Today I've got a slightly different post for you all, as it's been written with the help of my lovely sister-in-law, Fridha. This year, Fridha totally spoilt me with some beautiful homemade Christmas presents. I also got a gorgeous handmade heart decoration from my Mum (I'm surrounded by such crafty ladies!) and I couldn't resist sharing all of these lovely gifts with you, as well as, with Fridha's help, instructions on how to make them.
Notice Board
When I first opened this gorgeous notice board I didn't realise that Fridha had actually made it as it looks so professional! It's both magnetic and a chalk board which is amazing. She decorated it with vintage postcards, lovely magnets and wrapped up some chalk so that I can write on it whenever I want. I think it's even lovelier than ones you would find in the shops and, of course, so much more special!
How Fridha made it: This
noticeboard was actually quite easy to make once I managed to get all of the
different parts. I bought an old frame at a flea market and just
sprayed it white. I used what I think was an all-purpose spray, but the can
will say what materials the paint will work on. The paint that I used is from
Clas Ohlson, which I believe you have in England as well (It might be worth mentioning here that Fridha is Swedish). The thing about old
frames is that you won't find a perfect one, and it will probably have
cracks and bumps in it like your one does, but personally I think that's part of the charm
compared to buying something new.
For the
'middle-section' I could have made things easier for myself by just making
it a chalkboard, but I really wanted it to be magnetic. Therefore, I had to buy a thin
piece of metal and cut it to size using ordinary,
cheap metal cutters (also bought at Clas Ohlson). I would have thought that you can
find sheets of metal in somewhere like B&Q. Now, I could have
used black magnetic paint and used it on any surface but, because it contains small fragments of metal, you can't really write on it as
well as with normal chalk paint. With chalk paint, you have to paint the
surface twice, waiting 12 hours in-between each go. Once it's dry, just pop the 'chalkboard' in the frame and there you have it!
Sugar Scrub
I love this scrub! I've been using it in the shower almost every day and I will happily make myself some more when this one eventually runs out. Not only is the presentation adorable, it's a fantastic exfoliator, even for tough bits of skin. This is a great present that you can make for any of your female friends or family members.
How Fridha made it: The sugar scrub was by far the easiest to
make. All you need for this particular one is baby oil, baby wash and
regular sugar. To get about three of the jars of the same size as yours, I
mixed 2.5 cups of sugar, 0.25 cup of baby oil and 0.25 cup of baby
wash. Once it's all mixed together in a bowl, you can add some
red food colouring to change the colour, although I was lucky and got a baby
wash which happened to be pink. If you want a different smell
you can just replace the baby wash and oil with any extract such as lavender, lemon or coconut oil. Pop it in any kind of jar and you're done!
NB: Sugar scrubs don't last as long as salt
scrubs because of bacteria, so you can add some salt if you
want to. However, as the jar is quite small, the scrub should hold for a
few months at least. You could always put a 'best before' date on it if you want to.
Crocheted Headband
This
adorable headband is perfect for winter and a fab way to keep your ears
warm. Fridha crocheted this, so you would need to know how to do
crochet stitches first in order to attempt this. As a crochet novice her
explanation sounds very complicated to me, however she assures me that it's
easy to learn!
How Fridha made it: Once you know the crochet stitches, this headband is pretty simple to make. First, chain about 70 stitches (for an average head), then turn it and use double crochet stitches all the way, starting in the forth chain from your hook. Repeat that all the way. Then, chain two for height and continue double crocheting. Do this until you have six rows, then tie the end off, fold it in half and sew the short ends together. If you want, at this point (which is what I did), you can pinch the middle rows of the headband together, across where the two ends meet, and sew a few stitches in the middle to scrunch up the headband a bit. This will all be covered with the small middle 'bow' part anyway. For the small 'bow' part of the headband you need to chain 10, and then repeat what you did for the headband, except this time make eight rows. Once you've tied that off, just wrap it around the middle-section of your headband and sew it shut, and then you're done! Loose threads and stitches will all be hidden by the 'bow'.
NB: I didn't know how to crochet before I made this headband - it was a bit of a trial and error but I owe it all to youtube. There are great videos showing you how to do different stitches and making it seem a lot easier than my explanation!
How Fridha made it: Once you know the crochet stitches, this headband is pretty simple to make. First, chain about 70 stitches (for an average head), then turn it and use double crochet stitches all the way, starting in the forth chain from your hook. Repeat that all the way. Then, chain two for height and continue double crocheting. Do this until you have six rows, then tie the end off, fold it in half and sew the short ends together. If you want, at this point (which is what I did), you can pinch the middle rows of the headband together, across where the two ends meet, and sew a few stitches in the middle to scrunch up the headband a bit. This will all be covered with the small middle 'bow' part anyway. For the small 'bow' part of the headband you need to chain 10, and then repeat what you did for the headband, except this time make eight rows. Once you've tied that off, just wrap it around the middle-section of your headband and sew it shut, and then you're done! Loose threads and stitches will all be hidden by the 'bow'.
NB: I didn't know how to crochet before I made this headband - it was a bit of a trial and error but I owe it all to youtube. There are great videos showing you how to do different stitches and making it seem a lot easier than my explanation!
Hanging Heart Decoration
Last but very definitely not least is this seriously cute decoration made by my Mum. As it was a Christmas present, it has a lovely red and white Christmas theme so that I can hang it on the tree, however, this present is incredibly versatile and can be made for any occasion. All you need to do is cut out two heart shapes from whatever fabric you choose, hand sew them together, fill them with stuffing or dried lavender and attach a ribbon or string to hang it up with. I love the button design that my Mum's done here and having my initial on it makes it feel very personal. This is a lovely, special present for a birthday, Christmas or even a wedding.
I am totally over the moon with all of my beautiful homemade gifts and I'm sure that you can see why! I'd love to know if you enjoy reading crafty posts such as this and whether you made any presents yourself this Christmas. If you did, and have blogged about them, then please do send me over your links. Let's make 2014 a crafty year folks!
Love Essie & Fridha x
