Monday, December 10, 2012

~Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star~

 In between trying to decorate the house for Christmas and trying to get a little shopping done (and I mean a little!), I've been making some new ornaments for our tree.  I came up with this muslin star that I absolutely love and thought I'd share a little tutorial with you.  In case, you wanted to make some yourself.

 Supplies I used:
fusible fleece...I love this stuff!
pre-washed muslin fabric.... give it a tea stain if you'd like.
scrap quilt batting or some type of polyfil ...this is to make your little stars plump.
rubber stamp ...this stamp is about 4 x 5" in size.
star template ...I found a paper mache one to use as a pattern, which is 4.5".  I'm not good at making perfect stars.
ink stamping pad ...the color I used is walnut.
dark red seam binding ...if the color isn't exactly the shade you want, give it a wash with watered down acrylic craft paint, scrunch and let dry overnight.
Twine....to create a hanging loop
Thread and needle...any ol' sewing thread (I used matching) and a small quilting needle works best for maneuvering.

1 ~ Using your template, cut two fabric and two fleece pieces for each star but cut the latter on the inside of your drawing line (about 1/8 to 1/4 inch).  **The fleece helps to keep the star smooth when you start adding filler.
2 ~ Center the fleece star on your fabric star and iron to adhere.
3 ~ Stamp your design onto the fabric.  I'm a novice when it comes to rubber stamping but I think I read somewhere that ironing the ink onto the fabric prevents it from bleeding.  **Cover your fabric with a piece of paper before ironing so that the ink doesn't transfer to the iron.  For those of you who have more experience in this area...am I right or no?
4 ~ If you want your stars to be a bit more rustic, run your finger or the edge of your scissors back and forth across the cut edge to fray the fabric.

1 ~ Cut a length of twine for looping and secure it on the inside of one tip of your star with several stitches making sure to pull the thread snugly.
2 ~ Put your second star piece on top and start sewing the two pieces together with a basting stitch around the edge.  Now this is the tricky part..  You are going to sew and stuff as you go...
3 ~  As you go around each point, stuff it with some filler.  I have lots of scrap pieces of quilt batting and have found that it works best for small pieces like this as it's not near as messy as polyfil.  **To make your stuffing process easier, cut batting into small pieces and use a small tool, such as a crochet hook or the point on a small pair of scissors, to stuff. 
4 ~ Work your way around the star, sewing and stuffing,.  Secure your basting with a couple of stitches in between the fabric layers to hide the knot.

Create a bow with your seam binding with as many loops as you would like. I used four. With thread and needle, run a stitch through the layers and then wrap around a couple of times to secure your bow and then stitch it to your star.
 
 I thought my little stars looked a a bit "blah" and decided to add some jingle bells.  I saw some at HL in colors of green, red and gold (not too shiny) that I loved.  They were so cute!!   But I couldn't find any small enough.  So what is one to do?  You find some regular ones in the size that works (about 1/2 inch) and paint them!  It really was a royal pain and they turned out okay, but if I find any that are the size I am wanting, these babies are going to be replaced.

Secure a jingle bell, or two, and you're done!  Now to hang them on the tree.


 I love how these turned out.  I think they fit in perfectly with all the other ornaments that are handmade or rustic in style.  I plan to make some more using green seam binding.  I hope you enjoyed my little tutorial.  If I didn't explain it well enough, don't hesitate to ask.

I've got a couple of more ornament ideas that I'm planning to share this week, so stay tuned!
.


Photobucket

10 comments:

My Vintage Mending said...

Velma...perfect. I love it. I think a few of these will find their way on my tree soon...smiles..Renee

Cindy said...

Your stars are beautiful, I love them. You're such a talented lady.
Hugs, Cindy

Kerin said...

Velma,
those stars are just as cute as they can be!
I love them.

Enjoy this wonderful Christmas season.

love,
K.

Betty Sneeringer said...

One of my favorite combinations - muslin and music print! These turned out so cute! I thought I had retired from making ornaments every year (now that I don't put up a big tree) but these make me want to get back to it!

Melinda said...

Well, I think those are the cutest!

M :)

The Polka Dot Closet said...

Velma, I love your star, I wish my whole tree was handmade ornaments! I think the little bells are perfect,

Carol

Di@Cottage-Wishes said...

These look great, visiting from Common Ground! Di@Cottage-Wishes

Judy at GoldCountryCottage said...

Hi Velma. I did come to visit and follow. I can't wait to read more of your post, so far I read about the hair deal. Been there, done that! Thought I might just let it go gray. Bad idea. So have blonde, brown and always seem to have some of that pesky gray peeking out but at least when in starts to grow out it is not so noticeable. Why do we put outselves through that?!..Talk to you later and I'm so glad you came by the Cottage..Happy Weekend..Judy

Judy at GoldCountryCottage said...

Oh dear, forgot to tell you how I love those stars. Hope I could get a chance to make some for this Christmas but might have to wait until next year, as I came up with a cute little idea myself and will put it out this week..Me again, Judy

TinaTx said...

Too cute! Filing this idea away for next year...no time to add it to the list for this year. Hey - wouldn't they be cute for Valentines Day if you used a heart shape?
Hope you and yours have a wonderful Christmas!

LinkWithin

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...