Already to the third day of the 5 Days of Christmas! If you haven’t already entered for the first two giveaways, make sure you go check those out (here and here). The giveaways don’t close until this Sunday night, so you still have plenty of time!
For today, I asked my best friend, Katrina, to contribute her talents. She’s always been an artist and an inspiration, but lately she’s been hitting it out of the park with her daily sketches on Instagram. Guys, she’s amazing. Go check her out and like her photos and follow her.
Also, you should encourage her to start selling her art. Don’t you think she’d be really successful? Seriously.
So, now that you’ve gone to her Instagram and are completely impressed, read her tips for using a wood burning tool, and enter to win one of her ornaments!
I’ve been making my own Christmas gifts for friends and family members for as long as I can remember. So when Carolyn asked me to participate in her week of Christmas DIY Projects and Giveaways, I was super excited! No hesitation.
Last year, I made monogrammed ornaments by painting initials on sliced wood circles from branches in my back yard. This time around, I tried my hand at wood burning on wood circles using Carolyn’s cool wood burning tool.
I have to admit that it took me a few tries to get the hang of it and feel comfortable. I assumed I would like the fine point tip, since I prefer drawing with a fine tip pen. But it took much more effort than I expected to make a smooth line and I ended up making mistakes as I was going back over the lines to add detail.
Here’s what worked for me:
- Test out the different tips on a piece of scrap wood (in the same type of wood, if possible) to determine which works best for the project. I preferred the slanted tip.
- Draw the design in pencil on the wood circle.
- Use my non dominant hand to turn the wood so that I didn’t have to draw with the wood burning tool as much. I still drew with the tool, but felt like I had better control when I also used my left hand to guide the wood circle.
- Pay attention to the angle of the tool. It was very easy for me to touch the side of the hot tip unintentionally. You can see in the photo with the “Joy” and “H” ornaments that I made some dark burns outside of my intended design. Not the end of the world, but definitely not the look I was going for. 😉
- Trace over the outline first with the wood burning tool, then go back over to fill in, add detail and shading.
- Keep the design simple and don’t sweat the imperfections. That’s part of what makes it look authentic and unique.
- Attach a screw eye to the top (I used a 3/4″) or drill a hole straight through the ornament. I used baker’s twine, but you can use any ribbon, string or twine to hang your ornament.
I hope those pointers help if you decide to give wood burning a try. Or you could win an ornament of your choice by following us on Instagram and commenting on this post. If you win, you can choose from the designs featured, or request a custom word or initial that is meaningful to you. I’m excited to play around more, now that I have the hang of using a wood burning tool! 🙂
Giveaway time! We’re giving away a wood burned ornament. Five ways to enter to win this fun, handmade Christmas decoration.
To enter to win the Gift Bag, do any or all of the following:
- Answer this question in the comment section of my blog: When do you usually start getting ready for Christmas? How do you prepare?
- Follow me on Instagram (carolynfwilliams), then comment on this blog post telling me you’re following me on Instagram.
- Comment again telling me you’re following Megan’s shop on Instagram (alwayscreateco).
- Comment again telling me you’re following Katrina on Instagram (katrinalhenry).
- Subscribe to Megan’s channel on YouTube.
*** ENTER by SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 22nd 9pm Pacific Time – All five winners (one for each day this week) will be announced on Andthenthey.com on Monday, the 23rd ***
I love wrapping gifts, but I’m so, so bad at it. The ends are always crumpled and there’s way more tape than there should be. I also hate all the trash that we throw away on Christmas morning. But, I love how reusable gift wrapping is getting more popular!
Start by ironing down about a half inch on the top of the bag. You should note, at this point, that I don’t use actual measurements to make this bag. It’s all estimated and eyeballed. This is partly because the amount of material you use will determine how you construct your gift bag. Also, it doesn’t have to be perfect since it will be all scrunched up in the end. 
Fold down again, this time a few inches. You can see this in the below photo. If you look to the left of my hand, you’ll see the first fold, then how I folded again on top. Does that make sense? I hope so.
Unfold the fabric, and put your buttonholes in. (My sewing machine manual had instructions on making a buttonhole, and I’m not sure if the directions would be similar for different machines, so if you don’t know how to make a buttonhole, you should search for your specific machine.) You want to make sure you just put the holes in the top layer of fabric, so be very sure that you unfold your fabric before you start sewing the holes.
Refold your fabric and sew along the bottom edge, all along the top. Now, you’re going to finish the channel for the ribbon. Start above the buttonhole, and sew all the way across the top to make the channel. For me, I had a narrow ribbon, so I sewed my second line a couple inches above the bottom line. 
For these gift bags, I love making it as finished looking as possible, so I like to do a French seam on the inside. French seams are really fun, and I actually use them a lot when I make clothes, too.
Turn your bag inside out, and sew around the seams you just sewed, again with a 1/4 inch seam. You’ll want to make sure the first seam is nestled inside this seam. 
Now, all you have to do is string your ribbon. Cut your ribbon so it’s about 4 times as long as your bag is wide. I’ve ready about fancy ribbon threading tools, but I’ve always done just fine with the safety pin method. Attach a safety pin to one end, stick it in one of the holes, and work your way around until the pin comes out the other hole, pulling the ribbon with it.
Magic! 
