One month has passed

June 13, 2008 at 9:51 am | Posted in All Finished Crafts, Craft - How-to's, Craft - Websites | 3 Comments
Tags: cereal box, flower, flower motif, scrap yarn

Thank you all for the heart-warming comments and support! I was not really that depressed to have disappeared for so long. It’s just because of two conference trips+unexpected illness–I am still recovering….:)

The flower is only a little experiment. It has been on my backpack for quite a while and I was not going to posted it as I don’t feel it is good enough to be listed as a project. Well, I have certainly changed after I watched one of the Craft Podcast. A few points I understood (probably with bias) from the clip are: 1. you need the vintage loom to make those flowers, 2. the looms are no longer in production, and 3. most importantly, you can buy the looms from the lady, BUT I don’t buy it. I believe tool is not the essential part in crafting and they should not be. Almost all the flowers shown in the clips are made with the same technique. I consider it a waste of resources, i.e. the looms. A single way of using a tool is not enough to promote the tool.

First, you can find improved loom set manufactured by Clover (Japanese influence again? -_-). There are quite a few clear tutorials on how to use their loom set and the flowers, however also valid for the vintage looms.

Second, the looms facilitate the procedure, even though you don’t really need the looms to make these flowers. I don’t have these looms, I made something that any one can make their own! All you need is a cereal box or any types of carton/plastic that you can cut.

The cards are inspired by as so-called “flower-motif card” by HAMANAKA. The number of “pegs” is a little different. I spent a morning playing with my husband’s old pair of compasses and got these three shapes done. It was just a wonderful time since compass and straightedge is the my favorite part from junior high. 😀 I wonder whether the kids nowadays can still enjoy this as much as I do given so many computer programs to do the drafting.

Here is how to make the cards:

1. Print out the patterns. (Click the picture below) You can scale the picture to fit your needs. It is actually possible to change the ratio to have distorted shapes, say a elliptical flower! That’s something you cannot easily do with the looms! 😉

2. Transfer the patterns to a cereal box carton or whatever materials that are flat and can be cut. The simplest way to transfer is to glue the pattern to the carton.

3. Cut out the shapes and grab some scrap yarns to try it out! Here is a tutorial for making a corsage with the round piece.

Isn’t it simple? Leave your comments here if you have any questions or if you have made something. 🙂 You can find more possible solutions here. It’s a collection of homemade looms and techniques to use the looms. Someone also made a loom with foam puzzle mat and golf pegs.

If you like this idea of making alternative tools, you may also like my tutorial on knitting spool from office supplies.