One Hour Craft

How to Start Teaching Craft Classes (Part 1)

In the last seven years I have taught many, many community craft classes to adults, teens and children.  I have taught beaded jewellery classes, general sewing classes, tote bag making classes, mother & daughter jewellery classes (they were wonderful), christmas baubles etc.  Of course, having a teaching background has helped me a lot, but there is not reason why anyone with the desire can’t teach these classes for extra cash and for pleasure.  

At the moment I have no time to run more classes as my life has gotten a whole lot busier, but I really enjoyed the classes I did run. I learnt a lot and used some of my classes as test groups for the crafts included in my first book.  Now I will share with you what I learnt about getting started teaching craft. 

1. Choose your subject.  Craft classes include everything from sewing classes to glass slumping, pottery to beading, silversmithing to painting.  In which area do your skills lie?  Are you a great sewer who knows the ins and out of sewing?  Have you been making beaded jewellery for years and know a lot about this subject?  Are you a long-time soft toy maker who would love to pass on your knowledge?  My advice is to make sure that you know your subject thoroughly.  Your subject can be specific.  For example, when I was teaching jewellery making at the Canning Arts Group,  a lady was teaching teenagers how to make dreamcatchers.  She was very gifted at this and her classes were informative and popular.
2. Make sure you are an expert in your subject.  What do I mean by expert?  Make sure that you know your subject through and through.  It will be really difficult to teach a class on sewing tote bags if you have only ever sewn one and you started sewing three months ago.  Remember, that if you have a class of eight, each person may ask ten or more questions during a two-hour workshop.  If you don’t have all the skills you need at the moment, take this as an opportunity to learn them.  Take some classes yourself, look at all the lessons available on-line, ask a friend for tips and equip yourself with the knowledge you will need.
3. Where can I run classes? Your first step is to complete enough research to be able to make the most informed choice. Craft classes can be run at libraries, community arts groups, fetes, TAFE centres, markets, PCYC halls, school art rooms, even in your own workshop if it is big enough.  Many schools and community groups run classes each day in the school holidays/vacation and they may also run classes in the evenings during the term or even weekend workshops (my very favourite!)
   To save time do an internet search in your area and find out what is already available. Your easiest solution will be to slot in with programs which are already running, rather than starting your own. Starting your own classes will mean that you need to do all your own publicity and to build a client base which takes time and costs money.   Once you have completed your internet search you can make a few phone calls to some of the centres in your area and ask for more information if you need it. 
4. How to get a spot running a class in an established community centre.  If you find that classes are already running at a community centre, make a time to go and visit the person who coordinates the classes (phone calls are never as succesful as face-to-face meetings).  Treat this meeting as a job interview and be willing to sell yourself.  Take examples of the work that you do to show the coordinator.  Take an outline of the class you would like to run with an example of the finished product.  Don’t forget a copy of your updated CV also. 
5. Ask Questions.  This is a very important part of the whole deal.  Apart from selling yourself, you must also make sure that these classes suit your needs.  I have had some bad experiences.  A few years ago I taught a beaded necklace class at a community centre.  I was very excited about the class.  On the brochure the class limit was 12 which is a do-able  number of participants.  A day before the class, the co-ordinator called me to tell me there were now 35 participants in the class.  I reminded her of the class limit and her answer was, “Well, we run as a community class and we need the revenue”.  If I had my time again I would have said, “No.  But I taught 35 people instead of 12 for the same hourly rate.  The class was a complete nightmare.  I had 35 people asking me questions and it was a very long two hours with customers left unsatisfied because I could not get to answer all of their questions.   At the same centre I also taught a class for 12-15 year old girls.  On the day of the class, the coordinator told me that there was a 8 year old girl joining us.  I was really annoyed because, being a teacher, I knew that she would not have either the dexterity or the fine motor skills needed to complete the intricate beaded necklace.  Sure enough, the little girl became very upset during the class and I ended up making the necklace for her.  She still went home crying.  My point is that many community groups are poorly administrated and run and you will have to be very assertive the classes you run. 

Questions to Ask the Coordinator:

• How many people will be enrolled in this course? (also state your preference emphatically, giving your reasons).   I have found that a sewing class with more than eight participants is very hard but a jewelllery class can have up to 15 people, if you have written instructions and make up packs with all the materials they need.
• What is the hourly rate I will be paid?  Will this change according to the number of participants who enrol?  Of course, this is extremely important!  If you are happy to volunteer your time, then do, but if not, make sure you are being paid a good hourly rate for your hard work.
• Do I need to get a Police Clearance or Working With Children Check?  The answer is YES YES YES if you are in Australia and you will be working with minors.  I am not sure about other countries, but I am very glad about the laws in Australia which are very strict about those people who can and cannot work with children.   Ask the coordinator how you can obtain these checks.
• Who will pay for the materials?  Will you be paying for them yourself, saving receipts and being reimbursed?  Do they have materials that you can already use?   Do you have a budget?  Are you able to buy things wholesale if they are registered as a not-for-profit organisation?  Just make sure that the cost of materials is not coming out of your own pocket!
• What about insurance?  For example, if you are using sewing machines, what happens if someone sews through a finger? (It happens to even the best of us ).  Does the centre have insurance that will also cover you so that you are not personally liable for any injuries or accidents?  Make sure they do!!

If you are happy and they are happy then you may find yourself embarking on a fun journey, teaching what you love, meeting new people and making a little extra dosh. 

Part 2 of this post (Still to come) will be about The Mechanics of Teaching Craft Classes.

Good Luck!

Mia xx

PS I also wanted to let you know that Emma Mill and our friend Rachael Barkess will be teaching classes at the Tresillian Centre, Nedlands during these school holidays.  Here are the details:

Learn a simple process of printing on fabric, and coating

and stretching your fabric over a canvas to create your

own masterpiece! Cost $62 & Material Fee $30

Starts 14 July for 3 Sessions

 Sew print Play Tote Bag Emma Mill & Rachael Barkess

Sew your own fully reversible tote bag (2 bags in 1) from

a beautiful kit. Absolute beginners welcome.

Cost $62 & Material Fee $25

Starts 7 July for 3 Sessions

One Hour Craft – The Movie Based on the Book!!

Hi ya, here is the full version of the silly video Em and I made at 12.00am last Friday night. Enjoy!

Mia
xxxxx
PS We will be back in the next few days. I think we will make some video tutorials soon. But in the meantime I have a load of lovely things to share with you.
I miss posting so much!
PPS If you like the video please post it to to your friends.
PPPS Can you tell that Em and I are twins? It was easy to make the vid because we can pretty much finish each other’s sentences!
PPPPS And can you tell I am seven minutes older? Can you tell that I am just that little bit more mature (nah, just kidding)

One Hour Craft – The Silly Video by Mia & Em

Free Thong/G-String Pattern & Tutorial

Hi ya crafty chicas,
I am re-posting a pdf pattern and a tutorial that Emma and I made and have been selling, to make a very sassy little thong.

This is for everyone to enjoy!

Have fun!
Mia
xxxx

To begin sewing,   download this PDF pattern (contains two pages) and print it out.  Now, To check that you have printed the pattern at the correct size please measure the following – where it says ‘bottom’ on both the front and the lining pieces this should measure 3cm and on the back piece from letters C to D should measure 9.4cm.  If these 3 measurements are correct you can make a start!  If not you may need a photocopier.

Materials

• Sewing Machine with stretch needle

• 1.3 metres (52 inches) of 10mm (0.4”) wide underwear elastic

• 30cm (12 inches) swimsuit lining (100% polyester). When buying this material make sure that 4cm (1 ½”) stretches to 10cm (4”) on a flat surface. Any less and the panties will not stretch enough to cover your booty, any more and they will sag.

• 30cm (12 inches) t-shirt material with very little stretch. Scraps are ideal for this.

• Cotton thread (same colour as elastic)

• Optional: Trim (lace, braid…), button, 15cm (6”) ribbon for a bow, needle for hand sewing

Instructions

Note: 15mm (5/8 inch) seam allowance has been included in this pattern.

1. Pin the pattern to the fabric and cut out 1 front in t-shirt material, 1 lining in t-shirt material, 2 backs in the lining fabric, 2×30cm (12 inches) lengths of elastic (for legs) and 1x 70cm length of elastic (for waist).
2. Pin and sew trim onto thong front (shown on pattern).
3. Pin thong lining onto back of thong front (wrong sides facing). Use a zigzag stitch to sew the sides together, leaving the top and bottom open.
4. Pin and sew the two short lengths of elastic onto the front legs of the thong using an elastic stitch (looks like a broken zigzag stitch).
5. Place two thong backs on top of each other with letters matching (right sides facing). Sew from A to B using an elastic stitch. Sew from F to E using an elastic stitch.
6. Keeping right sides together, slide fabric and reposition it so points B and E are on top of each other (seams will be positioned on top of each other). Stitch along top edge (longest edge) of fabric with an elastic stitch joining the 2 layers together (C & D will be together at the ends). Now you have sewn the back thong piece, turn it in inside out.
7. Pin & sew front and back thong pieces together at sides and bottom (right sides together) using a straight stitch. Ease fabric to ensure it matches up perfectly. Cut away excess fabric, fold all fabric towards back and use a zigzag stitch to flatten/neaten seam.
8. Now your thong is sewn together, turn it right side out.
9. Sew the long piece of elastic together into a loop.  Pin & sew elastic onto top edge of thong using an elastic stitch.  Ease as needed.

How did yours turn out? Please let us know

Tweet Tweet Clutch Bags Coming Soon…

Hi ya,

Just thought I would stop by to say hi on my long weekend.  And to let you have a little sneak peak at these adorable Tweet Tweet clutch bags I am busily sewing.

Five of these (in all different colours) will be for sale in the next few days under my new label, mia binns, in my new Etsy store.

Stay tuned…

Mia

xxx

What Ya Makin’ Wedneday?

I have missed the last few weeks of WYMW and it is funny. People have emailed me telling me what they are doing and asking when we are doing it again. Thanks guys. I didn’t know if it was worth continuing with or not. So, now I will.
Here’s who and what they been a-makin’ (crikey (no no-one except me ever says this word in Australia), my english gets better all the time)…

• Miss James of bleubirdvintage  is making her first collection of vintage-inspired clothes for her label TWEET.  This lil jumpsuit is to die for.  I can’t wait to see the rest.  And as an aside comment – she is now selling men’s vintage and her new model is …. can’t find the word…. a total spunk.
• Benita of Chez Larsson is making a pelmet cornice valance.  Or how to finish off a window divinely and simply.  This is a lovely tutorial.
• Anna Maria Horner has is putting her designing talents to making paper products that are colorful and fun.  These are now available for sale.  What will she be making next?  Clever lady.
• At Apartment Therapy check out the coffee light, little light shades made from coffee cups and saucers.  These don’t look that hard to make.  A tip:  Buy a porcelain drill bit at your local hardware store and drill slowly when you are drilling china.
• At Curbly they are making Decorative Tile Coasters.  I would make these using scraps of Japanese papers.
• More at Curbly.  Mosaic Toaster – kitsch and lovely.  I want one.  i just don’t really want to spend all the time to make it!
• And I can’t resist.  One more from curbly.  How to re-cover a desk chair.  I will definitely be doing this in my spare time (lol).  How many times have you heard me say that?  I have a feeling that the next thirty years doesn’t hold much spare time but after that…..maybe.

I am making a party bag tutorial at this moment and will be posting it soon or-ish.  I am also still organising things in my house.  And I have a new book idea that I am really excited about.  Thanks for the comments and emails.  So, back to the computer and behind a camera for me again.  Remember, my New Year’s Resolution to not take on anything big this year?  Oops out the door I suppose.  Oh well, I keep telling myself, ‘this time I know what I am doing.  Writing my second book will be MUCH easier than my first’.  Denial is not a river in Egypt.  Yeah I know.

And, most importantly, what are you making on this Wednesday?

Mia

xx

If I Were to Write Another Craft Book – What Should the Subject Be?

Please leave comments to help me decide! Thanks so much for your input.

Tutorial: How to Make the Easiest and Cutest Scarf!

(NOTE:  This scarf requires absolutely no knitting or crocheting or knotting so stay around and read more…)

(Mia modelling the tube scarf)

I walked into my local craft store a few weeks ago and saw these divine scarves behind the counter.  They looked like a cross between a feather boa and a scarf, totally cute.  I asked the lady how they were made and she was kind enough to give me a demo on how to make them. Now I am passing on the love….

I am hooked!  These are the cutest scarves and they could not be easier to make. My nine-year old made half of this one easily.

Materials
I used four balls of polyester (this will depend on how long you want to make the scarf)
1.2m of 5/8″ white elastic
30cm/ 1ft length of plastic tubing
Two medium wooden beads
Hot glue
Scissors

Tie a knot in one end of the piece of elastic. Apply a dab of hot glue onto the knot and push it onto the bead.

Use two balls of yarn together – this gives a fuller look to the scarf. Tie the two ends of the yarn onto the elastic with a knot, just under the bead.
Thread the elastic through the plastic tube, with the bead at one end.
Begin wrapping the yarn (two together) around the plastic tubing.  (I started by wrapping the yarn this tightly but found it much better to wrap it quite loosely going down the whole tube).
When you have wrapped the yarn around the plastic tube about ten time push it off the tube and onto the elastic.

To keep the other end of elastic from getting in the way, secure it with a peg as shown in the photo above, letting out more as you need it.

Continue to wrap the yarns around the plastic tubing and then gently push them onto the elastic. You will quickly start to see this yummy, feather boa scarf!

Finish the scarf when you get to the elastic gets to the end of the plastic tubing (you will have 30cm of elastic left when you cut it). Knot the yarn around the elastic. Tie a knot in the elastic (as in the first step), place a dab of glue onto the knot and push a bead onto it to secure it.

Finito!

(Look what I made!)

The next one I will make will be double as long so that I can wrap it around my neck a few times. Millie’s getting this one – lucky girl. And the last thing I have to say — what a strange thing to be making in 40 degree heat!! And that photo shoot with the turtle neck! Hot!
Enjoy!

Organising Craft Supplies (Part 1): Getting Started

I spent the last week of the summer holidays bringing some much needed order to my craft supplies. It was so much work but I can’t tell you how happy I am that now all my craft supplies are neat and easy to access.  Every time I look at my shelves I feel so happy♥.

Bookshelf number one and….

Bookshelf number two. I will go into more detail about what is actually in each bookshelf in the next post.

The photo below was the mess I had before I started.  Yes, those are actually my good fabrics thrown carelessly on the floor.  The cubby holes were not being used well.  Some had one thing in them (in the hope that I would not lose it) while others were packed to the brim with paints and canvases or fabrics or papers.

Before I started I googled ‘organising craft supplies’ and looked at a few websites. for ideas. My favourite website for organising is by far Chez Larsson. I love the way Benita organised her Expedit (the wonderful cubby hole bookshelves from Ikea – they are the BEST!).  Since I already owned two Expedit (four by four) I decided that all my craft supplies (including books) would have to fit into two Expedit. Anything that didn’t fit just had to go because owning more than that is just stupid (even if you do run a craft website and write craft books for a living).

I had a number of challenges organising my supplies.  They were:

• How to organise the amount of supplies I have.  I have so much stuff and want to be able to access all of it quickly and easily.
• How to organise so many different craft supplies.  I sew, embroider, knit, felt, make jewellery, use clay, make cards etc.  I also have a load of craft books, a huge collection of vintage dress patterns, over 60 CD’s which contain all the text and photos for my book.  The list just goes on and on…
• How to store my fabrics.  When mum came over a while ago she (being a quilting goddess) said that I have to get my fabrics well away from the sun so that they don’t fade.  As any good quilter knows, fabric can remain in your stash for well over a decade, waiting for the perfect moment to be sewn.  I also know that fabrics cannot be stored in plastic tubs.  Cottons need to breathe.
• How to organise so many little things.  I have thousands of tiny glass beads and findings, buttons, sewing needles, cottons, little scraps of fabric and card that I wanted to keep.
• How to label everything clearly so that it was easy to find.
• How to store paper
• How to store ideas.  I love clipping ideas from magazines.  Sometimes I get ideas from the most unlikely magazines.  I often find that Vogue magazines trigger great ideas but I wanted a way of keeping all those ideas together for a rainy day.

So, how did I get started?

• Firstly I needed to work out what I had.  It turns out I had my craft supplies spread over five rooms in my house.  I got everything and put it in this room to sort out.   It was completely overwhelming.  I wondered at this point how I would organise it all but realised that it would take a lot of determination to get through the piles.  I also knew that I wanted everything to fit into two bookshelves that I already owned.  The storage units you own already will determine what sort of containers you use.
• When I could see what I had I realised that some of my organisation was already working.  For example, my beads were already organised into plastic containers with little compartments and these were perfect.  So, I grouped together all the things which were working, like my beads and my jewellery tool box.
• Then I made another (large) group of all the things which were either not containerised (not my favourite word in the world) or in the wrong containers.  My laces, rickrack, ribbons and bias tape were in containers that were more than twice as large as they needed to be.
• I then went shopping.  Ikea was the first stop and at this point I just had to make guesstimates (another interesting word?) about how many containers I would need.  At Ikea I bought nine fabric boxes made to fit into Expedit.   I bought four woven baskets which I completely love also.  I also bought eight magazine files, four plastic containers with compartments (the ones for beads and small things).   This was not my last trip to a shop for containers.  I filled these containers and then realised that I needed many more so went to a container store and back to Ikea (twice).  I have decided that organising is a very messy task.  Like most complex tasks it is not linear.  I kept reaching dead ends when I didn’t think I could do any more.  Usually these were overcome by finding the right storage boxes!

Well, when you have organised your stuff into the same room, sorted into groups of things that are working and things that aren’t, bought some more storage containers, then you can begin the mammoth task of putting everything into those containers…  At this point I called it a day…

Back with more organisational tips tomorrow.

Have fun cleaning out.

Mia

Tutorial: How to Make Fizzing Lavender Bath Bombs

I started concocting perfumes and potions as a five year old. My twin sister and I would lock ourselves away in the bathroom and mix anything (usually mum’s expensive perfumes) we could find. Most of the concoctions would cause me to have an immediate allergic reaction, so would end in tears. But, this did not deter me.

I still love making lotions and potions. These bath bombs are the fizziest bombs I have ever made. They explode and keep fizzing for ages, then make the whole bath smell divine. The oil leaves your skin soft and smelling like lavender.

These bath bombs make great presents and are easy enough for beginners and children to make.

Ingredients
1 cup tartaric acid
1 cup bicarbonate soda
½ cup powdered starch
1 dessertspoon lavender oil
2 tablespoons dried lavender.
1 teaspoon pink food colouring
7 dessertspoons avocado oil
2 dessertspoons dried lavender.

Mix tartaric acid, bicarbonate soda and starch in a bowl.

Add the lavender and food colouring to the mixture.

Add a dessertspoon of lavender oil. Slowly add the avocado oil (be careful not to add too much).
Mix the ingredients together until you can form the mixture into balls, adding a touch more avocado oil, if needed.

Take a small handful of mixture and place it on a desert spoon. Mould it on the spoon and place it on a tray. Repeat this until you have used all the mixture.

Leave the bath bombs in a dry, warm place to set for between a few days to 1 week (drying time will depend on air temperature and humidity).
Add a few to a bath or package and give them away as a present.

I hope you enjoy making these as much as we did!!
Mia
xxx