1.12.2010

Flannel's Not Just for your Husband's Shirts!

A few weeks ago, I was digging through my Google Reader and found a fabulous tutorial by Eddie Ross. You can see Eddie's original tutorial here. I bookmarked it, and yesterday was the day to actually give it a try!

I've been looking for some cute things to jazz up my house for winter, since the Christmas twinkle is gone. These adorable little flannel-covered guys seem to do the trick!

So here's what you do. Start with some flannel shirts. I got mine at Goodwill for a few dollars a piece. Seems like it's better if they're 100% cotton; Eddie says you get fewer loose threads that way. I also bought some Styrofoam balls at Michael's. Mine are 3 inches in diameter, but you can go bigger or smaller, whatever floats your boat. The last thing you need are regular old straight pins.

Sit yourself down with a good movie and start cutting strips of the flannel. For my project, I ended up with strips about 9-10 inches long and about 1-1.5 inches wide. Just play around with them until you get the size you need, then use that one as a template.

Grab a few straight pins and anchor the material to the ball. Two pins oughtta do it.

Wrap the material around tightly. Then take two more straight pins and anchor it down again. I tried to cover first set of pins with the material as I did this, so I didn't have pins hanging out all over the place by the end.

Now start again and wrap another strip of material cross-wise. Anchor it again with more pins.

You can probably see from my photo above that I eventually needed four strips of material per ball. This, of course, will vary depending on the size of the ball and the width of the material.

But when you're done, you have these cute little things that look kind of wintery without being all Christmasy.

I have mine sitting in a little bowl in my front room. Next Christmas I could see myself using these in my holiday decorating (adding hooks to make ornaments to hang on a little rustic-looking Christmas tree, for example?). Or I may just save them as something fun to take out when I am packing away all the nutcrackers. Either way, I love them!


28 comments:

southerninspiration said...

Cute, Carrie!!

suzanne

The Gathering Place said...

I saw those on television and have been wanting to try them, but I was only thinking Christmas. I think I like them better as a non-Christmas decoration. Great idea!
Thanks,
JoAnn

Christy said...

Carrie... These are so cute and fun and they do make a perfect wintery decoration! I have some fabric leftover from another project that would be a great for this. Thanks for sharing!!!

The Tuscan Home said...

Just darling, love it! ~Liz

Sarah said...

These are adorable and so inexpensive too. You could do this with any fabric, for any occasion!

Unknown said...

What a wonderful idea - you are so creative! I live in a cottage home and these would be perfect for our winter decor. Thank you so much for your post. Great blog too!!

Nancy @ Live love laugh said...

I saw these on Eddieand wanted to make them...thanks for the reminder! They are the perfect wintery look after removing all the Christmas decorations-warm and comfy!
~Nancy

Half Gaelic, Half Garlic! said...

This is so cool..... and it looks pretty easy to do!! Maybe I could even handle this little project!

I think your Rustic Christmas Tree idea would look fantastic...

Lisa

Jboo said...

Oh Carrie -- those are so cute!! I think that's a project Maddy and I could do together! I really need something to stick in my kitchen window -- it's a deep window -- got any ideas for it? Have a great day!

Janet

Carmen @ Life with Sprinkles on Top said...

Thanks for posting a how-to. I saw these before and thought they were so cute but I was too lazy to look up how they were made. :) This is way easy! And such a cute result. I love them!

Angie said...

What a cute idea!! I love them!

kacyd said...

Love these...I see a thrift store stop in my future!!

Shell in your Pocket said...

Those are super cute and fun!
sandy toe

Unknown said...

So cute! These remind me of a project I did making ornaments when I was a kid!
Oh....just think of the possibilities...the different materials...burlap, twine.....oh cute stuff! I see a project in my future... :) Thanks so sharing!

All Things Cherish said...

Wow, cute idea!

Lori Allberry said...

Those are just adorable - so cozy looking!!! =)

Blissfully Enamored said...

they are so cute!! i saw them done on a tv christmas special and used as ornaments on a staircase garland! so different and fun!

The Starr Family said...

I think I want hot cocoa after looking at those. Then maybe I'll attempt them. Thanks Carrie!

Anonymous said...

Love it! They look great! Fantastic job!

xo
Eddie

Kristen said...

Those would be so cute on a cabin Christmas tree! I love this idea so much. And I love that you not only bookmarked it but DID it! I have 100 bookmarked ideas that I never seem to get around to trying!

Jodee said...

Those turned out soooo cute! I love them!

Laura said...

These are so cute! I was just thinking that I needed something for my sofa table. This would be perfect.

Jason said...

You really do have a great blog here. I have a blog myself which brings inspiration and guidance to people all around the world. Life is hard enough, and I hope my site can contribute anything positive to someone's day.

I'd like to exchange links with you to help spread some traffic around between each other. Please let me know if this is possible. Until then, keep up the good work.

Jason
TheWISDOMWALL.com

Lisa & Gerald said...

Awww too cute..What a great idea..to use an old shirt for...Love it..

Sunny said...

Carrie, you always have such cute and clever ideas! love it

Clean and Classic Interiors said...

I have to admit I'm just not a flannel person but you and Eddie have made me LOVE these!

Kate said...

Please ask the thrift shop workers first if they have ratty or worn shirts. Some people actually do go to thrift stores to buy clothing to wear. It seems wasteful to tear up a good shirt for a decoration.

Unknown said...

I flippin' love this : ) So easy. And so cute!