Show and Tell: Gathered Ruffle Camera Strap Cover

Remember a month or so ago when I told you about my new baby (my new DSLR camera - Canon Rebel T1i)?  Well, I have seen a gazillion cute camera straps around the internet lately and I thought "I want one!".  So today I decided to make myself one for my new camera.

I've seen a lot of great tutorials, but nothing was exactly what I was looking for, so I just decided to go for it and make my up my own little design with a little inspiration from here and there.

I used fabric from designer Anna Maria Horner.  When I was first introduced to this designer I was not initially won over by her work (sorry to say), but now I LOVE it!  I guess it's grown on me - I love the eclectic mix of patterns she uses with vintage, geometrics and florals.

I used a piece of woven trim that I purchased at a very old local fabric store.  I don't know if it is vintage or not, but it's old and I just loved its charm.

I wanted my camera strap to be slightly padded so I added some fusible fleece to the under-side.  I'm very happy with the amount of padding this gives the strap cover - not too much, not too little.

I used a gathering stitch on the top layer (don't worry if you don't know what that means, I promise to cover that in my "Sew Basics" series) and stitched the ribbon down the center of the ruffle.  I then sewed the top layer to the bottom layer (right-sides together) and turn it right-side out to reveal the completed camera strap cover.

On the inside I stitched in my label - The Cottage Mama.  It's so fun to have your own labels!  Even if you don't sell the things you make, I highly recommend purchasing some for any of the gifts you give or the clothes you make.  I feel so proud when I see my girls wearing "The Cottage Mama".

And there's me - "hi there!" sporting my new, hip camera strap cover.  I designed, cut, and finished this camera strap during naptime today, so it sewed up pretty quick.  If you have a boring camera strap right now, why not take a little time to make yourself something special, I'm sure you deserve it!!

Have a great weekend!

Cottage Mama's Note: Since there are so many tutorials out there on making camera straps, I figured I would just kind of tell you what I did.  If you have any questions about how I made mine or if you would like a tutorial just leave me a comment or email me (thecottagemama@gmail.com).

~ a window seat for the girls ~

easy peasy...

a simple mdf board cut to size at Lowes

scrap wood glued & screwed to the side walls

a firm king size pillow

a pillow case from Homegoods

...that's reversible

a skirt that used to be a valance (held on with a tension rod)

one more time ~ before...

after...

approximately 12 minutes to do


(check out The Shabby Chic Cottage 
and the Shabby Nest 
& 
funky junk interiors

for other great ideas)

Easiest 10-Minute Throw Pillow

Would you believe me if I told you that the pillow pictured above was originally a placemat?  Well, it's true!  I got this placemat today at Pier 1 on sale for $3.10 (including tax).  I turned this beauty into a pillow in less than 10 minutes, yes, LESS than 10 minutes.  Even if you don't own a sewing machine, you can do this little project - just get out your seam ripper and hand-sewing needle.

Like I said in my previous post, I have really been into sprucing up The Cottage Home, but with being a stay-at-home Mom, I am usually on a pretty tight budget.  So I am doing the best with what I have (rearranging things galore) and adding in the occasional thrifty find.  I am so excited about this project and I hope you will be too!!

10-Minute Throw Pillow Tutorial

Supplies:

1 double layer placemat

Seam ripper

Fiberfill or other stuffing

Sewing machine or hand-sewing needle

Thread

Directions:

Grab a standard-size placemat.  I got mine at our local Pier 1 (though I was inspired by all the pretty things I've seen in the Potterybarn catalog lately).  Perhaps you have a placemat on-hand or check out any of your favorite stores - I guarantee a place mat will be FAR less expensive than a pillow but will still have the same style as your favorite store.

I picked this placemat because I loved the texture and the colors (our family room is deep red, brown, tan and green).  Make sure you choose a placemat that has two layers - a top layer and a bottom layer.  Some placemats are trimmed with bias-tape.  Try to stay away from those for this project as it will only make your life more complicated.

Here's what the back of my placemat looks like - just a simple, solid brown.

Remove the tag from the placemat.  I decided this would be a good place for me to open up both layers as it already looked a little wonky to me.  But you can open your placemat any where you see fit.

Take your seam-ripper and carefully open up your placemat.  Open a hole large enough for you to stick your hand through.  You need to be able to get your hand inside to stuff the pillow.

This is the size hole that I ended up with after opening up both sides of my placemat (I have kind of small hands).

Take your fiberfill (or whatever stuffing you are using) and fill your placemat.  Keep filling until you are satisfied with the look.

After you have filled your pillow, pin the opening shut.  I know my pinning is not entirely proper here, but just do your best to pin the opening closed.

For the next step, if you have a sewing machine, line up the original stitching and close your opening with coordinating thread.  Mine was a 1/8th seam allowance.  If you DO NOT have a sewing machine, hand-sew the opening closed in coordinating thread.

Here is what the side of my pillow looked like after I closed the opening.

And there you have it - a pillow in less than 10-minutes - does it get any easier than that?  Well, not for $3.00!!

I saw some placemats at Pier 1 with some fabulous beaded trim on two sides - that would make a totally cute addition to a pillow, don't you think?.  Hmmmm.......my wheels are turning.......perhaps I need another placemat or two.  What about you?  Will I see you out tomorrow picking up a placemat?

Have a great night!

Cottage Mama's Note:  I have seen several different versions of this type of pillow on other websites such as Thrifty Decor Chick and I'm sure there are others out there too!  Everyone has their own version, so feel free to check out some others and see what works best for you!!

my dream kitchen

if i could build my dream kitchen i would build one with very few or no upper cabinets.  i like the look of shelving but think i could do without them completely.  while i was browsing through my kitchen inspiration files i realized how many kitchens i have saved that don’t have upper cabinets.

{meg ryan’s home in elle decor}

i love the task lights above the sink in this kitchen.

{elle decor}

so pretty.  this one is neck and neck with my favorite one.

{lonny}

{elle decor}

{elle decor}

{living etc}

{unknown}

{unknown}

and my favorite…

{ellen pompeo’s home in elle decor}

LiveJournal Tags: kitchens,ellen pompeo's home,meg ryan's home

Loaded Potato Salad Recipe from Matilda's Summer Garden Party

So, I'm finally getting around to posting some of the recipes from my daughter, Matilda's Summer Garden Party that we had earlier this month.  The first recipe I would like to share with you is my Loaded Potato Salad.

I get weak in the knees for a good loaded baked potato.  I mean I love the works - butter, cheese, sour cream, bacon, chives, salt and pepper - YUM.  A good, loaded baked potato was my inspiration for this wonderful potato salad.  Even if you don't traditionally like potato salad, give this a try - you might be a potato salad fan after all!

Matilda's Loaded Potato Salad

Serves 12

Ingredients:

2 pounds red potatoes, cleaned and cut into 1 inch chunks

1 pound of bacon, cooked and crumbled

5 green onions, cleaned and sliced

1 stalk celery, finely chopped

1 cup mayonnaise

1 cup sour cream

Salt and Pepper, to taste

Directions:

Bring a large pot of salad water to a boil.  Add potatoes cut into 1 inch chunks.  Cook until tender, but not mushy (it's very important not to over cook your potatoes).  Cooking time is approximately 15 minutes.  Drain potatoes, place in refrigerator to cool.

Meanwhile, cook your bacon.  You can cut it prior to cooking, as I have done here, or cook the strips and crumble them later (it's up to you).  Once cooked, crumble each bacon strip and set aside.  

Add mayonnaise and sour cream to a large mixing bowl and combine.  Then add green onions (or chives, if you prefer), celery, bacon, and salt and pepper.  Finally add your cooked, cooled potatoes (don't worry if they aren't totally cooled - that's ok) and fold ingredients together to combine.  Taste and then adjust seasoning.  

Place potato salad in the fridge for at least an hour to allow the flavors to come together.  This is definitely a great make ahead dish, so feel free to make this the day before your party or event! 

Enjoy!

Cottage Mama's Note:  If it doesn't taste quite right to you, it probably needs more salt.  I find that salt can make or break a potato dish - just the right amount and you can hit it out of the park, too little and your flavor will fall very flat.  Keep tasting and adjusting as you see fit.  Remember you can always add more salt, but you can't take it out.

market: part 2 and a winner

we have a winner!!!  congrats to jan from the life of a future domestic goddess.  looks like she’s well on her way to getting the new duvet that she wants with her new $60 credit from CSNstores. 

thanks so much to all of you who entered the giveaway.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

market: part 2

i started sharing some of my pictures from my trip to the atlanta market yesterday, and i’m going to continue with some more today.

roost steals my heart every show.  all of their pieces have so much detail.  catalog images don’t do them justice most of the time, so it’s so nice to get to see them in person a few times a year.  felt was a big theme in the roost showroom this year and i was loving it.

sea life is very hot right now so bliss studio was dead on with their showroom.  they got my vote for the most inspiring showroom color scheme.  the blue and orange was beautiful.

vintage, vintage, vintage.  it was vintage heaven at vagabond vintage.

studio a is a new line carried by the southern accessories today rep group.  the recycled bamboo knot furniture pieces were so unique.

and the showroom where i saw my favorite piece of the whole market pretty much stole the show.  regina andrew.

 

and that’s about it for this market.  there were plenty of other showrooms that i visited, but i either forgot to get photos of them or my photos didn’t turn out well. 

hope you all enjoyed my little virtual walk-thru.

LiveJournal Tags: giveaway,atlanta market,vagabond vintage,bliss studio,regina andrew,studio a,roost