Baby Needs a New Pair of Shoes! - Making over an old pair of flats.

  If you haven't checked out Aunt Peaches' blog, do yourself a favor.

  Ever since I saw this post, and this post, I've wanted to revamp an old pair of shoes. I would live in flats and flip flops, if the Michigan weather would let me, so I thought I would give some new life to a sad, doggie-chewed, pair I found in a local thrift store.

  This is a perfect project for the pretty little scraps you have!

   I started with removing the bows (and saving them for who knows what craft later).

   Since I couldn't find my Tacky Glue, I sprayed the outside of the shoes with spray craft adhesive. Let it sit for a minute before attaching the fabric. This allows it to get tacky and will hold better.

  Cover with fabric and smooth into place.

   When you cut the center, make sure you leave enough to fold inward and glue.

   On the lower edge, I used a box cutter to trim up the fabric.

   I thought a nice trim would do a lot for the raw edges. If you want something less obtrusive, you could always use thin bias tape or fabric paint. For the heal, I made a simple fold like wrapping a gift, and use hot glue to keep it in place.

   When finished, I spread a layer of white glue all over the fabric and trim to seal it in and make sure it stays put.

   When dry, they're ready to wear!

Giving a Plaid Skirt Some Punch

If it wasn't for Thrift (second-hand) stores, I might just sink into a Post-Yard Sale Season depression. I do love a good deal.

I found this beauty recently.

Not so flattering, eh? Yep, it's a full-length, red plaid, wrap around skirt...about 2 sizes too big. Believe it or not, the fact that it reminded me of a blanket actually was a selling point for me (it's cold here in Michigan!). However since I didn't want it to remain blanket-like in appearance, I cut off the plaid dreads going down the one side.

and a quick flip and stitch to keep that edge from raveling...

Next I shortened it to just below my knee (in hindsight I should have cut it just a little shorter, but I was winging it).

Then took it in on each side.

It's pretty much fully lined... how awesome is THAT!?

Now that I had my basic skirt, I wanted to spice it up a little bit. So I cut a nice curve in the front panel.

I don't have a serger, so I finished the edges with a zig zag stitch.

Now as to the extra fabric I cut from the length... I cut the strip in half length-wise, then sewed a hem in one of the strips (the other still had the original hem) and finished the raw edges with a zig zag.

Zig zagged edge                                   Hem        

Sew these two strips together, and I could make a ruffle trim.

The last step was to pin the ruffle on and just stitch it down.

Fin

Remake: Ruffled Poncho

It's that time of year in the North-Midwest. There's frost on the grass in the morning, Apple Cider is a grocery staple, and cozying up in your favorite blanket with a mug of coffee/cocoa/tea is a luxury we all indulge in.

Wouldn't we love it if we could stay wrapped up in our blankets all day? But that would make it a shawl or poncho... well there's an idea! And that's where my two yard sale finds com in.


A chenille yarn throw and a full length knit skirt. Fifty cents each!

As you can see, the blanket is a little worn. The tag on it says "Dry Clean Only", and the easiest way to take care of that is to cut the tag off. Really, I'm not going to dry clean it. I just pop it in the wash to get any shrinking done and over with.

**Note to self: chenille yarn doesn't shrink...it fuzzed out all over the washing machine**

1.)So with everything washed and dried, I trim off the scraggly ends.



2.) Fold the blanket into fourths, and cut a shallow neck hole. You may want to use a shirt as a guide. (Remember: Start small!)



3.) Unfold once (so it's only folded in half: short ends together at the bottom), cut down the center from neck to bottom edge.



4.) Cut strips from the skirt. I cut four strips about 4 inches wide and then sewed three pieces together to make a long ruffle around the neck and down the front, with one piece to trim the bottom edges. Of course how many you need to cut etc. will all depend upon your available materials.

5.) Pin and stitch the trim in place.

6.) Wear! The edges are a little rough yet, I might make my own bias tape and sew that on later.

I just noticed the strings hanging down. LOL I missed those ones but since it's all stitched, it's easily taken care of with a quick snip.

Shirt to Skirt Tutorial: The Fourth and Final Olympic Tee

The second off-white olympic tee is in for a completely different use... and I think it's my favorite! We're going to cut, sew, and add a little embellishment to turn a so-so top into a cute bottom (and we all want a cute bottom).

1.) Cut the Sleeves off keeping it in alignment with the sides of the shirt.

2.) Cut the shoulders to form a straight line at the top.

3.) Cut the bottom to the length you want your skirt, plus an inch (add more if you will be making a casing for your elastic).



4.) We're going to make some easy (What? Yes, I said easy!) pockets using the front half of the sleeves. Cut only the front portion of the sleeves about an inch from the curved seam, then fold inward and stitch down.



5.) On the piece you cut from the bottom, cut in half at the sides. You will use one piece to make your pockets.



I'm not entirely sure which is best... sewing the piece on now, or after you embellish. Here's what I did:

6.) Sew one piece to the pocket-front, stitching across the top/waist.

 

7.) Flip the piece to the inside of the skirt and stitch across the bottom edge, and then down the center. Easy pockets!



8.) Sew the open side seams together-Right-Sides together, of course.

9.) Now for the fun part... embellishing! Using some coordinating lace or trim, make patches to cover the silk-screening.


The Black Lace I was planning on using was a little too see-through. So I cut patches from leftover pieces, to go with the lace.



 

10.) When you are satisfied with your arrangement, sew your patches in place.

*** This is where I am torn about making the pockets prior to embellishing. If I waited to make the pockets I would have had the straight stitching lines running through the patches. However, since I made the pockets first, I had to arrange the patches so as not to sew the pockets shut.

If you opt to embellish first, at this point you would sew in your pocket panel using steps 6 and 7.

11.) Hem the Waist and Bottom edge of your skirt, and add your elastic. I chose to use the shirring technique as I did in the second Blue and Black Skiing shirt.

There you have it. A really simple skirt with pockets.

Light and Fluffy: The Continuing Saga of the Olympic T-Shirts

Set #2: Off White with Colorful Screen Printing



These shirts had me stumped for a few days. I had the same problem as with the blue and black shirts, but I didn't want to just copy my previous makeovers. I decided to borrow an idea from Suzannah at Adventures in Dress Making, who had borrowed the idea from a J. Crew Tank Top (you can't stop the inspiration).

1.) (Using only one of the shirts) I cut the tee at my hip. This is where I will add a fitted band of ribbing.



2.) Cut the bottom piece into strips, and then cut these strips into rectangles and squares of various sizes.



3.) On each of these squares/rectangles stretch two opposite ends, making them roll in.



4.) Here is where I altered the neckline (cut the shoulder seams a couple of inches and stitch down as I stated in yesterday's tutorial), and attached the fitted ribbing band at the bottom. I pinned it in place and stretched the band as I sewed, to fit it to the larger t-shirt edge.



5.) with the two curled edges on the sides, pleat and pin the cut pieces onto the shirt. Stitch down only at the top edge of each piece (I do this by stitching across the entire row).



After they are all stitched down you have a light and fluttery new top!

Tomorrow we tackle the evil twin!