obsessive compulsive crafting disorder

Spring Cleaning Sale - All Earrings On Sale!

2/27/2012

Even though spring isn't quite here, I am in the mood for a little spring cleaning. I've marked down all earrings* in my Etsy shop by 35%!

Why have I discounted my earrings at such a high percent? I've got some new idea's and new materials that I have begun to work with and want to make room for them in my shop. ;)

* Hoop earrings (Solid 925 Sterling silver and 14-20K Gold Filled) are not included in this sale. See the earrings section of my Etsy shop to see all earrings included in the sale.

1 Comment

Office Chair Slipcover Tutorial

2/23/2012

12 Comments

As part of my craft room makeover, I made a slipcover for my office style chair. It was a simple project, I will walk you through the steps. It came together faster than I expected and a bit easier than I thought. If you've got some basic sewing skills, you can do this! :)

This is the chair before. A plain and boring gray and black chair.

First, I removed those big black arms (attached by screws on the bottom). They were too big to fit under my desk and they squeaked too, so I was happy to lose them.

Next, measure the seat cushion. If yours is like mine, think of it as a square and forget about the round corners for a minute.

For example, this chair is 19" x 18" just on the top. I added 7 inches to each side to wrap around and under the chair, plus some for seam allowances. So I cut my fabric at 33" x 32". Be generous with your measurements, you can always take away fabric, but you can't add it back on. Then I went to the kitchen and found a large plate. I placed it on each corner and traced the plate to get a nice round corners.

Next, zig zag or serge your edges if you like.

Insert a button hole to feed your cord through, to gather the fabric and tie it over the seat cushion.

Then, fold over the edges 1" and sew, down leaving 3/4" to gather and tie the cover on the seat cushion. As you go around the rounded corners, just fold and gather the fabric to keep the same shape going around. I sewed around twice just to make sure my seam was extra strong.

Feed a long piece of cord through the little hole and around the inside of the hem you just made. I doubled my cord and gave myself plenty to work with (I use a 12' piece of cord, but had plenty left over).

Place your gathered slipcover over the cushion of the chair. I then turned my chair upside down and placed it on a stool to cinch and tie off the cord.

Tie your cord securely. Cut the cord (ha ha) and tuck the ends in under your cover.

Half way done!

For the back of the chair, I took a piece of newspaper and made a rough pattern of the shape of the back of the chair (specifically the curve across the top). Cut out two pieces of fabric (generously of course), sew them together and slip it over the back of the chair (inside out).

Mine was too big and loose. I used a pen to mark the fabric and made some rough marks to know where to sew to tighten up the slipcover. (Arrows are pointing to my pen markings).

Sew along your markings. I think I repeated this step twice to get just the right fit. (Pictured below)

Once you get the right fit, turn up the bottom edges of the fabric. Originally I planned to gather the bottom of the back slip cover, but I felt it was too poofy and liked the look better just leaving it long and touching the seat cushion.

et voila! C'est tout!

The fabric I used is indoor/outdoor home decor fabric by Premier Prints called Loni Greenage.

12 Comments

Medical ID Bracelet Re-Do for a Young Girl

2/18/2012

1 Comment

My four year-old daughter has a friend with Type 1 Diabetes. She was diagnosed with it shortly after her third birthday. Having a daughter the same age, I couldn't imagine how difficult that was for her family. After some major lifestyle changes, they have adapted wonderfully and she is doing great at managing her diabetes.

Today I had the privilege of making her a medical ID bracelet.

Since it is something she needs to wear daily, I tried to make it as fun and colorful as I could. I wanted it to be something she enjoys wearing. Something a little more fun than just a silver chain.

All the beads are Magnesite "turquoise", that have been dyed these fun colors. I included a yellow teddy bear, pink heart and purple star. The medical ID tag is the one she has been wearing for a while. I hope she likes the new look!

My brother-in-law will be cycling in the American Diabetes Association's Tour de Cure fundraising event this June. All money raised is for the fight to prevent and cure diabetes. Last year he was able to raise $750 dollars and this year his goal is to raise $1000.00. You can learn more and donate to the cause here.

1 Comment

Spring Cleaning Sale - All Earrings On Sale!

Office Chair Slipcover Tutorial

Medical ID Bracelet Re-Do for a Young Girl

About

Categories

Archives