Search Results for: sewing notions

HANGING YOUR NOTIONS WALL

We’ve gone over all of the tutorials for the embroidery hoop notions wall, now I’ll just give you a quick how-to for hanging it.

First, trace each piece onto newspaper and label them.  Locate the studs in your wall and make sure the wall hooks and the thread rack are on studs (these are heaviest).  Arrange the newspaper circles and tape in place with masking tape.  Nail directly above each circle, and hang the embroidery hoops.  Oh, and take down the newspaper!

It’s been so much fun sharing these tutorials with you!  I hope you actually take the time to put one up yourself, it’s completely worth it!

Sample Book – Sewing with Kids

This sample book is only an optional part of the sewing e-course, but it is completely worth it. It allows for practice with each technique before it’s attempt on an actual sewing project. This book will be a place to turn to, to see a physical sample of a technique as well as a simple description for future reference.

MATERIALS NEEDED

Sample book printout
Scrap fabric
Contrasting thread
Any notions indicated in the specific lessons (buttons, ribbon, etc.)

INSTRUCTIONS

Some samples will instruct you to sew directly on the paper that it is printed on; others will instruct you to create a sample and attach it to the corresponding sample book page.  For those samples, cut a small slit right above the template in the sample book, and slide a paperclip in place.  This paperclip is how you’re going to attach each sample to the sample page.

Hold all of your samples together in a binder to keep them organized and accessible.

CLICK HERE FOR THE SAMPLE BOOK PDF FILE

EMBROIDERY HOOP SHELF

There is only one truly sentimental item that I hang on to.  We move every six months or so from school, to work, and back again.  Because we always seem to be packing, I don’t like to keep more than I need, but my yellow spool is that something special.  If you’ve never read up about me, you may not know why Yellow Spool is named such.  I’ll give you a hint: it has to do with my husband, a pretty ring, and a big question.

It’s just a little something I like to stare at when I’m in a creative funk.  Do you have something small and sweet that you like to keep around?  Maybe you just have a neat spool or thimble of your own that you’d like to display?

MATERIALS NEEDED

2 or 3 embroidery hoops (all the same size)
wood glue
1 nail (if you’re displaying a spool of thread)

INSTRUCTIONS

Start with 2 or 3 embroidery hoops, all the same size.  The more hoops you use, the deeper the shelf will be.

For a standard shelf, skip this next step.  Because I keep a spool of thread on my shelf, I chose to nail through the bottom of the inner hoop on ONE embroidery hoop.  That nail would help keep the spool of thread from falling off of the shelf.

When you layer the shelf, the hoop with the nail should be either on top (for a 2-hoop shelf) or in the middle (for a 3-hoop shelf).  Before you glue the layers together, make sure the fasteners at the top of each hoop are loosened enough to be able to hang onto a nail.

Glue the sides of the bottom layer of the shelf.

Layer the next hoop on top and press.  Put a heavy book on top to “clamp” the glued pieces together.  Let it dry for several hours, according to the instructions on your wood glue.

If you would like to add another hoop for extra depth, just repeat.

If you remove your heavy book and notice that you maybe might have gone a little glue happy, not that I can relate… ahem, just use a blade to cut off the excess.  OR, you could skip a step, learn from my mistake, and go easy on the glue.  Apparently it still does it’s job even if you don’t plaster it on in heaping mounds, who’da thunk?

***NOTE: Someone expressed concern about the way I cut towards my fingers.  Bad habit, I know.  For safety reasons, cut with the blade moving away from your body***

Hang the shelf in place, and display your favorite things.

Believe it or not this is the last of the Notions Wall tutorials.  Has it felt endless?  Tomorrow I show you how to hang them and announce the winner of the Notions Wall Giveaway.

EMBROIDERY HOOP THREAD RACK

Before I put together my notions wall, I kept my thread in a divided container (like for beads).  It worked for my limited space; I could pack it up and put it away, but it was a pain in the kahootz.  Now that I have my thread all up at eye level, it’s so convenient to just grab and go.  Plus, it gives the wall that added “yup, these are my sewing things” feel.  One rack for my thread, another for my bobbins, and I’m set.  I will confess, having my thread displayed made me wish that spools were still made of wood, rather than plastic, but it is what it is.

MATERIALS NEEDED

Embroidery hoops (one for each thread rack)
1/8″ dowels
Wood glue
Blade

INSTRUCTIONS

Start by cutting your dowels down.  For my spools, I cut 3 1/4″ pieces.  For my bobbins, I cut 1 1/2″ pieces.  To start, just make an indentation with the blade all the way around the dowel, then snap.

I used 15 pieces for each rack, but depending on the size of your embroidery hoops you may want more or less.

The idea behind this tutorial is that you’re going to wedge the dowels in between the two layers of the embroidery hoop, and in order to do so, you’ll need to loosen the fastener at the top of the hoop as much as possible without screwing it all the way out.  This should leave you with enough space for the dowels.

Now it’s all just a matter of spacing the dowels correctly.  You’ll want to start by putting dowels on the top, bottom, and sides- think 12 o’clock, 3 o’clock, 6 o’clock, and 9 o’clock.

The spaces in between the dowels are going to be tighter, so you’ll want to put your next dowel in right next to one of the dowels you already had in place, and then slide it over.

Keep doing this until all of your dowels are in, spread around the hoop fairly evenly.  Then you can space them perfectly even.  The dowels on my spool rack are spaced 2″ apart, and the dowels on my bobbin rack are spaced 1 1/2″ apart.  Again, this will just depend on the size of embroidery hoop you got.  To figure out the spacing, measure the circumference of the hoop and divide it by the number of dowels you want to put in place.

Once the hoop is set up how you’d like it, set it upside down on some newspaper and place a small amount of wood glue at each joint.  Start with a small amount of glue, and if you decide you need more later, you can go back and re-glue it.

Let it sit for a few hours, according to the instructions on your wood glue.

Once the glue is dry, it should be strong enough to hang on the wall and dress with your spools and bobbins.

And they can easily be taken off of the wall to use at your sewing table any time – you know, if you’re working on a project that requires an obnoxious variation in thread color.

Just joining this series?  Find the other Notions Wall tutorials HERE.

I linked up here >>

EMBROIDERY HOOP WALL HOOKS

This is my favorite part of the notions wall.  I have two curious little girls, who somehow manage to find everything sharp and horrifying.  If they get into my thread, it’s a mess- if they get a hold of my shears or my seam ripper, it’s much more than that.  Having these wall hooks keeps those tools completely out of their reach when I’m not using them, and that’s something to feel good about.  Not only that, but it makes it near impossible to lose that cursed seam ripper…again.

MATERIALS NEEDED

1 large embroidery hoop (big enough to fit your tools inside)
Ceiling hooks

INSTRUCTIONS

Decide where you want the first hook, and screw it through both layers of the embroidery hoop as straight as possible.  I’m the wussiest of wusses, and I was able to do this by hand, so I’m sure the wood is soft enough for you to do the same!

The number of hooks you use will depend on how many things you want to hang in your embroidery hoop.

If you’re not sure how it will weigh out (especially with those heavy shears), just hold it in the air by the fastener at the top of the embroidery hoop to feel how it will balance and decide where to put the next hook.  In hindsight, I wish I had centered my shear hook more, but if I don’t tell people that it throws the balance a little bit, they don’t notice… so it’ll do.

 A few pointers for filling your wall hooks up:

I found a seam ripper that had a bamboo handle, and screwed an eye hook into the end (this, unlike screwing hooks into an embroidery hoop, requires more strength.  Thank you, husband of mine.)

And I love retractible measuring tapes, but they usually only come in neon colors (mine was lime green).  I used THIS tutorial by A Spoonful of Sugar to cover it, and then added a little loop on the end to hang from the hook.

When you hang this on your wall, be sure to nail it into a stud, because the tools can make it weigh more than the other parts of the notion wall.  Plus, hanging ANYTHING on an un-studded part of the wall is the eighth deadly sin, just ask my husband… he’ll give you an earful :)

See you tomorrow with yet another Notions Wall tutorial!

I linked up here >>