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How To Make a Tied Wreath

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how to make a tied wreath

How To Make a Tied Wreath

Last week I decided it was time to make my front door a present in the form of a tied wreath.

A few years ago I made a new wreath for my door every couple of months.

What with everything else that was going on, I’d stopped doing this and my poor door was wearing a wreath that I made 3 years ago!

Making some more bunting to hang off the front of my house, it occurred to me that the bits left over could be cut up to make the pieces for another tied wreath, and I could get two things done at once (almost!).

Here’s the bunting. I made it in the same way that I made this last year. The lacy looking bits are cut from an old net curtain. My funny old house looks so much more cheerful!

instructions for making a tied wreath

And here are the instructions for making the wreath.

Instructions For Making a Tied Wreath

You Will Need

Wire (I used garden wire, but a wire coat hanger would work too)
Strong tape
Scraps of fabric

Instructions

Bend the wire round into a circle about 25 cm in diameter. If the wire you are using is quite thin, wrap in round several times to make it stronger.

Secure the ends with the tape.

making a tied wreath

Cut your fabric scraps into pieces approximately 2 cm by 10 cm (3/4 inch by 4 inches).

Choose one of the prints and tie pieces to the wire, spacing them out evenly.
Just tying them once is enough. I wasn’t fussed about having mine with the different prints all in a certain order, but I did want them spread out a bit.

how to make a tied wreath

Then choose another and tie those on in the gaps.

tied wreath
how to make a tied wreath
making a rag wreath

Repeat until you have some of everything tied on.

If you still have some spaces, fill them in with any remaining pieces.

hand tied wreath

The wreath will look best if the fabric scraps are close together, so budge them up a bit so that you can fill up all the spaces.

Now I have a wreath that matches my bunting!

how to make a tied wreath
how to make a tied wreath

You might also like these wreath tutorials:

Autumn Tied Wreath

Spring Wreath

Dried Fruit Wreath

Felt Flower Wreath

I also have a Pinterest board devoted to wreaths which you can find here!

tied wreath

Year of Bunting July Challenge: Bunting For a Card or a Cake

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year of bunting july challenge bunting for a card or a cake

Year of Bunting July Challenge: Bunting For a Card or a Cake

Over the last 10 days or so, it’s somehow become July.

So it’s time to have a look at what people who took part in June’s Year of Bunting challenge made!

There was only one entry last month. It was this bunting from Hazel, cleverly made from compost bags.

year of bunting july challenge bunting for a card or a cake

This isn’t something I would have ever thought of doing, so it didn’t make it onto the list of possibilities when I introduced last month’s challenge. I did think of using a plastic table cloth, but not compost bags! And actually they are often quite pretty with pictures of flowers on them.

Onto July’s challenge!

This month the challenge is to make bunting for a card or a cake. July is the month when I’m required to acknowledge that I’m a year older! I will be making some bunting to stick into the pink cake I will be making (and eating!) a bit nearer the time.

Here are some ideas for making tiny bunting and for using bunting on a card or a cake.

Ideas For Making Tiny Bunting

There are lots of different ways to make tiny bunting.

One option is to make it in the same way that you would if it was larger, by sewing little triangles to ribbon.

Or you could cut diamonds from scraps of fabric, fold them over a length of bakers’ twine and sew the sides together with a couple of stitches in the middle. That’s what I did here with these bunting pincushions.

year of bunting pincushion tutorial with mini bunting bunting for a card or a cake

A less fiddly alternative is to use washi tape. Cut some pieces of washi tape, fold them over some thread or baker’s twine and then cut into triangles. I’m going to write a post about this, so watch this space!

You could do the same with scraps of paper.

Ribbon bunting can be made in a similar way (there are instructions for this here).

Using Bunting On a Card

When I made this card, I used scraps of paper folded over bakers’ twine to make the bunting. This could work equally well with washi tape or ribbon bunting.

year of bunting july challenge bunting for a card or a cake

Sewing triangles made either from paper like this one, or from fabric like this one, is another possibility.

I like this card with bunting on the inside. The link doesn’t go anywhere but it would be quite easy to recreate something similar. The only thing to watch out for would be making sure that the bunting is contained within the card when it is folded up.

If you get carried away, you could make a whole range of bunting themed stationery! These bits are for a wedding, (warning: this site is very pink and has lots of adverts!) but it could be adapted for a party. You could also make sets of little notelets and things if you prefer to send handwritten notes rather than updating the whole world via Facebook. They would make a nice gift too.

Using Bunting On a Cake

A word of warning here too: looking at all the bunting themed cakes on Pinterest made me very hungry for cake!

You could use your washi tape or ribobn bunting, tie it to kebab sticks and push them into the cake, like this one.

Another option is to make flags from royal icing, like on these cakes.

This cake combines both!

If you’d like some more ideas, there are plenty more on my bunting Pinterest board!

If you want to take part (go on!), you have until the end of July. When you’re ready, take a photo and either share it on Tea and a Sewing Machine’s Facebook page, or on Instagram with the hashtag #yearofbunting. If you don’t do social media, you can email me a picture instead at teaandasewingmachine@gmail.com.

I’m looking forward to seeing what you make!

bunting on a card or a cake

Crocheted Cushion Cover Pattern

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crocheted cushion cover patter

Crocheted Cushion Cover Pattern

Having spent a little while not feeling very inspired, it’s so nice to actually have ideas again of things I want to make!

A few weeks ago I made the decision to go back to what I used to do when I started Tea and a Sewing Machine. So now it’s not just sewing. There will still be sewing but there’ll be other crafts as well.

So here’s a crochet project. It’s been a few years since I wrote a crochet tutorial of any kind and it’s been fun to do this again!

I was inspired to make this cushion while I was out with my friend Helen. Getting some time to myself is difficult with having the kids with me all the time. However, hubby has every other Friday off and since Christmas has been helping me out by doing some stuff with the boys so that I get a break.

Anyway, a couple of weeks ago Helen and I went to a new garden centre a few miles away to see what the cafe was like. While we having a wander around, one of the things that offered inspiration were the crocheted cushions on some of the chairs in the cafe.

So I decided to make my own.

crocheted cushion cover

This is the yarn I used. I deliberately chose acrylic because it should wash quite well when my boys and the cat get dirt on it!

And if you’re interested, the garden centre place was this one and the cafe was very nice!

Crocheted Cushion Cover Instructions

To make the crocheted cushion cover, I used aran yarn in 5 colours and a 5mm hook. Unless indicated, each round starts with a new colour.

Please be aware that as I’m English, I’ve used English crocheting terms!

Cushion Cover Front

(Colour 1) 4 ch, join with ss.

(Colour 1) 12 tr into ring. Join with ss.

(Colour 2) Into one of the spaces between the trebles, 2 ch then 1 dc. 2 dc into the next space, then into each space until you’ve gone all the way round. Join with a ss.

(Colour 3) Into one of the spaces between the dc, 3 ch, then 2 tr. 3 tr into next space, then 3 tr into each space all the way round. Join with a ss.

(Colour 4) Find the middle tr in one of the groups of 3. Join the thread with a ss in the space on one side of the middle treble. 2 ch, then *yarn over hook. Insert the hook underneath the post of the middle treble. Yarn over hook again and pull the hook through. Yarn over hook and pull through 2 loops on the hook. Yarn over hook again and pull through last 2 remaining loops. 3 ch.* Repeat the starred section until you’ve gone all the way round. Join with a ss.

(Colour 4) ss into next ch, *dc into space, ss into next ch, the top of the post from the previous round and the next ch.* Repeat all the way round, then join with ss.

(Colour 5) Join yarn with a ss into a dc. 2 ch. *Into the little knobble made by the 2 ch in the previous round, 6 tr, then dc into the dc at the top of the post.* Repeat all the way round, then join with a ss.

(Colour 3) Join yarn at the top of a shell, 2 ch. 6 ch, *dc into the top of the next shell, 6 ch.* Repeat starred section. Join with a ss.

(Colour 3) *dc into ch space, 6 tr into dc at top of shell.* Repeat all the way round. Join with a ss.

(Colour 1) Join at the top of a shell with a ss. *8 ch, then dc into the top of the next shell.* Repeat all the way round. Break yarn.

(Colour 1) Rejoin yarn in ch sp. *1 ch, then 6 tr into dc at top of shell. 1 ch, then dc into ch sp.* Repeat until you get back to where you started.

(Colour 2) Join yarn at the top of a shell. *Dc into the top of the shell. 10 ch, then dc into the top of the next shell.* Join with ss. Break yarn.

(Colour 2) Rejoin yarn halfway along one of the ch sp. Dc, *11 ch, dc halfway along next ch sp.* Repeat all round the circle. Join with ss. Break yarn.

(Colour 2) Rejoin yarn halfway along a ch sp. Dc, *10 ch, dc into next ch sp.* Repeat until you get back to where you started. Join with ss.

(Colour 1) Join yarn in a ch sp. 12 dc into ch sp, *1 ch, 12 dc into next ch sp.*Repeat all the way round, then join with ss.

(Colour 3) Find a chain space. Count back 3 dc. Join yarn, then dc into the stitch. *6 tr into 1 ch sp. Skip 2 dc, then dc into next st. Ss into next 6 stitches, then dc into the next one.* Repeat until you get back to the start. Join with ss.

(Colour 5) Find a shell. Rejoin yarn in the space between the last treble and the dc. Dc into this space. Into 3rd dc, 6 tr. *Into space between the dc and the first treble of the next shell, 1 dc. 1 dc into spaces between the trebles twice, then 3 tr into the space at the top of the shell. Dc into next 3 spaces.* Work all the way round, then join with a ss.

Cushion Cover Back

crocheted cushion cover

(Colour 1) 4 ch. Join with ss.

(Colour 1) 12 tr into ring. Join with ss.

(Colour 2) Join yarn in one of the spaces. 3 ch, 1 tr. *Into the next sp, 2 tr* 11 times. Join with ss.

(Colour 3) Join yarn in a space. 3 ch, then 2 tr into the space. *Into the next sp, 3 tr* 11 times. Join with ss.

(Colour 4) Join yarn, then 3 ch. 3 tr into sp. *4 tr into next sp* 11 times.
Join with ss.

(Colour 1) Join yarn. 3 ch, 4 tr into sp. *5 ch into next sp* 11 times.
Join with ss.

(Colour 5) Join yarn. 3 ch, 5 tr into sp. *6 tr into next sp* 11 times.
Join with ss.

(Colour 3) Join yarn in a space. 3 ch, then 3 tr into sp. In between the 3rd and 4th tr of the next cluster, 3 tr. *4 tr into next space, then 3 tr in between 3rd and 4th tr of next cluster* 11 times. Join with ss.

The rest of the bag continues in the same kind of way. Each round is increased by 1 extra treble in every other cluster.

So the rest of the back goes as follows:

(Colour 1) 4 trebles into each space

(Colour 2) 5 trebles into the first space, then 4 into the next.

(Colour 3) 5 trebles into each space.

(Colour 4) 6 trebles into the first space, then 5 into the next.

(Colour 5) 6 trebles into each space.

(Colour 3) 4 trebles into a space, then 3 trebles in between the 3rd and 4th treble of the next cluster.

(Colour 5) 4 trebles into each space.

Making the Cushion Pad

You could buy a pad if you wanted to, but it’s easy to make your own and you’ll end up with something the right size for your crocheted cushion cover.

Cut 2 circles from fabric a couple of cm larger than your crocheted circles.

crocheted cushion cover

With the right sides together, sew the 2 circles together leaving an opening.

Trim the seam and turn it the correct way out.

Fill it with polyester stuffing. You could reuse an old cushion that’s gone flat. Instructions for doing this can be found here.

Slip stitch the opening.

Finishing the Cushion

Pin the crocheted front of the cushion cover to one side of the pad, and the back to the other.

I joined the front to the back by slip stitching into the top of a cluster on the cushion front, then 6 chains, then a slip stitch into the next cluster of the back. Then I did 6 more chains and a slip stitch into the next cluster on the front.

crocheted cushion cover

Because the back has 48 clusters and the front only has 24, you have to miss out every other cluster on the back.

Depending on the size of your pad in relation to the crocheted pieces, you might need more or less than 6 chains.

Since making the cushion, I’ve decided that I like the back as much as I do the front, so I’m going to make another with 2 backs!

crocheted cushion cover

Yay For Happy Mail!

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happy mail

Yay For Happy Mail!

There’s nothing like getting something through the post that’s not a bill. When I was younger, I would be endlessly writing letters. But nearly everybody’s on Facebook now so it’s not something I do very much.

Not writing letters means I don’t receive them either! So it is just bills, and stuff hubby’s bought from Amazon.

So it was a huge treat to get some happy mail in the post the other day from my new internet friend Antonio.

Yay for internet friends too!

As I said in the email newsletter I sent out the other week, one of the things I never expected when I started Tea and a Sewing Machine was how many people I would meet via the internet, and how many friends I would make.

For a homeloving introvert who finds meeting new people (especially lots all at once) quite stressful, this been such an unexpected blessing. And the ones I’ve got to meet in real life, well, they’re even better.

So Antonio’s happy mail included some lovely paper craft things, a candle that he’d made in a teacup and a bath bomb that he’d made, in a pretty box which he had also made.

happy mail

I love the little envelopes.

happy mail

The labels are lovely, and I like the idea having them say whatever you want to them to say.

happy mail

I’ve never tried making candles or bath bombs, but I think I might at some point!

happy mail
happy mail
happy mail

Antonio has a Youtube channel, and these are some of my favourite videos.

There’s one here for gift tags.

This one’s for calendula soap.

Here’s one for lavender bath bombs.

Antonio also has recipes for delicious looking Italian things, including this rolled up omlette thing (which I will be feeding my family next week!) and coconut and lemon cake.

Antonio’s YouTube channel is here, and you can find him on Instagram as antoniomakes.

DIY Bunting Card

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DIY Bunting Card

DIY Bunting Card

Having concentrated mostly on sewing for the last few years, I’ve decided with one thing and another to change direction a little bit and include more of other crafts.

This is actually what I did when I started Tea and a Sewing Machine. It was called something else then, can’t remember what, and it was awful! The website was impossible to navigate, the design was eye-poppingly bad and the photos were blurry.

I promise we’ll not go back to that! But somewhere along the way, sewing took over and the other crafts were more or less abandoned.

So I’m bringing them back. I’m already feeling a lot more inspired than I have over the last few months, so we’ll try this for a bit and see how it goes.

If you’re mostly here for the sewing, don’t worry! There will still be sewing, just some other bits and pieces too.

So here’s the first non sewing project that I’ve written about in a while!

DIY Bunting Card

I was inspired to make a bunting card when I saw one that Julie from Sum of Their Stories had made.

She’d made a lovely card for the May challenge for The Year of Bunting.

When I saw it, after thinking how pretty it was, I remembered how I used to make cards and how much fun it was.

So I had a rummage, found some pretty paper, and had a go myself!

How To Make a DIY Bunting Card

You Will Need

https://www.sumoftheirstories.com/blog/make-a-floral-bunting-birthday-card

A5 card or a card blank
Scraps of pretty paper or washi tape
A larger piece of pretty paper (to cover the front of the card)
A paper doily (I got mine from Poundland)
Bakers’ twine
Buttons and beads (optional)
Paper flowers (optional)
Glue (PVA and a glue stick)
A ruler and a pencil

Instructions

If you’re not using a card blank, take your piece of card and fold it half.

Trim your paper so that it’s the same size as the front of the card.

Lay the doily over the top of the paper and move it about until you like where it is. Holding the card and the doily together, turn it over and draw round the paper. Cut out the doily.

diy bunting card

Stick the paper to the card, and the doily to the paper.

diy bunting card

Making the Bunting

To make the bunting, cut diamonds from the paper scraps. The easiest way to do this is to cut a rectangle and fold it half. Find the halfway point along the open edge and mark with a pencil. Join this point to the corners of the folded edge. Cut along the lines.

diy bunting card

Cut a piece of bakers’ twine. Cover the wrong side of one of the bunting diamonds with glue. Fold it over the bakers’ twine and stick both halves together.

If you’re making your bunting from washi tape, you can make it in the same kind of way. Cut a piece of washi tape and fold it over the bakers’ twine. Cut the corners off the rectangle to make it into a triangle.

My strings of bunting each had five flags on them, but yours can have as many as you like! A handy thing to remember is that for some weird reason, odd numbers of things look better.

Decide where to put your bunting on the card, and trim the ends of the bakers’ twine.

Stick the ends of the bakers’ twine to the card with PVA glue. You might like to use a little bit of glue stick glue to stick some of the flags down too.

diy bunting card

If you’re using buttons or beads, stick them between the flags with PVA glue.

diy bunting card

I added some paper flowers to the bottom right corner. You could use a button if you don’t have any flowers.

Another option would be to write something like Julie did on hers. If you want to get into hand lettering, I can recommend this book (affiliate link).

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