Slip on Collar Reversible Dog Bandanna Tutorial

I am just a little bit obsessed with my dogs. In case you didn't know, I have an adopted Golden Retriever named Sophie and a rescued Yorkie named Frankie. They have their own Instagram account {@sophieandfrankee}. You should follow it. Sophie, dare I say, is just a bit larger than her furry sister Frankie and she's got quite a bit more "fluff", so she doesn't need the same kind of wardrobe that Frankie has because she'd just be too darn hot in everything. But in an attempt to get them matching anything, I made them these slip on {or slip through} the dog collar reversible bandannas. They were super easy to sew and they have both been wearing them for more than a week and they are holding up nicely. You can tailor this easy sewing tutorial to fit any size dog. Come check it out! 

0

Knit Cowl Tunic Pattern and Tutorial

I don't think that it was so much of a new year's resolution as it was a goal of mine to try to get back into sewing again. I started sewing when I was young. I remember my first project was a hand stitched dress for my kitten to wear in the 4th of July parade. I should have taken my idea of designing pet clothes and run with it then because holy cow, that market is huge! Months go by now though when I don't stitch a thing and I wanted to change that because I forgot how much I loved to create. In January, I made this zippered fold-over clutch, in February I made this leather laptop sleeve and now this month, I created this cowl neck knit tunic. It's an easy pattern you can make too and it can be adjusted for all sizes. 

0

DIY Leather Laptop Sleeve Tutorial

Do you ever have an idea in your mind of something that you want but you can't seem to find it? Or if you do find it, it's {far} out of your price range? I recently got a new laptop and I knew I needed a case for it, but what I was looking for just couldn't be found. I love the look of leather everything right now. Like I'm obsessed with it. So I had it narrowed down enough to know that I wanted a leather laptop sleeve. Of course the first place I turn is Amazon because as a Prime member it gets here yesterday, but I couldn't find what I was looking for. I started to search on-line and all the cases I was coming up with were $150+. I loved the look of the handmade leather laptop cases I was finding but I just couldn't justify the cost. So like all things, if I can't find what I want, I set out to make my own. This DIY {faux} leather laptop case cost me less than $20 and an hour of my time to make. My goal is to inspire my readers to want to create as well so I'm sharing how I made my laptop sleeve with you. You may like aspects of the case and take inspiration from this to create one that fits your needs.

0

Easy Zippered Fold Over Clutch with Leather Accent

This is a sponsored post written on behalf of fabric.com. All opinions are 100% my own. One of the first things I ever learned to do was sew. I had a small sewing kit in a blue tackle box with all these miniature size spools of thread and since my mom had a sewing machine, I had access to a whole lot of scraps. I remember one of the first things I made was a shirt for my cat Alex P. Kitten to wear in the 4th of July parade.  I really should have jumped on that animal clothes bandwagon and capitalized on that far sooner because I hear that gig is a billion dollar industry!  By the time middle school rolled around I was sewing dozens of hair scrunchies to keep my 80's hair accessorized. I still love to sew, though it's not always something I make time for. I think in the new year, I am going to spend more time whipping some things up because I enjoy it so much. I started by making this easy zippered fold over clutch with leather accent. It's so easy that you can make one for yourself in under an hour.  And if you shop at fabric.com like I did, you don't even have to leave the house! 

I've got the full tutorial and all the supplies, so come check it out!

3

Felt flowers and free patterns

Felt flowers and free patterns

Two weeks ago, I was asked to lead a middle school girls craft event. 

We needed something we could complete rather quickly and with various skill levels, so I settled on making felt flowers.  Felt is one of my favorite fabrics because it is so easy to work with so it was perfect for our event.  

Here are a few of the mock up flowers I made to demonstrate for the event

First up the pom pom flower

This flower is so easy to make!

You just take a long strip of felt and cut it (mine is 2" wide)

Next, pretend you are in Kindergarten and you are cutting grass out of construction paper.

Start at one end and glue on the uncut grass end and start rolling

That's it

pom pom flower

 

Yesterday I shared with you how to make your own adjustable ring base.
I made those with this project in mind.

There are tons of tutorials out there

including this one from when I made my awesome bloom belttm

you pretty much just cut circles and glue them.

Cute right?!

Next up, the felt peony flower

I use this template found here 

The hardest part is cutting out the pattern

Once you have that, you just have to decide what color felt you want to use and cut the flower out

Didn't this middle schooler pick out super cute colors?

Best part about this project is that I also got to teach life lesson 1054, which is,

 how to sew on a button

Our final flower was this spiral rose from will you? to I do!

Isn't it lovely?  And so easy!

Click the link above for the printable pattern

This one we made into a pony tail holder

The possibilities are endless with these flowers.  

What would you make them into?

2

Using a Sewing Pattern and Sewing a Shirt

I got inspired to try to follow a pattern again. I don't use "real" patterns very often, so I thought I would give it a shot again. I headed over to Goodwill and found some super fun vintage patterns for 49cents a piece. Things I looked for in a pattern: something I could adapt. For instance, I liked the top part of the dress, but not the actual dress. My biggest issue with following a pattern is how hard it is for me to follow the directions. I am not a spatial person so I need help to read the pattern and figure out what I am doing. Long story short, I had fun making a garment start to finish, but not so much fun with the frustration that I get from feeling totally lost THE whole time! Memories of geometry in High School came pouring back!

Here's the shirt I made. I used the dress pattern pictured on the far right.

Then I added layers to it ala J. Crew style (I literally dog earred the pages of the catalog for things I wanted to make). I made 6 inch strips, sewed along the top giving them a ruffle, then sewed them on seam to seam (hindsight, I should have put them on the front before I sewed the two sides together) 3 inches apart. You can't tell in this picture but the shirt in J. Crew actually had slits along the ruffles (sort of like large rectangles) so I cut about 3 strips vertically on each layer in a brick laying pattern.

And here's the completed project. I need a better cardigan to go with it (or a hip boyfriend jacket that's hot this season) but it's kind of cute don't you think?

3