Cotton Basket and Sachets - Crochet is Fun!

Recently I've been making little lovely baskets and sachets. It's very relaxing and fun! 

Holidays Woodland-Themed Place Card Holders - Tutorial

It was fun creating little crafts for the holidays! One of my favorite projects was to make some woodland-themed place card holders for my guests. 

© Alessandra Colombo - studioAlex

So I thought to share how to make them.

You'll need: 

- A cotton fabric of your choice and color

- Sharp scissors

- A sewing machine and thread 

- An iron and ironing board

- A themed-wood block stamp and ink

- Printing matte paper, a ruler  and a sharp cutting knife

Here’s some pictures to help you along: 

1. I selected a white cotton fabric to go with my other table accessories. I bought it at a local crafts store - it was perfect for what I needed and it was inexpensive.

2. I made a paper template that measured 10.5 inches high x 4.5 inches wide. After marking the lines in pencil, I cut the fabric with sharp scissors for a crisp edge.

3. I folded them at the top on both sides, then ironed them to keep shape before sewing - sides first and then tops.

4. Next, I tested the ink color on a leftover piece of fabric to see what worked best for my arrangement. I picked a nice emerald green which felt fresh and friendly.

5. Using a woodland-themed wood block I stamped each sachet placed over a thin pad for a perfect impression.

6. It looked exactly how I wanted it! 

7.  So I stamped as many as I needed for all my guests, plus a few extra to account for potential surprise guests!

8. In Photoshop, I created my guest cards with a font that I liked. I then printed and cut them to size to fit my holders.

9. I inserted the cards in each holder. 

10. Finally, I set up my table with each one of them and welcomed my guests for our fabulous dinner!

To a Peaceful and Productive 2016!!

Happy Holidays!

Wishing everyone a happy holiday season 

and a wonderful 2016!

Gift Wraps and Fabrics for the Holidays

Here are some patterns I developed sometime ago for Spoonflower. You can shop them here: http://www.spoonflower.com/profiles/studioalex

© Alessandra Colombo - Dreamland Collection

© Alessandra Colombo - Fiesta Collection

Happy Holidays! 

A New Blog to Share My Creative Ideas

Welcome to my new blog! Here I will share my creative ideas, products, travel adventures, useful resources, free downloads and more. 

The first project I want to share is this Happy Holidays gift bag with a wood block stamp and then painted it with gouache. The string is leather. Green for Woodland or Red for Christmas, you pick!

Gouche on Canvas © Alessandra Colombo