Pages

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Easy Elastic Waistband Darts

I have tall, skinny boys.  They’re built just like The Hubsters.  I can’t tell you how many busy Church/School mornings I have run downstairs to the sewing machine to hurry and take in a pair of pants.
Let me show you how fast and easy it can be. 
Easy Elastic Waistband Darts Tutorial From The Crafty Cousins
Keep in mind that this method can also be used on a regular waistband.
Crocky brought me these pants one morning and the waist was WAY too wide.  I was going to take them in using the method I used here, but I had pink thread on my serger.  That wasn’t going to work.
I made two darts in the waistband instead.  Find the center seam in the back of the pants.  Find the sides of the waistband.  You’re going to put your darts right in between the center seam and the side seam.  Like this:
easy elastic waistband darts (4)
See where the waistband puckers?  That’s where I sewed the darts.  Now do this to the other side, too.  You want them to match!  What is a dart?  Oh, silly me!  This is a dart:
easy elastic waistband darts (8)
See how I gradually sewed from the waistband to where the pockets would be?  Except these pants don’t have back pockets…
easy elastic waistband darts (9)
One dart…
easy elastic waistband darts (5)
…two darts!
easy elastic waistband darts (7)
…and this is what it should look like on the outside:
easy elastic waistband darts (11)
You can barely see those darts, and now your kid can keep his pants up!  That alteration took less than five minutes.  Awesome!
signature nat

Tuesday, April 16, 2013

No Sew Loopy Scarf

This scarf is fun, fast, and easy to make!  What more could a girl ask for?
It’s cute, too!  :)
No sew loopy scarf by the Crafty Cousins
Start off with a tee shirt, scissors and some ribbon.
No sew loopy scarf by the Crafty Cousins (1)
No sew loopy scarf by the Crafty Cousins (2)
Cut off the hem, and cut the shirt (starting under the armpits) into one inch strips.
No sew loopy scarf by the Crafty Cousins (4)
Give all those loops a good stretch, and you’re done!  (Oh, I made a red one, too…)
Layer them and embellish the scarf however you want.
No sew loopy scarf by the Crafty Cousins (8)
With ribbon…
No sew loopy scarf by the Crafty Cousins (9)
With a stretched strip of tee shirt tied in a bow…
No sew loopy scarf by the Crafty Cousins (11)
Or with a fun fabric flower.
The possibilities are endless!  :)
signature nat

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Save That Sewing Table!!

I don’t have fandibulous tutorial for you today, but I do have an awesome tip!
Does your sewing table look like this from your scissors?
P1080101
P1080102
Obviously, mine does, but most of that isn’t from me.  I inherited this table from my Grandma, so those are her marks.  I {heart} those marks, but don’t want to add more.
So, to save the table, I use a mouse pad to protect it:
P1080103
Oh, yes, I am a geek.  I love The Lord of the Rings!  :)
Anyway, there’s a fun tip for you today!
signature nat

Wednesday, April 3, 2013

WIW

Sweet!! Get a cute new beach bag from Pick Your Plum for only 6.99!! I bought 2!

Since I haven’t posted anything for the past month, I decided to round up the few times I remember to snap a picture. These were the favorites. I did get dressed everyday, don’t worry…

Purple Gray

Purple lace top from Gordman’s, white shirt from DownEast, Gray skirt from American Eagle, Brown purse from Target, I think, purple fishnet tights from Target, and brown boots from Totsy. Earrings that you can’t really see are from Pick Your Plum.

mustard mint 1

Mint Cardigan from Pick Your Plum, White lace top I made, white undershirt DownEast, Mustard pants gift from my SIL and sis. Zebra shoes from Target, lace footie socks from Pick Your Plum.

Pink zig zag brown

Pink tank top from Target, White shirt from somewhere? Maybe Walmart? Bead necklace can’t remember, Owl necklace from Amazon, funky turquoise necklace from Target, skinny pants from my SIL, and brown boots from Totsy (I love them!)

Black Pink Ruffle

Pink scarf made like I showed you here, black shirt from Kohl’s, pink under shirt made, Straight leg jeans from Aeropostale, Teva flip flops from Amazon for my birthday. I love them!!

So there are some favorites.We’ll see if I do any better in April?

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

DIY Lap Swim/Triathlon Suit

Okay.  If I give you this tutorial, you have to promise not to judge me.  I know I am a cheapskate.  I also know that I am a clothing snob.  If it doesn’t fit the way I like it, then I tweak it to my liking. 
I guess if we’re still friends after the toddler underwear tutorial, then I’m probably pretty safe, eh?
Okay.  So, why would I make a lap swim/triathlon suit?  Because I can.  A friend and I are going to compete in our first triathlon this Summer.  We’re training hard and super excited.
But, really?  I know we’re exercising and no one is looking, but WHY do lap swim suits and triathlon suits have to be so unflattering?!
Lap swim suit:
womens-endurance-solid-flyback-swimsuit
Not unflattering if you have a figure like a Supermodel.  But me?  No way!  I also hate that it has no…ahem…bra in it.  Yes, I KNOW I’m just exercising, but still…
Next up, the triathlon suit:
41SWOxdFNjL._SL500_AA300_
Oh my.  No way; on so many levels.  Even if I had a Supermodel’s figure…no way!
Bathing suits are cute and can be flattering, but they just don’t hold up.  Not only that, but they don’t stay put, either.  There’s too much movement in lap swimming.
So, what is a girl to do?  Well, I don’t know what anyone else would do, but THIS fashion snob took matters into her own hands!
First off, I bought these outfits off the clearance rack at JCPenney:
DP0730201213072208M.tifDP0730201213072258M.tif
DP0731201213034726M.tifDP0731201213034776M.tif
DP0730201213072658M.tifDP0730201213072708M.tif
DP0706201201032568M.tifDP0706201201032619M.tif
In case you’re wondering; yes, that is what I look like when I’m wearing them!  :)  Ha ha ha!  I sure wish!
Anyway, I checked the fabric content, and both of these outfits had the same polyester/spandex ratio as a lap swim suit.
I first started with the tops.  They only had shelf bras in them, so I added cups!
Make your own lap swim or triathlon suit tutorial from The Crafty Cousins (4)
Make your own lap swim or triathlon suit tutorial from The Crafty Cousins (1)
Much better.  I just cut them off of a couple of bras I had that I never wore.  The shoulder straps didn’t fit right.  You could also use these:
For the bottoms, I cut them off into shorts.
Make your own lap swim or triathlon suit tutorial from The Crafty Cousins (5)
I pinned them the length I wanted them, which was 14.5 inches up from the hem.
Make your own lap swim or triathlon suit tutorial from The Crafty Cousins (8)
When you’re cutting shorts, it’s important to measure up from the hem.  The pants or capris have more fabric in the back to adequately cover your booty.  Moving on…
Make your own lap swim or triathlon suit tutorial from The Crafty Cousins (10)
Measure…
Make your own lap swim or triathlon suit tutorial from The Crafty Cousins (12)
…cut…
Shorts cut?!
Make your own lap swim or triathlon suit tutorial from The Crafty Cousins (13)
Fabulous!  Next, serge or zig-zag stitch the raw edges.
Make your own lap swim or triathlon suit tutorial from The Crafty Cousins (16)
Hem the shorts and you’re done!
Make your own lap swim or triathlon suit tutorial from The Crafty Cousins (17)
Make your own lap swim or triathlon suit tutorial from The Crafty Cousins (19)
I know these shorts look super short, but really, they hit me mid-thigh.  Oh, and no.  I will not be modeling this suit for you! 
Make your own lap swim or triathlon suit tutorial from The Crafty Cousins (2)
Make your own lap swim or triathlon suit tutorial from The Crafty Cousins (19)
Not bad, eh?!
I did the same things to the yellow and black outfit.  I got all four pieces for $10.00 a piece.  That’s less than a lot of lap swim suits and way less than triathlon suits.  Not only did I get TWO for less than the price of the other suits, but they fit perfectly, they hold up great in all the chlorine, and they’re more flattering!  Score!
…you know…if Spandex can possibly be flattering…  ;)
Hopefully someone out there (other than me) will find this tutorial helpful!  :)
signature nat

Monday, April 1, 2013

Birthdays!

Yep, I’ve been MIA for the last month. And it was nice. We had 4 close family member birthdays, Easter, several dinner parties (1 that I hosted), teaching preschool for a week, and a birthday party. It’s been a bit hectic. My little princes had a birthday, and wanted to do a Barbie butterfly popstar party, with purple, pink, and sparkly for the colors. Plus, she’s been really wanting a wedding dress for her and her Barbies. So, I’ve had a few projects in the works.

Wedding Dress

This dress is still a work in progress, but you can see her Barbie had a pretty dress too. I’ll figure out what to do and show you later.

Barbie Clothes

So I got the main ideas for these dresses online. Belle was here, Ken jacket was here, wedding dress with train was here, wedding veil here, and the ball gown here. Poor ballerina, with only 1 foot.

Wedding Couple

Barbie even has a bouquet she can hold. Don’t worry, Ken is barefoot. I think he came with flip flops that have since been lost?

Dumb Cricut

To prep for the party, I used a Cricut, with a brand new blade, to cut out bunches of purple & pink butterflies, and yellow stars. The dang thing ruined half of them! Argh, I get so frustrated with those machines! I hung those all up with fishing line and sticky tack on the ceiling.

Party Decor (7)

We made flower balloons to hang up, but used push pins to get those to stay in the ceiling.

Party Decor (5)

I used streamers from the dollar store, and cut out some big stars and spray painted them with metallic paint for the other wall.

Party Decor (4)

We bought dollar store fairy wings for all the girls, and the 2 boy cousins got SWAT helmets. Tricky planning with boys!

Party Decor (3)

For party games, I printed a Barbie butterfly picture at Staples, and had them do an engineering print. I only did 18”x24”. Then we colored it.

Party Decor (6)

I picked up some jewel stickers and some foam butterfly stickers while waiting for it to print at Staples, and they were blindfolded and had to stick a jewel on the wings.

Party Decor (1)

We decorated these cardboard butterflies I got at Michaels, and some microphones. If there were more reading kids, we would’ve done some Karaoke.

Party Decor (2)

My cute husband was the star. He painted all the kiddos faces when they came in. Butterflies and Star Wars (for the boys).

Party Decor (8)

He also made the Barbie butterfly cake. Let’s pretend I have a nice pretty tray for it, mkay?

Party Decor (9)

All in all, she had lots of fun! She got even more Barbies too. Maybe I’ll post more now? We’ll see….