2 Striped Shirts

 Hello Readers. I had 2 striped button-up shirts. I was surprised at how well they matched. I knew that they could make something fun if I put them together. But what should I make?

Before and after. 

I had 2 shirts. I like the one I am wearing in this picture. I wear it often. The shirt on the hanger was from a clothes swap. I didn't realize how much they matched until I brought it home. How should I put them together? I thought about making a skirt so that it would look like a dress when I wore them both together. 

 

But then I thought matching shorts would be better. It would make a cute 2 piece set. And I could continue to wear the shirt alone if I wanted to. I cut out my shorts from the body of the shirt. 

 

I just had to put these 2 pieces together. What an easy project, right? Well, it was about to get messy. 

 

I decided to add the shirt pocket to the back of the shorts. That would be useful and the pocket was already put together. I wanted to use it. 

 

I put them together and I thought everything would be fine but I was wrong. 

  

I attached the pocket and I thought I was almost done. I added an elastic waistband and then... I realized that the shorts were a little tight. I didn't want tight shorts. I wanted a looser fit to match the fit of the over-sized shirt. 

 

All I had left were the sleeves. Let's try to enlarge these shorts. 

 

The only fix I could think of with the fabric I had available was to add panels to the sides. The stripes on the sides would have to be horizontal but I liked that so I got to work. 

 

I cut the shorts open on the sides. It was a straight cut and straight new seams to sew in the extra fabric. 

 

I added the side panels and hoped for the best.
 

Here are my new shorts. They would be looser now and I thought they would work. 

 

I liked this new 2 piece set. The loose fit is comfortable and casual. Life is too short and too difficult for uncomfortable clothes. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself. And if it doesn't work out at first keep going, keep trying, you'll get there.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I Made A Figet Quilt

Hello Readers. My project today was made for a friend. She asked me to make a figet quilt for her aunt. This aunt is quite elderly and has dementia. The purpose of the figet quilt is to give her something to do. There are lots of different textures and items to touch and fiddle with. It is all attached to the quilt, so it can't be dropped or lost. The quilt will sit in her lap and she can keep herself busy and entertained for a little while.

After some research online I found there really are no rules. You can use anything and everything. You can see the pocket from a pair of jeans. And an empty spool of thread to play with. New things can be added by tying them on one of the loops.

It is hard to tell from the picture but this is a piece of wrapping from a shipping envelop. It has a nice crinkle sound and the elastic it is attached to is sewn on the pink top layer of the quilt. The button and dangling ribbons are also attached to the top layer of the quilt. 

I added a little brass hook to open and close.

And some gold studs to jazz it up. They have a smooth but distinct feel to touch.

This is a view of the inside of one pocket. I attached the fabric loop to the top pink layer of the quilt and then stitched the pocket on. When everything was attached to the pink layer I added some quilt batting and a bottom layer of fabric. 

 I stitched all the way around and added some bias tape around the edge to finish it off. I went over the edge with a zigzag stitch to make it very strong. Hopefully it will keep my friend's aunt busy and entertained. 

This quilt is very feminine but you could make one for a man with a sports or outdoor theme. The possibilities are endless.

 

***UPDATE*** 

I made a second figit quilt for a relative that I thought could use and enjoy it. I tried to use different textures to touch. I used several trim pieces and some buckles and bows to play with. There are pockets to put things in. I also added a hook to attach items to the figit quilt. It is nice to change out some of the items on the quilt every so often. Different cards and papers can go in the pockets and on the hook. If you know someone who has dementia or Alzheimer's or is a care giver for a patient with dementia, they might want one. These kind of quilts can be helpful to keep them occupied and peaceful. 

Thanks for reading along, happy sewing to you.  

 

 

 

Make Water Bottle Cover

 Hello Readers. It is mid-summer and that means HOT weather where I live. I am trying to drink enough water everyday to stay hydrated. And I am pushing water on my kids everyday too. I like my water as cold as I can get it. But it doesn't stay cold. Even at home in the house, my water gets warm quickly. Let's make a water bottle cover you can use at home or when you go out to help keep your water cool. 

You can make a fabric cover for your favorite water bottle. 

I wanted a cover for this water bottle and of course, I didn't want to buy one. I wanted to make one. This bottle fits in my Soda Stream to make seltzer. It's great but it doesn't stay cool. Even at home in my house, in the air conditioning, my water gets warm and the bottle gets condensation on it and can get messy on the table or desk. That's OK, I can fix that. 

 

I grabbed some fabric from my stash. I chose a thick fabric. The thicker the fabric the more insulation you will get from it. Use the thickest fabric you can. A piece of an old quilt, blanket, or beach towel would work great.

 

I made sure the fabric would wrap around my bottle fully with some excess. You will need at least 1/2 inch of over-lap so you can sew the cover together.

 

I used a pencil to mark where the edge of the fabric met after going around the bottle. That told me how big my cover would be. You can do this with smaller or larger bottles. You can make any size you want. This piece of fabric will be squarish shaped to cover the bottle. 

 

I also marked how tall I wanted the cover to be. The top of the bottle needed to stick out of the top of the cover, but I wanted the bottle covered as much as possible. 

 

I added 1/2 inch to the edges for a seam allowance. That gives me room to sew the new seam. I would cut out the larger size square to make my cover.

 

I traced the round circular bottom of the bottle. The cover needs a bottom. 

 

I added 1/2 inch all around the circle for my seam allowance. 

 

I cut out the larger circle. I would sew it to the cover last. 

 

I folded the cover with right-sides facing each other. I sewed the edges together to make a tube shape. The tube should be big enough to fit the bottle in and out. I used my serger for this but you don't have to. You can use your sewing machine if you want. 

 

I took the circle shape that I traced and cut out. I sewed the circle to one end of the tube with right sides facing each other. I used my sewing machine for this because it was easier to maneuver the circle around the sewing machine. 

 

I turned the cover right side out.  

 

You can see the bottom of the cover. It looks great. 
 

I wanted to finish the top edge of the bottle cover. I turned the edge in and stitched it down. My fabric was already finished on this edge so it would not fray. If you have a cut edge, turn it under twice and sew it down to hide the cut edge. It will fray if you don't sew it down. 

 

You new cover should look something like this. 

 

I made a second cover the same way with a piece of an old quilt. I made the quilt cover a few inches too tall so I could fold it down. You can make your cover anyway you like. 

 

I use this bottle and cover everyday at home. I also use this bottle and cover when I go out, I just throw it in my bag. The cover keeps the water cooler and keeps condensation under control. Thanks for reading along, now go make something for yourself. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There's a Problem With This Lining

 Hello Readers. This dress was cute and I liked the colors of the fabric. But the lining was not right. It seemed to have shrunk  Why did the lining shrink? I don't know. But it was not hanging smooth and it was not long enough for the dress anymore. I didn't want to wear it like this. What could I do with it?

Before and after. 

I liked the scattered stripes all over this dress but the lining barely covered my bum. That's not going to work in a light weight white dress. The lining was bunched up and gathered in a lumpy way. Ironing the lining didn't help. I decided to remove it.

 

I started cutting the lining out of the dress. 

 

I cut the lining carefully. I wanted to cut as close as possible to the seams but I did not want to cut the seams anywhere.

 

I cut and cut and cut.

 

I cut the dress shorter so it would be a shirt. I wanted to wear it but without a lining it would be very sheer, a shirt would be more comfortable (Less revealing.) for me. 

 

I liked it as a shirt. It was still just as great as the dress was.

 

Summer means shorts for me and this shirt is perfect with these shorts. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself. 
 

 

 

 

 

 

Napkins to Skirt

 Hello Readers. I found these napkins at a thrift store and knew I wanted them to be clothes. They were a nice cotton and I loved the gingham pattern. I settled on making a skirt because I had enough napkins to go around my hips. So, let me show you my faux wrap napkin skirt.

Before and after.

These napkins were so cute, they gave me an idea. Could I make a skirt from napkins? Sure I could.  

Here are my three cotton napkins. They were very over-sized which made this project possible. There was just enough to fit around me. I used approximately 2 napkins for the skirt and 2/3 of a napkin for the front faux wrap panel. 

 

I used my rotary cutter to cut off the folded over "hem" on the sides of 2 of the napkins. The top fold over edge will be the waistband and the bottom fold over edge will be the hem. That means the hem and the waistband casing are already done. 
 

Here is a look at the top folded over seam. I wanted to put the elastic through that casing. I used 3/4 inch elastic because that was the size of the folded over edge of the napkin. 

 

I pinned a safety pin to one end of the elastic and threaded it through the casing. This was easy as could be. 

 

Here are the front and back pieces of my skirt. They are identical at this point so either one could work in front or back at this point. The elastic gathered the waist nicely. I just need to connect the sides. 

 

Here is my third napkin. I kept the waistband or top seam intact and I also kept the bottom or hemline fold over seam intact. I kept the right side seam in place but I cut about 1/4 of the napkin off on the left side.

 

I put the front and back pieces together with the right sides facing each other. You could sew your skirt together like that and be done. But I wanted to add a panel in front so that it would look like a wrap skirt. I put the 3/4 size panel in the middle. When I sew the side seams, one side seam will have 3 layers sewn together at the side seam and one side of the skirt will have 2 layers sewn together at the side seam. This video shows how to stack up the layers for sewing. 

I used my serger to sew the new side seams together. You can also use a sewing machine if you wish. Using a zigzag stitch will help control fraying inside the skirt. 

When you flip the skirt right side out the front panel will hang loose on one side like this. That's OK. It is not done yet. 

 

I used the dress form to hold the skirt. I pulled the front panel across the front of the skirt and saw where I needed to attach the panel at the waist. I didn't pull so hard that the skirt would be tight, I want to be comfortable. I just want the front panel to come across my skirt and give it that wrap skirt look. 

 

I used a small button at the spot where the front panel is connected to the waistband. It makes the skirt look more finished but I didn't make a buttonhole for the button. It is just for looks. 

 

 The elastic waist and the the front panel are loose enough to pull the skirt on and off. No other fastenings are needed.  

 

My skirt turned out cute and casual. I love it. 

 

I wore it to a clothes swap. I gave some things away and I brought some things home that I could use. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself.