15 minute make - DIY Placemat Clutch

When it comes to the bloggersphere, the internet isn't short of placemat clutches. Pretty much everyone has their own version, but I'VE never made one, so here is MY version! What I'm saying is, I'm not claiming to be revolutionary and new with this idea, I just wanted to try one for myself. The fact that I wanted to try out my new hot glue gun had nothing to do with it I swear!

Today folks, we are making this:

Simple, chic, and REALLY cheap, just how I like it!

You will need: A placemat, a length of ribbon or an old belt, a slide buckle, and glue. I used my hot glue gun here, but any strong glue would work. 

You should also have something heavy on hand, ready to weigh down the clutch later.

Step 1: Run a line of glue up the length of your placemat along both edges. Stop at around two thirds of the way.

This is where I learned that hot glue dries REALLY fast! So, if like me this is your first time using one, remember to move on to the next step immediately! Stopping to take a picture meant my glue had dried and I had to pick it off and start again.

Step 2: Fold the placemat as shown below, and hold in place until the glue dries. If you aren't using hot glue you may want to weigh it down and wait it out at this stage, or clip clothes pegs along the edge to hold in place whilst drying.

Step 3: lay your belt of ribbon underneath the clutch. I'm using an old belt I've had laying around, but ribbon would work just fine.

Step 4: Fold the top flap of the clutch over so that you can get an idea of what the end result will look like. Use the size of the clutch to determine how long to cut the belt. Leave a few more centimeters than you need though to have room to attach the buckle.

Step 5: With the buckle upside down, pass the belt through the buckle as shown below and fold the edge down. Glue into place.

Step 6: Place the belt back underneath the clutch and make sure that the buckle is in the place where you want it to be. Hold the belt into place and flip the whole thing over. Then place a line of glue underneath the belt to stick it into place.

Step 7: Place a little glue under the front part of the belt too.

Buckle up and you're good to go!

Additional step : If you are using a cloth placemat then you probably can skip this step, but as I used a plastic kind, it kept trying to straighten itself out. If you have this problem then a simple remedy is to just place a heavy weight on top of the clutch and leave it overnight.

All done!

Cost: Placemat - 39p
         belt  -  already owned - 0p
         buckle - raided from my mother's button tin - 0p

Total cost: 39p
Total time spent: 15 minutes plus overnight to set the shape.    

Cutting the Cost of Crafting

Happy New Year readers!

The new year is a time of reflection and of resolutions. The one topic I see appearing again and again is that money is tight and people want to cut their spending, but that shouldn't mean that your hobbies have to suffer. There is a way to continue crafting without breaking the bank. 

I know that cost is important, so every time I do a DIY project here on Enthusiastitch, I always try to include the cost. What I have always done, is write what it has cost ME to make it; and you will notice that most of my projects have cost very little, if anything at all. This is because anything that I already had, I consider to be free. Anything that was given to me, I consider to be free. Anything that would have been tossed out had I not used it, I consider to be free. I've decided it's time I shared some tips for how you can keep your costs down too.

1. Take stock of what you already have.
Is there something in the back of your wardrobe that has been there longer than you can remember? Well it's clearly of no use to you the way that it is now, if there was, then you would already be using it! If it's no use to you in its current form then its free materials! Create a stock pile, but be careful to know the difference between storing and hoarding! I have a whole cupboard dedicated solely to my crafting, but maybe just a storage box or two would be sufficient. Here are some past projects where the core materials have been junk I already had.
DIY fabric covered shoes
Before and After - dress to skirt
DIY Belt Extension

2. Tell people about your hobby
Before you know it, you will find that people start to give you things. Most people don't want to see things thrown away if they can be used. Most people don't like waste. As a result, most people would rather see you make use of something rather than throw it out. My sister, for example, has been a relative gold mine for materials! There have been many occasions when she has given something to me rather than throw it in the bin. I do have some personal rules. If it's junk, I try to use it. If it's in good condition, but I have a specific purpose in mind for it, I try to use it. If it's in good condition, but I have no idea what I would use it for, I donate it. There is no point hanging on to something that has no purpose for you; it only takes up space and someone else might be in need of it. Here are some projects where the materials have been things that were given to me.
Brrr! - scarf to hat makeover
Treasure! - DIY button earrings
Little Red Riding Hood's cape

3. Buy Second Hand
There are plenty of opportunities to shop without buying new every time. In the past, I've bought supplies from auction houses, car boot sales, and of course eBay. There are even facebook groups now for buyers and sellers; I often use a local facebook group where all items cost £1 or less. Of course never forget those charity shop gems! Charity shops are some of my favourite places to buy materials. Check them often, because stock changes at a rapid rate, and don't be afraid to really search for those hidden treasures! Here are some past projects I've made using charity shop finds.
DIY shoe clips
Polka Dots. Yay!

4. Don't forget the little things
Scraps make for great crafts. It can be a challenge to find a job for the little pieces, but the end results can be really rewarding. The rule is simple, think before you throw! It might be small, but maybe it has some life in it yet! Here are some past projects utilising the scraps.
15 minute headband
Chapstick snuggie
DIY felt bookmark

5. Need something bigger? That's what birthdays are for!
In the early days of Enthusiastitch, I either sewed everything by hand or walked to my mother's house to borrow her sewing machine. My mother and father-in-law were fantastic enough to realise my need and buy me a sewing machine for my birthday. Her name is Esme, and she's beautiful!
meet Esme
If there is a piece of equipment you want, and will use, then ask for it when your birthday rolls around!
Esme wasn't the only gift I've received that's going to help me with future projects. This Christmas my secret Santa in work got me a hot glue gun, which I can't wait to play with!

Any way, that's pretty much how I do things. My budget has always been low, but that doesn't stop me from doing the things that I enjoy. Sometimes figuring out how to do things whilst saving money becomes part of the fun.
I hope this helped, and I hope that your future endeavours are not only fun, but thrifty too!

Happy crafting folks!

Tan xx

Christmas on a Budget - DIY Edible Candy Cane Wreath

We all love to over indulge a little on the sweet treats at Christmas time, so why not make your decorations tasty too? Here's a quick, simple DIY for all those with a sweet tooth, an edible wreath!

You will need: 20 individually wrapped candy canes, some white felt, glitter glue, sticky tape, scissors, a pen (not pictured) and a piece of ribbon to hang.

We are going to do our centrepiece first so that it has time to dry. 

Step 1: Using your sticky tape as a template, draw two circles onto your felt and cut them out.

Step 2: Using the glitter glue, decorate the circles any way you like. I've gone for a simple red, white and green colour scheme to match my candy canes.

Set these aside until completely dry.

Now it's time to move onto the wreath itself. Now, we aren't going to use any glue on the actual wreath, because we still want the candy canes to be edible after Christmas.

Step 3: take two of the candy canes and, using the tape, stick them back to back as shown below

Step 4: Repeat step 3 until you have ten pairs.

Step 5: Take two of the pairs, and stick them together to form a heart shape in the middle, as shown.

Step 6: Continue adding the pairs, until the form a circle and join together.

Step 7: Tie your ribbon to the top so that you can hang your wreath.

Step 8: Use your fingers to create a sticky tape loop, sticky side out. Add two of these loops to the back of your centrepiece.

Step 9: Stick your centrepiece onto the middle of your wreath.

Step 10: Repeat steps 8 and 9 for the other side.

It's as simple as that! The hard part will be not eating it!

Cost: Candy canes - box of 10 costs £1 (x2)
                       Felt - 15p
           Other parts - Already on hand

Total cost: £2.15
Total time: 20 minutes plus drying time.

On a side note, I am currently working night shifts and, as a result, my sleeping pattern has been totally destroyed (It's currently just past 4am), so I apologise if my writing has not been up to standard this time, I will try to remember to do my write-ups during the day from now on. Thanks for reading!

Christmas on a Budget - DIY Lace Napkin Rings

Don't you just love Christmas Dinner? Everyone sitting around the table, dressed in their best, topped off with the silly paper hats from the crackers; which are, of course, mandatory. The effort made at christmas is never matched through the rest of the year. The best china, candles, who does those things day to day? Of course, it's all those little touches which make the day special. So today, we are making one of those special little touches to make your table unique.

Today, we are making napkin rings:

You will need: Some lace trim, cardboard toilet roll tubes, baking paper, scissors, PVA glue (make sure you get the kind that DRIES CLEAR), a paintbrush, some pins, a pot to pour your glue into, tape (not pictured), and this one could get messy, so you might want some newspaper to protect your surface.

Step 1: wrap your toilet roll tubes in the baking paper (shiny side out), and secure in place with tape.

Step 2: Prepare your lace. The trim I used (because I already had this, and didn't want to go out and buy extra when this would work), was a little too wide for the job. So I cut out the middle and used both outer edges for this project. You may not need to do this, depending on your lace.

With the middle taken out, and the pieces laid together, it now looked like this:

Step 3: Wrap your lace around the toilet roll tube and cut off the excess, leave a slight overlap though.

Step 4: Add a few pins to keep your lace in place.

Step 5: Generously paint your lace all over with the glue.

Step 6: When the lace is completely covered in a thick layer of glue, stand the tube on it's end and proceed to repeating the steps to make as many as you need.

Standing the tube upright like this will prevent it from sticking to anything as it dries.

Step 7: Leave to dry OVERNIGHT

Step 8: In the morning, when the glue is dry, take out the pins, slide the toilet roll tube out from the middle, and then use your fingers to gently pry the lace away from the baking paper.

The glue will dry hard and leave you with a nice, delicate looking, lace napkin ring. So easy, yet very effective!

Ready to set the table at Christmas!

Total cost: £0.00
Total time spent: 10 minutes per ring, plus overnight to dry.

Christmas on a Budget - DIY Button Ornaments

Here we go again folks, with a nice and simple, no sew project that would be a good one for the kids to help with.

Today, we are making these:

Fun, cute, and easy peasy!

For the Tree

You will need:
Green felt, 20 green buttons, strong glue, scissors, a small length of ribbon, and some things to decorate (I used some small yellow buttons, some nail decorations, and a star shaped button I managed to score from my Mother's button box). You will also need pliers or jewellery nippers to clip the shank off the back of your star button if necessary.

Step 1: arrange your buttons on the felt before you start, just to make sure they look right before you start to glue them down. Start with a row of 2, then 3, then 4 etc. The bottom row should be 6 buttons long.

When you are happy with your arrangement, it's time to get sticky!

Step 2: We are starting with the bottom line first. Draw a line of glue along your felt, the same length as 6 buttons.

Step 3: Place your row of 6 buttons onto the glue line.

Step 4: Draw another line of glue above this line, make it shorter than your first line as this is for 5 buttons. Place your buttons on the line.

Step 5: Continue adding lines of buttons, taking one button away for each line, until you are finished with a top row 2 buttons long.

Step 6: If your star shaped button has a shank, clip it off with your pliers, and then glue it to the top of your tree.

Step 7: Decorate your tree using your other buttons, or nail gems, or glitter... anything you like really. It's christmas, go nuts!

Step 8: Trim around the outside of your tree.

Step 9: Turn the tree over, and glue a loop of ribbon to the back.

Leave alone for a while so that the glue has time to dry, and that's your first one done!

Total cost: less than 50p
Total time spent: 10 minutes plus drying time.

For the Wreath

You will need: Green felt, green buttons, ribbon, scissors, glue, a marker pen, and something round to draw around (I used a candle, but a drinking glass would be fine)

Step 1: Draw around your candle/glass/whatever you are using, onto the felt and cut out the circle.

Step 2: fold your circle in half, and cut a semi-circle shape out. It doesn't need to be perfect.

Step 3: Open out your shape, you should have a ring of felt that looks like this:

Step 4: Add a line of glue around your ring, it looks better if you go further towards the inner edge of the ring.

Step 5: Place your buttons onto your glue line. I can't tell you how many you will need, it depends on the size of your buttons. When you place them, make sure that they very slightly overhang the inner edge of your ring.

Step 6: When the glue is dry enough, turn your wreath over, create a ring of felt as before, and glue it to the back of your wreath. This will strengthen it a little; after all, nobody likes a floppy wreath!

Step 7: Trim the felt for around the edge of your wreath, cutting as close to the buttons as you can.

Step 8: Working again with the front of your wreath, add a line of glue on top of your buttons, and add a second layer of buttons. DON'T line them up with your first layer, it looks so much better if you offset them!

Step 9: Tie a small length of ribbon into a bow and glue it to your wreath.

Step 10: Glue a loop of ribbon onto the back of your wreath.

Allow the glue to dry, and you're done with this one too!

Total cost: less than 50p
Total time spent: 10 minutes plus drying time.

Ready to hang as soon as the tree goes up.