“IN A BIND” FOR TINY TRIM OR LACE?

(Using lace type seam binding for mini trims)

Okay, bad pun, I know...

I know vendors sell tiny laces and trims but sometimes you’re in the middle of a project and either don’t have any or can’t wait for an order to arrive. Many of you probably have done this and some of us haven’t even thought about it. Pictured below are a couple of examples of obtaining narrow trim or lace from Seam Binding or the edges of lace trim. Just cut the edge off very carefully. Handle gently just in case it may unravel on the cut edge. We could apply some thinned tacky glue or FrayCheck on the lace or trim before cutting. Let it dry well before trimming off.

Here is an example of the use of the edge from Lace type Seam Binding:

Use for trim on lingerie...

(I need to work on my bra pattern. This one is definitely for a flat chested gal!)

...or to simulate a zipper in a seam

And an example of a tiny edge trimmed from narrow lace:                                                                

Use to edge a tiny square of fabric for a handkerchief

The rosebuds are made by just tying a knot in embroidery thread. Twist it between your thumb and finger while making the loop to give it several “turns” and then carefully and slowly pull the knot together. The green leaves are just a tiny bow tied with a single strand of embroidery floss and dotted with glue on the center knot before cutting off the “tails”. Glue the rose bud on top of the leaves. Making your roses this way is a lot easier and less expensive than using silk ribbon. Of course you don’t get the same look but you can get a much smaller bud. And there’s no stitching and no messy underside on your project.

 

As soon as I am able to tweak my lingerie patterns and get them just right I will try and post them along with some tips I have found to help me. It may take me a while so please be patient......
Hope everyone has a good week!

DON'T FAINT!!! ANOTHER POST SO SOON AFTER THE LAST? I wanted to show these to you in my last post but didn't get to put the pictures up, so.... These are the two orchid benches that will go into my greenhouse. I made them from craft sticks I bought at Hobby Lobby. They are the thin coffee stirrer/corndog stick kind. Had to "weed" through two or three packages to get enough of them that were straight! You get what you pay for! Anyway, I made it up as I went along so I don't have a pattern. I did use graph paper covered with a sheet of clear contact paper (sticky back plastic) so that I could keep my pieces squared up. All the lovely orchids were made by Pim Sukerd. On the bottom shelf of one of the benches is a bonsai planter I made of sculpey and painted with acrylics. I made this at the same time I made my tall pot for my bonsai tree. A couple of the orchids are set into what feels and looks like lava chunks. They are very light in weight so I'm not really sure. Will try to post a picture of what the display looks like so far sometime soon. Still have a ways to go on it but real life does have a way of interferring with our minis, doesn't it? I've also been exploring another love of mine which is paper crafting/mini albums (king of like scrap booking and altered art mixed. Check out Pinterest for "Mini Albums"; if you're like me, it will blow you away. Some beautiful work being done. Also look for MySistersScrapper and FollowingthePaperTrail on You Tube. Super great work! Hope everyone has a great weekend! Supposed to be rainy here but we need it badly......

Haven’t been doing much in the way of minis lately…… I am still working on my florist and greenhouse display when I can. Here is a picture of the water feature that will be placed underneath and arbor between the greenhouse and the florist shop. It is made using ¾ inch builder’s foam rigid insulation board. I painted it a very dark grey, almost black, and then glued on cardboard egg carton or drink holder bricks. I then aged and dry-brushed them with a mixture of black, grey, tan, brown and a little white. Blotch it with a paper towel. I made the pond part with a piece of plastic packaging with a picture of goldfish glued underneath. I then added a layer of clear dimensional magic type finish, making a few circles where the water would be falling. I cut a little strip of thick plastic bag and cut one side into jagged shreds and glued it into a circle where my water would fall and then dotted it with the clear finish. (It looked like a crown with the points falling over) This makes the “splash”. I made little ledges of matboard around the inner edge of the pond area to sit the “pond/fish picture” into once it dried. I made the Papyrus by gluing 4 or 5 lengths of jute twine around the end of pieces of heavy gauge (18?) covered floral wire. After it dried I brushed it out with a small brass wire brush I purchased at the Dollar Store, and then drybrushed it with green acrylic paint. Some were left more brown to indicate “spent” foliage. The water lettuce plants on the left are painted and punched crepe paper. I used a pear shape punch that I purchased from Hanky Panky Crafts. I glued the “petals”with the small pear stem ends toward the center. Glue one layer of 5 then another layer over that staggering the second layer over the 1st five “petals. Turn the assembly over after it dries and curl the leaves of the 1st layer toward the center of the plant. Place a tiny irregular crumples round in the center and you have water lettuce. I dotted landscape foam (model railroad supplies) in some of the cracks of the stones. The lotus plant is from a wonderful artisan named Pim Sukerd. I haven’t seen or heard anything on her in a long time so I don’t even know if she is still making minis. She lives in Thailand, I think, and was having a lot of flooding in her house. I have tried to locate her online but have not found anything. Most all of the plants in the shop and greenhouse are by her also. Beautiful orchids and roses! I will try to get my pictures of that up, too, as soon as I can. I am including a picture of the goldfish I worked up for my pond.

Hello everyone!

Here is a picture of my spaghetti on a polymer clay plate......

I made the plate by rolling white clay out thin; dust your work surface with cornstarch and place clay over that. Then lay a piece of plastic/saran wrap over it and cut it out with a round cutter. Doing it this way gives a nice rounded edge for the underside of the plate. Turn the plate over carefully to avoid mis-shaping the round. Dust off some of the corn starch with a soft brush and press the center to indent slightly. Use even pressure and it will make the edge of the plate raise up a little. Bake according to the clay package directions. After it is cool I glaze with Gallery Glass in my selected color adding dots around the edge with a contrasting color. LET DRY VERY WELL. I sealed this one with the old formula FIMO glaze. Experiment with other finishes to see which one you like. Some can be sticky, though. After it is dry, I glue on my pre baked foods..........

I make the noodles by extruding out a teeny snake about 3 or 4 inches long and curl and twist it together with a couple of toothpicks. Do this on a piece of foil with a bit of tacky glue underneath the noodles to keep them from sliding around while you're working.
The sauce on the spaghetti is made of liquid Sculpey mixed with a touch of red clay, a little teeny bit of chocolate brown and a speck of black. It definitely helps to have a portion of the real food in front of you. Mix all of this together and add a bit of craft sand in a tan color to add texture. Pile it on top of your noodles. Add a green clay basil leaf for garnish and shavings of parmesan cheese made from the noodle color clay. Bake, glue onto the plate and add a touch of gloss glaze to the sauce.

Hope I will be able to post again soon.....I have another project in the planning stage and am still working on my flower shop. So much to do, so little free time!

Have a good weekend!

Hey, ya'll......
It's been a while since my last post; been busy with real life and work but finally had a few minutes to sit down and write a tutorial.
Everything is okay with us, I just pray that it stays that way!
Louie is doing good, that's the main thing.
Here is the tutorial; I also use this method, up to the coiling, to make plates of spaghetti, too. Just twist the snake into a pile and top with sauce. Will get a few pics of my spaghetti and post that soon.

Hope you enjoy!

Just wanted to post an update....
Hubby is able to walk a little better now and is using his walker more.
He is doing much better! Thanks be to God and all of your prayers are much appreciated!
Working on the next tutorial when I can; I am still pretty busy with daily life but that has eased up a bit.
Hope everyone out there is doing good....
Gail

A quick update on my Hubby, Louie:
God has answered prayer and he is much improved! We have some medical equipment on the way that will help us out a lot. God's Spirit has calmed some of the fears that we had and several of our problems have been resolved.
Thank God for strength to carry on each day!
We have good indication and many reasons to believe and hope that hubby will get most of his mobility back that he had before hospital.
It was thought at first that he may have some kidney failure but whether the first test was incorrect or there actually was something wrong, we don't know, but a kidney specialist says there is nothing wrong with his kidneys so one way or another, that prayer was answered.
Hopefully it won't be much longer before things will be much better.
Thank you to all for your wonderful comments and especially your prayers!
It really means a lot!
Maybe I can get another tutorial up soon. What I have in mind for you is, I think, a great idea!
Gail