This Way...

DIY: Streamer Wand Tutorial

These streamer wands were my very first wedding project. Choosing the ribbons helped me decide on our color scheme early on and things started to fall into place from there. Over the Moon Ribbons was a amazing source for ribbons, with a wide range of colors and styles. After studying various tutorials online, I decided that this one seemed the easiest and the quickest. Most of the 150 wands were completed in one night with good friends, pizza and a couple bottles of wine. 

How to Make Streamer Wands: 

Materials:

•  3/8" Ribbons, cut to 36" long (I used 5 per wand)
•  12" Wooden Dowels
•  1-1/16" Brass Screw Eyes
•  Thumbtack
•  Hammer 
•  Pliers
•  Small sharp scissors

1.  Make a hole. Gently tap the thumbtack with a hammer to start a hole at one end of the wooden dowel. This step will make attaching the screw eye much easier.

2.  Insert the screw eye in the hole you just made. A plier will come in handy when your hands start to get tired.

3.  Neatly stack the ribbons and thread them through the screw eye opening.

4.  Loop the ribbons and pull them through to make a knot.

5.  Pull ribbons taught to fasten the knot.

6.  Wave your wand and celebrate this moment!

Mr. & Mrs.

On August 4th 2012, Ronak and I said "I Do!"

Field Trip: Fashion District

I've needed more obscure materials recently for a few wedding projects and have discovered that some of the best shops to find unique odds and ends are located in the Fashion District... in the heart (er, armpit) of Midtown. I’ve been venturing there on my lunch breaks in search of vintage ribbons, spools, trim. The sweet spots are along 37th and 38th streets, home to the shops Tinsel Trading Company, M&J Trimmings, Hyman Hendler, and B&J Fabrics. In addition to those, there are countless other great shops sandwiched in between to make the trip worthwhile.

Save the Date 8.4.12

August 4th is just around the corner! The Save the Dates are out and a lot of details are starting to fall into place.

I had hired the lovely Heather Heckel to screen print the Save the Date cards and couldn't be happier with the results. She did an amazing job,  paying attention to every detail. For the return address I used SimonStamp.com to produce a custom rubber stamp. They are really reasonable and have an impressive turnaround time.

The invitation is still a work in progress, but I'm making some good headway. Stay tuned...

Hand-Me-Down

One of my first crocheted projects was a hat for Jenny. Being new to patterns it turned out a bit smaller than I intended. Luckily she's very sweet-natured and sentimental, so she held onto it anyway.

A few years later her daughter Ellis came across it in her drawer and immediately adopted it as her own. Jenny sent me a sweet message today with this photo saying, "Ellis woke up last night around midnight asking for her hat. She's quite attached."

It makes me happy to know that she is getting good use out of it!

Take 2

This cheerful purse was a Christmas gift for my mom, and an improvement over the last one I made. The layer of interfacing makes a world of a difference, and allows it to stand up on its own. For the lining I used Lotta Jansdotter's Echo fabric in Brass Florine. Instead of elastic cord for the closure I sewed a loop out of canvas and pressed it flat to fit snugly. The carved wooden button is from my mom's own collection-- she was happy to see it put to good use!

All Set

We have a small 36" round table and finding the right size placemat has been a challenge. I decided to end the hunt by crocheting a set of 14" placemats using the Granny Circle Placemat pattern and Blue Sky Skinny Cotton Yarn. They add a lot of warmth to our table and also help protect it from the inevitable nicks and scratches.

*I made these small bowls in a ceramics course a few years ago. They're perfect for our morning oatmeal.