Another Fabric Catchall

Happy Memorial Day!  Just wanted to make a quick post to check in! 

What with all the button frustration I haven't had a lot of finished projects lately, but I thought I'd share this one with y'all. :)  Saturday night I decided I was jealous of the fabric catchall I made for my boyfriend, so I whipped up one for myself using the same tutorial I created for you all.

I got to use this super cute animal fabric from Jo-Ann's that I've had my eye on since the spring.  30% off for Memorial Day Weekend!  I love the rhino and the giraffe on the top...

 

...and the turtle on the bottom!

While at Jo-Ann's I also got a ton of lightweight, colorful, plaid material on sale and now I'm busy busy busy with a bunch of bermudas for my and my boyfriend's nieces and nephew! 

I've been sewing so much for them lately I don't know how we'll afford to mail it all off! ;)

I'll let you know how the kid sewing goes!  Until next time, happy crafting!

--CC

Trouble with Buttonholes

I've been working on a top to match one of the pairs of Knot No-Hem Pants I made a couple days ago, but I can't seem to get it finished.  Why, you ask?

Buttonholes.

I've never made them before.  I have an automatic one-step buttonhole, so you'd think it would be easy, but I still haven't had any success.  I read the manual and followed all the steps.  I called my mom.  I consulted about a bajillion tutorials.  Everyone's giving me the same information, and I'm like 99% sure I'm doing it right, but they still look wonky.  I guess technically some of them are buttonholes.  It's just that the little zig-zags look like they wouldn't hold up after a couple times buttoning and unbuttoning.  Plus, every time I made a buttonhole they seem to turn out differently.

Finally, I got frustrated practicing and said, "I'm just going to do it on the shirt!"  Well, it turned out like this:

So crooked!  (Okay, so that's probably my fault.)  And now I'm going to have to find out some way to salvage the shirt because I've tried using my seam ripper on my oopsy-doopsy and couldn't get it out.

Any one else had a lot of trouble with button holes before?  Any tips?

Tutorial: Knot No-Hem Capri Pants

So, sorry about the long break.  Things got a little crazier than I expected (financially, academically, and moving-ly).  But I finally had a little time to do some sewing and blogging today annnnd....I have what you've been waiting for (maybe)!  Remember this picture I used to taunt you in my last post?

Well....Introducing the Knot No-Hem Capri Pants...

Because there's knot no hem on them!  Get it?  Hahaha.  I crack myself up.  :)

 But, okay.  Seriously, let's talk about the pants.  I made three pairs of these pants for my boyfriend's niece and thought they were worth sharing.  They can be made into shorts or capri (cropped) pants.  I made mine capris because I figured the elastic would stretch to still fit in the waist as she grows and then as the length gets shorter maybe she can wear them as bermudas or even shorts (if they still fit in the waist by then). 

They're super easy, super cute and they don't take much fabric at all.  I made mine out of some scrap fabric and a remnant I bought at Jo-Ann's.

But you can make the project even easier than that.  If your youngster has some long pants they wore this spring that you know won't fit by fall, why not cut off the extra length and add the cute knot to the bottom to make them into a new summer item?

You could even make an adult version with some old jeans for yourself!

So without further ado, here's the Knot No-Hem Cropped Pants tutorial.  Join me after the jump to learn how to make your own pair.

Gone for a Couple Days

Hey guys!  Just wanted to let you know that I'll be gone for a couple days, so I'll be hitting the pause button again.

I've kind of been on a roll posting every day, so I'm disappointed to break my steak.  But my boyfriend and I are moving to a new city in a month or so and we need to drive up and look for apartments for a couple days.  So I'll be looking at apartments and you'll be reading someone else's blog, but I'll be back as soon as I can!

Just so you know, I've got that tutorial I mentioned all written, but I still haven't had a chance to re-take the pictures for it.  I planned on it yesterday but I had a car break down and ended up hanging out with a tow truck guy instead.  Oh wellsies!  I'll get to it as soon as I get back. :)

Until next time, happy crafting.

--CC

Sundress with a Sash

Hello my lovelies!  First off, check out my URL!  My boyfriend bought my domain for me, so my website is now craftycritique.com.  Don't worry, though.  If you type in the old URL you'll be forwarded to the new address. :)

Second, I'm sorry about kind of dropping the MayFlowers thing.  This is what happens when you don't make deadlines for yourself!  Lesson learned.  So I'll try and get some more of the flower tutorials I had in mind to you, but don't count on it or anything.  I've kind of gone off on a clothes-sewing swing and haven't been able to get back on track with the flowers.

Which brings me to today's post...

I made myself a sun dress!  (It at least has flowers on it, right?)  I originally meant for the dress to be the Little Boden Knock-Off Dress (in adult size, of course), but I didn't buy enough fabric.  I had so little fabric, in fact, that I had to leave off the sleeves and the pockets.  I couldn't even cut it A-line!
 

 But I absolutely adored the fabric and it was the very last of the bolt, so I made the dress with it anyway.  It's not exactly the Little Boden Knock-Off that I intended to make, but I think it still turned out pretty cute.  And I'm really proud because I wore the dress for the first time today and got a compliment on it from a girl who sold me ice cream.

Fun fact: I sewed the elastic in the waist before I sewed the skirt to the bodice, so there's a weird, wonky line in the middle of the dress.  Don't do that if you decide to make the Little Boden Knock-Off.  My solution?  I sewed a sash in some (semi) coordinating fabric wide enough to cover the oopsie. :)


Also, here's me pretending to be a squirell in the dress.

I'm not sure why.

I'll be back soon (hopefully) with a tutorial for you.  Unfortunately, I decided to make the tutorial at 11 o'clock at night and half the pictures turned out terrible, so I might have to re-take them.  But I'll get it to you asap.  Until then, here's a sneak-peak of what's coming up:

OooOoo!  What could it be?  It's a mystery! Check back soon to find out. :)

Until then, happy crafting.

--CC

Tutorial Review: Pint-Sized Party Skirt

A couple days ago I showed you this skirt which I made using the Pint Sized Party Skirt tutorial from Creative Spaces:

The skirt is the child-sized version of the party skirt that I made awhile back.

(If you didn't notice, I had enough scrap fabric from my own skirt to make the one for my niece.)

Genevieve over at Creative Spaces (who has been super sweet every time I've talked with her!) made a couple of changes to the pint-sized party skirt to make it toddler friendly.  The main differences (aside from the size, obviously) are the elastic in the waist, which can slide easily over a diaper butt and expand with growth...

...and the sash.  On the adult version, the sash is detachable, but on the pint-sized party skirt is sewn down to help it stay in place when your toddler is busy toddling around.

So now that you know what we're dealing with, let's get on to the review!  Join me after the jump to get the run down. :)

Tutorial Review: Quick and Easy No-Hem Skirt

So, I know this means I'm still off-track with my MayFlower event and I promise more flowery posts to come, but today I want to share with you a review for the Quick and Easy No Hem Skirt from Hickety Pickety (great new blog I just found, by the by!) I showed you yesterday.  If you didn't get a chance to see that post, here's the skirt that's up for review:

So let's get started!

Accuracy: 10

Clarity of Directions: 9
Helpfulness of Pictures: 10 
Difficulty: 3
Overall Rating: 10

Time: ~30 min.

Recommended

For the full details, join me after the break. :)

Rainy Day Skirt-a-thon

First off, sorry if I'm getting a little off my MayFlowers event the past couple of days.  I promise to get more flower tutorials to you.  I've just been on a clothes-sewing kick.  Which brings me to today's post!

Saturday I planned on finishing up a MayFlowers tutorial for y'all, but I woke up to a cloudy day--not ideal for taking pictures, especially with my super-picky-about-light camera.  So instead, after reading this post on Noodlehead, I decided to spend the day sewing a few skirts for my and my boyfriend's nieces. I used the Quick and Easy No-Hem Skirt tutorial from Hickety Pickety. 

Now, let me tell you, I've been told a few clothes-sewing projects were easy before and found them to be rather difficult.  (Maybe it's just that I'm not that talented.)  But this tutorial really was super easy and super quick, just like it claims to be!  So instead of making just one skirt, I ended up making three!

One in a 2T...

(That fabric's starting to look familiar now, isn't it?)  One in a 3T...

And one in a 4T...

And then it was still raining and I still felt like sewing so I took a stab at a little more challenging skirt that's been on my list for a long time, the Pint-Sized Party Skirt from Creative Spaces.  It turned out pretty cute, too.  Dontcha think? 

And the best part?  Four skirts all made of scrap fabric.  And I already had the elastic on hand, too, which means that I got to spend the whole day in my pajamas sewing!  What a great day. :)

Anyway, if you're wondering about these tutorials now and want to make your own skirts, don't worry.  I'll give you all the details in my reviews coming up later this week.  Until then, happy crafting!

--CC

Tutorial: Chalkboard Garden Stake or Hanging Sign

Today I'm excited to share another MayFlowers tutorial with you:  Chalkboard garden stakes and chalkboard hanging signs.

While I was home in Missouri for my brother's wedding, I saw these cute garden stakes with little chalkboards on them in a local home decor shop.  I thought they were adorable, but there was no way I was paying the $20 asking price for them.  I knew I could make one for much cheaper.  (Chalkboard paint is $12 a quart which is a little pricey, but it can be used for a bunch of other craft projects besides this one.)

Then, after my mom hung sticky notes on the front door for expected guests to let them know we were out in the garden a couple times, I got an idea.  I thought a permanent, re-writable sign, like a little chalkboard, might be useful for leaving "be right back" or "I'm in the garden" notes when you know someone will be dropping by.

I also thought they might make nice little "back in 5 minutes" type signs for crafters who go to craft fairs/farmer's markets.  There are so many things you could do with a little chalkboard sign.  It's just a useful, environmentally friendly and, might I say, cute little way to leave a note. :)  So here's what I came up with:

So if you ever find yourself taping notes to your front door or you just want a pretty garden stake to label a row of peas, follow the jump to get the tutorial. :)

Peasant Tops for Adults

A few weeks ago Jess over at Craftiness is not Optional shared these peasant tops she made for her daughters.  I thought the peasant blouses were adorable, and since Jess swore they were the easiest thing ever to make, I decided to give one a shot in an adult size!  I couldn't find any good adult peasant top tutorials, so I used this tutorial and this tutorial as guides to create my own adult pattern.  And it worked!

Well, sorta.  I ran into a little trouble with the sleeves.  I think I cut them wrong or sewed them wrong or something.  I never really figured it out which, so for two days the top sat on my kitchen table (where I sew) and every time I walked past it I'd say jokingly to my boyfriend, "My sleeves ain't right!"  Eventually I quit following both of the tutorials' instructions and made up my own way.  I got out my seam ripper then cut off part of the sleeves and sewed them on a different way, just for good measure.  I'm pretty sure no one's ever made sleeves like this, since the seam is on the top.  But whatever!  It worked and it fits. :)

 

 Isn't this shirt so cute?  I'm in love with the fabrics.  Can you believe I got them at Jo-Ann's?

Oh, and, by the way, since this post isn't flower-related and I'm still doing my May Flowers event, I made asked my boyfriend nicely to go with me to the botanical gardens and take pictures of me in my new shirt.  You can thank him for the photography.

Anyway...I didn't put elastic in the sleeves because I thought that was a little bit childish and I also sewed on a tie at the bottom of the blouse, a la Jess from Craftiness is Not Optional.  I didn't make the tie quite long enough to tie a bow, but I think it looks like I did it on purpose, don't you?  All I did was sew a tube that was twice as long as the circumference of the shirt.  Simple!

This was my first top to sew and I'm proud I made my own pattern, plus some adjustments to the original blouse.  I used the same technique for the tie on my peasant top as I did for the tie on my pink party skirt.  I always thought modifications to patterns would be hard to make, but I'm starting to learn that once you know a few basic skills in sewing you can mix and match to create almost anything.

The pattern I made for this definitely needs some adjustments, and I'm not sure if I can replicate the shirt again or not, but I think I'll try when I get the chance.  Who knows, maybe I'll make an adult peasant top tutorial for you!  So keep checking back if you like this shirt.  Until then, happy crafting!

--CC

Sand Dollar Bunting

So, I know technically I'm supposed to be posting all about flowers, but I wanted to share this sand dollar bunting I made recently with you.

 After Easter I wanted a nice, summery bunting for my living room since summer is in full swing here in Florida.  I used Happy Together's Felt Sand Dollars tutorial to make 16 felt Sand Dollars.  It turned out to be a bigger feat than I would have originally thought because of the embroidery.  I certainly did not end up making my boyfriend learn how to embroider so that they'd get finished faster.  *ahem*

Anyway, I left off the part of the tutorial about putting backs on them and filling them with a little stuffing because I wanted to be able to sew straight through them, like we did with the St. Patrick's Day Shamrock Garland.  So when I finished embroidering all 16 (which took a couple days) I just sewed them all together...

And added this really cool burlap-y ribbon to both ends with big coral-colored buttons I found on clearance at Jo-Ann's for 50 cents!

I also added this to the shelf above the bunting to pull together the look:

It was cost me nothing to make.  I filled an empty spaghetti sauce jar (so handy to save!) with sea shells we picked up at the beach near my house (and so nice living in Florida!) and tied a bow around it with some jute I had on hand.

The whole look (garland and sea shell jar) only cost me $4, and most of that was the ribbon.  What I nice, inexpensive way to summer-ify a living room.  I just wish all the little birds decorations in my living room were seagulls and albatrosses now.  Lol.

See you again soon with more MayFlowers!  Until next time, happy crafting!

--CC

Tutorial: Felt Roses

Hi y'all!  As a continuation of our MayFlowers event, today I'm going to teach you how to make a felt rose.

Roses can be classic and sophisticated when made in natural colors, or fun and spunky if made with unnatural ones, making them perfect accents for everyone's lives.  Try an unusual color like purple and put it on a hair clip or brooch to make a fashion statement.   Or use them as decorations.  Make enough of them to cover a heart-shaped wreath, or stick a few of them tightly into a box like this:

Borrowed from Google to convey my idea.

Borrowed from Google to convey my idea.

I think a bouquet of them would make a really nice addition to a little girl's dress up set to go with a play wedding dress.  With so many options, you'll want to make hundreds.  And I've got good news for you.  They're super simple to make and it only takes a few minutes.  So let's get started.  Read on after the jump for the tutorial.