Cucumbersome » tutorial

Kitchen Tools as Lights

britt — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 15:48:12 +0000

These lights remind me of the trouble light-inspired pendants from Anthro that I posted about. But these little guys are made from vintage industrial whisks! Want. (Check out this tutorial, via Remodelista.) Ashley Ann came up with another light inspired by the trouble lights using a wire basket (thanks for the link, Sarah!).

A vintage bundt pan pendant light? Fantastic! I really like it, and not just for the novelty factor. Even if the pan had been created for the sole purpose of being a shade I would like it. The fact that it has been a carrier of cake does make it a little sweeter, though. Easily DIY-able, of course. Get yourself a lamp cord kit, thread it through the center and hang it low so you can see its fluted sides. (Images from Light Locations, via Decor8)
There is a very cheap lamp cord kit at Urban Outfitters, but it’s a swag-style light. You can find the hard-wired pendant kind at your hardware store (or here).

Grey Suede Shoes

britt — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 19:45:04 +0000

Just wanted to share this great tutorial that I used to make these tiny baby shoes for Piper. The easy-to-follow tutorial took me about one hour from start to finish and was generously provided by Joanna of Stardust Shoes. I want to make more, maybe with some cuter fabric. I used really soft white leather for the soles (left over from this necklace project) instead of the bonded fleece recommended, which worked out quite well. So if you are looking for a baby gift and have a bit of sewing experience, check it out. I wonder if I could convert the pattern and make some slippers for myself…

Time for Tea Soap

britt — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 00:07:04 +0000

Drinking tea is such a lovely ceremony, what with the dainty cups and small spoons and little dishes reserved only for steeped tea bags. The aroma is such a huge part of that experience. Sadly, I’m finding that one can only drink so much tea in a day. So why not pull those luscious scents into our lives in other ways? This was my thinking when this idea popped into my head. I whipped up a batch of small Earl Grey tea soaps (see my instructions below) and folded them into individual tissue tea bags.

I have included a full, rather detailed tutorial for you to make these yourself. You can even download my tea soap tags, if you are so inclined. Each tag has a “Made by” and “For” on the back, so you can give these little soaps as gifts. You could also write a tiny message on the inside of the tag. I assure you that these are extremely easy to make, and cheap as well.
Click through below for the free tag download and how to!

You can buy all the materials you need here.
(a) Soap: I used a Melt & Pour Soap Base which some may think is cheating, but I think it’s fantastic. It’s incredibly easy - you just cut up the block of soap and melt it in the microwave (or if you are like me and don’t have a microwave, use a double-boiler) and add in whatever ingredients you want.
I used Earl Greyer Tea which has more bergamot than usual. Then just pour it into a mold or pan and let it set. After a few hours mine was set and I cut it into rectangles about 1″ x 2″. These are small (think hotel soap) and I was able to get eight soaps from a 1 lb. block, plus scraps that I can melt down into another one or two. You can see more detailed instructions here. I would recommend wrapping each soap in a dark-colored paper.
(b)Tags: You can create your own tags, or download mine here. Each sheet has tags for Earl Grey Tea Soap, Green Tea Soap, Citrus Mint Tea Soap, Ginger Peach Tea Soap, Rooibos Tea Soap, Jasmine Tea Soap, and Tea Soap (plain). Just cut them out, fold them in half, and snip little notches in the corners (see photos). [A note about the tags: Feel free to print out these tags for your personal, non-commercial use. Please do not redistribute in any way.]
(c)White tissue paper: Pieces cut to approximately 6″ x 9″, one per soap. *Not intended for use in the tub or shower.
(d)Tape
(e)String
(f)Stapler
(g)Scissors

How to fold, tea bag-style:

1. Place one soap on the tissue paper, centered vertically but slightly higher than the middle.
2. Fold the two sides over the soap so that they overlap slightly. Tape closed.
3. Pinch the edges to form a rectangular box. Pleat the sides inward.

4. Fold the bottom up over the soap and secure with a loop of tape (or double-sided tape)
5. Trim so that the front and back are the same height
6. Fold the two corners in to form a peak.
7. Pull the peak down and tape shut.

8. Flip over and staple the string onto the bag, tying a knot in the end to keep it from slipping through. Staple tag on the other end of the string.
If you have any trouble with these instructions it might help to inspect a real tea bag. For the sake of comparison, here is a real tea bag with mine:

Here are the tags that are available (click here to view and print):

Now I’m off to have a cup of tea…
Thanks for reading.

Tutorial: Leather Chain Necklace

britt — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 21:27:56 +0000

I must really have a thing for soft, fabric jewelry. First, the t-shirt necklace, now this. I have been admiring these leather necklaces by Handle & Spout for quite some time. Can I use the “imitation is the sincerest form or flattery” line again?
What you need:
Leather piece - approximately 12″ x 12″(if you are in Vancouver, check out Dressew for cheap leather in various sizes. I got a 24″ x 24″ piece for $7)
This template, printed out on heavy cardstock (The image is 300dpi, and when printed will be 3″ wide)
Utility Knife (like an x-acto knife)
Scissors
Needle & thread (matching your leather)
Instructions:
After you have printed out this template on heavy cardstock, cut it out with your exacto knife. This is my paper template (as you can see, my utility knife is not so exact):

Now on the back side of the leather (the rough side) trace your template in pen, like so:

Cut the shape out of the leather with scissors, making sure to cut just inside the pen marks so you don’t have any lines showing. To cut out the center, fold it and make a little snip with your scissors and then cut (like the one below). I tried to use the utility knife and it looked really rough and found scissors to be more accurate.

Continue cutting out the leather shapes until you have a bunch. I used 36 pieces to make a longish necklace, but it totally depends on how long you want it to be.

Fold one piece in half so the smooth side is on the outside. Then push half of the next piece through the hole as shown:

Now fold the second piece down and continue fitting them together:

Keep going, holding it up to your neck until it gets to be your desired length.

For the closure, you could do something fancy like a snap or a button. My necklace is long and I can just pull it over my head, so I folded the last loop over my first one and stitched it closed:

I feel (and look) pretty awkward about posting a picture of myself here, but so you can see the length of the necklace, and the size of the links, here it is:

Notes: You could also buy a leather jacket from a thrift store and cut it up. If you didn’t want to use leather, a good quality felt might look nice (just not the cheap stuff - I think it would end up looking like a kindergarten project) or you could use two fabrics fused together with double-sided fusible interfacing.
Click the thumbnail below for a full-sized version of the template:

DIY Neckline Detail

britt — Mon, 18 May 2009 15:14:31 +0000

I’m so excited to show you all the inspiring work from Kate. She uses lots of free patterns to make her gorgeous clothes, but they are heavily altered and tastefully embellished. I really love her fabric choices.
I was particularly taken with the shirt shown above. There are several corsage-style shirts out there right now at places like J Crew and Anthropologie, but I love Kate’s version.
She made the entire shirt, but I think the neckline detail could be added to an existing shirt for a quick DIY.

This tutorial is courtesy of Kate.

Cut a rectangle out of your fabric that measures 1 yard (36 in.) x 4.5″. Fold fabric in half, length-wise, with right sides facing in and iron. The fabric should measure 1 yard x 2.25″. Sew along the long raw edge, 1/4″ in.

Turn fabric right-side out. Press the strip of fabric so that the seam is on the bottom.

Fold each side in and stitch along each edge. Using a long running stitch, sew two lines down the middle of the fabric (length-wise). Make sure the two lines are 1/4″ apart from each other, and centered on the fabric. Holding the two ends of each line, scrunch fabric until it measures 16″.

Attach by hand to your shirt, with the first end starting at the shoulder seam, and the other end attached at the neckline. I formed mine into s squiggle shape, but you can do it however you want.

More of Kate’s creations:

This Dress was inspired by an anthro dress.

Lei Neckline Top, complete with directions on how to draft a pattern from your favorite tank.

Thank you so much for sharing your handiwork with us, Kate!
Everyone make sure to check out her blog here.