Little Crafts: yarn octopus

Have you ever made a yarn octopus? I remember making these when I was a little girl. I haven’t seen one in years and recently saw one on Martha Stewart’s Craft of the Day.

Etceteras: braid and bun yarn wreath

Have you seen all the pretty yarn wreaths popping up all over the blog world lately? The yarn is neatly wound around a wreath form and other embellishments are added.

I wanted to make a yarn wreath but I didn’t have a wreath form. So I improvised and braided my yarn to form the wreath.

Here’s how I made this wreath:

• Make a wreath form out of wire or cardboard.
• Cut long strands of yarn. My strands were about 4 feet long and I used about 20 strands in each part of the braid (total 60 strands).
• Tie off the top of your strands and braid.
• Once the braid is long enough tie off the bottom of the braid – leave the extra yarn hanging from the braid.
• Form a circle and tie the back side of the braid to your wreath form.
• Leave the left over yarn tail hanging or form a “bun” to make a nest. Secure with dabs of glue.
• Wrap yarn around small decorative eggs and glue into the nest.

 

If you have small amounts of leftover yarn, make a multi-colored wreath. A braid and bun wreath is a great way to use up yarn… or practice hairstyling. 

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This project is linked at the following:

                          

Inspired by Charm

And other link parties that I participate can be found here.

Upcycling: t-shirt yarn braided basket

I had so much fun making t-shirt yarn coasters that I couldn’t stop. I cut up more t-shirts and kept braiding.

I noticed when I made the coasters that the last row wanted to curl up. That inspired me to try to make a basket.

For this t-shirt yarn, I only had a white t-shirt. I added a strand of blue yarn into the braid to add some color and texture. You can learn how to make the t-shirt yarn on my previous t-shirt coaster post.

I’ve seen woven bowls that are amazing. I think some are so tightly woven that they can hold water. My bowl isn’t quite the grand basket that I envisioned but I like to think of the imperfections as “charming”. This was definitely a little trickier than making the coasters.

I think I have t-shirt yarn out of my system for awhile… the t-shirt yarn rug will have to wait.

Upcycling: t-shirt yarn braided coasters

Have you ever heard of t-shirt yarn? Recently, I came across a few projects that used old t-shirts cut up into strips and used as yarn. I may try that someday, but in the meantime, I decided to use the t-shirts and make coasters.

To make these coasters, all you need are old t-shirts and a needle and thread.

Cut up the t-shirts into strips by cutting the t-shirt from the bottom into a continuous circle until you have a desired length. The strips for these coasters were approximately 1 yard.

Braid the strips and tie off with thread.

Roll the braid into a circle and stitch the bottom side together. Tuck the end under the bottom side and stitch securely.

Note:  If you want to knit or crochet with the t-shirt yarn pull your strips lengthwise and they will form tubes resembling yarn. It’s amazing – try it.

If you have the time, t-shirts and patience, you can keep the circle going and make a rug.

I don’t have any of the above so I'm stopping at coasters.




This project is linked at the following:
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