craft from the stash handmade holiday gift guide: patterned paper

Ahhh, paper.  It's our first love in the world of crafting.  Even as we're lured in this direction and that by lovely fabric and photoshop, we both compulsively still buy beautiful paper at every chance.  Which means that our paper stashes are abounding with goodness that needs to be put to good use!  We've scoured the internet finding ways to transform a pile of patterned paper into holiday decorations and gifts and packaging... Enjoy!

I love this patterned paper bunting by geninne's art blog... it could double as garland for your Christmas tree as well!

Make a set of wine charms using patterned paper with this tutorial by deep fried kudzu.

This advent calendar by t matthews fine art is fantastic!  You just print the pyramid template onto the back of your patterned paper and make some tags...

Make a pattterned paper landscape with martha.

Make paper russian nesting dolls with zakka life.

These paper covered jar lids and pencils (tutorials at design*sponge) delight my heart!

Use patterned paper to make some cards, then use more patterned paper to make a cardbox (tutorial for the cardbox by splitcoaststampers).

**All images from websites listed.

friday fun finds: girly necklaces

Looking for some anthropologie-esque necklaces for your best friend or sister (or anyone who loves accessories)?  Add these gems from the antiquated pearl to your list... I love the ruffles, the silk, the old world-y, layered fabulousness.  Lovely!

And if that isn't enough, check out disney's ruffles and stuff blog as well... tutorials and ideas and more ruffles!

stash crafted pom pom wreath ornament

I feel like we've been talking pom poms for weeks (throw a couple giveaways and a holiday into the blog schedule and it's gets crazy... wild, I tell you).  I promise, this is the end of my posts raving about pom pom makers.  I'm asking for a yoyo maker for Christmas as well as some other contraption I saw in Martha Stewart last month (a knitwit or something?), so hopefully I'll have new toys to be excited about soon.  But that's besides the point.

For today's stash crafted ornament, we're making... pom pom wreaths!  Easy, fun, and cute.

You'll need:

-a pom pom maker

-yarn

-a needle and thread

1. Make a pile of pom poms.  I used 8 big ones and three little ones.  Also make a braided strand (it'll be your hanger later...).

2. String a needle and thread through all eight big pom poms until you have a string of pom poms.

3. Loop the needle and thread to connect the two ends of your pom pom train.  You should have a wreath shape (otherwise known as a circle) now.

4. Stitch your three mini pom poms in down at the place where bows belong on a wreath (which, I realize, could be anywhere depending on your preference... I chose the lower right hand corner).  Also stitch your braided strand to the top part of your wreath so it can be your hanger.

5. That's it!  Give this bit of pom pom-y goodness to a friend and spread some holiday cheer.

december giveaway: bejeweled medallion personalized stationary

I bet you know someone who could use a set of fabulous, bejeweled, personalized stationary, even after Christmas.  Maybe even you?  This is your chance to win a pack of one of our most popular personalized stationary designs- bejeweled medallions!  I know it looks pretty darn fantastic in the pictures- trust me, it's even better in person.

As always, there are three ways to enter this giveaway (it ends December 31st at midnight, so enter before then!):
1. Leave a comment.  Tell us who you would personalize this stationary for if you won.

2. Become a follower of our blog. We'll count any new blog followers from today forward.
3. Do a little write up about this card giveaway on your blog and leave a link to it in the comments. As always, extra fabulous write-ups can translate into a bonus chance to win.


Good luck, friends!

ruffle dress winner!

Even though these little dresses are high-maintenance as can be (I blame the ruffles... but then, they're just so yummy, so what can you do?), I just love them.  I can't wait to make one for...

Congratulations! Email us at kojodesigns!AT!hotmail!DOT!com with your size and color choices. :)

Stay tuned for December's giveaway coming up tomorrow...

kojotutorial: pom pom tree of delight

Piles of pom poms are delightful in and of themselves. A pom pom tree, then, takes the fuzzy, cozy-ness to the next level of holiday goodness.


As a side note, sometimes when I'm crafting, I think a trip to the dollar store is worth the extra time and, well, dollar. This is one of those cases.  You could craft yourself a cone shape as your pom pom tree base easily enough.  But since your friendly neighborhood dollar store has all sorts of cone-shaped Christmas decor just waiting to be covered in pom poms, I'd go with that.  I did go with that, actually.

Also, I should mention that this tutorial is part of the Kojodesigns Craft from the Stash Handmade Holiday Gift Guide.


To make a pom-pom-y tree of delight, you'll need:
-one dollar store cone
-yarn (I used less than a skein of yarn to make my pom poms)
-a pom pom maker (I used about 45 medium sized pom poms)

-a needle and thread (the thread should match your pom pom color)

1. Make a whole pile of pom poms (like I said, 45-ish).

2. Stitch two lines of pom poms on opposite sides of your cone-tree.

3. Fill in each triangular gap with the rest of your pom poms (still stitching those babies on with your needle and thread).

4. Incorporate this holiday delight into your decor... mine is currently gracing our table in a hurricane lamp.  Glory.  Or more accurately- delight.

***Also, if you haven't entered this month's ruffle dress giveaway, be sure to do so before midnight tonight.  After the giveaway winner is announced, and after december's grand giveaway is revealed, it'll be back to stash crafting and yarn and handmade holidays... Good luck!


***Sorry... one more thing... We're doing a Kojodesigns Holiday Sparkle promotion in a few days that is invitation only. If you'd like to be added to that list (and receive the promotional codes), send your email to kojodesigns!AT!hotmail.com with the subject line, "holiday promotion."

kojotutorial: how to use a pom pom maker

After several email inquires about where to find the magical pom pom maker (the ones I use are manufactured by clover) and how to use it, I thought I'd make a quick tutorial for y'all. That way you're good and ready to make all of those lovely little pom pom-y gems from last week and prepped for the tutorials coming over the next couple days as well.

To make a perfect pom pom, you'll need:

-a pom pom maker (I found mine at Hobby Lobby... I've seen them at Michael's and JoAnn's as well. If you know of another place to find these babies, would you let us know in the comments? Also, I have 5 different pom pom makers and they have all been useful for various projects.  However, the ones I seem to use the most came in the 'medium' package- the pom pom makers in that package are light yellow and light pink).

-yarn

-scissors

1. Open half of your pom pom maker.

2. Start winding yarn around the open half of your pom maker. Keep winding until the entire side is covered with wound yarn.

3. Open the other half of the pom pom maker and cover it in yarn as well.

4. There's a groove down the center of each side. Using that as your guide, cut the yarn down the middle of both sides.

5. Slip a piece of yarn (maybe 6" or so) in the groove. Tie off your pom pom.

6. Remove the pom pom maker.

7. Marvel. Put pom poms on everything you can think of... packages and wine bags.  Use these gems to make scarves and wreaths (and later this week pom pom trees and pom pom ornaments).  Lovely!

leftover turkey yummyness

I maybe love turkey leftovers even more than I love turkey the first time around... especially when they're used to make this perfectly, fabulously delicious turkey tortilla soup (a loose interpretation of Rachael Ray's tortilla soup). The secret ingredient is a couple of handfuls of tortilla chips that are pureed with some of the soup broth (Jordi's genius addition).

If you have some leftover turkey just waiting to be transformed into deliciousness, make yourself some of this tasty goodness today.

Ingredients:
3 cups turkey stock
1 lb. leftover turkey, shredded
1 bay leaf
1 T extra virgin olive oil
4 slices bacon, cooked and chopped (optional, but good)
1 onion
4 cloves garlic
1 small can green chilies (or four whole green chiles, chopped)
2 cans rotel (or southwest mix tomatoes), including liquid
salt (to taste)

for garnish:
sliced avocado
chopped cilantro
shredded mozzarella or cheddar cheese
sour cream
tortilla chips (reserve 2 handfuls for soup)
lime wedges

1) heat oil in stockpot, add onions and garlic and saute until tender. add can of tomatoes and green chiles and let simmer 5-7 minutes

2) add stock, turkey, bacon, bay leaf and salt. bring to a boil, reduce heat and let simmer for 15-20 minutes

3) while soup is simmering, ladle one cup of broth into a blender, add two large handfuls of tortilla chips and puree until smooth. add mixture back to the soup.

4) garnish and enjoy!

thankful

the pre-turkey table runner

I'm sitting at our now-clean table, looking at our butcher paper table runner. There are stains here and there hinting at the yummy food that was consumed yesterday and scribbles of what people are thankful for here and there as well.

My favorites? Matt (whose wife is nine months pregnant) is thankful for epidurals. Drew is thankful for carnivores. My dad is thankful for The Dogs When They're Good. And every single one of us wrote something about being thankful for their family & loved ones.

I love this day, y'all... I love having a whole holiday devoted to pausing and being thankful. Our lives are full to the place of overflowing and I love having the chance to remember that and thank the Lord for it.

Oh, and the grand plans for yesterday's decor went just splendidly. We didn't make the caramel apple turkeys, but otherwise everything was just as we'd envisioned... Tutorials for the pompom tree and the chalkboard napkin rings to come.

Happy black friday, y'all!

holiday hostessing: thanksgiving table ideas

Since we don't live in the same town, Jordi and I take every opportunity we get to put together showers, dinners, event decor, etc. This Thanksgiving is no exception... we're cooking up several fabulous ideas for the Thanksgiving dinner table decor that we've been charged with (our hubbies are in charge of smoking the turkey- funny, right?).

Our plan?

Palette: brown, coral, yellow and white

We saw some caramel apple turkeys at rocky mountain chocolate factory that we're going to try to replicate.

These droolworthy chalkboard napkin rings are no longer available at the MoMA store... we're trying to cook up something similar... If we succeed, they'll function as napkin rings and placecards in one. And we'll show you how to make them.

Cone trees in our color palette (including a pom pom tree that we can't wait to show you!) will be the stars of the centerpiece.

A Happy Thanksgiving banner using the same patterned paper as we used for the cone trees.

An our favorite part? A table runner made from butcher paper... We'll have crayons available so guests can write things that they're thankful for right on the table runner.

Of course, we'll show you how it all turned out later this week... wishing you a thanksgiving full of delicious food and fabulous company... happy holidays to our American readers!

craft from the stash handmade holiday gift guide: yarn

When my best friend and I got mono in college, we skipped a lot of class, watched Survivor religiously (it was the very beginning of reality tv and survivor's first or second season... oh how we lived for Thursday nights...) and both learned to crochet. I've used this skill intermittently since that fateful winter 10ish years ago... and while I don't have any crochet projects on my "to make" list this year, I do have a drawer full of yarn just waiting to be put to good use!

I should warn you beforehand that this list will be heavy on the pom pom crafts. You probably guessed that it'd be so. They're just so lovely, those pom poms. Enjoy!

If your lovebug ever sends you flowers, you probably have a stash of standard "flower store vases" in a cupboard somewhere like I do. Use this tutorial by Craft to transform those babies into fabulous, yarn-covered vases.

This pom pom wreath by bleubird vintage is FABULOUS! In fact, our stash crafted yarn depleting project was inspired by this very wreath... more on that to come...

These pom pom ornaments by Heart Handmade are super simple... you could also use them as accents on your wrapped packages.

Looking for an alternative to knitting a scarf? This pom pom-y scarf is super cute (tutorial at cathie filian)

Burke will definitely be receiving one a pom-pom elmo for Christmas (the tutorial at craft passion shows you how to make a cookie monster as well!). You could also make these into ornaments for the elmo and cookie monster fans in your life.

This knitted french press cover (tutorial at design*sponge) would suit many of those aforementioned difficult-to-craft-for guys on my list.

Our stash crafted yarn ornament, a how-to-use-a-pompom-maker tutorial and another pompom (wreath inspired) goodie will be up later this week... though they might be interrupted by Thanksgiving hostessing related postings. In any case, have fun depleting your yarn supply using today's tutorials, but save a little for what's to come. It'll be worth it, I promise.

pretty things

You know that feeling when something great unexpectedly happens? Like finding a stowaway five dollar bill in the pocket of your jeans or checking out at a cash register and seeing that something is cheaper than you thought?

Or, in my case a few days ago, discovering a gift card from last Christmas that I hadn't used yet! And then using that very gift card to buy the brooches that I've been wanting to make into Juju charms for the last month...

I love that feeling, y'all.

All week, I've been in the mood for pretty and ruffle-y and luxe and sparkly... Besides my newly sparkly, fabulously bejeweled shoes, here are some pretty things delighting my heart today:

My new sweater from anthropologie (it's an early birthday present)... gorgeous, isn't it? I just love the embroidery and the cozy wool and the gorgeous botanical flowers. Chances are if you see me this week, I'll be wearing it... Let me know if I begin to stink, ok?

Ruffles and pom-poms on my almost-finished stocking... I know that ruffles won't always be as in vogue as they are now, and I know that in a few years I'll want to make new myself a less ruffled stocking (and at that time I will), but for now, I am loving loving LOVING the frilly goodness of my nearly-done stocking. And just so you know, Adam's and Burke's stockings don't have ruffles on them... Adam was a bit anxious when he saw the explosion of ruffles on mine, so in case you shared his concern, be reassured- theirs are very manly.

Another Craft from the Stash Handmade Holiday Gift Guide is up for tomorrow... until then, any pretty things that are delighting your heart?

kojotutorial: super simple felted wool wine bag

Have y'all been into Pottery Barn lately? Currently, nestled in with their fabulous decor and table settings and furniture, they have the most fantastic wine bags. As I was admiring one of these lovelies earlier this week (it was furry... and had pom poms... and was $8.00 unfortunately), my felted sweater collection flashed before my eyes. More specifically, the sleeves of my felted sweater collection flashed before my eyes... these lovely tubes of wool are felt-y and cozy looking and already almost the perfect shape for a wine bag. A few stitches and a pom pom tie and a wine bag could be fairly easily fashioned, no?

And so I set to work.... Maybe it shouldn't be called work when you sew one line and make a couple slits. But the end result is a perfectly Christmas-y wine bag that rivals our 10-minute drawstring wine bag in simplicity. Enough said.

To make a wine bag from a felted sweater sleeve, you'll need:
-a sleeve of a felted sweater
-yarn or ribbon (maybe a yard, maybe a little less, depends how much you like big bows)
-sewing machine (optional)
-pom pom maker (not optional- y'all know my opinions on this)

1. Turn the sweater sleeve inside out and stitch the bottom opening (not the cuff, the other end) closed. You could do this by hand pretty easily if you don't want to bust out your sewing machine.

2. Make little slits near the top of your 'wine bag.' Make two slits if you're using the pom-poms-on-a-string as your drawstring and four slits if you're using regular ol' ribbon as your drawstring.

3a. To use yarn-with-pom-poms as a drawstring, make a length of yarn with pom-poms on each end using your pom pom maker. String a little loop through your slits. Circle that loop around the 'neck' of your wine bottle.

3b. To use ribbon as a drawstring, push the ribbon through the first slit, around the wine bag, into the fourth slit. Then bring the two ends of ribbon back through slits #2 and 3 and tie in a bow.

4. Fill your cozy felted wool lovely with a yummy bottle of wine! Fabulous. And not $8.00! Even more fabulous.

***Shared at it's so very creative monday and a soft place to land DIY day.

tree skirt tutorial

While kirsti struggles with stockings each Christmas, the craft I keep meaning to make but never getting around to is a tree skirt. This struggle is poignant that I almost broke down and bought one at Target on boxing day last year. But I didn't and my quest for a handmade tree skirt continues.

This tree skirt tutorial by chickpea studios is right up my alley... easy, inexpensive, felt-y... love it!

stash crafted felted wool monogram ornament

Y'all know how I'm a sucker for monograms... and ornaments... so that makes this the perfect craft for me (and all you monogram and/or ornament lovers out there)!

To make a felted wool monogram ornament, you'll need:
-two pieces of felted wool (mine were about 5" square)
-a printout of the letter you're wanting to make (again, 5" ish)
-a ribbon remnant
-sewing machine
***Again with the poor lighting/latenight crafting- sorry!

1. Trace your letter (backwards) on the back side of your felted wool.

2. Cut out two letters (do it at the same time so they match exactly).

3. Pin the ribbon hanger into your ornament. Also, pin your letter together so all the edges line up.

4. Sew straight lines across your ornament at random.

5. Gaze lovingly at your newly crafted ornament- perfectly personalized for you recipient. Wonderful, isn't it?


***Shared at it's so very creative monday and a soft place to land DIY day.