Revamped Clipboard

Is there such a thing as a sexy clipboard? Yes there is because you are looking at it! The picture on the right, not the left ;) Would you like a sexy clipboard too? Well then I shall share my secret and you shall take A Creative Adventure!

Materials:

-A not-so-sexy clipboard (I think mine's from Wal-Mart)

-2 sheets of scrapbook paper (preferably 12"x12")

-Mod-Podge and a paintbrush

Instructions: 

Step #1: Stare at your poor, hideous clipboard. Feel bad for it. Now look at your scrapbook paper. Then smile because you don't need to feel bad for it any more! Now lather the front of your clipboard with Mod-Podge!

*Optional: Clean the metal part and make it nice and shiny*

Step #2: Place your favorite piece and place it as far up as you can (you need to lift the little metal part to get it up farther.) Also place it around the sides and just a little on the back sides. Cut most off the sides and then fold the extra over. It doesn't need to be perfect!

Step #3. Mod-Podge the top part (where the paper didn't cover) Now cut pieces from the scrap paper (I used that skinny one in the picture above) and place it on that piece.

Step #4: If you push the paper down then you can tear off that extra piece of paper. It isn't the neatest, but I was okay with it.

Step #5: To make it shinier I covered the whole sheet and the metal part with Mod-Podge. I wouldn't recommend doing it to the metal part, but if you would like too you can.

Step #6: Cut a piece of paper the size of the back. Once the front is dry Mod-Podge the back and place that part on top of the back. (sorry for the bad picture)

Step #7: Mod-Podge the back and ta-da! You're done!

-Madi

Safety Pin Bracelets

Tutorial #5 for this week!

Be prepared to have a wrist full of safety pins! these bracelets are ADORABLE! I was helping plan a birthday party that you can read all about here and my multidtude of safety pins here and the birthday girl wanted safety pin bracelets, which she had seen on a watch somewhere else, and these were store-bought. They looked simple enough to make so we recreated them! And now you can recreate them on your Creative Adventure! :) PS: Don't you love that picture? I do! I have no idea why! I just took my camera and held it out and took a picture! I wish the background was kind of blurry, but I was okay.


Materials:
-Seed beads (one container should work, unless you want to count out 480 beads ;)
-Safety pins (you need about 60, you can do less if you want)
-Elastic string (a little bit more than 4 times the circumference of your wrist)


Directions:
Step #1: Wrap your elastic string around your wrist around 5 times, a little loose. Then cut that string off! :)

 Step #2: Fold  the string in half and cut the loop! Then fold it in half again and DON'T CUT THE LOOPS. I guess you could and it wouldn't be a big deal. But I'd prefer you didn't. :)

 Step #3: Time to tie the knot! With the string, not your boyfriend. Sorry for any confusion there. Haha I'm in a good mood :) Just puttin' that out there. Anywho- Take the two strings on the left and put into the hole of the safety pin, like in the picture below. Take the two strings on the right and place it on that little fastener-hole-thing. You could also put it in the big gap and then just pull it through. Yup.

 Step #4: Just keep stringing them! And stringing and string and string til all of your safety pins are done or it's the length of your wrist.

Step #5: Tie the ends of the string together. My knot wasn't big enough in any of the ones I've made, so I just used a safety pin (I only had a few hundred lying around) and stuck through the knot and then through the loop!


Who knew safety pins were so pretty? Now you do! Because I'm sure your new bracelet is gorgeous!

 -Madi

Pretty Pencil Pouch

Tutorial #3 in the Week-Long Tutorial fun! :)

I love sewing bags and pouches! I love not having to use a pattern and having to change something (other than the color!) every time! So when a friend wanted a pencil pouch I got super excited! We compared it to a few other pouches to get the right size and color and such and I fell in love with her pouch! I wanted to keep it! And now you can fall straight into A Creative Adventure and fall in love with your now Pretty Pencil Pouch :)


Materials:
-4 5"x5" squares
-_"x_" of matching fabric
-_"x_" of light interfacing
- 7 1/2" zipper (or longer if you can shorten it




Instructions:
Step #1: Cut each of your 5"x5" square in half, then in half again.


Step #2: Sew each top square to the one directly below it.

Step #3: Now sew the 1st and 2nd row together, and the 3rd and 4th row together to make 4x4 squares.

Step #5: Now sew each of the blocks together and iron light-interfacing to each side.

Step #6: Place the right sides together and sew the sides, and the bottom. Then turn it right-side out.

Step #7: Now cut 2piecesmeasuring 8 1/2"x4 1/2." I think. I made this awhile ago and I lost the measurements! Sorry about that! And sorry about the lack of spaces, it was being funky. Haha

*Optional*

Cut a piece for a pocket and sew it on to the middle of one piece.

Step #8: Place the right sides together and sew along the sides and the bottom. Then place it inside the other part of the pouch, the outside.

Step #9: If you need to shorten your zipper now is the time! It needs to be... umm... I can't remember! However long your other piece was! Fold each edge inwardand sandwhich the zipper in between it, then sew! If you need more help with the zipper feel free to give me an email! :)


Yay! You made yourself a pencil pouch! Hooray!

-Madi

A Mini-Journal

Isn't it adorable? Yes it is :) It was a gift for a friend so I didn't write anything on the cover so she could use for whatever she wanted! And I like these a lot better than other ones because the size is a little bit bigger and the pages are prettier :) So now you can write all of your creative thoughts after your Creative Adventure!

Materials:

-Sheets of pretty scrapbook paper (I think I used 5 but you can use however many you want)

-Ribbon

-Hole-punch

-Glue (optional) 

Instructions:

Step #1: Fold a sheet of paper in half hotdog style.

 Step #2: Now fold it in half hamburger style.

 Step #3: Cut the sheet of paper down that fold so you will have two different papers. 

*Optional* 

Glue the inside together in order to get it to stay. It doesn't make a big difference unless you hole punch along the fold. (see Step #4)

Step #4: Hole punch in two or three different places on the paper. I only did two because it was tiny. Also, if you hole punch along the fold the inside of the fold (the white side for my paper) will show. If you want to hole punch on the fold but don't want the inside (white) to show, then glue the two sides together. Does that make sense? 

Step #5: Do this for all of your papers. Take the prettiest paper and place it on top. Then cut a few inches of ribbon and string it through the holes, then tie it together. Now write all over your brand-new journal :) 

-Madi

Easy-Peasy Skirt

Here is the second tutorial this week! I hope you guys like it- I sure do!

Every girl love clothes, am I right? I am! And every girl loves sewing, right? Okay maybe not, but I do. Sewing+clothes=score :) So I when I was browsing the fabric aisle in Wal-Mart and saw this fabric I went straight home and made a skirt! Okay maybe not. It actually sat in a drawer for a few months waiting to be a scarf. But then I wanted to make a skirt and I found this fabric so I made it! And now you can make one too on an upcoming Creative Adventure!


Materials:
-Fabric (about 1 1/2 yard, it's a simple skirt)
-1 1/2" wide elastic (enough to wrap around your waist plus a little more

Instructions

Step 1: Gather materials.
Step 2: Measure around where the elastic will be going, mine was right above my hips.
Step 3: Take your elastic and cut that measurement plus ½.”
Step 4: Now measure from your waistband to where you want the skirt to hit (how long you want it to be.)
Step 5: Take that measurement and add 1½”  to it.
Step 6: Remember that measurement you took in step 2? Now you are going to add about 10” to it. That’s right. TEN INCHES! You can add more or less depending on how gathered you want the skirt to be.
Step 7: Now take the measurement from Steps 5 and 6 and cut a rectangle from that shape.
Step 8: Fold each edge (top and bottom) over ½.”
Step 9: Sew about ¼” away from the bottom edge.

Step 10:  On the top sew about ¼” away from the side using a basting stitch (a long stitch- the longest stitch length your sewing machine can do) and leave long “tails” of thread.

Step 11: Now pull the thread so the skirt should become gathered.

Step #12: Pull on the thread and smooth it around the skirt until it is the measurement you got in 3. Make sure you tie the ends of the thread together so your beautiful gathers don’t come undone!

Step #13: Pin the top of the skirt to the bottom of the elastic. It should overlap about 1/2.”

Step #14: Now sew along the edge of the elastic and skirt.

Step #15: Now place each end of the skirt together and sew along those two raw edges.

Step #16: Wear your skirt everywhere you go :)

-Madi





Step #9: