some things you'll need for Mr Marley

Hello, lovely mmmakers! Are you planning to craft a Mr Marley Christmas ornament when the pattern  becomes available? (Mr Marley is the upcoming second pattern in my current Ebenezer Ornament Series.) I'm busy writing the pattern, drawing the diagrams, and sewing the final samples for you. It occurred to me you might like to know the extra bits and bobs you'll need to make him ahead of time, so you'll be ready to roll when the pattern releases.

Beyond the usual wool felt, floss, pipe cleaners/chenille stems, wood colored card stock (nose), stiffened white felt (pigtail), glass beads, sequins, wood beads, etc etc etc, there are a few new items needed for Mr Marley that were not needed for Mr Scrooge:

• 24 gauge wire in gold or silver for his spectacles and misc.
• Some wire snips and tweezers will come in handy, if you don't already have some.
• About 10-11 inches of gold or silver charm bracelet type of chain, with nice open links. My chain samples measure 6 mm at the longest part of the link. This is the gold and silver chain I purchased, but anything similar will be fine. You'd get three ornaments out of either of those.
• 6 mm gold or silver jump rings for attaching bits to his chain.
• Some needle nose pliers to open and close said jump rings. (I like having two pairs, one to hold the ring and one to bend the jump ring apart.) 
• 15, 16 or 17 mm gold or silver jingle bells to attach to his chain in lieu of actual ghostly money boxes. Don't go larger or smaller than that or they might not look proportional.
• If you already have them, eye pins come in handy to insert inside his hands but are not essential. As an alternative, you can just squash a jump ring or fashion a quick loop out of the 24 gauge wire, no biggie.
• Optional: A gold or silver key charm or two (around an inch) OR you can make them. See below.
• Optional: A small gold or silver charm that looks like a padlock or a money purse OR you can make a padlock or money purse. See below. (You can also see a necklace finding up there ^ called a cap, which reminded me of a little purse.)

• If you enjoy working small (like me!) and you opt to make the keys, padlock, and/or purse charms, you'll need to get some small scraps of metallic card stock and also metallic wool felt. (Benzie Design has lots of lovely metallic wool felt, including the gold and silver you see up there ^ in the photo. It's metallic on one side and wool felt on the other.) I found the metallic card stock in the scrapbooking section of my local craft store.
• The padlock has gold or silver perle floss for the arm of the lock, which you probably already have on hand for the ornament loops.
• The money purse has a gold or silver sequin/seed bead fastener and an attached jump ring.
• For the key as well as the padlock you'll need to have a small hole punch. Mine is a 1/8 inch punch.
• A craft knife like Xacto comes in handy and also a wicked sharp pair of small scissors.

My final Mr Marley samples will be made using my two Ebenezer color palettes at Benzie Design: Victorian and Modern Pastel. Benzie Design will once again be offering kits for this new pattern because they are amazing. If you'd like to wait and see their kits, they might include some of what's listed above so that you can purchase it all in one stop if you don't like hunting for bits. If you already purchased a Benzie kit or two to make Mr Scrooge, you might have most of the rest of what you need to make Mr Marley, with the exception of what's listed above. 

Back to drawing diagrams for me! Y'all have a wonderful evening.

what I'm up to

Mask life.

Making this thing took me way longer than it should have.

1. I haven't sewn on my machine in a long while, so I was a wee bit rusty.
2. Somehow during that interim my machine broke. *shrugs* Now it won't switch between types of stitches. Boo.
3. I'm kind of bad at following video tutorials. I watched it once and then got all cocky thinking I know what I'm doing. Had to throw out my first one. (This mask features a nose wire, replaceable elastic, and a filter pocket, so it's a bit more involved than some.)
4. If you are curious what pattern I used, my superhero quilter sister recommended this one. She and a bunch of her sewing friends are making up huge numbers of these for hospitals per their request. And also of course for friends and family, since it's recommended we all wear something to cover our faces while we are out.
5. There are a LOT of free patterns to choose from out there right now, like this one and this one and this one.

The one I made feels pretty comfortable on. Note: The elastic allowed for the ears was too small for my husband's face, so keep that in mind if you are making it for a guy. I added 2 inches or so to the elastic for him.

Let's all look forward to a time when we can put these things in a drawer and forget about 'em. Stupid virus. Die, virus, die.

International sources for wool felt and pattern supplies

Photo: Lovely 100% wool felt samples and cards sent to me by from Cloud Craft UK

You guys know I have trusted felt vendors I work with here in the US, but because international shipping can get a little pricey I do get a lot of questions about where to source wool felt overseas. I asked my customers on FB where they purchase their felt and received so many helpful responses! Thank you! I thought I'd compile a handy list of some vendors* here for you, and I'll continue to update it as I become aware of more in other countries. Might give you a good lead if you are looking for a domestic source!

*These have been recommended to me by other crafters and some vendors have kindly sent me samples/color cards (shown in the photos), but I have not personally sewn with their felt nor purchased items from them. This list is intended as a reference for your convenience only. Please use the same diligence and discretion you would use with any internet or in-store purchase.

Photo courtesy of Bear Dance Crafts

CANADA

1. Bear Dance Crafts - Westholme, BC. 100% wool felts, glitter felts, metallic felts. Materials kits offered for some MmmCrafts patterns. 
2. Gingermelon - Vancouver. Merino wool felt and also wool blends.

Photo: Lovely wool blend felt color cards sent to me by Billow Fabrics UK

UNITED KINGDOM

1. Billow Fabrics - National Nonwovens wool blend felts (some of the same colors that Benzie carries) ask them about bundles
2. Cloud Craft - 100% wool felts
3. Felt Better - 100% wool felts, metallic felts, glitter felts, Sulky stabilizer. Ask about supplies and kits especially pulled together for MmmCrafts patterns.
4. Paper-And-String - Wool blend felts, glitter felts, DMC flosses 
5. Tactile Craft Supplies - Wool blend felts
6. Wool Felt Company - 100% wool felts

Photo: Lovely commercially dyed and hand dyed 100% wool felt samples and color cards from WinterWood AUS

AUSTRALIA

1. My Felt Lady - Chinchilla, Queensland. 100% wool felts, metallic felts, glitter felts. Materials kits and supplies offered for some MmmCrafts patterns.
2. WinterWood Felt and Craft Supplies - Warrenwood, Victoria. 100% wool felts, both commercially and hand dyed, metallic felts, glitter felts, wood beads
3. Felt Craft Studio - Central Coast. 100% wool felts, viscose felts, metallic/glitter felts

THE NETHERLANDS 

1. Bij Vilt Enzo - Wool blend and 100% wool felts
2. De Viltwinkel - 100% wool felts

If you've had a great experience with a non-US wool felt vendor, feel free to leave it in the comments! (Please no self-promotion. Anonymous comments will be deleted.)

hello, lover

Oh I love you, my DMC darling.

Every pretty pretty floss color available...

...and you are not printed. Nooo.
You have actual floss samples. Be still my heart!

OK, I'll stop being all weird about the floss color guide. Is the photo good enough for you to see? It's real floss wrapped around cardboard columns. No more after-the-fact spec'ing headaches. Of which there have been many. So many. Because I always forget to label my floss skeins.

Even the metallic and variegated flosses that I never use are there. Haha. But I might use them. And if I do I can spec 'em.

And a handy visual guide for widths of Pearl Cottons. So nice.

My sincere thanks to Renae of Benzie Design for giving me the link to purchase this wondrous thing. I had been searching for one and all I could find was a wildly inaccurate printed version on Amazon. It's nice to know smart people.

curated felt color collection/felt & floss color guides for Turtle Dove

Once again, Benzie Design has come through with a bundle of felts and floss that you can purchase if you want to make Turtle Dove ornaments that look like my samples in the picture above!

This Benzie felt collection includes:
1) Peacock
2) Aqua
3) Swan
4) Magenta
5) Burgundy
6) Orange
7) Mustard
8) Ochre
9) Silver
10) Graphite

It's an easy and quick way to get the matching wool blend felts and flosses for my pattern. I highly recommend Renae's shop. I've always received the best customer service and lovely wool-blend felts!

The photo above shows the pretty felts alongside the matching floss bundle. You will need the matching flosses in order to sew your pattern pieces together, so purchasing the floss add-on is handy. PLEASE NOTE: You will also need to purchase contrasting colors of floss for the decorative embroidery from your local craft store.

Blue/orange Turtle Dove felt colors:
Body: Swan (optional: I used Peacock for the body back)
Wing: Orange
Wing inset and beak: Burgundy
Eye detail: Magenta

Blue/orange Turtle Dove decorative embroidery colors:
DMC Blanc (white) or B5200 (snow white)
DMC 310 (black)
DMC 3844 (dk bright turquoise)
DMC 3804 (dk cyclamen pink)
DMC 947* (burnt orange)

Grey/mustard Turtle Dove felt colors:
Body: Silver (optional: I used Graphite for the body back)
Wing and eye detail: Mustard
Wing inset and beak: Graphite

Grey/mustard Turtle Dove decorative embroidery colors:
DMC Blanc (white) or B5200 (snow white)
DMC 310 (black)
DMC 3799 (v dk pewter gray)
DMC 3852* (v dk straw)
DMC 947* (burnt orange)
DMC 666 (bright red)

*These colors are included already in the floss bundle

You can purchase the curated wool-blend felts only OR you can purchase the felts bundled with the matching floss. The pull down menu includes options to purchase the Partridge & Pear felt/floss collection as well, and that list will grow as I release new patterns in the series. Pretty awesome!

curated felt color collection/felt & floss guides for Partridge & Pear

Photo courtesy of Benzie Design

I am delighted to show you this ten-color felt collection I put together recently at Benzie Design. I chose the colors to match my favorite yellow and pink sample ornaments for Partridge & Pear.

Benzie felt colors in this collection:
1) Swan
2) Moss
3) Fern
4) Mustard
5) Ochre
6) Orange
7) Cotton Candy
8) Magenta
9) Burgundy
10) Peacock

If you want to match my samples above you can save some hassle/worry by purchasing this ready-chosen felt set from Benzie. (Note: as new patterns in the series are released, the listing will have new options for different color collections. Choose the one you want from the handy pulldown menu!)

Photo courtesy of Benzie Design

And looky, you can also purchase the handy add-on set of matching embroidery floss! You'll need matching floss for sewing the parts of the ornaments together so that set is a really nice feature and will save you some time squinting at the craft store. PLEASE NOTE: You will also need to purchase contrasting colors of floss for the decorative embroidery from your local craft store.

Yellow Partridge & Pear felt colors:
THE FRONT SIDE:
Ochre: Bird body and pear background
Mustard: Bird wing
Swan: Bird belly and plume
Moss: Bird beak, pear stem and pear inset
Fern: Bird beard and pear leaf
ON THE BACK SIDE:
On both ornaments I used Mustard for the backs (but sewed them together with floss that matches Ochre)

Yellow Partridge & Pear decorative embroidery colors:
DMC Blanc (white) or B5200 (snow white)
DMC 310 (black)
DMC 3844 (dk bright turquoise) partridge breast only
DMC 935 (dk avocado green)
DMC 891 (dk carnation)
DMC 3846 (lt bright turquoise)

Pink Partridge & Pear felt colors:
ON THE FRONT SIDE:
Cotton Candy: Bird body and pear background
Magenta: Bird wing and pear stem
Swan: Bird belly, plume and pear leaf
Orange: Bird beard
Burgundy: Bird beak and pear inset
ON THE BACK SIDE:
On both ornaments I used Orange for the backs, but used floss that matched the fronts when I sewed the front and back together.

Pink Partridge & Pear decorative embroidery colors:
DMC 310 (black)
DMC 3846 (lt bright turquoise)
DMC 947* (burnt orange)
DMC 917 (md plum)
DMC 741 (md tangerine)
DMC 154 (v dk grape)
DMC 818 (baby pink)

*This color is already included in the floss bundle

Photo courtesy of Benzie Design

 
I love working with Benzie's wool-blend felt and I highly recommend her shop from my (many) felt purchases. You'll just have to visit to see the wide range of colors and sizes available and check out her blog too for lots of feltcentric tips and tutorials. Renae always offers friendly, accurate service and prompt shipping. I love getting her prettily packaged felt in the mail. It always feels like Christmas!

Renae, thanks for the opportunity to curate another collection! (See here and here for my previous collections!)

new tools

I recently picked up some crafting tools that I've been eyeing for a while. First up these scallop shears, made for fabrics. I can't figure out what brand they are. Possibly Nikken? The logo is so impossibly tiny I'd need a microscope to confirm. The "Made in Japan" part is visible though.

I had quite a time tracking some down for a reasonable cost. I didn't realize how hard to come by scallop shears were and how expensive. The Wise Word from fellow savvy crafters is that Fiskars used to make a mean pair of scallop shears but they are no longer available.

Since I wasn't willing to lie in wait on Ebay until some came available, I picked up these instead from ToolTron. So far, so good. They easily cut perfect scallops in fabric and felt (the felt and fabric are slightly wrinkled in the photo, sorry) and they feel weighty and good in my hand. My mind is crowding all up with the scallopy possibilities.

I also bought these Sizzix paddle punches from etsy. They allow you to punch simple shapes from felt or paper. Tried it on one piece of woven fabric and it didn't work well, but I might need to hone my skillz. I use my husband's manly rubber hammer and a regular cutting mat with them and it seems to work fine. And the whacking is very therapeutic, although it takes a lot more whacks then I anticipated to get a complete cut. The instructions say you must use the Sizzix hammer and mat or you Risk Damaging The Punch. I haven't had that problem so far, but there you go. I live on the edge, man. I live on the edge. Any paddle punch tips?

last minute father's day cards

Last minute. Seemingly the only way I function. I was inspired to make these by this more timely post from June Craft (via The Crafty Crow). She even has a template you can download and directions to make her card if Father's Day has snuck up on you this afternoon. For my version I used patterned cardstock and added a collar.

and here's the follow through

To this. I bought it at Target in their closet organizing section, and I'm really happy with it. No more felt being trampled underfoot or piled in corners and laundry baskets, where I can't see what I have. The smaller scraps that I couldn't bear to throw away got squirreled away in an old coke bottle crate which sits on top of the organizer. There are cubby holes left empty, so clearly that indicates I need to buy more felt. Yes.

Try to ignore the beige walls, the clutter, the dust and the very non-craft-bloggy look of my crafting studio. One day I will have a prettied up space to create in. Not today.