esprit cabane, the magazine of crafty & green living ideas Anthro Limitless Strands Necklace How is your Holiday shopping going? Have you started? I will confess I have not. I have been browsing online though - and of course I inevitably wandered over to Anthro. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, I absolutely fell in love with this necklace. I thought I’d help us both out by creating a knockoff – you can never have too many options for Christmas ideas right? Here’s my version . . . Mine is a little less “strandy” than theirs but that was intentional. Here’s what you’ll need to create this cutie . . . 1 1/2″ Wide Ribbon – 3 1/4 yardsStringing CordSmall Glass BeadsLarge Round Beads – 5/8″ (any type)Crimp Beads – 20Jump Rings – 6Thread Start by stringing your beads. Thread a crimp bead onto the cord and loop the end around a jump ring, then thread the cord back through the crimp bead. Thread beads onto the cording – it will help control the cording if you thread the loose end through a needle. Continue threading beads until your cord is about 8 inches. What do you think?
Whatimade.com Creature Comforts A Beautiful Mess I love using cloth napkins to dress up our dinner table, and through the years I've grown even more fond of their sustainability and cost effectiveness. Though, I'm not sure how cost effective it is if you keep buying more and more cloth napkins each year! This holiday season I thought it would be fun to look at how I could dress up the napkins I already own to give them an extra festive vibe. Check out three simple ways you can give new life to your table linens. Ribbon Trimmed Napkin This look is so (no sew) simple! Supplies:-ribbon-heat bond in width of ribbon-cloth napkin (buy mine here)-iron-fabric scissors (not shown above) Step One: Trim pieces of your ribbon to be about 1.5 inches longer than the width of your napkins. Step Two: Fold down the edges of each ribbon segment about 1/4" and iron flat. Step Three: Iron the heat bond to the ribbon (pressing with hot iron for two seconds), then peel off the paper backing. Pom-Pom Trimmed Napkin This is my favorite napkin style by far!
{every}nothing wonderful Boden Boulevard Necklace Knockoff Did you know Mother’s Day is about a week and half away?? Eek!! I don’t know about you but I’m scrambling a bit here. ;) So I thought I’d help you out. Actually, Melissa and I are helping you out. :) Melissa sent in a Tutorial Request for a darling Boden Necklace – and I knew that it would be perfect for a Mother’s Day idea. Here is my version of the prettiness - And here is the Boden version – with a crazy retail value of $78 - I like the navy they used but I went for a more neutral color scheme. This necklace is super easy!! Here’s what you’ll need to make it: twill or other ribbon (approx 50″) large link chain (you’ll need a piece about 13″ long) bead assortment – enough for 5 13″ strands beading cord crimp beads (10) (All supplies came from Michael’s) :) Start by weaving your twill piece through the links of the chain. Continue weaving the twill through until the chain piece is centered in the twill. Pretty cute already huh? Now we’re going to start adding in our small bead strands.
Anthro Necklace Week – Potentilla Bib This fun necklace is part of my first Anthro Necklace Week – A whole week of fun tutorial sharing Anthro Knockoffs! Disclaimer: I am not a jewelry-making expert by any means! I’ve tried to show you the way I do these – but believe me when I say that if I can do these – anyone can! Today we’re doing the Potentilla Bib Necklace – which I just love. I don’t get the price though. Here’s the Made in Carlsbad version: And here’s the French Anthro Version. This is really one of my favorites for the week. Materials: ScissorsNeedle & ThreadNeedle Nose PliersWire Cutters Supplies: 1 18″ Silver Chain Necklace (Or supplies to make your own)Knit fabric (just scraps)Seed BeadsCone or Small Ribbon Clamp3 Jump Rings (Silver)Felt scrap The first step is to make the flowers. Trace a small 4 leaf flower onto the fabric. Cut out four flowers this size. For your largest flower, layer the 4 large pieces on top of each other, rotating them just a bit so the different petals show through. Sigh. Close your rings.
Talk Crafty To Me DIY Craft Project: How to craft a twine-ball light garland {As featured on Rock n Roll Bride} Time for another DIY craft project and today I’ll be showing you exactly how you can make this twine-ball light garland yourself. It’s one of those projects that’s a little bit messy and does take quite a bit of time, but it is so much fun. Plus you have a really cool piece of decor at the end of it. Perfect for parties or around the home, you can paint it up in any colour you want to match your design scheme, and when lit, it looks so pretty, casting lots of patterned twinkly light everywhere. Mine is now taking pride of place in my office. How-to make a Twine Ball Light Garland I’ve seen twine balls used for all sorts of purposes, from chandeliers to dining table decor, so I thought I’d have a go at making a light garland using this idea. I chose to use coloured twine, alternating between pink and purple twine balls. {You will need} {Four} This is the really messy part. {Five} Leave to dry overnight. So what do you think, is this one you’ll be trying out at home? Michelle x
Make it Modern DIY Friendship Necklace As soon as Lauren and I saw this editorial in Flare Magazine, we knew we had to recreate these awesome, friendship bracelet-like necklaces. We promise they are super easy to make and the perfect way to pass the time during those long summer roadtrips. To make a 2-tone necklace, cut a long piece of rope and wrap two different colors of embroidery thread around its own bobbin. Tie a starter knot along with the two colored threads you are using, leaving at least 3 inches of slack, Tape down the slack to a flat surface or safety pin it something that will help keep it in place (feeling nostalgic yet?). Lay the color that isn’t being used (shown here in purple) in your left hand, along with the rope, and hold them taut. To alternate colors, simply put the inactive color (red) in your left hand and the new active color (purple) in your right. Once you’re done knotting, add a few nuts and/or washers to the necklace.