Do You Want to Build a Snowman?

Hello Readers. You might be out shopping today since it is Black Friday here in the U.S. I avoid shopping in crowds so I am home decorating for Christmas. Here is an easy craft for you and maybe your kids to make.

Its a snowman!

 This snowman started as a white knit poncho. It became a little ghost at Halloween. I had him out on my front porch.

When I looked at him I thought he could be a cute little snowman. I left the head as it was. It is stuffed with plastic bags. 

I stuffed another section with plastic bags to make a round little snow belly. I tied the bottom closed with a big rubber band. I tucked the fringe up in the back so it didn't show.

I used my hot glue gun and added buttons down the belly. And I added a button nose. 

(Be careful it's HOT glue!)

 I used a scrap of fleece to make a tiny scarf for my snowman.

Here is my finished snowman. He is on my front porch ready to welcome visitors.

Thanks for reading along now go make something fun for yourself.

Sweater Three; Tan Cashmere

Hello Readers. This is the last of my sweater series. I am just trying to stay warm on these cold days.

 This last sweater was boring beige. But it was the softest boring beige I have ever felt. I can never say no so soft cashmere.

I found this pretty little cami at a clothes swap when I found the sweater. I thought it coordinate with the beige and dress it up a little. It was the same length as the sweater and it did not show at all when I wore it under the sweater. I could fix that.

I used a small piece to fill in the V-neck. It covered all the cleavage so I wouldn't flash anyone when I leaned over.

I also added a piece of lace around the bottom of the sweater.

I wanted the lace to peek out of the bottom of the sweater.

The sweater is still simple and neutral so I hope it will match a lot my clothes and be easy to wear.

The sweater was just as easy to wear and just as soft with the added lace.

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving in the U.S. so I will be spending the day with my family. I hope you have a wonderful day where ever you are.

Sweater Two; Pink Cashmere

Hello Readers. I am trying to get some sweaters ready for wearing in this cold weather. I don't do well in the cold, I need warm fuzzy layers.

This blush pink cashmere sweater set is just the kind of fuzzy layer I like. (I might have a cashmere obsession.) I found this at a clothes swap and it was soft, pretty and in perfect condition. It was neutral and would match everything. It was a great sweater.

The best part of all? It was actually 2 sweaters! My daughter had never seen a twin set and was surprised that there were actually 2 matching sweaters. They had a really authentic vintage vibe. For now I decided to focus on the cardigan. I will get to pullover next month.

I also had another pink sweater in the exact same shade of blush pink. I have been saving this big pink sweater because I liked this lace in the back. This open back in this big thick sweater made it almost useless. It is COLD! I need sweaters with full complete backs. This open lace would never keep me warm. But I had a plan!

I picked out a few stitches and the lace came out all in one piece. Now comes the swap!

I used my machine to stitch the applique to the pink cashmere sweater. I also did some hand sewing in a few places.

The sweater is soft, warm and now it is a little more interesting and fun.

I love how the lace adds some detail and texture to the back of this cardigan. 

Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself.

Sweater One; Polka Dots

Hello Readers. It's cold and damp and I need sweaters to stay warm. This is the first in a short series of sweaters.

Have you ever had to wear one of those name tag stickers? You know, the ones that say "Hello, my name is..............". They feel awkward and they can be super sticky. If you forget to take them off when you put your clothes in the wash, they can leave behind a mark. A sticky mark that you can't wash out. No matter how many times you try. That is what happened to this sweater.

I decided the only way I could fix this sweater was to cover the mark. I used large rick rack. Really, really, LARGE rick rack! I hoped it would curve around the buttons and still cover the mark from the sticker. That didn't work. The buttons didn't line up with the rick rack. I cut the buttons off and stitched the rick rack over the button holes and I sewed the whole sweater together and pulled it over my head to put it on. I was going to sew the buttons back on just for show but I never did.

It did hide the mark really well. The mark is covered and I could wear the sweater. It only took a few minutes to stitch the rick rack on. But there was another problem. The rick rack was too much combined with the black ruffle.It looked a little clownish.

I removed the ruffle from the sweater and I thought the rick rack looked really fun. I wore it out to run errands and met a new fuzzy friend. He doesn't look nearly as excited to see me as I was to see him.

Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself.

The Bun Hat

Hello Readers. Have you ever wanted to wear a hat but your bun got in the way? I know there are bigger problems in the world. But sometimes as a mom I need to put a hat on and run out the door. And sometimes I need to put my hair in a messy bun. When those 2 things intersect it can cause a problem. What I needed was a hat with room for the bun.

I started with this plain black hat. It was $1 at Walmart.

I marked the top of the hat with chalk.

I cut the top of the hat out with sharp scissors. That left me with a raw cut edge.

 I wanted to use this bias tape to cover that cut edge.

Did I try to use my machine to sew the bias tape on the hat? Yes, I did! It was easy to sew through the hat.You could sew this by hand or even hot glue it.

This is the hat with a bun hole on the top.

Here is my daughter modeling the bun hat for me. (I had a lot of trouble getting a good picture of the back of my own head.) The bun fits nicely out of the top of the hat.

 ***The Slippers***

Its cold y'all. Really really cold. I will be wearing these boot slippers every minute I am at home. They were designed to be folded down but I wanted them up to keep more of my legs covered and warm. But they had a rough seam hidden under that folded down fur. I decided to cover that seam and add a bow for fun.

Thanks for reading along now go make something fun for yourself.

The Summer Dress in Winter

Hello Readers. I found myself with a pair of soft corduroy pants. I honestly can't remember where they came from. I liked the light blue color a lot though. I also got a striped tank dress in the same light blue. So what did I do? I put them together.

These corduroy pants were great but they were approximately 12 inches too long. This is usually how it goes for me. Short girl=Short legs

My daughter gave me this dress because it was difficult to wear. The racer back was too low to work with any bra. (Yes, I tried it on with all my bras.) I decided it would be better as an under layer. It would be warm and if the bra peeked out no one would know.

 
When my daughter handed me this simple white V-neck sweater, I had an outfit idea.

I took a lot of fabric off the length of these pants and made a new hem. I made them a little more narrow through the legs too. I thought I could remove the pockets from the front but you can see the corduroy was permanently marked by the pockets. Easy-peasy!

I cut the dress in the middle so I had a shirt. It would make a great layering piece and it would fill in the deep V-neck of the white sweater. What about that lower part of the dress?

The bottom of the dress made a perfect infinity scarf. I wear a scarf almost everyday in the winter. I hate to be cold.

The whole combo was easy to wear and cozy in the cold weather.

Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself.

My Texas Tuxedo

Hello Readers. Have you ever heard of a Texas tuxedo? That is what I call a denim shirt with jeans. Denim head-to-toe. I'm not sure if that is really what cowboys wear in Texas but that is what I tried to make. I wanted it to be a little more on the feminine side than the cowboy side. You can let me now how I did in the comments.

This shirt was so lovely. I loved the light denim color. It would match everything right? I loved the ruffled neckline and the bow in the back. The shirt was a little big in the body and the neckline was too open and low. I couldn't wear it without flashing people. That isn't the look I was going for.

I took some of the excess fabric from the sides to make the shirt a little smaller. But that didn't help the neckline very much at all.

I decided to add some thin elastic to the back of the shirt on each side of the bow. I stretched the elastic as I stitched it to the neckline. When I was done the elastic gathered in a bit and pulled the neckline in the back of the shirt together. I was also going to add some the elastic to the front but...

I didn't need to. The neckline was much higher and my Texas tuxedo was ready to go.

 

Yee-haw!
 (I know this isn't a cowboy hat but it's the best I could do.)

 

Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself.