Summer Crafternoon with LifeAfterBreakfast x DMC: Braided Bracelets

If your mom caught the cross stitch bug like mine did when you were a kid, then DMC was definitely part of your childhood. (Especially if you nicked some from her stash, and wove bracelets for your friends too!) I was stoked as I signed up for Alessa’s Summer Crafternoon workshop because it somehow felt nostalgic to be surrounded by bundles of thread again. 

And admittedly, because I never really got over braided bracelets, and continued to wear them to this day. 

I’ve always admired Alessa’s work, and the details that she would imaginatively sew into her pieces. Her book on how to make friendship bracelets deserves a place on your shelves. (It’s a great Christmas gift idea as well!)

For our session, she taught us how to make pom poms, which we would add to the first bracelet style that we were going to work on. (Mine ended up looking like a moustache, so I just let it sit on the table, alone.)

She then let us choose gemstones that we could use as accents…I picked a yellowish stone to complement my sea foam green thread.

Ta da! What do you think of my handiwork? It could serve as a bag charm, or keychain too!

After our brownie break, our group moved on to learn how to make a braided and chain bracelet.

Looking at Alessa’s sample product, I thought it was too daunting for me to take on…

…but I loved this particular design too much to pass it up! I picked my favorite pastel shades and gave it my best. Sure enough, I got the hang of it after fumbling over a few tries.

You could tell from my grin that I was really happy. I missed using my hands and creating something that I could call as my own. Alessa also inspired us to revisit our favorite accessories, and think of ways to fuse new touches to them.

(Erratum on the date: 5-12-12)

Thank you to Alessa for her awesome workshop, and the DMC team for taking care of us! I super recommend Summer Crafternoon to you fellow craft lovers. If you’re interested to join their upcoming sessions, you can find the details here.

Brave the waves,