The Art Smock

One of the things on my daughter's preschool supply list was an art smock. The school suggest using an old shirt and it needed to have my daughters name on it. Obviously an old shirt is not nearly cute enough for me. So I pulled out a bib that we had gotten from a local rib joint (we have more of these than I would care to admit) and got to work.

I used some cute ribbon, fabric, some scissors and some steam a seam and created this adorable art smock for my daughter. I cut out a large square of fabric to cover the writing then I added an E for my daughters name. It was still missing something so I added a flower to the top for some extra cuteness. Then I added some extra ties to the middle of the smock using ribbon. It is much cuter that a plain old shirt and I don't think she will have any trouble remembering which art smock is hers!

T-shirt Skirt

I have been trying to go through the my pile of refasionable (I like to make up words) clothing before purchasing any more things at the thrift store. The pile is starting to get out of control! I made my oldest daughter a skirt using one of my husbands old shirts and one of my old elastic belts. I did a tight zig zag stitch on the bottom on the skirt to make it ruffly. My daughter loves the stripes and the fact that the skirt is "twirly". It was a quick refashion that turned out great!

Tutorial Tuesday Ribbon Belt

During my back to school shopping spree at the thrift store I stumbled across the most adorable dress for my daughter. It is a cute plaid button up dress but it needed something extra - an adorable belt. So I decided to make her one out of some extra ribbon I had laying around. I used 2 inch red ribbon to make the belt and a flower embellishment.

To make the flower you are going to need about 6 inches of ribbon. I then ran a stitch close to one edge using elastic thread. I find that using the elastic thread to gather on thick fabric is easier. Once you are done with the stitch you want to pull either end of the elastic thread to and gather the ribbon until it starts to curl up.


After it is nice and gather you want to wind it around and make it into the shape of a flower.

Then you are going to squish the flower in half and run a stitch close to the end with regular thread. When you are done you can unfold your new flower and hopefully secure flower.

To make the belt I used some more 2 inch ribbon and 2 of D rings. I used my daughters waist to measure the ribbon out.
Next you want to take on end of your ribbon and run it through both D rings. Secure the ribbon with a quick stitch. It would probably look nicer if you fray check your ribbon prior to do this but I was just too lazy.

Now you are ready to add your flower. You can either sew it or be lazy like me and glue gun it close to your D rings. Then you can add a little bling to the center like a button, jewel or a vintage earring which is what I used.

Here is the finished ribbon belt. I think it adds a beautiful finishing touch to my daughters dress and it was super simple to make!

Tuesday Tutorial Ruffled Leggings

I was given a handful of tights from my neighbor recently. They were brand new and have never been worn. Part of the reason they hadn't been worn was because winters here tend to be very mild. I knew my girls would never wear the actual tights so I set out to make something they could wear.

The first thing I did was remove the feet of the tight. I could have measured so they cuts would be exact but I choose to eyeball it and it worked out fine. I realize they look uneven but trust me it is just the picture.

I used a zig zag stitch close to the edge to create a ruffled end to each leg. You could always stop here as one ruffle is adorable. I love ruffles and feel that more ruffles are always better so I decided to add one more!

To create the second ruffle I folded the ends inside of themselves.

Then I ran another zig zag stitch around the folded edge creating another ruffle.

The finished project is a pair of double ruffle leggings. The whole project took about 20 minutes start to finish. These will be wonderful for the mild winters we have here on the island.

I am linking up to some GREAT parties. To check them out click on Blogs That Inspire above.

Little GirlsTank Top Dress

I have been doing really good with my Wardrobe Refashion challenge! Whenever I get the urge to go shopping I hit the thrift store and see what I can find. During my most recent shopping spree at the thrift store I found these 2 tank tops. I had every intention of keeping the blue one for myself to wear as is but sadly enough it did not fit. All was not lost because I realized that it matched the orange tank top that I had bought for my youngest and I began to come up with a plan. I took the two thank tops and made one adorable dress!

I would love to post instructions or a tutorial on how to make this dress but I have no idea where to even start. I can tell you I used the top of the orange shirt and the bottom of the blue shirt, a thick piece of elastic and a LOT of thread. This dress was very much hit and miss and I spent way more time on it than I should have. In the end the time was worth and it turned out super cute. Now I just have to figure out how to make another one for my older daughter!

Linking Up To:

Scrap Fabric Bracelets

I haven't had much time to myself lately, life has just been crazy around here for the past week. I have been itching to work on some craft projects and I was finally able to tonight. My hubby and girls all fell asleep early!
I am working on some big projects that require patience and drying time - both of which are hard for me. I hate to wait so I decided to fill my time with a easy project. I grabbed some silicone bracelets from the $1 section a couple of weeks ago and here is what I decided to make with them.

Scrap Fabric Bracelets

You Need:
Silicone or Plastic Bracelets
Fabric
Glue

Here is a picture of the bracelets I started with. They were not cute but for a dollar I figured I could make something beautiful out of them!
The first thing I did was cut my fabric into long strips. I was not careful about this and my strips were all crazy and uneven which I think made the bracelets look even better. Then I stretched my bracelets out a bit - they were a little tight.

Next I took a strip of fabric and attach it to the bracelet with glue - I used my trusty glue gun.
Then I began to wrap the fabric around the bracelet. I added a dab of glue here and there to make it hold better.
After the bracelet was all wrapped I made a simple wrap flower to go on it (directions are here) but you could add any embellishment you want.
I love my new bracelets and can't wait to wear them! They were simple and quick to make and it made waiting for my other projects to dry so much easier!

I am linking up too:

T-Shirt Headbands

On Thursday I made my weekly visit to the Thrift store on base. Yes I really do go to the thrift store that often! As I was walking in I noticed a sign advertising their Valentines Day sale - all their clothing was $1.00 and pink or red items were half off. The clothing was a bit picked over but I was able to find some great clothes to re-purpose. I found a few great te-shirts and I spent today cutting them apart for various projects like this one:

T-Shirt Headbands

You will need:
an old t-shirt
scissors
hot glue

The first things I did was cut the bottom hem off of the shirts to use for the flowers. Then I cut a piece to use for my headband. The first piece I cut out was the exact thickness that I wanted my headband to be which was a big mistake. I didn't account for the fabric rolling a bit and I wasn't sure I like how thin it was so I cut a new thicker piece. I wanted a nice long headband that I could tie in the back so I cut all the way around the shirt and then cut through one seam. After I finished cutting the headbands I got started on the roses.

I took my strip of fabric and tied a knot in the end.

Then I began rolling and twisting the strip, applying glue every now and then. Once I had my flowers the desired size I tuck the extra under the flower and glued it in place. Then I glue my flowers on my headbands and I was all done. It was an easy and quick project which are my favorite!

I am linking up to:

and

From Shirt Tie to Flower Headband

For Christmas my MIL sent my girls a bunch clothes. Among all the cute outfits was a random and way too big top that was not suppose to be in there. When I asked her about it she said it was a mistake and to just give it away. Of course I could do that so I decided to see what I could make out of it. The first thing I did was cut off all of the random ties on it. I couldn't just throw the ties away so I decided to see what I could make out of them. I grabbed my glue gun and this is what I came up with

Rosebud Headband

Items You Need:
Glue Gun
Headband
Fabric Ties off an old shirt or thing strips of fabric

The rosebuds was very simple to make. I took the fabric tie and added a dab of glue to the end and rolled in. Once I had a tiny center I started twisted the fabric tie around the center and twirling it at the same time. I stopped and added a dab of glue every now and then to help it hold together. Once I thought the rosebuds were big enough I added one last dab of glue and folded the remaining part of the tie underneath and glued it in place. I made three rosebuds and then I glued them onto a stretchy elastic headband for my daughter. They held up great - I let my 2 year old wear it to test it out! Next time I think I will back them with a little bit of felt for a cleaner look.

Old Shirt to New Dress

I have been rather obsessed lately with making old things into something new. My latest project was making an old shirt of mine into a new dress for Evie. I have owned this shirt for years and while I wear it occasionally it really isn't the most flattering top on me. I love the fabric and I didn't want to just get rid of it. After looking it over I realized that it would make the perfect sundress for Evie. The fabulous smocking meant I didn't even have to take it in.

Sorry about the pictures they were a bit of an after thought. Oh and the straps are even they just look funny in the picture!

Here is everything I did to make this adorable dress.
Step 1. I removed the bottom of the shirt just above the smocking. I decided I liked the raw edge look and left a little at the top.
Step 2. I removed the smocked neckline at the top of the shirt. I knew it was make perfect straps for the dress. I then cut it in half.
Step 3. I wrestled with Evie to get the dress on her so I could do a quick measurement on the straps. She was not happy and it didn't work as well as I would have liked. I pretty much had to guess on them.
Step 4. I sewed on the straps by hand. I still don't have a machine but I hope to get one soon. I stabbed myself a whole bunch so I am pretty happy I didn't get any blood on the shirt!
Step 5. After looking at the dress I realized that something was missing. It needed a flower and bow. So I used the leftover fabric from the top of shirt to make the flower and the ties from the top to make a cute little bow.

The dressed turned out super cute and I love it. Evie refused to put it back on so I could take a picture. She was busy in her tent and wasn't about to come out!

Old Tie Remake

The past few days we have been trying to get the closet and things cleaned out so we can start the New Year fresh. Both my Brandon and I ended up with a fairly good size pile of items to take to the thrift store. When I noticed that he had a bag full of old ties I immediately grabbed them and put them in with my fabric. I wasn't sure what I would do with them but I knew I couldn't just give them away.

I took them out today and looked over them to see if I could decide what to do with them. It didn't take me long to realize that they would make some fabulous headbands!

Ok the bottom one wasn't made out of a tie. That is the waistband of a shirt I was giving away!

Tie Headbands

You will need:
thread and needle
an old tie
thick elastic

Cut the bottom part off of the tie. Since the tie tappers on one end and gets wider on the other I cut out a middle piece so that it was more or less even. Measure and cut what you need. I used the sophisticated measuring technique of wrapping it around my head to see how much I needed.
Take the bottom part of the tie take out the stitching, and remove the liner. You are going to use the bottom part to make the flowers. You can either cut your own version free hand or head over to Wise Craft and read her great tutorial. Then you can use this great template like I did.
Take the top part of the tie and fold over and sew the ends. Then add a small piece of elastic between them so it looks like this.

Once you finish you can attach your pretty flower you made.
Now go and admire you beautiful new headband in the mirror. Mine was instantly taken and worn by someone...

Fabric Flower Hair Clips

During the Summer I picked up some super cute fabric scraps at the craft store. I wasn't sure what I would do with them but they were too cute to pass up. Well I finally pulled out the fabric and decided to use some of it to make some flowers. I did a little searching and found a great pattern on Wise Craft. It was easy to follow and I loved that she provided a template for the flowers. If you would like to make some cute flowers for yourself grab some fabric scraps and print out the template.
You will need to cut out 4 small flowers and 2 large flowers. You will take the small flowers, fold them in half and then layer them like you see above. Place the layered small flowers on the two large flowers.

Then get out your needle and thread and put a couple of stitches in the flowers to hold them in place. Don't cut the thread yet. Find an adorable button for the center and sew it in place.

Once your button is sewn in place your flower is ready to use. You can put on a pin and use it on a cute dress, or you can put it on an alligator clip and use it in your hair. I made these for my niece and plan to use them on a couple of different projects. The pink one is going on a hair clip and the plaid one is going on a belt I made her. The bottom green and blue one is going to go on the the large wooden letter than I made for her. If you can't tell I have been working on some fun Christmas presents for her. I promise I will post details about them soon!