Stitch This

This is my 500th post!!!! How strange I’m still tapping away, I never thought this blog would be such a key part of my life. Don’t you just love technology?

Anyway, hopefully by now you’ve done your shopping and will be contemplating the marathon that is wrapping. Now, I like a glass of wine, sweeties and music when I wrap but I also know that that way lies alcoholism – 9am is way too early to crack open the plonk. Yes, it is.

So, here are some ideas for making wrapping more interesting. Buttons are your friend but you DO have to part with some of them occasionally (counselling is available) and here’s my seasonal sacrifice. These presents are for very good friends who I trust with buttons. Philistines will get bows.

First up, a simple 2 button layered thingy. Tie ribbon round the parcel and then thread the buttons on. Tie a knot. Tie long bits of ribbon round the shank of the buttons and curl it up by running the edge of your scissors along the length of the ribbon.

Next up a little Christmas tree. Layer green buttons until you are happy…voila!

Something a bit more complicated, but still fast. I used jewellery wire, threaded a shanked button on first, folder the wire double and then threaded white vintage buttons on to make a ‘stem’. I had a ribbon flower in my stash which I threaded thru the wire and finished off with more buttons. The looped wire was joined together by twisting it under the buttons, hiding the join. The whole ornament can be used later to hang on the tree for example. I added ribbon to the present to prettify.

Finally, a scrap of red felt, cut into a heart shape and a red button stitched onto it was stitched onto some shiny chiffon ribbon. Nothing else, just a simple motif. It’s my favourite I think.

I hope you have fun!