. Those windows would have looked a lot better if I’d fussed with them less. Oh, well.

I free handed a wobbly arc of sky and grass and stitched them to my plain cotton background fabric. This is handmade, remember, and the imperfections only add to the charm. (I repeat this to myself quite often away from crafting, too – life is a little easier to take when the flaws are just a part of the charm.)

Since the plants were dormant in the photo I had, I took liberties with the landscaping and added French knot flowers wherever I liked. I simplified the landscaping as well, cutting down on the number of bushes.

Ugh – wonky lines in the sidewalk! All a part of the charm, right?

All that empty green at the bottom of the hoop felt like a challenge. I considered trying to create a little felt replica of their doggie in the yard, then figured it would be hard enough just to stitch their name in the grass. Thankfully I kept it reasonably centered and straight.

And with that done, I decided to quit while I was ahead. If you make a house hoop of your own, I’d love to see it!

sarahsigres

3 Comments

Posted by Sarah Cooper on November 11, 2009 in Personalized Crafts

Tags: Felt, Hoop, House, Personalized

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Monthly Archives: November 2009

Works in Progress

Personalized Twitter Tote Bags

Moo Cards!

Sometimes the Smallest Gifts have the Biggest Impact

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