How to Make a High Necked Tank Top

So help me, I'm a genius.

Have you noticed that shirts are getting more and more low cut?  I've been wearing tank tops and t-shirts under most of my shirts for years, but the larger the size, the lower the front of the tank top.  Not much help!  My five-year-old turned to me on Saturday and said "Mom....that shirt is NOT modest.  When are you going to stop wearing it?"

OK, ouch.  I'm forever yanking on my tank tops, yanking on my shirt, yanking on EVERYTHING trying to keep a sense of decency!  (Let me tell you, babies do not appreciate prudishness in their mothers.)  Moms are always bending, sitting, stretching, moving...and clothes don't like to cooperate.

You ready for my amazing tank-top makeover?  Put it on backwards.  Yeah.

Problem solved!

I Made This: Modpodged Shoes

I saw a few mentions in the past year of people Modpodging their shoes. Hmm....they all used fabric, but I thought I'd give it a go with tissue paper!

These are Ernie's church shoes. They looked a little worse for wear in the toes, and the ribbons were frayed, but they still had a bit of room so I wanted to revamp them just enough to buy us some time before she outgrew them.

I started by snipping away all the ribbons and froo-fra, then starting at one spot and painting a good thick coat of Modpodge, and sticking on chunky pieces of tissue paper, letting them be a bit rumpled and wrinkly, especially in the spots that needed more coverage. (This is a great reason to save tissue paper from gift bags, even if it's torn and wrinkled, if it has a FABULOUS print.)

She hasn't worn them yet (typical- I spend all this time re-doing her FAVORITE church shoes, and she decides to wear her glittery red shoes...the ones that are next on my list to be re-vamped because they're worn in the toes too!) but they are still flexible and look like they'll stand up to another few months of church.

*Story: My niece is very hard to impress. I made these shoes at her house after she went to sleep, and when she came down in the morning she stopped, turned to her mother, and said "I. Want. Shoes. Like. THAT." I promised her she could have these when Ernie outgrew them, if her mother couldn't find anything else we could gussy up for her!*

I've linked this up to the weekly Mad in Crafts linky festival- go check out the other fabulous projects!

Another Belly Band Tutorial

I have this massive, old t-shirt that's been floating around my drawers for years. It was a "door gift" at a work meeting held in the CONVENTION CENTER to announce that yes: Cingular was Purchasing our Company. 

And as your prize, here's a t-shirt smashed into the shape of a 5" football and shrink wrapped.
(We thought it was weird too.)

The t-shirt came in handy when I left work shortly thereafter for (permanent) maternity leave. By virtue of being the largest item of clothing in our house, it became the only thing I could wear to bed.

(In my first pregnancy, I was carrying a swimming pool for Ernie: double amniotic fluid. My legs would keep finger-induced indents for a full five minutes. I went from a curvy 140 pounds to a human-water balloon 210 by the time I waddled into that hospital for the last time. Sufficeth to stay, once I got out of my chair and developed a forward momentum...people generally got out of my way, and NEVER EVER got between me and my next milkshake. ahem.)


ANYWAYS! I was dead tired of looking at this shirt, which has oddly stayed in the bottom of my pajama drawer through two moves now.

Slice off the bottom.

Cut the width down to size (I used my under-bust measurement, divided by two since this is a tube. But I'm sure you could have figured that out. It worked out to 16". Looking back, the t-shirt isn't that stretchy- it's tight on my hips, but hey: it stays put REAL GOOD.

Serge up the open edge.

VOILA! My size XXL t-shirt, parting gift from a wacky corporate "team building"/"we're going to eat your company for breakfast" meeting...can now be worn around my hips, to block unsightly views when I bend/clean/pick up children/live. Crazy good!

Have Scissors, Will Destroy Clothing

Ernie had a little too much with with some orange sidewalk chalk last summer (why YES it takes me a long time to start projects- why do you ask?) and orangified her very favorite "bow shirt." A pair of scissors got ride of the stained bodice and sleeves, and a bit of scrap jersey became a tube skirt, with a big 'ol pleat in the front.

It took me THREE TRIES to ge the silly skirt and shirt sewed together so that they both faced out at the same time. Thank you Aunt LoLo for finally setting me straight.

I think Ernie likes it! I'm not sold on the length (I measured her neck-knee...and then cut a skirt of that length. Yeah. And I'm in charge of raising children??) but she loves long skirts so I think we'll keep it. It's a good play dress for indoors, not great for parks. But with the number of rainy days we have, I think she'll get good use out of it!

To Infinity, and Beyond!

Gosh, I couldn't resist that title.  Well, maybe I could have.  Maybe I just didn't want to! :)

Anyway.  My friend Su made this adorable dress recently called an Infinity Dress.  Instructions can be found here on Rowena's Stitching.  In its simplest form, it's four pieces: a donut of jersey, two long strips of jersey, and a waist band.  You lay them all together, sew around the waist, and you're done.  Tempting, right?  Su added a tube top for extra coverage.  (She also cut down on the bulk of the skirt.)  The straps and skirt are as long or short as you want them.

(Photos of Su, courtesy of Vively Online.  Used with permission.)


Here's where your part comes in, o my fabulous and fashion savvy readers: Could I pull this off with a fitted tee underneath?   There are a 101 ways to wear the long ties.

I've seen girls wear fitted tees under strapless dresses, and thought it looked sweet.  But...I'm not going to prom.  I'm going to church.  And I'm not a teenager anymore.  But it would be cute, and easy to make, and fun.

So.  That's the sound of MY brain tying in knots.  What's yours saying?

I Made This: Refashioned Cardigan

First piece of "can't wear this any more" clothing bites the dust! I've had this (cotton/acrylic) fitted sweater for...a long time. A really long time. My ten-year reunion is this summer, and I wore this sweater in high school. Oh dear.

I finally had to admit that it was too short to wear with jeans, and threw it into my pile. A quick snip up the middle, hem either side, and I have my new favorite cardi. No buttons (it was fitted before, and now with the inch of hemwork in the middle, it would look atrocious pulled tight), no frills. I'm looking through my jewelry stash for an enormous gaudy brooch! I love the fitted sleeves, and that this doesn't add much bulk to my profile. A definite plus :)

Gosh. Are you just LOVING my kids' bathroom after all these shots? *gack* We have so much painting to do this summer :) This room is on our list! (And so is the light fixture. Florescent bulbs?? EXPOSED bulbs, since we took out the yellowing plastic covers. Double gack.) I do love the bright colors and the white in the tile, though. The counter is a teal formica, and there's no way we're replacing it until the kids are grown :)

Refashion: Child's Cardigan

I've felted my first thrift store sweater, and I'm never going back. This was such a fun little project!  I'm excited to find more sweaters and see what else can be made- purses, diaper covers, felt pencil cases...oooh, the possibilities!

Materials:
100% wool sweater
mesh bag
old bath towel
washing machine
scissors

Start with an adult-sized sweater. The particular sweater was a women's sized small made with 100% lambs wool. Put the sweater into a mesh bag (I used a laundry sack from the dollar store), and put it into the washing machine with an old bath towel (for friction.) Make sure you use something old- you'll be washing it super hot so it might shrink, and this process can make a lot of fuzz that will stick to the towel. The mesh bag will help keep it contained, though.

Wash the load as hot as your machine can, with a cold rinse, and just a little soap. Dry in the dryer, and pull it out to see what you got!

Honestly, I didn't know who this would be for- I had no idea what size it would be when I pulled it out. Turns out, it's a Mimi sweater.

Cut up the middle of the sweater, and trim the bottom edge and sleeves to whatever length floats your boat. We ended up cutting up all the ribbing off the bottom, and making little 3/4 length sleeves- anything too long around her wrists becomes a chew toy!

For an older child you could add nice chunky buttons, add embellishments, make scraps into little flowers and sew them on...so many options!

We thought the arms might make nice leg warmers...but it really didn't work out. *grin*

Repurpose: Grandma's Clip-On Earrings

Over the years I've collected a lot of Grandma's jewelry. I loved knowing it was hers, and daydreaming about where she might have worn the pieces. Of course, this being 20-40 years later, and me being a somewhat timid dresser, many of the pieces have simply sat in the jewelry box.

I've had this idea for a while- Grandma had FANTASTIC clip on earrings. Great big plastic and metal and rhinestone affairs. I wore a few pairs for costumes and dress up and such, but wished there were a way to incorporate them into something...real. Something I could wear around town.

So...hey! Clip 'em on my nice and plain flats, and away we go. I'm kind of giddy with the possibilities now.

Spiffing Up Worn-Out Glitter Shoes

I remember my little sister (who will start college at the end of this month!) wearing glitter shoes to church. And I remember the glitter left on the pews and in the hallways from her, and other little girls. My daughter has now joined the ranks of glitter-trailing girls. Wonder Daddy tried to save these shoes by setting the rule that they had to stay on the floor if she wanted to sit cross-legged at church, to try and prevent all the glitter from being scraped off...but it was all in vain.

The toes were bare and devoid of glitter.

Ernie was sad: Dilapidated and glitter-less shoes are NOT fit to be worn to church!

Luckily, Momma has overcome her fear of Mod-Podge, and the shoes are now rehabilitated and ready to be worn (and worn out) all over again!

It's a really easy fix- using a foam brush, I wiped a thin layer of Mod-Podge in a symmetrical shape on the front of each shoe and (holding the shoes over a piece of newspaper) shook glitter on. Tap the excess glitter off, decant it back into the jar, and let dry. Top with another coat or two of Mod-Podge (let it dry well in between coats.) You're back in business!

I wasn't able to find any pink glitter (and besides- the chances are slim of finding a PERFECT match for these shoes) so I went with a cheery gold glitter. I think they look kind of like wing-tips. Sparkly, Wicked-esque, wing-tips.

(Speaking of Wicked- saw it the other afternoon with Wonder Daddy. Great show! I'm still humming the songs.)

Simple Skirt Tutorial

This is, honestly, the easiest skirt you'll ever make.

You'll need a bit of fabric, selvedge to selvedge (those are the woven edges, not the cut edges.) I like to cruise the remnant bins at my fabric store- anything over a 1/4 yard works great as a skirt for my oldest daughter!

You'll also need either ribbon or a bit of elastic. The ribbon should be about 18 inches longer than the waist, elastic should be 2 or 3 inches shorter.

Hem or finish both long (cut) sides of the fabric. Fold the top edge over 1 inch and sew to make a casing. (On this skirt I used biase tape on the bottom edge, and serged the top.) If you're using elastic, fold the casing to the INSIDE of the skirt, if you're using ribbon fold it to the OUTSIDE.

Sew both short (selvedge) edges together, starting UNDERNEATH the casing.

Thread the elastic or ribbon through the casing- if it's ribbon, you're done. If it's elastic, sew the ends together, and hand-stitch the casing shut.

And...ta-daa!

Easter Skirt for the Babe

My Dad chuckled when he saw this- "Whose doll is this for?"

Mine of course! One skirt down, three to go. We are going to look sharp on Easter!
This is based on the "Swing Your Partner" tiered skirt in the fabulous and often blogged-about "Sew What! Skirts" book, although in a MUCH smaller form *grin*

This is my first serging project, and I'm loving it. I received a Brother 1034D as a Christmas gift from my (very kind) parents, and it's taken me until now to break it out. I'm glad I spent a week reading the manual, researching online, and watching the two DVD's that came with the machine. I know it sounds like overkill, but I like to know ALL the rules before I start a game, and there are a lot of rules to serging! At least, there are a multitude of things the serger can do, and I wanted to know about a good chunk of them before I started.

The serger came with a gathering foot, which I love. I was able to put one layer under the foot, feed another through a slot in the foot itself, and gather the bottom layer while serging it to the upper straight layer AT THE SAME TIME. The mind reels. All the layers and seams are serged, and the elastic is sewn to the waist using a sewing machine elastic/zig zag stitch. (Speaking of which, WHY did I never notice in the manual that there is a special zig zag stitch for elastic? It works so much better than the regular zig zag!)

I have all the pieces cut out for two more Easter skirts, for my daughter and niece, and then need to sew up something cute for my nephew and find measurements for my other niece...and we'll all match, which is fun considering we're in three different states!