Spring-y Ribbon Banner

I had a tutorial all planned. Then I accidentally deleted 21 pictures. Not like you needed 21 pictures to figure this thing out. It was really easy. Maybe you don't need any pictures to figure this thing out. Want to try?

Get these things:
Printer paper
Assorted spring-colored scrapbook paper (4 12x12's will do)
Coordinating 1.5-inch ribbon (3 colors)
Cardboard Diaper Box
Thumbtacks
Hot Glue Gun
Tape

1. Find a cool text in Word. I used Didot. Enlarge it to 500 in your text size window. Each letter will take up one piece of printer paper. Let your children watercolor on the scraps, or you will feel bad for hours about wasting that much paper.

2. Print out the letters. Then, using a paper cutter, trim around your letters, allowing approximately a 1-inch margin around each letter.

3. Hot glue the letter to your scrapbook paper, allowing for another 1-inch margin. Cut out your mounted letter.

4. Cut 6 lengths of ribbon into pieces 12 inches long. Fold in half, and glue shut. Now glue your closed pieces to the back of your mounted letters. Make sure the ribbon is centered, and allow about 5 inches of ribbon to be visible from the top of the letter. You will hang your letter with these 5 inches of ribbon.

5. Cut the 2 long bottom flaps off of your diaper box. Trim them into pieces 4 inches tall by approximately 15 inches long (it depends on the size of your box- you just want your end product to be a really long strip of cardboard). Lay them side by side, lengthwise, and tape them together so you have one very long cardboard length.

6. Cut a piece of scrapbook paper into strips 4 inches tall by 12 inches long. You will have three. Hot glue these to the length of cardboard you just constructed. Trim any excess paper.

7. Lay your new pretty cardboard strip on a big table and arrange your letters underneath your hanging board. Take your thumb tacks and secure the letters to the cardboard by tacking on the ribbon to the board. Don't puncture your table!

8. Hang wherever you want. I placed mine on the inside of my front door with duct tape, but you can use something else if you want. Duct tape is so not a sexy craft item.

Since I deleted my pictures like a sleep-deprived mother of three, feel free to email me or comment with any questions. Sometimes writing down the steps makes a project feel more confusing, but trust me- this one is pretty straightforward. Send pictures to me!

Onesie Cupcake Tutorial- No Sew!

My sweet friend Lindsay decided she wanted to make a onesie cupcake tower for a shower we are throwing together. We looked online and were hardpressed to find a photo tutorial for what we wanted to do. We did read this webpage to get an idea of how to make our onesie cupcakes, but we wanted to put into pictures just how we did this cupcake tower. Want to play?

Get:
12 onesies (the cuter, the better!)
12 bitty rubber bands
12 safety pins
12 assorted colored pom poms
12 jumbo cupcake wrappers
cupcake tower


1. Lay your onesie flat.

2. Fold the sleeves inward. You can use a short-sleeved or long-sleeved onesie, but I assume the short-sleeves fold a little easier!
3. Fold the onesie in half.
4. Fold in in half again.
5. Securely grab one end of the onesie. Slowly roll it up like a burrito. Not too tight, not too loose.
6. Hold onto the onesie while a friend hands you a teeny rubber band (we used Rebecca's stash of itty bitty clear rubber bands from the 250 pack at Walmart)
7. Snap that band on like you mean it.
8. Nice! It looks like a rolled onesie!
9. Thread a pom pom ontot he end of a one-inch safety pin.
10. Find the center of the roll and slide the safety-pinned pom pom in like a cherry on top.
11. Pull the middle layers up a bit to look like swirled frosting.
12. Wow. Our demo is actually the funkiest looking cupcake. Play around with them until you get what you like.

13. Place each onesie inside a jumbo white cupcake wrapper to complete the effect. You could wrap the outside with a nice grosgrain ribbon for an extra aesthetic. Piled up on the cupcake tower, they make a lovely centerpiece!
Great idea, Lindsay! Check back soon, blogfriends, so you can read about Lindsay's new Etsy shop...she upcycles onesies into cool customwear for babies.

Tutorial: Baby Girl's Shabby Chic Ruffle-Booty Onesie

This project is so easy. If I know you, then you probably have a daughter or a friend's daughter you can whip these up for.

It takes less than 30 minutes to make 4 onesies. What a great shower gift! You can use fabric scraps, too! If you have the mega-packs of white onesies lying around your home, you can make these babies for free. If not, check Walmart or Target. I think I have even got some from a $2.00 bin at Walgreens.

Materials:

Fabric Scraps, cut into (3) 1.5 x 15 inch strips. Coordinating fabrics look best
White or Colored Onesies
Matching Thread
Lots of Pins

1. Cut your scraps into strips. I like to tear mine for a shabby chic look. Just make a small (1/4 inch) snip 1.5 inches into your fabric piece and tear. This part is quite satisfying. R-r-r-r-ip your worries away! You will need three strips for each onesie.

2. Ruffle your strips. Here are three ways to ruffle:
a- use a ruffler foot
b- stitch two rows of long, straight stitches in the middle of your fabric, then gently tug one of the ends to gather the fabric uniformly
c- set your tension to "9" and choose your longest stitch (mine is 5.0). The combination of
these two things automatically ruffles the fabric on most machines. My girlfriend Krista's machine won't work this magic for her. My machine does it every time. Trial and error.

3. Make sure your strip is gathered in the middle of the fabric. Look at the picture below. The stitching runs down the dead center of the strip (.75 inches down a 1.5 inch strip). This way, each side is evenly ruff-ly.

4. Decide where you would like the strips to be situated on the booty of your onesie. We began our strips right above the leg opening. Tuck each end (right and left ends, not top and bottoms) under itself and pin. Then use a generous amount of pins all the way down the ruffle, taking care to make the ruffle as straight as possible across the onesie. (Do a better job than it looks like we did on this picture.)

5. Take the second ruffle in pin in the same fashion. We overlapped the top edge of the second ruffle with the bottom edge of the first ruffle.

6. Repeat with the third ruffle.
7. Make sure you reset your machine to sew a normal, straight stitch. Adjust your tension and your length. Now sew the ruffles to the onesie, taking care not to sew the pins. Remove as you come to them. The ruffles tend to hide pins, and you wouldn't want a sweet baby girl getting stuck with your wayward pin. Also take care not to catch the front of the onesie while you sew the back. This material is very stretchy, so you can manipulate while you sew the back. It will snap back to its original shape.
8. Indulge me and do another once-over to find that pin you couldn't see the first time. Then clip away any rogue threads. We liked to leave a little fray and thread on the fabric to capture the "shabby-chic" look we liked. As the new mommy washes the onesies, they will fray a little more. Perfectly shabby.
Thanks for reading! And thanks to Summer, who let me do this project with her. We had so much fun!

Upcycle Tutorial: Turning a Sweater into a Baby Bear Beanie

Somebody please stop me.

This is too much fun.

I keep finding items "to donate" around the house. I am depriving a Goodwill somewhere of some really nice clothing.

This is a great project for those of you whose sewing skills fall somewhere around the "I know where the on switch is" set. Please don't be insulted. This is a very easy project that you can finish in about 20 minutes. What a fun gift idea! Make two or three and tie them up with ribbon to give to a new mommy.

Okay. Let's turn your husband's soft old sweater into a super-cute little bear beanie.

Note: When working with knits, spray each piece with starch and iron flat before beginning your project. It will go much easier. Trust me.

1. Roughly measure your little one's head. My baby is 10 weeks old and his head circumference is about 11 inches. So each of my hat pieces were 5.5 inches wide.

2. Use the stretchy trim at the bottom of the sweater as the bottom of your beanie. Cut out an elongated arc shape. You will have two hat pieces. Make sure you cut these two pieces two or so inches longer than a normal beanie as you will be rolling up the bottom of the beanie.

3. With the sweater still lying flat, cut two sets of ear pieces. Again, make these a bit longer than they appear to be on the hat. You will be sewing them inside the beanie.
4. Sew the ears. Pin each set of ear pieces, wrong sides facing out. Sew the arc, leaving the straight bottom seam open so you can turn it right side out. Use a 1/4 inch seam allowance.
5. Pin the wrong sides of the beanie together. Arrange the ears in your desired position and pin. See where I have mine? Note that you pin the ears with the raw edges of both the ears and the beanie together.

6. Now you will sew your beanie together. Make sure you catch the ears when you sew. IMPORTANT: Start sewing at the top of the stretchy trim. Leave the entire length of trim open. We will sew it later. Sew around just the sweater portion of the arc. 7. Turn your beanie right side out. The bottom sides should be open.

8. Now we will sew them together. Sew your outside seams right where your inside seams ended. These seams are so that, when the hem is rolled up, you will not be able to see any protruding seams.
9. Now flip the bottom up. You have a rolled hem little bear beanie. So cute! Great job.
10. Go find a cute, chubby, not-impressed baby to try your hat out on. Then email me a picture! And whip up some pants from the sweater sleeves to match! I will try to post that tutorial soon.

Upcycle Tutorial: Turning Your Husband's Undershirts into a Super-Soft Nightgown

Beau was going to throw five of these away:
They were too soft to discard and too intact to give to Goodwill, so I decided to make a simple nightgown, soft and sweet for springtime.

Your nightgown will take about an hour and a half to make, almost as long as blogging about it.

Take 5-6 of your husband's old undershirts (or T-shirts..get creative!)
Use white thread.

Get out your spray starch. This is the secret to working with knits. Spray all of your pieces before you iron and sew them. They will be much, much easier to work with.


On with it-
1. Smooth out the first shirt and cut off the midsection, right under the arm holes.
2. Take the bottom piece and fold in half. Reserve for later. This will be your bodice.
3. Cut out shoulder straps from the top piece. The long rectangular middle pieces will be the straps. Discard the other three pieces.
4. Cut off the bottom 3/4 of the rest of your shirts, just like you did for the first piece.
5. Now cut along the bottom fold of the tubular pieces, opening each piece up into a long rectangle.
6. Open each piece up. With different shirts, you will have varying lengths. This is okay. Knits are tricky and you will compensate later.
7. Use a french seam to sew your rectangular pieces together. Sew each piece together, lengthwise, right sides together, with a 1/4 inch seam (approximately: again, knits are tricky). Now flip your fabric, wrong sides together, press, and sew another seam, enveloping your first seam. Press and topstitch.
8. Here is the french seam, nice and tidy. Go here if you need more detailed instructions on making a french seam.
9. Sew your skirt closed by using a french seam to attach the last piece to the first piece.
10. Lay it flat and trim one end so that your top is even. We will be gathering the top part of the skirt before attaching it to the bodice.
11. Gather your skirt piece to a circumference that fits comfortably under your chest. Measure with a measuring tape right under your bra line and gather the skirt accordingly.
11. Take your reserved bodice piece and fold it in half so that the raw edges come together. Slide it up over your chest and fit it to your body. Pin and sew it so that it is quite snug in circumference. This is knit material, and it will stretch considerable as you wear it. Err on the side of too tight.

12. Now sew the tube shut. Place the raw edges together and sew along the bottom. This gives you a lined bodice.

13. Turn your bodice inside-out and fit it over the top of your skirt. The right side of the skirt fabric will be pinned to the wrong side of the bodice fabric. If you can't picture it, pin the two together, then flip the bodice up. It should look similar to your finished product.
Here is a closer view of the pins.
14. Sew the bodice to the skirt. It helps to have a denim-strength needle as you will be sewing through layers of gathered material. Flip the bodice right-side out, press, and topstitch.
15. Retrieve your strap pieces and iron them according to your desired width.
16. Sew them shut.
17. Now for a fitting! Try your nightgown on and figure out where you would like your straps. Carefully by yourself, or with the help of a trusted friend, pin your straps to the front and the back of your bodice. Take your nightgown off. Sew the straps to the bodice.
18. Try the gown on again and decide your desired length. I kept mine quite long as I am 5' 11". If you want it short, cut it accordingly. Hem the bottom of the gown.

And here is the finished product! It should hold up quite well to many washings, it is lightweight and drape-y, and your husband will probably be quite impressed that you love him so much that you would wear his old shirts...so attractively!

P.S. My gown does not fit my size-2 model like it fits me. The bustline should hit right under your chest. Happy sewing! Please feel free to contact me with any questions or any suggestions on making this tutorial better.

Upcycle Tutorial: Turning Overalls into an Apron

We were about to put on Rebecca's favorite overalls to go to the park
When I noticed this:
The dryer apparently ate a metal hook off of the overalls! Rebecca and I both love these pants, so instead of throwing them away, I refashioned them into a cute apron.

My sizing is for a pair of 3T overalls. A bigger or smaller pair of overalls will not need much adjustment for the scrap fabric pieces. However, before you cut,be sure that your scrap fabric pieces match up to the part of the denim that you are sewing.

This project will take a little over an hour to complete.
For your materials, you will need:

1 pair of overalls

Scrap fabric with a width of at least 30" for a size 3T overalls, more or less if your garment is a different size.

A denim-strength sewing machine needle (important!) Neutral-colored thread

Let's get started!

1: Cut the top off of the bib, removing the strap fasteners.

2. Turn the overalls over and cut off the back of the overalls, right around your daughter's natural waist. 3. Cut the legs off the pants at mid-thigh.

4. Cut the back of the overalls open by removing the middle seam. Open the overalls as shown below.

5. Turn the overalls around and lay open.

6. Smooth the open front seam at the bottom of the overalls and press. We are turning the pants into a dress. Pin the seam together so that the front of the overalls is as flat as possible. Sew closed.
7. The top back and the sides of your apron will have raw edges. Roll and press your side hems so that no raw edge is visible. Sew your side hems.
8. Cut a piece of your scrap fabric 2" high. Measure the width of the overalls bib and add 1". For example, the width of this bib is 6 inches, so my strip measures 2" x 7". We are making bias tape to cover the top of the bib. Place your fabric wrong-side up on the ironing board. Fold and press 1/2 inch side hems. Then fold and press the top and bottom edges 1/2". The top and bottom should be almost touching. Now fold the bias tape once more and press. It should 1/2 inch in height.
9. Pin and sew the your bias tape onto the top of the bib. I had to detach the top pocket a bit for a cleaner finish. I used seam rippers to take out about 5 stitches, then re-sewed them shut as I attached the bias tape.
10. Cut 4 strips of fabric, 3" by 24". These will be your apron straps for the sides and neck. If your overalls are much bigger than my 3T size, simply cut your straps 3" by the approximate width of your open overalls, as seen below.
11. Sew your straps. Pin the raw edges of the wrong side of the fabric together and sew with a 1/4" seam allowance down the length of the straps.
12. You should have 4 straps, wrong-side out. Use a loop turner to turn the straps right-side out. Fold and press the ends in and sew the straps closed on both ends.

13. Now you have a choice. You can either use two of your straps as neck ties, or you can use the overalls hardware on one side and a strap on the other. If you choose to use two straps as neck ties, just attach your ties at either end of the bib.

If you choose to use the hardware from the overall strap, cut the metal strap adjustment piece off. Cut a piece of one of your straps to measure 4". Fold and press the edges. Thread your shortened strap through the metal piece and attach to the left side of the bib. 14. Now pin and sew the other strap to the right side of the bib. Thread it through the top of the metal piece. It should be quite long, enough to tuck back on itself.15. Pin and sew your apron straps onto each side of the apron. The straps will be long enough to tie in front.
16. Now you will make your ruffle. I love ruffles! Cut a piece of scrap fabric 4" by 30", longer or shorter depending on the size of your original overalls. Use a ruffler foot or gather an elongated stitch to make your ruffle fit the length of the bottom raw edge. Hem the ruffle on the sides and bottom.

Pin the the ruffle to the denim, wrong-side raw edges together. Sew into place.
17. Press the seam open and topstitch along the denim for a smooth finish.

Find a cute little girl to test your creation! Tell her that your first project together will be to make chocolate chip cookies.
Here is what your back will look like.