Wednesday, April 18, 2012

No-Sew Necklace Display



I had been draping my necklaces over my earring stand (at right), but they were getting in the way. Inspired by something I saw on Pinterest, I made the necklace "rack" (at left) with an inexpensive poster frame, fabric, screw eyes and knuts.



Supplies:

  • 1 poster frame (or other frame)
  • Fabric large enough to cover frame (I used half a yard for a 12" x 18" frame)
  • Appx. 30 3/4" screw eyes
  • Appx. 30 8-32 finished hex nuts
Tools:
  • Electric drill with 1/16" drill bit
  • Hot glue gun and glue
  • Iron and ironing board
  • Ruler or yardstick
  • Pencil
  • Fabric scissors
1. Remove the plexiglass (or glass) and backing from the frame. Measure the length and height of the backing. 
2. On the back side of the backing, draw a straight, horizontal line all the way across. This line should be roughly three to four inches from the top edge. 
3. Measure and mark one-inch increments across the line. 
4. Drill a hole at each marking, skipping the first and last two marks.
5. On right-side (RS) of backing, screw the screw eyes into the holes. Secure them with a knut on the wrong-side (WS). Set aside. 
5.  Cut fabric so that it is two inches wider and two inches longer than the backing. 
6. On WS of fabric, make one inch folds along each edge and iron the creases. 
7. On RS of fabric, fold the top edge back so that the distance from the crease to the first fold is equal to the distance from the line you drew on the backing from the backing's top edge. Iron this new crease. Be careful that your fabric is oriented the same way as your backing. 
8.  On right side of fabric, measure and mark one-inch increments across the length of the newest crease. 
9. On right side of fabric, cut a small + at each mark along the crease, skipping the first and last two marks. You will be making two small cuts at each mark; one vertical and one horizontal. 
10.  Fit fabric over the backing, putting the screw eyes through the snips in the fabric. Smooth. 
11. Carefully glue the fabric in place with one line of glue above the screw eyes and another line below them. 
12. Flip the backing so the WS is facing you. Position the fabric so the 1" folded edges overlap the edges on the WS of the backing. Glue the fabric edges in place. 
13. Reassemble the frame.


Sunday, April 8, 2012

Yarn, yarn, yarn


Somehow, I've accumulated a stash.


Here it is, spread out across my bedroom floor. I'm not quite sure how it happened... Oh, who am I kidding, I know.

I usually only buy yarn with a specific project in mind, and I always get at least one skein more than what I need, with the intent to return whatever I don't use; but then I never actually make the return. So, there are 1.5 skeins left over from a scarf I made Ben for Christmas 2010, 1.5 skeins from each of the scarves I made for our mothers that same Christmas, a few skeins left over from various baby sweaters. Leftovers from Katell, the sweater that is in perpetual hibernation even though all that's left is weaving ends in.

My mother-in-law-to-be intended to pick up knitting, and bought a bunch of yarn. It languished in her closet untouched for a year or so, when, inspired by a Hoarders marathon, she cleaned out the closets and gave the yarn to me.

Sometimes, I shop for yarn for a specific project and get distracted by other pretty yarns, and I pick those bright shiny pretty yarns in addition to what I was looking for. Then I never seem to find quite the right project for them, or I find a great pattern but just don't have enough.

The stash has outgrown its current home in a banana leaf basket in my closet, but I'm not ready to part with anything. I've spent the afternoon updating my Ravelry stash, adding pictures, and now, finally, sorting yarn. Set aside the yarns I've mentally attached to projects, the yarns I intend to use to design something. Ultimately these will stay in the banana basket in the closet, and the rest will go somewhere else, more out of the way, to be revisited later. I'll go through again once I've completed some projects, and revisit the yarns I don't see myself using at this time. If I still don't love them, I'll start trading or donating. For now, at least, I feel more in control.

Sweeten


Finished: "Sweeten" by Kim Hargreaves, published in Rowan Babies.
For Ruby Salow, our newest cousin.

I was a bit concerned that the stripes in the  yarn would end up all wonky once I sewed the pieces together, but it worked out all right. The colors in this yarn stay keep in order (purple-geen-yellow-pink-white-white-pink-yellow-green-purple), so I made an effort to start each piece at the same place within the color sequence.