Stitching On Paper - Inspired By Cross Stitch

After spending most of the evening fiddling around with manuals, plug sockets and wiring, I have internet again. Hurrah! How did anyone cope before Google, Twitter and Facebook? Maybe I have a little bit of a problem?

And, moving on! Who's ready for some more Stitching On Paper? In today's installment, Stitching On Paper - Inspired By Cross Stitch, I'm joined by Guest Designer Sian Fair, as we take a look a contemporary twist on a traditional craft. 

I've been so amazed and gratified to see people starting to create their own Stitching On Paper projects this week, based on some of the earlier lessons in the class. It really makes all of my hard work seem worthwhile, so thank you so much!

Check out the Stitching On Paper - Introduction to see some of the projects that have been linked up so far, or link your up your own project using stitching to have the chance of winning a pretty little package of paper-crafting supplies.

Stitching On Paper - Inspired By Quilting

Hello! Hello! I'm so sorry that today's prompt is coming to you a little later than normal! First I spilt a cup of tea on my own projects for this weekend's classes (at least they were mine) and then our internet went out! So, I'm currently sat in an internet cafe with a cup of tea (no paper projects are close by) waiting for today's downloads to upload. That sounds a little weird, right? 

Anyway. Can you believe that we’re over half-way through the Stitching On Paper Series? Today we’re going to be Inspired By Quilting, with Guest Designers Lisa Hausman, Kim Dellow and Tricia Simmons. You are going to love their amazing projects!

If  you are only just joining in with Stitching On Paper, you can find all of the class materials in the Stitching On Paper Collection over on Scribd. And, while I'm on the subject of downloads, a few of you have let me know that Scribd doesn't support downloads for the I-Pad. So, I've happily set up a little 'mailing list' of people that would prefer me to e-mail the downloads. Let me know if you'd like to be included. I promise that I won't spam you, but I will let you know if you've won the lottery in another country without buying a ticket or if a random prince would like to send you some money.

Remember that if you've been inspired by the class, I'd love to see what you've created. You could win a little something! It's rather wonderful to see that people are starting to link up their projects - thank you so much for joining in! 

All being well, tomorrow's prompt will be with you bright and early, but whatever happens have a lovely weekend! x

Stitching On Paper - Inspired By Stamping

Morning! Ready for some more Stitching On Paper? We've learnt the basics of hand and machine stitching, but now we're going to start looking at how our stitching can be inspired by some more familiar crafts like stamping, embroidery and cross stitch. 

In today's part of the class, Stitching On Paper - Inspired By Stamping, I'm joined by Guest Designers Julie Kirk and Mel H. We've all interpreted our use of stamping and stitching a little differently, so there's plenty of inspiration. 

Remember that if you've been inspired by the class, I'd love to see what you've created. You could win a little something! Have a lovely weekend! x

PS Last week's Guest Designer, Jennifer Grace, has a little stitching template available on her blog. It's the cute cloud from last week's layout. Go get it!

Stitching On Paper - Inspired To Stitch By Machine

Hello! Hello! Are you ready for a little bit more Stitching On Paper? Today's element of the class, Stitching On Paper - Inspired To Stitch By Machine, we look at the basics of machine stitching, with lots of tips and techniques for getting started and a perfect finish. There are also inspirational projects from Guest Designers Jennifer Grace, Jemma Sharrock and Mel H - and let me tell you, they blew me away!

If you’re inspired by any of the techniques and tutorials featured in Stitching On Paper, please feel free to post your projects on your own blog, in your own online communities, anywhere! You can post a link to your projects using the Mr. Linky in the Stitching On Paper – Introduction - I would love to see them! And at the end of the month, I'll be randomly choosing one lucky participant to receive this rather pretty collection of papers, embellishments and stamps.

And one last note, I just wanted to say a massive thank you to everyone who has commented, e-mailed, downloaded or joined me as a follower recently. It really does mean so much to me and makes all of my hard work (and endless worrying) worthwhile. I hope that you're enjoying the class! x

Stitching On Paper - Inspired To Stitch By Hand

Well, it's a little later than I expected but I'm having a little bit of a manic weekend - and am busy juggling house guests, far too many loads of laundry and ... um, a craft class. When I over-commit myself I really like to do it properly. Let's move on swiftly, shall we?

This morning’s Stitching On Paper - Introduction looked at all of the tools and supplies that you’ll need to start hand stitching. Hopefully, by now, you’ll have rummaged through your craft stash and will have everything that you need to hand.

If stitching on paper is something new to you, you might still be feeling a little apprehensive – so how about a little bit of inspiration to whet the appetite? In the next part of our class - Inspired To Stitch By Hand - you'll find projects from Guest Designers Jennifer Grace and Lara Watson. There's also a tutorial and template for creating your own hand stitched card. 

If you’re inspired by any of the techniques and tutorials featured in Stitching On Paper, please feel free to post your projects on your own blog, in your own online communities, anywhere!

You can post a link to your projects using the Mr. Linky in the Stitching On Paper – Introduction so that I, and all of the other class participants, can ‘ooh and ahh’ over your project.

And – just in case the recognition of your fellow classmates isn’t enough of an incentive to share – at the end of the class, I’ll be picking one participant at random to receive the rather splendid prize pictured above. The prize includes patterned papers from Crate Paper, Prima, American Crafts and We Are Memory Keepers,; American Crafts 'Fellow' Thickers; Elle's Studio Pink Pennants; Embroidery Threads; Organza Ribbon; Doilies; K & Co. Diecuts; A Clear Mini Frame; Floral Embellishment - and the latest edition of Scrap 365. 


Also included (but not pictured) is this super cute, Papersmooches Stamp Set - Summer Grooves - kindly sponsored by my lovely Design Team Co-ordinator, Emily from Make The Day Special.

So, what are you waiting for, get stitching!

Stitching On Paper Class - Introduction

Welcome to the first day of class! I have been absolutely overwhelmed by the response already. Thank you so to all of my followers - new and old - for all of the comments and well wishes that you've left me this week! It's so very much appreciated!

All of the class materials will be available via the Stitching On Paper Collection over on Scribd. You should be able to view all of the class materials without an account, though you may need to create a (free) account to print or download. I hope this suits everyone - there just seemed to be too much material for each part of the class to pack into one or two blog posts!

The first part of the class, Stitching On Paper - Introduction is a simple hunting and gathering exercise, to help you ease into the weekend - and the idea of learning - gently. I'll be back later on today with the first tutorial, some inspirational projects and the details of that prize I mentioned! Enjoy x

Kasaviragas Karkoto {Tried & Tested}

Just popping in today with a Tried & Tested review of another tutorial that's perfect for using up some of your beading leftovers - Kisaviragas Karkoto by Panita. That's right, it's in another language - but please don't let that put you off! The diagram truly is exceptionally easy to follow if you have a little bit of beading experience and, of course, anyone who needs a little bit of help can just ask me!

The pattern calls for seed beads in Size 11 and Size 6, though I have successfully used Size 11 and Size 8 in my own version of the bracelet. To stitch up the full bracelet, with three rows, you'll need approximately three grams of each bead size. So, have a little rummage for all of those 'nearly empty' tubes of seed beads! 

If you're not sure whether you have quite enough beads for the full bracelet, I've found that a one row version looks just as cute and, of course, if you want to play around with the basic pattern to make some earrings, you'll need a much smaller amount!

You can vary the pattern a little by working with other sizes of beads, as long as you pair together two different sizes. Size 15 and Size 11, still work perfectly well, but you'll need a smaller needle and possibly a thinner thread. 

Can't wait to see the variations that you all come up with x

Stitching On Paper Class - Sneak Peeks

The idea of stitching on paper might be nothing new, but I'm still amazed by the amount of e-mails that I receive asking me how I've managed to add hand stitching to my cards, or the people who leave me comments telling me that they wouldn't have the confidence to start stitching on their own layouts. 

Rather than reply to each and every one of those e-mails and comments individually, I started to think about the idea of hosting a class - for free - to share my own tips and techniques. It's been a long time coming, but I'm ever so proud to announce that Stitching On Paper will start on the 4th August, with tutorials every Saturday and Sunday throughout August.

I'll be exploring how to stitch on paper - covering the basics of hand stitching and machine stitching - then taking those techniques further inspired by stamping, embroidery, cross stitch, string art and quilting. Each element of the class will include tips, techniques and inspiration projects. 

Of course, I have a few Guest Designers joining me - Sian Fair, Mel H, Julie Kirk, Kim Dellow, Lisa Hausman, Tricia Simmons, Jemma Sharrock, Jennifer Grace & Lara Watston. Pretty amazing line-up, right? Each of these talented ladies will be sharing their own interpretation of my basic prompts - and I guarantee that you'll be inspired to start stitching on paper to create your own projects. Oh, and did I mention a prize?

Striped Peyote Bracelet {Tried & Tested}

One of the things that I hope will be highlighted by my new feature - Tried & Tested - is the people within the crafting community with experience and expertise who happily share their knowledge and enthusiasm with others. There is some amazing talent out there - and the lovely Tracey of Crystal Star Gems & Jewellery is no different. Every month, Tracey is posting a free tutorial on the Crystal Star Gems & Jewellery Facebook Page, each of them covering a new beading stitch at a level suitable for absolute beginners. 

And let me tell you, Tracey's Striped Peyote Bracelet Tutorial was amazing to work on! The photographs are fantastic, showing each of the steps in clear detail - and the instructions are well written without being too wordy. So, even though I only knew the basics of weaving in peyote stitch, I was soon beading away and, more importantly, enjoying myself!

Although it's an extremely easy piece to bead, I felt that I learnt so much from this one tutorial - including how to keep track of stitch counts, zip up flat bead work and decrease or increase in peyote using different sized beads. So to finish up with such a beautiful bracelet at the end, seems like a bonus! 

Tracey has now 'retired' the free version of this tutorial, but you can still purchase the Striped Peyote Bracelet Tutorial from Crystal Star Gems & Jewellery. At £2.99 it's a steal - and I promise you won't be disappointed. 

Using Mists To Make Your Own Paper {The Alphanumeric Blog Hop}

Hello and welcome to The Alphanumeric Blog Hop. Hopefully you'll have arrived here from Michelle Loves Allsorts but there's no need to panic if you haven't. You can start the blog hop from the beginning by heading over to I Speak Melsh where you can find a list of all the participating blogs. There are prizes to be won, so do join in.

When Mel asked me to take part, I was originally thinking that I'd be assigned just the one letter or number. Imagine my shock when she asked to write about the whole bloody alphabet!

I like to get the most out of my crafting supplies, so I hope you'll join me in some appreciation of the humble negative - the way to include typography (and a little interest) to your scrapbooking pages. Those of you who know me will already be aware that I'm not a stranger to using the leftovers from my chipboard alphas or creating with the remainders of my sticker sheets. So today, I wanted share a technique that's new to me - even though it's been around forever - stencilling.

If you want to have a go you'll need a spare piece of cardstock or watercolour paper, an old (but still useful chipboard negative) and some spray inks. You may also want to have your art journal on hand if you have one.

1. I've set up my desk so that my cardstock background is lying on top of a larger piece of watercolour paper which happens to be part of my art journal. You'll see why later. If you don't want to do it this way, at least make sure that you're not spraying onto your best tablecloth. Learn from my (bad) experience.

2. Pop your chipboard piece down onto the cardstock and choose one colour of spray ink. Now spray. The closer you are to your page, the darker and more concentrated the colour. Experiment. It's good for you.

3. Now lift off the negative carefully and if you have an art journal handy open it at a blank page. Pop the stencil in with all that lovely ink still swimming around on the top. Close your journal and press down over the surface.

4. Take your negative out of your journal and re-position it on your cardstock, choose another colour of ink and get spraying.

5. Again, take your negative off carefully and pop it into your art journal. Remember to apply a bit of pressure across the surface.

If you're lucky, you'll be left with some awesome backgrounds in your art journal as well as your original background cardstock. Result!

Now, I've not tried it, but I'm also thinking that by piling some of my old and dusty mis-matched letters onto a piece of cardstock and getting busy with the inks I could come up with a different look altogether. Hmmm....

The next stop on the hop is Over At Our Place, so before you get your fingers all inky, pop over and say hello to the lovely Amy. She's bound to have something special up her sleeve.

Note: If any of the posts aren't up yet, please bear with us - the different time zones and the peculiarity of blogging platforms when it comes to autoposts may mean that one or two posts don't appear on time! If that's the case, head back to the list at I Speak Melsh and pick up from the next blog, but do please pop back and try the other link later, when the post should be there for your enjoyment.

Make A Simple Necklace Tidy {Waste Not Wednesday}

I know that I've been neglecting my little blog for the past few months but spring has finally sprung; my mojo is back and there is light at the end of the 'huge piece of work that has been killing my social life' tunnel. So, at the weekend, I decided that a little spring clean of the craft room was in order and one of my first tasks was to come up with somewhere to put some of my finished jewellery.

As someone who likes to design her own stuff, I'm often a little short on space to keep all of the necklaces and bracelets that I make and I absolutely hate it when they get tangled after being thrown in a drawer or jewellery box. I knew that I really needed somewhere to hang them, so I rummaged around in my stash until I found a piece of binder from an old diary and then pulled down a piece of artwork that usually hangs above my desk. The result is a cute, but ever so simple, solution.

Now make your own version using my (almost) completely redundant how-to. You all know how to punch holes, right?

You'll Need

Artwork - My little tongue in cheek beauty came from the 31 Experiment almost two years ago. It's still there and downloadable but if it doesn't float your boat try Feed Your Soul for similar, free art work.
Binder - from an old diary or photo album.
Cardstock - in whatever size you have handy.
Hole punch or crop-o-dile.
Drawing pins or ribbon.
Pencil.

1. Print your graphic onto your cardstock. (I'm easing you in gently.)

2. Line up your binder with the base of the cardstock. If the binder isn't long enough to cover the base completely either center it or cut it into two and line up against the edges. Whatever works best for you.

3. An old page or cover from the diary will help you line up the holes or you can mark the base of the cardstock where you will need to punch holes by marking it with pencil where the 'prongs' touch the page.

4. Punch holes. (Shocking that that came next, right?)

5. Pass the binder through the holes in your cardstock, making sure that you 'thread' the binder through the holes from front to back.

6. Use drawing pins or ribbon to hang and then stand back and admire your new jewellery hanger, made in a matter of minutes.

Such a simple project, but believe me it makes a huge difference to the tidiness of my craft room and, surprisingly, all of my guests have commented on how much they like the idea. There's lots of ways that you can personalise it with your choice of graphic or by embellishing with your scrapbooking stash.

As always, let me know if you have any questions. And, I'd love to know if you try this or any of my other Waste Not Wednesday projects. They're over there in the right hand side bar, in case you're wondering :)

Recycled Bottlecap Embellishments {Altered Element}

This is my first post as part of the new Altered Element Design Team, so I've been keen to work on something that's versatile and can be used in many different types of projects. Whether you're a seasoned crafter or a beginner, you'll be able to use these cute embellishments in your jewellery, interiors or scrapbooking projects - and as a bonus they're made from stuff that most people throw away.

What You'll Need:

Glossy Accents - A versatile 3D clear, gloss medium that you can use for lots of things. There's also a Matte, Sepia and Crackle version - so good!
Cord - I actually used a lovely Leather Cording, but I think these pretty Metallic Cords would be perfect with winter colours.
Bottlecaps - If you're not a big drinker, fear not. Ask friends or relatives to collect them for you or head down to your local bar, ask nicely and flutter eyelashes. Works for me!
Spray Paint - I used Plastikote Project Paint in matt white and bronze, but if you'll be sticking your embellishments down instead of hanging them, you can skip this.
A Selection Of Bits & Pieces - I used punched paper circles, buttons, small seashells and beads in my embellishments. These Alpha Beads and Spangles & Trinkets would also be excellent and are on my wishlist for next time I make these!
Hammer & Screw - Optional for adding a hole to hang your embellishment.

1. Before The Beautifying - You might like to clean up your bottlecaps by boiling them for a few minutes to get rid of any residual beer stains and tarnish. If you want to remove the small plastic inner, boiling will also help to loosen it up, but be careful trying to take it out while it's hot. We'll be covering this up anyway, so there's no real need to try this unless you're one of those people who like things to be as perfect as possible.

2. Painting - I used Plastikote Project Paint to re-colour my bottlecaps. Just lay your bottlecaps face up on a sheet of newspaper and, with the spray about a foot away, lightly mist over your bottlecaps. A couple of light coats if better than one heavy, clumpy one.

3. Adding A Hole For Hanging - If you'd like to add a small hole to your bottlecaps so that you can use them as ornaments or jewellery charms, it's pretty easy to do. Grab yourself a screw and a hammer. Hold the screw at the edge of your bottlecap, hit it really hard a few times with the hammer and voila. (Using a screw instead of a nail might seem counter-intuitive but I find that they don't bend and are, therefore easier to use!)

4. Creating A Collage - I like to line the base of my bottlecaps with a punched paper circle. (If you haven't got a punch for this, just draw around the base of your bottlecap and cut out - or use beads and spangles to cover the base instead.) Layer up your collage using additional punches, stickers, sparkles and beads - sticking them down with a little dot of Glossy Accents to keep them in place.

4. Using The Glossy Accents - Don't shake the bottle - this will add bubbles. Just turn your bottle upside down really quickly, then squeeze onto a piece of scrap paper. Start adding to your bottlecap around the outside and then around the edges of your accents, then fill in the remaining space. Try to make sure that the hole for hanging is clear, but don't worry too much - it's easy to bang in another through the Glossy Accents.

5. Leave To Set - Your Glossy Accents will look less than glossy at first, but leave them to dry overnight (somewhere level) and by morning they'll dry to a hard, clear and glossy finish.

6. Hanging Your Charms - Use your screw to ensure that your hanging hole is free of Glossy Accents (just wiggle it about a bit - technical term) and then thread through some leather cording, knot and hang.

I'm planning on adding these embellishments to my scrapbooking pages, gifts, mini-albums and jewellery - and how cute would these be on your Christmas tree? There's so many ways to make them work in your projects!

As always, if you have any questions or have a go at making some I would love you to let me know in the comments.

Safety Pin Cuff Bracelet Tutorial {Waste Not Wednesday}

I've had a large bag of mixed seed beads in pinks and creams languishing in my beading stash for several years, leftovers of several projects. Unfortunately, all of the beads are slightly different sizes and shapes, which made it difficult to think of the perfect use for the mix - and I definitely wasn't going to spend my time trying to sort them! Definitely in need of a Waste Not Wednesday.

When I came across some safety pins for only a penny each at my local haberdashery store, I had a eureka moment, bought 150 of them, and sat down one evening to make myself this cute little cuff. And I still have enough safety pins left to make another one in a different colour. Score.

You'll need:

Safety Pins, Seed Beads, Beading or Sewing Elastic, Glue - and lots of patience. This isn't a difficult project, but it is a little time consuming.

1. Open one of the safety pins and randomly thread seed beads onto the pin. Leave a little bit of space at the top of the pin, so that it will close. Now close it. Simple, see?

2. Continue threading seed beads onto the safety pins until you have enough to span your wrist. I only used half of mine in the end, but the number you'll need will depend on their size and on your wrist measurement.

3. Thread the elastic through the safety pins, alternating between the tops and the bottoms of the pins so that they nestle together neatly.

Top Tip - If there's not much of a hole in the tops of your pins, guide the elastic between the edges of the metal and pull gently. The elastic should 'pop' into the gap and fit snugly.

4. When you reach the end, secure the thread with a surgeon's knot and dab with bit of glue.

5. Repeat with the other side of the bracelet.

It's by no means a new idea, but the different sizes, shapes and finishes on the beads only seem to make the cuff shimmer all the more. And I've finally made a dint in my bead stash!

Need A New Notebook? {Waste Not Wednesday}

Behold! The triumphant (ish) return of Waste Not Wednesday! Last week I found myself without a notebook and decided that rather than buy a new one, I'd use some of my existing stash! Go me!

All you'll need to replicate my efforts are some scrap papers, a hole punch and an old spiral bound notebook or photograph album (like the one I've used.)

1. Start by taking apart the remains of your old notebook by opening up the covers and gently prising apart the spiral binding and remove the notebook's covers. You'll notice that you'll need to remove the back cover, then the front cover and finally any remaining pages.

2. Prepare your notebook pages.

Tip - I had a stack of 4 x 6 scraps already cut for scrapbooking and used these as my pages, but you can cut your scraps to size using your covers as a template or opt for a more loose-leaf style with pages of different shapes and sizes.

3. Use one of your covers as a guide for punching holes into your new notebook pages. Do this by stacking the cover onto your page and punching through the exisiting holes. Check your first page against the wire spiral to check the holes are in roughly the right places, then continue punching through the remaining pages.

Tip - If the holes in your notebook covers are square, simply use a pencil to mark the position of the holes, like I've done, then punch the holes into your first piece of paper. You can then use this a template to punch the remaining pages.

5. Once you've punched through all of your pages, put your notebook together again - reversing the process you used to dismantle the old notebook. First place all of the new pages onto the wire spiral, then add the front cover of the notebook - making sure that the front faces upwards. Now add the back cover of the notebook onto the spiral - making sure that the inside of the cover faces upwards.

6. Gently pinch the wire spiral back together again and voila!

This project is perfect for reusing notebooks that have such great designs that you don't want to throw them away, but since I used a plain, old photograph album I'll be decorating mine over the next few days. So, do pop back and have a peek at the weekend, eh?

Make A Spring Scarf From Tights. Seriously. {Waste Not Wednesday}

Last autumn I came across a pile of old tights stuffed into my fabric drawer just waiting for inspiration to strike. Determined to make use of them, I created A Necklace Made From Recycled Tights Which Vaguely Resembles A Necklush. Rolls off the tongue, doesn't it?

After an autumn and winter full of tight wearing, I now have another pile of tights full of holes and ladders and thought that Waste Not Wednesday would be a good time to share my (re)construction methods - and, of course, you'll benefit from a few improvements.

You'll Need:

Tights - Use at least two pairs of tights for a lightweight scarf and add more for extra bulk.
Scissors - Pinking shears work particularly well, but any household scissors will work perfectly well.
Needle & Thread or Sewing Machine.
Sewing or Safety Pins.

1. Cut off the legs of your tights, just below the gusset - isn't that the most horrible word in the English language? Then cut off the toes (or on footless tights, remove the the bottom seam.) Keep these sections for use later on.

2. By cutting into the edges, open each leg of the tights out to form a rough rectangle. Now cut each section into strips at least 1cm wide - if you're using tights with a thin denier, increase the width of your strips. And don't worry if the width varies a little or your pieces aren't straight - that will all be hidden later.

3. When you've finished cutting your strips, take each individual strip and pull gently on both ends. You'll notice that it stretches and also that it curls in on itself - this is the great part where all of the jagged edges and slight variations in thickness disappear!

4. Take each individual section and tie a double knot in the ends to form a loop. Trim the ends close to the knot for a neat finish and gather the cords with the knotted ends together.

5. Take the upper part of one pair of tights and cut out a large rectangle. Wrap this around the area of knotted ends and pin in place.

6. Join the sides of the rectangle together using a needle and thread or sewing machine, forming a tube around your gathered ends.

Tip - So that you won't sew through the cords, pull the wrap away from the knotted cords as you sew. This will also make the wrap a little tighter and will hide the knotted ends well.

7. Trim away any surplus material from the wrap. Then hide the stitching by simply turning the tube inside out - it's stretchy so it's super easy.

Make variations on this simple design by adding beads to the strips of fabric before you loop them, by plaiting the strips together before forming the scarf or by using a variety of colours. (And, if you'd like to see an example being worn, head over to I Speak Melsh to see my friend Mel wearing a version I made for her Christmas present!)

Keep the remainder of your tights (the tops and toes) for a future tutorial and don't forget to 'Waste Not, Want Not' by using up all the little scrappy ends to stuff your pincushions!

Simple Spring Necklace {Waste Not Wednesday}

Rummaging through my beading stash the other week, I came across a bag full of plastic yellow beads - not the sort of thing I would normally go out of my way to purchase, so I have no idea where they came from. As I was stuffing them back into my beading box I had a sudden vision of finding them in about ten years, stuffed at the bottom of a box and finally deciding that it was time to throw them away. It made me feel a little sad.

Determined to make the most of them, I decided on a simple, strung necklace that's perfect for spring. So, for this week's Waste Not Wednesdays, we're going back to jewellery school basics with a project that's so easy you could make it with your kids during the Easter Break or whip it up whilst watching your favourite film.

I made one, very long necklace for versatility. I can wear it long, knot it or wrap it around for a layered look, but you may prefer to make a few separates. I also used what I had to hand, but you can change the look from pretty to elegant just by substituting the beads you use. It would look stunning made with some pearls!

You'll Need:

A selection of plastic or light weight beads - they do not have to be the same size, shape or colour.
Beading elastic or thin sewing elastic thread.
Superglue.
Scissors.

1. If you are working with a spool of beading elastic or sewing elastic, start threading your beads directly onto the spool. This will allow you to decide on the length of your necklace at any time and will also stop the beads from falling off one end as you thread them onto the other!

Tip - If you aren't working on a spool, you could always tie one end of the elastic to a chair, door handle or big toe (!) so that you can concentrate on your threading.

2. Continue to thread your beads onto the elastic - perhaps alternating beads of different sizes or colours - until you have a necklace of the desired length or run out of beads.

3. When all of your beads have been threaded, cut the elastic from the spool leaving at least five inches of elastic at each end of your beads.

4. Bring both ends of the elastic together and tie a surgeon's knot into the elastic. Tighten the knot so that it nestles between two of your beads, then add a small amount of superglue to the knot.

5. When the superglue has dried, trim the ends of the elastic, then carefully pull the elastic so that the knot slides into one of the adjacent beads.

Tip - To finish off my necklace, I found a scrap piece of ribbon in a similar colour and tied it in a bow around the beads. This is also a perfect way to keep your necklace lengths together if you wrap them.

As always, I'd be grateful for any feedback or questions about the tutorial and if you do have a go at making something I feature let me know, I'd love to stop by and have a look!