Tutorial Today Wednesday

Maybe you've noticed, maybe not, but we've been a little quiet on the blog front recently. That's hopefully set to change soon, but in the mean time we're giving you all our most popular posts throughout November (which just so happen to be the new Checkmybox range... coincidentally). We've been off doing busy business type stuff, getting all the necessary pieces in place for the launch, working through and learning the admin side, doing some courses and meeting with potential clients. Even though it's not the creative side that me and Hannah both enjoy and really started the business to do more of, it's still incredibly interesting, and motivating to see how much we have progressed since we set up two months ago now. I think sometimes it's difficult to see all the smaller goals achieved along the way when most of the focus goes into financial constraints and actually developing and creating your final product ready to sell. I'm really proud of what we've accomplished up to this point, only slightly off schedule, but working hard to get there always.

As usual we will keep you updated on Checkmybox right here. Enjoy today's tutorial xx

UPDATE: You can buy the materials to make this kit over at Checkmybox.co.uk or at our Etsy shop, making things even easier!

  Tool list:  

Tigertail (nylon coated wire) / Seed beads in graduating colours / Crimps / Jump rings / Chain / Clasp

  Instructions:  
Cut 6 lengths of tigertail that are all 12cm long / Put a crimp onto the end of one piece of tigertail, then thread that end through a jump ring and back on itself into the crimp / Push the crimp tight against the jump ring and squash between pliers / Thread on equal amounts of each colour seed bead to required length / Thread another crimp on after the the last seed bead / Thread the tigertail through a second jump ring and back through the crimp / Pull tight and squash the crimp / Trim any excess tigertail / Repeat these steps twice for each jump ring so you end up with three lots of two strands / Attach all three sections with a jump ring at one end / Plait the three sections together and secure with another jump ring / Measure the extra chain needed to fit around the rest of your wrist and secure each end to the outer jump rings of the plaited section / Part your chain in the middle and attach your clasp to one end (and a jump ring to the other if needed) / Put it on your wrist and rock some ombre styling!

A Little Extra Ombre Tutorial.

I originally made this tutorial up for this weeks tutorial Tuesday, but I decided to go with the necklace because I thought this one looked a little too similar to the plaited bracelet tutorial so it wasn't like I was giving you guys anything new to look at! I decided to put this up in the end though just because it shows in better detail how to plait into chain, which believe me, takes a bit of practice.

Ingredients:
9 metres of cord (3 metres of each colour)
18cm of chain x 3
Bell closer with extension cord and clasp attached
Glue

Instructions:Cut each metre of cord into 3 section (giving you 9 pieces in each colour) / Put them all together and glue into the bell closer / Section off one colour and begin to plait into two of the chain pieces / Make sure you keep to the same pattern. I have chosen to go from under the middle, over and into the chain / Continue until the end of the chain, then do the same with the second colour of cord, plaiting into the second and third chains / Once at the end of the chain, take the third colour cord and plait that into only the third chain. trim the cords and glue into the other bell closer / Avoiding the urge to wear, leave the glue to dry ( half an hour max) and your done!



Weave Week: What to Weave With

Hello. A great place to start when exploring weaving, knotting and braiding is to look at the range of materials to use. Traditionally materials such as cotton cord, embroidery floss, leather thong and faux suede are great places to start, but are not the only options.

In the picture above are shown some of the popular materials to use. These include those mentioned above as well as ribbon, chain, velvet cord, fabric strips, organza, copper and aluminium wire. Even as I write this I am thinking of more and more ideas for elements to use. Thin plastic (recycle plastic bags), paper, felt, tapes, mesh, thin strips of wood are just a few of the ideas running through my mind.
 There are many real wool and polyester blend yarns to choose from.

Embroidery floss is very cheap and comes in thousands of colours.

I'm going to be doing my total best to get through all of these examples of materials, in as many different ways as I can fit into 14 days. I'm working through the book; 200 Braids to Loop, Knot, Weave & Twist. I'll show you all of my results (both the good and the bad), and will also be reviewing the book on the blog next week!

Tutorial Tuesday

  Tool list:  

Fabric strips / Chain / Cotton cord / Large link chain / Bell closer x 4 / 1.5mm elastic strip / Glue

  Instructions:   
Glue one end of the fabric and cord into a bell closer / Attach the chain to the loop of the bell closer as well as one of the larger chain links / Plait the long piece of chain, fabric strip and cord together / Attach the other end the same way as the beginning / Repeat these steps to create another plait attaching the ends to the same larger chain links as before / Thread the elastic through the larger chain link at each end and hand sew each end measuring to your head size as you go / Perfect for festival or beach wear, or just for those days when you need a little helping hand.


Hello. Just squeezing Tutorial Tuesday in tonight. Apologies for the moody looks in the photos. I put my back out playing tennis (badly) yesterday so today has been a long day, and to make matters worse I was loosing light!
On a different note I've had a lot of emails from other fantastic bloggers recently. It honestly makes my day when I get people asking me to be involved with their blog, or to partner up in some way. I guess it's that mark of approval from your peers that gives you a boost. So I'm very excited about collaborations and guest posts that are coming up soon.

Hope you've enjoyed this weeks Tutorial Tuesday. Fran xx