For this weeks tutorial we’ve handed over the ‘how to’ reigns to none other than Tom of Holland. As a little extra-curricular crafty activity Tom shows us how to make a leather rose brooch with this simple step-by-step tutorial. Tom will be running his Tom says Darn it! classes with us next month so be sure to sign up!

Things you need:

scraps of supple leather

pair of scissors

button twist (this is stronger than regular sewing thread)

leather needle (be careful, these are very sharp)

small brooch pins

Step 1: cut out strips of leather, approximately 6x1in, slightly tapered at each end. The exact shape is not important. Also thread your needle and make a knot in the end, so you don’t have to fumble about when you need to make a stitch.

Step 2: starting at one end of the leather strip, fold it together to make the centre of the rose.

Step 3: scrunch and fold the leather around the start. Make sure to hide the cut sides of the leather

Step 4: at the back, secure the folds with the button twist as you go along. Be careful, as the leather can be a bit difficult to pierce. You might want to use a thimble to help push through the needle. Be careful not to stab your fingers, leather needles have very sharp points!

Step 5: When the rose is finished, tie the thread at the back. Depending on how much leather you have, and the look you’re going for, you could make some more.

Usually an odd number looks best.

Step 6: cut out some leaf shapes, making sure to keep the base wide. This makes it easier to sew them in place and they won’t tear off.

Step 7: sew the brooch pin to the back of a leaf. If the leather is really thin, you can use a small square of canvas or other sturdy fabric on the other side to stabilise your stitches.

Step 8: if you have made more than one rose, sew those together first, then sew the leaves to the back. Make sure to secure some of the stitches through the holes of the brooch pin, to make it sturdy.

Step 9: voila, one finished leather rose brooch!

Some tips:

- practise the folding and scrunching technique a few times before sewing up a rose

- supple leather is easier to scrunch and sew up, but once you’ve practised a few times, a slightly stiffer leather may make more pleasing shapes

- when sourcing leather scraps, try out the fold and scrunch technique, you will soon learn which leathers are suitable

- use a leather needle to make the sewing go much easier. They have a special shaped tip for piercing leather. The needle has an even thickness from point to eye, so that it can’t get stuck when you pull it through

- use button twist instead of regular sewing thread. It is stronger so you don’t have to worry about it breaking when you tighten up stitches.

Be sure to follow Tom on Twitter and enter the competition we are running with him right now! http://supersuperhq.com/2012/03/06/giveaway-win-a-tom-of-holland-brooch/

Inspired by brightly coloured and highly ornate Mexican Sugar Skulls this project is the perfect crafty way to personalise your phone.

You will need:

A perforated plastic phone/iphone case aka hard mesh snap on case (who’d have known!) These can be found easily on Amazon for approx. £2 http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=perforated+iphone+cases&x=0&y=0

A sharp embroidery needle with a medium sized eye, and a selection of brightly coloured sewing and embroidery threads (floss)

This project uses 2 embroidery stitches… running stitch and cross stitch.

Start from the outside working a row of running stitch around the very edge as a border. These cases are great because you can only stitch through a hole! Knot the very end of your thread and in an up and down motion (wave like) motion sew a running stitch through every hole.

http://www.fidella.com/webstitch/stitch02.html#running1 Stagger several rows of different colour threads to create a jazzy chevron style boarder. The more contrasting the colours, the better the effect!

Now using cross stitch, fill in the main body of the case with stripes. http://www.fidella.com/webstitch/stitch04.html#cross2

Work in rows, wrapping the long ends of your threads around the case to keep them from tangling as you work. To finish a colour and change your thread, sew into the back of the last stitch over and over a couple of times. Try to keep it neat!

It might be worth drawing out your design on a piece of paper before you begin sewing… and trim back all long threads at the end.

Happy stitching.

In a first of a series of ‘How to’ Tutorials we bring you this Navajo style Necklace.

Navajo prints are key this season and this necklace is the perfect way to bring a little ‘neo-native’ into your outfit. Plus it’s handmade AND crafty!

It’s really simple to make –  you just need to know basic crochet to make the chain and the rest is easy peasy knotting. So pick your colour scheme, click on the first image and scroll through each one to get making!

Have fun making your’s and don’t forget to tweet us a pic, post a photo of your finished necklace on our Facebook page or pin it onto our craft projects Pinterest board so we can see!