I love fashion magazines. Even though I'm not yet able to fit into the clothes I see in them, I still love fashion rags something fierce. The problem with this is that I end up with a lot of magazines sitting around the house because I feel bad about throwing out all that paper. With that in mind, I've come up with some interesting ways to reuse the paper in magazines (paper beads, paper bowls, paper jewelry) and tonight's DIY is no different.

I've been seeing these "circus" garlands popping up on web shops for ridiculous prices. Sure, they're made out of nice expensive paper (and you could make yours out of it, too) but why would I shell out even more money for even more paper when I've got loads of it already? Plus, the glossiness, the bursts of color and pattern, and the paper quality of most fashion mags work well for this project.

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

Some sort of cord (I used waxed thread) cut to your desired length
Sewing machine with your choice of color thread
Old magazines
Scissors
A pen or Sharpie

...AND GO!

DSC05098
Get out a magazine of your choosing (I'm using a copy of Dazed and Confused from a couple of months ago cuz I'm cool like that) and find some pages with interesting colors or patterns on them. You could go monochromatic, choose all black and white, or get crazy and mix up as many colors as possible.

DSC05100
Take your page and fold it in half, with the side you want to show on the outside.

DSC05101
Make a triangle pattern in any size you like. Placing the base of your triangle on the fold of the magazine paper, trace the pattern like above.

DSC05103

DSC05099
Cut out the triangle on the fold so that when you open it up it is a diamond shape.

DSC05104
Arrange your triangle on the string or cord so that each side of the "diamond" straddles the cord.

DSC05105
Now sew the triangle "diamond" just under the fold, making sure that the cord is all the way against the fold so that it won't get stitched. If you have a decent sewing machine, it should be able to sew through the magazine paper with no problem.

DSC05108
Keep sewing on the triangles until you've filled up your cord as much as you want, and then clip any threads from the seams so that they're neat. Tie a looped knot at each end of the cord for hanging. VOILA! Cool little circus garland! If you stitched the triangles correctly, you should be able to slide them along the cord so you can adjust them as needed.

That's it. This was my very first garland, it's about 2 and a half feet long, and it took me about 15 minutes to make. It took longer to type up this tutorial and upload the photos!

So don't throw those mags away, ladies and gents. You can always think of some way to reuse that paper!

Labels: circus garland, diy

Kapaali Design Love said...

I don't know if you send out actual handwritten letters or invitations very often, but this is a good idea:
http://craftingagreenworld.com/2009/01/24/diy-valentine-make-your-own-custom-envelopes-from-recyled-paper/

Bloggers I Like

*
...love Maegan
*
Face Hunter
*
JAK & JIL
*
Ma Petite Amy
*
MissMalaprop.com
*
NOLA Eats
*
Positive Ape Index
*
Slow Southern Style
*
The Sartorialist

To see images please visit: http://kapaalidesign.blogspot.com/2009/09/diy-circus-y-garland-yall.html