DIY - Vintage Bracelet Re-Do

I'm finally getting around to using all those great vintage jewelry pieces from my several trips to the flea market. See more like this in the near future...I'm still brainstorming. These will also all be available in my Etsy store eventually.

DIY Tutorial - Multi-strand Necklace

While shopping online illegally at work I came across a set of awesome beaded necklaces at Old Navy. The prices are great but I'm only "window shopping" due to an upcoming vacation so I figured I'd try my hand at some beading. Walmart had a pack of 18 strands of black and gray glass beads for $4 and the cone spacers 4 for $2. This ended up making 2 necklaces. I might go back and get some packs of different colors and try for a longer version.

Materials:
10 strands of glass beads
Beading wire or string
Cone spacers
Jump rings
Chain
Beading pliers
Scissors

Tip:
To make the cone spacers' top hole larger, use the round nose pliers to gauge it.

1. Leaving the beads on the original strings, thread the beading wire through the strand. This is much easier than picking them up one by one. Cut the original string and pull it out so the beads are only on the wire.

2. Thread 4 strands at time. This will reduce the amount of ugly knots you'll have to hide. At the end add 1" for every strand. This will be the string hidden under the cones. 4 strands of beads = 4" at each end of the wire. Cut and knot. I used the pliers to pull the knots as tight as possible.

3 and 4. Layout your beads flat and at every bend between bead strands, use the pliers to crimp the bend. This is helpful if you're using wire as it holds its shape and the strands get trickier when you're using 10 of them.

5. Thread another short piece of wire through the crimped ends. Thread this short wire through the cone.

6. Use the pliers to pull the loops through the cone top.

7. Hook a jump ring through the loops and through your chain. Pull the wires tight so they are barely visible above the cone.

REPEAT STEPS 5-7 FOR OTHER END. My chain is 18" long but you can easily make yours shorter (don't forget to add a clasp) or longer to better match the inspiration necklace.

Sharing - Spring Cleaning

Next on the season finale of Hoarding: Buried Alive...

Yeah that's my office...and yeah I've been watching the marathon of hoarders all day and still haven't started cleaning! Hopefully showing you will embarrass me to the point where I need to clean some corner of the room up...maybe. I also picked the grainy, no-flash photo to scare you a little. Maybe tomorrow there will be a neat little post!

Summer Scarves!

This is what I've been working on this evening...I've gotten about 4 together so far. These are a great quick project and I LOVE how fluttery they are when you walk! More photos later :)

DIY - Tunic pattern that I lost

First of all - This entire project was a STASHBUSTER! I used scraps and remnants only :D



I'd love to give you a DIY review on this pattern but I found it on some obscure spanish pattern site similar to Burda Style after a tedious search through message boards. Who knew a simple "free tunic pattern" would be so impossible to find!!?? Anyways there were no instructions (which would have been in spanish anyway) or seam allowances, so it was pretty much like starting from nothing. I measured around my bust and waist and added inches in just these areas to grade the pattern to my size. I also made it 2" longer.

The fabric I had in mind was cut at 1/4 yard so I couldn't cut the front out on the fold and there is a pretty awesome center front seam going on. The front fabric is sheer and I hate layering in the summer so I just added another layer of black knit under the front. I made this an inch shorter than the top fabric so it flowed perfectly in the summer breeze. The blue knit fabric in the back was also too small of a piece and you can see where I seamed it together at the shoulders, but I think it adds interest and I really like the top stitching. You can see the pattern alterations and my super chic french seam below.

I needed to cover up this seam that skewed the print asap. You know I'm obsessed with ruffles but I figured there was enough going on with this little tank and giant ruffles would just be over-kill. I took some leftover blue ribbon from my quilt project and randomly pleated it. This was stitched down the center front, perfectly straight of course, to cover the seam. I think it ties everything together nicely and gives me the pop of color I'm always craving.

Check out how I wore it before rushing out to go bowling...
(PS for some reason I design all my tops to go with skinny jeans even though I only own 1 pair of them)

Belted and all chic-like:

Flowy and casual...look how casual I can stand!

In the end I will definitely be making this one again. I already have other fabric lined up...maybe some like linen...and maybe a button placket down the front for a blousier look for work. Excited!

Eat - Ham and Cheese Quiche

This is going to be my breakfast for the week (unless I eat it all in one sitting). I used this recipe from Allrecipes.com.

It's so simple! mix butter and hashbrowns and flatten them into a pie pan for the "crust" and bake that for 30 min. Cover that with ham and cheese. Cover that with whipped eggs (I doubled the eggs) and milk (I used my skim lactose free milk instead of suggested heavy cream). Bake it all for 30 more min.

I had to soak up all the bubbling butter with a (hundred) paper towels before it cooled because this just seemed way too greasy for me.

That first bite was delicious. Even though this takes an hour to make I will definitely make it again with some new filling ingredients.

DIY - Maxi Dress

My camera didn't save any of my before and during photos :(

I started out with the New Look pattern 6774. I have made this dress on two other occasions, both with knit fabric, and I LOVE it. This time around I couldn't find any knit fabrics with a print and I really wanted a springy, pink print. I grabbed some 'silky print' from Joann's on sale this week even though it is not AT ALL my style. It has the colors I wanted and is light and doesn't wrinkle.

SO.....3 hours of meticulous sewing later....I realized the other two dresses only fit me because they were knit (even though I always thought they were kind of too large. Long story short, I decided to go through my bag of "Restyle Me" clothes and grabbed a tshirt that I chucked a few weeks ago. I ripped the bodice off of the shirt and attached it to the waist of the tshirt. I think the end design is pretty flattering and fun. I think I'll finish it off with a 3" elastic band at the waist to hold it up better. The tshirt seems a little too flimsy. Maybe I'll get to the store this weekend...

Sharing - Unfinished Projects

(modeling with Wally)

I can't believe how much of a slacker I've been with blogging lately. I made a calendar up to keep me on track and I guess I just can't police myself. Maybe I should open up a position for an assistant to make sure I get these things done in a timely fashion. Please copy/paste resumes to the comments section...Maybe don't post your home phone number though...

So I have about 3 ongoing projects right now. Project 1 is kind of a big deal. I am designing a line of spring/summer vests. These are cropped and flyaway style and very comfy. Here is the first finished one!

This is called the Lizard Vest...you can see the awesomely scaley ruffle down the spine. Love it. There are about 6 other designs and about 10 other fabrics. Here's a few unfinished:

Project number 2 is a line of tribal printed, ruffly tote bags. I just did a prototype of this one and I need to re-work the size. Pictures to come!

Project number 3 is a lightweight summer scarf. Here I am wearing the first version.

(Wally's in this one too, isn't he adorable?)

I'm doing a great job STASHBUSTING by making these cute scarves with all the end scraps. So that's good news....These will all be on sale in my Esty Store if I ver get them finished!