Maria

How to make a boro, slow stitched, primitive-style heart ornament

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I made this ornament yesterday, but it already looks like a family heirloom. You may know I’m a lover of vintage style, things that are a bit frayed around the edges, a little quirky, and this stuffed heart hit the spot. Using small scraps of gorgeous fabric from my stash, I was able to slow-stitch…

How to make tattered fabric flowers

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These decorative raggedy flowers are super quick and easy to make and can be used to add a shabby chic pop to all manner of things.   First of all, select your fabric. Choose something that’s going to fray. This is a great time to raid your fabric stash! I think denim works great, but…

5 ideas for creating gorgeous things from fabric scraps

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If you’re like me and can’t bear throwing anything away, even the tiniest remnants of beautiful fabric leftover from other projects, then scroll down for some lovely stitching ideas to whittle down your fabric stash. Belts: Great for the tiniest of scraps. Here I’ve used a length of 1.25″ cotton webbing and attached the textile…

Boro-style Clutch Bag Tutorial—all hand stitched

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My latest passion is slow stitching, particularly boro and sashiko styles. It’s just so relaxing to use needle and thread to create art. Hand sewing instantly calms my body and mind as I enjoy the process of stitching for stitching’s sake. It’s not about mending or sitting at your sewing machine, nor having a goal…

Upcycled jean bags

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I’ve been collecting worn out jeans for a while now. They’re all frayed, super soft, stitched up and mended in places, and just crying out to be repurposed. I challenged myself to use every single inch of the jeans—zip, pockets, waistband, hems—in various projects. The scissors came out and I busily deconstructed about 6 pairs.…

The devil is in the details

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Welcome to our corner of the World Wide Web. It’s all new and shiny and I’m loving being able to offer my stylish one-of-a-kind purses and accessories to the world! Please pop into my Etsy store to see what happens when an illustrator brings together unique color combinations, exquisite patterns, and fabulous textures to create…