Percy Jackson Camp Half Blood Tee by Sarah Jane Sews

I am seriously excited to be sharing a guest post with your this Friday. About a month ago the lovely Sarah from Sarah Jane Sews got in touch about sharing her Percy Jackson Camp Half-Blood t-shirt for the Storybook Craft Project.

I had never heard of these books before but downloaded the first one in the series on to my kindle and I absolutely loved it! Transported to a world where the Greek Myths aren't really myths I was hooked and devoured the book within a matter of days!

I love Sarah's project so much and without further ado will hand over to her so she can share it with you!

Hi!  I'm Sarah from Sarah Jane Sews.  As a lifelong bookworm, I'm thrilled to be participating in the Storybook Craft series.

About a year ago, my teenage niece suggested that my son O and I should read the Percy Jackson books.  We share a love of Harry Potter, so she thought we'd enjoy them -- and she was right!  O has been pretty much obsessed with all of Riordan's books ever since.  I made him a Camp Half-Blood tee for Christmas and my niece loved it, so I took this opportunity to make one for her as well.

Materials
Orange tee
Black  fabric paint
X-acto knife
Freezer paper
Template

 

 If you're new to freezer paper stenciling, start by reading through Rebecca's tutorial.

Open the text template and add whatever clip art you'd like, or make a separate stencil for the image. I chose a centaur, but other suggestions would include a pegasus,  Poseidon's trident, Athena's owl, Zeus's thunderbolt, or the symbol of another Greek god.  I used the Adonais font for the text, if you'd like to make your own stencil with a different layout.

Print and carefully cut out the stencil with the X-acto knife, making sure to keep track of the tiny negative space pieces. I didn't realize until I made this one that I'd forgotten the piece that separates the centaur's arm and arrow on O's shirt.  Apparently not a big deal, since I didn't notice for over a month!

Center the stencil, iron it on, and paint.

The black covers well, so it only needed one coat in most areas.  When you're satisfied with the coverage, peel off the stencil.  It helps to use a pin and a tweezers to get the itty-bitty pieces off.

Admire your work.  All that detailed cutting seems worth it now, right?  Follow the paint instructions for drying and finishing, and enjoy your new shirt.

Thanks to Rebecca for letting me share this tee with you!

Freezer Paper Stencilled Camera Lunchbag

Happy Tuesday! And a very happy Tuesday it is because my lovely Mum is coming to visit this afternoon! So whilst I am off shopping and having hot chocolate with my Mum, I will share with you the birthday present I made for my dad!

Two things you should know about my Dad that explain this gift

1. He is really into photography

2. He takes his lunch to work in an old shopper bag

Well, I just had to fix that so I decide to make him is very own personalised lunch-bag big enough to hold his lunchbox and fork.

It is another freezer paper project, and an example of a trickier stencil that worked out just as well - I was really pleased with it although it took me a couple of tries to get it just right!

For my full freezer paper tutorial see here

I downloaded this gorgeous camera graphic from Stephanie Corfee and adapted it slightly to make a freezer paper stencil - I basically simplified it to make it a bit easier to cut out with an exacto knife!

I then made the piece of fabric below. I had to make a new stencil for each camera because it was so fiddly but that's ok! It only took me one evening to practise, print and let it dry ready to sew up the next day.

So once you have you painted fabric, onto the bag!

Materials

Calico, printed and plain

(That's it!)

1. Cut four squares of calico 9 x 9 1/2 ". One should have your design on it (I chose to have mine at an angle) and the other three should be plain.

2. Pin 2 plain pieces of calico right sides together and sew three sides, leaving one of the shorter sides open. You should also leave a 2-3" gap in the short side that you do sew.

Pin right sides together your two remaining calico pieces (1 plain, 1 printed) and sew as above.

3. Fold so that the side seam and the bottom seam line up and you have created a point (as in picture below). Draw a line across where it measures 2 1/2 ". Pin. Repeat on the other side and both corners of the lining piece. Sew across the lines and turn right side out to ensure that it matches up on the right side. 

Snip the excess fabric from the corners.

4. Next job is to make the straps. First, cut two pieces of calico 18" x 4". Press in half and then fold the raw long edges into the mid-point fold. Press over so that your piece is now 1" wide and all raw edges are hidden. Sew down each long side.

5. Turn outer bag piece right side out and place inside the lining so right sides are together. Pin the straps in between the lining and outer bag piece about 2" from the seams. Sew all the way round the top of the bag, making sure to catch the straps as well. Turn right side out through the hole you left in the lining and whip stitch it shut. Press the bag.

And there you have a finished printed lunchbag. Make sure you heat-set your fabric so it will be washable too!

What would you print on yours?

Love Rebecca

Hungry Caterpillar Shopper Bag

If you have been reading Heron's Crafts for a while you may have picked up on my love of The Hungry Caterpillar - if not - then why not check out this Hungry Caterpillar Applique Cushion I made a while ago!

This week's project is way simpler than that cushion, and just as effective! 

I have always struggled making sewing machine ruffles so this ruffle is made by hand, I have included instructions on how I made it but if you have a preferred method of ruffling...go for it!

I love using freezer paper to make stencils so thought it was time to give this iconic character a go.

 I am really pleased with how it turned out!

If you would like to give it a go, here are the instructions...

Materials

Plain shopper tote

Green, Red, Black fabric paint (I used Dylon)

Hungry Caterpillar spotty fabric

Needle and Thread

1. Using an exacto knife, cut out the outline of the hungry caterpillar from freezer paper (I have included my template as a download below). Iron onto your bag and paint. If you are new to freezer paper stencilling, I have a step-by-step tutorial here.

I did the green first and then once it had dried, the red and finally the black details. 

2. Once your hungry caterpillar is dry, its time to think about the ruffle on the top. Cut a piece of fabric 6 1/2" by 22". Fold it in half and sew all the way round, leaving a 2" gap on the longest edge

3. Turn the strip right sides out through the gap and press to close. Make sure you use a pencil/pen to poke out the corners.

4. Thread your needle with a long piece of thread and sew large stitches all along the long edge (with the gap in). When you get to the end, gently pull to gather the fabric loosely.

5. Pin each end down to the two edges of your fabric and play around with your gather distribution until you have a ruffle you are pleased with. Take your time here, get it just how you want it and pin in place. With your sewing machine, sew a straight line right across the top, attaching the ruffle to the bag. Unpick your large gathering stitches.

6. Remember to heat set your fabric paint according to packet instructions but other than that, you are good to go!

Here is the downloadable template...

Hope you enjoy your weekend!

Love Rebecca

New York Shopper

I am so excited to say that I will be off to New York in August! I have wanted to go to New York forEVER!  Fuelled by films and TV shows like Friend and Sex and the City - It is one of those places that has always held a place in my imagination! So this year, me and my mum will be flying out to NYC for 4 days! I literally cannot wipe the smile off my face!

To celebrate I made this shopper bag. Inspired by these retro Disney t-shirts, I used a retro poster as a basis for a freezer paper stencil. (search retro New York Poster into Google images and see what you come up with!)

source

I saved this picture and used PowerPoint to adjust the colouring to black and white. I made a freezer paper stencil by cutting out all the black bits (the Statue, skyline and border) (see full tutorial here) and painted the plain canvas shopper bag with black fabric paint! I touched up the writing with some silver fabric paint to finish!

Have you been to New York? Any tips/must see recommendations would be greatly appreciated!

Have a great weekend

Love Rebecca

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