CHAMBERS COLLECTIVE

Hello Everybody!

I'm sorry I kind of quit blogging. . although, I see that a lot of people still enjoy seeing some of my DIY projects - which makes me SO happy! 

Exciting things are happening!!
My husband and I started a new business called Chambers Collective. Currently, it consists of mountain prints drawn by me - digital downloads that you can buy and then download straight to your computer and print out. So convenient!




In the future we plan on adding furniture items (my husband has mad carpentry skills) and other home good items/accessories.

Please check us out and follow along with fun DIY projects on Instagram.

Shop:  https://www.etsy.com/shop/ChambersCollective

Instagram: @ChambersCollective


Thank you for your love and support!

DIY: WOVEN STOOL

A while back I found this stool frame at a thrift store. I wanted to do something with it to replace the existing fibre rush weave that was in horrible shape. Originally, I was going to cover the stool with a piece of leather and call it good, but I never seemed to be inspired enough to get around to it. One day, while perusing the isles of target, I came across a beautifully woven bench that inspired me to do something similar with the frame that I had. So, I did it and here is how! 

Materials Needed:

Black Jute Twine

Leather Ribbon

Butcher's Twine

(one spool of each)

Stool Frame (To make it easier for you, I found footstool frame here and a saddle seat frame just like mine here.) 

1. Take the butcher's twine and wrap it around the front an the back of the seat frame (as shown above) and tie it as tight as you can get it. 

2. Continue to wrap the butchers twine around the frame making sure to keep the twine from overlapping itself.

It is also very important that you keep the string as tight as possible as you wrap it. My hands were a little cramped afterwards from pinching the string so tight during this process. 

Wrap until you count 115 rows

3. This is what your stool should look like now. Double check to make sure that you have 115 rows of string on the top section before tying the loose end. I tied mine to the left over string from the beginning knot that way it would be hidden inside the seat. 

4. Divide the rows into rows of five. Cut pieces of string to mark the rows (you can also use cardboard or yarn). 

Find the five rows that make up the center. This will be your starting point. 

5. Measure out pieces of the leather ribbon and the black jute. They should be long enough to tie if you were to attach them loosely. Give yourself room to work with. 

6. Here's where it might get tricky.

Remember, your starting point is the five rows in the center. 

ROW 1

• Take a strand of leather, bring the two ends out from under the center five rows. 
• Weave in and out ever tenth row. (As you can see, there are two rows of five left for the first row of leather to weave under. 
• Weave in a row of Jute followed by another piece of leather. Leave all ends loose for now. 

ROW 2

• Take another piece of leather (center point in mind) and add three stitches. In total, you will have eleven stitches as the center for the second row. This will begin to create the geometric effect. 
• Weave in and out of every ten rows from your starting points on each side of the eleven center rows. 
• Continue by weaving in a piece of the black jute and another piece of leather. 

Continue by adding three to each center point. 

6. To make the diamond in the middle, on the sixth row, start on top of the original center five rows. and work your out still adding three to continue the geometric effect out.

Add three to the center five, working your way out, to form the diamond.

7. When you are finished, there should be eleven on either side of the woven (leather & jute) center row (twelfth row from either front or back side). Now it is time to start securing all of the loose ends! 

Just because I thought it would be fun, I wanted to add a little bit of interest to the under side of the stool by incorporating two stripes

8. Take the string that you are securing under ten and then over ten and back under to tie.

9. Find the center point where your loose ends will meet, pull them tight an tie a knot. Tuck the loose ends into the inside of the stool. This will leave your stool looking clean and people will think it was made by a professional. 

This is just to show you the the clean finish of the under side. 

There you have it! You can now custom-make your very own stool! 

I had so much fun making this and hope you decide to conquer this project too! 

Once you start, you'll understand if you don't already. It is a very detailed project to describe fully. If any of these instructions are unclear, please let me know and I can try to find a better way to explain, even if I have to skype or facetime with you. ;]

DIY: GLITTER DOT WRAPPING PAPER

Back in June my best friend got married and I had the idea that I wanted to make the wrapping paper for their gift. I have been really into gold glitter recently so I thought I would have some fun with it. I grabbed a roll of brown paper, a bottle of glitter and a tube of glue and went to work.

Supplies:

Brown packing paper

Glitter

Glue (Elmer's works just fine)

Start by placing dots in rows about an inch to an inch and a half apart doing small sections at a time. 

While working in sections, first cover an area with glue dots then sprinkle glitter over the area. 

Repeat these steps until the paper is completely covered. 

I also gently patted the glue down in some spots to make sure it really stuck. 

Because the dots are dimensional you may have to shift the glitter around on the paper to insure that all the sides are covered as well. 

Once you have made sure that every little bit of glue is covered, shake the remaining glitter off of the paper. 

Looks like it's time to go buy somebody a present! ;]

FELT HAT RESTYLE

A while back some friends and I got together for a clothing swap. Because it was free, I picked up this cute black felt hat with a not so cute black ribbon and bow. (Otherwise, I find it hard to justify spending money on hats.) I unfortunately don't have any before pictures of the hat, but if you can picture it, the two blacks didn't match. 

The great thing about this project is that you can do this to just about any hat you want. Even if it is plain to begin with, it adds a fresh look to any old [or new] hat. 

SUPPLIES:

Black Hat

Deerskin Lace (Hobby Lobby)

Fabric Glue (or hot glue - just be very careful)

Out of curiosity of how easy it would be, I ripped the ribbon off as soon as I got home. 

As suspected, it had been glued on and left glue marks, so I had to find a solution that would look cute and cover the trace of there ever being an ugly mismatched bow. 

I started by gluing the leather along the seam where the brim and the hat meet, keeping the leather as even as possible as I worked my way around, gluing three to 4 inch sections at a time. 

Once you make it around to the point you started, overlap the corner of the lace just a little bit so that the ribbon stays somewhat even around each pass. 

Continue to coop the ribbon around the hat until you have reached your desired look. I had to go quite a ways because the original ribbon was about three inches wide. 

When the band has reached your desired width, make sure you end on the back of the hat above where you started. Cut the thread at a slight downward angle to where it can "blend" and lay flat with the layer underneath. 

When you are finished, find some outfits to wear with your newly designed hat! For inspiration check out my last outfit post.

DO IT YOURSELF: PINE TREE FOREST GLOVES

This project is easy, inexpensive and perfect for those who are looking for ways to save money. It is also a great alternative to spending money on a pair of gloves that may end up disappearing, as many of mine do.

YOU WILL NEED:

>> A pair of standard, inexpensive knit gloves

>> Embroidery floss - I used DMC floss #300 and #319

>> Scissors

>> A yarn or embroidery needle

>> Washable fine tip fabric marker

Start by drawing little upside down "V's" over the whole top part of the glove. This will be the pattern for your green embroidery floss. 

Once you have all the trees mapped out, take the green thread and pull it through the inside of the glove and through one of the bottom points of your first "V". 

Insert the needle back into the glove at the top point of that "V", back out of the opposite bottom point, then back to the top point to complete the upside down "V" shape. 

Once the first "V" is done, move to the one next to it using the same technique as the last until you have completed all of the "V" shapes. 

When sewing, try not to skip around too much or you will have a mess on your hands, and may get your fingers caught when you put your gloves on. Also, keep in mind not to accidentally attach the front side to the back. :]

And there you have it, the "V's" are complete!   Now they need some tree trunks. . . 

Grab your brown embroidery floss start in the center of one of the trees and bring the floss down a little ways to make the tree trunks. Again, try not to skip around, I started at a bottom tree and kind of worked my way up and down the glove. 

Now you have a revamped pair of gloves ready for a day of adventure in the great outdoors, or a snowball fight. Maybe just ready to keep your hands warm while you sit around a bonfire with friends. 

I am also excited to try this technique on a few different things like maybe a sweater or some socks. 

I would love to see what you are inspired to create with this pattern - Shoot me an email if you'd like. 

Anyways, have fun! 

TWO GUEST POSTS IN ONE DAY

I have two friends that have been so kind to ask me to put together posts on their blogs which turned out to be posted on the same day. Check them out! 

Meghan of eat.live.make asked me to show you a DIY.

 *Head on over here to see it* 

Amanda from Sincerely, Amanda asked me to put together a roommate gift guide. 

I had so much fun "shopping" for items to suggest for all the roomies out there. 

 *You can find that here*

DIY: POM POM - ESQUE ORNAMENT

This ornament is not at all complicated and is relatively cheap to make depending on the materials you choose to use. Despite its simplicity, I have to warn you that this project can be rather time consuming. Making it the perfect project to conquer while watching a movie. If your anything like me you, too, like to feel that you are being productive while you spend a day off on the couch.

You will need:
>> A medium size bulb ornament - I used the plastic ones from the dollar section at Target.
>> Lots of newspaper/Fabric - Whatever material you choose to glue to your ornament. 
>> Hot glue gun and extra sticks of glue
>> Scissors

Start by cutting the material into strips then into squares. They do not have to be perfect squares, but you will not want to cut them any larger than one square inch.  

Now for the tedious part... And your fingers will turn black...

"Fold" the pieces of paper to where the center of the square can be held between your fingers with the corners sticking up. (If using fabric, you can skip this step, as the fabric will not stay folded) Its best to fold every piece of paper just because it makes them easier to grab and stick into the hot glue before it hardens. 

Now, grab your ornament and your hot glue...

I start around the top of the ornament and work my way down. Add a drop of hot glue and start adding pieces of paper to it. Continue to fill in the empty spaces until the ornament is completely covered. (that's the long part)

Go back and fill in any gaps you may have left and secure any loose pieces of paper. You can also trim any longer ends that you don't like. I kind of pressed the ornament between my hands to give it a more crumply look. 

Now your ornament is ready to hang on the tree! 

^These are a few of the different kinds of ornaments I have made. I have used newspaper (top left), floral fabric (top right), tulle (middle), brown napkins (bottom left), and, finally, book pages (bottom right).

Another wonderful thing about these ornaments is that they can be used any time of year as decorative balls in a bowl alongside pine cones and other fun things. So, they are not only limited to Christmastime. 

Have fun!