Chol Fable: DIY

Showing posts with label DIY. Show all posts

So like most people I thought i'd check out the first episode of Breaking Bad to see if i'd like it. Turns out I loved it and watched the whole of the first series and a couple episodes from the second series in a day. Before I knew I had finished watching the whole thing. Then came the empty feeling when I knew there was no more episodes left to watch. I thought it would help me grieve if I created something from the show. I've always been fond of the pink bear that makes various appearances throughout the show.

Shortly after purchasing the materials to make the toy, I found out that an official stuffed toy of the bear was going to be released. When they released the photo of it I was really quite disappointed with it. Firstly, aside from the colour, it really doesn't look anything like the bear in the show. Secondly it looks quite cheap and nasty, especially for the price tag of £34 RRP!!

This is the first articulated teddy bear I've ever made. I amended this pattern to be a little skinnier and have an open mouth with the tongue sticking out. Its a really good pattern and is easy to follow, so don't be put off if you're a beginner!

I did intend to do a step-by-step showing how I amended the patterns but I kept forgetting to take photos of the different stages! I'm sure I can recreate the amended templates if requested.

The actual bear props in Breaking Bad are made from a light pink swirl fleece fabric rather then hot pink faux fur fabric. I chose to use fur fabric so it would look like the bear in the water footage. Either fabrics are fine to use though.

The ear templates turned out to be a bit too small, so as well as changing the body piece and adding an open mouth and tongue, I also altered the shape of the ears a little. All I did was make them a little wider.

For the paw pads and inner ear fabric I just used an old white tea towel. you can pretty much use whatever fabric you want as long as it is a relatively thin fabric.

To create the white parts on the face, I used the reference photos to create a template of the white area. I then used the template to cut out the shape from white fur fabric.

I also did the same with the white eyebrows. One of the great things about using fur fabric, is that it covers stitching that would usually be visible. If I were using another fabric, I would have had to completely change the original pattern so the head would be sewn together as one piece rather then having the pink head and overlaying it with the white fabric.

To finish the bear, I got my hands on some realistic baby eyes for reborn dolls. They are perfect for this and look so similar to the ones used on the actual prop. Also I used extra long fur fabric, which turned out to be a bit too long so I had to give him a little haircut.

And here is the finished product! I'm pretty pleased with it considering I've never made an articulated teddy bear before. Also without blowing on my own trumpet, I think it looks a lot better and more accurate then the official toy release. I do apologize for not having a step-by-step, but I hope this is helpful to anyone who was thinking of making one for themselves.
Thank you for reading, if you make you're own i'd love to see it!! Have an A1 day ;p

I've been experimenting with food a bit lately and thought I'd share this recipe for a no-cook vegan refrigerator cake. Unlike many vegan cheesecake/ refrigerator cake recipes, this does not require a food processor. A blender would be handy for making the topping but is not necessary.

What you will need for base:

- 1 cup of hazelnuts

- Approximately 1/2 cup of raw cacao powder

- 1 teaspoon of Vanilla extract

- 4 tablespoons of Maple syrup

Start by measuring out about 1 cup of hazelnuts and crushing them into smaller pieces. The smaller you can get them the better.

Put the crushed hazel nuts in a bowl with 1/2 cup of raw cacao and add 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Stir everything together and then add 4 tablespoons of maple syrup. I personally add 1 tablespoon at a time to make sure it gets stirred in evenly.

The finished texture should be moldable while still being slightly crumbly.

Once the ingredients are fully mixed, place into a dish and spread out evenly.

What you will need for topping:

- 1 punnet of strawberries

- 1-2 ripe bananas

- 1/2 cup of soaked cashew nuts

- 2 tablespoons of lucuma Powder

- 1 teaspoon of Vanilla extract

- 4 tablespoons of Maple syrup

- meat of young coconut (optional)

Place about 1/2 cup of cashew nuts in a bowl of water and let them soak for at least 2-3 hours. Preferably leave them overnight so they become quite soft. Strain them and crush them up like the same as the hazelnuts. Now mash up 1-2 bananas and add about 2 tablespoons of lucuma powder. If you can get your hands on a young coconut, scoop out the coconut meat and mash it up with the bananas. Place everything in a bowl, add 4 tablespoons of maple syrup and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. Now mix everything together.

If you have a blender you won't have to crush the nuts and banana up before hand. Make sure you still leave the nuts to soak though!

Spread a thin layer on top of the base and even it out with a spatula.

Slice up a punnet of strawberries and begin layering them up. Try to cover the whole area and keep it as even as you can.

Spread another layer on top of the strawberries

Create one more layer of strawberries and leave in the freezer for 2-3 hours to set.

And you're done!

I prefer to eat this frozen, but for a softer texture store in the fridge.

If you decide to give this a go I'd love to know how yours turned out! Thanks for reading :)

Valentines day is just around the corner so I thought I'd so a simple little DIY for the occasion. Not only is this super easy but extremely cheap too! Lets get started...

What you will need:

- Plain coloured dress (Similar here)

- Craft foam (any colour)

- White acrylic paint or fabric paint

- paintbrush, pencil and scissors

Step 1:

Decide how big you want the pattern to be and draw out a heart shape onto the craft foam

Step 2:

Carefully cut out the shape and paint a thin layer of acrylic paint over it. Then place the stamp onto the fabric and add pressure. Continue this step on the rest of the garment to complete the pattern.

Step 3:

Give the hearts a second coat of paint starting at the top of the garment. Once you've painted the first row, water down the paint slightly with water and then move on to the second row. Keep doing this until you have reached the desired pattern.

And you're done!

Easy right? If you decide to give this a go I'd love to know how yours turned out! Thanks for reading :)

I haven't done a DIY in a little while and thought the blog was due for another one. This is one of many easy home made eye masks that I use on a regular basis. The ingredients can help moisturize the delicate under-eye skin and reduce puffiness while giving your skin a good dose of vitamins.

What you will need:

- Banana

- Potato

- Green Tea (any kind)

- Circular Cotton Pads

Step 1:

Place the potato and half of the banana in a bowl and mash them together to create a paste.

Step 2:

Add the green tea to a cup of boiling water and leave to cool down. I've used organic gunpowder green tea but you can use what ever type you want. Once cool pour the tea into the banana and potato mixture. It doesn't really matter if you drain the tea or not.

Step 3:

Cut the cotton pads in half and place them in the bowl for a few minuets to let them soak the mixture up.

And you're done!

Place the pads under the eyes for about 20 mins and let them do their work. The moisture of them should keep them on your face without you having to hold them on. You can make a fair amount of them at once and store them in an airtight container in the fridge. I wouldn't store them for too long though as they may start to go off.

I hope you found this helpful. If you decide to give this a go I'd love to know how yours turned out! Thanks for reading :)

I am in love with die cut beanies atm! The best ones I have seen are from the brand Funky Bling, however at a £100+ price tag they are completely out of my price range. This tutorial is a really simple but effective way to make an ordinary beanie more exciting without breaking the bank. For the purpose of this tutorial I will be recreating Funky Bling's 'ICON' design as pictured above.

What you will need:

- Beanie hat

- Two different colours of craft foam

- Paper and pencil

- Scissors

- Studs

Step 1:

Draw out your design on paper and measure each letter to make sure they are all the same size. Then cut them out.

Step 2:

Place the templates on your first sheet of craft foam and draw around each one. Carefully cut each letter out.

Step 3:

Cut away the outer lines of your templates. Place your altered smaller templates on your second sheet of craft foam and draw around the design.

Step 4:

Cut them out and glue them together with their corresponding shape.

Step 5:

Simply add your studs to the design and then attach them to your beanie hat. To make the foam more weather proof you may want to spray a protective lacquer over the top. These can be purchased in 'matt' or 'glossy' form.

And you're done!

I hope you found this helpful. If you decide to give this a go I'd love to know how yours turned out! Thanks for reading :)

I have been experimenting the past year and a half making a stimulating hair growth recipe. I wanted to make it with ingredients that won't leave a greasy residue on your hair after being washed out and that were completely natural. After trying various combinations I think this is the most effective recipe.

What you will need:

- Castor oil

- Cayenne pepper

- Biotin capsule

-Emu oil (optional)

- Empty storage pot, preferably an applicator bottle

- Mixing bowl and teaspoon

Step 1:

Add two teaspoons of Cayenne Pepper to your mixing bowl

Step 2:

Next add 3-4 teaspoons of castor oil to the mixing bowl and mix well. I used a chopstick instead of a spoon to mix mine as there is less surface area for the mixture to cling to.

Step 3:

Add 1-2 capsules of Biotin. I use Swanson personally but any brand will do as long as it's in capsule form. I also added two teaspoons of Emu oil. Emu oil is a great from preventing fallout. I will however only use it until my current bottle has run out as I'm also trying to stop using animal products in my skin and hair care.

Pour mixture into a storage pot. I used an applicator bottle as it is perfect for applying the oil to your scalp.

And you're done!

Simply apply the mixture by rubbing it into your scalp, leave in for at least an hour and then wash out. I wouldn't use this particular mixture on the rest of your hair as the ingredients have specifically been chosen for stimulating the scalp rather then conditioning the hair. I will however be blogging recipes for natural DIY conditioning treatments soon.

I hope you found this helpful. If you decide to give this a go I'd love to know how yours turned out! Thanks for reading :)

I have been seeing a lot of nude tights recently that have tattoo-like outlines on them. I think they look great but they are always so overpriced in shops! I usually don't mind paying a bit more for a really nice item but tights tear so easily and I can't justify spending a lot of money on them. Making them yourself is not only a whole lot cheaper but enables you to create your own designs. They also look great and are easy to replace if ripped.

What you will need:

- Paper and pencil

- Pair of nude colour tights

- Wide drinking glass (or any cylinder shaped item that the tights can be stretched across)

- Permanent marker pen

Step 1:

Create a design on paper. I have included a template of the design I drew above if you would like to use it.

Step 2:

If you want the design to be in a particular place wear the tights and mark a dot where you want the centre of the design to be. Next stretch the tights over a cylinder shaped object. I chose a large tumbler glass as its the perfect size and the marker pen won't stain the glass.