It’s April!

It’s time to change up my Shantilly frame again! I’ve been making lots of rolled fabric rosettes from remnants—the perfect handwork project for road trips or watching TV. (I use this tutorial but stitch instead of glue.) So, while waiting for REAL flowers to pop out, I decided to bunch my fabric versions into a colorful garden with a peeping PEEP left over from my spring garland for a-la-mode. Happy April . . . and don’t pull TOO many April Fool’s tricks today!  ♥  P.S. Here are the red frame restyles for November, December, January, and February and the green frame design for March.

March!

Even though I knew we’d have more snow this week (and we did!), I had a free day on Saturday so I went ahead and dressed our home for spring, including a new GREEN Shantilly frame! For March, I found a thought-provoking Emily Dickinson quote about luck, snipped a tiny calendar from a bookmark in a Better Homes and Gardens mailer, and made some rolled fabric rosettes (from this tutorial, only stitched instead of glued). Happy *almost* spring! ♥  P.S. Here are the red frame restyles for November, December, January, and February. 

A Quote I Love . . .

When I saw a touching layout designed by Ellie on My Little Bunny Cupcake, I knew I’d found the perfect quote to put on my card when I give a fabric flower to a friend: Just living isn’t enough . . . one must also have freedom, sunshine, and a little flower. Thank you, Ellie and Hans Christian Andersen! ♥  P.S. My dress form is wearing my scarf crocheted by our bloggy friend Tamara. Isn’t it just lovely?

Sleepover!

Did you love sleepovers when you were a little girl? They were my favorite! Last weekend some fun girls in my family drove in for a “Crafty Cousins Slumber Party.”  We went out to eat, chatted, crafted, slept, ate breakfast casserole and cinnamon roll-ups, went to a big craft show (where my lovely daughter-in-law Shannon launched Shantilly!), and ended with lunch out with my dad. We made fabric flower brooches, Christmas cards (thanks Margo!) and earrings (thanks Karen!). If you heard laughter floating through the air Saturday night, now you know why. ♥

Trixie Lixie Knicker Kits

Can you BELIEVE that  Pillows A-La-Mode is (*blush*) showing her knickers??? Really I just want to give a shout out to my friend Tracy at Trixie’s Blog who gifted me with the knicker kit shown below in a recent giveaway. The kit includes a pattern in three sizes, fabric, elastic, and a “NICE KNICKERS” label. They take less than an hour to cut and sew, and they’re SUPER cute and comfortable. Then you can use the pattern again and again with your own fat quarters to make more! You can check out the knicker kits at the Trixie Lixie Haberdashery Boutique and find a detailed tutorial here on Trixie’s Blog. Thank you, Tracy! 

P.S. I had enough fabric left over to make two flowers with vintage earring centers! Click here for a supply list and link to the tutorial. ♥

 

What can you make with a red sweater?

I got this bright red, gently-used sweater along with a couple of other items for free at a consignment store with a Groupon gift certificate! It was too wide and too short and stretched out here and there, so I immediately knew it was going to become my next What can you make with a . . . project.

First, I made the heart mini-pillows I shared in this post. Then I made the big sweater pillow I shared in this post. After that, I made a business card/gift card/credit card/reward card case with  floral pockets and a vintage earring button closure (click here for a great tutorial from The Crafty Cupboard) and three flower brooches with vintage earring centers. The neck and hem ribbing I hadn’t used up as ruffles on the big pillow will be package wraps (picture a small box wrapped in kraft paper with these pretty red buttoned bands stretched around them). Finally, I cut all the little bits into triangles and made bunting by stitching them onto the fun button-design ribbon I recently bought from Lizzie Rose Jewelry.

Another fun haul! ♥

What can you make with an embroidered jacket?

Awhile back I wrote a post about my blogging friend Laura of As Time Goes . . . Buy and how she inspired me to do the Good Neighbor Award project and refashion for my one year blog anniversary. Laura has been traveling, and I’ve been sewing, but she’s home, and I’m finished . . . so today is the reveal! Laura, your coat is now on my “What Can You Make With A . . .” page, and your package is in the mail! I was able to make:

• A pillow . . . of course! 🙂
• A fabric flower with beads from a vintage earring in the center
• A coffee cup cozy
• A tissue cozy (Thank you, Little Bit Funky!)
• Two jacket-sleeve notecard pouches
• A Chanel pouch makeover
• An embroidery-hoop wall hanging with Laura’s blog name
• A framed fabric-under-glass for writing notes, menus, or welcome messages for guests
• A garment dust jacket for one of Laura’s lovely outfits (Thank you, Schlosser Designs!)
• A tote bag with a jacket pocket on each side and a braided leather belt handle
• And, last but not least, all the leftover bits made into mini-bunting!  ♥

What can you make with a sundress?

For my one year blog anniversary, I invited you to nominate people you’ve met through the blogging world whom you would like to have as next-door neighbors . . . and to tell why. It was SO heartwarming to read the lovely comments that came in from all around the world! The blogger with the MOST nominations was then invited to send me a once-loved garment to remake into some fun treasures (a-la “What can you make with a flannel shirt?,” “What can you make with a lace tank?,” and “What can you make with a polo shirt?“) and return. The winner was Kelly of  Cobwebs, Cupcakes & Crayons!  Kelly said, “After the shock wore off I ran to my closet to decide what I was going to send.  I chose a little sundress that has a lot of happy memories attached to it, but now that I’m a mama seems a little, well…SHORT.  I know that I will never wear it again, so I am very excited to send it off!”  So . . .today is the big reveal! In addition, this project will have a permanent home on the “What Can You Make With A . . .” page on my header.

• I couldn’t resist using the bottom of the sundress with its lacy underskirt for another dress . . . this time for Kelly’s adorable daughter Annabelle! A bright pink T-shirt from Target made the perfect top. (Click here and here for more little girl’s T-shirt dress ideas.)
• The zippered back of the sundress was perfect for the back of a pillow cover, and I added the pretty label and butterfly that I snipped from the inside neckline. The pillow front is a combination of dress fabric, T-shirt fabric, a vintage hanky, pale pink lace, and lime-green embroidery.
• The bodice of the sundress is now a jewelry pouch! The ribbons form the casings, and the dress straps are the strings. The lining of the pouch is made from the dress lining for a soft, shiny finish.
• With seven circles of fabric, three stacked buttons, and a bit more of the lace from the bottom of the sundress, I made a fabric flower to pin onto a jacket, hat, or headband.
• A small rectangle of dress fabric and T-shirt fabric along with a bit of green dotted fabric and some buttons and ribbon were just the right ingredients for a Christmas mini-pillow ornament.
• While pondering Kelly’s blog name, I thought of embroidering three C’s onto a bit of fabric and framing it. Suddenly I thought, “Hmm . . . if the Scrabble letter C is worth 3 points, I could use that instead.” I ran to look it up, and . . . it is! I KNOW Kelly didn’t choose “Cobwebs, Cupcakes & Crayons” based on this fact . . . but I was excited! 🙂 After several experiments, I ended up with a collage of dress fabric, T-shirt fabric, lace, scrapbook paper, and a paper Scrabble tile in a hot pink frame. (The back of the frame is also magnetized for a frig or file cabinet.)
• Finally, I was down to a small pile of random scraps. Not ready to give up quite yet, I decoupaged them onto a plastic bangle bracelet. 🙂

Done! Kelly . . . your package is in the mail!  ♥

Colorful Fabric Memo Board

Once one of my teen-age sons accompanied me to a teacher supply store. The next thing I knew, he was sitting on a bench outside. When I asked him why he left, he said, “Mom! It looks like a rainbow threw up in there!” So, if you’ve ever felt the same way, it’s probably best to move on to another blog now. 🙂

Today’s project is a fabric memo board . . . but for holding girly hair things, like:

• flowers,
• lace bow headbands,
• and button hairbands.

Click here for a tutorial (starting with a cardboard box!) and here for a photo of the zebra-print version filled with flower hair clips and pins. I can’t wait to give this one to a special little girl for her birthday! ♥

Road Trip Projects

We spent fifteen hours in the car this weekend for a fun trip to see family. In my project bag I brought along . . .

(1) blue and gold scrapbook paper to cut into circles for garland for my class reunion next weekend,

(2) fabric and buttons to make flowers, and

(3) two embroidery projects to finish (posts to come!).

I also received these adorable earrings as a surprise gift from our hostess! They’re created by a nonprofit called Unboxed Art . . . please check out their website when you get a chance, and have a lovely week! ♥

 

 

What can you make with a flannel shirt?

This was a perfectly nice flannel shirt . . . soft fabric, pretty colors. But it didn’t fit quite right, and I didn’t like the roll-tab sleeves, and even with the ribbon belt that came with it I felt more lumberjack than feminine when I wore it. So, rather than sticking it in the back of my closet, I took my scissors to it!

Vest: Remove the collar, button and buttonhole plackets, pockets, and sleeves. Roll under the raw edges (using lace seam binding for the armholes to help with the curve) and topstitch. Sew pretty buttons into the buttonholes on the pocket flaps. Cut the ribbon belt in half and stitch the pieces to the top fronts of the vest for a tie . . . great with a white T-shirt and button necklace!

Placket Pillow: Stitch the button placket to one piece of coordinating fabric and the buttonhole placket to another. Button the two pieces together to form the pillow front. Cut a piece from one of the shirt sleeves for the back. Sew right sides together, turn, and stuff.

Pocket Pillow: Sew the tabs from the sleeves to a piece of coordinating fabric, then stitch the pockets under them so that the buttonholes on the tabs fasten to the buttons on the pockets. Fold right sides together, sew, turn, and stuff.

Fabric Flower: Cut out seven circles from the sleeves and form them into a flower. Add a pretty button in the middle  and a pin on the back.

Fabric Gift Bag: Gather the bottom of the collar and wrap it into a flower shape. Add buttons in the middle for a-la-mode. Then stitch up a simple bag with a handle from the shirt sleeve fabric and sew the flower on the front.

Mini Origami Lotus Bag: Add a square of coordinating fabric to a square of sleeve fabric plus a complementary color of  craft string for pull cords . . . just like the larger version, but a perfect size for a tiny gift or piece of jewelry. ♥

Flower Pillows

I’ve missed making pillows, so after church and lunch out with Dave on Sunday I spent a happy afternoon at my sewing machine. And, since my creative blogging friends suggested using some of my road trip flowers as pillow adornment, I did just that . . . adding in one sweater flower as well. All of the fabrics are remnants or upcycled curtains, and all of the pillows are 14 x 14 inches. I can’t wait to start giving them to my family and friends! ♥

Placemat Flower Display

After adding pins to the backs of some of my road trip flowers, I needed a place to store/display them while they’re waiting to become gifts and one of my World Market bargain bin placemats works perfectly! I simply stitched two ribbon loops on the back of the placemat, pinned on the flowers, and hung it on my sewing room wall. I love how bright and cheery it looks! Oh, and here are links to some more placemat projects:

• Click here and here for placemat tote bags.
• Click here and here for roll-up pencil kits.
• Click here and here for placemat pouches.

Happy Monday! ♥

Needle Book A-La-Mode

Yesterday I got to work on a fun, creative, writing assignment all day (involving children’s poetry!) and had a lovely family dinner, but I just had to make something quick-‘n-pretty before bedtime so I decided to fancy up my needle book. First of all, I originally only spent 15 minutes making it. (Click here for super-easy directions.) Second, I use it every single day. And third, I’ve been seeing some BEAUTIFUL . . . as in heirloom-quality . . . quilted and embroidered needlebooks from my blogging friends. This definitely doesn’t rate as a work of art, but now it has (a) a flower on the front, (b) a felt-backed decorative button on the inside front cover, and (c) a rick-rack trimmed felt pocket on the inside back cover for some thread, a tiny ripper, and a small pair of scissors. I love it! And, to top it off, I learned how to make this collage on PicMonkey. What a good day! ♥

“Yes, Please!”

My dad called from a garage sale yesterday and asked if I would like some clip-on earrings for my sewing/crafting projects. “Yes, please!”  Here they are . . . I love all these new additions to my collection! And here are a few more fabric flowers I made on a (much shorter!) road trip this weekend with vintage earrings and buttons for centers. Click here for a supply list and link to a tutorial and here to see more flowers. ♥

Road Trip Flowers

Here are all the flowers I made on our road trip today! A new trick I tried on some of them was stacking or clustering different buttons, either to highlight key colors in a print or to add a little extra a-la-mode to a solid. Click here for a list of supplies and a link to the tutorial. ♥

Road Trip Project!

I’m going to be in the car for 7-8 hours tomorrow and wanted to take something to work on. I’ll share what I came up with in case you have a road trip coming up, too. 🙂

• First, go to The Renegade Seamstress and check out Beth’s fabric flower tutorial . . . super-easy! (I stitch instead of glue, but either way turns out great.)
• Go through your remnants and cut out circles–seven of each fabric.  I use a peanut butter jar lid as a template (mmm . . . peanut butter . . . ) and all types of fabrics–solids, prints, wovens, and knits.
• Put the seven circles in a baggie along with a button, beads, or earring for the flower center and a spool of matching thread.
• Throw the baggies into your project bag along with a needle and some scissors, and you’re good to go!

I’ll put the pins and/or clips on the back when I get home, and hopefully I’ll have LOTS of pretty flowers to show you! ♥

Fabric Memo Board Plus . . .

Here’s how I actually used the memo board I made . . . to display the fabric flowers I made for my beautiful daughter-in-law Shannon’s birthday! I had fun trying out lots of different kinds, as detailed below. However, I can’t say that I followed ANY of the directions to a T . . . stitching instead of gluing, trimming a bit here and there, that sort of thing . . . and each one has both a pin and a clip stitched to the back so it’ll work as a-la-mode for either clothes or hair.  Also, purchasing the pattern wasn’t a necessity, since tons of free patterns and tutorials are available online, but I found it for $2.99 (marked down from $18.95, which is crazy!) and it got me off to a good start. I’m definitely hooked on making flowers now!  Oh, and here are links to the bloggers who helped me . . . thank you! ♥

How Joyful

Ruffles and Stuff

The Renegade Seamstress

Kimono Reincarnate

Flower A from the pattern with Grandma Leona’s button

Flower B from the pattern with Grandma Leona’s button

Flower C from the pattern with Grandma Leona’s button

Flower D from the pattern with embroidery floss

Pattern from How Joyful with Aunt Vitha’s earring

Tutorial from Ruffles and Stuff with Aunt Vitha’s earring

Tutorial from Chic Envelopments with Grandma Leona’s button

Tutorial from Kimono Reincarnate with beads