Save That Sweater #1

 Hello Readers. Sometimes clothes get worn out. It happens. But if you love something and want to keep wearing it and make it last longer there are ways to mend and repair clothes that anyone can do. 

Cover that hole with a patch.

Holes like this can get bigger and bigger if they are not mended. If you don't sew you might think you can't fix this. But you can. You can use an iron on patch. No sewing needed. 

 

I ordered a set of daisy patches from Amazon. you can find them at a sewing supple or fabric store too. I got about 2 dozen. I had a few holes in this old favorite sweater and I wanted to cover the holes and I wanted to scatter some flowers all over the sweater.

 

I placed the flower patch on top of the hole. I tried to center it right on the hole but I didn't stress about it too much. 

 

I used my iron to press the patch onto the sweater. I set my iron to a medium-high temperature and it only took a minute to set the patch.
 

There is no rule or plan to this. I just put patches all around. 

This sweater is soft and cozy and oversize. I didn't want to let it go. The patches will give some extra time with this old favorite. I liked how the daisies brightened up the plain dark gray color too. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself.

***Year End Update- This cozy cashmere sweater is a favorite and I love the sweater even more with the daisies.

 

 

Make a Drawstring Makeup Bag

 Hello Readers. I had been wanting a drawstring style bag for makeup and toiletries. I decided to try and make one for myself. I had fabric around to use but I didn't have a pattern. Would I need one? No!  It turned out so easy I had to share. 

This quick and easy bag only took about 20 minutes. 

I searched my fabric stash. My sweet MIL had given me loads of fabric sample pieces and I got 2 out of the closet. These pieces are squares that are about 24-26" across. This is a great scrap busting project.

I used this tray to mark out a circle. The tray is 20' across. I wouldn't make the bag much smaller than this or the finished bag will turn out very small.

I cut out 2 circles.

I put the right sides together. 

I sewed all the way around the circles so they were connected. Leave an opening so you can flip the whole thing right side out. 

Pull gently to get the good sides on the outside.

My circles were a little wrinkled. 

I ironed it well so the edges were flat and the wrinkles were gone.

The next step is to sew a circle all the way around. I sewed about an inch from the edge. Sew around until you have a full circle. You do not need an opening in this circle. 

At this point you need some ribbon, cording, string to thread through the casing you made around the circle. Push the cord through the opening and move it around the circle until you get back around to the opening. You can pin a safety pin to the start of the cord to help you move it along.

When you pull the cord tight, it closes the bag. My cord is about 30" long. You need to keep it long enough to spread the bag open.

I sewed a few stitches to make the opening a bit smaller and keep the edges tucked into the opening. I didn't want the cut edges around the opening to show. If you have any messy stitches just put them on the inside of the bag. No one will ever know.

This is a great bag to hold almost anything so it is a great gift too. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself. 

***Year End Update- I use this everyday and I made a bunch to give as Christmas gifts.

IKEA Pillow Cover to Tote Bag

 Hello Readers. I had an IKEA pillow cover, actually I had 2. My daughter was getting rid of 2 linen pillowcases/covers. I saw them and knew they were great upcycle material.

Before and after.

 

These square pillowcases/covers came from IKEA a few years ago. I loved the linen fabric.
 

I thought this would make a great large tote bag. It already had a zipper in it. This would be perfect for Aldi runs. I marked the bag into thirds with chalk. I wanted to add some kind of handles but I also wanted to sew the handles to the sides of the bag to reinforce the bag. I chose this ribbon from my stash because I had enough of it to go all the ways around the bag a couple times. The white marks are where the ribbon will be sewn onto the fabric.

I stitched the ribbon on the bag right on top of the white lines I drew on the bag. I stitched both edges of the ribbon to make sure it was attached to the bag well. 

You can see in this picture that the ribbon is sewed to the bag on both sides. When I got to the top edge of the bag I stitched across the ribbon a few times to reinforce the top of the ribbon. The zipper runs along the top of the bag so I did my sewing under the zipper and did not stitch on or across the zipper. 

 

This is a closer view of the ribbon at the top of the bag. I sewed across the ribbon in 2 places because I wanted to make a strong bag handle.
 

This ribbon is one long piece. I started sewing it to the bag at the bottom. I sewed up the bag, left extra ribbon loose at the top of the bag for the handle at the top and sewed back down the bag. Then I flipped the bag over and kept sewing the ribbon in place. The white lines I drew on the bag before sewing really helped me keep the ribbon in the right place as I sewed. 

 

I folded the bag handles in on themselves in thirds. I stitched that down where my hand would be holding the bag. That made a more comfortable grip for my hand. 

 

Here is a look at the handle up close. I did not stitch all the ribbon like this. I just stitched where my hand would hold or grab the handle.
 

The bag was a quick project and I can zip it closed if I want to because IKEA already put in the zipper. (Yes, That skirt is made from the other pillowcase/cover. Thanks IKEA!)

 

This bag held so much, I could probably go away for the whole weekend with this bag. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself. 

***Year End Update- This bag has been really handy and I have used it a lot. The large size is great.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

IKEA Pillowcase to Skirt Upcycle

 Hello Readers. It's going to sound weird but I turned an IKEA pillow cover into a skirt. The linen fabric was really nice and the color was so perfect for fall. I Wasn't sure if I could make it work but I really thought I could do it. And I thought it would go with this shirt so well.

Before and after.

It just seemed like the right size and shape for a straight simple skirt.

My daughter got this big square pillowcase/ pillow cover from IKEA a few years ago. She didn't want it anymore so it made it's way to my house.
 

The pillowcase/cover opened on one side with a zipper. I cut the edge with the zipper off, then I unpicked the 2 stitched top and bottom edges of the pillow.

 I opened it up and I had a big rectangle.

I ironed the fabric to make it smooth and easier to sew. 

 

I sewed the rectangle into a tube, then i hemmed the bottom by turning the edge under twice and stitching it down. 

 

I made a casing for and elastic waistband. I also stitched along the top of the waistband to make it look like a paper bag waist.

 

I loved how it turned out. It is very simple so it would go with a bunch of different tops. I always forget to make solid color or neutral colored clothes. Sometimes you really need them to go with the patterned clothes.

 

The fit of the skirt turned out great and this outfit has a nice fall vibe. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself.

***Year End Update- Pillowcase as a skirt? I am glad I made this. I love it.

 

 

 

Shorten a Trenchcoat to Jacket

 Hello Readers. I did a little jacket refashion. I wanted this trench coat to be shorter, more of a jacket. I decided to try to shorten it and see if I could do it.

Before and after.

This trench coat was so thin and light that it wasn't worth wearing when it was really chilly out. It was more of a light jacket weight. Almost a "shacket". I thought I might wear it more if it was shorter.

I measured myself and figured out the length I wanted to cut off.

I tried not to over think it. I just started cutting.

Then I had to turn the edge under twice. It was a thin fabric without a full lining so I thought it would work.

It was easy to sew through. The only difficult part was that the materials were a bit slippery so I had to hold it tight.

I ironed the new hem really well to make it smooth and crisp.

Then I looked at it. I didn't like the button at the hemline. It didn't look right to me.

So of course, I started cutting again. I angled the front up so I could get rid of the button. Then I had to hem the cut areas all over again

I liked it so much better now so it was worth it.

I kept the belt and tied it around in the back to keep it out of the way. Thanks for reading along, now go make something fun for yourself.

***Year End Update- This jacket is nice and easy to wear.I like the shorter length a lot.