DIY Sew: Rectangle Top

Summer weather calls for casual loose clothing, I saw these pins on pinterest via seamsforadesire, and knew I wanted to try to recreate the summer look:

First figure out what the measurements are by measuring elbow to elbow (34'') and shoulder to mid thigh (30'')

Use a ruler and a disappearing pen to map out the measurements onto the fabric (make sure you fold your fabric in half with good sides touching; you'll probably need about 2 yards of stretch knit fabric)

Cut, then pin and sew up the sides (where the sketch is marked in red)

Lastly, measure 3'' from the center and bottom of shirt and cut in a semi-circle

Wear!

DIY Sew: 1 yard Knit Dress

The challenge: I had exactly 1 yard of knit fabric that I had no idea what to do with.

After making a rectangle top (I'll post soon), I thought I could try the same with this fabric; unfortunately due to the stiffness of the fabric, the shirt turned out really boxy and unattractive. 

I put the project to the side for a day, and then figured I would attempt to make a three quarter sleeve shirt out of it; I grabbed an old shirt from my dresser and traced.  After tracing, I realized I had some extra fabric, so I flared out the bottom with the thought that it might make a cute tunic.

When I tried the shirt on, I realized it could work as a dress, although at this stage it was super short, and I needed more length.  I decided to use my fabric scraps to extend the dress a few inches; and that was that, the dress was born!

If you're interested in attempting, here's what you'll need

1 yard of fabric (http://www.thefabricfairy.com/)

matching thread

scissors

sewing machine

pins

long sleeve shirt (for tracing)

Lay out your fabric with right sides touching; place your shirt on top and trace

Add the a flare to the bottom

Cut; pin up the sides, and sew using a zigzag stitch

Turn the dress right side out; At this point I tried on the dress and it was too short, so I grabbed some fabric scraps, and cut two identical pieces; then with right sides of fabric touching I pinned on the fabric to the front; then I used my second piece and pinned it on the back

Sew the fabric on horizontal first; after that's done, sew up the back and front sides together at the side seams

Last hem the bottom and the sleeves (unfourtnately these pics are pre-hem)

That's it, COMPLETE!!

DIY Cobra Bracelet

After stumbling upon this awesome etsy bracelet shop, I decided I had to have one for myself.

I had such great memories of making cobra bracelets in girl scouts, I thought, what fun would it be to purchase a bracelet when it looked feasible enough to make on my own.

First I had to gather the materials, I picked up a valuepack of craftlace at walmart (around $10); next I needed the right chain, I purchased this at toho shoji in midtown manhattan (note: this is sold by the foot, but it's close to impossible to cut the chain yourself, so ask the sales clerk to cut off exactly how many links you need)

Once I had all materials collected, I enlisted help from my sister, and the two of us brushed up on the cobra pattern using this youtube tutorial.

After some trial and error we felt confidant we were ready to incorporate the chain

For our bracelets we used 6 links of chain, to begin we strung 2 long pieces of lanyard into the first chain, and then cobra stitched (using the youtube tutorial) until the bracelet was long enough for our wrists.

Once the bracelet was long enough we tied a knot at the end

Finally, we cut off excess lanyard, and melted the knot slightly using a flame.

Finito!

Pattern Review: Simplicity E1961

Simplicity E1961 Pattern Review

I love the look of draped cardigans, and when I started sewing, I knew this was a project I wanted to tackle. I found this pattern for $3.

I must admit, I never actually followed a pattern on my own before so this took me an afternoon, but I'm sure if you have a little pattern reading experience this will be a sinch!

First I had to pin the pattern to my fabric and cut, this was a challenge!

Once all my fabric was cut, the project was fairly easy

I only took one picture making the cardi, because I really wanted to focus.

All in all this was a pretty managable project for a beginner; if you're interested in sewing one up for yourself the pattern is available on ebay.

I must say, I was happy with my finished product, and I'll definitely be making more in the future!

tied!

DIY Sew: Striped Pencil Skirt

Here's a more detailed version on how to make the knit mini:

Materials:
1 yd knit fabric
Matching thread
Sewing machine
measuring tape
pins
scissors

With good sides of fabric touching I traced an old pencil skirt

The measurements ended up being 18" wide by 19" tall; in order to achieve the waist I measured two inches in on each side of the width and marked, from there I measured 9 1/2" down and marked, using a ruler I matched the dots. Then pin and cut

Fold down the top 1 1/2 inches on both pieces of fabric, pin and sew using a zigzag stitch

create darts to the back piece of fabric only; to do this measure the waist band, and cut the measurement in half, measure this out and mark (this should be the exact middle); next measure 2 1/2" from the center on each side and mark, from here measure another 1" and mark; next in the middle of your inch mark and measure down 5 1/2" down, mark; connect the dots

pin the darts

sew with a straight stitch

pin and sew up the sides

hem to desired length, by folding up and pinning

The skirt in action!

DIY Sew: Maxi Skirt

Yesterday I attempted my very first maxi skirt, it seemed like a simple enough project but I had no idea what the measurements should be. Luckily last weekend I came across a maxi at the loft, and I thought the easiest way to recreate one was to learn the construction.

Here's what you'll need:

2 yards of knit fabric
matching thread (unfortunately I was out of luck here!)
1 inch elastic
pins
Scissors
measuring tape
Sewing Machine
Skirt (for tracing)

FIrst fold your fabric in half and lay it out; place a skirt over your fabric, and trace around the skirt

Pin up both sides of the skirt and sew using a zig zag stitch

Fold the top of the skirt down an inch and a half, pin all around

Sew all the way around but leave an inch and half open
Next measure your waist and cut the elastic to that measurement plus two inches
Place a safety pin in the elastic and thread it through the waist band

When the elastic is completely threaded through overlap it by 2 inches and sew the elastic together using a straight stitch, make three different lines of stitching to ensure the elastic is secure

Fold the fabric back over the elastic and sew up the remaining inch and half of fabric

Turn inside out... and wear!

DIY: Fabric Covered Headbands

For some reason I just love headbands, maybe because I'm extremely lazy when it comes to styling my hair. In any event, I have this one jcrew headband that I absolutely can't live without, so when brainstorming for new craft projects, I figured recreating something just like it would be very useful

This is how my version turned out!

I can't express how easy this is to make, you can whip it up in under 10 minutes.

Here's what you'll need:

16" by 3" piece of fabric

plain headband 33 mm (1 3/4in)(I ordered a bunch off etsy.com)

scissors

double sided clear tape (you can buy this at a hardware store)

1. Cut a piece of fabric 16" by 3"

2. Cover the top of the headband with double sided tape

3. Figure out where the middle of your fabric is and line it up to the middle of the headband, press into place, then gently smooth out the fabric on the top of the headband

4. Place tape on the bottom insides of the headband, fold over your fabric

5. Cover the underside of the headband with double sided tape

6. Fold over fabric pressing and smoothing as you go

7. do the same to the other side

8. Complete!