Browsing Tag

bird

Craftiness, Thrifty

Quick and thrifty retro bird decoration

12 February, 2013

*****Warning: contains strong, possibly offensive views*****

You know what I hate? PINK. UGH. It is so disgusting. I have no doubt that my hatred of it is in part because of how it is now a prescriptively female colour, to the extent that nearly all girl kid’s clothes have to have a smattering of it, just to identify them. How ridonkulus is that?

I don’t own one single pink item of clothing, not even a ribbon. Putrid, vomity Shade of Average.  *Begins petition to have it taken out of the rainbow*

Of course, unless it is on something retro. Retro pink is an altogether different kind of thing, no? I have quite a few 1960’s duvet covers in bright, bold, flower power pink and they are completely rock and roll. Ooh, yeah, 40 year old pink bed linen has got it going on.

Let me tell you a really cool and quick craft trick. If you smother fabric in a mixture of PVA and water (or homemade mod podge- click here for the recipe) and then leave it to dry, it turns into paper! Not actual paper, obvs, but you can cut it and treat it in the same way, so it doesn’t fray, snips super easily and bends to your will. It means you can do lots of papery- style crafts with it but they will be loads more sustainable and hardy, water proof and quite possibly in cooler patterns. Hooray!retro bird garland

I made a little string of retro birds and hearts – in fact you can catch me making this garland over on the Netmums Youtube Channel- eeep! It is a cool way of getting into the loving vibe of February, but also of showcasing some of those retro bed linens my husband doesn’t want to sleep in (see? SEE? It is so prescriptively feminine… or they have so obviously been slept in by many old ladies…)

I drew around my homemade bird cookie cutter on to the back of the fabric and then cut them out.retro fabric bird

I placed them on this old velvet ribbon and used some of the beautiful buttons from my Nana’s old button tin to sew them on.retro fabric valentines birds craft

Are you upcycling anything for Valentines Day this year? And, also, if you love pink, I don’t mind, honest. When it comes to YOU I’m quite colourblind.

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