Decorative fabric wrist cuff/ bracelet tutorial

Spring and summer is the best time to show your pretty handmade accessories, especially the ones made of fabric, threads and cutest little buttons. Just one interesting piece might take care of the rest of your outfit!

We loved this fabric wrist cuff tutorial from Owlweaver shop on Etsy for a lovely look and detailed instructions. Yulia, the author of this project is kindly sharing the step-by-step instructions with us today. 

 Materials you will need: 


1. Main fabric, fusible web & backing fabric. You can dye white fabric in a coffee to get an antique/vintage look.

2. Brads, gems (stones), beads and other decoration stuff you want to see on your future bracelet.

3. Different kind of ribbons or lace - whatever your heart desires.

4. Fishing line (not necessary, you may use a simple thread – it is for beads, stones and I sew a back side with the help of fishing line)

5. Buttons and elastic cord for buttons loops, approx. 2mm wide.

6. Sewing machine, threads, needle and other sewing accessories.

7. Pencil, ruler and paper for C.

The process:


1. First, we have to make a sewing template and use it to cut a fabric. The circumference of my wrist is 16,5cm and I want my cuff to be 11,5 cm wide, so the top of a cuff it’s supposed to be not less than 22cm. The measurements of the trapezoid template I’ve used were 25.5cm(top of cuff), 19.5cm (bottom of cuff) and 12.5 cm high.

Then fuse two pieces of fabric together by ironing if the fabric is thin. Make sure you have placed the adhesive side toward the back side of the fabric. Cut the main and backing fabric using template.


2. Prepare ribbons, ruffles and lace that you are going to use as well as other accessories.

3. Work out edges of the main and back fabric with zig-zag stitch. 


4. 1st "tier". Choose the widest lace, which will be placed near the wrist and ruffle it. First I tack, then sew it on a sewing machine. 


5. 2nd “tier “- pinned on the top of the 1st "tier" strips of tulle (I like to use it, it good separate layers or "tiers" of lace).  


6. If you don’t have initial design just use your intuition and inspiration and everything comes up spontaneously. The next “tier” is crinkled decorative elastic band. I stitched up to the middle and then I decided to make a flower. You can do the same or just continue sewing a layers (“tiers”). It may be pieces of fabric (it looks good when you tearing fabric, don’t cut with scissors).


7. Continue decorating the foundation until you’ll receive a desire result.

Next, make a button loops (1):

2.  Attach the elastic cord on the one side of the bracelet. 


3. Tack in a lining to the front side of the bracelet. Put a back side fabric a little bit lower in the direction to the lace. Stitch using machine three sides of your bracelet (except the side with the lace) .

4. Turn out the bracelet, iron it on all sides.


5. The lining part turn inside and stitch with the blind stitch with the thread or fishing line like in my case. 

6. And the final item! You have to sew buttons and, congratulation, your bracelet is ready!

Have a great summer and thank you for your attention!

 ............

Yulia has just started on her new blog so we are expecting more wonderful tutorials from her!

Interview with a Star - MulberryWhisper

My name is Irina and I am the owner of MulberryWhisper shop on Etsy.

 …This is a strange thing to say for me. I am a fashion designer born and educated in Soviet Union, and I have never been supposed to have a shop. My mother and two aunts were fashion designers, too, and they were quite well known in Uzbekistan and in USSR in general, so it was natural for me to choose the same path. However all of us worked for state owned enterprises only.

I graduated from the Textile Design University and worked at clothing factory here in Tashkent as a designer, making things for people to wear. I was very happy to see my designs worn by people in the street, and if my daughter Eugenie was with me, I would always tell her – “See that cream suit? It is my design!”. I missed this feeling later…

After USSR ceased to exist, our factory stopped producing clothes. I worked from home for many years, but it did not give me the same level of satisfaction. I guess I was lacking a certain degree of freedom an artist needs. I often had to make designs I did not like, just because I needed to earn money. I had to work with fabrics chosen by the customers, and often those were synthetic fibers which looked and felt bad, in my view, but I had no choice. Of course I tried to give advice and to show alternatives but I still felt restrained.

We had been thinking of a brick and mortar shop for a while but we did not feel we had the needed capacity for that. I am not much of an administrator, and Eugenie has time consuming day job. Then at some point she told me about Etsy; she also bought some very nice things there. And somehow we decided to try Etsy as a platform for our shop, and we are very happy we did. We are to celebrate our first year on Etsy in the beginning of spring. We love Etsy and our shop.

I make clothing to order, using traditional Uzbek silk fabrics, mostly with ikat patterns which are so unique and beautiful. I believe that Uzbek fabrics are pieces of art which reflect the soul of our people – bright and full of light. I love the combination of traditional ethnic fabrics with contemporary clothing design; this gives my customers an opportunity to own a wearable piece of art which is versatile and practical. Many of my designs can be worn to the office or for a special occasion, as they are easy to wear and combine with other pieces. I also do my best to make my designs flattering for women, to emphasize their beauty. I am very happy to receive great feedback from our customers and I am glad to know that my designs are loved and used, not just stored in the closet.

 I also make pillow covers from silk ikat fabrics (adras, bekasab, khan atlas), Uzbek silk velour (bakhmal), Uzbek suzani (traditional embroidery) and rugs. These pieces bring a spirit of adventure and travels to the homes of our customers: some of them have an almost barbarian tribal feel, while others are lush and luxurious. All of those are made in limited quantities, and often are one of a kind.

 In addition, we offer lovely Uzbek silk scarves, and some of our customers already seem to have nice collections. These fabrics come in limited quantities, and there are very small chances for the buyers to see someone else wearing “their” scarves. We also occasionally sell beautiful vintage Russian wool shawls and scarves, when we find new old stock available.

I use a lot of vintage fabrics and rugs, and this approach feels right to me. There are plenty of vintage supplies here in our country; they are beautiful, unique, rare, and made from natural fibers. I believe in using as much vintage as possible, sometimes upcycling, to rescue the wonderful fabrics and also to somewhat relieve the burden on natural resources. We have a huge collection of vintage Uzbek silks and some of those are shared out in our shop.

Our first year was quite successful, despite the fact that we only worked for about six months altogether. We are very grateful to all the wonderful customers of ours, especially the first ones, who believed in us when we had no feedback and our photos were very poor. We want to give our special thanks to the Russian Artists’ Team on Etsy which continues providing invaluable support. And, of course, we are very grateful to Etsy! Etsy has given me and my daughter a wonderful opportunity to meet new people and learn new things, besides earning money. We have acquired several very good friends and we hope that friendship lasts and business develops.

All the best to you in 2013, and please come and visit us at MulberryWhisper and at our blog, MulberryWhisper.com!

Fabric disc cover DIY

If you like to make unique presents for your friends and family you probably will like the idea of this fabric disk cover:

 You will need:

1)      Fabric - we used two colors, one for the cover and one for the inside part

2)      Ribbon

3)      Scissors

4)      Pencil

5)      Tape measure

6)      Picture you want to use for the cover

7)      Your business card or greeting card, for a back side

8)      Thin fiberfill 

First of all, make a pattern of your disk cover. The measurements are: 32 cm wide by 23 cm long on the longer side and 16 cm (the half of the width) on another side.

Prepare frame for your picture and a pocket for the business card. Cut the fabric, leaving seams allowance of 1.5 cm on each side.

Sew the pocket to the back side of the cover, the longer part. Sew three sides of the picture frame to the front part. Put your picture into the frame and sew the last part.

Assemble the disk cover in the following order: inner fabric - fiberfill - ribbon - the outside fabric (with pocket and picture on it).

Sew the bottom side of the longer part of the cover and fold it:  

Sew the rest of sides of the cover.

Put your disk into the cover, and your present is ready!

 Enjoy!

By Ira & Lena (kimuka)

Interview with a Star - Katrin at Katrinshine

Hello! My name is Ekaterina and I run Katrinshine, an internet store on Etsy.

 I loved to make things since I was little, and my grandmother has taught me a lot: to embroider, knit and crochet. My mother taught me to sew and draw, and she says that she would give me paper and pencils and I would keep busy for a couple of hours just quietly drawing at my desk. Maybe this is why I love to make handmade items so much. To this day I love to draw.

I have graduated from an art school and it gave me a good knowledge base in composition, colors, an various drawing techniques. This is the design that I drew on our kitchen wall:

 And this is the arched doorway between the entrance hall and the living room:

About a year ago I got renewed interest in crocheting, learned to make crocheted balls, flowers and scarves. Maybe soon I will work up my courage for a large project, such as a crocheted dress for next summer.

Currently I work at a store, and often when it is not busy I crochet something small. When customers see it they give me positive comments on my creations. I created the whole series of earrings made of crocheted beads in many colors:

Given that the store I work for sells everything and anything made of or related to lavender, and its décor is all in lavender and white, I often find inspiration for lavender-colored jewelry. For example, this necklace, which consists not only from crocheted beads, but also beads made from fabric. I also added some small glass seed beads as an accent.

Take this ring, for example. It is composed of a crocheted rose with a bead in the center and a flower made of purple leather. These textures, even though so different, go very well with each other and make this ring unique.

I love long necklaces and have a huge collection of them at home. This is why I decided to make this long necklace, I also figured that I am not the only person who loves long necklaces. Black and white color scheme makes this necklace suitable for work, a company event, or just to wear every day with a gray sweater.

Please come and check out my Katrinshine store where you will find not only handmade jewelry, but also gifts for men and unique patchwork bags.

Interview with a Star - Natasha at Bonbonland

This is not a story about me but about a dream. A successful story about a dream that came true, which I am proud to share with you…


Like a lot of girls, I started to draw dresses and attires from the early childhood. In high school I learned fashion and the textile industry. Later in college I learned sewing and sewing technology, cutting and patterning, sewing machines & techniques and many other special things. I started to work in one of the largest fashion networks in Israel, H&O ™. I worked there ten years and went a long way from a saleswoman position to a fashion consultant and shop supervisor. I am very pleased because the work in H&O gave me a lot of knowledge and experience.


After the 15 years of working in fashion industry I got enough self confidence to start my own business. In 2007 I founded a fashion studio "Shirel". This word is actually my second name and means in Hebrew "God's Song". I believe all my life is the song dedicated to God…


My work day in the studio usually consists of fashion and design projects, cutting and shaping, fitting and trying on, sewing and preparing patterns, templates and samples. Also there are constant negotiations, work with customers and sales. In my studio we made a lot of patterns for evening dresses and outfits, blouses and tops. I am happy to work with leading Israeli fashion designers.


After almost three years of very hard work I started my favorite project – the internet boutique "bonbonLand" on ETSY. Actually I am running three shops on ETSY, also “Bandannas" and Felt scarves and necklaces. But bonbonLand is my favorite project. It allows me to work for the most beautiful creatures - for little princesses, for baby girls.


I am very happy woman. I have lovely husband, typical software "genius". I have two wonderful sons. But my work in bonbonLand project is the thing I enjoy most of all in my life. It gives me such a great feelings that could be compared with the pure real happiness possible only in an early childhood.


Every time I prepare baby bloomers or a small dress for a baby girl, I can imagine a little princess sitting or walking among the flowers or meadows in a gentle summer sunny day. I imagine photo props and bright and beautiful babies in bright and beautiful dresses. I imagine parents and grandparents smiling at a picture of their beloved daughters and granddaughters and tears flow from the depths of my soul…


I love all my small clients. And am happy to have the ability to realize this love. The possibility to give my love, my heart and a little part of my soul to every baby that wears my products, my wares. BonbonLand is not about the business, at least not only about the business. It is about the love, the love I share with my beloved baby clients and models. Nowadays almost a hundred baby girls wear the dress with the "bonbonLand" label.


I had a dream when I was young. I am happy that my dream came true.