What do you think of the season’s new colors and patterns? It looks like lots of neon, stripes, and jewel tones!

Here, another fab fashionista aligns her T-shirt before making the cuts… and ta-da! She opted to stop there on the Back In Action tee (#101 Generation T: Beyond Fashion).

Cheryl** (sitting next to Cheryl) cut, cut, cut her scarf (#88 “Mane-iac Scarf in Generation T: Beyond Fashion), and then stretchhhhed to complete the look.

Crafty hands tied little knots… or made looped chains up the back of their tees.

And thanks to our lovely host, Courtney, from the Folk Art Museum, for organizing the event. She’s such a multi-tasker that she actually braided her hat while she wore it! (Sometimes you just can’t wait until you’re finished before testing out a new DIY creation…)

**And, how cool is this: Cheryl (above, making the scarf) illustrated the instructions for my Generation T McCall’s pattern! Thank you, Cheryl, for your amazing work. I just love small town New York City! Stay tuned for the next Generation T Tee Party — you never know who will be there, but one thing is for sure: Summer is coming, which means warm weather and…T-SHIRTS!!!

Materials:
-Paper scrap for template (brown paper bag or a sheet from the printer paper recycling) at least 3″ x 3″
-Decorative paper scraps (card stock, book pages, paper bags, thick wrapping paper, etc., in variety of colors)
-All-purpose scissors
-Aleene’s Tacky Glue and clothespins OR Aleene’s Tacky Dot Rolls
-Pencil
-Ruler
-Ribbon of varying colors, widths, and lengths

Make It:
1. Fold the paper scrap in half three times to create a folded “wedge.” Cut a curved edge about 1 1/4″ from the point.

2. Unfold the template (it’ll look a little like a four-leaf clover), lay it flat and trace it three times on one or more of the decorative paper scraps. Three tracings makes one flower.

3. Cut around the tracings to make three identical blossoms. Snip two straight lines into the center of the first blossom, cutting out a wedge equal to two “petals.” Cut three petals from the second blossom, and four petals from the third blossom. Mark and then cut a 1/4″ semicircle from the center of each blossom, as shown.

4. Curve each of the blossoms to the cut edges overlap a bit. Adhere with glue or dots, let dry if necessary, then fold back the tips of the petals.

5. To make a flower ring, nest the blossoms inside one another. Select a piece of ribbon, wrap it around your finger, and knot the ends so the loop fits your finger. Gently thread the loop through the center of the flower, so the knot catches and rests in the center of the flower. Trim the ends of the ribbon as desired.

6. Slip the loop over your finger and the ring is complete!

7. Return to your paper stash and repeat the process to make more! You can personalize your bloom using crayons and card stock (a sweet way for younger kids to get involved if it’s a Mother’s Day gift), go for a more muted geometric design using pages from an Japanese puzzle magazine, gather up some vintage appeal by cutting into that newspaper-printed paper gift bag, or simply dig into the scrapbooking scraps for some playful color.

8. Keep your flowers uniform and muted…

…or mix and match the colorful blossoms in a paper botany experiment!

9. To make the headband, brooch, or barrette, thread one end of the ribbon through the flower, back to front, knot it, and then thread the end back through the flower, front to back. Thread multiples together this way, too! Wrap the ends of the ribbon around the headband, brooch, or barrette base and glue or knot to secure it.

And now, the million-dollar question for the author of Generation T: Can you make these flowers with T-shirts? Absolutely! Substitute fabric glue for the adhesive, and trim the neckline of a shirt with these sweet little blooms.

Materials:
-box of paperclips
-all-purpose scissors
-ruler
-woven plastic material (laundry bag from the dollar store, an Ikea shopping bag, all-purpose tarpaulin from the hardware store)*
-Aleene’s Jewel-It Embellishing Glue

Make it:
1. Link 38 to 48 paperclips in a chain. Hang the chain around your neck, see if you like the length, and add or subtract paperclips to your liking.

2. Measure and cut one 1 1/2″ by 1 1/4″ rectangle from the woven bag. Use that rectangle as a template to cut more rectangles. Cut as many rectangles as there are paperclips in your chain.

3. Select one rectangular piece. Fold the long sides in 1/4″ and crease. Then fold the piece in half lengthwise, crease it, and unfold. Fold the two short ends into the center line and crease again.

4. Refold the center crease, pinching the piece around the center of a paperclip in the chain to create a sort of “bead.”

5. Squeeze the glue generously along the open edge (the motion is sort of like mustard on a hotdog). Pin it in place with a spare paperclip to dry.

6. Repeat with the remaining rectangular pieces until every link on the paper chain is covered by a bead. Let the beads dry completely before removing the spare paperclips.

7. Remove the paperclips, touch up any finicky beads with an extra dab of glue, and repeat the entire process as many times as desired to create multiple colorful chains.

8. Drape them around your neck, and off you go.

Happy National Craft Month!

*Incidentally, these necklaces are made from the same sort of bags that Rami made his chic challenge-winning Project Runway All-Stars dollar store dress from, below! What a cool material to play with.

A lace-up tank top with mismatched sides (#16 in Generation T); another lace-up top with braided multi-colored stitching.

Some in-process braiding and knotting — to complete the finishing touches on two “Mohawk Mo’ Rock” no-sew hats (project #72 in Generation T: Beyond Fashion).

Two finished, fringed hats!

But what’s a finished hat without matching glovelets (#103 in Generation T: Beyond Fashion)? Or a pair of tie-dyed glovelets without multicolored fingernails?

Going with the tie-dye theme, here’s a tie-dye version of Back in Action (#101 in Generation T: Beyond Fashion); plus a sunshine-filled pillow (#30 in Generation T: Beyond Fashion)!

Another completed pillow; a matching totebag (for his mom to use while grocery shopping) and headband (for him).

Some in-progress laced-up glovelets; an innovative visor made from the neckband of a T-shirt (with sun-shielding neck protection, of course!).

A pillow for catnapping; a no-sew tote bag–already filled with books!

DIY hats, tank tops, headbands, and wristbands…

Pillows, pillows, and more pillows!

Hats, hats, and more hats!

Willa carefully sketched out a design with a chalk marker.

Suzanne worked on the “Outer Lace” tank top (project #16 in Generation T), while her daughter tackled the “Brokenhearted” tee (project #2 in Generation T).

Molly made lace-up gloves from Generation T: Beyond Fashion; some refashionistas managed to make both a T-shirt and accessories in the short time!

Juno wore her flapper dress (project #72 in Generation T) for the occasion, and Sandy made gloves (project #103 in Generation T: Beyond Fashion).

Emma made a grocery tote; here’s Maya’s completed “Brokenhearted” tee (and some more gloves, too)!

A tote bag, some gloves, and a halter top oh my! (Courtesy of Willa, Molly, and Georgia.)

What a fun night — thanks again to all who attended. It really did feel like a party!

Stay tuned for Days 3 and 4! More crafty times ahead…

As one popular Tumblr ode to Ryan Gosling says, he’s “your favorite sensitive movie dude-turned-meme.” Another Tumblr puts it more bluntly. And a recent video by Gosling doppelganger Joey shares “How to Look Like Ryan Gosling.” Which got me thinking about snagging Ryan Gosling’s style. Forget the hoodie and well-groomed 5 o’clock man-scruff. I mean, did you see that embroidered scorpion jacket he wore in Drive? If you didn’t, well, feast your eyes:

You can actually buy it — oh, but making it would be so much more fun. And so, for my newest iLoveToCreate blog post, I set out to make some sweet scorpion threads inspired by that original jacket — no satin quilting, no embroidery, just a white jacket from a thrift store and some fabric paint. And since my favorite new sensitive dude happens to be pint-sized, I’ve decided to make it in miniature for my little gosling. (Note: These instructions can produce a version for a full-sized goose as long as you start with a full-sized jacket!)

Materials:
-White zip-front jacket or sweatshirt
-Pen
-Contact paper
-Craft knife and cutting mat
-Masking tape
-Yellow fabric paint, brush or spray on (for scorpion)
-Orange fabric paint, brush or spray on (for highlights)
-Black fabric paint, brush or spray on (for trim)
-Paint brushes (optional)
-Sewing machine threaded with white thread (optional)
-Scissors (optional)

Make it:

1. Lay the jacket flat and measure the approximate dimensions of the back panel. Cut a piece of contact paper to those dimensions. Draw or trace the outline of a scorpion onto the paper.

2. Use the craft knife and cutting mat to cut out the contact paper stencil.

3. Peel off the paper backing of the contact paper and press the stencil onto the back of the jacket.

4. Paint the entire scorpion shape with yellow paint. (Use spray paint or paint it on with a brush for more control.)

5. Paint some highlights on the scorpion in orange to show the shadows.

6. Line the bottom edge of the jacket, the sleeve ends, and the shoulder seams with masking tape and paint them black.

7. Let the paint dry completely and carefully peel off the tape and stencil. Optional: If the jacket has a hood (mine did), cut and hem it to create a collar (because I’m nerdy like that, and I’m going for authentic!).

8. Try the jacket on your littler driver. Okay, so he can’t even hold his head up yet, but he sure knows how to grip the wheel! Next up: Get him a driver’s license…in 16 years.

I love this stencil!! Now to apply it to a T-shirt…or what about painting a scorpion wrapping around the bottom of a pant leg or stockings?

American Folk Art Museum
2 Lincoln Square
Columbus Avenue at 66th Street
New York, NY 10023
212-595-9533