Thursday, June 24, 2010

Reclaiming Naptime: Patriotic Pom-poms

I've been very lucky lately and granted couple of days this past week with ALL 3 kids napping (well, Elyette was having "quiet" time) at the SAME time!!! Did I get the laundry folded or clean the bathrooms... NAH! I blew off the responsible thing and CREATED instead. And this time even you get to benefit from my hour of freedom.

I give you:

PATRIOTIC POM-POMS

Super easy, fast, and cheap... free actually(just use scraps). Now, obviously you can use any colors you want, but we made our for the 4th of July cause we thought they resembled fireworks.

Make them any size and fullness you'd like and put them on hair clips, headbands, T-shirts, flip flops, bags, ANYTHING.




Here's how to make 'em:

Materials:
-Scrap fabric (you don't need much)
-Scissors
-Thread

Yep, that's it!

Step 1: Select Fabric

You can use any old fabric that won't horribly unravel on you. I used a lightweight denim (blue), quilter's cotton and broadcloth (red), and a linen blend- from an old skirt (white). Next time I think I might try to make some from an old T-shirt.

Step 2: Cut Strips
Cut 1/2" strips on the bias* however long you can. The bias is basically on the diagonal where the there is the most stretch. This makes it so that if and when the fabric frays on the edges it will do so uniformly on either side and won't twist (we do want some fraying for interest and character).

*You can also cut strips straight on the selvage (its the side that doesn't fray much) if you want a little twisting action (but you may want to fray check the tips- the edge that isn't on the selvage if you do it this way)

Step 3: Wrapping
Once you have all your strips cut, begin wrapping them around a stable flat object (like a notecard) that is about the width you'd like you pom-pom to be. For example, I used a 5" wide tupperware lid for my largest one and 3 1/2" wide notepad for my slightly smaller ones.
If you are mixing fabrics like I did, alternate them as you warp them on. You strips of fabric are likely all different lengths and may not wrap many time. Don't worry about that. Just try to hold them all together as you wrap. You can trim it up later.

Step 4: Tie it off

After wrapping as many strips as you'd like for fullness its time to tie it up in the center. Thread a needle. At least double up the thread, I would recommend quadrupling it for more strength, or use a thicker floss. Before removing the wrapped strips, tightly wrap the thread around one side of the strip bundle in the center and tie (this will help keep it from falling apart when you pull it off). Gently slide the whole bundle off the object you wrapped it around. As tightly as you possibly can, wrap the remaining thread around the center of your bundle and tie off.

Step 5: Cut Loops
Once secured, take your scissors and cut the loops (several at a time works fine). Trim it up and even it out as much as you'd like and VIOLA, a pom-pom.

Step 6: Wet and Dry (optional)
They're cute without this step, so its up to you... First, spray the pom-pom with water to dampen it. Then throw it in the dryer (with other things if possible, so it doesn't flatten oddly). Promptly remove from dryer when done. This with fray up the edges and give a little interest to the fabric. I personally liked this "messy" look and ended up doing it to all of my pom-poms.

Attach pom poms to whatever you'd like. Enjoy!

4 comments:

Sarah Larsen said...

I love these! So cute and patriotic!

SSToone said...

Can you please open an Etsy store already? :) Or at least take orders from friends via Paypal or something?! You are so talented!

Grant, Sarah, Edwin, and Leland said...

I love all your posts, they are so fun. I especially like seeing Jack in tights.

claire said...

Adorable craft & adorable little lady :)