Embroidery Hoop Clock DIY

I was so inspired by clock ideas while Pinteresting last night, I just had to make one of my own. I had several embroidery hoops laying around, so I decided on my biggest (go big or go home, right?) I had just bought this Paris fabric from Hobby Lobby and it was just the look I wanted to go for. I had a piece of scrap lace also I liked paired with it. I spread out the fabric and lace the way I wanted it on top of the inner piece of the hoop, and placed the outer hoop around it, pulling the fabric taught. I snipped away the extra fabric and hot glued it to the inside of the hoop. My stepmother had just given me these beads and jewelry parts and I just loved the way the silver looked against the colors. Really vintage-y. I sewed them on equal distance apart around in a random fashion. I marked the center and made a small hole with a knitting needle. I got a clock kit from Hobby Lobby and followed the instructions for installing it. I put an old CD between the clock motor and the fabric for extra stability. Last, I tied a piece of string from the hanger to the tightening knob so it would stay up straight and not swing around.

I think it looks quite handsome, don't you?

Vintage Jar Revamp

My dad brought me this old (pickle?) jar he found in his barn, it was definitely really old, but I don't know how old. The bottom has "1875" on it. The lid was rusted on, so that was my first order of business. I sprayed WD-40 around the lid from underneath and let it soak in for about 15 minutes. Then I took my hammer and tapped around the lid. It opened quite easily after that. I washed the jar, but it still had a few spots on the inside I couldn't get out. It was ok, since I think it gives the jar character. I rummaged in my junk drawer and found this green metal candlestick thing-a-ma-jig. I found a wooden knob that perfectly fit on top. I glued it all together with my trusty Amazing Goop (seriously, I LOVE this stuff!) Then I found this stand that matched the green on top and I dabbed a little glue on it so it would stay put and not fall off.

I can't decide what to put in it though. Oh, the possibilities!

Harley Quinn

Harley Quinn is for sale in my Etsy shop.

Belt Backed Chair DIY

I found this chair in my neighbor's trash (yes, I checked for bedbugs!) They were moving and didn't want to take it. I absolutely loved the arms and knew I had to save it from the trash pile. It is actually a Thomasville Chair Company chair, so it was excellently made and very sturdy.

I took off the seat and ripped off the fabric.

I had some grey primer in my basement from another project, so I gave it two coats of that.

I immediately knew it would look awesome orange, so I went to Meijer and bought some pumpkin orange spray paint, and gave it two more coats.

I had some tan wool fabric in my stash and I covered the seat, stapling it to the underside of the wood base.

It was missing the back, so I decided to use some belts instead. I went to Goodwill and purchased three for $1.50 each. I strapped them around and drilled a screw in the side so they would stay in place.

The ends of the belt were long and were dangling, so I dabbed on some Amazing Goop glue (what I had on hand), clipped some binder clips on and let it dry. I then had my hubby clip off those screw ends with a big clippy tool (do you like my technical lingo?)

(And yes, I am going to paint that ugly pink filing cabinet!)

The Joker

"I believe whatever doesn’t kill you, simply makes you…stranger"

-The Joker, Batman: The Dark Knight 

The Joker is for sale in my Etsy shop.

Hula Hoop Rug!

When I ran across this tutorial on Pinterest (I know, I'm an addict), I just KNEW I HAD to make it!! I have always wanted to try my hand at weaving, and I needed a rug to tie the colors of my room together. Besides, I already had all the materials, so if it didn't look so great after I was done, its no big loss.  So I brought up my hula hoop from the basement, found some old shirts to cut up (I used this tutorial to make my yarn), and set to work. I followed the tutorial pretty much exactly, using grey for the warp and grey, blue and orange as the weft. I used orange bulky yarn because I didn't have an orange shirt to use. Be sure not to pull the weft too tight, or you will make a bowl (like I did, but hey, it worked out!). I used a simple over-under style, but in another project I'd love to experiment with chevron or other patterns!

To make T-Shirt Yarn:

This is the shirt I started out with.

First, cut the hem off the bottom.

Next, cut the shirt into strips from side to side, but don't go all the way across, as shown.

Put your arm through the shirt, with the intact part laying against your arm, then cut diagonally to the first cut on the top left. I know, it is sort of confusing. Just watch the video if you have questions.

Continue cutting diagonally and you will have one long strip that looks like this.

Stretch the strips. It will fold in on itself to make yarn!

Wind the yarn into a ball

To Make the Weft:

Cut 11 strips from a shirt and stretch them around the hoop, equal distance apart.

Start by tying one piece of yarn to one spoke of the weft, then continue around in an over-under pattern. When one piece runs out, simply tie on another and keep going. You could be creative and incorporate ribbon, yarn, or fabric. 

You can see here how I tied the ends of the peices together in one section. I simply pushed them through to the back to hide them. Once got done, I cut the weft, one spoke at a time and tied them together. Unfortunately, my rug curled a little bit (It'll be our little secret), and it ended up looking like this:

But hey, it was OK! I simply flipped it over and let the edges curl, creating a nice edge. A happy accident!

I put it under my desk area and it is SO soft and squishy. It feels really nice against my toes, and it totally goes with all my colors!

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Pattern

I had an order for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle amigurumi dolls, so I made up this pattern.

Yarn weight: Worsted
Skill level: Beginner +
Gauge: Does not matter, just be sure it is tight so the stuffing doesn't show through.

Materials needed:
Head, arm and leg color, or MC1, about 50 yards
Torso color, or MC2, about 20 yards
Shell color, 10 yards
Mask color (varies, depending on which Turtle you are making), 2 yards
Stitch Marker
Yarn needle
Poly-fil

Head:

Using MC1, create Magic Circle, SC 6, Pull tail tight to close, PM in last SC
Round 1: Work 2 SC in each Sc around. 12 Sts
Round 2: *2 SC in first St, 1 SC in next st. Repeat from * around. 18 Sts
Round 3: *2 SC in first St , SC in next 2 Sts. Repeat from *around. 24 Sts
Round 4: *2 SC in first St , SC in next 3 Sts. Repeat from * around. 30 Sts
Round 5: *2 SC in first St, SC in next 4 Sts. Repeat from * around. 36 Sts
Round 6: *2 SC in first St, SC in next 5 Sts. Repeat from * around. 42 Sts
Round 7: *2 SC in first St, SC in next 6 Sts. Repeat from * around. 48 Sts
Round 8-12, SC around. 48 Sts.
Round 13: *Dec, SC in next 6 Sts. Repeat from * around. 42 Sts
Round 14: *Dec, SC in next 5 Sts. Repeat from * around. 36 Sts
Round 15: *Dec, SC in next 4 Sts. Repeat from * around. 30 Sts
Round 16: *Dec, SC in next 3 Sts. Repeat from * around. 24 Sts
Stuff tightly.
Round 17: *Dec, SC in next 2 Sts. Repeat from * around. 18 Sts
Round 18: *Dec, SC in next St. Repeat from * around. 12 Sts
Round 19: *Dec. Repeat around. 6 Sts
Finish off.

Arms, make 2:

Using MC1, create magic circle. SC 6, Pull tail tight to close. PM in last SC.
Round 1: Work 2 SC in each SC around. 12 Sts.
Round 2: *2 SC in first St, SC in next St. Repeat from * around. 18 Sts
Round 3-8: SC around. 18 Sts
Round 9: *Dec, SC in next 7 Sts. Repeat from * around. 16 Sts
Round 10: SC around. 16 Sts
Round 11: *Dec, SC in next 6 Sts. Repeat from * around. 14 Sts
Round 12: SC around. 14 Sts
Stuff arm lightly.
Round 13: *Dec, SC in next 5 Sts. Repeat from * around. 12 Sts
Round 14: *Dec, SC in next 4 Sts. Repeat from * around. 10 Sts
Round 15: *Dec, SC in next 3 Sts. Repeat from * around. 8 Sts
Pinch work top of work together, and working in both sides, closing the top of the work. Work 3 SC across. 3 Sts.
Finish off. Leave long tail for sewing to body.

Legs, make 2:

Using MC1, create magic circle. SC 6, Pull tail tight to close. PM in last SC.
Round 1: Work 2 SC in each SC around. 12 Sts.
Round 2: *2 SC in first St, SC in next St. Repeat from * around. 18 Sts.
Round 3: *2 SC in first St, SC in next 5 Sts. Repeat from * around.  21 Sts.
Round 4-12: SC around. 21 Sts.
Round 13: Dec, SC in next 9 Sts, Dec, SC in next 9 Sts. 19 Sts.
Round 14: SC around. 19 Sts.
Round 15: Dec, SC in next 7 Sts, Dec, SC in next 6 Sts. 17 Sts
Round 16: SC around. 17 Sts.
Stuff leg lightly.
Round 17: Dec, SC in next 6, Dec, SC in next 7 Sts. 15 Sts.
Round 18-19: SC around. 15 Sts.
Round 20: Dec, SC around. 14 Sts.
Finish off, leaving long tail for sewing to body. Finish stuffing leg.

Torso:

Using MC2, create magic circle. SC 6, Pull tail tight to close. PM in last SC.
Round 1: Work 2 SC in each SC around. 12 Sts.
Round 2: *2 SC in first St, SC in next St. Repeat from * around. 18 Sts.
Round 3: *2 SC in first St , SC in next 2 Sts. Repeat from *around. 24 Sts
Round 4: *2 SC in first St , SC in next 3 Sts. Repeat from * around. 30 Sts
Round 5: *2 SC in first St, SC in next 4 Sts. Repeat from * around. 36 Sts
Round 6-11: SC around. 36 Sts
Round 12: *Dec, SC in next 4 Sts. Repeat from * around. 30 Sts.
Round 13-14: SC around. 30 Sts.
Round 15: *Dec, SC in next 3 Sts. Repeat from * around. 24 Sts.
Round 16-17: SC around. 24 Sts
Round 18: *Dec, SC in next 2 Sts. Repeat from * around. 18 Sts
Round 19: SC around. 18 Sts
Finish off, leaving long tail for sewing to head and stuff tightly.

Sew the torso to the head, and the legs and arms to the body.

Shell:

Using shell color, Ch 9
Round 1: SC in second ch from hook, SC in next 6 Sts, 3 SC in next St. Working on the opposite side of the chain, work 6 SC across, in the starting SC, work 2 more SC. PM. 18 Sts.
Round 2: Work 2 SC in first St, 2 SC in next St, SC in next 6 Sts, 2 SC in next 2 Sts, SC in next 8 Sts. 22 Sts.
Round 3: 2 SC in first St, SC in next 10, 2 SC in next St, SC in next 10 Sts. 24 Sts.
Round 4: SC in first St, 2 SC in next St, SC  in next 11 Sts, 2 SC in next St, SC in next 10 Sts. 26 Sts.
Round 5: Sc in first 2 Sts, 2 SC in next St, SC in next 12 Sts, 2 Sc in next St, Sc in next 10 Sts. 28 Sts.
Round 6: Working in front loops only, *SC, 2 SC in next st. Repeat from *around to last St, SC. 41 Sts.
Round 7: Working in both loops, *SC in next 2 Sts, 2 SC in next St. Repeat from * around. 55 Sts.
Sl St in next St, finish off, leaving long tail for sewing onto body.
Optional: Sew shell detail with contrasting color yarn as shown.

Sash:

 Ch 45, Finish Off.
Tie around waist and tack down with Sash colored yarn in several places.

Mask:
Ch 45, PM in center Ch. Sl St in second Ch from hook, and in each Ch, until 5 Sts from center. SC, HDC, DC, HDC, SC, then Sl St in center St. Then, SC, HDC, DC, HDC, SC, then Sl St to the end.
Finish off, leaving long tail to sew onto head. 

Duck Dynasty Beard Pattern

I just had to share my finished project, my Duck Dynasty Hat. I made this hat on commission for a two year old boy for Halloween, and I think it turned out super cute! I used Lion Brand Homespun for the beard and a mix of yarns in camouflage for the hat. For the beard, I had my client measure from the ear of her son, under his nose, to the other ear. The measurement was 8".

Crocheted Beard:

I used size F hook, but you can use whatever size hook you would like.

Make chain 8", PM on center chain
row 1: SC across
row 2: SC across to 4 stitches before center marker, Ch 8, SC in 4th St after marker, SC across
row 3: SC first St, HDC across to last st, SC.
row 4: SC first 2 Sts, HDC across to last 2 Sts, SC last two Sts
row 5: SC first 3 Sts, HDC next st, DC across to last 4 sts, HDC, then SC last 3 sts

Finish off.

Cut 50 lengths of yarn 25" long (you may need more or less depending on the size of your beard.
Hold 2 lengths together, find middle. Starting at the bottom of the beard, use crochet hook to pull the middle through the stitches about 2". Pull ends through the loop and pull tight. This attaches the beard "hairs" so they won't come undone. Repeat, working up the rows until you get to the top. I did about three rows of hairs. Trim mustache and  beard to desired shape. I used a length of yarn to attach to the hat or you could make a loop to place over ears.

DIY Fabric Yarn Basket

I was inspired by several posts on Pinterest about crocheting or braiding baskets out of t shirt material. I had this "yarn" in my stash and decided it was the perfect thing to experiment with.

DIY Coat Rack

I had These Shutters literally hanging off my old shed, and I decided they were a little gem just waiting for a facelift. I knew I wanted to make a coat hook to put by my front door. I had these curtain tiebacks I wasn't using anymore, so I simply attached them with some screws I had. I love the peeling paint and the old hardware. They have so much character, I am so glad I gave a second life to these old Shutters.

I used the hinges as hooks...

Voila!

About Me:

This blog is an outlet for my creativity, whether it be knitting, crocheting, sewing, painting, redoing old furniture, cooking...pretty much whatever I am up to around Casa McCauley. I have a yarn shop called Neeley's Knits, which keeps me pretty busy. I also do custom knitting and crochet orders for clients. I have a beautiful baby girl, Neeley, that I am a stay-at-home mom to. She is my world and I hope to pass along my love of being creative to her one day.
 So hopefully I'll be posting about once a week, or whatever my schedule allows. Hope you enjoy it!