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Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow...!!!

I know that we have customers all around the world, and some of you are used to the snow coming down four to five inches at a time. But where we're located, snow is exciting! The kids are off school, people of all ages are sledding right in front of my house! The snow brings excitement to the air! I think it's a fantastic way to start off the New Year!

There's just a little preview of our backyard, and as you can see, the snow really came down last night!

 

So being that we're all stuck inside today with nowhere to go, I think that making crafts all day sounds like a perfect idea!

 

Lets take a look at some crafts that we could make today....

Look how cute the snowflakes are! This is an easy snowflake/popsicle craft that would be easy, yet very cute! Just use some E6000 glue to glue the popsicles sticks together, and then you can glue your favorite Shelly's Buttons and More buttons onto the popsicle sticks! To make the snowflakes, you could use packages such as Heirloom or any of the packages from our Snowflake Collection!

 

Another fun craft that would be easy to make would be Thank You cards for all of your Christmas Gifts! Here are some cute ideas....

In this particular card, you can use buttons from any of the Color Me.. button packages. You could use the package Carrot Noses for the nose, and a package such as Micro Mini Round Black for the eyes! Let your imagination run wild and include all different products from the Christmas Collection! 

In the picture shown above, you could also use buttons from the Color Me Collection, as well as bows from the package Christmas Bows!

 

There are just a few ideas for what you can make on this boring snow day. Feel free to send your creations to Macy@shellysbuttonsandmore.com for a chance for them to be featured here on the blog, in the newsletter, or on our actual website!!!

 

 

 

 

 

By Popular Demand ~ Madame Samm's Pumpkin Pin Cushion Pattern Tutorial. FREE download included !

Borrowed from www.sewwequilt.com


Hi, Pumpkin Patch Pin Cushion Wantobe Designer… 

 Have you purchased patterns in the past and was determined to create what the pattern cover looked like only to find there were many “missing steps’? No, then you are sooooooo lucky. And you are possibly a Genius at making any patterns.  Don't even bother reading anymore, this will not interest you in the least...  Ha ha.

 I on the other hand have not been so lucky, I cannot even tell you how many patterns I have in boxes and cabinets that I have purchased and will never ever make…Do you know why?????? Because I could not figure them out, I must be a terrible student, but after hundreds of books and patterns I just don't get it, I  QUIT. I swore I would never ever purchase another pattern unless it had lots and lots of photos. LIKE every step –so all I have to do is follow them-- kind of pattern. ( and I  get the same results) 

I am so over it, purchasing patterns for their lovely cover page only to find that what I really spent my money on was  that 1 photo. There was nothing else in the pattern, lots of instructions and poorly written at that.  If there were diagrams, I could not even figure those out. Tell me I am not the only one who has experienced this? 

 Did you know that most creative individuals who come up with great ideas do so because they could not find what they were looking for? Out of desperation, lot’s of $$$’s wasted, they invent something or develop a technique that works for them. ( and possibly others). Yep!

 Well I am one of those creative people. I am a visual learner. God knows it has taken me years to figure that out but I get it now. I purchased my last pattern book last week, it cost me $49.00. Not to embarrass the author but really her book was a marketing tool for her art quilts. There were no “special hints and clues” as documented on the cover of her book, no mastery techniques that will have me drafting better patterns…. In fact the only credit I will give her was she mastered to get $49.00 out of me. We move on, lesson learned. ( I know I said I was not buying any more, but she had lots of photos…just not any that would have helped me in my quest)

So where am I going with this..... I will tell you, I wanted to share a pattern- ( this one) , if you have not seen any of my patterns to date...I fill each pattern with tons of photos...and here is the most amazing thing, I have had  1 complaint and that was regarding toooo many photos in my pattern. And yes my patterns are pages upon pages of photos and notes, and yes sadly I only offer them in PDF format...BUT I will tell you, I very seldom get any emails saying they were not successful in getting results. And most create many many duplicates of my patterns, I am told some of them are a bit addicting...

 So, here I am today, after 20+ photos to help you make a very simple pin cushion. Well let’s just say it looks simple. Most of you would think “I can do that, and mine will look as perfect as hers”. 

 It is for those who want to make it exactly like this… And yes it is easy- one very simple pattern piece, but here is where this pattern will be different than many others you have purchased. I show you every step, every detail, every trick, every hint, nothing held back. 

I even tell you where to get your needles, threads.... In fact for future ideas especially pin cushions or DOOR STOPPERs ( new year blog hop)   YOU will be successful in your creative zen.  If you choose any of these pumpkins in the pumpkin patch , I swear yours will look the same if you follow all the photos and purchase the same material or similar..or my name is not Mdm Samm!

Ok, are you ready to make a very simple 
PUMPKIN PIN CUSHION?

Fabric requirement

1/4 yard for your pumpkin pieces
10 inches x 2 inch for your stem, alternate colour...brown, black, green...whatever..
rice about 1/4 cup 
fiberfill ( stuffing) about a handfull
Presencia thread
Aurifil thread

( pattern is at the bottom of this post) 

Now why place your pattern piece towards the selvage edge...?

Quilting Fabrics have more stretch ( crosswise grain) and less ( lenghtwise grain)

YOU want it to stretch from the top to the bottom of your pumpkin...( crosswise grain)

If you are not sure which is which...TRY this stretch test...

YOU want your stretch of fabric to go from the top of pumpkin to the bottom,

not across, otherwise your shape will not be pumpkin like.. Make sense?

I tripled my fabric, pinned and cut and repeated again with 4 pieces of fabric...

YOU need 7 individual pieces...

Use a hot dry iron so it does not stretch your fabric. 

I love love love my Reliable Sensor iron...most dependable iron that I have ever used...

Sew one at a time until all of them have been stitched, when you get to the last one...

 #7 leave 2 inches open from the top and backstitch where you place your last stitch...

Here is what you will need....NOT all that rice or stuffing goes into that pin cushion..

this day I was making 5 of them....The bowl with rice in it, makes it easier for clean up...

The black piece of fabric there is for your stem...more on that below..

I love Aurifil thread for many reasons, our machines love it, it is very thin, so you don't see the stitches

and it holds up like no other on the market... Ohhh and those wee Dovo scissors my favourite

scissors in the whole wide world...YOU can find them here at Anita's online store..

she has a wide variety. These are the 3 1/2 size..perfect for hand sewing and cutting....

Take your 10 inch piece and roll like a pipe...trim off end pieces when completed stitching...

it will fray and that will look just fine.... now put that stem aside for now....

Turn your pumpkin right side out.. and place pumpkin shell in your rice bowl...

I used a small teaspoon to pour into opening...

Leave enough room for some stuffing...this will just look better and the pins will stay in 

your pin cushion...

I chose some Orange Aurifil thread and stitched close to the edge seam...in and out...

not over the top stitching...

See how my stitching is close to the edge and almost invisible...

now Place your stem inside, push in about 1/2 inch...

Now stitch right through stem to other side of pumpkin shell...

Piecemakers needles are perfect for any stitching where you need a longer

needle...they are sharp and ideal for making dolls ( for future -blog hop

use when adding head and limbs

to your doll)

 in this case....perfect for squeezing pumpkin together to give a full look...

Here is their link for these doll needles. They are 3 1/2 inches long...

I use Presencia thread #8 for the thread to squeeze the pumpkin from top to bottom..

That bubble gum casing is just great to keep your thread together...

Those you can find anywhere...

Double your thread and begin at the bottom and knot there, then insert needle towards

the top and thread and pull each time to bring it all in....I do this 3 x ...

YOU have completed your pumpkin when you knotted your threads on the top and bury

it is closest to the stem...

For A large variety of theme buttons, visit us !! SHELLY BUTTONS AND MORE...

we have allllll of these buttons and so much more...

And how to make these 

LINK here for the Tutorial on what you need to make these..!

ALSO FREE and loads of links to purchase supplies..

 I just turned the pattern this way so you could see it...you can copy this and print 

and it should print 5.5 in length and 2 inches wide. 

Nobody ever achieves any success without others. So to Reliable a Reliable Sensor Iron, 

Shellys Buttons and More for Buttons, Anita at Anita little stitches for Dovo Scissors,

Colonial Needle for Presencia Threads and Aurifil for their BEST in threads... PieceMakers doll Needles, Thank you for creating and providing such terrific sewing and quilting tools. 

Ohhh this gingham fabric was from a collection Now we are going Places...by Monica Lee

who has retired from fabric making....sadly too...she was really good!  
The top gingham pumpkin is no other than Riley Blake Designs gingham ( 1/2 inch)
LOVE love love their ginghams!

 

By the way this simple pumpkin patch pin cushion pattern, took me ONLY 1 week to create, 63   23 hours ( thanks to TJ for the note)  to take photos, edit, and write...simple YOU BET ...wink!  ( been up far too many hours)

 I am so thankful for caring, sharing, thoughtful friends!
REALLY those who love to sew, craft and quilt
are soooo darn sweet and generous too..

P.s i uploaded this pattern to craftsy for free as well, you can download this file in pdf for future use!

Your comments warm our hearts..



Customer Creations: Let's take a look at one of the many creations of Madame Samm !

This creation is compliments of Madame Samm and her Sew We Quilt Blog.

Do you want to learn how to make a button pin for sewing? Keep reading to find out how!

Our very talented and creative Madame Samm creates button pins. The best part? She uses your favorite Shelly's Buttons and More buttons!

Feel free to check out her blog here.

After reading a little on her blog, I've found that Buttons Pins can be very expensive, but with her creativity, she's discovered an inexpensive and easy way to make them!

First you need a very special glue. Nothing will work better than the one and only E6000 glue found right on our website

This glue has proved to be very reliable, but it does have a strong odor, so I prefer using it outside!

The next thing you need is 1 7/8 inch PINS which seem to be a little hard to find. But if you go to Wardrobe Supplies,they have them right on their website!

Oh, and just so you know, all of these lovely pictures are compliments of  her blog. 

Next, you have your choice to use any type of button that you want from right here from our website! We have over one thousand different theme packs, so have fun choosing!

One last thing that you may want to use to make your buttons pins is our Button Shank Remover! 

This will allow you to easily remove the shank from the buttons.

Now that you have all of your supplies, making the BUTTON PIN itself is very easy. All you need to do is choose the button that you want, remove the shank, put a very little bit of E6000 glue on the back side, add your pin and

BAM you're all done!

Here is one of her creations that is my favorite...

...and this one is perfect for Christmas....

As you can see, she is VERY creative. Can you be as creative as her? 

Comment below with some of your creative creations!

 Who knows... maybe one day your creations will end up right here on our blog which is seen by hundreds of people everyday!!!

Comment below with your name, title of your creation, and even a link to where we can see it!

If you have not made your creation yet, comment with a few ideas that you may have! Maybe one day we'll have Macy's Craft Corner make us another video showing us how to make YOUR creation!

A Halloween Birdhouse Creation!

Are you ready for the holidays?  They're sneaking up on us...

So, last week Macy created this adorable Halloween birdhouse so I asked her create a video for us.  And she did!!  All of the items she used can be purchased at just about any craft store and of course you should embellish it using OUR buttons....... Why?  Because our buttons are the BEST!!  

So, when you have a moment please take a peek at Macy's video.  See how many times Macy says "Shelly's Buttons and More' throughout her presentation and if you guess the correct answer we will give you a FREE SHIPPING voucher code to use towards a purchase from our website.  

Send your answer to:  

Macy@shellysbuttonsandmore.com 

Please be sure to view our Facebook page when you have the time.  There is always some sort of discount code that is offered exclusively for our Facebook friends.... can you find it???  (This month it's a Halloween discount code)

Customer Creations Using Dress It Up Buttons

A note from Shelly........

I am constantly amazed at the creativity and talent of our customers. Recently while ‘browsing’ Facebook, I came across a page that showed beautiful little creatures hand sculpted using polymer clay. Of course it was the snowman wearing a Pittsburgh Steeler scarf that immediately caught my eye, so I continued to browse through the photo’s posted in amazement and I’ve come to this conclusion. - There are many, many talented people in this world who create some pretty ingenious creations using our products. We’d like to share those creations with you. So, if you are one of the talented ones and would like to have your creations featured in our newletter that goes out to 35,000 recipients each week please let us know.
This week I’m sharing with you the talents of Jaime Peffer and Flakey’n Friends from Pennsylvania. When you have a moment please take a look. I placed my order by contacting her via the Flakey ’n Friends Facebook page. I hope you enjoy the page as much as I did.

Flakey 'n Friends

 

The above gingerbread bakers are embellished using our

Christmas Cookies and Candy Cottage holiday button packages.

 

 

Our North Pole and Candy Cottage button packages !!

 





Shelly's Buttons and More Weekly Specials

Save 10% OFF all FLIP FLOP FUN packages by using discount code S-FF during checkout.

July 18-25, 2011!!

GREAT selections at GREAT prices !!

Why not try them ALL?

31 different styles to choose from this week including popular button packages, Jesse James glass bead packages & even Swarovski Rhinestone packages !!

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