Knitting Bag

Years ago, my husband's grandmother, Bev, gave me all of her knitting/crochet supplies.  I just started really getting into knitting and she wasn't able to knit or crochet anymore so whalaaa, I had an instant yarn stash!!!  Granted, most of the yarn was itchy acrylic from the 70s in very 70s colors, but I adored it all!!!  I still have a lot from that stash and I have used a bunch too.

As Bev would find more yarn and supplies, she would send them along... even now, when she is no longer with us, her husband still finds things here and there and makes sure they make their way to my house (those are the supplies that I find really special).  In the last group of things I received,  was a fold-able knitting basket.  It's probably not THAT old... maybe purchased in the 70s or 80s?, but it doesn't matter because I was instantly in LOVE!!!!  Not only was it sentimental because it was very well used by my late friend and 'grandmother-in-law', but it is also a functional piece that I will use everyday! 

I knew for sure that I was going to have to replace the lining before I could use it, so it has been sitting in a corner of my craft room waiting until I could make time to work on it. Last week I finally had the time to spend, so I sat down to tackle the project.  As I was removing the lining....

..... I notice that the exterior fabric was shot too!  I know that they have had mold issues and alike in their home and there was evidence on both the interior and exterior fabrics, and I didn't want to take any chances so I had to replace the exterior fabric too.  I failed again to get a 'before' image but here is what the exterior looks like:

I picked out my 2 favorite fabrics from my fabric stash and went to work.  The construction was very interesting and I had to do a lot of hand sewing but I LOVE the final result!  

I absolutely treasure it!  It has been in use since it was completed, filled with various knitting projects and I can honestly say that there probably won't be a day that goes by that it won't be filled with yarn and supplies.  I think that Bev would really like it and I think that she would be tickled to see how much I use and adore it!  I will honestly think of her every time I see it and just in case I forget (won't happen), I found these 2 little safety pins attached to the old fabric that is clear evidence that she used this basket, so I think they will make a permanent home pinned to the new fabric of her basket!

Until next time, Happy Sewing!

Vintage Dress

2 years ago, while visiting my in-laws I found this vintage Mexican Fiesta Dress at a flea market for $18.95.

I didn't buy it and I later regretted it.  The in-laws live 3 hours away so once I was home it wasn't possible for me to just go back and get it.  To make a long story short, my MIL ended up going back to the store and buying it for me.  And if I am not mistaken, there was a sale and she ended up buying it for under $15.  My whole intention was to turn this into a skirt and last week (yes that makes 2 years later), I finally pulled it out to do just that.  Then, as I was taking pictures for this post, I realize that it just might fit me, which since it wouldn't matter if it fit or not when I converted into a skirt, I never tried it on.  Well guess what.... it fit like a glove!

So now I had a dilemma, do I keep it as a dress since it fits?  I looked at it from every angle, even possibly taking off the ruffle and converting the top into a tank-style.  

Ultimately, though, I decided to go ahead with the skirt.  Some may cringe, but for me, the dress was too formal to wear every day and that was how I wanted to wear it.  So I got out my seam ripper and removed the top.  I pleated it, Sewed in a lining (not previously lined and you could see right through the lace), and I sewed in a new zipper. It is a little roomy at the top (better that than too snug) and it is also really long, so I will just have to bust out my wedge-style flip flops :-)

I have another project in the works and is nearly done, so hopefully I will get that done soon to post.  Until then, happy sewing!

Lately

Last month I flew out to Las Vegas to surprise my mom for her 60th birthday.  Her party and my trip were all compliments of my Aunt.  So as a thank you I sent her a box with some goodies for herself, my Uncle and my Cousin.  Here is what I came up with.

Leather wrap bracelets are super popular right now.  I see celebs wearing them in all the style mags, Etsy has a huge selection and they are all over Pinterest.  Not to mention that I teach a class on how to make these at Urban and the classes are usually filled.  So I made 2, one for my Aunt:

... and one for my Cousin:

I recently saw these on Pinterest from this blog:

And I was inspired to make some similar pieces.  Here is the one that I thought my Aunt would like.  The bracelets in the above picture look like "bangles" and I made mine with clasps to open and although some of the others that I have been making are with the recycled sari silk, this one I made with another silk blend yarn.

Here is the 3rd bracelet that I made for my aunt.  This one is a little more funky but it is really fun to wear, mostly because it bounces and moves and almost has a life of its own.  This is crocheted wire with some new and vintage findings.  It is a double wrap with a magnetic closure so that it is really easy to put on.

As for my Uncle, I would love to have said that I made this, but I didn't.  I bought it here at the Nothing New Stitchery Etsy shop.  It is a recycled bicycle tire inner tube pouch.  I thought that it was a perfect fit, since my uncle likes to bike.

Another one of the latest crazes is Washi or Paper tape.  The tapes shown were purchased at Target.

I have to say that they are really handy, these fun decorative tapes can be used for anything.  I had some generic white boxes and decorated them with the washi tape and coordinated the card envelopes to match.

With these gifts wrapped, sent and scheduled to be delivered today, I can work on this some more....

A paint by number which is a bit of irony considering I have a fine art degree and that....  just makes my giggle :-)

That's it for now.  I have growing list of to-dos and want-to-dos....  we will see what I can get around to doing.  For now, Happy crafting!

UpCycling

What's better than finding a cheap piece of furniture at a yard sale and upcycling it to be amazing?  Finding one in your basement that doesn't cost a thing to upcycle for free and make amazing :-)

My mom bought this free-standing mirror in the mid 90s.  I'm not sure if she bought it for me or if I just wound up with it when she downsized, either way I have had it stored in the basement ever since.  And this is why:

Outdated? Definitely!  So in the interest of making this way better without spending any money, I sanded it down with a fine grit sandpaper I had on hand...

...and painted the wood with leftover paint that just happens to be one of my favorite colors!

And here is what it looks like now.  

I am planning on using it in my craft room for now... but it matches my master bath (the pic below was taken in my master bath and is more color accurate)

and it matches the upcycled dresser-turned nightstand.

So, if I ever gain any space in my master, I could put the mirror in there.  Not only was it completely free but it is also versatile!

I have a bunch of projects in the works, but May is always a crazy month and this year it is even crazier! I will try to post as much as possible and until next time, Happy Upcycling!!!

DIY-Memory Game

I have taken a vow of money saving.  :-)  I am making some attempts to save a bit so my challenge is to make any upcoming projects for free.  I also have a TON of stuff in my craft room, so hopefully this will alleviate some of the mess and clutter in there as well as save a buck or two.

Up first is my DIY Memory Game.  My 3 year old has yet to learn his letters.  He can sing the song but can't identify any of them so I have been trying to come up with a clever way to teach them to him without him knowing it. And it hit me while playing this vintage Memory game.

It is an Animal Family version, where instead of finding 2 cards that match identically, you have to find the "mom" animal and the coordinating "baby" animal.  So I decided to make an "Alphabet Family" version where you have to match the upper case letter with the lower case letter. I am sure that there is a manufactured game with this format, but not for free!  :-) Here is how I made it, so that you can make your own too.

Materials

Chip board
Ruler
Pencil
Scissors (or your preferred cutting method)
Fine Grit Sandpaper
Paint & Paint Brushes

To start you will need some chip board.  I have some chip board shapes made for scrapbooking and other crafts, but I didn't have 52 of the same one.  So I turned to my old Art Paper pads from college.

Most of the time I use the chipboard backing for a protective surface when I am painting, but this project definitely uses it to it's full potential.

I drew out a grid/cutting guide;  I just kept halving the measurements in both directions until I had a size that I thought was appropriate.  And as it turns out, that made enough for the project with 12 to spare (keeping in mind that I didn't include the bottom 1.5" of the board because it was bent).

I used an X-acto knife to cut out the strips, then scissors to cut out the individual pieces (You can use whatever cutting method you prefer).

I then used a fine grit sandpaper to sand down any imperfections along the edges.

I used the Making Memories Scrapbook Paint.  (I'm not entirely sure they still make it).

This paint is designed for paper so it has less water, it's more opaque than other types of paint and it dries very quick.  My concern was that the pieces would buckle with too much moisture.  But, use what you have, it is worth a try.  I first painted one side black. (You will have to excuse the Christmas-printed-plastic-table-cloth that I bought after Christmas for 50¢ specifically for craft projects)

Then I painted "roads" on the black side with gray paint.

Then I painted the letters on the "Kindergarten Lines" with white.  On half of the pieces, I painted all of the uppercase letters, on the other half I painted all of the lower case letters. (my intention was to make them look like chalkboards)

And whaaaalaaa.  A Letter Learning Memory Game!

I could have made the plain side more snazzy but I wanted them to be very uniform (so no cheating) and durable.  I considered scrapbooking paper, paint and all other kinds of possibilities but ultimately I decided to keep them their "natural" hue.  They may not be the cutest on that side, but they are definitely functional.  The best part is that these can double as flashcards and can also be used as a guide when learning how to write letters.

I hope you find this helpful and good luck making your own fun version!!