Christmas in July

Recently I took a sewing class at my local quilt store down the street in Concord, NC, We're Sew Creative. They really are sew creative and I had a lot of fun learning some basics I should have learned when I got my machine 3 years ago.

At the end of the class we did a little project to put to use our new found knowledge of our sewing machines. It was a very simple and functional pocket tissue pouch. Sew 2 rectangles together, turn them out, sew up the ends, and turn them out again. OK, maybe that's a little over simplified but they really are easy and fun to make.

When I got home I made quite a few of these because I knew so many people I thought would enjoy them, a birthday, and a thank you gift. Plus I kept thinking, "OH! These fabrics will look even more cute together than the last two!"

Anyway I ending up sending one of these to my grandmother (Mother's Mother) and received a phone call today expressing how much she loved it! Not only did she love it but she thought it would be the perfect Christmas gift for her 7 friends that she eats dinner with every night. I'm flattered that she thinks so and, of course, happy to make them for her.

If you know anything about me, I'm always trying to think of more complicated ways to do easy things and that is what brings me to this blog post.

My Grandmother (Dad's Mother) gifted me a nice stash of fabric that I have been finding use for all sorts of things! Part of this stash includes these strips of fabric (presumably for quilt binding) in all sorts of cute prints and colors. All I can think about when I see these strips is how hard she must have worked to cut them all so I feel that I must use them!

Sewing Strips Together 

•  Always sew right sides together.
• Line up raw edges as you go, check often.
• Press the seam after adding each strip. (I press the back and then the front as well for each strip)

This is really very easy to do, it just takes patience.  Especially if your bobbin thread gets all tangled up when you are trying to connect your first two strips of the project. Your machine may try to sabotage your project but you must press on! :p

Eventually I ended up with this below! I added strips until my width was 7.5" (actually a little more.)

And here is a close up of the pretty patterns!

Cutting Rectangles

Next I laid the sewn together strips out on the cutting mat to do some measuring. Lucky me! My strips all put together measured 22" long and I needed 21". After I got over the awe of my good craft fortune, I cut my long rectangle into three 7x7.5" rectangles. You use one rectangle per pouch, the other 2 rectangles are for future pouches.

Next I chose and cut the fabric that would be my inside liner.

Sewing the Pouch

Then I sewed them, right sides together, leaving about a 3 inch hole so that I could turn them out. The hardest part about this was making sure all my little seam folds would lay flat once they were sewn, you just need to pay extra special attention to this so that it won't be lumpy when you are through.

Then I turned it right side out and pressed all the seams.

Next you do a little special fold and sew up the two short ends. The end result, once you turn it out one more time, is a pocket tissue pouch! I think the strips turned out very cute. Now just 6 more to make. :)

And there you have it! I think these make super cute gifts and they are quick and easy to make up. I hope you make some and find someone special to give them to!

-Michelle

UPDATE===============================================

Hello again,

Just wanted to update on this project now that I am all done!  I made a total of 4 more after the three in the pattern I posted about earler. Two I did only red/pink strips and the other two I did only blue/teal strips. They came out so cute! (I have the ends of both and I'm thinking about stitching those together and seeing what happens...)

I also zig-zag stitched some brown paper bags together and printed up some labels with my information on them. :)

Here is the final product! (One of each color combination)

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Thanks for reading!

-Michelle

It's a Circle Within a Square!

I was very nervous about slippery, stretchy fabric when I got a whole free yard of fabric in the mail the other day. It came with some Jersey Knit fabric I ordered and it seemed like the perfect way to practice in this unexplored territory. I was also encouraged by a great article from Pretty Prudent and had the perfect tutorial in mind, here it is!

Little Girl's Square Cut Circle Skirt

I found a super cute tutorial for a little girls skirt. It reminds me of Tinkerbell and what little girl doesn't like Tinkerbell? I had a skirt similar to this in high school that was black and white stripes and it was one of my favorites.

I have been eying this adorable skirt for quite some time since I found it over at Make it & Love it. You take a square of fabric and cut a circle in the middle a little bigger than the waste it will be fitted to. You then attach the circle you just cut, to one of these adorable and colorful waste bands. And that's it!

Sadly, I do not have said adorable waste bands so, I had to improvise a little to hide my ugly white elastic. 

Also, I wanted a little more coverage so that maybe little Emory could wear this without leggings during the summer.

The Skirt

With all these things in mind I decided to do two squares. One square I turned 90 degrees on top of the other, so that I would end up with 8 points instead of 4.

I also decided I would sandwich my elastic in between the two square layers. One advantage I found with this is that I could leave a tiny opening in between the two layers and cut the elastic a little longer than needed. I went ahead and stitched the elastic so that it will fit now, but when she grows and it needs letting out, I have very easy access to the elastic without cutting into anything.


The Hair Bow

 

Of course there is a hair bow. I mean what else are you supposed to do with the leftover fabric? It also gave me a chance to look through some of the fabric that my wonderful grandmother gave me. 

There will definitely be pictures posted, of Emory in her new outfits and accessories, as soon as I can get my hands on that baby! (BABY, I can't keep saying that much longer, she is growing up so quick!) So check back soon!

Hair Bow How-To

Today I spent the day making hair bows for my boyfriends niece to match the cupcake dress I just made her, (my first attempt at pattern sewing and it went fairly well!) I think the hair bows turned out pretty cute so I decided to share how to make them with you! These little hair bows are very easy to make; I made several in one afternoon! Essentially all you need to know is how to make a whip stitch, running stitch, and a slip stitch. So, let's get started!

Things You Need:

• In this case, fabric ribbon is preferable.

• Use any size, color, shape buttons you like. I got my cupcake buttons at Hobby Lobby.

• Cut a circle out of a 5x5 square of fabric by folding it into quarters and cutting a rounded edge. Alternately, find something around the house to trace with approximately a 5" diameter.

• Frixion markers are the absolute best for marking on fabric. Mark all over your fabric and then iron it away; like it was never there at all. Best investment I've ever made in a sewing tool.

Prepping and Gathering the Ribbon:

Step 1. Cut a long piece of thread, thread your needle and then double the thread so that the two ends meet. Tie a knot at the end.Take your 8 1/2" piece of ribbon and fold it in half, right sides together. Line up the raw edges, this is the point when you can carefully melt the edges of the ribbon with your lighter so they don't fray. Next, sew a whip stitch straight across, (top dotted line in picture above.) After you are done stitching, unfold the ribbon and gently tug to make sure that your stitches are secure. No need to cut your thread yet.

 Step 2. Now press your new seam over to one side and hold it down with your thumb. With your needle, carefully pick up one little thread of the backside of the ribbon and then go through the two joined edges. Repeat this until you get to the end. This makes a crisp, sturdy seam on the outside of the ribbon. Cut your thread. You should still have quite a bit of the thread, if so, tie another knot in the end. If not, cut a new piece, thread, and knot as in step 1.

 Step 3. Now, starting on one side of the seam, sew a running stitch along the outside edge of the ribbon to the other side of the seam. I marked my edge with a dotted line so you could see.

 Step 4. Gather the ribbon by pulling on the needle side of the string so that the ribbon bunches up. Be careful not to pull the beginning knot through the ribbon.  Spread the gathers so that they are more even and leave yourself a bit of hole that is about the size of a dime. Tie off the thread by sticking the needle through the edge of the ribbon and putting the needle through the loop before pulling it taut. I do this a couple times for good measure. Cut your thread and any little tails you have left behind.

Making the Yo-yo:

  Step 5. Thread your needle as in step 1. After you have cut your circle out, hold your circle so that the wrong side of the fabric is facing you. Sew a running stitch all along the outer edge of the circle, (along the dotted line in the photo above.) Once you have gone all the way around, your circle should look similar to the picture above, right.

Step 6. Pull the needle side of the thread tight, careful not to pull the beginning knot through the fabric. Your circle will look like a little drawstring coin purse. Next, flatten out the bottom so that it looks like the picture above. Secure the opening by passing your needle through from one side of folds to the other, making sure to catch some folds in the process, and then making a knot. I do this three or four times until I feel it is secure. No need to cut your thread.

Putting it All Together:

 Step 7. Thread the ribbon ring onto the needle and thread so that it sits on top of the yo-yo you just made.

Step 8. From the inside of the ribbon ring, slip or whip stitch all around the inner edge, connecting the ribbon with the folds on top of the yo-yo. Be careful not to go through all the way to the back of the yo-yo because it begins to look messy if you do. This doesn't need to be perfect because it will not be seen. Once you get all the way around you're all set to move on! No need to cut your thread unless you are running low.

Step 9. Sew on your button. I try to sew the button mostly to the yo-yo folds in the center. I like to start underneath the button, catching a few folds, up through the first button hole, down through the second, catch a couple of folds and then out between the ribbon ring and yo-yo. It's not an exact science, do whatever makes you feel the most secure.

 Step 10.  That's it! Make sure you knot your tail as close to the fabric as possible between the two layers, cut all your tails, and you're done! You can sew or hot glue these to hair clips, headbands, clothes, bags etc...

They really do turn out cute, I can't wait to see it in Emory's hair!

I hope this has all made sense. Comment if you have any questions. Post pictures if you make your own! This is my first tutorial so constructive criticism is welcome. :)

-Michelle