DIY Feather Extension Headband Tutorial

How to Make a Feather Extension Headband

Feather extensions and earrings are all the rage right now {especially peacock feathers}.  Very bohemian, very awesome.  So rather than create earrings or a clip in extension, I thought about attaching the feathers to a subtle headband.  And this is what I got.   

  

It seriously only took about 5 minutes to create.

Here's how I did it:

Supplies:

Blank headband

Clear thread

Hot glue gun

Two very small strips of fabric

Feathers of your choice

*I purchased my feathers at Joann's and they were already finished on the ends with a clear thread loop. The brand is Touch of Nature.

First, take your clear thread and measure about four inches longer than you actually want your feathers to hang.  For example, I wanted my feathers to hang about 2.5 inches from the base of my headband--so I cut the thread at 6.5 inches.

Find the loop part on the end of your feather.

Tie your clear thread to the feather with a double knot. Repeat this same step with the second feather and the second peice of thread.

See how the thread is basically invisible and it looks like the feather is suspended in mid-air.  This way it will blend in with your hair without any bulky strings or rope.

Take some fabric scrap and cut two strips about 1.5 inches long {no need to be exact here because you can always trim the excess later}.

Now for the sorta tricky part. 

1. Lay down your fabric scrap and place a drop of hot glue as shown in step one. Then the other end of your clear thread right in the drop of glue. Then lay the end of your headband in the glue on top of the clear thread.

2. Wrap the end of the fabric over the hot glue so that it holds in place.

3. Continue wrapping the fabric around the headband.

4. Put a drop of glue on the end of the fabric and secure in place. Trim any excess string.  *Repeat these steps with the other feather on the other side of the headband.



It should look something like this when you hold it up.

I love how it blends in with hair, almost like it was a feather extension.

My Mom just got a Brazillion Blow Out on her hair, so I made her model my headband on her blonde hair below:

So that's it.

Kinda neat, huh.

Happy Crafting!

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I am sharing my Life List over at A Happy Girl today.

Tahnie is having a blogger series about taking chances and making "big jumps" in life.  Please stop by and say hi--Tahnie is the sweetest gal and momma ever!

Anthropologie Knock Off Bobby Pins Tutorial

Anthropologie Knock Off

Vintage Yo Yo Bobby Pins

{As seen on the fabulous Kojo Designs}

I originally posted this fun tutorial on Kojo Designs a while back.  During my moving interim, I thought I would revisit it with y'all.

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If you've ever seen any of my tutorials,

then you know I love me a good knock off.

And naturally, one of my favorite sites to get ideas is Anthropologie.

I stumbled upon these beauties, and knew I wanted to try my own version.

{source: Anthropologie}

And now, for my version:

In my family, we have a Yo Yo quilt that has been passed down for 4 generations.  It is made with vintage fabric, and it makes my heart swoon.  The only problem, it has begun to tatter and fall apart. And the girls in our family have been trying to find alternate uses for the classic yo yo's.  So I very carefully used a seam ripper to remove a handful of yo yo's from the outer edge of my blanket--to use on this vintage project.

To make your own yo yo's, see this tutorial.

• Fabric Yo Yo's
• Bobby Pin blanks {available in jewelry section at Joann's}
• Buttons and/or scrap booking embellishments
• Ribbon, tulle or any other extras you like
• Scissors
• Hot glue gun and glue

Lay out all your Yo Yo's and start gettin' creative as you make your button/yo yo combinations.

Grab your bobby pin base and add a drop of hot glue.

Place on the backside of a yo yo. Allow to cool.

Flip over and apply a drop of glue to the center of the front of your yo yo. Then place your button on top. Allow to cool.

Yep, it's really that easy.

I hope you enjoyed the world's easiest knock off project!

Happy Crafting!

I SPY: Handmade Edition {and DIY leather feather earrings}

Eye SPY: Handmade Edition

Show me all things handmade.

Be creative.

Crafts you have been working on,

gifts, home decor, etsy finds.

So long as its handmade,

it's perfect for this link party.

Also, note that I keep the link party open for a week

so you have plenty of time to take your pictures and link up.

Click HERE, to get caught up on I SPY.

And here are my handmades.

I SPY my latest "handmade" project,

Leather Feather Earrings

{say that 3 times fast}

And for those of you who want to know how to make these bad boys for yourself, here is a little tutorial.

1) Leather scraps, available at Joann's

2) Fabric scissors

3) Fish hook earrings, available at Joann's

4) 4 jump rings, available at Joann's

5) Large, thick sewing needle

6) Needle nose pliers

1) Cut out two feather shapes from the leather scraps.

2) Poke an extra large and thick needle through the top of each feather

3) Wriggle and twist the needle to be sure the hole stays open

4) See hole

5) Use the pliers to open one of the jump rings.

6) Slip the earring on the jump ring.

7) Use the pliers to open a second jump ring and put it through the hole in the leather. 

8) Now attache the two jump rings together and close with the pliers.

9) Use your fabric scissors to cut VERY thin slits at an angle all the way up the sides of the feather.

10) Then go back and cute a second very thin slit right along side the first cut.

11) Pull out the extra fabric.

12) Admire your new feather leather earrings.

I {heart} these and I may wear them every day.

I will link these feathers up to my favorite link parties found HERE.

And now, I SPY some other handmade loves of mine.

From left to right.

Photo Star: made for me by Love Stitched.

Trim lined vases that hold my knob collection.

My Favorite Things blocks, with spots for future babes.

My latest Silhouette project, my all-time favorite Scripture.

Yeah, I know, I know, I'm still working on having a steady hand.

My homemade salsa using the Pioneer Woman's recipe.

My "in process" newly covered couch--handmade by my very talented Grandma.  I will reveal the whole thing once my Grandma finishes. 

My favorite painting, done by a young teenage artist at my Church.

I love this girl, and when I saw this painting, I knew I had to have it.

It reminds me of Baby W.

Now, time to show me your handmade goodies!

How To Make A Jewel Bib Necklace

How to Make a Jewel Bib Necklace

(with a free template download}

I've seen these bib necklaces everywhere. J Crew, Anthropologie, Nordstroms.

And I have been meaning to make one of my very own for nearly a year now.

Well, I finally did it.

And let me tell you, it's easy as pie.

Let's make one together, mmkay.

Materials:

• Download your FREE necklace template HERE.
• One square foot of black felt
• Package of gems: I purchased the 1 lb. package from Michael's and I used my 40% OFF coupon. You will only end up using about 2 ounces of gems for one necklace.
• Fabric scissors
• Pins
• Glue gun and hot glue
• 3 feet of ribbon

First, download your FREE template here.

Carefully cut it out and then pin it to the center of your felt.

Use the pattern to cut out the felt in the shape of your bib necklace.

Set aside the felt scraps for later on.

Now, place your gems in the desired layout on your felt backing.

This may be tricky, so take your time until it looks just right.

I made mine symmetrical.

Once you have your layout, begin to glue down each gem--one by one.

I started from the edges and then worked my way in.

Once you have glued all the gems into place, flip over your felt and get ready to add the ribbon.  Keep the ribbon in one long single strand. Apply a dime size drop of glue to the top of the felt backing. Glue the ribbon about 1.5 inches down.  Repeat the step with the other side of the ribbon.

Now, take your set aside felt scraps and cut two 1.5 inch squares.

Apply another dime size drop of glue on top of the ribbon, and put the square felt on top.  This will hide the ribbon backing and give it a clean look.

Find the center of your ribbon and make your cut.

Then tie a bow. I kept the ribbon extra long {3 feet} so that I could have a larger bow. And that's it!

I am excited to use the template to make some other bib necklaces.

Maybe a pom pom one, a button one, or a lace embellished one.

If you use this template for a necklace, I would love to see how your project turns out! Come back and leave a link in the comments.

Happy Crafting!

I will be linking up to some of these fun parties!

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Getting votes makes me smile.

All you have to do is click the link.

{you can click every day, if you want}

What if I got to be #1 for a day?

I think that might be pure awesome.

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Also, we will take a break from I SPY this week.

I have something else planned for us *wink*.