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!