Pencil Wrap

This is a super easy, super fast, and super cute gift for any child, would maybe make a cute addition to an Easter basket! Alright, enough chatter, let's get to the tutorial shall we??

Make yourself a 12" x9" rectangle for your pattern piece. Take that pattern piece and cut out 4 rectangles of your desired fabric, and 1 rectangle of  fleece...

Guilty secret...I actually used the Band Pattern Piece for my Reversible Hat folded down to the 9" size!

Next, pin fleece to WRONG side of one of your 4 fabric pieces and stitch in place using 1/4" seam allowance..

Now take another of your Fabric rectangles and fold it in half longways with wrong sides together, pin this to the fabric side of your fleece/fabric rectangle, raw edges on the bottom...

And stitch along sides, using a 1/4" seam allowance...

Now grab a ruler and a marking pen/pencil and mark lines on the folded over piece(pocket) where you want your pockets divided, I just used the width of my ruler as a guide (i think it's close to 1" spacing)...

Now stitch where your lines are...

and trim your threads of course!

Now take your third fabric rectangle and fold in half lengthwise, RIGHT sides together, stitch short sides together using a 1/2" seam allowance. Turn right sides out....

Now take the piece(this is your pencil keeper flap) and align it to the top of your pocket piece, raw edges along the top...

And take your last rectangle and place it over everything, right side down and pin...

Now take a piece of ribbon(I used grosgrain) about 12-18" long, fold it in half, stuff it under your top piece right now and place the fold on one side of your pocket section, halfway up or so and pin...

Now stitch around the whole thing with a 1/2" being careful not to catch the flap on the sides while sewing, and leaving a space at the bottom for turning. Turn right side out....

And you're done!!!!!!

Happy Crafting!!

Bottle Cozy

Here's a fun new project that actually started as can and bottle cozies(which you can still use it for!). I was making some as presents for my BIL and it hit me...I am always fighting to keep Mr. Man's bottle's warm when we go out and this would help! So they went from can cozies to bottle cozies...enough chatter let's get to the tut shall we?

First make yourself a pattern piece- which is just a 4.5" x 9.5" rectangle. Then cut out two pieces of fleece using your pattern...

Perfect for using up old scraps!

Next put your pieces right sides together and sew along both the long edges but NOT the short edges...

Turn right sides out and top stitch along the long edges 1/4" from the edge...

Turn right side out...

And topstitch

Now determine which side you want on the outside, that is now the 'right side' of the fabric. Fold your piece in half 'hamburger style' right sides together and sew together on the short edges...

Trim and turn right side out, and you have a cozy!!! 

These guys don't have to be for bottles only, they fit soda cans and glass bottles too. If you like, you can add an embellishment like the flower on the cozy in the first picture. The flower is a variation of the Box Fold Flower from the ladies at I Candy Handmade. Well I hope you like these! Let me know what you think!

Happy Crafting!

Cute and Easy Skirt

Is anyone else following the awesome 'Nesting' posts over at Delia Creates??? There are a lot of great tutorials on there!!! I saw THIS cute post and wanted to make the skirt, but for my toddler SOOO I used her awesome instructions to make a big one and it worked great!

I will definitely be making more!

And it came out nice and long on Pumpkin to cover those knees!

There are so many awesome posts going on over there right now! Be sure and check them out!

Happy Crafting!

Reversible Hat tutorial

As promised here is a tutorial for an easy and reversible winter hat!(Anastasia's hat in Lil Fur Cape is a variation on this one) Sorry it's been so long since any posts, it's been crazy around here!


To make your pattern pieces measure around your head (for me it was 22") now if you like your hats loose add 1" (23") or if you like them tight just use the initial measurement, this will be the length of the side piece and the circumference of the top.

To make the top piece divide your measurement by 3.14 (for me 7") OK now I might get kinda confusing here... so I took lots of pictures...

Measure 7" apart

Rotate on the axis (3.5")

Measure 7" apart again and rotate again...

and measure 7" apart again and rotate one more time

and measure 7" apart again

And connect the dots...viola! a circle :)

Now determine how long you want the side of your hat( to do this, measure the side of your head to where you like your hat to stop and add 4-5" so you can fold up the bottom) add 1" for seam allowances ( I chose 12" for this one that way after I folded up the bottom it would kinda hang in the back- my hubby loves the long hats) Cut out your rectangle (12x22), then you have your pattern pieces.

Now cut out two of each pattern piece, one set in one color and the other in another...

                                        

Now pin and sew your side seams together on the side pieces...

                        

Now pin the side piece to the top, right sides together and sew...

Do this with both sets...and then stuff one right side out into the other right side in...

Sew the pieces together leaving a gap for turning...

Turn and topstitch...

Fold up about 4" and viola! you have a hat!

And it's reversible!

You can play around with lengths for the side, giving you different looks...

This kind is my hubby's fave, he says that way on not so cold days he folds it up once...

And on really cold days he folds it up twice, keeping his ears extra toasty!

This kind is my fav...the side piece would be 8.5-9" long

Happy Sewing!! 

Lil Fur Cape

So I bought some faux fur fabric last year with the intention of making Miss Stasia a cape. One winter come and gone and halfway through another and I finally did it, and she LOVES it! It's almost impossible to get it off her!!

Miss Stasia and her favorite kitty Peaches

  

I used the basic idea from THIS awesome tutorial from the ladies at Project Run and Play. I didn't do the collar cause the fur seemed too bulky to do so, also I can't draft a pattern to save my life and I couldn't print out her collar pattern since we still don't have a printer around here (Stasia danced on our old one!). I also did a loop and stuffed button instead of a buttonhole and covered button.  

Then I made her a matching hat...

Stay tuned for the tutorial on the hat....