Thursday, January 28

my heart..... artful thursdays #4 valentine envelope tutorial


i adore ruffles. they are so sweet and feminine and make me all nostalgic: sheer ruffled cafe curtains, layered and ruffled crinoline skirts, pink ruffled glass cake stands, little ruffled lace panties for your 3 year old.

so there is no wonder i have been sewing piles of crepe paper ruffles. i finally rolled up a bunch and put them in this jar next to some vintage pink hats i have collected. they are at least a bit contained in the glass and look so fancy.


this week for my artful thursday project (it's not too late for you to join me!) i wanted to make some ruffled valentine envelopes. if you haven't ever tried to sew on paper with your sewing machine check out this sewing on paper tutorial i did a while ago.

gather a few supplies from your stash:
sturdy paper you can sew through, music paper, ledger paper, old notebook paper, etc.
crepe paper, pretty trims, tulle, stamens, paper die cuts, glue, a pencil and some scissors.


i have been making my own envelopes forever because i like interesting paper for an envelope. the easiest way is to take apart an envelope you like, trace it to your paper, cut out and glue. if you need to design your own envelope for something here is a basic easy pattern to get you started.


cut out a scrap paper rectangle 10 inches long and 5 inches wide. fold in half lengthwise. (this gives you your center) measure and mark off with a pencil 1 3/4 inches from left and 6 inches from left. these are your two folds. corner round the two left hand corners. now mark 1 1/4 inches from the right edge of your rectangle. draw a shape like mine and fold paper in half lengthwise and cut. this makes a little dip inside your envelope for your card to show through like this:


trace your envelope template onto your envelope paper with a pencil and cut out. fold the envelope paper like your template. now you are ready to add your paper ruffles or trim. you could also use lace, ric rac, gathered tulle, or ribbon for your ruffle.

open the flap of your envelope and lay it down on some scrap paper. apply a thin line of glue stick along the edge and attach your ruffle. this will hold it in place while you sew. make sure the glue is dry before you start sewing. (if you are not sewing your ruffle use tacky glue instead to attach your ruffle)


after the ruffle is in place open the flap of your envelope and lay it with the envelope opening facing down on your sewing machine. leave the bottom half folded up so you can sew it together. stitch around the ruffle and the three sides of your envelope.


now you are ready to decorate. i glued a bit of tatting over the stitches holding the ruffle in place. (did you just say, "she used what!") yes, part of using up my stash is using lovely pieces of old tatting instead of saving them forever....
this tatting was wound around an old cardboard photo mailing tube with a hand typed label.


tear a piece of old tulle (mine is from an old wedding veil) and glue it to the center of your envelope flap.

next i painted over a vintage heart shaped paper die cut. after it dried i sanded off a bit of paint with an emery board. you can paint any german paper scrap borders this same way. from an old thrift store copy of shakespeare's love sonnets i cut the words my heart and attached them to the heart with some glossy modge podge. this creates a glossy coating and makes your paper die cut a bit more sturdy.



now layer on a few glittered stamens. wire them in the center and glue in place over the tulle. if you don't have any glittered stamens make them with a little glue and some glitter.



last step is to attach your paper heart in place on the envelope flap. since the embossing on my heart is almost 1/8 inch i used some scotch brand foam poster tape.
you did it! you now have your first, completely gorgeous valentine envelope. my guess is now that you have your template you will be making a few more....
go ahead, use up that stash and make someone else feel adored this valentine's day.
xo julie



32 comments:

Marina Collings Whiting said...

first comment! wahoo! i really really really love that ruffling! its so perfect!

candice Elton said...

second comment! wahoo! i have been waiting all day to see what you would make today. So darling, the instructions are great, and I too love the ruffles.

Anonymous said...

Love love love it... where did you get the ruffles? so adorable.... posted mine today.. I am having so much fun! we might have to do a little Artful Thursday trade... xoxo-Lilia

Jenny Holiday & Aaron said...

Seeeeriously fabulous my friend!!! Lovely as can be!!! Thanks so so much for sharing!!!!

XOXO Jenny

Elise said...

Fantastic, as usual! I have not tried to make the ruffles and hope to get to it this weekend (after I make a small book!) - thank you for the wonderful tutorials!
Love,
Elise

Tina said...

Julie

this is absolutely adorable - what a great idea...love these - how pretty would these be just sitting on your desk - fun for sure..

Im defintely going to try this.

xo
tina
prettypaperposies

Diane Mars said...

So beautiful, what a treat thanks so much for sharing. Hugs, Diane

LindaSonia said...

Love love love this. As usual. So sweet. LindaSonia

Kristal said...

Hi Julie, I think I skipped a post somehow...but I did my first Artful Thursday project and sent you an email. Thanks so much!

Lisa Russell said...

This is so pretty! Anyone would cherish an envelope like that. I have never sewn on crepe paper before, but I love those crepe paper ruffles so much I think I'm going to have to give it a try!

Beth Gales said...

This is absolutely darling!

*jean* said...

love this! what a great idea to use up those special pieces of tatting!

~*~Patty Szymkowicz said...

Just had to stop and say hello!
What a gorgeous and inspiring creation...Loved every step of the way! Thank you for sharing!
oxo

Jeanne said...

How wonderful this is. Reminds me of old fashioned valentines from years ago.
xo
jeanne

Holly Abston said...

Thank you for such a sweet tutorial. I love the photo of your paintbrush in the red water. Beautiful.

tamdoll said...

So nice! Love that old ledger paper.

Margaret said...

what a wonderful tutorial! so gorgeous and totally inspiring! M

Valarie said...

Thank you Julie...love your photos and instructions! ( Can always recognize a teacher : ) Thursdays are a little more fun with all that creativity!

Deb said...

So pretty Julie! Another great tutorial - Thank you! My sewing machine has never been so busy :-)
I finished the tea towel and posted it today. Thanks again for the inspiration ♥

Ella said...

I love how you add elegance to it!
Great instructions and love the ruffles...they seem to be on everything, these day!

Thanks so much!

Connie said...

Just love your ideas, Julie! This is BEAUTIFUL! Thanks for sharing!

Penelope said...

Wow- this is lovely! I must say I usually don't go in for majorly fluffy ruffles, but this is restrained and perfect. Well done!

paperbird said...

so pretty julie- such a clever girl you are. I am a ruffle kind of girl!

reimaginedtreasures.blogspot.com said...

LOVE ruffles! Thanks for this idea with crepe paper! Actually this is my first time to visit your blog, and I've spent quite awhile here....you are very inspiring!

charlotte said...

wow, this artful thursday series is amazing, Julie! thanks so much for all the clever how-to's and lovely ideas! xoC

Beehive Art Salon said...

Now I know what to do with all that lovely pink you sent me last week! Love it! xo

Anonymous said...

My friend and I were recently talking about how modern society has evolved to become so integrated with technology. Reading this post makes me think back to that debate we had, and just how inseparable from electronics we have all become.


I don't mean this in a bad way, of course! Societal concerns aside... I just hope that as memory becomes cheaper, the possibility of downloading our brains onto a digital medium becomes a true reality. It's one of the things I really wish I could experience in my lifetime.


(Posted on Nintendo DS running [url=http://quizilla.teennick.com/stories/16129580/does-the-r4-or-r4i-work-with-the-new-ds]R4i[/url] DS rrPost)

Debby said...

WOW!!! What an awesome creation. Your blog is great and I am glad to have found you.
debby

Lisa Super said...

OK that's just beautiful. Great directions and photos too!!

Unknown said...

Julie I was with my sister the other day and somehow your name came up as I was thinking of people who could do everything and do it very well. Love that gift you have .The instructions are perfect!Thanks

ziarah said...

where do you get like your frabric and stuff from but, really i want to know where you got the ruffles from

Anonymous said...

where do u get ur crafts and stuff from and ruffles

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