Felt Flower Tutorial

I'm going to take you step by step through making your own felt flowers. A lot of women, like me, enjoy doing things themselves, and this project, while time consuming, is rather enjoyable, as you get to see something from start to finish, and get to relate your pride in that you did it yourself.

Here's what you'll need: Green and White felt, Scissors, Assorted Embroidery Floss, Needles, Fabric Marking Pen (designed for tailors and quilters, washable) and Assorted Buttons. All of these items can be picked up at Hancocks fabrics, or Jo-Anns fabrics.

White felt: Start by making marks on your fabric with the marker, in the general shape you want your flowers. I prefer a 5 leaf flower. Pictured on the left, you can use a guide for the center of your flower such as a coin, and branch the petals off of it. I draw mine out free-hand, but if you're not comfortable without a guide, the coin will do the trick!

Here is an example of how my flowers look. Make them in assorted sizes so they can be stacked for the finished product. Note: The flowers don't have to look perfect! Different sized petals can give them a very unique look.

Cut them out carefully along the cutting lines you made. But, if they don't look quite right, don't be afraid to trim them! Remember, there's more where that came from!

Green Felt: Use your marking pen on the green felt (note: you will have to draw your design onto the same spot a few times before the ink will show up well enough to use as a cutting guide). Make generous sized leaf shapes and cut them accordingly.

Here's what you have to work with so far. Select a smaller felt flower cut out, and thread your needle with a strand of embroidery floss (note: do not separate the threads in the embroidery floss).

I'm going to show you one of my favorite embroidery stitches, but if you know your stitches well enough, you can skip this part. Insert your needle through the back of the flower, and push the needle back through the same hole, only leaving a loop of thread in the front.  

Next, push your needle through the back of the flower again, about 1/4 of an inch higher than the first stitch. Slip the needle through the loop of thread, and pull gently to tighten it.

Then push your needle back through the second hole, on the other side of the loop so that your thread has created a second loop around the top of the first loop.

Repeat the process on all the other petals, and your result should look something like this.

Find another flower cut out, slightly larger than the first, and start embroidering it. Remember, only the edges of the larger one are going to be seen, so add the flare where it will show.

Running stitches are the best to use for the big flower. They show beautifully, and add some real fun to the whole flower.

Here's a photo of the large flower finished. I told you it was fun looking!

And it shows perfectly to give this elegant flower some personality.

Next you have your leaves. I really like the white on green, so we're sticking with it.

Just make a simple diagonal stitch...

Then a second, starting from the center of the first, and branching outward.

Your finished leaf should look like this! If not, oh well, sometimes you have to make it up as you go along!

To keep things simple, I did a running stitch on the second leaf. It keeps a nice homey look to the leaves, while still dressing it up a bit.

Next, put everything together! Lay down your leaves, face up, and stack the bottom and top flower, and top it with a button. Make sure the flowers and leaves are positioned in the spot you want them!

And finally, sew it all down. Make sure that your needle and thread go through ALL of the layers. Dont miss either of the leaves (which is the hard part), and dont let either of the flowers shift too much as you sew.

I hope you enjoyed the tutorial! And come back again soon for more Do It Yourself ideas!

Mrs. Cleavers Pearls

You know how June Cleaver always wore her beautiful strand of pearls, no matter what the occasion? They were gorgeous! She loved them so much, the washing, ironing, vaccuuming, and even the date night justified wearing them! Well, I'm no Mrs. Cleaver, but I do have a soft spot in my heart for pearls. So much so, that I wanted a pearl necklace to wear for my wedding. Unfortunately, I'm just too freaking poor to get a real strand! So, I went online, and I found a small strand of mother of pearl chips...kind of a bizzarre name, since these chips are well rounded, but for $12.50, I couldn't argue!

The neclace I bought was purchased by the original owner in the 1950's (an initial part of their charm in my eyes, they might as well be real pearls if they're antiques!), and had been repaired several times. There was a threaded clasp that was still in fair shape, but it wasnt what I really had in mind. So my string of pearls got a makeover.

My supplies, plastic stringing thread, new watch chain style clasp, and an old strand of pearls.

This was the most difficult part. Making the cut! I had to think, 60 years of love were with this necklace, how could I possibly hope to keep its beauty while improving its integrity?  

 And there came my chore. I snipped the flimsy plastic string that it was strung on, and took off one bead at a time, and threaded it onto the new string. This took a little over an hour, but after it was said and done, I think the necklace looks as well as it did back in 1950.

This was a fun DIY restoration project. I have a string of (I think) pearls. All told, it cost me $14 (necklace and supplies), and I saved out a couple inches of beads to make a matching pair of earrings.

But, no matter the fact, I have part of my wedding jewelry in hand. Take that Mrs. Cleaver!  

The Book Tutorial

Here's what you'll need. A 3 ring binder of your color choice and the following pictured items.

A pen, sticky notes, page dividers, binder paper, clear plastic sheet protectors, wedding magazines and scissors. You know what to do from here.

I'll give you a brief tour of my book. This little idea, given to me by my sister-in-law-to-be, has single-handedly saved my sanity in my zany, unprepared wedding!

The inside cover: "stick and commit" special K post-its (cut from a wedding mag), and the main base of the wedding, and marriage, a poem about love. I know, its so sticky gooey romantic, but, that's me sometimes.

The Brides Party: Post-it's really come in handy with this! Notes about bridesmaids measurements, appointment cards, and other details are paper-clipped, or post-it-ed to the back of the divider. Inside: different hair ideas for me and the girls!

Grooms Party: Men are simply wonderful! ... Or wonderfully simple! Sams suit style, and the aisle list (who's walking with who).

Wedding: Here are all my wedding plans! The budget list, wedding shot ideas for the photographer, and other details concerning decor, and rentals for the wedding.

Reception: Cakes, candles, music, and decor, this section is all about the party!

I hope you enjoyed my little tour. The Book is a great tool for organization. Dont be afraid to clip ideas out of magazines. And dont just stick with wedding magazines either! Several of my wedding/reception ideas have come out of magazines like Better Homes and Gardens, and other homemaking magazines!

More than anything, have fun! Make your wedding your own. And remember, no matter what, at the end of the day, you'll be married.

And Alas, We Have a Preacher!!

Praise the Lord, for He has shown favor on us! Tonight we asked a preacher from a nearby town to come over for supper. Jane and I have been busy in the house most of the day, and in the early evening, Sam and I went down to the dairy barn to get the cows milked before the company arrived.

Jane made stuffed boned chicken, a pork loin, mashed potatoes, fresh steamed vegitables, irish soda bread, cherry pie, and cheese cake tarts garnished with strawberries. It was a wonderful meal. The discussion was nice between all of us. Dale and Jane both kept up a good portion of the conversation which was pleasant. Half way through the meal, our wedding was brought up, Sam and I were polite in talking about it, and then we admited that we didn't have an officiant yet, and we'd been searching since a week after the engagement. The preacher looked at us and asked "is that a question?" By the end of the meal, he had heard our individual testimonies, made sure we were both baptized and full believers, and said he would be delighted.

For the past four months, it has been "and this too shall pass," and to everyone else looking at the situation it was "there, but for the grace of God, go I."

It has been a wonderful day. Our preacher is booked, and all is at peace.

Preparation H

I'm sure you're wondering about the title of this post... Well, it's a long story, but if you like long stories, sit down, kick back, and enjoy.

My fiance Sam says that he and I are no good with plans. But, we're always prepared. Four months ago, when Sam and I were first engaged, we went to our youth pastor to ask him if he would marry us. After some hearty disagreement, we were back in the search. Preparation A was out the window. Then, we asked our senior pastor, and to avoid controversy with the other pastor, he declined. There went preparation B. Preparation C was asking a pastor who was also a friend of Sam's family, but, due to medical issues, he declined. Preparation D was asking a judge to marry us, but due to Sam's father (no offense Dale!), we decided against that. Preparation E, have a pastor from my home state marry us, but, a pastor marrying out of his or her given state has to be sponsored by a local pastor. Preparation F, Dale could marry us! ...or not? Preparation G, was running away and joining a Swedish band that travels the country getting paid $4000 per performance all in the convenient form of quarters... Okay, there was no Preparation G, but I had to get to H somehow!!!

So here we've landed, Preparation H. We are 69 days from the wedding, No pastor, Wishing there was a Swedish band, and hoping that, no matter what, June 23, we go home married.

P.S. We're talking to a pastor this week. Wish us luck!

Beware of the Alteration Monster!

For all of you girls out there who are planning your wedding on a budget, learn how to sew! If you have a $3,000 gown with a heavily beaded bodice, made of Indian silk, with hand sewn glass beads, then yes, have your gown altered by a proffessional! By all means! But, if you've found the perfect gown, in your size, and fits you like it was made by angels to meet every curve in your body, then DONT GO TO GET YOUR DRESS BUSTLED BY A PROFFESSIONAL!!

Here was my mistake. I went to that pretty little "free" consultation appointment at David's Bridal this afternoon, and I just needed to get my dress fitted for the clasps for the bustle. I brought Jane (mother-in-law to be, and seamstress for all my bridesmaids) with me into the city, and we did a bit of shopping then headed to the appointment. The seamstress showed me two different bustle types, and I picked the one I thought would be most flattering. She wrote a few things on a slip of paper, and left to figure a total. Now, I was told by the same seamstress, two months ago, that having a gown bustled would only cost $50-$65. The seamstress came back in, and showed me a slip of paper. She says, "this is the first layer," pointing to the first number, "and this is the second layer" pointing to a larger number. "You can add it up"... The grand total was $110 before taxes. WHAT?! What happened to that pretty petite number of $50? When I asked her why so much she answered, "Your bustle has 11 points in it, and it's a very fancy bustle...I could just fold both layers of fabric over, but it wouldn't look as nice..." So, I took my dress, Mother-in-law to be/seamstress, and my buisness elsewhere. We settled at Hancocks Fabrics, found bridal buttons for $3.99 per package of 4 buttons. $12 later, we walked out with my alteration.

My advice to you, bring someone with you to your alteration appointment who knows how to sew. Make sure they pay special attention to the way the dress is being pinned so they can do the same work for you. And if you don't have someone who sews? Find an inexpensive seamstress with a good reputation! Sometimes it pays to be as cheap as I am! I saved $98 (given the price of buttons), and a huge headache for the wedding.

I have come to a realization... No one prepares us for this! No one tells us what shops are going to give us the deals we need, no one explains how to do something, or how much you're supposed to "tip" the cake decorater to get the fondant cake in the color you want when they say it cant be done with 3 weeks notice. We are given a stack of magazines that show us gowns that cost thousands of dollars, dream honeymoons that dont cost more than the dress, and what someone else did without telling us how we can accomplish the same thing. I have decided that Someone needs to show us girls the ropes, and just how far we can stretch them to have the wedding of our dreams without spending enough to give us nightmares.

I have decided that, if I'm not certifiably insane by the time my wedding rolls around, that I am going to be that Someone. I'll teach all you ladies out there how to accomplish your wedding goals without having to double your wedding budget. I'm on a mission. English lace and tulle won't keep me down! Stick with me, and I'll show you how to have your dream wedding, on an even dreamier budget.