Diy Spring Pincushion Flowers

I am excited to share this easy and fun spring craft idea I've had brewing in my mind for months with all of you! And now that it is feeling and looking more like spring around here I thought I'd share.

It all started with me loving the look of these exotic pincushion blooms. I thought about how I could make some similar to these to add pops of yellow around the house.

Source: images.search.yahoo.com via Kristina on Pinterest

While browsing through a craft store, some bright yellow quilting pins caught my eye. I thought about using those to create my blooms by pushing them into painted foam balls. (This is a great way to repurpose old quilting pins if you have them stored away, though my box of new ones only cost around $3.)

My bag of foam craft balls cost $1 and because I had the my other supplies on hand, this project only cost me $4--cheaper than fake flowers and more unique. Want some of your own?

Here's what I used to make the pincushion blooms: 

First, I painted the sticks green.

Then, I painted the two foam balls yellow and allowed to dry.

Next, I started pushing my pins through each foam ball until the whole ball was covered in pins. 

I finished the flower by pushing a pen into the bottom of the foam ball to make a hole, adding a drop of hot glue, then pushing the stem in,

So easy, right? I switched out my wintery pussy willows for these bright and punchy blooms that look like a combination of the pincushion flowers and dandelions. I think they look great in my bottle vases.

I think these would also make a great DIY wedding table decorations and you could make them in lots of different colors. I think I might experiment some more with different sizes and shapes since they were so fun to make.

Thanks for visiting today and I hope you were inspired!

Until next time, 

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DIY Wall-Mounted Bottle Vases

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What happens when salvage shutters and vintage replica Coke bottles meet my imagination? 

You get a rustic, unique and vintage inspired wall mounted vase display for your home! 

My creative wheels started turning when the slats of a wooden shutter I had started to fall off. 

It had been used in our garden as a trellis, but was getting worn out and falling apart.

(It didn't help that my boys thought they were a part of their playground equipment...) 

But, in the spirit of repurposing and wasting less, I decided not to throw them away, 

 but to save the different pieces for my craft projects. 

And when I spotted these cool vintage-y Coke bottles at the grocery store around 

Christmas time, I couldn't resist buying (and drinking) them because I 

thought they would make great vases.  

So what did I do next? 

I repurposed these materials along with a few other random bits and pieces in my

 junk collection  to make project that I think turned out amazing! 

Want to make one of your own? Here's what I used:

(Tools you will need to assemble this include a drill and high-temp glue gun.)

And here is the tutorial:

And you're done! 

I used an old door handle as my "hook" to go along with my salvage style look. 

Here it is on my wall in my dining room with wintery pussy willows. I plan on changing out the flowers as the seasons change--maybe some fresh yellow ones for springtime next? 

Thanks for visiting ReMadeSimple!

 I hope you have enjoyed your time here and even peeked around a bit at some of my other projects and tutorials, and that you come visit again soon.

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DIY 3 Layered Fabric Pouf Brooch

I have been loving those little fabric pouf brooch/hair clip duo's I've been seeing in stores lately and was determined to figure out how to make one of my own, so I searched the internet high and low and found a few tutorials that helped me create my own version.

I also took a trip to this great non-profit art supply place called Scrap 4 Art, that will let you fill up a big bag of donated items for $6. They have lots of fabric scraps there, so I was happy to fill up a bag bring them to life again.

I'm excited to show you  my version of the pouf using three types of fabric to add color and texture.

Before you get started, you need to know that this project is not hard, but took me about 2 hours to do, so plan ahead!

Here's what you'll need:

1. two fabrics of your choice (I used one cotton vintage patterned and one polyester solid)
2.  tulle
3. thread
4. sewing needle
5. traceable object (like a jar lid)
6. sewing scissors
7. brooch pin back
8. glue gun
9. marker

Trace four circles on the fabric you want the base to be.

    Cut them out!

    Fold each base circle in half, then in half again.

   Pinch each circle at the corner, then sew a stitch through one corner at a time, connecting each corner with the thread. Knot in place.

   Now it's time to trace circles onto your top fabric. The amount will vary, but I used about 15-20 circles.

 Cut the circles out.

Fold them in half and in half again, repeating the same process as above. Pinch one corner at a time for the next step.

 Next, hold each pinched corner of the folded circle and make one stitch through the entire brooch into the corner. Stitch again, all the way through connecting circles in the same way until the pouf looks tight enough. 

    Next, I cut out about 8 strips of tulle about 5 inches long, knotting them in the center.

    Place the knotted center in between the two different colored fabric pieces and sew a stitch all the way through, repeating this process all the way around the circle with tulle strips until tulle evenly covers the pouf.     

If you want to make your tulle curl up a little and look vintage like mine, hold the ends of the tulle carefully about 6 inches above a lit candle. They will start to curl up pretty fast, so start further away from the flame and slowly warm them. And watch those fingers! 

If you want to see a picture of how I did this with some other fabric brooches I made this summer, click here.

And here is the finished 3 layered brooch! 

                 

                 

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Rock Your Ugg Boots

It's that time of year around here in the Midwest-time to get out your warm boots and prepare for the cold. Ugg boots are a warm, comfortable fashion staple for many of us this around here this time of year. (Of course, being a thrifty momma I got my knock-off's from Costco.) 

Ever since discovering cloth rosettes, I have been pretty much addicted to making them--and now that I know how to make the felt ones, I love these even more. Thanks to Stelabird for the tutorial!  Well, I thought it would be fun to make my knock-off Uggs stand out a little and add some pretty felt rosettes to them. 

Here's what you'll need: 

1. felt-I like using Eco-Fi made from 100% recycled plastic bottles
2. fabric scissors
3. pin back
4. glue gun
5. marker or pen
6. round traceable object-like a jar lid

Here's how I did it:

Trace a few circles onto felt

Cut them from the outside in into a circular swirl (see pic below)

This is what the swirl should look like

Roll the felt circle into a rosette shape, adding a dot of glue along the way

Glue gun a pin back to make it removable 

Here's how they should look! Don't worry if they don't-it took me a few tries .

I pinned them to the seam so it wouldn't damage the suede

Ta da!  I'm rockin my Uggs

Do you love rosettes too? Share a few ideas with me of what you've made with them by posting a link in the comments box and I'll post a few pictures  in a post and link back to your blog!

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