Thursday, September 30, 2010

Fall Bunting Tutorial...

I am so excited to share with you all today the very first tutorial here on jdavissquared!

I have been in love with buntings for a long, long time, and finally decided it was time to make one.  This is so simple you guys!  All it takes is a little time and minimal sewing skills to produce a super cute decoration that you'll be able to use for years to come.

The one I created is for fall, but you could easily use any color combo you like for holidays, birthdays, or just to add some spunk to a room.

You will need:
  • at least 2 pieces of 8 1/2 x 11 inch felt in any colors you like
  • ribbon of your choosing {approximately 7 feet long}
  • straight pens
  • scissors
  • a ruler
  • thread to match/contrast
  • sewing machine {or the patience to sew by hand}

{I forgot to picture the ribbon and thread!}

1.  Fold your felt in half longways.  I used 4 colors in mine, and this yielded enough to make two full buntings {*plus a bonus one, that I'll show you later}.  If you want to only cut for one, you can cut them in half longways, or only use two colors.

2. Mark the corners of your triangles with the straight pens. Download a template here.
3. Once you've marked your corners, cut your triangles. You'll want to use good sewing scissors so you get a clean cut.   If you've folded your felt in half, you will have to separate some of them down the seam by cutting like this:
4. Leave about 8 inches of ribbon on the end, and then start pinning your flags onto the back side of the ribbon.  You'll want the flags to touch at the corners.  Place your 24 flags all in a row and leave another 8 inches on the other end.  {You can easily make your strand longer or shorter to your liking by adding or subtracting flags.}


5. Once you've pinned all your flags, sew them with your machine.  {Or, if you're like me, and the machine hates you, you can ask your sweet husband if he'll pause the football game and come help you.  Yes, I'm that lucky!}   I used a zig zag stitch on mine in contrasting thread to give a little extra detail.

6.  Remove your pins.
7. Wha-lah!  Cute bunting!

I hung mine across our mantle using a little masking tape in a hidden spot to secure.  {You could also tie the ends to something.}  And look, down in the bottom right corner, even Chloe likes it!







*bonus...the extra end pieces of your felt, can be made into a mini-bunting!  I used the extra ribbon and these extra pieces to create a little something for the pantry door.  Who says you can't decorate the kitchen for fall too!?





I hope you all enjoy this inaugural tutorial!  If you decide to make one, I'd love, love, love to see pictures!

Thanks everyone! 


Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Verde...





Green has always been one of my favorite colors.  I love how it can seem vibrant, and soft all at the same time.  These photos are no exception.  Looking at them now, I'm wondering if I'm feeling a longing for the good old days of school....nah, that can't be it!

What's your favorite color?

Thank you for your kind words yesterday.  It really means alot to me.  I don't know if I gave my sweet husband enough credit yesterday, as it really was he who was attacked.  I lost friends too, but only because if you mess with my man, you mess with me!  Anyway, thank you for caring about us!  It means alot.

And....guess what I have for tomorrow!?  A tutorial, just for you!  I'm really excited to share this simple project with you.  It's super easy and will definitely add some cheer to your home {or office!}
I hope you'll come back tomorrow and join in the fun!

Have a great humpday...oh geez, it's only Wednesday!? 

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

True friendship really is hard to find...



Yesterday was a really bad, horrible, awful day. 

Well, let me clarify.  It wasn't the worst day I've had, but it was bad.  I won't go into details, cause I'm better than that, but let's just say that true friends are hard to find, and that we got stabbed in the back, punched in the face and spit on.  The craziest thing, is that it came from two completely unrelated directions, on the same day, to converge in the perfect storm of ego busting, friendship destruction.

My heart is broken.  I feel used, and abused and I'm angry with myself for not guarding my feelings more closely.

I am so very thankful for the friends that I do have.  For the ones who have stuck by me through thick and thin.  And, for my husband.  He is an amazing man. 

We've taken some steps recently to try and guard ourselves.  Even before this all happened, we committed ourselves to a Facebook fast.  We were talking Friday evening about the compulsion we both feel to check it every day.  We don't like feeling enslaved to a social network, and feel it doesn't add much to our lives.  If anything, it takes away.  We're stepping way for one month, and then we'll re-evaluate. 

I would like to point out, that while I do check my blog multiple times a day, it's completely different.  You all lift me up, and I am so grateful.  You inspire me, and make me feel like what I have to say matters.  Thank you.  I'm convinced that somehow the nicest people from all over the world find there way here, and that makes me so happy.  You guys give me hope. 

So, here's to a better day today!