I have never had access to acorns before. They are not common in Utah, but in Austin, they are everywhere. I have literally had to assign my kids the job of sweeping them off the deck so that we can walk without killing ourselves. But then, I realized that acorns are just like little organic beads. Hmmmm, that got my crafty brain thinking.
From a previous experience, I know that crafting with the Great Outdoors can lead to little worms and bugs in one's home. So, I did some research on how to de-bug your acorns before you use them.
There are lots of differing opinions from freezing them, to cooking them long and warm, to cooking them short and hot. Being an impatient person, I cooked them short, 10 minutes per side, and hot, 350 degrees. I promise, no bug survived it because the sap came bubbling out any tiny bore holes in the acorns.
Now that my acorns were de-bugged and cleaned up I was ready to cover them in fabric. I cut a 2 1/2" strip of fabric from selvage to selvage and sewed it in half lengthwise with a 1/4" seam allowance. This got turned right side out... and the best part, you don't even have to iron it.
Tie a simple knot 1 1/2" inches from the end of your fabric, drop in an acorn and then tie another knot. Keep going until you get to the other end, or until it's long enough for the size of your head minus 1-2 inches.
To make the headband comfortable to wear, add some elastic at the base of the neck. If you don't have elastic, you could use a ponytail. Just fold in the raw edges, then fold them over the elastic and top stitch in place. (For a more professional finish, I suggest switching out your bobbin to match your top thread, and planning to have your knot under the fabric! I was being sloppy I guess!!!)
I like to take a photo of one of my girls modeling our projects so you can see how cute they look when worn. Alas, my daughters have been so busy with school stuff that they were not around. I tried my other model instead.
It seams her head is a wee bit too small. I even tried it on Eric, but his head was a wee bit too big and he promised to kill me if I put his photo on the internet!
So, here I am wearing it. This is not really my look... I don't even wear much jewelry... and I feel too old to be wearing this! You can see my discomfort in my expression if you look closely. But, I promise on a girl about twenty years younger than me, it's darling!
From a previous experience, I know that crafting with the Great Outdoors can lead to little worms and bugs in one's home. So, I did some research on how to de-bug your acorns before you use them.
There are lots of differing opinions from freezing them, to cooking them long and warm, to cooking them short and hot. Being an impatient person, I cooked them short, 10 minutes per side, and hot, 350 degrees. I promise, no bug survived it because the sap came bubbling out any tiny bore holes in the acorns.
Now that my acorns were de-bugged and cleaned up I was ready to cover them in fabric. I cut a 2 1/2" strip of fabric from selvage to selvage and sewed it in half lengthwise with a 1/4" seam allowance. This got turned right side out... and the best part, you don't even have to iron it.
Tie a simple knot 1 1/2" inches from the end of your fabric, drop in an acorn and then tie another knot. Keep going until you get to the other end, or until it's long enough for the size of your head minus 1-2 inches.
To make the headband comfortable to wear, add some elastic at the base of the neck. If you don't have elastic, you could use a ponytail. Just fold in the raw edges, then fold them over the elastic and top stitch in place. (For a more professional finish, I suggest switching out your bobbin to match your top thread, and planning to have your knot under the fabric! I was being sloppy I guess!!!)
I like to take a photo of one of my girls modeling our projects so you can see how cute they look when worn. Alas, my daughters have been so busy with school stuff that they were not around. I tried my other model instead.
It seams her head is a wee bit too small. I even tried it on Eric, but his head was a wee bit too big and he promised to kill me if I put his photo on the internet!
So, here I am wearing it. This is not really my look... I don't even wear much jewelry... and I feel too old to be wearing this! You can see my discomfort in my expression if you look closely. But, I promise on a girl about twenty years younger than me, it's darling!
We'll announce our winner of the Moda Blog Hop Prize tomorrow! If you haven't entered yet, you should.
