Category Archives: Holidays

DIY: Easy No-Sew Applique Pillow Covers

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Did you know you can DIY a totally awesome appliqued throw pillow without sewing a stitch?  It’s true! 

As part of my January goal to “finish abandoned tasks” I’d like to share with you how I made my no-sew Modern Christmas Tree Pillow cover shown in my Holiday Home Tour 2012.

No Sew Holiday Pillow Tutorial | The Borrowed Abode

But before you rag on me for posting a Christmas decor tutorial after the holiday, let me promise you that this DIY is applicable to any season.  Better yet, this one’s gonna be a quickie, because it’s so easy.

Supplies Needed:

  1. Iron
  2. Solid Color Pillow Cover (I used an Ikea one)
  3. Thermoweb Heat’n Bond Ultra Hold Iron-On Adhesive
  4. Patterned Fabric
  5. Scissors or a Rotary Cutter

(Cost:  about $20 for the webbing and pillow cover, but I have a lot of fusible webbing left for other projects.  If you use fabric scraps it helps save!)

How-To:

This project was totally inspired by the solid green velvet Ikea pillow cover that I found in my Christmas decor stash.  I looked at it and thought “hmm, what could I do with this to make it more exciting?”

Enter the fusible webbing (Thermoweb Heat’n Bond) and the patterned fabrics.  Once I determined that I wanted to applique some simple triangular “trees” for a modern Christmas tree look, the steps were simple:

  1. Place the patterned fabric, pattern side down, onto the ironing board.
  2. Set the Fusible Webbing on top of the fabric, with the paper side facing up.
  3. Iron on top of the paper, leaving the iron in place for 6 seconds on each spot.
  4. The fabric is now adhered to the fusible webbing.  Cut out your fabric shapes.
  5. Peel off the paper.
  6. Place the fabric shapes, patterned side up, onto the pillow cover.
  7. Iron to adhere.

Voila!  Those may look like a lot of instructions, but they’re really simple. I promise.  My pillow cover took me about 10 minutes to make.

Christmas No Sew Pillow Cover | The Borrowed Abode

I wasn’t sure how well the Fusible Webbing would work, but now I can tell you – this stuff is supremely awesome!  I used the light Heat’n Bond, because I’m going to machine-stitch the edges of the “trees” for a more decorative look (just need to find the time!) but if you don’t sew, go ahead and use the Heat’n Bond Ultra, the strongest strength.  This will give you a great hold that will last for years to come.

I hope you liked this mini-tutorial.  I love that the fusible webbing makes it easy for anyone to make a customized decorative pillow cover.  Monograms?  Animals?  Geometric shapes?  The possibilities are endless!!

The Halls are Decked: Our Christmas Home Tour

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Christmas Holiday Decor Tour | The Borrowed Abode

Welcome to the 2012 Borrowed Abode Holiday Decor Tour.  I’d like to thank Jen on the Edge for hosting a Holiday Homes Tour, which helped motivate me to actually decorate this week.

On this tour we’re pretty much going to stick to the living room, because – what with my not being Martha Stewart and all – I haven’t made enough decorations to include other rooms yet.

2012 Christmas Living Room | The Borrowed Abode

This year’s tree is not the best we’ve ever had.  Ok, it’s really the worst.  It’s been shedding needles like crazy, and it’s fat and awkward – a sharp contrast to our overly skinny 2010 tree – and poorly pruned.    That’s what we get for going to Home Depot late at night.  I first dragged Ryan to a small, family-owned tree market in our town – but the trees we liked were all so expensive.  I couldn’t justify spending $90 on what was, essentially, a dead tree that would end up being mulched in a few weeks.

Fat Christmas Tree 2012 | The Borrowed Abode

Because the tree is so fat, it looks bare. I don’t have that many ornaments – or lights – for it. I’m working on collecting the vintage glass Shiny Brite ornaments.  The ones I have now were my grandmother’s, and even though the paint is wearing off they are my favorite.  Favorite Vintage Christmas Ornaments 2012 | The Borrowed Abode

I have a few other special ornaments, too – I love the spun glass iridescent ornaments in the top right.  Then there’s the white “repurposed” leaf that I gave to Ryan as a joke, and a new addition – the Canon Memorial Chapel from my college (shown with the white leaf).

There was no good place to put such a fat tree, so it’s in the weird space between the dining ‘room’ and living room.  It makes for an awkward transition, and pretty much dwarfs the dining table.

Christmas 201203

I attempted a little festivity on the dining table with my favorite white wood-grain candles and some snowman votives.  Boy, does the winter table runner bring back memories.  I sewed it with a broken sewing machine about 10 years ago, when I was dying to learn to make home decor.

Christmas Tea Lights Wood Grain | The Borrowed Abode

Now I have a kickass sewing machine, I’ve created Janery, and I can whip up some pillow covers with invisible zippers (like those below)  in no time.  (The smaller sequined pillows are from last year at Crate and Barrel.) 

Christmas Pillow Covers Invisible Zippers | The Borrowed Abode

The little red shoes on the end table are vintage candle holders that first belonged to my grandmother.  I made the wreath by wrapping leftover pine garland in a circle, securing the loop with a few pieces of fishing twine, and adding a bow I saved from last year’s wreath.

For those of you who don’t sew, I made these easy no-sew Christmas tree pillow covers by using fusible webbing to adhere fun fabric to an existing Ikea pillow cover.  Tutorial coming this weekend. You can do it in 10 minutes, flat.

Christmas No Sew Pillow Cover | The Borrowed Abode

Behind the chair you see our Christmas Stocking Wall.  It was my solution to our lack of a fireplace mantel in our rented home.

The entry wall has an empty space behind the front door, so that’s where we’re hanging our Christmas cards this year.  The entryway table displays a few of my yarn trees from three years ago, as well as a huge pine tree candle I splurged on at Crate and Barrel this year.  I will not be burning it – it’s a perfect decor piece.

Christmas Entryway Front Door | The Borrowed Abode

When it comes to Christmas decorating, it’s definitely the little touches that I enjoy the most.

Christmas Accessories | The Borrowed Abode

Above, clockwise from top left: 

1.  Loving the handmade candles from Sydney Hale - the amazing scents are totally worth the splurge.  2.  A tiny vintage Santa is climbing my yarn tree.  3.  Love my red yarn trees in my coffee-table-scape. This year I added some green pine tree candles from Crate & Barrel.  4.  The candle lanterns looked a bit bare, so I added some small silver ornaments and glittery pears as filler.

I’m so glad I did finally decorate this year.  Last night I came home from work, determined to get it done.  I put on my striped Santa socks and a dorky red sweater vest, and stuck some glitter twigs out of my pony tail.  It helped me get in the spirit.  I powered through, and Ryan loved the results.
If you’ve shared photos of your holiday decor, please leave your link in the comments! I’d love to check it out!

No Mantel? No Problem! {Faux Holiday Mantel Wall for Renters}

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Christmas decorating can pose a problem for apartment renters and even home renters like me, because we often don’t have a fireplace and mantel to decorate!

Ok, so maybe it’s not a huge problem, but because I love to hang stockings it bugs me.  My solution?  A rustic branch, hung on the wall and draped with a pine garland, creating the feel of a fireplace mantel and a safe place from which to hang our Christmas stockings.

Christmas Stocking Branch on Wall for No Mantel | The Borrowed Abode

Think of this as a not new, but improved project.

During our first Christmas in this borrowed abode, I solved the problem by hanging a branch on the wall with some Command Hook products.  Thanks to Pinterest, I now see that Christmas Stocking Branch pinned all over the place – and it bugs me because every time I look at it the branch looks like a massive centipede crawling on our wall:


So here’s how I did it this year.  Not only did I find a sweet, weathered piece of wood at a river, I also used a different hanging system.

I used two small Ook Hooks because they use small nails but create a strong hanging system.  I installed them about 1 foot higher than I wanted the branch to hang.  Then I created two long loops of fishing line to hang the branch from, since fishing line is clear.  You can also find clear, strong line in the bead section of the craft store.

Hang Christmas Stocking Branch on Wall With Fishing Line | The Borrowed Abode In real life you really don’t notice the clear string that the branch hangs from.  But what you would notice are the hooks – so I created a small “Let it Snow” sign to hang over them.  I simply used a board, some craft paint, and glitter.

Holiday Stocking Branch No Greenery | The Borrowed Abode
Charlie and I thought the wall still looked a little sad with the stockings hanging on a naked branch, so I added a fresh pine garland.  I wound it around and held it in place with by tying it with a few more pieces of the clear fishing line.

Perfect!

Holiday Stocking Branch for Mantel with Garland | The Borrowed Abode

Faux Mantel Stocking Branch Details | The Borrowed Abode

The fishing line is strong enough that we can put some small treats in the stockings.  The key is to get twine that is rated at 10 pounds or more.

No Mantel Stocking Branch & Winter Sign | The Borrowed Abode

I was so excited to finally, finally get this project completed.  We’re still working on setting up the rest of our decor, like the Christmas Yarn Trees and our actual Christmas Tree.  Let’s hope it’s not an insane saga like it was two years ago. :)

Christmas Stocking Branch Wall Faux Mantel | The Borrowed Abode

If you rent, how do you deal with your lack of a mantel when it’s time for Christmas (or winter) decorating? Or are you one of those lucky people who actually has a fireplace to hang stockings from in your rental home?

Shared at Ten June: Holiday  Mantel Party

Deck the Halls: 10 DIY Christmas Decorating Ideas

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Happy Friday! Are you ready to get into the DIY holiday decorating spirit this weekend? I know I am!  Julia’s back today sharing some favorites from the many DIY Christmas decor ideas floating around Pinterest, and I’m super stoked to take on a few of them myself this weekend. 

Christmas decor is a long, slow process of acquisition.

Most of my Christmas decor in the past four years of marriage consists of  hand me downs and things I picked up off the floor at Target as people around me attacked holiday clearance items. Throw in the random items I’ve been gifted and my collection is pretty… eclectic. I do enjoy my Christmas Matroshka dolls.

I’m sure some of us would much prefer a streamlined and tasteful collection of Holiday decor that reflects our individual tastes. This led to digging around on Pinterest for decor projects that won’t kill your budget or time in a season that is notoriously busy. You can check out our Christmas: Deck the Halls board for more ideas that didn’t make it into this post.

Let’s start with simple and easy:

1. Wall hung embroidery hoops with seasonal fabrics

Source: sidebysideblog.blogspot.com via Julia on Pinterest

 I’m loving how Christmas & Holiday decor is no longer limited color wise. Gone are the days of just green and red; if purple or blue is more your vibe you now have options. I’d love a wall of sparkly white and silver embroidery hoops and would probably paint the hoops white for continuity. Either way, this project is as easy or as complex as you want it to be. Check out our Christmas: Deck the Halls Pinterest board for Jane’s seasonal fabric picks.

2. Festive Ribbon through a painted (or not) key: easy and done!

 

I love the look of these vintage keys and am fortunate to have a few lying around the house. This project would be just as cute with our modern keys and old jewelry which is no longer in use. Bonus: Make this project even easier and more colorful by using nail polish to paint keys or objects.

3. Simple Christmas Vignette

Source: flickr.com via Julia on Pinterest

 

Most of us can locate free printables via Pinterest, the interwebs, and our favorite blogs. By swapping out the art in our existing frames we save time, effort, and space when it comes to storing Christmas items year round. This particular vignette is festive in its quiet simplicity, and all the elements save the overtly Christmas-y can be used throughout the year.

Now let’s get a little more involved:

1. Onion bulb ornaments

 

It’s never a bad thing to have mod decor that you can customize to suit you needs as far as size and color are concerned. These festive bulbs can be easily made and placed around the empty spaces of your home that need a little oomph perhaps.

2. Sequin ball ornaments

Source: puglypixel.com via Jane @ The Borrowed Abode on Pinterest

I love these because my mom used to make them when I was a kid. They’re fantastic and easy. They’re also sort of time consuming. This is a great project for when you’re sitting around watching TV. I also think this would be a fun project for a seasonal DIY party. All you need is a Styrofoam ball, sequins, and pins. Then you can hang these lovelies on your tree, from your ceiling, or forego that entirely and stack them in a bowl for a Holiday glam centerpiece.

3. Candy Cane Vase

 

I am yet again happy to know that candy canes are no longer just red and white. Hot glue them around a vase, punctuate with a coordinating ribbon and mint or other decorative bob on the front and throw branches, poinsettias, or whatever you like in the vase.

General decor Ideas:

1. Old toolbox filled with pine boughs, ornaments, and (hopefully) battery powered candles

 

The sky is the limit with this kind of centerpiece. If you don’t have a cool vintage toolbox lying around the house use an old planter, serving dish, bucket, or what have you to make this decorative item a reality. I don’t personally have anything quite so nifty in my home but I do have a pretty amazing set of baskets that would look lovely this way.

2. DIY initial wreath

 

This is just so pretty and unique compared to the classic evergreen wreath. I can see these initials covered in berries, individual poinsettia petals, holly leaves, mistletoe, glitter, fabric scraps, scrapbook paper – whatever says Christmas to you! The original project used an MDF letter from the craft store. That’s not even necessary. Print out your initial in your preferred font and use that template to cut out your own initial. Cheap. Easy. No trip to the store. I like.

Bonus Round: For the Kids!

Because I’m a mom to two kiddos I had to throw some kid projects in. Kind of. This isn’t exclusively a kid project.

1. Advent Calendar

 

Okay, so this isn’t solely kid oriented. Put pet treats in it for your furbabies. Or turn an advent calendar into a fun spouse only activity. Either way, this is a flexible and cute project. One plank, some paint, some stencils and clothespins, and you’re in business. Make it easy by hot gluing clothes pins onto fabric wrapped foam core board and using number stickers or go all in and pant a plank, stencil your numbers onto it, and cover each clothespin with scrapbook paper. Your call.

If any of you dear, sweet TBA readers DIY any of these holiday and Christmas decor projects, please email us a picture and description as we’d love to share your work with other readers!

Happy Holidays all!