Southern Scraps

Mother's Day is less than two weeks away now, but that's still plenty of time to make Mom a special gift. Here's a round up of 15 diy gifts from my blog that will suit Moms of all types. First, for the cook or entertainer :

I have a couple of pairs of thong sandals that I love to wear, but sometimes I think they are a little plain. Last year, I intended to add a little something to my black pair, but just didn't get around to it. When I came across this idea from Setting for Four , I was glad I had not done the previous makeover I had in mind. What I was originally going to do would have been permanent. Shoe clips are a genious idea! I can add the flowers when I want, or leave them off. So I tried my hand at making my own. Here are my flowers. I cut eight circles for each one and pinched the middles and stitched them together, one by one as I pinched the middles.

This week (or rather last night) I made myself a ruffle necklace. Maybe I still have Valentine's Day on the brain, but I chose a red and white vintage flocked swiss dot scrap from my Grandmother's stash for my necklace. I think it would actually look really cute with a navy blue shirt for a patriotic look. I used a scrap that was about thirty inches long by three inches wide and followed the tutorial by Poppy Chic Designs.  I used about 21 inches of chain from my jewelry making stash and added a lobster clasp to it. I took a short scrap of red with white swiss dot and made another tiny ruffle and folded it into a flower. I sewed a button in the center and then sewed the flower to the necklace. I think it's pretty cute! If you have been wanting to try this project, go ahead! It's quick and easy, about thirty minutes give or take. Sharing here: Think Pink Sundays * Keep It Simple Sunday * Under the Table and Dreaming * Sundae Scoop * Creativ...

Happy Friday! I hope you have enjoyed this week and this season so far. Today I'd like to introduce you to a shop that has the cutest wreaths and buntings- Fa Sew La Stitches. Check out some of Emily's cute things. Scalloped Fabric Bunting I'm a sucker for all those colors! The Calliope Fabric Rose Wreath You can even design your own wreath. From now until the end of December you can get a free book blossom with any purchase when you mention "SouthernScraps" in the notes to seller. Check out Fa Sew La Stitches on Facebook too.

Last year I came across this tutorial for a flower embellished tank from Ruffles and Stuff.   This immediately went into my "to do" file. I found a white tank at Target in the clearance section last year and I started making flowers. I  made a couple by the links in the tutorial and made some different. Given that I started this last year, I don't remember which ones I used. The rolled rosette is fairly common. I made a flower similar to this one for my shirt but used a button for  the center. I finally finished it today. Instead of using strips of jersey knit for my flower stems,  I  used white ribbon. Here's a tip for you, learned the hard way by me- ribbon will not stretch with the knit and will ruffle. Oh well, I like the results anyway and I'm going to keep it since I don't have any jersey knit in white that matches. Here's a close up of the flowers: And another of the shirt: Here's another altered tank you might like. Thanks f...

I'm sure you've seen the flower belts and sashes all over the internet- JCrew and Ann Taylor Loft have their versions. Some other crafty folks have their versions: I Am Momma- Hear me Roar , RufflesandStuff , and ohsohappytogether . Here is my version: I made it to go with my Easter skirt and you can see me wearing it here . There are a total of eight flowers (one is the center of another.) I arranged them all on top of a piece of felt and then glued them down when I was happy with the arrangement. I cut the excess felt away. I made a sleeve from felt and glued the flowers on top of that. It was getting late when I finished this and I completed this in a hurry so I could wear it Easter. I need to go back and let out the hem allowance on the sleeve so the ribbon will lay flatter. The ribbon wants to roll a bit as it is now. I'm also thinking of making a sash with a velcro closure like the one at ohsohappytogether because it's really hard for me to tie...

outside and inside! Some of the flowers are beginning to bloom in my yard and neighborhood and I've been busy making fabric flower brooches again, so it's blooming inside. I've listed these in my etsy shop : Wouldn't they look sweet on an Easter outfit?

I've been digging into that fabric stash again to make fabric flowers. This time I used the same bright funky fabric that I used for the headband I recentley shared. The older sister of the 12 year old that I made the headband for also had a birthday, so I made her a flower pin. I put a vintage clip on earring in the center. You can find a tutorial for this type of flower  here. I  really like how this fabric looks made into flowers so I made another one - a pom pom style flower. It's also a brooch and it's available in my shop . Thanks for stopping by. I hope you have a great weekend. It's been a long week. I'm about to go have wings with those fun, crazy young adults that attend our Sunday School class. I'll be linking this up to the parties on the side and here: Share it Saturday Get Your Craft On.

I'm still heavily involved in the clean up and organization of my craft room so I haven't been able to make anything new lately. I'm sharing a quick little brooch I made for my mother as a Christmas gift. I just use the twist and roll method for my rosettes. This one is rather large so it took a fairly long strip of material. I added a vintage clip on earring as the center. I just removed the clip with pliers/ wire cutters before gluing it on. Thanks for looking! I'll be linking up to the parties on the side and at

Here is a tshirt I embellished and gave to my sis-in-law for Christmas. It is fairly easy and does not involve great sewing skills- just needle and thread. I cut three sizes of circles, stacked them, pinched the middle and sewed the middle to make the flower. I then sewed each one to the shirt with needle and thread. These aren't the best photos, but the best I could do since this isn't my size. Thanks for looking. I'll be linking to some of the parties on the side.

Back during the summer I purchased this tank from Old Navy clearance for less than $2. I knew it would be perfect for embellishing for my niece. I made it into one of her Christmas gifts. I basically made a corsage for one strap. I made it with five flowers. For each flower, cut however many circles you wish. The more circles, the fluffier your pom pom flower will be. Fold each circle into fourths. Take needle and thread and stitch the middle together. Stitch your next folded circle to this one and continue until you have a full flower. Glue flowers to a felt circle. I glued each flower to a piece of felt and added pin backs to the back of it so the corsage can be removed for washing the shirt or worn on another item. It was really quick and easy. I completed it just before Christmas.  Here's a close up: Thanks for looking. Hope your getting lots of crafting or rest this week, whichever you choose.  I'm winding down this week, so I'll be sharing those proj...

Back during the summer when I got interested in fabric and all those great flowers everyone was making, I tried my hand at a couple. I finally got around to deciding how I might use these flowers and added the pin backs this weekend so it could be a brooch . I made this one from the following you tube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gecQrb1fzIk I cut my circles out with a scalloped Nestabilities scalloped circle die. I used two fabrics and two sizes of circles. It takes a lot of circle to get them really full, but I love how this one turned out, especially with the scalloped edges. I think it looks great on this jacket. I'll be linking up to Get Your Craft On and other great parties. Thanks for stopping by.

I recently added new items to my etsy shop - handmade jewelry .  I love to make stuff but can't keep it all. Sometimes I make something for myself and then make a similar item with the leftovers. You've probably seen most of it on here already but you may not know that it's for sale. Maybe you wanted something you saw but didn't want to invest in the time or supplies to make it. Go ahead and splurge - get it for yourself. You'll be glad you purchased handmade. Here are the items for sale: Repurposed fabric rosette necklace Memory wire bracelet Fabric rosette bib necklace Braided ribbon necklace If you are buying a gift for someone else, pick up a handmade greeting card to go with it.

I've recently taken an interest in vintage jewelry and in shopping yard sales for finds. I've also taken an interest in jewelry, so I've combined all of this into this fun piece: a fabric rosette bib necklace! The chain for this piece is actually two bracelets. The bracelets are a yard sale find- I got twenty plus bracelets for $2.50! I took the clasp off opposite ends of the two bracelets so I'd have a matching clasp once they were attached. The chains have been sewn onto the felt base. Fabric rosettes were glued to the felt base as well. The rhinestone button in the center is from a thrift store cardigan purchase ( I like the cardigan but did not think the buttons went well with it, so that's another item to "remake" for another day). The cabachons on each side are earrings, also a yard sale find.  I took the backs off and glued felt circles to the back of the earrings. I then cut another set of circles and the chain is sandwiched between the two cir...

Do you see him? I made a new wreath for the front door. I went out and took the old one off and put up the new one, only to find myself face to face with a small frog. EEEEEWWW! I thought he would jump off while I went to get my camera, but he didn't. He just hid behind the wreath, so I took pictures with him on the door and then took one of him just for laughs. I saw a wreath at Michael's that used metal flip flops and was way out of my price range, but it inspired me to do something with real flip flops. I've also been seeing these rag wreaths or fabric strip wreaths and thought I'd combine the two ideas. I purchased some childrens size 12 flip flops from the Dollar Tree. I've decorated them with some fabric flowers I've made while trying out all the new (or new to me) tutorials for flowers on the internet. I used fabric from my stash, much of it vintage. I just tied on the strips, made flowers, hot glued them to the flip flops, and then hot glued...