My Experience with the "Handmade Embroidery Kit" from EK Success Brands

I was very excited to find out that I would get a chance to make and review some embroidery products.  I love embroidery because it allows for so much creativity and it is a very portable craft.  Those of you who sit on the sidelines of your children's sports events can relate to the need for that.  The kit I received is from Dimensions and is from the new "Handmade Embroidery Line".  The Butterfly Ornament Kit is designed by Carolyn Gavin for the E.K. Success Brands company.    The project is 4.5" by 5" and  is simple enough to finish in one evening.

Above is a quick look at the contents of this kit which include the following:
● Project directions.

● Printed poly/cotton fabric

● Die-cut polyester felt shapes

● Pre-sorted cotton thread

● Polyester Stuffing

● 1 needle

The instruction booklet and the Dimensions website do have some simple instructions and diagrams for their versions of the following stitches and knots:

● running stitch

● straight stitch

● back stitch

● chain stitch

● french knot

The first thing that I did was to lay out the supplies to see what I had to work with.

Then I followed the instructions that said to fold the long edges of the yellow piece fabric, so that they meet in the center.  I found it is easier to iron the edges down so they woud hold their shape while I stitched.

I then sewed a running stitch down both sides of the folded fabric.  This piece will be used to create a hanger for the ornament.

The instructions directed me to sew the yellow piece to the large blue butterfly die cut.  Once that was sewn, I added the small pocket on to the back.

Then I took the white flower die cuts and stitched them according to the directions.  I found using two strands looked much better than just using one (as the instructions suggested).

I then stitched the rest of the die cuts loosely following the directions (since I used two strands instead of one). They give you plenty of thread in the kit, so this was not a problem.  I took the different die cut shapes and sewed them onto the orange butterfly die cut.

The orange material started to fray as I sewed the die cut pieces on, so I put a little liquid seam sealant to prevent that from continuing to happen.  I thought about trimming the frayed bits off but I think they added a little character to the butterfly ornament. 

As I was working on this project, I realized it would make a cute tooth fairy pillow.  That cute pocket in the back is just the right size.

So once I had finished all the accent stitches, I added some beading to add a little more dimension to the butterfly ornament.  I know my daughter will enjoy this cute decoration to hold little treasures.  This would be an easy project to introduce someone to embroidery.  All the tools are included and the directions are simple to follow.

Tips:

●  Keep the color picture, you can use it as reference, incase the diagrams do not make sense to you.
●  Utilize the color coded card to perfectly match the colors to the diagrams.

●  Place all the parts in a ziplock for an easy and inexpensive traveling kit.  Just grab it and you have something to work on in the doctors waiting or sports events sidelines.

● Thread is on a presorted color coded card to make it easier to complete project, just match the color to the drawing and stitch.
● Be careful of the aqua green and blue which are kind of similar in color.   They blend together to easily.  A brighter green would have been nicer mix with the bright pink and yellow to give more dimension to the project.
● The orange butterfly die cut does fray.  I used a liquid seam sealant that prevents fabric from fraying to avoid any frustration on my part.


Disclaimer

How to Recycle Macaroni & Cheese Boxes & Make a Pocket Book

This project is fairly easy to do.  Recycling card board boxes from food stuff is a great way to keep them out of the land fills.  Plus this makes a fun and inexpensive kids craft.  All you need is some empty food or product boxes which most of us have an abundance of around the house.

For my project, I choose to find a use for the many "Macaroni & Cheese" boxes that seem to accumulate in our home. So after feeding my kids their favorite "Kraft Mac & Cheese", I took one of the boxes and made some simple cuts.  Then I trimmed the edges.

On the second box, I cut off the top and bottom flaps on the box.

Then I trimmed about a 1/4" excess off each end (top, bottom, sides) so that it will fit snug inside of the

outer box.  I then put the second box inside of the first to make sure they fit together well.  Keep in mind that the top flap must over lap, so trim any excess from the second box.  I then glued them together with

white glue and let them dry overnight.  Once the glue is dry, it should look like this:

I then painted the inside and outside of the box with gesso to strengthen the box. While I waited to it to dry, I decided to work on the trim for the pocket book.  I used a designated pasta machine to condition the clay.

I used a texture sheet (a rubber stamp image created for polymer clay) and impressed some pre-conditioned polymer clay onto it.  Depending on the brand, there may have some sticking.  If that happens then spray a small amount of "Armour All" onto the stamp or texture sheet before impressing the clay onto it.  Remove the clay carefully and cut it to fit the outside of the pocket book.  Bake the clay according to the manufacturers directions and allow to cool before attaching to purse. I decided to cover the bag with some excess felt and trims that I had on hand.  Since the felt was self-adhesive it was fairly easy to cut and stick it to the boxes.  I then glued the beaded trim.  After the clay cooled, I used an appropriate adhesive to attach it to the pocket book.

Made from two empty Macaroni & Cheese boxes.

The kids enjoyed this project so much, that we covered other cardboard items with polymer clay.  Below

is a converted recipe box.  We also covered an old empty tin with polymer clay using molds and other small accents to create a treasure box to hold pokemon action figures.

These are really easy projects and quite fun to do.  The plus is you are teaching your kids to recycle and upcycle items that would otherwise end up in a landfill.