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Ribbon and Ruffles: A Story of Three Pillows, part 1 | Elysian Studios

Ribbon and Ruffles: A Story of Three Pillows, part 1

Categories: decorative pillows, sewing, textiles, tutorial

img_1138-5582425Pillows add a special touch to any room, and I recently made these three for a baby shower to celebrate my cousin’s new baby girl. They are 8 inch square pillows, so they come together quickly and are a sweet size for a little girl to tote around her room! If you have ever wanted to experiment with new details like ribbon trim or ruffles, this is a great project to start with since it requires such little material. When decorating, using three of an element looks very put together, especially if they coordinate. I first sketched my designs for the pillows, and picked my materials, ensuring I have a group of pillows that look harmonious. img_0935-2374073 img_0936-9765457
To make a pillow with ribbon fringe trim is quite simple. First, cut out two squares of fabric, each two inches bigger than your finished size (here I cut two 10 inch pieces to allow for 1 inch seams). Pin your decorative trim on the right side of the fabric 3/4 inch away from the edges.
img_0937-6997078 Sew your trim in place, paying attention to the stitch lines on the trim itself, making sure you sew on top of them. img_0939-2398961
If installing a zipper, please see my other tutorial on zippers. With right sides together, pin the two squares, leaving the zipper side open. img_0940-6413185 In preparation to sew, peek at your trim sandwiched between the fabric layers, to ensure it is laying correctly. Doing this also helps remind you where the stitch lines of the trim are, as you want to make sure these are sewn into the seam and not visible on the final product. Sew the two sides together. img_0941-7048390 img_0942-3443649 Once completed, turn your pillow right-side out, and snip the filament on the outside edge of the trim to release the fringe. img_0945-3322530 Stuff the pillow and fluff the fringe as needed! img_0946-5454337
The second pillow involves making a custom ruffled fringe. This is quite simple, and an easy way to coordinate your pillows. I used the same fabric for my ruffles as I used for the body of the previous pillow. Follow the same method of construction as outlined in my other pillow projects, as I am just going to focus on creating the ruffle trim itself. Start by establishing what width you would like for your ruffle. Since my pillow is 8 inches, I chose to make a 2 inch ruffle. Therefore, I cut straight strips of fabric 5 inches wide. These will be folded in half to be 2.5 inches wide (2 inch ruffle with a 1/2 inch seam allowance). Seam strips together if more length is needed (don’t forget that it will get shorter when you gather your strip to create the ruffle!) Trim strips as needed to get a consistent width. img_0955-5573802 The easiest way I found to gather your ruffle is to pull a piece of thread from your spool that is a few inches longer than your fabric strip and then sew a loose zigzag stitch on top of it. Do this according to the seam allowance you accounted for, so I stitched mine 1/2 inch from the edge.
img_0957-1573657 Now you will start to GENTLY pull the long straight thread to gather your ruffle to the fullness you desire. img_0958-8379143 Pin your ruffle trim on the right side of one of your fabric squares in the same manner described for the ribbon trim above. img_0960-9130140
Sew your ruffle onto the pillow fabric, carefully guiding the gathers so they are permanently stitched in place. img_0962-4530418 img_0963-9963065
Follow the same steps I have outlined in my other pillow projects to insert a zipper and sew the right sides of your pillow together. Stuff the pillow and enjoy! img_0965-4259924
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Art Tour: Golden Arts Festival, CO | Elysian Studios

Art Tour: Golden Arts Festival, CO

Categories: Art Tours, Arts Festival, Colorado, Golden, landscape, painting, Rocky Mountains, sculpture, travel

golden-colorado-9539928 The town of Golden is located west of Denver, just north of I-70. Established during the Gold Rush, Golden has tons of history, including the Coors Brewery, The Capital Grill (which is the building that housed Colorado’s first state capital, before it moved to Denver), and Colorado School of Mines. Golden is full of character with no shortage of fun activities, including their annual Arts Festival. img_0886-9449286 Whatever you do in Golden, you must stop off for $1.25 Coors Draft Happy Hour at the Capital Grill. If you’re lucky, you can sit on the patio on a Friday evening and watch vintage cars cruise the main streets- a hit with adults and kids! img_1147-5884749
The Golden Arts Festival had a gorgeous backdrop of sunny skies and Rocky Mountains. A cowboy town at heart, the festival provided art of exceptional quality that was both traditional and contemporary. Here are some of my favorites!
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Plein Air Painting: Day 2- Painting | Elysian Studios

Plein Air Painting: Day 2- Painting

Categories: drawing, Elysian Studios, En Plein Air, landscape, painting, supplies, tutorial, youtube

The first thing I learned about Plein Air painting is that preparation is key! I didn’t venture beyond my front porch, as just moving all of my materials from my studio was quite the effort!

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Here are the essential supplies you need to get outdoors and paint:

  • a portable easel (mine is a Julian French Box Easel)
  • a jar with a tight lid for your turpentine
  • an empty can to hold turpentine while you paint
  • a bottle with pour spout for linseed oil mix
  • paints,brushes, and palette
  • canvas or painting surface (I used Fredrix canvas paper)
  • roll of paper towels and plastic grocery bag for trash and cleanup
  • SUN PROTECTION!! sunscreen, hat, umbrella…
  • something to carry wet paintings (see Artmate Wet Canvas Carrier)

In this video, I will briefly outline the process of making three paintings from three different outdoor views. Because light changes so quickly outdoors, the paintings are very loose. The focus of this is to look at color and landscape elements as the exist in nature, and to begin to learn how to convey them in paint color and brushwork.

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