Pillow #2

Hi all-- It's time for me to show you another pillow project!

This was my first-ever attempt at piping and I was real nervous about it.  I pictured countless frustrating hours with my seam ripper but thankfully that wasn't the case-- but that's not to say this went 100% smoothly.

What I Used
- An old skirt.  That's right, the main gray fabric you see was once a lovely(?) little number that I picked up at Goodwill for $2.  I washed it, cut out the lining, cut down one of the seams and voila!
- Cording-- I think I used 5/8"
- Long scraps of an accent fabric
- Pillow form

How the Heck Did I Do it?
1) Cut out a square for the front panel, 1" bigger than size of pillow form

Step 2

2) Fold strips of accent fabric, right sides out, around cording
3) Use a zipper foot on your sewing machine to get as close to the cording as possible.  If your sewing machine hates you, your stitch may look a little something like this:

Yucky Stitch

 

4) Pin right side of cording and ride side of the front panel together and sew.  When it came to the overlapping of cording, I did the end at an angle over the beginning in the bottom corner.  I was also a genius and apparently didn't measure well enough-- I ran out of the cording for the last 2 inches or so.  I decided you couldn't really tell and I think it made the overlapping a little easier

5) Pin front panel and back panel(s) together, right sides facing each other.  I chose to do the 2 piece back panel once again to take advantage of the hems that were already in the skirt. 
6) Cross your fingers that the super thick parts won't kill your sewing machine
7) Get mad when your sewing machine acts up, and not even at one of the super thick parts
8) Finish sewing seam and turn inside out.  Oops, some of the crappy, crappy stitches are showing... Too bad-- no one will see it any way :)

Front

Ta-Da! 
And here it is.  A re-purposed skirt looking way cuter than it did-- I saved someone from a fashion mistake AND helped the environment.  Win-Win!  I love seeing something beyond what it's meant to be(though really, fabric is fabric just sewn in different shapes).

Since this was a little stretchier fabric, the measuring ended up not being perfect, but it's not radically off.  I was concerned about the curve in the waistband, but thankfully I used enough of the bottom layer to account for that.

Back with Skirt Waistband Detail

There you have it folks, another glimpse into the bigger project I've been working on these days.  Can you tell I'm loving gray?

Until next time!

Project Preview: Pillow #1

Front

 

I've been spending the weekend working on this next project and thought I'd give you all a little preview of one of the pillows that has been completed.

The ruffle was inspired by a blog I've been checking out lately, Tatertots and Jello.  Her explanation is better than what mine would be and I didn't do a good job of taking pictures along the way.  Whoopsies!  However, here's what my process...

What I Used
- An old throw pillow that I wasn't using anymore(or a pillow form if you want to be fresh and fancy)
- Enough fabric for the main cover(I got a yard of clearance suiting material for $4 and had plenty left over)
- Accent fabric(You can get away with about 6-7" of 44" wide material unless you're making a BIG pillow)
- Ribbon I had laying around

Pinning ruffle

- A cooperating sewing machine

If you don't want to read the long instructions...
... I'll just go over a quick run-down
1) Cut the fabric to fit your pillow(add 1" for seam allowance on each side)  For the back, I chose to do the ol' overlapping thing cause I can never sew a pillow shut and make it look good
2) Cut a strip of the accent fabric about twice as long as the length of where it's going.  Make a tube and turn right side out.

Fabric tube

3) Sew a basting stitch all down the length  of the fabric tube and pull the thread to make a ruffle.  Pin to front and sew.
4) Turn down inside edges of back pieces and hem.  I wanted to fance it up and use some ribbon-- I measured one side and then matched up the other side. 
5) Sew front and back together, turn right side out and insert pillow.  Tie pretty bows(if you're my friend Liz) or not so pretty ones(if you're me).  Finito!

Back

Ta-Da!
I was really excited about this because all the lines were straight and it fit the pillow well.  I'm also happy I used black fabric and didn't try to make the lines too straight on the ruffle-- it looks intentionally shabby that way :)

If you have any questions about executing this little number, please let me know and I'd be happy to advise!

Next up... the project which has my hand covered in spray paint

Uber Easy Project: Shadow Box

Just a VERY small, quick, easy project while I work on something bigger.

I've had this shadow box from Target for quite some time and kind of forgot about it until I was unpacking in the new place. There have been a lot of  projects being made in the world with dictionary pages.  I decided I wanted something simple yet pretty.  I've liked butterflies for awhile, so I thought those would be a good shape to choose. 

Paper punches are pricey, so I looked on Etsy for any pre-punched shapes.  Score!  I got 50 butterflies for $1(way more than I needed, but good for the price.  And who knows, maybe they'll creep up in another project later).

This is the super simple part: I chose placement and inserted the pins.  I also decided to fold them in half to add a little more dimension.  Done.  Easy.  A 5 year old can do it!  And I'm super happy with the result-- it's the pretty, "shabby-chic"-ness and simple design I wanted to create.

I love shadow boxes because they're inexpensive to buy and make.  You can do anything you want-- a piece of art or to preserve a memory.  Try it!

And here's a little preview of what I'm working on:

Stay tuned!

Bedroom: "Wall Paper"

As I mentioned in my last post, the room that was calling out to me to work on next was our bedroom.  It's a really good size and has a lot of blank wall space-- not something I live with easily.  There's a higher-than-normal picture rail, and I wanted to do something above it.  So I started thinking: I don't want to spend any money if possible, so what do I have that would suffice?  Ah, yes.  Scrapbooking paper!  A ridiculous abundance of scrapbooking paper.

Half-way point

What You Need
- Enough Paper(lucky for me, scrapbooking paper is an easy 12 x 12" size and easy to work with)
- Scotch tape(I originally was using that gummy stuff, but it was leaving traces behind-- not something I wanted to deal with removing later)
- An object to help smooth down the tape if you can't reach.  I used a wooden spoon

I chose blues because the curtain was the only blue in the room.  I think I would have preferred if all the pages were the same pattern, but I made due with what I had.

A frame added interest and dimension

Other Things to Add if You're Feelin' Fancy
- I wanted to add some dimension, do I changed out the paper in a scrapbook page frame I already had.  You can get one at any craft store for $5-10.
- Fabric instead of paper-- If you own, you could use a spray adhesive to attach, or, if it's a smaller space, use packing tape like I did in a previous project


Ta-Da!

Here's the finished product.  I won't lie, I don't think I'm in love with it, but we'll live with it for awhile and see what happens.  One of the best things about this project is that it will be easy to change if need be!


Next up... Something with spray paint, weather permitting!

Kitchen, Part 1 1/2

I'm at a bit of a stalemate with the kitchen(maybe that means it's complete?), but thought I'd post what has been done.

Moved the kitchen table.  Seems like it belongs and not just thrown against the wall.

Just a little herb garden I'm attempting to grow

Curtain above the sink.  I didn't have enough fabric, so I used left overs from the other window/back of the cabinets.

  That's all for now.  Sorry, not too exciting today.  I'm off to Goodwill this afternoon for hopefully some inspiration.  Considering I had a hard time falling asleep thinking about our bedroom, that's my next project... unless my creative ADD kicks in again :) 

"May the road rise up to meet you, may the wind be ever at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face and the rain fall softly on your fields. And until we meet again, May God hold you in the hollow of his hand.” -- Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Kitchen, Part 1

I've been trying to finish up the kitchen, but have craft ADD, so little things have been distracting me this week.  I did manage to get a couple things done though and thought I'd share some of the complete things in our eatery.

Curtain made out of the same fabric as cabinet backdrop

We got these during our move across the country

Fun chalkboard from Ikea.  We mostly use it to write meals for the week.  It also is a handy way to display my cute aprons!

Tea towels that I framed of Massachusetts and Minnesota.  Now I need to find a California one!

That's all for now!  If you have any ideas, questions, or suggestions, I'd love to hear them.  Have a great weekend!

Previous Project: Welcome!

While I finish up the kitchen, I thought I would share a project I had completed before starting the blog.  We have a relatively long entrance hallway for an apartment.  To fill up the space and to create a warm greeting when people walk in, I spelled out "Welcome" using something different for each letter.

W - Custom order on Etsy, about $10
E - Urban Outfitters, 2 for $14 deal
L - the 2 in the 2 for $14 Urban Outfitters deal

C - We had some extra wood from kitchen shelves, so I just painted the whole thing then painted on the letter using some acrylic paints I already had
O - I've had this mirror for years and it was actually the inspiration for the project.  I wanted to put it in the hallway, but thought it was too small.  That's when I thought "Oh, it's an O!  What can I spell?" and the rest is history.  I have also owned the decorative hook for a long time and thought it was much prettier than regular hardware.

M - This is a cheap Target frame($6) and cut out an M from some fabric I had.  I also cut out some scrapbooking paper for the background.  Originally, the plan was to make an M out of a bunch of Ms cut out of magazines, but this was much quicker. 
E - I bought this at a flea market for $7 and it's made of recycled metal.

Again, easy and it can be as inexpensive as you want!  Letters can easily be made from things you already have around the house-- you just have to think of them in a different way.  There are thousand of words you can spell depending on the message you want to express or amount of space you have.  Between that and the endless possibilities for letters, this can be custom fit for every home and personality. 

We're still waiting to welcome our first visitors!!  Our hallway is here to greet you with open arms.

Project #3: Aren't You Plaid? Kitchen Cabinets

Sorry everyone, I can't resist a cheesy title when it pops into my head.

Before

We have 2 open cabinets in our kitchen which I really love(some of that pretty, pretty charm I referred to in an earlier post).  However, there seemed to be something lacking.  Then I had an idea: take some fabric and "wallpaper" the back of them.  It'd be cheap and not permanent-- something both me and our landlords would appreciate.

I've been jonesing for some plaid in the apartment anyhow, so I thought this would be a good opportunity to introduce some.  Off to Jo-Ann Fabrics I went!  Armed with a swatch of the curtain fabric, I found a nice green, cream and black plaid that tied in colors already existing and coordinated pretty well with said curtains.

What You Need:
 - Enough fabric/paper/wallpaper to cover the space
- Measuring tape
- Scissors
- Adhesive(what kind depends on what you're attaching and if you want it to be removable)

How The Heck Do You Do It?
- Measure the space and cut fabric(measure twice, cut once!) Another bonus about striped or plaid: easy to follow lines so you're sure to be cutting straight.
- Put adhesive on the back and attach to the top and smooth as you go down, securing at the bottom.  Just something at the top and bottom were enough for me, with the exception of mid-way up one side which needed to be tacked down.

 Ta-Da!

That's it!  So frickin'-fraggin' easy.  The one issue I had was my first adhesive(scrapbooking sticky dots) didn't hold as well as I thought they would.  But as it turns out, regular ol' packing tape seems to do the trick.  And did it break the bank?  No way!  This is about $3 worth of fabric-- I wish I had had some in my stash that would have worked, but I didn't. 

What I like about this is that it makes my kitchen seem warmer, more colorful and makes me smile a little bit when I walk in.  It also makes the things you love pop against the background.  Not to mention, it can be changed whenever you want quickly and easily!

Sorry for the awful photo-- lighting was an issue.

Anyone can do this project, even if you don't have open cabinets(just take the doors off).  Use anything you want as long as it's relatively flat-- there are thousands upon thousands of fabrics, different types of paper-- even something that might be recycled you can try.  There are no limits to what your creative little brain can think of.  Now go, be inspired and do a fun project this weekend!

Next project... Finishing touches on the kitchen, including curtains

Project #2: Kitchen Shelves

Before

After making the cake stands, I realized I needed a place to display them.  I also have been struggling with the wall space above our washer and dryer.  Eureka!  I'll put shelves above them!




So, off to Ikea we went.  If I was a more patient person, I maybe could have waited to get something at a garage sale or go dumpster diving.  However, once I want to accomplish something, I need to seize the moment.  And really, $12 for 2 shelves and brackets isn't too bad.  Neither are the $1 frozen yogurt cones on the way out.

My Hero

I know everyone knows how to hang shelves, so I won't do the "Materials" and "How To" section.  But there is a one thing that might not be obvious: get yourself a strapping young man to help out when you can't get the screws in all the way.



Ta-Da!
This is still a work in progress and my little display definitely needs some tweaking, but this is what I've settled on for now.

After

Everything you're looking at I had already.  I swapped out old pictures to re-use the frames(top picture is scrapbooking paper, bottom picture I took the other day at the grocery store of some really lovely heirloom tomatoes).  The glass on the bottom I got at a flea market and use as a candle holder.  The Cape Cod growler is Jon's(wanted the guy to feel a little included).  Basically, you're looking at only putting in the money for the shelves and less than $50 over time for everything that you see.  Definitely budget friendly! 

Next project... I'll keep you all in suspense :)