This is one of those instant gratification projects that is really fun to make. The time commitment is so minimal, and this project can be made with scraps from the fabric stash. Plus, they are totally customizable to suit your tastes (or the tastes of a loved one). This is the pair I made for myself:

I didn’t follow a pre-existing pattern or tutorial, but these instructions I found while writing up this post are great. If you want to add a bit of flair to your handwarmers like I did, just cut out a smaller heart from a cotton fabric print of your choice and stitch it to the front of each heart using a zigzag stitch before stitching the front and back flannel heart pieces together. If you want scented handwarmers, this tutorial explains how to add essential oils or dried herbs to the rice filling that will activate when heated in the microwave.

Lastly, in hopes that you will find it useful, I whipped up a downloadable pdf of the heart patterns I made for this project, and included a sweet little retro valentine-themed instruction sheet printable you can include with your handwarmers if you are giving them as a gift:

[Click on the image above if you want a free printable download of JUST the instruction sheets and NOT the heart patterns. This printable is handy if you want to make a bunch to give as gifts!]

Thank you for all your ♥ & support in 2011.
I hope the new year brings you everything you wish for. xoxo

Wishing you all a happy holiday filled with lots of love and joy!

Bat Ornaments: This week I’ve been making these super adorable batty ornaments. Aren’t they cute? I love their little scarves. I’m using this pattern by Gingermelon. I’m really pleased that they are so easy to make, and don’t take long at all. I find hand-stitching to be a relaxing night-time activity. Each ornament takes about an hour to complete from start to finish, so I plan on making one per night up until Xmas, and give them as gifts to friends and family.

Creepy Santas: I love creepy vintage Santas! I have about five of these vintage Santa ornaments, and they’re all a little different. Once of them even has a gold glitter suit, hat, and gloves.

Cute Vintage Deer: These little guys are my favorite Xmas decorations, and I’m always so excited to put them out each year.

Xmas Tree: Here is our Xmas tree all set up and decorated. I’m determined to make a tree skirt for it this year. I’m thinking something simple but cute that’s made of felt. Rick-Rack definitely needs to be involved too.

Are you getting into the holiday spirit? Things are feeling festive around these parts and I wanted to spread some Xmas cheer, so I’m hosting a quick giveaway for this wintry apron inspired by Snegurochka the snow princess from Russian folklore, Queen Frostine from CandyLand, and the enchanting images I’ve seen of the Icehotel in Lapland.

To enter to win this apron, just leave me a comment on this post telling me your favorite thing about this time of year. Please be sure to leave your URL or email address so I have a way to contact you if you win.

I will draw a winner on Friday, December 16—that’s just two days away. Good luck! ♥

* * *

And the winner is…

Comment #5, which belongs to Lauren! Congratulations, Lauren—an email has been sent to you so you can claim your prize.

Big thanks to all who entered. You guys rock! xo

I’m super excited to announce that Flapper Girl has a new website. I designed and built it myself, and was lucky to be able to do so as part of my senior thesis project at school*.

Let me know what you think! Do you like the revamped logo and the new look?

Oh! Also, Flapper Girl has a Tumblr now too. I will still post on here, but I’ll also be doing a bit of Tumbling as well, so let’s be Tumblr friends.

*As my friend Noel said—”Hell yeah! Double dipping!”

The last movie we watched in my Film Noir class this quarter was Touch of Evil which, to my delight, featured one of my favorite vintage gals Marlene Dietrich as a minor (but incredibly awesome and witty) character named Tanya. She had two really top-notch scenes:

Finals week has officially begun around here. I have a lot of studying, designing, printing, revising, more printing, photographing, more designing, more printing, and test-taking ahead of me. It’s all over on December 8, and then I can begin to relax into Xmas break. See you then!

Flapper Girl is excited to be participating in Etsy’s annual Black Friday & Cyber Monday Weekend Promotion to help you get a kick-start on your holiday shopping.

Between Friday, November 26 & Monday, November 29 I am offering 25% OFF on ALL ORDERS from our Etsy Shop. Just use coupon code BLACKFRIDAY at checkout.

That’s not all—I have a few other offers to put a smile on your face:

• ALL ORDERS purchased between Friday, November 26 & Monday, November 29 will receive a FREE SET of Piss Off Donuts Postcards.

• Orders of $35 or more (not including shipping charges) purchased between Friday, November 26 & Monday, November 29 will receive a FREE GOODIE BAG filled with cute things that may include: retro flower rings, dessert rings, animal brooches, iron-on patches, 1″ owl buttons, and other fun stuff. Each bag is different, but is worth a minimum of $15 retail value.

• Orders of $50 or more (not including shipping charges) purchased between Friday, November 26 & Monday, November 29 will receive FREE SHIPPING. Shipping charges will be refunded via PayPal after purchase.

A few other things to note: 

• The Sale Section is stocked with lots of cute things! Be sure to check it out, because you can still use your 25% discount on SALE items for additional savings!

• I  just stocked the shop with a dozen new super awesome Lady Tie designs!

Happy holidays & happy shopping!

Yesterday morning my instinct to hibernate for winter officially kicked in. Dark, rainy, cold… can I please just stay in my nest ’til May, please?

Here are a few things I’ve been digging about autumn, though:

• We bought a cinnamon broom to make our apartment smell festive. I must say it is quite divine. I’m pretty sure it’s the ruling factor that’s been making me want to bake cookies and make Xmas ornaments.

• Making hearty meals in the crockpot. I bought Slowcooker Revolution last month because Chas and I love the America’s Test Kitchen series of cookbooks. This fall and winter I want to try as many of the recipes from this book as I can. So far I’ve made Chipotle Turkey Taco Filling and Italian Meatball Soup. So far, so good.

• Drinking hearty, spicy turmeric tea. Turmeric is one of those wonder herbs that is good for you in a myriad of ways. I use this recipe and add a quarter teaspoon of ground black pepper to the mixture because it helps your body absorb the goodness of the turmeric. NOTE: I would classify this “tea” more as a broth than a traditional type of tea. I recently tried to make homemade turmeric tea bags using this tutorial, and it was huge, messy failure. At least I have about a dozen pre-measured spice packets I can cut open and toss into a pot of boiling water now, right? Right.

What little things have you been enjoying lately?

First up for grabs are the hostess aprons for only $10 (regular price is $35—that’s over 70% off!)

So here’s the deal—just like past clearance sales, I don’t have time to photograph these sale items. I’m going to number the aprons, and describe the color and fabric combinations of each one. All these clearance aprons are my Oh Deer! apron design, which is this style:

These are the aprons I have available for $10 each:

SOLD APRON #1
Tulle Skirt: Lavender
Waistband/Ties/Pocket: Light & Dark Lavender & White Gingham
Rickrack Accents: White

SOLD APRON #2
Tulle Skirt: Mint Green
Waistband/Ties/Pocket: Cream-colored cotton fabric with a light brown and light green dainty floral pattern
Rickrack Accents: Vintage Brown & Gold

SOLD APRON #3
Tulle Skirt: Rose Pink
Waistband/Ties/Pocket: Black cotton fabric with pink rosebuds and tiny delicate polkadots
Rickrack Accents: Dark Rose Pink

SOLD APRON #4
Tulle Skirt: Orange
Waistband/Ties/Pocket: White cotton fabric with a yellow, orange, and green dainty floral pattern
Rickrack Accents: Muted Medium Spring Green

SOLD APRON #5
Tulle Skirt: White
Waistband/Ties/Pocket: Light & Dark Sky Dlue & white gingham cotton fabric
Rickrack Accents: White

• US Shipping is $3, no matter how many you order!
• International Shipping is $5, no matter how many you order!

HOW TO ORDER
If you’d like to place an order, please send me an email at christine@flappergirl.org, letting me know which apron(s) you’d like to buy. I will then set up a reserved order for you on Etsy, and update this page as aprons are sold. Thanks!

ALSO…
• If you are interested in the squirrel coffee cozies, I am offering them up for only $4 each (regular price $12). Please email me for color combinations.

• If you are interested in the ruffle-bum knickers, I am offering them up for only $8 each (regular price $25). I have six in stock in a range of colors and sizes. Please email me for more details and photos.