Guest Post: Rose Pearlman Does Her Darnd’est To Coffee Cup Sleeves
Projects, but also sort of an amazing peek into a creative mind.
Hello out there~
After an insane whirlwind of illness, earlier this month, I lost my stepdad. While I’m finding my footing, some of my talented friends and peers are stepping in to put together some Treehouse-esque posts for you all. Big hugs and thank you to this incredible community during my weird, dark time.
This week, we get to borrow the amazingly creative mind of Rose Pearlman for a bit. Rose just put out a book—with
—called Making Things. You can read their interview about that process here. Here’s Rose!
I’m at my best with fewer available options. A stocked fridge, a closet packed with clothes, a massive 15 page diner menu, shopping for sunscreen at Sephora, they all fill me with indecision and overwhelm. With too many options, I take too long to make up my mind and usually end up regretting my choice or in the case of Sephora, walking out with nothing. Same goes for crafting. A surplus of supplies to choose from and I’m paralyzed with what to do or where to begin, the more expensive and precious the raw material, the more likely I am to botch the project. On the flip side, I have a knack for seeing potential in unassuming, disposable objects that can be utilized way beyond their marketed intentions. (Case and point the Making Things X Treehouse Paper Bag Flyswatter Project.)
The below 9 coffee sleeve crafts were born from a cranky kid, a coffee shop and a utility knife with a pull-out scissor. Like all my favorite craft projects they’re simple, use few materials and make use of something that normally gets tossed. Never a fan of disposable paper cups and sleeves, I do see that they are sometimes unavoidable and can be found wherever hot beverages are served. Feel free to adapt, ad lib, and bedazzle these projects as you see necessary.
*Note: Some of the pictured crafts, like the Kumihimo Disc and Weaving Loom (along with 120 other simple paired down projects) are fully fleshed out with proper editing and step by step photos, in
and my new book, ‘Making Things’.
Matchbook Notepad
Full matchbook tutorial in ‘Making Things’ though I bet you get the gist of it with this one visual.
Cardboard cup sleeve
Scrap paper
Stapler (or in my case a safety pin and wire)
Scissor
*I used the unperforated center section of the cardboard holder to make each matchbook. And a safety pin (didn’t have a stapler) to stab two holes through the cardboard and paper. A small piece of wire (found in a twist tie with the paper coating removed) was used to bind it all together, but obviously one staple could quickly replace these steps.
Sewing Practice
Cardboard cup sleeve
Awl (I used a thick safety pin)
String or embroidery floss
Blunt needle
Poke various holes with an awl (or in my case a large safety pin) through a flattened cardboard holder. Thread a blunt needle with string and sew away.
Notch Puzzle
Cardboard cup sleeve
Scissors
Cut out various shapes.
Make small incisions or narrow ^ notches. Then insert the notches together in any configuration you want.
Mini Pouch
Cardboard cup sleeve
Awl, hole punch, or thick safety pin
3’ Cord or string
Blunt needle
Fold the cardboard sleeve along one of the perforated edges. With scissors, trim off the excess overlap and straighten out the top edge so both sides of the cardboard align. Pierce holes through both pieces of cardboard along the two long and one short bottom edge. Thread a darning needle and sew up all three sides (going in and out of each punched hole). Be sure to leave a long length of string on either end so you can knot the two ends together to wear as a necklace.
String Holder
Cardboard cup sleeve
String
Scissor
Cut rectangular pieces (size can vary) from your cardboard sleeve. Wrap extra bits of string winding each into a tight bundle. With scissors, make a small incision 1/8” next to the bundle and insert the tail end of your string to secure. Repeat for the remaining string.
Kumihimo Bracelet Loom
Full braiding tutorial can be found in ‘Making Things’.
Cardboard cup sleeve
Embroidery floss
Scissor
Awl or safety pin (optional)
To set up your Kumihimo loom; cut a tiny circle from the available cardboard, free-hand wonky ones work just as well as perfect spheres. Make 8- 1/4” incisions at equal distance around the circle perimeter. Use a sharp point to make a small hole in the center of the circle. Cut 7- 14” lengths of embroidery floss tie together at one end. Insert the un-knotted ends through the center hole and pull all the way through till the knot prevents the string from pulling out. On the side without the knot, place the 7 strings into 7 of the cut incisions leaving one slot empty. Braiding instructions found in ‘Making Things’.
Mask
Cardboard cup sleeve
Scissors or utility knife
Hole punch or awl
Rubber bands or string
Markers (optional)
Carefully open up the overlapped glued edge of your cardboard hot holder. Mark the sections where eyeholes should be. Fold the marked area in half, width wise, and cut out a triangle ^ shape (when opened it will be in the shape of a diamond). Repeat for the second eye. Cut out a simple ^ for the nose. Pierce two holes on either side and insert rubber bands (for looping behind ears) or string (trying around the head). Color if desired.
Weaving Loom
Full tutorial in ‘Making Things’. including how to cut a piece of cardboard to make a two-sided loom/ no-sew pouch, as well as how to cut a t-shirt into yarn (t-shirt yarn pictured above).
The following tutorial is for how to make a simple mini tapestry.
Cardboard cup sleeve
String
Yarn (t-shirt yarn pictured)
Blunt needle
Scissor
I suggest using a flattened cup sleeve so there’s two cardboard sides for an extra sturdy loom. With scissors, make small 1/4” cuts along the two short opposite edges, cutting roughly 1/4” apart. With a long length of string, wrap the loom inserting the string into the top and rightmost cut, then down to the cut directly below on the opposite bottom edge, then up the back side and into the second cut from the right, then back down to the corresponding cut. Repeat until the string is through all the cut slots. Thread a blunt needle through a long piece of string and weave (over, under, over, under) back and forth on one side of your loom.
Smartphone Stand
(Ed’s note: I feel like this is a great trick to have on-hand if you are somewhere—restaurant, train, airplane—with kids and you need those kids to watch something, like, right now.)
Don’t get bogged down with precise measurements when cutting your cardboard sleeve. I’ve made these stands dozens of times all without a ruler and each one turned out slightly different, sometimes asymmetrical, and yet it always worked. For an easy travel hack, download a free digital clock app so you never have to scramble in the dark to check the time.
Cardboard cup sleeve
Scissors
Ruler (optional)
Start with a flattened cardboard sleeve. You will make your cuts into the shorter of the two open edges, and only on one piece of cardboard (leaving the glued overlap side intact). Cut an incision 1/4” away from the perforated edge and roughly 2” deep. Make a second cut 1/2” from the first cut (in towards the center of the cardboard ) to match the first. Repeat both incisions on the opposite side. Fold the 1/2” flaps you just cut downward so you can easily cut straight across the middle section, roughly 1” down from the top edge, and remove the rectangle piece of cardboard. Cut off the two 1/2” tabs at the base to create the shelf the phone will rest on. Squeeze in the sides of your cup sleeves so you can stand it upright and place your phone horizontally into the two cut away tabs.
Thank you Rose!
Find Rose on Instagram here.
Rose’ first book, Modern Rug Hooking, is here.
And, of course, the newly-minted Making Things can be purchased here and perused here.
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Sending you all my thoughts and love!