How much wool is needed?

Just a quickie post here.  A couple people wanted to know how much wool was needed to make a woolly wreath.  I made the medium size wreath (about 6 3/4" diameter) using a 2" wide piece of wool about 64" long.  Of course it will depend on how tightly you wrap your wool.  Use about 36" of 1" wide wool to make a simple bow.   It's easier to have a little extra and trim if necessary.

Isn't this the truth?

Thanks so much for stopping by.
Pug hugs 😊

Lauren

Another Easy Woolly Craft ~

Head on over to the Dollar (and a quarter) Tree and pick up this wreath form.  

Two in a package so after cutting apart (using a grinder or tin snips . . . not sure . . . my sweetie cut them for me) you end up with 6 rings, 5 1/2", 6 3/4" and 8", 2 of each.  They can be found more in the craft section, not Christmas.

For the larger two rings, I tore the wool 2".  The smallest ring was cut about 1 3/4".  Snip the wool being careful not to cut the strip apart.  No need to be exact.    For the largest ring I cut the strips about  1/2" wide and a bit narrower for the other two rings.  I prefer the narrower cut.  You can double the strip to make the cutting go a little more quickly.

Using tacky glue, start winding the "feathers" around, being careful to avoid the glue.  I would spread the glue maybe an 1 1/2" - 2", wind the wool and then start the process over.  Overlap the strips as you go around.

At the end, I put a dab of glue and clipped it to allow it to dry.

Add a wool bow and you are all set.  Add embellishments as desired.  I prefer mine rather plain.

Yesterday was TubaChristmas and my longtime readers know how much I love it.  Yesterday did not disappoint.  I tried to upload a video, but blogger said the file was too large.

Thanks so much for stopping by.
Pug hugs 😊
Lauren

Inspiration~

Just a quickie today.  I came across this gift bag.  It is a small one, just 6" x 8".  Wouldn't this be a fun design to enlarge to hook, reduce to punch, or applique?  Too many projects, too little time!

Thanks so much for stopping by.
Pug hugs 😊
Lauren

At Long Last ~

 

Holy moly!  December 8th already.  I thought with Thanksgiving being so early this year and having started to decorate a few days before, my decorating would be long done.  Ha!  I should know better.  I am close, but close isn't what I want right now.  Perhaps if I would stay home, more could get done.  It seems I am always running somewhere.  Thankfully I didn't have to deal with dilation at today's ophthalmology appointment (all is well) so at least I can see.  Then I decided to make a couple dozen ornaments on the Cricut and since I hadn't made any in over 6 months, that was a re-learning experience . . . and with only one call to my son's girlfriend 😁

About two and a half years ago dear friend Dolly gifted me this wonderful old shirt cupboard from a department store in Akron, Ohio.  Isn't it just the coolest wool storage cupboard?  Now if I would just organize the wool in all the drawers!  It sat kind of forlorn in my bedroom (the only place I could find room for it) for the last couple of years.  

FINALLY . . . Ole Jack got hung over it and it is the perfect spot for him.  I am absolutely thrilled how it looks.  That is my maternal grandmother's rocker sitting in front.  Dolly, thank you so much for your kindness and generosity.  You are truly one in a million.

Some of my sewing collectibles sit atop.

Must get back to being busy.

Thanks so much for stopping by.
Pug hugs 😊
Lauren

Easy Peasy Wool Garland ~

I first saw a wool garland made like this about 10 years ago at hooker Deb's house but was not inspired to make one until hooker Melissa had made some.  A bit time consuming to make, but so darn easy and no need to be exact!  Use leftover snippets, worms or cut new strips.  Wool that is too thick or thin works just fine.  No need to color plan.  It is all random.  These are mostly a 9 cut strip.  You can use larger or smaller strips or a combination.

I cut my pieces about 3/4".  Like I said, no need to be exact.  You can cut them with scissors, or for faster cutting, lay them on a cutting mat and use a rotary cutter.

I would suggest using a strong thread such as a button or silamide thread.  You would hate for the thread to break after stringing.  This is the thread I use.

Tie a knot, button or bell at the end and start stringing.

I love how it looks on my tree.

My star tree topper is another super easy thing to make.  I drew a simple star and then got a leftover piece of coverlet.  I painted the backside with Mod Podge to stiffen it a little, let it dry and then cut out the star shape.  Done in a jiffy.

The garland actually takes longer than I anticipated and surprisingly uses quite a bit of wool, but it is such a no brainer and a great way to use leftover worms.  The hardest part is cutting all those darn little pieces.  Tomorrow we are off to visit friends, so the 4 hours spent in the car will be used to string more garland.  Thanks for the inspiration, Melissa.

Thanks so much for stopping by.
Pug hugs 😊
Lauren

Color Me Crazy ~

Less is more.  HA!  Not in my life.  I don't know if I will ever learn that lesson.  I have been decorating for a week.  I still have lots of odds and ends and piddly stuff left to decorate.  Plus the big tree.  The reason it takes me so long is because I am basically packing up all my "stuff" to make room for the Christmas decorations and those who have been reading my blog for a while know I have lots of "stuff".  And would Christmas be complete without me breaking a few ornaments.  Of course I always drop the vintage ornaments that are the oldest made of paper thin glass.  They don't stand a chance against a hardwood floor.  I broke one of my favorite red, white and blue ornaments.  I did save some of the pieces 😢

The tinsel tree had new lights strung on the top half and the ornaments put back on.  The angel tree topper was a gift from Saundra a number of years ago.  Isn't she sweet?  The angel and Saundra, too.

Mr. Jingles is done and ready to be gifted!  Hopefully next week I will find time to do some hooking.

Now I must brag for a minute about the super shopper that I am.  I had a return at Kohl's so lost $15 in Kohl's cash.  I ended up spending $58.76, but I SAVED $166.81 . . . plus I got another $10 in Kohl's cash.  What a game 😁😁😁

Thanks so much for stopping by.
Pug hugs 😊
Lauren

Gotcha Day

"Gotcha Day" is the day you adopted.  Today is that day.  Three years ago Molly became a permanent part of my life.  She is definitely more than I bargained for, but she is my baby.

Here she is when I first got her.

And here she is today ~ much more grey and with a host of medical issues.

First of all she is the world's meanest pug.  So un-puglike.  I lovingly call her Bad Molly.  She HATES all other dogs.  Cannot be near them or she goes in to "kill" mode.  It makes is difficult to be around DSO and his pug Ernestine, but we deal with it.  Initially they got along ~ not sure what went wrong!  Not easy but it is what it is . . . and the hatred between the two is mutual.  Thankfully she loves people, except for the mail carrier 😁  

In addition to being so mean, she is deaf, prone to UTIs (cha ching $$$), and has pug myelopathy.  Myelopathy is an incurable, progressive disease of the canine spinal cord that is similar in many ways to ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease).  Bottom line is that she is losing the use of her back legs and bodily functions.  Oh, what I do for this baby!!!  The good news is that is does not cause her any pain.

Happy Gotcha Day, little Miss Molly.

Thanks so much for stopping by.
Pug hugs 😊
Lauren