DIY craft #1

Here's a fun craft I thought I'd post for you ladies (or men!) out there that have a lot of earrings. Many of us succumb to the terrible habit of throwing them into a bowl or a box, where they get tangled or forgotten about. I started making these canvases in part to display and protect my investment (most of my earrings are handmade by Etsyians or myself), but also because I absolutely love to have more fabric in every room. These canvases are a great way to get a splash of your favorite fabric into a room, whether you want to put earrings on them or not.

Materials needed: 
a canvas or thick, wooden photo frame (preferably from the thrift shop, where they are abundant and cheap), sized for however many earrings you need space for
your favorite fabric (the more busy a fabric is, the less emphasis will be on your earrings, so decide if you want it to be more about the fabric or your jewelry)
canvas or other thick fabric (unless you're using a ready-made canvas)
upholstery tacks (or a staple gun - makes it way faster/easier, I just like the look of the tacks)
tack hammer or regular hammer
potentially a pair of pliers if staples need to be removed
(Note: You can definitely use a staple-gun for this project as it makes it go a lot faster, but there's something really fun for me about using the upholstery tacks and having all of the labor be completed without a gadget. If using a staple gun, just make sure you have staples that are short enough for your frame!)

1. Assemble your materials. If you're using a canvas, leave the canvas part on the frame. If you're using a picture frame, discard everything except the wood itself. Remove and staples or other uglies so that you're left with a clean frame.  If you're using a picture frame it may already have a hanger on the back, but if not you'll have to purchase some and put one on yourself. (Or, you can just hang the frame evenly on a nail and not even worry about it.)

2. Iron your fabrics and cut them to size. Both pieces should be the length & width of your frame, PLUS another few inches. This is to cover the thickness of the frame and so that you can fold a neat hem. Measure how much you'll need and cut it with a pair of sharp scissors (preferably fabric scissors).

3. Lay your top fabric face-down on a sturdy table. Lay your canvas-y fabric down over that. Place your frame in the center. Starting with any side, fold the edge of the two fabrics about a half inch or so, then over again. Be sure that your fabric is even when you lay it over the edge of your frame so if there's a pattern on your fabric it won't be all cock-eyed.

4. Whilst holding your "hem" in place, tack your first tack into the center of that side of the frame. Adjusting for straight-ness, place your next tack in the right corner, then one in the left corner. In the photo you'll see fancy upholstery tacks and regular flat-head tacks. I just had both laying around, so I used the fancy ones for the corners and centers of the frame arms and the flat-head ones to fill in once the whole thing's done.

5. Fold in the corners however you like. Folding it some ways will make the edge stick out, some ways will keep the edge hidden. It's up to you, but I prefer to fold the corners in so they don't stick out. To do this, fold the edge down so it runs along the frame, then "hem" the most outside edge and fold that up over the corner piece you just folded over. Tack in place at the corner, then do the other corner. Finish by tacking the center down. To be perfectly honest, it's hard to describe this process so it's just going to take some experimentation for you to get it the way you like.

6. Make sure that as you're going around the frame, you're pulling the two fabrics nice and taut. This will keep your fabric from sagging and hold your earrings in place better.

7. Finish tacking all the way around the frame. You'll find that you'll still be able to pull the in-between-tack areas of fabric tighter, so do so before filling in those areas with tacks. Your end product will look something like this:

8. You can add your earrings a few different ways, but what I like to do is just take a sharp thumbtack and carefully poke it through both layers of fabric. When you place the earring into the hole, you may notice that it doesn't go right through - sometimes the fabric shifts, but if you just move the earring around gently, you'll find the hole in the canvas layer. Be creative with your hole placement - you can move along the pattern of the fabric or make geometric shapes. Just leave yourself room for the long danglies and the not-so-long danglies.

Extras for Fun: I like to make a little pocket and tack it onto the bottom side. I use my pocket for the earring backings so I don't lose them, but this blue and brown piece has a pocket for my friend's business cards. I also always tack a length of chain onto the bottom as well, for those earrings that have leverbacks and can't just push through a hole. You can see the finished piece below, along with my personal earring holder (with a beautiful fabric by Joel Dewberry).

Have fun and be creative! :) Thanks for reading!