Lightbulb Notebook

A little notebook for all your 'bright' ideas, heh heh (I know, I know; I'm so clever)...

Based on this notebook from etsy and this tutorial.

Made out of a Cheez-It box and handsewn together after making holes with a thumbtack. What a pain. :/ The lightbulb was drawn on with Sharpie. :)

Probably going to become a Christmas present. Have a great day!

(22 days till Christmas!)

(o^__^)o

Part of my Etsy Wishlist

These are some of the things I love on Etsy but am too poor to afford. Just a couple of things. ;)

Source: etsy.com via Naomi on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Naomi on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Naomi on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Naomi on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Naomi on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Naomi on Pinterest

Shrugs

I want to sew a shrug outta some jersey. Dunno why. Just think they're kind of cool and comfy looking. Here's some inspiration:

Burdastyle

left, right

I love the pullover style like the above left, or like jmorco below.

all above are from jmorco.

It's not even like I'm a dancer or yogi or gymnast. I just think that they're cool. I WANT ONE.

'Kay. See you later. Bye. o(^__^o)

Best Thrift Store Ever: Grandma's Basement

Okay, so Grandma's Basement isn't some cool, funky little second-hand shop. It is, quite literally, my, ahem, erm, Grandma's basement. She does, however, have the best things down there! She has old toys and clothes, and even a whole box full of plaid and stripe socks and legwarmers from the 70s and 80s.

And of course, she was happy to give her grandchildren (my sister and me) old clothes.

Here are some 'finds,' haha.

A beautiful oversized olive green sweater from GAP. 100% cotton. In the winter I might wear it over leggings and shorts or something. With rain boots. :)

Camo green sweatshirt. I wanna refashion it into something like... pants? Hmmm... what do you think?

Green button up vest. My sister wore it to school today and got many compliments, haha. She always likes to say that the 80s are back! (or 60s or 70s or whatever)

A flannel coat. My sister and I plan on taking in the sides and adding pleats in the back to make the coat more fitted.

A super big waffle hoodie. Wonder what we can make with this...

Also some super cool belts...

Not pictured are some awesome socks, a rash guard that I plan on refashioning, a hawaiian print shirt that my sister wants to make some high waisted flowy shorts from, a blue v-neck sweater, and a button up shirt. Dunno if I missed something...

Oh, and I won the giveaway from Hannah Handmade! I won some hair things from Belle Bands on etsy! You should go visit her shop because her stuff is GORGEOUS!

Sorry about not posting... I'm in school now. I just started yesterday. Whoohoo.

Have a nice day! o(^__^o)

Kimono Shrug Tutorial

While searching for a certain t-shirt in our messy closet, I came across some fabric I was looking for last week. It's a silky, shiny fabric with a japanese print on it in pink and red. T-shirt forgotten, I started making a shrug. The result looks almost like a jmorco 'I heart kimono shrug'! Squeal! (ok, I don't squeal at all, thank goodness, but I'm very excited. And even if i tried to squeal i'd sound like a pig ...) And I didn't even try! Jmorco is my favorite etsy seller. I love, love, love her designs. And she's a San Franciscan like me! Well I was born in SF at least, and usually I go at least once a week... Okay, so, this is the finished product.

Tutorial

Materials: fabric (i had 2/3 yd by 60"), sewing machine, thread, measuring tape, pins

Measure from wrist to wrist and add 3." Trim your fabric to this length. I left the width the same, which was 26." It gave me the big, drapey, kimono sleeves. I'm sure it would be big enough if it was only simply 20." Or you could go for the classic shrug and just do a smaller width. Measure across your shoulders and add 4-5." I got 20." Now take your length and subtract your shoulder measurement. (for me: 60-20=40) Now divide by 2, and you've got x. Measure in x inches on both sides, and sew, leaving a gap in the very center. Hem the arm holes, turn right side out, and insert your arms into the holes.

The space between the yellow lines is your head hole. You're done! The black lines on the sides is where your arms come out of, and the layer of fabric between the dashed lines forms the neck. The fold is the back of the shrug.

Have a nice weekend.

Jmorco

I am in awe of jmorco's work on etsy. Her things have inspired me to sew unique things. Maybe I'll ask for one of her pieces for my birthday. When I grow up, I hope she will still have her shop open, because then I might possibly have money to buy from her. Possibly. Though it'll be the day when I will spend more than $30. But I shall make an exception. Again, possibly.

What I'm currently working on...

Here's a preview of my newest sewing project--it's another jmorco knock-off (an etsy shop with cool, unique, and funky clothing). It's a kind of patchwork-shirt. The sleeves are going to be made from salvaged jersey scraps.

Hip Hop Pullover: Tunic Tutorial

I have been called many things. Immature: just last night I was rooting myself on to beat my high score in Doodle Jump. I also love to watch pokemon, dragon tales, arthur, kids next door, etc. if it's on. I've been called weird: I once tied my socks to my p.e. pants so I wouldn't lose them (I don't mean to insult anyone who's done that before!). I was making cotton candy mustaches with my sister the other day. However, I've often been called creative, talented, and incredibly gifted--did I mention I am often called these things? (ok, just ignore those last two) The point is that I'm very creative when it comes to going over my mistakes. I'm also good at copying things. Due to laziness (not that I'm lazy or anything), this shirt doesn't exactly give me what I wanted, but with my arm warmers (tutorial here), it still gives me the cool, tough-girl attitude that I'm going for. Inspiration (by jmorco on etsy):

My interpretation:

This shirt makes me want to start showing off my dance moves (that I, unfortunately, don't have). I can imagine this shirt on one of those tough street-dancers from the movies. It's the kind of shirt that makes me feel--dare I say it?--bad.

And I'm lovin' it.

I remember for a field trip, I brought Cheez-its to a play even though I wasn't supposed to, and I told my friend, "I'm so bad, I brought Cheez-its!" She laughed, and so did I, but sadly, in a way, I wasn't exactly kidding. I wish I was wearing this shirt when I had said that: it would have made it ten times worse.

Tutorial

materials: scissors, shirt that you want to model after, sewing machine, drapey, stretchy, jersey fabric (i had about 3/4 yard from the remnant pile in the fabric store); thread. that's about it.

The front and back pieces are the same. Take your nice fitting shirt and lay it out on your fabric. Cut around your shirt, not including the neckhole or the curve of the shoulders on your sleeves. Leave a seam allowance. You basically want a straight edge on the top, so you have 2 t-shaped pieces of fabric. Leave plenty of room under your arms, so you almost have a gusset underneath. See how square the original shirt's underarms are? You want to curve under it. Compare the underarms from this picture to the picture below.

After you cut out both pieces, sew the shoulders, leaving a gap for your head to fit through. I made the gap a little big so it can fall off the shoulder if I want it to. You don't have to cut out a neckhole, because since the fabric's drapey, it gives you a nice curling raw edge that goes around your neck. Then sew up the sides. You're finished! Easy top in about 15 minutes! Make a ton out of different colored jersey. Have fun. :)

Maybe one day I'll actually try again at copying the shirt. But for now, this is good enough for me.

Lovely Loose Fitting Dress

Isn't this dress so pretty? Made by NewExtrave on etsy. I love it... [drools]

I think I could make this with some linen, elastic, and ribbon for the neckline--the ribbon was originally wrapped around a Nordstrom's gift box :) I'd make bigger pockets, though, for extra snacks and stuff.