101 Crafts - #98 Drawer Organizer(s)

Hi everyone!

Work was super busy this week - I am so thankful it is the weekend now.

Today I am returning again to my 101 Crafts to Make List.

#98 Drawer Organizers

These happen to be some fabric covered drawer organizers, and they work (and look) really awesome.

So everyone is familiar with the standard drawer organizers available at home stores across the country. They do however, cost money and they might not be the exact style that you are looking for.

All you will need for this project is:

- a glue gun and hot glue

- scissors

- a box cut to fit the inside of your drawer (I used a cracker box)

- two pieces of fabric (one will be the lining and one will cover the outside - you can use the same fabric or mix it up a bit if you like)

101 Crafts to Make = Sewing Machine Cover #86

It has been a long time since I posted one of my 101 Crafts to Make. I haven't been slacking off in the crafting department, just in the posting department.

Here is the Sewing Machine Cover that I made for my Singer. I used to have the plastic cover that it came with but somehow lost it over the years. Needless to say this one is 10x more stylin than the plastic one ever was!

I had this cute fabric lying around and finally knew what to use it for. You will need to measure your machine (height, width and length) and then add for seam allowances. The top edge is on the fold and the sides I serged together.

Divide the width of your machine + 1 inch in two. My machine was 4 inches in width so 4 + 1 / 2 = 2.5.

Now cut out a square from the corner using that measurement, mine was 2.5 by 2.5.

Repeat this for the other corner. Now you will need to sew these edges together.

Fold the fabric in half so the side seam matches with the fold line. Sew across. Now you can topstitch the side seams down (of you want). I serged the bottom edge of my cover and then hemmed it up neatly.

The Finished Sewing Machine Cover!

I love the way this turned out and it was super super easy to make!

New York City Grit - Two Tutorials

Hello Everyone!

So as you may or may not know, it is currently NYC Fashion Week. Well, this outfit embodies to me New York cities grittier side. The street mixed with the posh, leather, denim, cotton and studs. The perfect combination.

I was really inspired a lot to make some pants with leather inserts. In particular there was a spread in Nylon magazine recently that I found really interesting. Of course, being me I decided that I needed to try my hand at making some of these must have pants myself. This is the 2nd project that I have finished from my 101 Crafts to Make Challenge.

The following were my results.

This was my inspiration spread. Lots of leather, lots of denim.

So for starters, if you want to make a pair of these pants yourself, you are going to need some jeans and some leather. I had a pair of skinny jeans that I never wear anymore and a pair of leather pants that I had picked up at the thrift store. I decided to draw out my design before beginning. I really wanted to make sure that I liked the way my vision looked in "real life" before committing to it with fabric.

Old Jeans.

Old Leather Pants.

Next I tried on the jeans, and measured how high up I wanted the leather to come. I wanted to make a diagonal leather insert. I laid the jeans out on my cutting mat and measured the diagonal line on both sides making sure that it was even.

I used the portion that I had removed from the jeans to measure how much leather I would need length wise and width wise. If the jeans you are using are too long for your legs make sure you take a proper measure or the pants will end up too long. Also I made the leather part slightly wider than the jean pieces I had removed as leather that is too tight is really tough to get into.

As you can see the leather above is WAY wider than the jean. I did not make them exactly the same width but left the leather slightly larger to make it easier to get into.

Now came the sewing. It is important that you make sure you have the pieces aligned properly before you begin to sew. Double, even triple check them. You don't want to be resewing through leather as this will weaken it and cause it to rip at the seam over time. Sew through all of the layers and be sure it is secure.

Turn inside out and enjoy!!!

To go with my New York leather and denim I decided to make a tank top. Something simply but still a bit edgy. Since I had never tried it before I decided to use a technique called reverse applique. It looks really awesome and was really quite simple to do.

I started with an old white t-shirt but you could also use an existing tank top. I traced out the shape of one of my favourite tank tops being sure to leave a seam allowance.

Tracing the Tank Top.

All cut out. Make sure you have a seam allowance too!

Next I traced a pattern that I had made onto the front of the shirt. You will also need a piece of contrasting fabric. This should be a stretchy material (like another old t-shirt) as well.

The contrast needs to be as wide as the whole tank top and tall enough to cover your designs.

Position the contrasting fabric under the design that you have traced onto the front. Pin it securely in place. Now sew around the design you have traced. You should leave about 1/8th of an inch between the tracing and the sewing line.

Pin the fabric together securely.

Sewing.

Sew 1/8th of an inch away from design.

Once you have finished stitching around the design you will need to cut out the shape you have traced. Cut on the traced lines and keep it as neat as possible.

Now sew the tank top up at the sides, making sure you have the right sides together when you do this. Flip right side out and voila! A new custom tank top.

Brand new outfit!

I hope you enjoyed these two tutorials in one. The photos of the outfit also show my Leather Bag which was made from a Skirt. You can find the Tutorial on that HERE.

Shirt - Refashion, Pants - Refashion, Necklace - Gift, Rings - H&M/Vintage/Gifts, Bag - Refashion, Shoes - Sam Edelman.

Until next time.....

Easy Breezy Table Linen Tutorial(s)

Hello folks! So as is implied by the title of this post, I will be detailing more than one tutorial for you today. Napkins-Place mats and Glass Covers. Matching or coordinating - it is all up to you!

I always like to set my table and make it look dressed up - I find it makes the meal taste that much better when everything around is aesthetically pleasing. For this reason I use place mats, tablecloths, napkins, glass covers (not necessarily all at once) and napkin rings to dress up the table. As you may know, these items can be quite pricey at the store and of course no one wants to have the same linens as everyone else on the block.

Enter homemade, handcrafted linens. Just the way they were done in the old days.

To make your own custom napkins you first need to decide on a size. As you can see from the picture below there are many possible sizes, 18X18, 15x15 and smaller. Generally you will want to keep a square shape although I have seen some rectangular napkins.

The first step will be to cut out your fabric to the appropriate size. I choose 15X15 as my finished size which meant I needed to add 1cm around the edge for my hem allowance. After you have cut out the desired number of napkins you will begin hemming them. I like to iron up the hem first as this makes it easier to sew and also keeps your edges a lot neater and straighter.

Press the sides down all around and then press them under a second time. This is known as a double turn hem. Now that you have pressed all of the sides you can begin sewing.

Sew around the entire napkin (don’t forget to backstitch to be sure the seam is strong). Voila! Napkins! I like to press mine again after sewing just to make sure they keep their shape.

To make your placemats you should choose a fabric that coordinates well with your napkins. You can use an existing placemat as a guide or simply decide yourself how large you would like the placemat to be. I made mine 18x 15 inches when finished. Again you will need to make sure you add a seam allowance to whatever size you decide you want the placemats to be. You will need to cut one piece of fabric for the top, one for the bottom and one piece of interfacing (fusible webbing) for each placemat being made. Iron the fusible interfacing onto either of the fabrics (top or bottom). Now place the fabrics RIGHT sides together.

Top Fabric

Bottom Fabric (matches the napkins).

Fusible.

Begin sewing remembering that you will need to leave an opening so you can turn the placemats right side out.

Once you have finished sewing around the outside, clip off the corners (don’t cut through your sewing) and trim away some of the excess fabric from the seam. Now turn the whole thing inside out. Iron the placemat flat after turning it right side out. Iron before sewing - it makes it easier! Once this is done you may begin topstitching. This will also close the opening that you left in the side seam.

You should topstitch about 1/8th of an inch in from the edge of the fabric. Go all the way around the placemat being sure to line up the opening and seal it shut. Congratulations – you just finished a custom made placemat for your home.

The glass covers will be slightly trickier than the other two projects. You will need to trace a round object (I used a jar lid) onto your fabric. Make sure that the fabric will stick out at least 2 inches over the rim of the glass or jug you intend to use it for. Once you have cut out the circle you will need to hem the edges. You may do a single or a double turn hem whatever you find easier/better. Once you have finished sewing you can begin attaching beads. You will need to string the beads together and then sew them onto the circle to act as weights to keep the fabric from falling into the glass or being blown off. I used four strands per circle.

Tracing my lid- make sure the fabric is big enough to drape over your glass/jug.

Sewing around after having ironed first.

Attaching the beads.

Once the beads are sewn on you are ready to enjoy your beverages out of doors without worrying about flies or wasps getting at them.
Enjoy the lovely creations you have made!

Of course you may want to try a different colour scheme than all white...
So why not whip up a colourful set too?

Stay tuned tomorrow for two very different menus to go with these two very different table decor schemes.
Please send me your links so I can check out your versions.
Happy sewing!