Prima

Jessica Witty

If you’ve met me, you’ve probably seen them. They’re hard to miss. I mean…I’m kind of a small person, but they just keep getting bigger and more colorful. 

I can’t help it.
These days I just love ‘em.  

Accessories, people…accessories! 

Hair clips (usually flowers), necklaces (the bigger, the better), bracelets (why have just one when five is better?)…it goes on and on. Personally, I notice that I like to keep my accessories similar to how I design my cards…only one big statement at a time. 

For example…my latest love… 

I love it. Love it. It goes with everything and always makes me feel great. 

Now, let me be clear; I wasn’t always like this.
I would not have considered myself super girly by any stretch. 
I had two kids…both boys, and that seemed to contribute to me staying on the non-girls side of things.
Boys don’t require accessories other than a stylin’ necktie or cap on occasion.
And I liked it that way. 

And then I had a daughter.
I’m blamin’ it on her. 

She came as quite a shock after five years of mothering those two very boyish boys. 

And then there was the fact that this kid came with a head full of hair right from the get go. Another shock after mothering two very boyish, very bald boy babies. 

And so it came to be that I began noticing a few changes. 
I started to see the reasoning in having accessories to perfectly contrast all of her outfits. {And mine; but that’s a different story.} 

I had to wise up pretty quickly…those tiny little pieces of cuteness aren’t cheap, my friends.  

But I am a paper crafter.  
I have skills.
I have creativity.
And what else do I have? 

That’s right.
Embellishments.  

Ah…the perfect little accessories, right at my fingertips.  

For example…the flower. 

These little sweeties were made with Basic Grey’s Fabric Bloomers and they could not have been easier. Just cover a little clippie with some strong adhesive and stick ‘em on. Done. 

How about in felt? 

This is the same idea, just using a different type of clip and a flower from Little Yellow Bicycle. 

What about in chipboard? 

This cutie chipboard is from Melody Ross’ Artsy Urban line from GCD Studios. I just pulled the flower off of the backing and glued the slide clip directly to the back.  

I’ve even found that brads are super simple to work into hair clips.  

Just put a little adhesive on the clip, then stick the prongs of the brad through the hole in the center of the clip and fold the prongs flat against it. I covered the back with a little circle of felt as well. (The flower brad is from K&Company…I am loving the vintage look on that one!) 

Or, in this case, I was able to just pull the prongs off the back and adhere the top of the brad right to the clip using some foam tape. 

Now that I’ve honed on cutie pie clip-making skills, I’ve moved on to headbands.  

I was able to use a length of wide ribbon that I have been saving for, oh, years on this one. I just took some colored elastic and stitched the ends together. Then I pinned the ribbon in ruffles stitched one line down the center to hold it in place…super easy. 

I’ve noticed that my new obsession has caused me to see products a bit differently. When perusing the Prima booth at CHA, I was so overwhelmed by all the accessory possibilities that I could barely stand it!  

And then there was Webster’s Pages…I am totally imagining Noelle all decked out in a sweet headband using these: 

How about you? 
Have you ever crafted some handmade accessories for yourself or your little one? 
Tell me all about them!
I’m on the search for new accessory ideas, so I’d love to hear yours! 

Later, friends! 

Paper Crafts Go-to Gal
Jessica Witty