DIY No Sew Fingerless Gloves In 2 Snips!

Wow! Where has the time gone?


Thanks Vic for the sweet comment on my last post.  That was so kind of you to take the time to comment and see if I'm ok.  :o)   


I'm ok... actually I'm great.  Just super busy.  A promotion at work, finishing up my masters in June, and my Etsy shop has been busy and it's satisfied my creative outlet lately.


I have been super chilly in the evenings lately... Can you believe that it's been in the low 30's in So Cal?? Tomorrow night they are forecasting 30! Brrrr!!!   It's been so cold that today I browsed around on Etsy for fingerless gloves and I found some inspiration on the recycled listings. 


Fingerless gloves are awesome because they don't slow me down.  I can still bake, work on homework, type, do laundry and wrap Christmas gifts all while having warm hands!  Yay!


Here's how I made my own DIY fingerless gloves in 2 snips...


I made these with toe socks I had sitting around.  I think the concept of toe socks is great, but I found that my toes get really cold in them.  My 10 lil piggies like keeping warm by staying close to each other. :o)


# 1 Snip the toes off.  This part gets worn up by the elbow.
#2 Snip a straight line for your thumb to go through.

Annnnnddddd.... You're done!  It's that easy!

You can make these with sweater sleeves too.  I prefer socks because they are snugger on my hands and arms. 

Reusable Produce Bags- Tutorial

dear eco-conscious friends,

whenever i took a trip to the grocery store, i always cringed when i reached for the plastic bag in the produce section. i always had an image in my mind of that bag ending up in the ocean and some poor fish or bird eating it, mistaking it for food. 

i started using reusable produce bags last year and i LOVE them. they have helped me cut down on so much waste.  and a bonus... at Henry's or Whole Foods, they sometimes give me 5 cents off for EACH bag i use!  now i don't feel guilty about buying produce anymore.

this past Christmas, i made produce bags for my family.  a friend of mine wanted to buy a couple for her friends, so this past weekend while i made them for her, i took a few pictures of the process so i could post a tutorial for you. :o)

the goal is to make the bags so that they'll last a loooooong time, so i make them 2-ply. when i cut the mesh, i keep it folded and I cut with the fold on the bottom.  to save a lot of headache and frustration make sure to incorporate the fold or else the mesh will slip all around.  ok... i'm totally not a professional sewer, so i'm sorry if i'm not making any sense... let's move on to the pictures, shall we?  maybe it'll make more sense. :o)

these are the measurements for the bags:

small: 10.5 inches x 15.5 inches

medium: 14.5 inches x 19.5 inches

large: 16.5 inches x 23 inches

1. cut out all the pieces of mesh.  i usually make 2 of each size.

2. fold and pin 1.5 inches of mesh on the LONG side.

3. adjust the tension on the sewing machine higher- i adjust mine to 5.  sew two straight (or in my case, straight-ish) lines about an inch apart.  backstitch at the beginning and end points.

4. fold the mesh in half inside out and pin. the loose part on the side you just sewed should face out.

5. sew all along the 2 pinned edges.  don't worry if it's not perfectly straight, i'll show you how to remedy a crooked stitch in the next step.

6. to even out the edges, trim along the sides you just sewed.

see how nicely that cleans it up? :o)

7. turn the bag inside out and make 4 little cuts on both sides of the bag where the pins on my bag are. make sure to cut between the sewn lines. don't cut the lines.

8. attach a safety pin to a piece of ribbon and thread it through the slits at the top of the bag.

when you threaded all the way through, tie the ribbon in a knot.

9. repeat the same thing on the other side.

here's a little tip: use a different color ribbon or mesh for the different sizes you make.  this will save you some time and frustration of finding the right size bag when you're at the grocery store. 

10. pull on both ribbons and do the happy dance when you see the cute little produce bag you made!

think of all the sea creatures you just saved. :o)

have a fabulous week!

nori

i'm linking up to made it monday and diy day.

p.s. please take 3 minutes to check out this excellent video on plastics and marine life

DIY "Emersonmade-like" Fabric Flowers

i am having so much fun making these flowers this weekend! if you're not already familiar with Emersonmade, you have to check out her BEAUTEEMOUS flowers. i would LOVE to have one of every flower she makes, but until my pocketbook allows it, i'll make these beauties...

 

here's a side view of the flower where you can kinda see the depth.

i just got back from my local thrift store where i picked up a bunch of fun fabrics for only .75 cents! i am attaching the flowers to alligator clips so i can wear them in my hair, attach them to a jacket, a purse, or a headband. TOO FUN!

by the way, i'm used this tutorial to make the flowers.

Pottery Barn Inspired Teapot and Cup Coasters

Recently I was at the mall picking up my last store bought Christmas gift and I stopped by Pottery Barn.  I saw an interesting... placemat/decorative piece that inspired me to make a coaster for my teapot and cups. (Would you call this a teapot coaster? I wasn't really sure what to call it). :o)

 

This is what inspired me (sorry for the crummy picture... I took it quickly with my phone.  Does anyone else ever feel funny about taking pictures of merchandise in a store??  I always wonder if it's illegal.  I always feel like I'm being sneaky. LOL)

It took A LOT of leaves to make these pieces.  It's a good thing that I am totally obsessed with making leaves right now.  I love how you can totally change the look of a leaf simply by changing the angle in which you stitch it. Here's a few close ups of my coasters.

 

 

I have some fun news... if you like these, tune back after the holidays... I'm planning on opening my Etsy store very soon and I have already made an extra set of these to list for sale.  Weeeeeeeeee!!!! :o)

I'm linking up to Saturday Night Special, DIY Day, and

Tutorial: Adult T-Shirt Dress

This was SO much fun to make!  My boss's son had cleaned out his closet and my boss brought in a few t-shirts he was getting rid of. When I saw one of the shirts, I knew it would be perfect for the t-shirt refashion I've been wanting to do for awhile. I was inspired by THIS video, and made it into my own.  I took 2 t-shirts (one of my snug-fitting shirts and one of his) and made this:

This is how it started out:

Take the large shirt, turn it inside out, and cut off the arms and the collar.  Don't throw any of the pieces away.  We'll use them later in this project. 

Sew the sides leaving the top open. 

Try on the smaller top and mark a spot right under the bust line. 

Draw a line across and then cut off the bottom. 

Place the small shirt right side out inside of the inside out bigger shirt so the right sides are facing each other.  Line up the bottom of the little shirt with the top of the big shirt.  It should look like this except the little shirt will be inside. 

Take a piece of elastic and wrap it snuggly under your bust line.  Leave a little overlap so that it can be zig zagged closed. (I'm blushing a little now. First of all, I'm so glad I shaved. LOL Second, I can't believe I posted this picture.  I'm a really modest person. This picture is all for the sake of a tutorial.) 

Mark the mid-points of the t-shirts and elastic. 

Pin the midpoints of the elastic to the midpoints of the t-shirts. Then pin the sides of the elastic to the sides of the t-shirts. Continue pinning around the t-shirts by finding the midpoints between the pins and pinning together. 

It should look like this when you're all done pinning.

Sew the elastic to the t-shirts using a zig zag stitch.  It should look like this as it goes through your sewing machine. 

Now on to the cute details.  Cut the wristbands off of the sleeves. 

Cut off the seam going up the sleeve. Lay it out flat and cut strips 1 1/2" wide. 

Sew them together end to end and then create a ruffle by stitching down the middle at the highest tension and longest stitch on your sewing machine.  Sorry, I didn't take pictures of this.  For more details on creating a ruffle please see THIS post. I only needed one sleeve for the ruffle, so I'm thinking I'll use the other sleeve to make a flower or something cute. 

If you want to make it a little dressier, try on the dress, mark a spot at the bust and draw lines to create a v-neck. 

Cut the neckline out leaving a small portion of the back collar (I wanted the ruffle to lay up against my neck). Pin the ruffle around the collar and down the front of the shirt. Sew it on. 

Cut a small 1/2" strip from the excess from the collar.  Sew together a few pieces if you need to.  This strip needs to be able to go around the bottom of the dress. 

Pinch the seam at the bottom of the dress and make a small cut.  Only cut the top layer. 

Attach a safety pin to the end of the 1/2" strip and feed it through the bottom of the dress. 

Feed it all the way through so that it can be tied closed. 

It's all done!  Here are the details close up:

Fun, right??  I think it would be super cute with a thick black belt.

Be sure to check back for my next post... my 100th post!  OMGoodness!  I can't believe I've reached that milestone.  Did I mention that there will be a giveaway?? Wooohooooo!!!  I love giveaways!   :o)

I'm linking to Met Monday, It's So Very Creative,  Get Your Craft On, DIY Day, and Made It Monday

Felt Flowers

I'm falling in love with felt!

I used this tutorial from betz white (if you're not already acquainted with this crafty woman, jump on over to check her out!) to make these flowers. They are SUPER easy to make! The flowers took me about 10 minutes to make. I used ribbons for the leaves by glueing them to the back.

 The most time consuming part was deciding between buttons or beads.
Buttons?

Or beads?

This time I went with beads, but I totally see myself making lots more of these for myself and to give away as gifts. :o)