Paper Ball Decor: Recycling Book Paper

July 15, 2014.Reading time 3 minutes.

book paper ball decor by thisblogisnotforyou.com Today I thought I’d share a sewing-related craft project which is super easy to make. You can make these paper balls from different sorts of paper and in whatever size you fancy. They are very quick to make and perfect for parties or home decor.

book paper ball decor by thisblogisnotforyou.com 1. For the book paper balls get some old book from the flea market or your own shelves. Draw a circle onto the paper using a glass/jar/cup and tracing it with a pencil.

book paper ball decor by thisblogisnotforyou.com 2. Cut it out (you can cut through several layers at once to speed up the process) and repeat until you’ve got enough pieces for the amount of paper balls you want to make. You will need approx. 8-15 circles per paper ball, depending on the thickness of the paper and the size of the paper ball. For bigger ones I’d recommend using more. book paper ball decor by thisblogisnotforyou.com 3. Stack them on top of each other and stitch down the middle with a straight stitch and a wider stitch length. My standard machine had no problems tackling 12 layers of book paper. However, if you are using more than 12 layers and they get stuck in your machine, you can simply sew them together by hand or try using a stapler.

Leave long thread tails and knot them on both ends. Cut off the thread tails on one side. You can later use the long thread ends on the other side of the paper balls for hanging them up somewhere.

4. Gently bend apart the layers with your fingers, distributing them evenly until there are no big gaps left. Now it’s time to hang them up! book paper ball decor by thisblogisnotforyou.com You can also try and make them using colourful scrapbook paper or pages from old fashion magazines.

It’s also a great project to make together with your kids and for showing them how to use a sewing machine.

You can hang your finsihed pieces up in your home, make mobiles or decorate your garden with them for your next party. book paper ball decor by thisblogisnotforyou.com

Hope you enjoyed this post! I’ve started my new job last week and have been very busy working on my new pattern which I hope to release at the beginning of August. That’s also the reason why you probably won’t see too many new makes this months. Posting on le blog less frequently doesn’t mean I’m not busy 🙂 I regularly post pictures of WIP on Twitter and Instagram, so feel free to follow me there and check out what I’m doing in the meantime (link below).

I still have to figure out how to combine my new work schedule with my favourite hobby. Any advice? 🙂

Happy sewing!
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unfinished tales of my sewing table [sneak peek at upcoming projects]

November 27, 2012.Reading time 3 minutes.

Do you know the feeling of having an uncountable amount of good ideas and inspirations always in moments where you have least time to put them into action?

Well, happens to me all the time. Maybe creativity is part of procrastination, but when I am stressed out and have thousands of other things to do my head just doesn’t stop having loads and loads of crafting and sewing ideas. I started something like a “draft book” to keep track of ideas and inspirations and as soon as I have time I start crafting away my collected “to do’s”.

Once I found a good pattern or idea for a dress, I try to think of what kind of fabric I will use and how much of it I’ll need. Keeping little snippets of the chosen fabric together with the pattern helps a lot at keeping ideas and future project well-assorted and you don’t have to start at the scratch later on.

The dress above is the one I have been working on recently and it just needs some more finishing until it’s done. I used the #133 pattern of Burda Style 8/2012.

I love the pattern and will use it again for sure. I decided to keep the skirt a little longer (as on the picture above) since it goes well with the checked pattern of the fabric. But I’ll certainly make another one with a different and lighter fabric that is going to be way shorter and a little more modern. If only I had more time…!

As mentioned, I am sewing a second (fuller) petticoat, but all the tulle-gathering is very time-consuming and since I want to do a tutorial about petticoat sewing as well (taking pictures, writing instructions) I will probably take a few more days and weeks

This looped stole developed more or less out of an accident – it was supposed to become a scarf, but I ran out of wool and couldn’t get more of that kind. The idea of making a looped stole out of it actually wasn’t that bad, it’s really nice and cosy to wear. I am going to adorn it, but I haven’t figured out what I am going to use for that. I’ll post a picture when I am done!

Additionally, I am working on several smaller sewing projects at the moment, mainly christmas gifts. That’s the main reason for not posting any proper pictures yet – I don’t want to spoil anyone. But there are several sewing tutorial in the pipeline for after Christmas, so keep some fabric remnants ready!