Round ‘n round … and finished is your paper twine basket! After the big success of our knit bangle DIY kit you can now also make your own paper twine knit baskets – fun and easy and no knitting skills required!
Our Knit Basket DIY Kits are availabe in three sizes and include everything you need to make your own baskets:
- A round knitting loom (diameter 13.5cm / 5.3 in)
- Hook tool
- Strong Paper Twines
- Detailed instructions on how to make a basket, shape it and possible finishing touches
- An extra postcard for you to keep our give away with one of the baskets
and you can even choose and personalize the colors for your very own DIY kit. A total of 24 colors are available and 5 of them a exclusively available as part of our DIY kits. All kits are packed in a beautiful cardboard box filled with fun paper frizzels to protect the precious contents.
We need to warn you though: the risks are high that you’ll get hooked! Luckily paper twine baskets make a beautiful gift as well so keep knitting and all your friends will love you for it! Just get some more strong paper twine and keep knitting and knitting…
Paper Twine Baskets & Water:
Our strong paper twines are also used for the manufacturing of carpets and are very sturdy. They’re colorfast and do not stain when wet. It’s no problem to wash them gently by hand or to rinse them from time to time. You will need to re-shape your baskets after the washing (instructions found in the DIY kit).
To keep your baskets in perfect condition for a long time we suggest to nevertheless avoid contact with water when possible and to never leave them humid for long (let them dry!).
The DIY Kits: Knit Baskets are also available in our Etsy store.
Posted by paperphine at 10:28 am on Mai 3rd, 2013.
Categories: Made by PaperPhine. Tags: basket, DIY, DIY Kit, paper twine.
All of our “button rings” are white in the beginning and are then dyed by hand.
Our finest and medium paper yarns are available in beautiful white and natural/kraft but we completely understand that sometime a little bit more color is needed. We’ve been dyeing our paper yarn jewelry by hand for years now with little more than some dyestuff and a tiny cooking pot and today we’ll show you some tricks of the trade.
Supplies & Tools
Textile Dye / Dyestuff
A small cooking pot reserved for this purpose (don’t use for cooking again – just keep it with your crafting supplies)
A spoon and a pair of chopsticks or any tool you’re comfortable handling to stir and take out the dyeing pieces of the pot
A mesh wash bag (not shown) if you want to rinse the dyed pieces in the washing machine
Something you want to dye of course!
Dye / Dyestuff: there are a lot of different brands out there also depending on where you live. We’ve been using dystuffs by Dylon, Schimek, Marabu and Simplicol and they all work well. The basic rule is that the dye has to work with cotton. Any dye that works with cotton will also work with paper because both cotton and paper yarn are made up of cellulose fibers. Read all the instructions provided with your dyestuff carefully before starting to dye because there can be slight differences between brands.
Natural dyes: we tried natural dyes but results have not always been convincing with the exception of a real indigo dye bath. One of the problems we faced was that colors of naturally dyed paper jewelry faded quite quickly when exposed to sunlight. Nevertheless we’re no experts for natural colors and it might prove very worthwhile to look into this topic and have fun with experimenting.
A lot of dyes work best with a warm dye bath (the instructions provided with your dye will let you know). This is where a small pot comes in very handy because most pieces of jewelry are rather small anyway. Fill the pot with enough water to later cover your pieces and dissolve a tiny bit of dye in the water. A tiny bit really means a tiny bit and you can always add in case you need more (very unlikely). Heat the dye slowly and carefully but don’t let it boil if not requested by the instructions of the brand of dye you use.
Put whatever you want to dye under the tap and get it thoroughly wet. This will help to spread the dye more evenly and faster when you add your jewelry/things to dye bath.
After putting your piece of jewelry/things to dye into the dye bath stir a bit and make sure that everything is covered.
Check on the progress constantly and don’t leave the pot with the dye bath on the stove unattended! If you want to get very dark colors and especially black you can also turn the stove of and leave the paper yarn jewelry / things to dye in the dye bath overnight. All of our black paper yarn jewelry stays in the dye bath for up to three days (reheating the dye bath once a day) to make sure the pieces turn out black and not dark blue.
It’s advised not to leave a cooled dye bath on the stove if you share your kitchen with a boyfriend or your family – it’s not healthy to drink dye! So rather put the cooled pot in a secure spot.
Once the desired color is achieved either put the dyed jewelry into a bowl filled with water (to prevent a further ongoing of the dyeing process) or rush and rinse under the tap. Once in the clear water or rinsed most of the excess dye is cleared away and the dyed pieces might look a lot less “dark/colored” than expected. You can always put them back into the dye bath if desired. Otherwise the real rinsing begins.
Seen on the picture: dyed paper yarn jewelry, a mesh wash bag and an old cleaning cloth to fill up the mesh bag
The last step of the dyeing process before drying the dyed goods is the rinsing. Or rather: rinsing, rinsing, rinsing, rinsing,… You need to make sure that any excess dye is rinsed out to prevent stains on your clothes in case your paper jewelry/dyed pieces ever get wet. You can either rinse under the tap and continue to do so until you’re absolutely sure that the water that runs off is absolutely clear. The alternative is to rinse the dyed goods in the washing machine (yes, seriously).
To rinse your dyed goods in the washing machine you need to put them into a mesh wash bag together with an old cleaning cloth or towel (these might get stained) to prevent too much tumbling moving around of the paper yarn pieces in the bag. Put into your washing machine and choose a really gentle cycle – either “delicacies”, “wool” or the “rinse” cycle. Water is not a problem but excessive movement (e.g. spinning) is not good at all.
Once the rinsing by hand or in the washing machine is finished let your paper yarn jewelry / dyed pieces dry completely before wearing or finishing them (e.g. mounting on ring bases, adding of latches etc.).
Some more things to know:
If you put loose paper yarn structures (e.g. loose knits) into water they might change their structure because paper yarn will start to slip when it has enough room to move and gets wet. This blog article will clarify this point for you.
To become a professional dyer you’ll need years of experience but to have some fun and get great results all you need is some patience and a will to experiment and adjust the process if necessary. Especially if you’re mixing different colors (only use one brand for this!) to achieve a specific color you might have to experiment a bit more.
This process does NOT work for loose paper yarn. You can’t just put paper yarn into a dye bath because it will start to curl, wrap itself around itself etc. and you’ll end up with a chaotic paper yarn ball (again see his blog post). To dye paper yarn it has to be made into skeins, the skeins have to be put onto a frame to keep them from curling etc. This is the processed used for our dyed / colored strong paper twines.
Dyed Strong Paper Twine / Paper Cord – skeins dyed professionally
We hope this DIY tutorial helps with all your smaller dyeing projects – please get in touch if you have any questions about it. Happy crafting!
Posted by PaperPhine at 1:42 pm on Februar 14th, 2013.
Categories: Material, Paper Yarn, Tutorial. Tags: DIY, dye, dyeing.
In summer we showed you one of our knitted paper twine tote bags (with DIY instructions) so it was about time to also share a crocheted tote bag with you! The subscribers of our newsletter have already seen this model. By now we can add that even after extended daily use for half a year and the transport of moist produce the bag is still in excellent condition!
By now we know the secrets of bag-making but in the beginning is was difficult to start from scratch so we looked for available patterns and models around the internet. The pattern for the white crochet bag shown here was found on the highly-recommended Purl Bee blog.
The Materials:
We used strong white paper twine for the bag and added a colorful rim with one row each of turquoise, fresh green and yellow single crochet stitches
You can now also find whole skeins of colored paper twine suitable for this bag in our online shop and in our Etsy shop
Crochet hook used: 2.75mm / US C / UK 11
The bag is simple to make, just keep in mind that you’ll need more strength to crochet the paper twine than usual cotton/linen twine. Therefore rather start slowly and spread crocheting the bag over a whole week rather than doing it on one day (your wrists and hands will be thankful).
This bag makes a great Christmas present as well and you can vary its size by adding to or decreasing the rows of the pattern. Happy crocheting!
Posted by PaperPhine at 12:58 pm on Oktober 26th, 2012.
Categories: Made by PaperPhine, Tutorial. Tags: bag, crochet, DIY, Paper Twine Bag.
A new Paper Twine Flower in summer colors
Once you get hooked by making paper twine flowers possibilities seem endless and as soon as one flower is finished you think about the next one. The good thing is that you hardly need any supplies: 2 to 3 in of paper twine for each petal (and even less for the smaller flowers) and some additional inches of paper twine for the inner parts of the flower that can easily be made very realistic carpels by a simple knot in the twine. Once the cut paper twine for the petals is “opened up” (leave a pointy bit on top) and the inner parts are all cut and knotted, everything can be arranged and fixed onto a wooden skewer that can either be painted green or covered with green/brown tissue paper. Alternatively you can also use a piece of floral wire for the stems.
Readers who also follow us on Facebook have already had a first glimpse of this new paper flower in summer hues. Besides working on new flowers we’ve also been asked about how Linda’s Dad made the flowers we showed you some time ago. Unfortunately there were no pictures made of the process itself but we looked through the archives for close-ups and details so you have a better understanding of how the paper flowers work.
For the poppy flower shorter pieces of superthick red paper twine were used and “opened up” completly (no pointy tips here). The other flower is a free and joyful interpretation of the theme.
It’s holiday season in Austria at the moment. The PaperPhine studio is only partly on holiday though we do take days and weekends off and somebody is constantly away looking for new inspiration. Luckily we’ve found a good service that is looking after our etsy shop: Happy Sunday on Etsy that automatically relists our sold items (no hectic relisting during family lunches and horrendous phone charges in other countries anymore!). Our own private shop will also be redesigned soon and stocked with more products – as always we’ll keep you updated on the blog.
Posted by PaperPhine at 6:04 pm on Juli 25th, 2012.
Categories: Made by PaperPhine, Tutorial. Tags: DIY, paper flower, paper flowers, paper twine flowers.
Lately we were busy to come up with patterns and tutorials for knitted and crocheted paper twine bags. The strong paper twine is perfect for bag-making: strong, durable, available in many colors and due to its stiffness the bags look great even when they’re empty. Even though the PaperPhines are passionate crocheters and knitters we have been focusing mainly on jewelry in the last two years so the question was how to start making a bag at all…
This jeansblue bag is the first one we knitted and therefore we looked for inspiration and available patterns on the internet to start with. The pattern for this bag we found on the highly-recommended Purl Bee blog though the original design is by Italian craftista and blogger Elisa.
When you compare the original bags made with cotton yarn with the paper yarn bag you immediately see that the paper bags looks distinctively different. The paper yarn is so smooth that the lace pattern does not show as much – though the “holes” you get are still apparent.
Knitting Needles adjusted to the paper twine & Supplies:
Circular kniting needles size 13 (US) / size 9 (EU) for the bag (24 in / 60cm long)
Double pointed needles size 6 (US) / size 4 (EU) for the I-Cord handles
Crochet hook size B 1 or C 1 (US) / size 2.5 or 2.75 (EU)
Tapestry needle with an eye big enough for the paper twine
200 – 220 yards / 180 – 200m strong paper twine
You can find skeins of colored paper twine suitable for this bag in our online shop and in our Etsy shop
We followed the pattern found on the Purl Bee blog to the letter. Just plan enough time for making the bag because paper twine is slippery and therefore more time-consuming to work with. Also you’ll need a bit more strength so give your wrists enough time to adjust and don’t overdo it on the first day. The I-Cord handles are also slightly trickier to knit than with cotton yarn and the resulting I-Cord is not as round but nevertheless it really gives a special finish to the bag.
Posted by PaperPhine at 11:56 am on Juni 26th, 2012.
Categories: Made by PaperPhine, Paper Yarn, Tutorial. Tags: bag, DIY, knit, tutorial.
Some weeks ago we shared the first two paper flowers made by Linda’s parents with you here and your feedback has been overwhelming. Thanks a lot for all the comments and emails – Linda’s parents experienced for the first time how many paper lovers can be found online!
Since then they’ve made many more paper twine flowers … it seems that the whole family is infected by the “paper twine – virus” by now (it’s very contagious, we have to warn you!). Today we want to show you three of the latest paper twine flowers and we would love to see your creations, too! So don’t be shy and send us a picture or two to office (at) paperphine (dot) com !
Posted by PaperPhine at 7:00 am on April 19th, 2012.
Categories: Paper Yarn, Tutorial. Tags: DIY, flower, paper flower, paper twine.
The readers of our summer newsletter are already familiar with this DIY project but it might still be interesting for our new blog readers – and of course for all the people in the Southern Hemnisphere where summer is about to be in full swing.
A little Paper Twine, a piece of a fine hose and some drops of glue: Paper Twine Bangles in all color variations you can think of!
You need:
a piece of hose; we like to get our hoses at the local pet shop – the hoses used in fish tanks tend to be slim and very flexible. Otherwise a lot of hardware stores sell them as well. For one bangle you need about 9 in (22cm) of hose but rather buy a bit more because bangle-making is addictive.
a couple of yards (meters) of Paper Twine depending on the exact size of the final bangle and the color combination you choose
some drops of glue
a pair of scissors
Measure the right lenght of hose around your hand, cut it and make a loop. To secure the loop we use a small piece of either thick paper twine or wire covered with glue and put into the both cut ends of the tube.
Fix the ends of your chosen Paper Twines with some drops of glue onto your “hose bangle”, leave to dry a bit and then the winding starts! To be on the safe side fix the windings with a drop of glue from time to time. Once the whole bangle is wrapped in Paper Twine cut the twines so that the ends are on the inside, use some more glue to secure and leave to dry.
And now show off your new bangles on the pool side (in the South) or of course at any of the upcoming parties in fall and winter. Stripey Paper Twine Bangles can get wet but please rather take them off when jumping into the pool to keep them in perfect condition for a long long time.
Posted by PaperPhine at 10:36 pm on Oktober 15th, 2011.
Categories: Paper Jewelry, Tutorial. Tags: bangle, bracelet, DIY.
PaperPhine DIY: Paper Twine Bracelet in Paper Runway Issue 2 (page 51)
We love the internet and all the possibilities it offers, don’t get us wrong. But as paper lovers we’re always especially proud and honored if one of our products or the PaperPhine studio get mentioned in a printed publication – on “real” paper, so to say.
We already told you about the DIY that the lovely ladies over at Paper Runway published in their latest, second issue. Head over here to see it on page 51 or of course purchase Paper Runway to get a “real” papery copy – we’re paper lovers after all!
PaperPhine portrait in dawanda lovebook winter 2011 (page 15)
Also we’ve been featured in the recent “dawanda lovebook Winter 2011″ (in German only, sorry). And yes, that’s a picture of PaperPhine’s Linda you’re seeing there.
… in case you’re wondering: NO, we’re not called “PapierPhine”. We’re called PaperPhine. Just to make this clear.
dawanda is marketing itself heavily and often with the wrong attitude towards sellers (e.g. I’m neither allowed to use the PaperPhine logo in the shop banner because it’s “PaperPhine.com” and therefore leading people to another site – this one here! – nor can I mention the PaperPhine blog on the dawanda site for the same reason… interesting, no?). And dawanda also has a spelling problem, obviously. But still dawanda is playing an important role in the revival of DIY, arts and crafts in German speaking countries. The dawanda love book winter 2011 can’t be purchased yet but you can have a look through it here – the choice of product is nice.
Posted by paperphine at 12:00 pm on August 30th, 2011.
Categories: Jotted Down, Made by PaperPhine. Tags: bracelet, dawanda, DIY, jewelry, Paper Runway.
We’re very excited and happy to announce that there is a cool step-by-step tutorial by us in the brand new Paper Runway Magazine. Hot off the press the second issue will not only show you how to make one of these graphic and fun Paper Twine Bracelets but the magazine also features paper goodness, new and hot paper products, reports about paper artists and designer and a lot more. Head over to the online version here – not the whole magazine is online though – or treat yourself with a real printed-on-paper copy.
In case you’re wondering which Paper Twines we’ve used to create our bracelet: Superthick Paper Twine can be found here (Selection of 3 x 11 yards in different colors) and here (50 yards of one color) as well as in our etsy shop. You need about 4 yards of Superthick Paper Twine in total for one bracelet (or 3 x 1.3 yards in different colors) so any of these choices will give you plenty to work and play with. Have fun!
Posted by PaperPhine at 6:00 am on August 2nd, 2011.
Categories: Paper Jewelry. Tags: bangle, bracelet, DIY, Superthick Paper Twine, tutorial.
This easy-to-make barrette takes advantage of one of Paper Twine’s outstanding characteristics: it’s stiffness that is especially evident when the Paper Twine is cut in short pieces. Instead of the bright colors I used you can of course use more subtle hues as well – think about the person who will wear the piece and the hail color when choosing the Paper Twines you want to use.
Supplies and Tools:
- an empty barrette from you local craft store – I used a 1.6 in (4cm) long one
- Paper Twine: about 4 x 20 in (50cm) in different colors
- a small piece of a heavy fabric to stitch on
- transparent sewing thread and a needle that goes with it
- some glue
- scissors
First prepare the piece of fabric you’ll sew the pieces of Paper Twine onto. Make it slightly longer and about three times as wide as the “empty” barrette. You’ll trim the fabric later on to its final size. Also prepare your pieces of Paper Twine that will be sewn onto the fabric: a total of about 40 pieces (2 in (5cm) long) in your chosen colors. You can cut them to the final lenght after the piece is finished.
The piece of fabric you just cut is folded in half to make it stiffer – this will help a lot when it’s fixed onto the barrette in the end. Make a big knot into your sewing thread because transparent thread tends to be rather slippery – you’ll need about 30 in (75cm) to finish your piece. As you can see I doubled the sewing thread (see next picture). The rather knot is hidden in between the two layers of fabric.
Start stitching. Once you’ve secured the first piece of Paper Twine the needle comes out again about a bit before this first piece of Paper Twine and you stitch backwards over the second piece of Paper Twine! Remember to always stitch backwards over the Paper Twines – like this it’s easier to avoid. If a gap nevertheless appears (like in the third picture above) come out with the needle in between the two Paper Twines and fill the gap with another piece of Paper Twine.
After a little bit of stitching your piece should look like this. Now it’s time to trim the fabric …
…. preferable like this! What you do is you cut the top layer of fabric very very close to the sewn line, the bottom layer of fabric to about 0.2in (0,5cm). The bottom layer of fabric is folded toward the middle and secured with some glue. Now is also a good time to trim the piece of fabric at the end you just stopped sewing at – cut shortly after the last piece of Paper Twine sewn onto it. A little glue will prevent it from starting to fray.
Now we can start to stitch “back” – the idea is to fix the other side of the fabric that has not been glued to the middle during this process. Fold this other part of the unstitched fabric towards the middle as well and fix it there with the stitched you make now back towards the “beginning”. I don’t double-stitch over all the pieces of Paper Twine that are already in place – only over about every tenth or so. If you still have gaps between the pieces of Paper Twine then this is the time to fill them up – come up with the needle in the gap, add a piece of Paper Twine and stitch over it…
Once you’re back at where you started stitching in the first place it’s time to trim that side of the fabric as well. Instead of simply cutting the fabric you can also fold it onto the backside and fix it with some stitches. Use some glue to prevent fraying and leave the glue to dry before continuing if necessary. You can also add a last piece of Paper Twine to prevent too much of the fabric to show in the finished pieces.
The metal barrette piece is sewn on (on both sides) and also glued onto the fabric for further stability. Leave to dry depending on the glue you used.
The last step is to cut the Paper Twine pieces to your preferred length. Twist them slightly between your fingers to make them curl upwards a bit. And finally: enjoy wearing!
I hope the tutorial is clear – I did my best to take pictures all of the steps and to explain all the in-betweens. Drop me line if you have any further question or comments – and as always I love to see what you’re coming up with as well so pictures in the mailbox are always a reason for some jumping-of-joy!
Posted by paperphine at 7:16 pm on Juni 12th, 2011.
Categories: Tutorial. Tags: barrette, DIY, hairpiece, paper twine, PaperTwine, tutorial.
We're twittering, too!
