Watercolor wash practice

Thats right, more watercolor wash practice =)

I forgot to add a shadow to my boat....shhhh don't tell!! >_<

Promise Ring and Refurbished Cuffs

So, my boyfriend took me out to eat yesterday and surprised me with a ring! I love it. It's a promise ring. On the inside it has "With God all things are Possible" engraved, and the outside has three small diamonds and four sparkly sapphires in the shape of a cross. Needless to say I am thrilled and still haven't stopped smiling =)

Then we went to see the Guardians of Ga'Hoole in 3D. The movie is amazing. I was sold on the owls, (think adorable fluffy puffball baby owls

and Frumpy old disgruntled owls

and RUFFLED owls...and owls with sabers) but the battle scenes were epic, and the story line was really good.

I want an owl now.

Also, I sewed two cuffs. I used the leftover cotton-guy-shirt fabric

Aren't they CUTE?

In short this has been one of the best weekends ever =) Thank you Lord!

Skirt =)

Made a skirt out of a men's shirt today. It was really easy and quick. I was inspired by this tutorial by Cubic Dreams, a blog I follow (she has the CUTEST cat). She did hers by hand, I (lacking patience) used a sewing machine. I also used a button instead of a snap  and added back darts. Also mine is haphazardly put together and some of the sewing is wrong (yikes!) but it came out okay. I have two more shirts to try, so this one shall be the practice shirt.

Here is a picture of me wearing my second dress, now that I am no longer sick. I finally hemmed it too.

Now I am off to see the Guardians of Ga'hoole with my boyfriend...in 3D... (O_@ *excitement*) and to buy more blue thread. Alas, Blue Thread, why do you disappear so?

How to make a dainty button cuff (simple!)

I so adore these things! This tutorial is for a very simple version! I will be posting a more complex version this weekend, along with my first giveaway =D

How to make a dainty button cuff:

You will need:

1) Fabric that fits loosely around your arm (leave room for seams!)
2) Button! Essential for button cuff, of course.
3) Small piece of twine, or very skinny ribbon
4) A line of lace a 3 inches longer then the width of your fabric piece
5) Sewing Machine or A Lot of Patience







Step One:
Lay your piece of fabric out flat, right side up. Lay your lace on the edge of the fabric piece, making sure the part of the lace you want to fringe your hand is pointing downward!

Step 2: Fold the top of your fabric over, pinning it flush to the other side, making sure to pin your lace in between! You should now have a lace sandwich, with 1.5 inches of lace sticking out both sides.

Step 3: Sew two straight lines through the edge of your fabric. Don't forget to backstitch so it won't unravel. Make your stitches about  medium length. Make sure also to sew through both layers and the lace layer, fixing it to the fabric securely.

Step 4: Pull your fabric right side out. You now have a pretty little tube! Now would be a good time to iron if you need to.

Step 5: Fold both corners inward, pulling the lace inside also. This is harder then it sounds. Sometimes it will rumple your lace, or snag it...just play around with it until it lays like you want it. Pin.

Step 6: Measure your button with your twine/ribbon. I do this by hand. Pinch it so you can see how much you need to leave outside your cuff.

Step 7: Tie a knot in each end of your twine to help it not "escape" in case the sewing comes loose. (You don't need to do this if you are using skinny ribbon, as that will just sew right in)

Step 8: Secure your measured loop into the cuff. Make sure to center it!

Step 9: Sew two lines down. Sew  back and forth a bit over the part that encases your loop, shortening your stitch length to help it stay in place.

Step 10: Sew the other side down, two lines also.

Step 11: I hand sew my button on, through both layers. If you want to sew it through one, put the button on before step 5. =)

Step 13: Done! Wear or gift to a friend =)

(And yes those are hello kitty pjamas. My mother bought them for me one christmas many years ago, and I love them)

New Dress

Wanted to post pics of this new dress I made. The pattern is my own concoction, and the whole dress was created completely by me.  I love it!

Of course, since it is my second dress (first is here) there were a few minor problems. The only real problem is the back is slightly crooked! I didn't know how to fix it besides ripping out all the stitches and starting over. But, as its barley noticeable...

I can still wear it and love it. Also, I tried to iron the dress and burned a small hole in the back, that I covered up with a piece of lace. It just burned through one layer. I was so mad at myself I cried! But I learned you can't iron all materials. I know now that stretchy materials need to be ironed on a low heat.  Needless to say, I hope I never make that mistake again. It was scary. I spent three days working on this and thought I had ruined it!

I don't have a picture of me wearing it because I'm still sick! But maybe I'll post one later. Oh, and I haven't hemmed it yet. I ran out of blue thread and need to make a run to my local craft store to pick some up when I feel better. The stretchy stitch on my sewing machine takes up ALOT of thread for some reason. Used the whole spool.

Cuff

Made this cuff a few days ago.

I have been thinking about doing a giveaway =). I need to make something (s?) to give away!
Also I am sick (you can see the packages of cough drops in the background of one of my pictures)

I hate headcolds. n.n

Another Purse

Made another purse/belt purse. I like this one. I used my tutorial here. Also I put the last of my favorite orange lining inside, sadly!

My favorite thing about this one is the pocket. I just love it.

My least favorite thing was getting the zipper on. I put it on wrong at first and had to rip it out and do it all over again. Next time I am going to put the zipper on first. I think that is how you are supposed to do it, anyway. =D

How to make a cute belt purse with an old jean skirt

So, I ride a bike to work and back about every other day. (The other days I am lazy and ride the bus...or it is raining and I beg my boyfriend for a ride...<_<)

And as I'm going to work, I don't want to bring a huge book-bag just to carry my keys, small coin purse, and GRE study cards. Anything that can't fit discreetly in my work apron has to go into the cubby-hole area. This cubby hole area is prey to any body or any thing who might just happen by and claim my stashed items. I usually can fit everything in my work apron, but this gets cumbersome at times when I am moving around, or when food particles fall into my apron and mix with my keys and things (ewww).  I want to make a small container that I can slide onto my belt for when I am riding my bike.

Henceforth this tutorial came about. I was inspired by these pictures, (I googled "fanny pack") and found all these very cool looking items that I am sadly unable to purchase.

So, lets get started! I used an old skirt, but you can do this with fabric, of course.

Step 1: Find an old skirt, shirt, jacket, something that has at least medium thickness and seems rather sturdy. I chose an old jean skirt I don't wear anymore. Also, find some fabric (about a fat quarter should do) for the lining, and a zipper for the top.

Step 2: determine the size of your pouch. Mine is going to be small. Lay your skirt out, and double your fat quarter one top. (same as above picture)

Step 3: Use a pen, pencil, or fabric maker, to draw a circle/square/rectangle-thing about the size you want your pouch to be. Then cut this out, cutting through all four layers of fabric at once (right sides together) to ensure its all the same. You should now have four pieces of fabric.

Step 4: Fold your pieces in half (right sides still together) and double check to make sure your pieces are symmetrical. Mine were not, so I did a bit of trimming.

Step 5: Add any pockets to the inside of your bag before you sew it together. I added a pockets with a straight stitch. I made this entire bag with that stitch. (I don't know if this was the correct way, but it's what I used)

Step 6: Embellish the outside of your purse! Lace, applique, zigzag, or embroider it! Or, add ruffles! Mine looked like this when I was done:

Step 7: I decided not to make a belt for mine, but to put three loops on the back so that it can be worn with a belt, on a belt.  You want these loops as close to the top of your purse as you can, so the purse does not "droop" when you put it on the belt. You don't have to sew on top of the "loop" like I did, just wanted to try something different.
To make a loop:

Then turn right-side out, to make:

Pin them on. It's really important to make sure they line up on top. I used a ruler and a fabric marker to draw a line.

Now you are ready to sew. Once again, I used a straight stitch.

Step 8: Sew lining together, right sides inside. Flip.

Step 9: Sew outside of bag together, right sides inside

(I had lots of fluffy edges, lol)
Step 10: put lining in bag. Then cut two strips and fold once, press, twice, press, and then fold around the top of your bag (like seam bindings!)  What we are doing is covering up the raw edges.

Step...11? So...I must confess I have no idea how or when to apply the zipper, so I did it last. I basically just pinned it on, put my zipper foot on and went at it...it's not like I could follow the directions on the zipper package, having no way to get into the bag. It turned out okay, you can't tell the difference from the outside =)

Yay! Belty bag =) This is me about to ride to work with my new bag. I think I'm going to make 2 more, one a bit smaller and one for my etsy shop =)