diy: anthro bib necklace on the cheap

Posted: August 26, 2012 | Author: ryanpamela | Filed under: Crafty, DIY, fashion | Tags: anthropologie, circles, color, craft, create, DIY, fashion, necklace | 2 Comments

source: anthropologie

check out this necklace from anthroplogie. it’s beautiful, right? i really, really wanted it- at least until i saw the pricetag. $368! i immediately decided that instead of really, really wanting it, i really, really wanted to make a knock-off.

old lucketts is so amazing. go there.

so, while perusing old lucketts store, an amazing antique shop outside dc, my friends and i decided to have a craft night, which meant i had a perfect excuse to make my necklace. i didn’t have any supplies with me since i was on vacation (including a good camera, boo. apologies), so i had to buy everything. i spent about $50, but you can likely make this necklace for even less $$$ if you have some of the supplies on hand.

here’s what you’ll need:

5 pendants. they can all be the same or different, just make sure they have enough holes to create an interesting effect. i found mine at michaels and joann.
about 6 colors of embroidery thread
about 8 beads, 2 sizes (2 large and 6 small)
three varying chains
a clasp and small round findings to connect everything
embroidery needles
small pliers

{step 1} using your embroidery thread and a needle, weave different colors of the thread throughout the pendants. this is pretty time-consuming and possibly the reason anthro’s original costs $368. just a warning.

{step 2} arrange the pendants and connect them with the small round findings.

{step 3} add a finding to the top of the upper pendants. string four beads together, add another finding, and attach to the pendants.

{step 4} attach the three chains to a finding, cut to size, attach to the necklace. repeat on the other side.

{step 5} add a clasp.

{step 6} enjoy the necklace and all the compliments!

art+learning+beauty: gryphon design collective

Posted: July 20, 2012 | Author: ryanpamela | Filed under: children's books, design | Tags: art, children's books, creative, design, design collective, gryphon design collective, kids, learning games, made in usa, personalized, stationary, tri-lingual | 1 Comment

i know i promised some big news, so here it is! i’m very excited to announce my newest venture- gryphon design collective. i’ve been working with michele slobin apprille for a number of months now with the development of the collective.

gryphon recruits world-wide talent in the field of graphic design, fine art, and creative writing. all of our products are printed in the usa and made with recycled materials.

one of gryphon’s proudest accomplishments thus far is the introduction of our customized children’s books. we’re one of the only companies out there to offer image capture technology, which allows the child to be painted right into the story. these books are beautifully written and illustrated by designers from our collective.

gryphon also produces learning language games that inspire kids to learn while they play. pretty cute, right?

in addition to making reading and learning more fun and creative for the kiddos, we also strive to promote our wonderful collection of designers. we’ve got fine art cards and notebooks for every aesthetic taste.

designers from left to right: jenikah joy, usa / juan milewski, argentina / gregery miller, usa / david faust, usa / yuriy ratush, ukraine

this has been such a fun and creative adventure for me- i’m proud to be a part of something so beautiful. if you think these products are as lovely as i do, please support us by making a purchase! you can even use promo code rhx10 to save 20%!

catching up in ten photos

Posted: July 13, 2012 | Author: ryanpamela | Filed under: random | Tags: boston, create, life, nashville, portland, san francisco, tattoo, travel, tree skirt, vacation | 1 Comment

oh hey, so this is the second time i’ve forgotten to blog for six months (almost seven, dang). but it’s been a pretty crazy six months, so try to forgive me. that is assuming anyone is still out there.

i’ve got a pretty exciting post coming up in the next few days, but here’s a very quick recap of my year so far.

my last post was around christmas (?!). so, christmas happened. my handmade tree skirt and felted garland were appreciated. my first christmas at my house was (i think) a success.

mom, bro, furry kids, and me on christmas morning

my sweet new cousin, maddie beth, was born last winter. i got to make a quick trip down to south alabama to meet her.

in march, i treated myself to a 28th birthday trip. it’s my golden year (i’m 28 on the 28th), so i felt entitled to start it out with a bang.

i visited san francisco

and portland, oregon.

hipsters

i might have fallen in love with this guy in o’bryant square.

ace hotel, portland

and i got a tattoo.

it says “create”, lest i should forget

and then i worked and lived life very unspectacularly. until work transferred me from nashville

to boston.

and so, i’m here in boston. where they laugh when i say y’all and they don’t have air conditioning even though it’s hot, but they do have beaches and baseball and breweries.

i’m working on a new project which i’m really excited about. stay tuned (it won’t take six.seven months, promise. i finally bought my domain name and everything, so i can’t let that $18 go to waste).

happy holidays: christmas tree skirt + diy felt garland

Posted: December 26, 2011 | Author: ryanpamela | Filed under: Crafty, DIY, home decor | Tags: christmas, craft, decorate, DIY, felt, garland, tree skirt | Leave a comment

i was so hoping to do lots and lots of christmas projects this year, but of course work and the usual holiday bustle took priority. i was able to squeeze in a couple of fun things though. i had my first real christmas tree as an adult this year because i was hosting christmas at my {tiny} condo. my big project to compliment my grown-up tree was a tree skirt using some cool vintage christmas fabric i had been holding on to. my inspiration skirt came from baylee from the tanner’s. i followed baylee’s basic instructions, but with a few changes: a) after i cut the fabric i realized i wanted to put a hem on all the rows so it wouldn’t fray. this made all the rows a little narrower so i needed an extra. so, either cut the strips a half inch wider or plan on six rows of ruffles. and b) i ruffled my rows differently. instead of sewing a straight line and pulling the thread to create ruffles, i just set my tension and stitch length to the max and stitched each piece of fabric. super easy way to ruffle!

like i’ve said before, i’m not great a sewing, but i think my tree skirt turned out pretty nice!

the only other holiday project i attempted was felt balls, inspired by this west elm felt garland .

umm, but maybe i should have just bought the garland. felting balls is pretty darn time consuming. martha stewart explains it better, but here’s a quick run-down on the how-to.

1) shape roving wool into a ball that’s about twice the size of your desired ball.

2) dip the wool ball into hot soapy water

3) and shake, shake, shake. shake, shake, shake. dip again. shake, shake, shake. this takes forever. and it makes really awkward noises. this project makes a great giggle-fest if you’re attempting these with your girlfriends.

4) once dry, string the balls and hang on your tree.

i hope you guys had a very merry christmas! and here’s to all of us having more time for blog-worthy projects in the new year!

happy h’owl’oween!

Posted: November 2, 2011 | Author: ryanpamela | Filed under: Crafty, DIY, fashion, random | Tags: craft, fabric, halloween, owl, owl costume, pillow case dress, purple, sewing, wings | 1 Comment

yes, i’m corny and a couple days late, i know. regardless, i wanted to share my new favorite halloween costume with you guys. i’ve gotten really into making my own costumes the last couple years. remember these scary things?

since practically every other blog post is about owls in some way, it’s only natural that i chose to make an owl costume this year. i was inspired by a couple of other amazing costumes. my wings were inspired by this cutie from prudent baby, and my dress was inspired by this pillow case owl dress by a beautiful mess. both sites have great tutorials, so i won’t include them here.

a couple little notes though. {note 1} the wings tutorial linked above is written for child wings. to determine how big your adults wings need to be, measure from the middle of your back to your wrist. mine was 28 inches, so that’s how long each straight end of my wings were. {note 2} lay everything out before you sew and take a picture! this will ensure that you have enough feathers and the picture will help you remember how to space everything. sewing this is a tedious process (or it was for me…because i can’t really sew), so the picture will be a blessing!