Gathered Clutch DIY

I have previously used Skip to My Lou‘s incredible tutorials to create an easy clutch and that diy project has sinced served me daily as my hold-everything-I-can’t-leave-the-house-without clutch. I have wanted to make a birthday present for my friend for a while and finally decided onthis gathered clutch.

I started this post with the plan of laying out a step by step guide of how I created the purse. But I found I couldn’t find the right words and didn’t have the most visually explanatory photos. So instead I invite you to visit the original tutorial because it even provides a pattern and an excellent guideline to help you create this:

There are always little kinks to work out but on the whole I am very proud of the project and excited to present it to my friend for her birthday. I hope you get a chance to make your very own!

Fancy Gold Shirt

I had left over fabric from a dress I made that I really wanted to make use of. I bought that pattern and got started a while ago but got overwhelmed by the complexities and gave up for a bit. I am proud to say that it is finally finished! I used Butterick pattern #5497

I am very pleased with the results so if you’re up for the challenge of a lot of ruching and slightly complicated instructions then give this pattern a whirl. Here’s a look at the finished front and back

I’m just so happy it’s finally done! And now I can get started on some Fall and Winter wear…

Off the Shoulder Shirt

I made a 3/4 sleeve, off the shoulder shirt years ago and then somehow managed to lose the pattern. But recently I discovered that I am severely lacking in comfortable, fall shirts and decided to make one. I refused to let a lost pattern stand in my way so I used my old shirt as a model for creating a new shirt. Here’s how I did it:

Requirements:

- 1 yard of fabric

- matching thread

- sewing machine

- pins

 

Directions:

1. Fold fabric in half and cut shirt shape like the following (you can use an old shirt as a model if you need to – and then just leave half an inch around to allow for sewing and make sure to leave room for a wide neck):

 

2. Cut two equal sized rectangles like to following for bottom trim (the trim should be equal to the length of the bottom of the shirt so that they match up perfectly):

3.Pin good sides of fabric together down the sides and along the shoulders and arms. Then sew together.

4. Zig-zag stitch along cuffs and neck to prevent fraying.

5. Pin cuffs and neck then stitch in place.

6. Pin good sides of two rectangles together and then sew in place (do not sew long sides together):

7. Press seams on rectangular trim and fold in half lengthwise so good sides of fabric are facing out. Pin this trim to good side of bottom of the shirt and sew in place. When complete the inside of the bottom of the shirt should look like this:

8. And here is the final product!

My directions aren’t the easiest to follow so if you have any questions don’t hesitate to ask. The shirt is so comfortable so I really hope you get a chance to create your own!

My Etsy Shop!

I have been sewing and crafting since I was very young and have always enjoyed it. But my collection of handmade goodies has increased significantly since getting a sewing machine. I am constantly making things and decided it was finally time to try turning my hobbies into more of a fun side-job. I have always had a lot of admiration for the website Etsy so I opened my very own shop. So far I just have a few hairbands but I made them with lots of care so I would be honored if you took a quick look. I hope you get a chance to take a look at my shop!

Vibrant Print Shirt

Every time I go into my favorite fabric store there’s this vibrant purple print that always catches my eye. I couldn’t think of what I wanted to make with it and it was so pretty I assumed it would cost a small fortune and therefore could not be wasted. So imagine my surprise when the lady told me it was 5.99$ a yard! I only need 3/4 of a yard for my favorite flowy shirt pattern so I was sold. And here is my beautiful creation:

It looks best worn slightly on an angle so it slouches off the shoulder. I definitely think I want to buy a couple more yards and make a dress with this fabric. It’s just so vibrant and unique!

Relaxed & Flowy Shirt

I really love the summery style of having a flowy, slightly see-through shirt that you wear over a tank top. So I was really excited to come across this pattern, and then even more excited to come across this knit fabric:

That whole process is incredibly simply and shouldn’t take you more than a couple of hours. Here are the steps I followed (though you might have to make alterations depending on the fabric you use and how you want it to fit):

1. Buy 3/4 of a yard fabric and thread of a matching colour.

2. Fold fabric in half so it creates a large square. Then move the trim of the top half up so it is about 5 inches shorter than the bottom half. If you are shorter or just want a shirt that isn’t too long, trim off a few inches of the fabric along the top (meaning you will be cutting off the fold). If you are tall or want a long shirt just cut directly at the fold. You should end up with something that looks like this:

3. Pin pieces together along the top edge. Sew halves together, leaving hole in middle – this hole will become the collar so make it as wide or as narrow as you would like the shirt to be. I made mine quite wide because I like the fall off the shoulder effect but you can also make it high neck if you would like.

4. Lay the fabric flat on the floor again. This time pull the top piece down so the bottom edges of the pieces line up. Beginning at the bottom left corner start pinning the two pieces of fabric together from bottom to top – you don’t need to go all the way up because you will need room for arm holes. Repeat on right side.

5. Stitch pieces together while leaving 8-10 inches on either side for arm holes.

6. I was lucky in that my fabric was already closed off at the bottom but if yours isn’t you may want to zig-zag hem to make sure it doesn’t unravel. I also zig-zag stitched the collar and arms just to make sure my shirt would last.

7. You’re all done! When I finished mine I discovered a few fabric related issues like the collar not hanging right but they were quick fixes. So if you try this out and it doesn’t come out quite how you wanted just let me know and I’ll be glad to help out! Here’s a look at the final product:

I find it makes your average tank top and jeans just look so much more dressed up so I really hope you get a chance to try it out! Happy sewing!

Dollar Store Flower Arranging

For my birthday my friend gave me a lovely bouquet of flowers which I then arranged into a wonderful centerpiece which brightened the kitchen table for several days.

However, as flowers are bound to do, they died – leaving a sad and empty table behind. Fortunately the dollar store stepped in and solved all my problems. They had an entire section devoted to fake flowers and from there I managed to collect a cheap collection of flowers that won’t die on me!

For the base I simply filled an old plastic pineapple container with pebbles and an assortment of fake flower petals. Then I arranged the flowers. It would have been easier if I had a pair of wire cutters to break the flowers apart but I made do and just did a lot of bending and folding.

Not the most glorious arrangment in the world but it’s a start! The kitchen looks far more lively and on top of that I have been introduced to a whole new world of dollar store decorating. All I need is a pair of wire cutters and my house will become a fake flower oasis!

Makeup Organizer

Every since I was a little girl I have always wanted to have my own vanity desk. At first is what just based on the fact that it seemed entirely princess like but then as I grew older I was drawn to the concept of having somewhere to sit and do my makeup instead of having to stand over the bathroom sink. Though my room isn’t really big enough for a desk dedicated to makeup and hair – my mom found an old shelf that would at least give me somewhere to keep all my beauty tools and once I added a mirror to it I had my very own makeup station. Still no chair or princess feel to it but it served its purpose quite nicely. That was until I discovered that such a small space could not house my makeup collection. Eyeshadows would roll off the side and shatter, finding the right blush would require a time consuming unstacking and restacking and many things would just plain go missing. But then when I was in dollarama yesterday I came across a wooden container that was originally designed for desk use. After spending a grand total of 4.50$ I had all the paints, brushes and tools I needed to finally organize my makeup. Within a few hours I had created this:

Which then turned this disaster:

Into this:

My creation is the perfect size to house lipsticks on one side, lip liners and glosses on the other and then eyeshadows underneath. Plus my major blushes and bronzers sit perfectly on top. Now I can find everything easily and not have to worry about things rolling off and breaking. So if you’re in need of a good organizer just hit up your local dollar store and get crafting!

Making shorts out of jeans

Wondering what to do with jeans that are too big or too worn out to wear anymore? Turn them into shorts! A few days ago I returned to my parents home and found I had an old pair of jeans sitting in my cupboard. They had once been my favorite pair but are now too big to wear as pants. But as shorts there is less fabric weighing them down so they fit quite nicely with a belt. Here’s how I did it if you want to create your own pair:

Things you’ll need:

- 1 pair of old jeans

- thread

-sewing needle

- scissors

- sewing machine

Lay the jeans flat on the floor and cut them in a straight line 2.5 inches lower than the actual length you want them to end up. The extra length will be necessary for the folding you will be doing later.

Turn the jeans inside out. Fold up cut edge to around  1cm and pin in place all around. Do the same for both legs. Sew folds using sewing machine like this:

You should end up with something along these lines:

Turn the jeans right side out. Fold bottom of leg up by over two inches and then top of fold down by over an inch. This should create a fold all around the bottom of the leg that is a little over 1 inch.

Pin trim in place.

When you are finished pinning the outside should look like this:

And the inside like this:

Using a needle and thread hand-sew trim in place. Come at it from the inside and only catch the bottom layer of the trim so it cannot be seen on the visible side. Do one line of sewing along the top of the trim and one along the bottom like this:

And here is the final product:

This way of doing it creates a nice, clean look which can be worn in a lot of different settings. I hope you get a chance to try this out and that you find my tutorial helpful. It was a lot of fun to do and only took a few hours to complete. My only challenge now is figuring out what craft to do with the bottom portion of the jean I cut off!

Flower girl wands

Gone are the days of bouquets and baskets of petals for the flower girls…now they can have wands!!

So much simpler for the wee ones and also just plain cool! My sister put me in charge of figuring out the flower girl’s carrying item for the wedding. I searched through purses, baskets, parasols, pomanders and, of course, bouquets, before coming across this little gem. So if my sister gives me the go ahead – be prepared as I go through the trials and tribulations of this DIY project. How hard can it be to tie ribbons and flowers to a stick, right? Famous last words…