by Kate on December 22, 2011
Here’s an easy way to make quick & dirty fabric gift bags. Even the most novice sewist can make this happen a day before Christmas. Trust 
Seam allowances = 1/2″. Cut fabric in the dimensions of your choice (cut 2). You’ll also need 2 pieces of string or ribbon. Cut each piece the width of fabric + 6″. Don’t forget ric-rac or any other desired embellishments.
Start by sewing the ric-rac/ribbon/embellishments on the front piece of the sack. Position as preferred, taking seam allowances into account.
Next, fold the top of your fabric down 1/2″ and crease with your fingers (quick & dirty way!) or iron. Lay one piece of your string in the fold, centered. Do this for both pieces of fabric.
Sew the folded piece down to create a tube, stitching 1/4″ from the cut edge. Take care not to stitch through the thread/ribbon inside the tube. Repeat these steps to encase the string in the second piece of fabric.
Now place your two fabric pieces together, right sides facing. Start 1/4″ from the top on one side and back stitch a few times before stitch all the way around the bottom and up the other side. End 1/4″ from the top on the other side, back stitching a few times there as well. The extra stitches will keep your bag from coming apart when the drawstrings are pulled tight.
Tie front and back strings together to create a continuous loop of string. Flip your bag right side out and voila! You have a super cute quick & dirty gift bag!
If you want to be a little fancy you can finish your seams and clip your corners. Either way, you can really churn these babies out. Your family & friends will wonder where you found the time to be so extraordinary and creative
by Kate on December 20, 2011
by Kate on December 17, 2011
{1} Paint swatches
{2} Die punch
{3} Bitty hole punch
{4} Baker’s twine
by Kate on December 15, 2011
Do you remember all of that funky outdated Christmas decor at your grandparents’ house? The faded gaudy glass ornaments with chipped paint. The idealistic, jolly (drunken?) plastic Santa with more rouge than a drag queen. The musty handmade felt tree skirt with the smashed bows, jingle bells and ric-rac. And that impish little elf on the shelf with the Don Knotts face. Well I like all of it. I mean, I really REALLY like that stuff. To me, the’50s and ’60s kitsch is more Christmasy than any of the crap at Target (Read: inflatable lawn Santa riding Harley). Don’t get me wrong – I love Target with a perverse intensity. But give me Grandma’s old Christmas decorations any day of the week!
Troll the antique stores and you’ll find a gold mine of vintage Christmas nuggets. I scored many goodies, including a jovial Santa in a tangerine suit and the coyest little reindeer ever. Perfect for a kitsch vintage snow globe.
Here’s my favorite part of this project: two ancient glass jars. Oz brand peanut butter and Alta brand coffee {with coupon for Congress playing cards inside!}. The coffee jar is very old, wavy and lovely. A beautiful prison for Sargent Pepper Santa and his reindeer.
I really like Martha Stewart’s white glitter for fake snow. So pretty pretty.
I recommend using hot glue to affix your little critters to the backs of the lids. That way you can peel the glue off everything if you need to reposition. Meanwhile, fill your jars with glitter.
Once the glue dries you can screw the lids on and flip the jar upside down to make it snow. Look at that! It’s lovely weather for a sleigh ride together!
Nothing says yuletide like a tiny red button mushroom covered in glitter snow. Sigh.
by Kate on December 12, 2011
Congratulations to Ohjennymae! She won a custom printable photo holiday card by Little & The Girl. Jenny Mae’s favorite part of the holidays is the food – her family is on a second batch of homemade peppermint bark already Thank you to everybody for commenting. I truly loved reading what you enjoy most about this time of year. Happy Monday, y’all!
by Kate on December 8, 2011
Do you have lilliputian friends who need miniature Christmas trees? Bust out the scrap stash and make some stackable fabric trees. I made these last year and I think it took less than an hour. I reinforced the fabric with fusible interfacing and cut circles of various sizes. I then cut a line in each circle (half the diameter) to create a cone shape. You can either stitch the sides together by hand or use hot glue to hold the cone shapes together. These pee-wee trees are great holiday decorations for little hands to stack and unstack.
by Kate on December 7, 2011
I liberated this little gentleman whilst on an antiques expedition. He is our official family Christmas elf and yes, he is full of sass and vinegar. I think he must be at least 50 years old. His poor little muppet arm is held together (barely!) by an ancient safety pin. I like his ragged scruffiness though, and I have have no intention of fixing the arm. Somebody loved this cherry cheeked half-pint. What ever shall we name him??
Sir Bartholomew Ritchaldson? Mister Mistletoe pants? Scroogie McFestivus?
by Kate on December 5, 2011
Hopefully this will brighten your Monday: Little & The Girl is sponsoring a giveaway just for PeepThread readers. Hooray! Here is your chance to win a custom printable holiday card for your family. Post a comment by 11pm PST on Sunday 12/11.Tell me something you love about the holidays. The winner will be chosen at random on Monday 12/12. Additional entries will be given for posting on Facebook, blogging or tweeting about the giveaway (1 entry per tweet/post).
I can’t wait to read all of your comments. Thanks again to Little & The Girl!
by Kate on December 3, 2011
What could be more Christmasy and old fashioned than a candy garland? It’s as simple as this: gather a few pounds of your favorite candies and glue them together into lovely, colorful strands. I had planned to stitch them together with thread but hot glue was the ticket. It goes faster than stitching and holds better. Tip: use clothespins to hold candy papers together after applying the glue. That way you can keep working while the glue sets. I used butterscotch, striped licorice mints, and assorted taffies for my garlands. Yum!
These will go on our tree after I connect them into one long garland. Fa la la la la!
by Kate on December 1, 2011
I am tickled to be sponsored by Little & the Girl, a charming design company located right here in the Bay. Mara at L&TG designed Stella’s 4th birthday invitation above. I love love love love it. And I love having a mer-daughter. Check out all of Mara’s cute designs, espesh the holiday photo cards.
