So, a little while ago my husband and I were walking through The Container Store (which I LOVE) and we saw these little shoulder protectors for suits. They are designed to slip over the hanger and keep dust from collecting on your nice suits. I thought they were a great idea, but just looked blah. (Not to mention they were $10 a piece for some plastic!) Then the light bulb went off! I could make my own and choose whatever fabric I'd like to use! Then I could guarantee that they wouldn't look blah! Here's what you need to make yours: 1/3 yard fabric Template (Download here, making sure the 1" boxes print at 1".) Cut out and piece the … [Read more...]
Tutorial Tuesday: Shirring with Elastic Thread
Shirring (pronounced "sure-ing", not "shear-ing") is a great technique to easily add a comfy, elasticized waistband to a project. You'll be surprised just how easy it is! The only thing you'll need, besides basic sewing supplies, that you may not have on hand is some elastic thread: You'll want 2-3 spools. Sewing all the little bands uses up a bit of the elasticized thread! I've got a dress I picked up at goodwill for $2 that I'm going to make into a skirt. I LOVED the colors and the border print on this dress, just not the top with teeny tiny triangles and the spaghetti straps. (It's hard to find good border prints so I'm … [Read more...]
Tutorial Tuesday: Spring Jacket Upcycle
I knew this jacket had to be mine the minute I saw it at my local Goodwill store! It was my size, in perfect condition, and only $5! Thinking it was too good to be true I made a closer inspection and noticed that a few buttons were missing, and a few others were loose. That seemed to be the only thing wrong. (Kind of sad that someone got rid of a perfectly good lime green jacket because of a few missing buttons!) I bought it, washed it, then got to work fixing it. I decided that I wasn't too fond of the buttons currently on the jacket (kind of boring if you ask me), and it would be pretty difficult to try to find a replacement button that … [Read more...]
Tutorial Tuesday: Neon Coin Pouch
Neon is all the rage this spring and I love it! I'm a color lover and was so excited to pair some fun neon brights with a charcoal colored linen for this project! You don't need any fancy hardware for the pouch closure either. We'll use a little bit of measuring tape to make the top closure! Ready to get started? You'll need the following: Fabric scraps (You'll need less than a 1/4 yard of fabric for the whole pouch!) 12" of a 3/4" wide measuring tape 12" of 6/32" cotton cording Coordinating thread Cut the following pieces: Main Fabric (This was my charcoal colored linen.) 4- 3" x 5 1/2" rectangles for … [Read more...]
Tutorial Tuesday: Oilcloth and Vinyl Bag
I've had this fun little project in my sketchbook for a couple of months. I wanted a way to use some clear vinyl and some smaller oilcloth scraps that I had hanging around. I loved the idea of using both to make a cute little storage bag. I also loved that the oilcloth would add some color and the clear vinyl would let me see right inside the bag. These would make great gifts for teachers, party favor bags, cosmetic bags for friends, on-the-go sewing kit, and so many other uses! (I'm thinking that for Father's Day my dad might get a travel toiletry pouch with some of this awesome wood-grain oilcloth from CityCraft!) Well, let's get … [Read more...]
Tutorial Tuesday: Vinyl Covered Zippered Pouch
Wow, it's been a while. I've been so busy with my job at CityCraft that I've been horrible at documenting what I've been doing here! Last year was a crazy year in oh so many ways! Can't wait to start sharing some more projects with you though! I've already got Tutorial Tuesdays planned for all of January and couldn't be more excited! First up for January is a vinyl covered zippered pouch. This project came about because I wanted to laminate some cute fabrics that aren't available in oilcloth or laminated cotton. (There is an iron on vinyl product but I tried it and really didn't like how it turned out!) So this is my fix! Hope you like … [Read more...]
Tutorial Tuesday: Fat Quarter Fabric Folder
I can't believe that summer is almost over and everyone is getting their kiddos ready to go back to school. In our Back To School themed sewing camp this week I've got the girls working on their first project, a reusable fabric folder. I have to say that they are turning out fabulously and the girls are so excited to be making school accessories that aren't going to fall apart on them like paper folders will. Plus, they get to use their favorite fabrics! This project is a great first project for the 8+ age group. It's all straight lines and covers proper pressing, straight stitching, top stitching and other important techniques. Want to … [Read more...]
Tutorial Tuesday: Needle Notebook
This weekend I made a little needle notebook. Now I have a cute way to store all my hand sewing needles and I just love it! This project all started with a problem: I had a whole bunch of these all over the place. Most of the packages were half broken and not holding the needles very well anymore. I was finding needles all over the place and was getting a little tired of it. My solution was a cute needle notebook. For this project you'll need: 2 different coordinating fabrics (We don't need big pieces so if you have some scraps lying around that should work just fine.) 18" of coordinating Ric-Rac 1 color … [Read more...]
Tutorial Tuesday: Pieced Fabric Necklace
At Christmas I visited with my family and my mom made a few of those cute little beaded fabric necklaces. You know the ones where you make a small tube of fabric, put a wooden bead or marble inside, and knot between each one? I thought it would be fun to make one with scraps of coordinating fabrics I had in my scrap bin. After some math (lots of it!) I figured out how big to make each scrap so that it was just enough to wrap one wooden bead and hide the seam in the knot. I LOVE how it turned out! To make your own necklace you'll need: 7- 3/4" wooden balls 2- 3" x 14" fabric strips 7- 3" x 3 1/2" fabric rectangles (These will … [Read more...]
Tutorial Tuesday: Ruffled Knit Scarf
How has everyone been? I've been busy with my sewing classes! I love teaching people how to make things and the sewing projects we've been working on are super fun! I've made a lot of projects recently! This might be my new favorite simple sewing pattern. I can't stop making these, they're super easy to do and make great gifts! The best part about this project is that it's an easy project to start out with knits on. I don't have a serger either, but in the pattern I'll show you a few different stitches on your regular sewing machine that will work on knits! Have fun with it! You can download the full pattern and illustrated … [Read more...]
