Felt Coffee Cup Sleeve

I don't recall where I saw something similar to this craft I am sharing today. Someone's blog, somewhere, at some point in time...I remember their design was different for sure, but the idea of a coffee cup sleeve for a mason jar is unabashedly the same. So if you are that blogger, and I gleaned that idea from you, please do drop me a note, so that I might acknowledge your wisdom here.

Hands. I believe they are for doing, for learning, and for creating. I feel blessed, and lucky, to possess two that work well. Each day I try to do as much with them as I can in anticipation of the time that they tire and will want to work no more.

What is more amazing to me is how baby hands develop. Fat fingers start out slow and clumsy. Aiming and grasping are tiresome and challenging tasks. Accuracy and firmness of grasp aren't yet refined. The delicate is smooshed. The thin is impossible to lift. And then fingers and hands learn. They get stronger, agile, and adventurous.

Hands and fingers are personifications of personality I believe. My mother's family all had the same hands. They all looked the alike. To this day, I have to think twice when I call my Aunt and just be sure I am not calling my mother. I look at my boys and they have sturdy hands, with wide fingers and broad palms. My little girl has delicate hands, with long slender fingers. And her hands are the perfect size to hold these mason jars.

This sleeve pattern fits a 16 oz, pint sized, wide mouth mason jar. I tested this sleeve around the thick glass mason jar filled with boiling water and the felt fabric aptly insulated my tender fingers and the glass proudly withstood the high temperature.

Materials

• Felt in two contrasting colors (I used 100% wool felt found here. The regular craft store poly-blend will do just fine too, or you can use a felted wool sweater deconstructed.)
• Cotton embroidery thread in complementary color (I used regular DMC floss in ECRU)
• Paper scissors
• Fabric scissors
• Pen
• A simple sewing needle
• Sewing machine and matching thread is optional
• Printed Felt Coffee Cup Sleeve Pattern (download here)
• Wide mouth mason jar--16 oz size 

How To

1. Download and print out Felt Coffee Cup Sleeve pattern.

2. Cut out the pattern along solid lines with a paper scissors. Lay the pattern on the felt fabric color that will be on top and cut away. Trace the hand cut-outs with a pen.

3. Cut the top felt fabric along the pen lines with a fabric scissors. You can turn over the cut out fabric if there is still pen lines that show.

4. Lay pattern on the felt fabric color that will be the bottom layer and will show through. (In this case the red felt.) Trace around the perimeter of the pattern and cut it out. This second felt piece should be almost rectangle and solid.

5. Overlay the layers of felt fabric and begin stitching. (The layer with the cut outs should top the rectangle solid layer.)

6. Use a running stitch and stitch around the felt cut outs.

Note: I hid my beginning and ending knots between the layers of felt. Edge stitching around the perimeter of the sleeve later will hide everything nicely.

 

7. Stitch around the perimeter edge of the sleeve with a sewing machine, or hand stitch.

8. Pre-fit the sleeve around the mason jar and make sure the edges come together. (If there is a small gap don't worry, the felt will stretch a bit and the edges will come together.) Whip stitch the edges together with embroidery floss so that they lay flush, without overlapping.

9. Now brew your favorite cup of coffee, or tea in my case, slip the sleeve around the mason jar and pour yourself a cup and enjoy.

Outtakes:
This is what happened during our first shoot...little fat adventurous baby hands happened...

Spring Chick Stenciled Baby Tee - Tutorial

Cute round tummies deserve a little spring time adornment. Like say, a cute t-shirt motif that when stretched in the horizontal direction becomes even more cute.

Spring time is on my mind as winter wanes in these parts. Tornadoes in the mid-west, and 70 degree weather here has me wondering what happened to the snowy days of winters past. Lent is here and it is a time for reflection, prayer and penance inside this spirit of mine. I am thinking of Easter and how glad I'll be to see the end of this 40 day ritual of intense personal scrutiny. Not a season I love really. But truly I feel better at the end of it all. Refreshed. Renewed. And ready to meet what is next with hope and openness. I guess that is what Lent, and spring, are about. A new beginning.

And so, I was daydreaming of what reminds me of spring and I thought of little chicks hatching. We had that incubator when I was in grade school. The heat lamp hung low kept those little eggs warm nested in that fresh bed of piney wood shavings. My classmates and I were equally delighted when those tiny new beings finally poked their beaks through their shells and came out into our world. Wet, frumpy, matted, and perhaps not quite as round as the one I pictured above, those tiny little chicks were so very adorably cute.

As I sat in front of the TV watching the Food Network last night, I sketched a couple of chicks. And I've uploaded my favorite draft here.

I turned the sketch into a stencil and created a baby tee for Pie Pie. In all truth, Little Miss can wear this one too with her petite stature. It is for a 24 month-old after-all. It is a bit big on Pie Pie and he kept on moving away from the shot, so these are the best modeled poses I got.

This stencil craft is super easy to create, pretty economical, and very cute. Though, maybe not as cute as the chubby baby cheeks pictured below.

Materials

• (1) Baby t-shirt (can also be a onesie, or a long-sleeved t-shirt. What ever you desire. The one pictured here is a 24 month size, but you can size yours to fit.)
• Fabric paint (I used Folk Art Fabric Paint in #4419 Thicket)
• Small sponge (you can use a regular stencil "brush" or a small sponge. I just took a scissors and snipped a regular dish sponge in quarters and used that.)
• Freezer paper
• Iron + ironing board
• Piece of cardboard large enough to fit inside the body of the shirt
• Pencil
• X-acto knife + old magazine to cut on
• Chick picture download here and scroll down

How To


1. Download and print on regular computer paper this chick sketch. Yes, it is for you, and it's for free.


2. Overlay a piece of freezer paper on top of the sketch print and trace the image onto the paper side with a pencil. (Place freezer paper plastic side down on the print.)


3. Place freezer paper on top of the old magazine and with an X-acto knife cut out the image along the traced lines. Go slow and pay attention to detail. After, erase the extra pencil lines.


4. Place a piece of cardboard inside the body of the shirt. Insert the cardboard from the waist end and make sure the cardboard is wide enough to stretch the fabric of the shirt horizontally just slightly. With a hot dry iron (I set mine on the polyester setting and turned off the steam) iron the freezer paper onto the front of the shirt. Pay particular attention to the edges and make sure these are firmly ironed on. If you'd like, cut a very small circle of freezer paper and iron this on to the shirt to place the eye of the chick.


5. With a just damp sponge (not wet here), apply the fabric paint to the t-shirt through the stencil. Dab the sponge in the paint and then dab the t-shirt fabric firmly to push the paint into the fabric. Make sure that the entire surface is covered. Do not remove the freezer paper stencil and set the shirt aside to dry completely.


6. When the paint is dry, carefully remove the paper stencil and set the fabric paint according to the directions on the bottle. Put the tee on your little guy or gal, and start trying to snap those photos!

Outtakes


Can't see the front of the shirt!


Really can't see the front of the shirt.


Okay, can't even see the model now. Photo shoot, that's a wrap.

Inspiration
The Snooty Bird Walk by Vintage Green Creations
Goody Bags for Spring Chickens by Country Living

More birthdays!

My wonderful husband's birthday was last week. He has now dipped into that mid-thirties phase of life. He is dipping gracefully I'd say. (I don't think he'd mind my mentioning that here.) In between Little Miss' birthday, Mini Mister's half birthday, picking up the pieces of the holiday season, and getting the new year going, I put together a birthday celebration plan!

It is difficult enough to buy presents for men. My guy doesn't really need anything. Nor does he really have any specific obsessive hobbies to speak of. So what is a wife to do?

Lately I've been doing a lot of nothing for those special celebratory occasions. I've heard from countless, empathetic, sympathetic, and well-knowing women that I do have three legitimate distractions that keep me from planning and executing a well-thought-out celebration...but still. He is the reason I am who I am today. He is the reason I celebrate each day, my life, my family, my creative side, my doer side, and me just as me. He deserves true celebration, a congratulations, and a loving pat on the back.

So, I did some research. I just can't help myself but think it over beforehand, and then over again. I searched the internet for "gifts for guys," "gifts for men," and "gifts for him." Luckily, now on the heels of the giving holiday season and gift giving tips are still plentiful! (Can I just say, that there are some pretty darn talented crafty guys out there, making some neat stuff! Thanks guys for so much inspiration and tips on how to make stuff for guys!)

And I did it. I still can't believe I did it. I actually put together a list of 35 gifts for a 35th birthday Top Secret Plan. (That's what I called it in code. I'd say, "I am working on your "Top Secret!")

These gifts were to be for him. And largely him only. No pilfering, messing up, using up, or wasting by the rest of us. They had to be gifts in and of themselves. No coupons for car-washes during the summer months because...I am not into washing the mini-van. These are a nice thought, but they don't get redeemed. At least not in this house. And these gifts had to not require too much pre-schooler participation. Their enthusiasm waxes and wanes and many times the project never gets finished. So, I came up with 35 things, that were presents he'd like, for him, and didn't require too much kid participation or cash.

Wanna hear what I came up with?

1. picture calendar
2. cake
3. watercolor drawing
4. work-out shirts
5. iTunes gift card
6. personal nail care set
7. picture magnets for fridge at work
8. chai tea mix
9. special beers
10. hand-made iPad case
11. belt hanger
12. custom cuff links
13. painted kids art mugs
14. sustainable house picture framed (we've always wanted to live in a sustainable home)
15. hand sewn charger cord pouches

Source: flickr.com via Abbie on Pinterest

16. 2 small felted birds wedded together
17. personalized mouse pad
18. flavored coffee
19. homemade hot chocolate mix with homemade marshmallows
20. spice tea mix
21. pocket knife
22. Johns Hopkins flip flops
23. flannel pj pants
24. key holder for back-pack
25. sundae topping sampler
26. pedi egg pouch
27. homemade grill spice sampler
28. car magazine subscription
29. Montessori education magazine subscription
30. e-tip gloves
31. hot sauce variety pack
32. Solio Bolt solar charger
33. chocolates
34. handpainted framed art - made by the kids
35. comb - that cannot be stolen by the kids

Some of these are big. Some are small. Some are hand-made, some are store-bought. But all in all, I think this what-to-give-your-guy-list isn't too shabby. (I linked a couple of the items to their DIY instructional page.)

So...did I manage to make/gather/give all 35 gifts? No. Hey! I have three children at two different co-operative pre-schools, and the third one is teething. We are on the road commuting 10 hours a week, and I don't even work outside the home! I didn't complete 35, but that is OK.

I did complete 24. This was a supreme exercise in letting go for me. Nevertheless the organizer in me got the best part. How did I give my guy 24 gifts? I'll write about that next!

Starting

Sometimes there is a situation that warrants a new start. I had decided to stop blogging. It is a lot of time and energy to organize your life around posts. "What can I do today that can be written up as an interesting blog post?" "Did I get that shot?" Too much time, not enough flow. Not enough of me.

It seemed contrived. It seemed like trying. It seemed like stress.

Here I hope to start new. Start again without expectations. Start with humility. Start with the hope that I can put down on virtual paper that which strikes me, that which makes me pause, and that which I love. So that I can remember, reflect, and give thanks.

I am a veteran blogger. I am a wife to a wonderful husband truly is a partner. I am a mother to three wonderful children. I am a contributor to our school communities, to our church community and our mom's group community. I am a daughter, a sister, a neice, and a friend. I am a knitter, a cook, a baker, a housekeeper, a sewer, a crafter, a creator, and a planner. I am living life, my life.