Made It By Monday: Friendship Bracelets

This post was actually intended for last week as a end-of-summer sort of project, but hurricane Irene had other plans. We’ve finally got our power back so here it goes: Ever since I was little and my mom bought me one of those Klutz friendship bracelet books, I’ve loved making bracelets for my family, friends, and myself! These always remind me of summer and the last two weeks of a sort of nostalgia-inspired vacation I made (and gave) a bunch.

At the day camp I work at these are the most fun to make with the kids.  The result is that we’re all literally up to our elbows in friendship bracelets by the end of the summer.

What you’ll need:
1. embroidery floss

(available at most craft and sewing/fabric stores)

2. tape or a paper clip. I find clips work best for me as my bracelets always slid out from under the tape.

~*~

Here is a list of some great friendship bracelet websites with tutorials and instructions to get you inspired:

1. Easy, basic friendship bracelets from purlbee
2. Free patterns from friendship-bracelets.net
3. Make bracelets using a cardboard loom.
4. A fashionable take on a traditional friendship bracelet

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I’m anxious to try to make the ‘peruvian wave’ friendship bracelet. Here’s a quick tutorial:

Like knitting, I find making friendship bracelets very therapeutic. Be sure to try your own designs and wear them in unique ways!

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Have a great week!

Made It By Monday: Paper Beads

There are some crafts you can never be too old for. I hadn’t made paper beads since summmer camp days but I’ve stumbled upon so many tutorials and earrings and bracelets all about (and using) paper beads.

What you need:
1. Old magazines, scrapbook paper, origami paper, whatever!
2. Glue (Elmers liquid glue, glue stick – whatever works best for you)
3. Toothpicks, Size 1-3 knitting needle, chopsticks
4. A varnish (Such a krylon, polyurethane, modge podge)

I have yet to varnish mine. The varnish isn’t entirely necessary – it definitely makes the beads look more jewelry-esque but they also lose a bit of the “paper” look.

I made a bunch of these over the course of the last week. (Personally I think my form still needs a bit of work). To get you started, here are a couple of great tutorials for paper beads:

Madmim’s Paper Bead Tutorial
Yahoo Lifestyle Tutorial
Paper Bead Templates (7 different forms! Not just cylinders.)

And once you’ve made your beads, I highly suggest you check out this tutorial also by madmim for anthropologie-inspired earrings: Click here

Make these beautiful earrings from anthropologie.

It’s amazing what people have done! I often head on over to Etsy for even more inspiration.

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Have fun!

Kusudama Flowers and Paper Cranes

This Tuesday is the birthday of a good friend of mine from school. If there was anyone that ever appreciated handmade goods, it’s her. That and how nice she is in general was all the reason I needed to spend some time on this very pretty (albeit a little different) paper flower.

Down the street from my school is the art store Blick, which I had never been in before. I usually only go into craft stores that supply a large variety of yarn, which this store does not. I couldn’t have been more wrong about how I much I would like this store. I LOVE it! They have the nicest, best craft supplies at SUPER reasonable prices. Plus, I get a student discount. I got almost 100 sheets of origami paper for under $7.00.

I can’t wait to use the rest of this paper, though I’m not sure yet what I want to do with it. Suggestions would be awesome.

I came across a tutorial online for a Kusudama by Folding Trees. I thought it looked so beautiful and would look great hanging in her dorm room.

I takes 60 pieces of paper so I cut each origami square into four smaller squares. Each square makes on petal and there are five petals per flower. I was worried it would be tedious but it actually became a very relaxing thing to do. I used double sided tape (I didn’t have a glue and it was way too cold to go back out and buy some) to paste all the petal and all the flowers together.

It really ended up being awesome and the colors go really well together. I chained a piece of white yarn (I wish I had brought my fishing wire to school with me) and glued it between the halves so that she could hang it if she wants. I think it will look really cute.

I had a lot of fun making this and a lot of paper left over. With the scraps from the pieces I cut up I made a bunch of little paper cranes. I definitely want to bring my fishing wire back with me so I can string them over my bed in the dorm.

Happy crafting!

Jenny

Wishing I Was Wise

Well, I am now back in my dorm room facing another semester of college. This semester, I’m taking a lot of great classes that I’m really excited about. Against all odds, I am finding macroeconomics unbelievably interesting and enjoyable. I’m hoping this is the beginning of the end for my quest for what I want to do with the rest of my life. Slowly but surely, I am narrowing down what interests me and what inspires me to work hard and go the extra mile to not just understand but to analyze what I’m learning.

Fortunately, before I left I was able to complete a crochet project for my friend’s birthday. She loves owls and I saw these great crocheted owls in New York City. You can see them here: link.

I thought they were so cute and though immediately of her, but of course I didn’t buy one. So when her birthday came around I decided I would try to make my own for her. (Besides handmade is always a bit better, right?)

Pattern: Improvised
Ravelry: Link

I crocheted the body and the eyes. The rest was done by embroidery and embellishment. Then I stuffed him with polyfill.

I think his name should be Charles.

Maybe some of the owl’s wisdom will rub off on me for this next semester?

Hopefully he speaks Spanish.

¡Adiós!
Jenny

Lazy-Day Crafting

When I watched my sister come home for winter break from college, I was so jealous that she got an entire month off. Now that I have a month off, I definitely appreciate, but it sure creates a lot of down time.

Thankfully, I have been given some work hours over break and my friends are always around… except now it’s turned into: “what are you doing?” “nothing” “want to hang out?” “sure what do you want to do?” “i don’t know.”
But sometimes being bored together is better than being bored alone.

Which I’m not sure I mind so much, especially when I had such a successful crafting and blogging days two days ago and yesterday.

After I finished my scarf I couldn’t decide on a pattern for my other skein of Cascade Eco + so I decided to do some smaller projects:

Project Name: Versatile Little Flower
Ravelry Link

After I finished crocheting the flower I hot-glued a pearl bead in the middle.

I just stuck a bobby pin in the back through the stitches.

So cute and simple!

I will definitely wear this. It’s too often when I make something and think meh, I don’t like this.

Project Numero Dos:
Pattern Name: Pearl and Purl Posie Headband
Ravelry Link

I hot-glued more of my pearl beads in the center of the flower, then I hot-glued the flowers to the black headband..

Thanks for reading!
<3 Jenny