No-Sew Denim Rag Coasters Or Placemats

Are you a fan of retro?  Pure Americana?  Well, I certainly am!  One thing that's almost as American as apple pie is denim jeans.  Pairing a plain white T-shirt with an iconic pair Levi's or other denim is a staple of American fashion that likely will never go out of style.  For this year's Independence Day, I thought I'd pay tribute to simpler times with denim rag coasters.  You can also use this method to make placemats.  Slightly imperfect, they remind me of the fabric of our country, also bound with its imperfections, yet when we work together, we become much stronger as one (corny, I know, I know....but I am a huge sentimental softie).  

You will need:

Denim of varying colors

Heavy-duty double-sided tape

Large denim iron-on patches

Scissors

Ruler or straight edge, if so desired

Iron

Cut your denim into strips approximately 1-inch wide,  6-inch long strips for coasters, or 1-inch wide, 14-inch long strips for placemats.    I usually donate all my kiddos' outgrown jeans to Goodwill twice per year, but this past December, I saved a couple pairs.  You can use old jeans, which I prefer because of the worn, washed look, or you can use new denim.  If you want a refined, more streamlined effect, use the ruler to carefully measure and cut each piece.  I wanted a country-prim look for mine; I just snipped away without measuring.....so the imperfections were a plus for me!

Weave the pieces together in a simple basket-weave pattern, and attach the undersides with double-sided tape.  Trim any major frays.

Lay the coasters onto the sticky side of your iron-on patches, and iron them.  I used these extra-large patch iron-ons from Walmart.

 Trim away any excess.

All set!

On my plate.

To see these featured in my 2015 Independence Day Tablescape, please visit the post on my blog Parsimonious Décor Darling here.

Thank you for stopping in!  :)

If you enjoy this post, please visit the archives!  You may also visit my full profile to view my other blogs. Connect with me on my Facebook Page, Parsimonious Décor Darling.   You might like to visit my other blog hubs,

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Simple Patriotic Garden Hat Hangers

Hello, and thank you for stopping by today!  I can't believe it is again almost Summer!  The days certainly fly by rapidly!  Summer typically means outdoor BBQs, fun in the sun, and great weather.  It is also the time that we celebrate our country's independence, and just prior to that, we pay respect to our fallen for Memorial Day.  Today's tutorial are simple patriotic hat hangers that are interchangeable whether you are celebrating the 4th of July or Memorial Day.  I hope you enjoy the post!

For two hangers, you will need:

Two garden sun hats
Faux flowers of red, white, and blue
Four mini flags
Two patriotic bows
Elastic
Stapler
Staple remover
Ribbon

I began by adding a patriotic ribbon to my hats.  Each of these ribbons has a pliable twist-tie, so I simply threaded it through the hat and twisted it onto itself.

 

Shown here.  I didn't bother to remove the original ribbon, because I sort of enjoyed the layering of the ribbon, and I'm sure I will reuse them sometime in the future.

I starched and ironed the mini flags so that they would lay flat.

Each of these flags were constructed with tiny staples and a small wooden dowel.

 

Using a staple remover, I removed the staples on two of the flags.  I flipped them over, and reattached them.  Now, instead of four flags facing all the same direction, I have two that face left and two that face right.

I used elastic to attach each flag.  I threaded the elastic through the hat,

tied it on the backside,

and slipped each dowel through the loops I created.

Next, I clipped one stem of red, white, and blue for each hat, and carefully threaded it through the wicker of the hat.

 

Finally, a small bit of red ribbon was threaded though the very top of the hat to use as a hanger.

Completed hangers.

Left.

Right.

I opted not to use any hot glue or anything permanent....making it easy to disassemble for use in the future.  This project was cost-efficient too, each hanger cost less than $15!!!  ;)

Where to buy:

Garden hats, local nursery
Floral stems, Hobby Lobby
Patriotic bows, Big Lots
Mini Flags and Ribbon, The Dollar Tree

To see these featured in my entryway décor for 2015, please visit the post on my blog Parsimonious Décor Darling by clicking here.

 

If you enjoy this post, please visit the archives!  You may also visit my full profile to view my other blogs. Connect with me on my Facebook Page, Parsimonious Décor Darling.   You might like to visit my other blog hubs,

The Marvelous Maison, a lifestyle blog hub and 

Frugal Fab Fashionista, my fashion blog hub. 

Follow me on Pinterest!!  Please be sure to kindly follow the board guidelines, as it takes time and effort to find fabulous pins across the Internet and Pinterest!  Thank you!  

Thank you for stopping by! ❤

Queen of Hearts Teacups

Hello!  Thank you for popping in for a visit today!  Are you ready for Valentine's Day?  In honor of this special day which is just a few short days away, today I thought I would share a tutorial to make your own Queen of Hearts inspired teacups.  The cups I am preparing have an added bit of kitsch and whimsy, as I am using them in an Alice In Wonderland inspired tablescape.  You may edit yours for a more refined outcome.  I hope you enjoy the post!

 

You will need:

Plain black extra-large tea or coffee cups
Stencils
Metallic ceramic paint
Gold Sharpie pen
Silver Sharpie pen
Rubbing alcohol
Q-tips
Tape (scotch or masking)

Begin by washing the outside of your cups with the rubbing alcohol and allowing to dry completely.  Use a clean, soft cloth to further remove any residual residue.

 

Tape your stencil into place.  Stencil your desired pattern onto the cup with the sharpie. Trial and error tip:  Do not remove hastily, you will end up like I did here, oh, dear!  The good thing is, rubbing alcohol works wonders at cleaning up these sort of errors, although it can be tedious.

 
Here, I've cleaned some away with a Q-tip.

I filled in the stencil pattern a bit more free-hand,

and also added some free-hand hearts.  Allow dry time.

Next, I carefully painted tiny hearts inside the ones I drew.

Here are examples of the other patterns I made. 

This one I also accomplished using a stencil and sharpies.

On this particular cup, I began by drawing a silver heart,

and followed those with gold.

Then I carefully painted red hearts inside each.

 

For fun and kitsch, I added "Silence!"

"All ways are my ways!"

or "Off with your head!"

quotes on each cup.  If you prefer a more streamlined look, you may want to omit this step.  Give your cups a once-over, and be sure to clean all errors with rubbing alcohol before you place into the oven.

Place cups into a cold oven and heat to 325.  Fire for 40-45 minutes, and turn off oven.  Do not remove cups until the oven is completely cool.

To protect your project, follow up (on the outside of the cup only) with a layer of dishwasher-safe ModPodge. 

To see these featured in my Tea With the Queen Tablescape for Valentine's Day 2015, you may visit the post on my other blog, Parsimonious Décor Darling by clicking here. 

Supply list:

Stencils, paints, and pens: Hobby Lobby

Cups:  The 99¢ Store

If you enjoy this post, please visit the archives!  You may also visit my full profile to view my other blogs. Connect with me on my Facebook Page, Parsimonious Décor Darling.   You might like to visit my other blog hubs,

The Marvelous Maison, a lifestyle blog hub and 

Frugal Fab Fashionista, my fashion blog hub. 

Follow me on Pinterest!!  Please be sure to kindly follow the board guidelines, as it takes time and effort to find fabulous pins across the Internet and Pinterest!  Thank you!  

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Easy Scandinavian-Inspired Fabric Christmas Ornaments

Brrrrr.....it's cold outside!  Cold weather is the perfect time to don your favorite cozy sweater and relax in front of a warm fireplace or get outside in the snow swishing down slopes.  My Christmas décor this year has a lodge theme, so I thought it might be fun to make some handmade ornaments that remind me of a quaint little Scandinavian village where you might do just that.  I hope you enjoy the post.

You will need:
Styrofoam balls
Paper clips
Fabric
Ribbon
Hemp thread
Hot glue gun and glue sticks
Round object for measuring
Pen
Scissors

I'll begin by saying I had quite a time finding "fair isle" fabric and a lot of folks didn't know what I was talking about at all.  My idea had been to find fabrics that looked like sweaters and make the ornaments out of that.....but I guess I'd have to learn to knit again (I haven't done so since I was little), and I was in a time crunch.  I settled on these fabrics:

I liked this red and white fabric, because it almost looked like fair isle,

and this grey one because it was soft, and I thought the damask pattern was pretty.  It also reflected light with highs and lows of grey, which I thought would look good on the tree.

Begin by placing a round object on your fabric.  I used a saucer.  The circumference of the saucer should be large enough so that the fabric you cut out will cover your Styrofoam completely.

Trace the circle with a pen.

Cut out.

Place the fabric pattern-side down.  Set aside.

To make hooks for your ornaments, bend and

cut paper clips into three little U-shaped parts.

 

Shown here.

Gently push the "U" into the top of your Styrofoam ball.

Bead a small amount of glue onto it to ensure it will stay in place.

Place your ball hook side up directly in the center of your fabric cut-out.

Now, slowly turn, fold, glue, turn, fold, glue, creating pleats, until the ball is completely covered.

Make sure you do not cover your hook.

Thread the hemp thread through the hook, and tie.

 

Finally, adorn with a small bit of ribbon, making sure you cover the tied portion, and glue the bow's center onto the top of the completed ornament.  Viola!

You may also thread the ball like so prior to adding the fabric, but I found the bows stay on better if the tied thread is there to grip onto rather than it being inside underneath the fabric.

You may also opt to use thin ribbon for hanging, like I've done here.

The options are limitless!

To see these ornaments featured on my tree this year, you may view the post on my other blog Parsimonious Décor Darling by clicking here.  I hope you are enjoying the holiday season!!

Fabric, grey and snowflake, Joann's Fabric

Scandinavian red and white fabric, Hobby Lobby

Styrofoam balls, The Dollar Tree, 3 large/$1 and multipack sized, $1

Hemp thread and ribbon, also The Dollar Tree

If you enjoy this post, please visit the archives!  You may also visit my full profile to view my other blogs. Connect with me on my Facebook Page, Parsimonious Décor Darling.   You might like to visit my other blog hubs,

The Marvelous Maison, a lifestyle blog hub and 

Frugal Fab Fashionista, my fashion blog hub. 

Follow me on Pinterest!!  Please be sure to kindly follow the board guidelines, as it takes time and effort to find fabulous pins across the Internet and Pinterest!  Thank you!  

Thank you for stopping by! ❤