An easy to follow tutorial for the project can be found here.
I thought they looked gorgeous, and decided to make my own. The originals were made with rainbow colored vellum and weighted with tiny fishing line sinkers.
I had to make some modifications to make these work in my house. First, vellum is expensive and I didn't want to spend a dollar a sheet at the craft store or buy a case of 100 sheets. Also, it will curl and warp when exposed to humidity for a long period of time and I live in the south. It didn't stand a chance! So I used card stock instead. It loses a little of the translucent light effect but the colors and fluttering and movement are still there! And I didn't have tiny little fishing line weights so I used these feather butterflies I picked up in the bargain bin at the craft store. It fit great with the theme of my daughter's room.
So after you get a stack of pretty paper and something to tie to the bottom, here's a three step tutorial for you:
1. Cut paper into strips. How small depends on how much work you want to do. I went with about 1.5"
2. Set the stitch length on your sewing machine to the longest you have then sew your strips together down the middle. Make sure you sew a few stitches between each piece so that they don't overlap. You want each piece to be able to turn independently. I used ten strips for each mobile. If you have a really high ceiling or are hanging them over a table and no one will be walking under them, you could make them longer. I wanted mine out of reach of little hands jumping on the bed, so I kept them short. Pull a length of thread out before you start and at the end of each set for hanging and to tie on your weight.
3. Tie on a weight. Go with something tiny and small like a fishing weight or a bead, or big and colorful like a butterfly, fabric flower, tiny car, or whatever works with the theme you are using in the room.
Now hang, turn on the ceiling fan, and admire!
(OK, that was four, but an easy four!)
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