Flashback Friday.

Here's this week's Flashback Friday:

My famous SIL Angie is our guest of horror -- I mean honor today. You should check out the adorable quilt she just made.  I think I need to copy it. Except I better learn to machine quilt first. I won't hold my breath for that one.  Her mom made the above purple number for her.  Wasn't she cute?  It looks like she even had a matching hair bow.  And is that a fake tattoo on her hand?  I would have been so jealous.

She also was kind enough to lend us this picture of her in her more mature years.  She said her and her friends loved to "make" dresses which were basically tubes of fabric.  I think I see some shoulder straps on Angie's dress though, so that's pretty fancy.  It makes me feel better to know that other teenagers enjoyed dressing up as much as me and my friends did :).  What I wouldn't do to know what the caption sticker next to Angie said...  Thanks so much Angie!

Would YOU like to be a part of Flashback Friday? Email me by clicking on the button to your right. Send me a pic or two, a short description, and a link to your blog (if you'd like), and you'll be featured on an upcoming Flashback Friday.

Nursing Cover.

I offered to make my friend a nursing cover a few months ago.  Sorry!  I'm sure she thought I was just biding my time until she didn't even need it anymore.  I really wasn't though.  First I was waiting for Material Girls to get the Amy Butler Love home dec fabric in, and then it was Christmas, etc.  Then I was at Ikea the other day and found this fabric instead.  I thought it might be good for being gender-neutral.  I sure do like to change my mind.

I used this tutorial (yes, my own -- I still have to look at it every time I make a nursing cover for the measurements, somehow I just can't ever remember them).

See you tomorrow for Flashback Friday!

Tutorial: Fabric Flower Valentine Wreath.

Description:
This tutorial will guide you through the steps to make a Fabric Flower Valentine Wreath.  Beginner sewing skills are required, and anyone from a new crafter to a "Martha" will enjoy this project.

Materials Needed:
Sewing machine and thread
Glue gun and 8-12 glue sticks
1 yd 45" wide red broadcloth
1 yd 45" wide pink broadcloth
Heart shaped floral foam
2 yd 1-2" wide ribbon

Fabric to Cut:
Red broadcloth: cut 25-30 2"x30" strips
Pink broadcloth: cut 25-30 2"x30" strips
Note: the longer the strips are cut, the larger the flowers will be.  The larger the flowers are, the less you will need to cover your entire wreath, so adjust your strips accordingly.  The wreath pictured used strips varying from 15-22" in length.

Directions:

Make Fabric Roses
1. Fold each fabric strip in half lengthwise and press.

2. Using a basting stitch, stitch 1/4" from raw edge along entire length of each fabric strip.  Leave threads long on each end and do not backstitch.

3. Gently pulling on TOP threads only, gather strips slightly.  Tie off threads at each end to secure gathers.

4. Using glue gun, fold one end of each strip 1/4" toward rest of strip and glue.  Place thin line of glue along basted stitch line and wrap strip around itself, a few inches at a time.

5. Continue placing glue and wrapping strip around until rose is complete.

Attach Roses to Foam Heart

6. Beginning of front face of heart, glue roses to wreath one at a time, alternating pink and red colors.

7. Glue roses to outside edge of wreath, alternating pink and red colors.  As you place the roses, be sure to tuck them into place to cover any voids where the heart foam is visible between the roses.

8. Glue roses to inside edge of wreath, alternating pink and red colors.  Again, be sure to tuck the roses into place to cover any voids.

Attach Ribbon

9. Cut ribbon into two 1 yd lengths.  Glue one end of each piece to back of wreath, slightly angling towards the midline of heart.  Let glue set firmly.

10. Tie two ribbons together into a bow at desired length.  Cut off excess ribbon ends.  Using a match or lighter, quickly sweep ends of ribbon near (not through or you may start a fire!) flame to seal fibers and prevent fraying.

Have a Wonderful Valentine's Day!

11. You are done!  Great job!

Me did it.

Let's be honest here. I was seriously planning on my next post beginning as follows:

"I am done my Fabric Flower Valentine's Wreath tutorial. You can find it in my garbage can."

I don't know what it was, but it was just stressing me out. Maybe just the fact that it's a craft, and I'm a sewer, not a crafter. Maybe it's the fact that the first 10 fabric roses took me about 2 hours to make (which I still can't figure out why). Or maybe it's that I thought I had a great original idea which apparently every other sewer/crafter thought of as well this year. I really was tempted to just throw it in a bag and hide it in a box somewhere. My problem is that it would still be on my mind, driving me nuts. The saddest part is that when I finally sat down and made the thing, it was actually really fun (except the blister on my thumb from the glue gun -- I kind of froze, and didn't try to get the glue off as it was drying, I just let it harden to my skin while it continued to burn me), and didn't take much time at all. And I LOVE it, and am so glad I didn't give up.

So the good news is that none of you will have to poke your heads into my garbage can (unless you want to, ya weirdo). I'm working on the tutorial and it will be up very soon!

Update: you can find the completed tutorial here.

Flashback Friday.

Here's this week's Flashback Friday:

Kristi sent in this gem and said:

Here is a picture of my husband and me in 1988 at a spring formal for our college. I LOVED that dress! It was made specially for me by an older woman in our hometown. It looks so 80s now, as does the hair, but it really was a masterpiece at the time. I can remember another girl had a dress in the same pattern, however hers wasn't boned right and kept falling down all night. No one had the pink polka dots, though!

My husband and I just got married a year ago, but I am so glad I kept all those pictures from our college days!

Ya, probably not a dress that you'd want faulty boning in... Here's the best part of it all: Kristi and the man in the picture dated in college and then broke up. Okay, that's not the best part. The best part is that they ended up back together years later and like Kristi said, they just celebrated their one year wedding anniversary! Such a sweet story and a cute couple. Thanks for sharing Kristi!

Would YOU like to be a part of Flashback Friday? Email me by clicking on the button to your right. Send me a pic or two, a short description, and a link to your blog (if you'd like), and you'll be featured on an upcoming Flashback Friday.

Another Chance.

For those of you who entered the Ruby Lou Doll Pattern giveaway but did not win, you have another chance! I am thrilled to announce that the amazing Grosgrain is hosting a giveaway for the pattern and... even better... an actual Ruby Lou Doll. No sewing requred! So if you don't sew but want a doll, this contest is for you! Click here to go to the contest!

No reason.

I thought I'd post these pics since the stinking tutorial I've been working on is taking FOREVER! I came up with a brilliant idea for a Valentine's wreath, which I thought was so original and fun, and of course since I've started it, I've seen about 5 different Valentine's Day wreath tutorials on all the great craft blogs. So much for my great idea... But now that I'm partially done, I need to finish. At least my project is slightly different than the others, so at least that's some consolation.

My SIL made the fabric ball above for Wyatt when he was a few months old and it's still going strong. No bonks or bruises possible, it's the perfect toy for my boys. I'm not sure which tutorial she used, but another SIL, Angie, used this tutorial for hers which is similar.

Flashback Friday: Grad Dress.

Here's this week's Flashback Friday:

Since I really took one for the team last week, it's only fair that this week's Flashback Friday is slightly (only slightly) less embarrassing. I am glad that I gave everyone a laugh though with my banana scrubs. I must say though my favorite part was how the jacket was accented with the lovely big red buttons. You can't find ensembles like that just anywhere. And you sure didn't hold back with your comments, wow. Just to re-cap, your comments included the words "nasty, hilarious, terrible, and humiliation." Hee hee, I loved it though, it made me laugh even harder! And I haven't gotten any hate mail from my friends in the picture yet, so that's a good sign.

Anyway... I made this dress for my high school graduation, almost ten years ago now. That really makes me feel old. In Southern Alberta where I grew up they don't have prom or formal dances throughout the school year, so graduation is the one big event in high school that you get to dress up for. I loved the pattern as soon as I saw it, even though it was actually a wedding dress pattern. At the time, I especially loved the shirring around the waistband and the full skirt.

As we often did, my mom and I sewed this together. She was always so nice to do all the dirty work like pinning and cutting. She even let me call her my "assistant," which I definitely took advantage of :). She always made me feel like I was smart, even though she taught me everything I know!

Would you like to be a part of Flashback Friday? Email me by clicking on the button to your right. Send me a pic or two, a short description, and a link to your blog (if you'd like), and you'll be featured on an upcoming Flashback Friday.

Jersey Ruffle Scarf Tutorial.

I wish I could say it's too late in the season for this tutorial, but unfortunately it doesn't seem to be. I've been wanting to make a jersey knit scarf all season (mainly because when I've seen them in the stores I think about how easy they would be to make and can't bear to spend $20 on one scarf), and have been so inspired by all the ruffles around lately (have you seen Dana's Turkey Skirt -- now renamed Can-Can Skirt?), so I decided to put the two together and create a ruffle scarf!

Description:
This tutorial will guide you through the steps to make your own ruffly (cause that is a word, spellchecker even said so) jersey knit scarf that will keep you looking cute and staying warm. It has exposed raw edges and is super comfy around your neck. It can easily be completed from start to finish in a couple of hours, even if you are a beginner!

Materials Needed:

2.5 yd jersey knit (14"x84"piece)

*2.5 yd of 60" fabric will make 3 scarves*

thread

Pieces to cut from jersey knit fabric:

Cut 2: 7"x70" pieces for scarf body

Cut 2: 5"x14" pieces for ruffles

*ensure that greatest degree of stretch is along 5" side (width wise) rather than 14" side (lengthwise) for these pieces -- or ruffles will be "flat"*

Directions:

1. Using a basting stitch (longest stitch length on your machine), stitch down 14" side of one 5"x14" piece, 1/2" from edge. Leave threads at beginning and end of stitch lines long. Stitch again 1" from first stitch line. Continue stitching lines 1" apart across width of fabric. The last stitch line will be 1/2" from edge, just as the first stitch line. You should have stitched 5 lines total.

2. Cut in between each set of two stitch lines, forming 5 strips 1"x14".

3. Pin one strip to right side of one 7"x70" piece as pictured. One end of strip will be along edge of long piece 8" from the bottom, and other end will match up with bottom of long piece.

4. Pin middle of strip 4" from bottom of long piece.

5. Pulling on TOP threads only, gather one end of strip up to the middle pin. Repeat with other end, and tie loose threads of strip to secure gathers. Even out gathers and pin in place.

6. Stitch gathered piece to long piece, following baste stitch line.

7. Repeat steps 4-7 with another strip and opposite edge of long fabric piece. Repeat steps 4-7 again, placing the strip in the middle of the first two gathers. Lastly, repeat steps 4-7 again, placing last two strips in middle of edge and middle gathered strips.

8. Repeat steps 4-8 with other end of long fabric piece.

9. Pin long jersey knit pieces WRONG sides together, matching ends and sides. Raw edges should be visible after two pieces are stitched together.

10. Stitch 1/4" from edge down length of pinned pieces on each side. When stitching near ruffles along sides, lift ruffles to the side and stitch underneath.

11. Stitch 1/4" from edge along ends of pinned pieces, stitching over top of ruffles.

12. Try on your new scarf and go show it off! Great work!

Flashback Friday: Would you like fries with that?

Here's this week's Flashback Friday:

Okay, there may be a few people that want to poke my eyes out right now for posting this picture. First let me say that I DID NOT make these uniforms, and I NEVER thought they were cool. I couldn't resist posting a pic though for Flashback Friday, since it does have to do with fashion (or the lack thereof) and textiles.

Can you believe my dental hygiene instructors at Coastal Bend College in Beeville, TX made us wear these uniforms? Obviously they hated us for some reason. People literally pointed and laughed at us while we walked to school wearing these uniforms. The fact that the yellow pants and top were also see-through didn't help us out any. So awkward. Wow, maybe I should delete this post right now... I wouldn't feel so bad if this had occurred in the 70s, but no, it was 2002. Not quite long enough ago to take the pain away, that's for sure.

On a more pleasant note, Amnah sent in this cute journal that she made (yes, the same Amnah that won the giveaway... she's pretty popular around here lately):

Here's an excerpt from her post about it:

I found this picture in album/book that I made for an art class over 6 years ago. I made that. Sure in these days of all things etsy and handmade it seems like no big deal. But this was before etsy. This was before Target started selling the same exact design on a journal. Oh I was so proud of this lil guy. Even my art teacher was impressed.

Thanks for contributing Amnah! To be a part of Flashback Friday, email me by clicking on the button to your right. Send me a pic or two, a short description, and a link to your blog (if you'd like), and you'll be featured on an upcoming Flashback Friday.