Stepping Thru Crazy: Men's Button-Up Refashion... into Ladies Tank! A few years ago, when the hubby and I lived in Florida (this was pre-kids, so make that 5-ish years...) I bought him a button-up shirt for his work. The deal was that he had to wear blue or white button-ups, so I thought, "Why not both at the same time?" It was actually really easy to do... let me try once again to tell you how I used a sewing machine... eh.... First things first, I chopped the sleeves off. Then I slipped the shirt on and pinned in the sides so that it fit. I took off the shirt, flipped it inside out and sewed up the sides where my pins were, trimmed off the excess, flipped it rightside out again, and tried it on to make sure it fit. Then I pinned the armholes the way I wanted them... carefully......and sewed them. Then I cut a piece of thick white ribbon, gathered one side/sleeve/armhole-front up kind of like a fan, and wrapped the ribbon around it. To secure it in place, I attached a button (cut from the excess shirt) with a needle and white thread. That's it!
Urban Renewal My Kanzashi Hairpin My Kanzashi Hairpin Since I first saw Kanzashi on CraftyPod, I've admired them. They are gorgeous! But now that I've had a chance to read the instructions in Kanzashi In Bloom and even make my own, I've found that they are simple and quick to make. I made this cute hairpin in about 15 minutes. These are the five 2-inch squares of fabric I cut to make my flower. These are my folded and trimmed petals. Next you string them on some thread. The hardest part is getting the flower to look right when you tie the thread. I picked a button from the tidbits Ester included in my Specky Surprise. To finish it off, I sewed a bobby pin to the back and stuck it in my hair. Love this post? SEE MORE POSTS ABOUT: other crafts
Flat pattern hair band This is probably one of the simplest sewing projects ever, but I made a few miserable prototypes before arriving at it. So to spare you the same frustration: a tutorial! Most hairband patterns I've found involve sewing two pieces of fabric together. However hard I try, I always end up with something wobbly, like this: Topstitching only seems to make it worse, so I'm not even going to show you that. Another delightful thing about this hairband is that it won't mess up your bangs when you put it on, because it can be fastened at the back rather than being pushed back onto your head. First, measure the length of the band. Draw a line for the length, and mark the middle. Cut this pattern out, then trace around it onto another piece of paper. The outer edges are now longer than the middle of the pattern piece; to compensate for the wedge-shaped pieces that have been added to the widest part, take off something similar at the ends. Cut the pattern out of fabric.
Make a t-shirt headband Of all the headbands I've made, I think this is my new favorite. It's like wearing sweats on your head, without the dumpy look. It's so cushy and comfortable! And yes, I am wearing the shirt with the bottom cut off in the picture. Hey, I needed something to match okay? This could match, too. Scrounge around for an old t-shirt. Fold in half lengthwise and pin in place. Fold the headband right side out. Make a flower or two and hand stitch it over the seam. The Real Deal: It cost me pretty much nothing. Circle skirt calculator – for the drafting of full, half and 3/4 skirts. With bonus grading worksheet! | The Snug Bug Special Sunday greetings you naked molerats! Since you’re so naked, I thought you might want to make yourselves some nice little circle skirts. And perhaps, like me, you find yourself with little mole rat patterns just a touch on the small side. But the grading of a circle skirt isn’t so easy, is it you naked rodents? OK. Recently I’ve been plotting about two separate circle-skirt related issues in my head. For molerats who are unfamiliar with circle skirts, here’s the difference between the three styles. For a much more interesting comparison, here’s a full circle skirt. {image Whirling Turban} Here’s the oh, so lovely three-quarter circle skirt. And a slightly pixelated half circle skirt… {image Get Go Retro} The other circle-skirt related problem I’ve been mulling over has to do with grading up circle skirts. OK, I admit I usually grade up my circle skirts the ‘wrong’ way. My problem is (hopefully) solved! Okee dokee. Let’s move on to the grading stuff, shall we?? Whew! OK!
tutorial: how to sew a simple maxi dress The Plan. Fabric. You will be making a maxi dress so buy fabric accordingly. I stand 5′ tall (I know, I know, I am tiny) and I needed 2.5 meters of fabric with a 45-inch width. Preparation and Cutting. Sewing. Don’t forget the banana. Instructions for making the rosettes are HERE. 10 Free Tote Bag Patterns and Tutorials Totes make great handmade gifts. Here is a Tuesday Ten that shows a round-up of lovely totes. If you love to sew you might also like these free sewing tutorials right here on Skip to my Lou! Every tote needs a matching pouch. Pleated Zippered Pouch Lined Zippered Pouch 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
Travel Accessories: Roll-up Makeup Brush Case This handy case is not only great for travel, it's also dandy for everyday storage of your make up brushes. We used one of the four pretty laminates from Anna Maria's Loulouthi collection as our inside fabric choice so if any traces of make up rub off your brushes and onto the case, it can be quickly wiped clean. Laminates are traditionally made in the wider 54-55" width. So, you'll definitely have some pieces left over from this project. In fact, you may have enough to make our stylish insulated lunch bag. Finished (and flat), the case measures approximately 18" x 9". Our Travel Accessories series is sponsored by Free Spirit Fabrics, as part of our Artist Trio Series introducing Anna Maria Horner's amazing Loulouthi fabric collection. Any Sewing Machine (we recommend the Janome 2160 Decor Computer) Creating the brush pockets From your roll of wax paper, cut one 18" x 9" piece. Make and attach the narrow ties On one 20" x 1" strip, fold in each end ¼". Binding Contributors Tags: Section:
Anthropologie Pratia Tank Top Tutorial February 6, 2010 1:59 pm Per popular demand, here is the Pratia tank tutorial! Start off with a t-shirt or tank top. Measure your neckline and get a piece of chiffon that length and fold it in half. Pin it to the inside of your neckline with it peeking out. Since I cut the sleeves off my T, I wanted to finish the edges. Stitch it. I highly recommend interfacing where you are going to be adding the embellishments, otherwise it’s going to sag. For the flower pieces, here is the shape and dimensions I used. Fold your pieces in half and cut that petal shape out. I used the extra sleeve pieces, cream chiffon(the kind that won’t fray) and another grey jersey I had. How many do you need? Lay two petals on top of one another, as shown. I did a small ‘X’ shape to stitch them so they stay in place. Just add more, and more, and more, and more………(It’s time consuming. I really liked the bottom gathered feature of this top. Measure how much elastic you will need to be comfortable around your waist.
V and Co how to: shag pillow *no animals or plants were hurt in the making of this project. *one really stupid person did get hurt in the making of this project, but she would like to mention that even though the needle penetrated...no swear words passed her lips. it's was a modern day miracle. i love how this pillow turned out. i made it in green for two reasons: 1. it's still kind of cold here, and still kind of brown...will be for a little bit longer so i wanted some GREEN and springy looking happiness in my home. 2. it's the only color of jersey i had on hand, and living in the middle of nowhere doesn't let me just jump in the car and go to a store that i can find jersey fabric at (which btw this fabric was found at jo-anns but i would suggest amazon if you can't find what you are looking for, that's where i get a lot of mine when i can't find stuff) now lets get started: cutting: *cut from jersey fabric 19 strips at 1 1/2" each. *from each of the 19 strips cut 15: 4" length rectangles. the end.
Sewing Tutorial: Piggy Pillow As promised, I have completed the tutorial and the pattern for the “Be My Valentine – Piggy Pillow”, which was published 3 weeks ago. This time I made a pair for my kids, they love it. You may not be able to do it in time for this valentine but as I said, if you have love in you, everyday is valentine. Hope you sew some for your loved ones no matter if it is Feb 14. Besides as a pillow, you can use this pattern to make into other things, for example, pin cushion, smaller softy as gift, or a piggy back pack for little children. Material you need:1. Print out the PDF pattern of the piggy pillow. Use a pencil and trace the pattern onto the cotton fabric. Sandwich the towels in between 2 fabrics. Sew it up on the sewing line, it can be from sewing machine or hand stitching. Turn body, ear and tail inside out. Tie a knot at the tip of the tail as shown, mark a length of 4″ from the tip. Turn the body outside in and position the tail on the top part of the body. Sew the nose onto the body.