Heart Charm for a Scrappy Bracelet

You may know that I have started a year-long challenge at my other blog, 365 Sewn Hearts.  The heart I posted there today is made to go on one of my scrappy braided fabric bracelets.  I just finished the bracelet and added the heart--here it is:

 I chose the colors for the fabric bracelet to compliment the heart charm.

The heart is two layers of wool felt, with seed beads and embroidery floss decorations.  I made a matching bracelet by simply stringing beads on stretchy beading cord.  I like the combination of the hard, shiny beads with the soft fabric.

I'm excited that I thought of this; the charms I had been using on these bracelets (metal discs with a single word like "love", or "hope") were fine, but I like having the whole thing hand-made, especially if I am giving it as a gift or sending it in a swap.  The charm would look good as a circle too; and I could embroider a word or phrase or an initial instead of the flower.  Feel free to borrow this idea--then tell me what you made!

Scrappy Swap Package

Today I will show you the rest of the package I sent to my partner in the Scrap Happy Swap on Craftster.

I wanted to get her color palette just right.  I didn't have enough yardage of the right colors in my stash, so I carefully examined the picture I had of her living room colors, and pulled a few fabrics from my stash that seemed just right.  Then I went to Joann's and spent a long time pulling bolts of fabric from the shelves and comparing them to my swatches.  I was pleasantly surprised to find a lot of fabrics that would work, and I bought them all!  I got half-yards of everything except the two main blue fabrics that I used on the pillows (I got a yard of each of those, and used them all up!).  But first, the mug rug.  This is the front:

...and this is the back.  I have to say that I like the back better than the front!  I think the front is too busy, and you lose the circles with all the other fabrics competing for attention.  That's how it is sometimes when you are making something for the first time using an idea from your imagination; this time it didn't come out quite as great as I had hoped it would!

These pillow covers, on the other hand, exceeded my expectations!  They are large (17.5" square), made to fit on the pillow forms she was already using on her sofa.  This first one, with circles, was inspired by some quilts and fabrics I saw on her Pinterest.

I wanted to make the second pillow different from the first, but with a design that related to the first one, so I made it with these leaf shapes.  I spent a lot of time constructing both pillows carefully, with finished seams and a velcro closure on the back.  The circles and leaves were affixed with Heat n Bond lite, then I sewed around the edges to secure them.

I also made her one of my Scrappy Fabric Bracelets, (click on that for the tutorial) using one of her favorite phrases.  I went a little overboard crafting for her--and she went overboard for me too--so we've decided to request each other as partners in a future swap, because there are lots more things we would like to make for each other!

Scrappy Braided Fabric Bracelet: A Tutorial

I love these braided fabric bracelets I made for my partner in the recent Fabric Jewelry Swap on Craftster; several people expressed interest in them, so here comes a tutorial!

Quick summary:  you simply braid together 3 fabric strips, adding a charm along the way, then secure the ends and add an elastic loop and button for a closure.  Here's how I did it:

1.  Cut 3 different fabric strips 1 3/4" wide by at least 15" long.  There will be waste fabric at the beginning and end of the braided section, so you need to cut the strips longer than the size of your wrist.  A 7" bracelet fits my wrist comfortably (my actual wrist measurement is 6 3/4"), so this tutorial is for a 7" bracelet.

 2.  All the fabric edges will be left raw.  Start by folding the ends of the 3 fabric strips as shown, and stack them on top of each other so you can sew them together on the sewing machine.

3.  Run a line of stitching through all 3 folded fabrics at one end.  This is just to keep them together so you can start to braid.  Since this will eventually be waste fabric that you cut off, this part doesn't have to look pretty.

4.  To keep the fabrics from moving around while I braided, I pinned the sewn end to my ironing board.  You could also tape the sewn end to a table top.  Now, BRAID!!  To keep the braid smooth and even, I twisted each fabric strip as I braided it, as shown in this picture.

5.  Braid for 7", then put a couple of pins in the ends of the fabric strips to keep them from unravelling while you add a charm. 

 I used a charm from this kit that I had on hand; but you can add any kind of a charm here.  Attach it to an 8mm split ring (they were included in this kit), and slide it onto one of the fabric strips, right up to the spot where you stopped braiding.  Then keep braiding for at least 2 more inches.



6.  Unpin the braid from the ironing board (holding the loose end so it doesn't unravel) and take it to your sewing machine.  Sew the loose end securely (this part will be cut off, so it doesn't have to be pretty, but you do want your braid to be nice and tight here.)  Go ahead and cut off the unused fabric that wasn't braided (about 1/2" beyond the stitiches you just sewed).  From this cut-off fabric, cut two strips 3/4" by at least 3".  You will use these strips in the next step. (If you don't have enough fabric left, you can use any scrap fabric you want.)

7.  Now it's time to finish the ends.  Measure 1 1/2" from the charm; this will be the end where you sew on a button later.  Place a pin to mark the spot, and machine-sew back and forth across the braid right there.

Take one of the 3/4" wide strips you just cut, and wrap it around the braid two times.  It should be centered over the line of machine stitching.

Leave the end long, like in the picture, and sew all around the edges of the fabric strip several times to secure the braid.

This is how it will look.

Using sharp scissors, cut off the tail of the fabric strip; then cut off the excess braid beyond the strip you just sewed on.

8.  Now you will finish the other end.  Start by taping a hair elastic in the middle, and cut it in half. You will use one half for the closure (save the other half for your next bracelet!)

Measure 6 3/4" from the finished end, and mark the spot with a pin.  Machine-sew back and forth across the braid there to secure it.  You will finish this end the same as the other one, with the addition of the elastic loop.  Before wrapping the 3/4" fabric strip, you need to secure the loop with a few stitches by hand (my experience was that if you don't do this, the sewing machine foot will push the loop to the edge and it will be very off-center).

Now wrap the 3/4" strip around the braid and loop twice, leaving the end loose.

Sew around the edges several times to secure the braid.  Cut off the loose end of the strip.

Before cutting off the excess braid, pull down the elastic loop and hold it firmly so you don't accidentally cut it off!

This is how the finished end will look.

 8.  Sew on a button and you are done!



Scrappy Fabric Bracelet Tutorial

We are starting a new swap at Craftster next week--the Fabric Jewelry Swap.  This little tutorial will show you how I make a scrappy fabric bracelet.  This is a great way to wear a favorite phrase!  You could also make a bracelet like this using just a single piece of your favorite fabric for the front.

1.  Decide on a color and gather some scrap fabrics.  Iron them, and start sewing them together!  Sew them in pairs, like this, and cut them at a wonky angle:

2.  Start sewing the cut-up pairs together.

3.  Straighten the edges so you can sew on more sewn-together pairs.

4.  Keep sewing, trimming edges, and sewing on some more.  For a 7" bracelet, you only need a section that measures 7 1/2" x 1 1/2", so keep your scraps small, and try to have a lot of "intersections" of fabric, concentrated in the center of the pieced scrap fabric.

This is a 1" wide ruler; I'm using it to get an idea of where to cut my bracelet fabric.

5.  When your pieced-fabric is big enough, cut out a section measuring 7 1/2" x 1 1/2" (that is for a 7" wrist; make yours bigger or smaller depending on your wrist measurement.)

6.  This shows the back of the bracelet fabric, and a piece of iron-on interfacing.  Cut the interfacing slightly smaller than your bracelet fabric, and iron it on the back.

7.  I use a light box to copy a phrase onto white fabric (using a phrase I printed onto paper at the computer).

8.  The edges of the "phrase" fabric will be left raw, so I just cut it out carefully, leaving a little less than 1/4" all around.  Find the center of the bracelet fabric and center the phrase fabric there; pin it in place.

9.  Sew the phrase fabric using the sewing machine.

10.  Using coordinating embroidery thread, hand-stitch around the phrase on top of the machine-sewn lines.  Pull out some of the  loose threads around the edges to make a fringe. (Don't worry, the machine sewing and embroidery will keep the phrase in place--I've worn mine a lot and it is still very secure.)

11.  To make a closure loop, tape a hair-tie in the middle and cut it in half.

12.  Choose a piece of fabric for the backing.  Iron it and cut it a little bigger than the front.  Place the bracelet front, face down, on top of the backing.  Pin the elastic loop, centered, at one end.  Sew all the way around the perimeter, using a 1/4" seam.  Leave an opening (about 2" or less) towards the end of one side.  When you come to the elastic loop, sew back and forth over it several times to make it secure.

13.  Trim the backing even with the front fabric in the seams, and trim the corners.  Turn the bracelet right-side-out, through the opening.  A pair of hemostats will be your best friend at this point!!

14.  Iron the bracelet flat (avoiding the elastic loop--you don't want it to melt!), then top-stitch all the way around, 1/8" from the edge.

15.  Sew on a button, and you are done!

Wear and enjoy!