Day 141 - sweetheart blouse

After the phone disaster of last week I haven't had the means to blog for a while. I have been doing things though so here is a little peak at a blouse I am creating from a dress and an old shirt. It's only loosely basted together currently as I am still working on it.

Day 127 - Dying patterns with Bleach

I've wanted to try this for ages, I think I may have a bug now, so expect to see many experiments with bleach dying. I initially cut out a stencil of a fairy wing, and cut out a few shapes for detail, but as you can see the template didn't hold the bleach back particularly. Infact, I used plain white paper which absorbed the bleach. So I ended up with a random pattern which I don't mind at all. I plan to alter this long-sleeved shirt as well, there are holes running up one entire sleeve.

Day 125 - DIY weaving and beading...

It's take a few days to put this together, things would have gone a lot smoother if I didn't have to drill each bead so it would thread on, but there is something satisfying about this process. Anyway, I started this project with a pair of leggings, I cut a neck hole and cut strips to thread onto beads. Obviously it is particularly see through but I have designed it to go over the top of something plain and simple, like a black dress. I need to finish off the ends in some way so they are neat but I'm nearly there. I thought I'd just share my progress rather than keeping another day of silence.

Day 118 - Easy DIY Maxi skirt

Once upon a time this skirt was a length of fabric and a pair of shorts. After a little ruffling around the edges and cutting to shape it is now a beautiful maxi skirt. It has some lovely movement to it and I am in love with the contrast of hard and soft. This really was a simple project, I started with the shorts, cutting the crotch seams and shaping the lower hem before I began to pin my skirt fabric with little pleats. Make sure your skirt fabric is large enough to go around your legs twice, this way you can add the odd pleat and give it a little volume and space to move. I didn't even sew the long edges of my fabric together, instead I chose to overlap the open edges so there is a little slit but nothing too revealing. I had to double my fabric over so that it wasn't ridiculously see through.

Day 117 - elbow patches

Today is a very easy project, I've simply put some elbow patches on a very cosy jumper. I used last over pleather from Nat's costume making.  As I said very simple but I like :) x

Day 113 - diy button belt

Well this is a comfortable and stylish addition to my wardrobe.  The buttons are sewn directly onto elastic, so it has a lot of natural stretch and sits comfortably in my hips.  Many hours off buttoning and watching Buffy made this happen.

Day 110 - upcycled buttoned t-shirt

I've used an old stretchy top and a mans shirt to create today's project.  Using the buttons I've added some interesting detail and some extra room for comfort.  I used the original cuffs to create little cap sleeves. I think I'm going to add some hook and eyes between the buttons. 

Day 108 - overnight bag from dungarees

I started this on Sunday but after snapping a needle and getting frustrated I have up for a few days.  This morning I decided to take a few steps back, undo some of the work I had already done and start again. I used a pair of dungarees that were way too big and slightly too yellow.
I cut the bib and back off and cut above the crotch to get the basic shape and cut a lining to match. I decided to use the original side seams as the front which has given it a more interesting look and taken away the obvious trouser design. The straps are recycled from the original straps and I've even incorporated one of the buckles to make the length adjustable.  Very practical and Me, im just going to continue adding starry patches to decorate.

Day 106 - diy upcycled fashion

Well I am in love with today's creation.  I still need to go over all the stitching but I'm so happy with the way it turned out.  I used long grey socks with pink stars as my inspiration and as some subtle print on the inside of the arm and waist. To bring the pattern into the rest of the top I did a simple star cut out with some pink fabric underneath.  I may add some more fabric to the bottom hem as its a bit shorter than I like my tops. We'll see what tomorrow brings...

Day 102 - furry waistcoat

I've been sort of working on this for a couple of days now but it's so cosy I keep just wearing it rather than sewing it.  Today I added some Chinese frog claps and now is even better :)

Day 79 - DIY christmas jumper

If I had known how simple this was I would have made one for all my family. Oh well, next year. I spent days thinking about what I would do on my Christmas jumper, I didn't want anything to christmassy, or tacky, but I did want it to be cute. Even when I found the red jumper I wasn't sure what to do. It was only while tidying away some of my present making that I settled on a white beard. A little twist on the moustache jumpers I have been seeing (and coveting!) Simply made with white felt and a bit of stitching.

Day 49 - DIY wrap around skirt.

Well, today has been a bit of a faff, I didn't make what I had set out too, which was just a more comfortable, interesting pair of trousers from an old pair of jeans. I have such bad luck with trousers even when I'm not making them...so to save my sanity I made an asymmetric wrap around skirt using the fabric from the jeans and some blue corduroy, I need to adjust the waist band as is not straight and I would also like to add some loops for the wrap around string to go through, but after all the sewing I've done today I'm happy to just sit in it. Cat seems to like it :)
 

Day 47 - DIY fur lined cuffs and collar

I am completely in love with the Cat jumper I made the other day, and as promised I cosied it up a bit more by adding some fur to the collar, cuffs and waist. Now it is totally snuggly and warm for winter. I used a sort of fluffy towelling rather than faux fur, as it is softer and doesn't have the same inclination to matt and washes well.

Day 44 - DIY Cute cat jumper

So I am ready to embrace my status as crazy cat lady, though one is more than enough for me. I chose a plain jumper that has been bugging me for a while and tarted it up with a bit of thread. Tor decided he could help me start by sitting on it and posing, thanks kitty! That's it for today but I have some cosy ideas to finish it off.

Day 39 - DIY skeletal cut-out T shirt

Happy Halloween! I'm gearing up to host a spooky party tomorrow evening, hence the decorations. Today it was time to think of a costume to go with my Sugar Skull make-up plan. I was going to just wear black and keep it simple, before Pinterest inspired me to play with the skeletal theme. I found an old white T shirt which I turned inside out and drew on in felt pen. I used my mannequin to help discern where bones lived and the Man picked at details until he was satisfied it was reasonably correct. A bit of snipping and then the difficult job of finding something to wear underneath. As it was a giant T shirt I used safety pins to bring in the sides a little and give it a bit more shape
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Day 33 - DIY hybrid top

I planned to make a skirt today, something nice and warm for winter, but I couldn't find the right fabric in my studio, or at least enough of the right fabric. So instead I took a frilly blouse and an old halter neck and made a smart hybrid. It's always a challenge matching a jersey fabric with cotton or something without stretch. There is a bit of a tug around the back but I think I managed to add enough room by pulling the jersey to full stretch as I stitched.
Please excuse the selfie...

Day 24 - Alternative to hemming

I have a problem with long trousers, or perhaps just the short legs. Either way it's a nightmare finding trousers that don't trail. So today my mission was to hem these large trousers, but I didn't feel like just taking a few inches off the bottom and having knee shapes around my shins, so instead I have done a sort of ribbed technique using darts which adds some interesting detail as well as hiking them up an appropriate amount. As it turns out I'm so short I had to hem them a bit anyway but not quite as much.
This project will continue until tomorrow, and hopefully they will look spectacular. I'll also include the original photo as they are pretty different already. Sadly my computer is having a moment so I'm not sure how long until I'll be blogging properly and editing my photos etc... SAD FACE!

Day 19 - Patchwork skirt

Over the years I have collected an array of cartoon kitsch fabrics, from Thunderbirds and Hulk to Winnie-the-Pooh and Peter Rabbit. They are pretty much the only fabric I have kept after my mega clean out this year. So I've got a lot of ideas to come up with, today it's a patchwork edged skirt. I used an old pair of trousers for the skirt, cutting the legs off and opening the crotch, I made triangles from the legs and stitched them on overlapping to the still intact waistband (with pockets!). It's a bit squiffy but I like the overall shape. For the patchwork I assembled my patches and stitched them into a long strip, which I fed through hair straighteners while folding in the seams. Basically making a really thick bias binding without getting the iron out. Another pinterest find! So here is a skirt for me to wear out dancing this evening. :)

Day 11 - DIY lace insert

As far as Day 8's pink balloon goes, I think it's safe to call it a fail. I popped the balloon too early and the whole thing sort of collapsed. I will go back to this idea (it was meant to be a piggy bank) as I do really want to start saving some money. But not today, instead I took a plain long sleeved top and some lace and made an insert. I like the result but think I have more to add to make it more comfortable, and more me...I particularly want to do something to the sleeves and perhaps the neckline. So watch this space...

Day 3 - DIY shirt to skirt...The shkirt

Before

I started this Home is where the Chaos project on Pinterest a few weeks ago, collecting ideas and inspiration. I can't take any credit for this idea, but I'm pleased it was an internet inspired project that actually happened, rather than being put in one of those 'Great Ideas' folders and never looked at again. (I have many...)

After

So Day 3 began with a mans shirt, First I chopped the sleeves off, and trimmed the rest of the shirt to just above the curve of the arm hole. Then I rolled a top hem and stitched it down with enough of a loop to hold some thin elastic. Now at this point, you have a skirt, there are extra baggy bits around the hip so the next step is to straighten out the side seams. I played with the idea of a pocket but eventually (with some helpful suggestions from The Man) I decided to replace the buttons with something a bit more interesting. After much deliberation I chose some mini pewter compasses, and then added a little anchor patch to the bottom corner.

Overall I like the idea, but I'm not particularly happy with the finish. I would like to unstitch the waistband and try again, perhaps taking it in a little more at the side seams as there is a lot of excess fabric which bunches unpleasantly. I tried to stretch the fabric out at the front which helps a bit. Either way I'll be wearing it to school tomorrow. The nautical element is a little homage to my year of boats too, not my intention but definitely my aesthetic.