Stocking fillers- pleated headbands

Headbands are so cute and versatile. I wore one constantly when I was on holiday in Thailand and Cambodia as they keep your hair off your head in the humidity and hide unsightly unwashed hair. Awesome. I think they would make cute and customisable stocking fillers for Christmas too.

Before recently I had only ever made a couple of headbands in my time and they have been mostly for babies like this one:

I wrote a short tutorial for making a yo yo flower headband if you'd like to have a go at this one. So quick an easy!

In the lead up to my first market stall I was making lots of cosmetic bags in sweet vintage inspired fabrics and realised those same prints would look really cute as a headband. So I enlisted the help of the "google brothers" to find a suitable tutorial. There were heaps out there but my favourite was this pleated headband tutorial by Jess from Craftiness is not Optional (awesome blog by the way, check it out!).

It was super easy and they were really fun to make. Here are some pics:

Pleated headbands

You could whip up a bunch really easily and make them Christmassy with the right fabric and add ons like mini white pom poms, buttons or even silver bells! Cute.

Fun little stocking fillers! Yay.



attaching a flap to a zippered purse

I love making little zippered purses and tend to make more of them than anything else because they are pretty easy and the variations are endless.

I have always liked those cute little clutches which have a flap covering the zipped section and thought I would have a go at making one. I had a bit of a think about it and decided there were two ways I could try to attach the flap. I could either sew it as a layer attached to the zipper, or sew the completed flap to the outside fabric.

The first attempt I made was for a vintage style clutch. here is a picture so you can visualise the process a little better:

Outside of clutch

inside of clutch

To attach the flap in this example, I sewed it to the zipper tape at the same time I sewed the lining and outside fabric to it, so it's caught between the layers.

 

I was fairly happy with how it turned out but it was a little fiddly to put together as the parts didn't line up perfectly (self devised pattern = no guarentees). Overall I love this little clutch and would definitely use this method again.

Next time I made a little zipped coin purse I decided to try a different approach- to make the flap for the purse and attach it to the top of the back fabric piece before sewing it to the zipper tape. In some ways this was easier as you could attach the flap to the back piece before sewing it to the zipper tape and there was less bulk in the zipper tape, but the flap doesn't sit perfectly unless the snap is there to hold it in place.

Here are some pics of the purse for you to see for yourself:

Coin purse using kokka ballerina fabric

back of coin purse

inside

While this method worked quite well, I think the other way is more functional and I'd be more likely to use it again in the future. 

I think I have one more method to try which I'll write about when I get around to it. In the meantime, if you have any suggestions I'd love to hear about it!

xx

Linking up here!

Gorgeous accessories from madeit.com

For all you lovely non-Australian readers out there, we have our very own etsy type online shop here in oz called madeit which stocks a huge array of beautiful handmade things. It's a nice feeling being able to support fellow crafters in Oz and by using Madeit we can avoid the sometimes large postage price for shipping things to our far-flung country.

Here are some cute accessories that have caught my eye on Madeit today. Click on each pic to follow the link.



Sophie & Jack Vintage inspired bobby pin set

 These gorgeous hairclips from Sophie & Jack are so sweet. I love cabuchons and these colours are my favourites.



Sophie & Jack, English rose hair elastic

 I adore the fabric on these button hair ties from Sophie & Jack too. So darling, I wish I was young enough to have pigtails or plaits so I could wear these everyday without getting mocked at work. :)





Little Peanut Rose ring

 This beautiful resin ring is gorgeous. Sigh, I need more money. :)



Citrus Pop Vintage inspired necklace

 More cabuchons and cuteness. I am sensing a theme today....I'm fairly predictable sometimes....!

These little accessories are so sweet and I would recommend anyone go and check out Madeit for lovely handmade things from talented Australians.

Now, to put in an early birthday present order from me to me.....