idea notebook
Clever ways to celebrate Valentine’s Day, plus stylish uses for hardware-store staples
Get Crafty!
Four pretty projects you can tackle in a flash
Wear your heart on your sleeve. Transform any sweater into a romantic fashion statement by tweaking store-bought elbow patches ($7.98 for two; mjtrim.com). Simply cut a heart-shaped pattern out of scrap paper (ours measured approximately 4½” x 4½”), then use that pattern to cut out a heart from each patch. Lastly, hand-sew the patches to the backs of your sleeves with a simple blanket stitch in a darker shade of thread. (Visit countryliving.com/stitches for a blanket-stitch how-to.)
PHOTOGRAPH BY K ATE MATHIS
Cotton-blend V-neck cardigan, $85; llbean signature.com
Continued on next page > Written by Jourdan Crouch
FEBRUARY 2011
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idea notebook
Crafter Lauren De Bellis came up with this genius way to keep vases stocked with fresh flowers—even in winter. The key to creating these allium-like blossoms: pom-pom makers in three different sizes ($6.50$7.50 per two pack; cloverusa.com). Wrap yarn around the tool’s arms (as shown below), then follow the package instructions to make your own buds. Add a dab of hot glue to the end of a thin twig and insert into each pom-pom’s center. Hold in place until the glue dries (about 10 seconds) and arrange.
Make Valentine’s Day cards out of paint strips—in seconds. Jodi Kahn, author of Simply Sublime Gifts ($19.99; Potter Craft), turned us on to this sweet idea for repurposing free color swatches: Press inked stamps onto the strips to form phrases like I U (similar stamps, from $4.50 each; black ink pad, $4.95; papersource.com) and let dry for five minutes. Kahn’s trick for ensuring that the ink adheres? Coat each paint strip with aerosol hair spray before stamping.
64 . COU N T RY L I V I N G.C O M . FEBRUARY 2011
PHOTOGRAPHS BY (PORTRAITS) K ATE MATHIS, STYLING BY HEATHER CHONTOS; (STEP-BY-STEPS) J MUCKLE/STUDIO D (3); (POM-POMS, CARDS) K ATE MATHIS, STYLING BY CHRISTINA LANE
Give yarn an opportunity to bloom.
Stitch custom artwork from family photos. These striking embroidered portraits—featured in Sania Pell’s The Homemade Home ($24.95; CICO Books)—can each be handsewn in under an hour.
STEP ONE Make a copy of your photo to avoid destroying the original; if desired, enlarge the image to fit your frame and mat. Affix the copy to watercolor paper ($9.99 per 11’’W x 15’’H pad; joann.com) with artist’s tape ($2.99 a roll; dickblick.com).
STEP TWO Using a pin to punch holes through the photocopy and paper, outline facial contours, features, hair, and clothing. To create solid lines, punch closer together; for dotted lines, leave more space between holes. (See examples at left for inspiration.)
STEP THREE Remove the photo and use a threaded embroidery needle to sew a running stitch or backstitch along the holes, swapping in thinner thread as desired. Trim the paper to fit your frame and mat.
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