Peter Pan - Collar of Leather- "How To" and Pattern

I just love all of the necklaces and accessories that are out there in the peter pan collar style.  I have been looking at all of the options, and could not find one that I just loved (at least not enough to part with my cash for it.)  I wanted a peter pan collar that was simplified, light weight, flexible and a statement.  So I made one.



This is what I ended up with.  I made it out of deep red leather.  It was a scrap left over from a different project.  I thought I would share how this was made. This was easy, no sewing, no taping, no hot glue.   If you want to make one, I have a link to the pattern in a  pdf .   










Supplies:

• 8 inch by 10 inch piece of leather (I also have used old leather coats that don't fit or have an unfortunate blemish on them.)
• permanent market
• cutting tool (scissors or rotary blade)
• self healing cutting mat
• punch tool for setting eyelets (ones used in paper crafting work great, but not a paper punch!)
• acrylic paint or gum tragacanth**  (the gum is sold only at leather supply stores)
• jewelry findings and clasp closure
• embellishments

Steps:

• trace the pattern onto the leather with the marker  

 

• cut out the collar shape (cut off all of the black markings)

• punch holes where marked on the pattern

• rub the gum tragacanth around the edges of the leather.  You can use your fingers or a spoon.  I have done this step both ways.  It just depends on you.  This gum smooths and stiffens the finished edge of the leather.  It dries clear too.  But, if you don't want to get the leather gum stuff,  you can also CAREFULLY paint the edge with acrylic paint, or leave it as is.  

• attach clasp closure (on the back I used an oval jump ring and a clasp for the closure. A dot of jewelry glue sealed closed the edges of the jump ring.)

You can be creative here. Use a button closure or piece of ribbon and tie the peter pan collar closed.  Do the back first so the front embellishments are not scuffed up.

• I hooked a jump ring through the two holes in the front and attached some dangle flourishes to it.  I bought these trimmings while I was in Nottingham, England this past summer.  I am so excited to be using them, not just looking at them wistfully.

Again, the pattern for this peter pan collar project is free. To get it,  click here.    I would love to see your projects.  Send me a picture!
(if you can't open the pdf, email me at whimsyfunk@gmail.com and I will send it to you.)

**For the leather stuff (that is bio-degradable with no harmful emissions) you can go to www.tandyleatherfactory.com. It was around $7 or $8.
  

Fashion is not for Sissy's

 For all of you poo poo'ers, take a look at yourself.  Are you wearing something?  Anything at all? (if not, OK... go put something on!)  Fashion is not just frivolous, all humans wear some form of covering.  

That, my friends is Fashion.  

I am going to school for Fashion Design and it is high time the blog reflects that a little more.

There is so much in fashion from the fibers to the fabric, from the designing of clothing to the cutting and manufacturing (sew it up), from trending to marketing,  High fashion to ready to wear, and Fashion forecasting (people actually go out and find what colors and silhouettes will be in style in the future.  I think there is some math and statistics involved too)... someone has to do all of these things.  

Dots and Ruffles... I love you so.

And there is a market for it.... a BIG one.  

I bet you did not know all of that.  
 (the illustration was my midterm.  I was given a swatch of fabric and told to design something.  It had to be completed before the end of class and handed in.) 

Well....I have been designing my own fashion line.  

I am learning pattern making, draping, textiles (what fibers the clothing is made of)
and computer aided drafting for fashion design.   I have already taken the class on fashion illustration.  And yes, that is a job that people get payed to do too.  

The fashion industry is very cut throat and very competitive.  
 



To quote designer Michael Kors, 
" Fashion is not for sissy's."



 I have been really interested in textile design.

From vintage designs
to the cutting edge, I am so excited to be learning so much about this field. 

 To reflect my schooling, I am also transitioning my etsy shop to reflect more fashion items. (more vintage than anything else).
  Don't get me wrong... paper and I are still best friends.  But there is always room for more friends.

So check back often, and see what new things I have found. 

Tell me what era you love.  I am into the 1940's.

My Little Man - baby shower!

I just love a good party.  We had such a lovely time at Jannie's baby boy shower. 

The mustache and all things manly was our theme.  (notice that Jannie is wearing the mustache necklace I made for her. Check out the post by clicking on the link above)


We had a photo booth as you entered.  Everyone grabbed a prop (mustache and tie), and headed over to the backdrop for a photo op.



 The picture booth was a smash!

 Guests were going back to the photo booth over and over with different friends. The posing and face pulling kept getting better and better.
We framed everyone's faces too!
(because they held a frame up to their mug.) I'm
so pleased that we decided to do the picture thing.

 

 Envelopes were put out for the invitees to write their address on.  This trick helps the celebrated sister get her thank you cards out quickly, before her new little guy comes home. 

 A sharpie (or permanent marker) was placed by the cups so the guests could write their name on the cup.  Now there was no excuse for drinking out of the wrong cup.  Although, I think some people just did not care. 

  Jannie (celebrated sister) loves rocks... so after my botched attempt at making rock candy (see previous post), I bought these lovely green ones for table decorations. 

 This was our banner and table scape.  I painted letters on fabric ties and looped them on a rope.  we then hung the rope on the wall.  There were little bow ties on a rope wound around the bottom of the table. 

 These were my gift to Jannie.  I painted her some decorations for her little man's room.  These were quick and easy. 
Because the edges were also painted, they did not need to be framed, just hung as is.






Low key Treats were served.  Popcorn, watermelon, and some other finger foods (I can't remember what they were.)  But we also had cupcakes.



This batch had pop rocks candy sprinkled on top.
Oh what a delight to eat.  They cracked and snapped all the way down my throat. I actually ate two because they were so entertaining.

Here, the wonderful, if less interactive, cupcakes had blue and green sprinkles. There were little signs scattered about the tops of some cup cakes.  Some of the phrases on the sighs were;  

Oh boy,

                              little man, 
                          it's a boy

I think the most important part of this whole event was accomplished!

Everyone had a grand time.

ROCK CANDY!!

I have a sister that LOVES rocks.  She had a baby shower that was all boy and I knew that she needed something to represent one of her loves.  Why not ROCK CANDY!  Yes.... that is what I made.  

If you want to give this a try, 
You will need:
         sugar - 16 cups (you may need a little more or less here)
         water - 6 cups
         food coloring
         chop sticks (or bamboo skewers)
        CLEAN- Clear glass jars
        clothes pins (bigger is better here)
        7 days

Break apart your chop sticks.  Dip them in water and then roll (dip) them in sugar. (I used the sugar that I was using to melt down, before I melted it obviously!) Let them dry.  This gives the sugar something to stick to when crystallization starts.

Mix equal parts of water and sugar in a good sized pot on medium-high, until it is dissolved.  Continue to add sugar until you have AT LEAST a 2:1 ratio - maybe more like a 3:1 ration.  (this is why you need to have more sugar ready to add - if necessary)  The mixture will get to a point where the sugar will be look like a clear syrup, but a little cloudy, yet the sugar won't dissolve really fast any more.  Let it come to a simmer - but you don't need to have a rolling boil.

Now: the jars.  I used liquid food coloring and put that in the bottom of the jars before I added the syrup.

I followed the ratios for different colors right off the box.  If you want flavor, this is also the time to add that.  

Allow the syrup to cool for 10 minutes and pour the liquid into the jars. (I used a wide mouth funnel to help keep the sticky down). 
 As the syrup went into the jars, the food coloring was mixed in. 

 I did try to mix color in after I had poured syrup into one jar,
 it did not work as well. 
 (It looked really cool though) 
So, before is better.



Attach a clothes pin to the top of a chop stick (dipped in sugar) and insert it into the liquid. 


Make sure the stick does not touch the sides or bottom.  



 


Clothes pins are good in theory, but reality strikes and they did not work so well.  I had to double up the clothes pins to be able to fit over the wide mouthed jars, or find enormous clothes pins (which I happened to have a few).

Place the jars in a warm/sunny place.  Now check on them to see how they are growing.


. . . Three Weeks Later ... (notice the time lapse thing going on here.)
After  WAITING,

The only rock candy on a stick that worked. - it was not even in a fun color!

Out of 11 jars of syrup and sticks, I only ended up with one viable rock candy stick.  The Baby shower is done and gone.  (I actually bought some rock candy from Party City)
So, If you want something that is fun to do, this is "fun", but productive?  Not so much. The science project part worked.   

There were more crystals on the surface than on the stick.

There were lots of crystals in a layer all over the top of the syrup, just not on the stick.

If you need this for an event, I suggest you buy the rock candy.

A lil' stash - mustache that is

Happy New Baby!

My sister is having a baby.... that happens to be a boy.  

Now, Jewelry making is NOT my forte and I usually have to go running to this sister for help.  I tend to make a big mess with the findings and pieces of chain. 

But I am so proud of My self!  I made this little necklace for her as a remembrance of her baby shower and her little man (soon to be here).  

Tad ah!  I love it.  I had a hard time giving it away.  

Enjoy Jannie Girl!  

Add that little bit of whimsy to your life!

-Tara

Birthday - Penny charm

I seem to be really into penny art right now.  I saw an idea about using a penny with the year your child was born and then stamping on a separate piece of metal their name, to make a pendant for a necklace.  Loved this idea.
I could make a remembrance of my child's birthday- or birth-year. Cool idea.

So, to work.  Wearing heavy jewelry can be a drag. (baw ha ha - little joke) I did not want to add any more weight to the charm/pendant.    I stamped the name of my child right onto the penny.  Then I drilled a hole and added a jump ring.   (If you want instructions on drilling the penny, go to the Pressed Penny post.) Penny's that are not stretched are a little tougher to drill through, so just keep going, the drill bit will go through.

(and I know the stamping is not perfect, but I am not a perfectionist.  Sometimes, good enough is GOOD ENOUGH. I am glad to see this idea to the end - finally!)










I was going to put this on a necklace, but I decided that my children were my
 biggest adventure.  
I added the named penny to my stretched penny bracelet representing a journey I have (and still am) taking. 

Lets go explore!

-Tara

Pressed Penny

Have you ever used one of those stretched penny machines.  

You know, the ones that press an image into a penny while elongating it into an oval?  It is a fun keepsake of a trip or vacation.  

So what do you do with that?     

I have an idea. 

Make a charm bracelet that tells a story of all the places you  have traveled to.

First Drill a hole in one of the ends of the penny.  

You will need a metal drill bit.

 

After you have a hole, sand the rough edge from the drilled hole. 

(you don't want your penny biting you.)  I use an emery board

When you have a smooth edge on the hole, take a little baking soda and get it a little wet with water. You want a paste.  

Rub the penny to clean it. 

 Now, use your inner jewelry ninja and use jump rings to attach the penny's to a chain.  

I felt it was fashionable to use a copper bracelet.

  

I have been thinking of doing this for a long time.    

I am so glad I did.

If you try this, I would love to see your creations.

Have a fabulous day!  

- Tara