What to do with old stuff...

I am one of those people who is always cold, and in the cold weather I LOVE having some sort of fluffy scarf or shrug on at ALL times.  

So last week I was digging getting all of the winter stuff out and I found this old fur collar that I bought at a flea market a year or so ago.  (Hoarder) 

I think I paid a whopping $5 for it and I had no idea what I would do with it.  Honestly, I probably felt sorry for it laying around a booth with a sad $5 tag on it.  Look at it, it is stupid!  But it is so soft and I liked the color.

Over the weekend, I decided I had to do something with it.  I took it apart because it was sewn shut and  it had this weird stuffing inside.  I flattened it out and wore it over my shoulders while I was making dinner.  To say it did not get a good review from my husband and son would be an understatement.  It looked like something crawled onto my shoulders and died!  So sad…

So on Saturday morning I woke up with a plan!  Mark helped me rein in all of my ideas and I started sewing, and I don't even know how to sew!  But look what I managed to whip up, despite my lack of sewing skills!!!

It is a little fur shrug…with POMPOMS!  

I sewed a belt that I bought in Argentina onto one side of it and then I lined the whole thing in hot pink fabric.  The belt already had pompoms, but as you can imagine, I am busy making a few more to add to the mix.

Honestly, it took me almost the entire day, because of the previously mentioned lack of sewing skills.  And I didn't have any thread, but luckily I had embroidery floss.  Same thing, right?

I love it and it keeps my shoulders so toasty warm!

Would you ever sew a belt to a piece of something fluffy and actually wear it out in public?  That is a rhetorical question!!!

PS.  My stand on fur if you are interested...  I am not usually a fan of fur, but I am a fan of recycling.  I would never buy fur that is new.  I think it is mean, but this collar died a long time ago, and I felt sorry for it.  I know I am a walking, talking contradiction, but I've gotta be me!  I make no judgements about people who buy and wear fur, everyone gets to make their own decisions, and I am a BIG fan of that.

Pompoms!

I'm back on the POMPOM train!!!  I don't know where the last week and half went, so don't even ask.  But here we are on Monday and the pompomery is rolling and I have just the cutest little pompom project that is perfect for fall.  Tiny acorn pompoms, yes, tiny acorn pompoms!!!

Mark and I went to an awesome park last week and found tons of acorns.  I knew I "needed" to bring a bunch of them home for projects, squirrel feeding, etc...  Luckily for me my husband understands (and accepts) my madness and he helped me gather a bunch of them.  *Side note:  I go for quantity and Mark goes for quality, finding perfect specimens while I just get as many in the bag as I can carry.  We are a perfect team!

After a bunch of the acorns became disconnected from their little caps, I decided that an acorn cap plus a pompom would equal total fall cuteness!  

I mean seriously, are these not just the cutest little acorns!?!  I love them and they are just the easiest to make.  You can make a pompom, which is what I did, but you could also just glue a pre-made pompom from the craft store onto the cap.  I made a tiny hole with a drill bit so that I can hang them from a piece of yarn.  But you don't need to do that if you just want to put them in a bowl.

Get going, go find some acorns, it is pompom acorn season!

PomPoms!

I LOVE POMPOMS!

It's true, I LOVE pompoms!  There, I said it, and now it is in writing, although I am sure this comes as NO surprise to anyone who knows me, or anyone who has seen me, or has stepped into my house!  In fact, during one marathon pompom making session here at Factory 506, my friend Shane named my patio table "The Pompomery"!  I love it, and the term has stuck.  

I have been making, finding and buying pompoms for more years than I can remember.   I may or may not have even gotten some of the neighborhood crafting wizards in on this affliction  hobby!   I most likely have a serious problem, but it is one of those harmless issues that keeps me happy.  Pompoms make me happy, very happy!  In fact, they make me so happy that I am declaring this week, POMPOM WEEK!!!

Let's begin with the latest batch from the Pompomery!

I love how my stick star looks all dressed in pompoms!  

It is super easy to make pompoms. You can make them by hand with just a bunch of yarn or you can buy a pompom maker, better yet, a set of pompom makers in all different sizes.  I make them by hand and with a pompom maker.  And they are all fabulous!

Through much careful research here at the pompomery, we have found that a pompom maker will give you a fatter and "meatier" pompom and making them by hand will give you a cute pompom that looks a little more like fireworks.  Same pompom shape, just not as fat.

The pompom on the left was made with the pompom maker and the one on the right was made by just wrapping yarn around my hand.  Obviously, both are awesome, just a little bit different.  I have a friend who makes her pompoms by using two circles cut out of cardboard.  What ever the method, it's very fast and easy to make pompoms.  And guess what?  There are about 10 million things that you can do with your pompoms.  Don't worry, we'll get into that later this week!

  Have you ever made a pompom?  If so, what did you do with them, I would love to know!

Should I give "How To" instructions tomorrow?