Sharpie mug

The sharpie mug is a craft that's been rolling around the internet for a while, but I had never given it a try. I needed a new mug for the new office, so I figured it was a perfect time to make my own sharpie mug.

I got this mug at Dollar Tree, for, you guessed it, a $1. Can't beat that. I already had sharpies at home, so all I had to do was come up with a design. Deciding what to draw was the hardest part for me.

Luckily, even though it is sharpie, you can erase. (Thank God for that!) I drew in pencil, then wiped off. Then I finally went over something in sharpie and didn't like how it came out. Just use a little rubbing alcohol and your sharpie will wipe right off of the ceramic.

I finally decided on the "drink me" tag with some little accent dots. Then I added some dots along the bottom of the mug too.

The other two sides were too empty, so I added a little dotted heart on one side.

And on the last side, a little dotted D, cause I had to initial it.

And some dots along the handle too.

After all the designs were done, I baked my mug at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. I made sure to let it cool completely before using or washing it. It's best to hand-wash your mug to not mess up your design.

This was such a fun, easy project. It's not my usual craft, since I got to draw (which is not my strong point), but I liked making it. It would make a great gift for any occasion and would be good to try with kids.

Have you ever made a sharpie mug?

Costume time: Wicked Witch of the East

Everyone seems to know her very famous green sister, but the Wicked Witch of the East was also a force to be reckoned with in Oz. And I thought she would be a great inspiration for this year's Halloween costume.

All we ever see of the Wicked Witch of the East is her stocking and shoes (the famous ruby slippers), so I got to use some artistic license when making the rest of the costume.

I figured she should wear an awesome witch hat. That part was easy, but I attached her impending doom to the hat, the tornado with Dorothy's house. Getting that tornado to stay upright was no easy feat, but with some wire and a strategically placed headband underneath the hat it all worked.

Then for the dress, I made a skirt out of this awesome "decorated" organza. Doesn't it look like little funnel clouds? I thought that would be a cool wink to the Witch's ultimate demise.

All witches should be fashionable, so she had to have a ruby cape to match her slippers. And then I wore my newly glittered shoes, which made the perfect ruby slippers.

So what did you think of my costume this year?

What was your Halloween costume?

Glitter shoes tutorial

A great accessory for any costume are some glitter shoes. They can make a fairy or princess even more perfect, and can just add that special touch to a normal outfit. I made some glitter shoes for my Halloween costume this year.

I had some old thrifted shoes that were perfect to glitter up for my costume. Glittering shoes (or glittering really anything) is so easy.

Here are the supplies you'll need:

Mod Podge

Glitter

Sandpaper

Paintbrush

Newspaper

Pour some Mod Podge into a container (I use a disposable bowl for ease of cleanup) and then add the glitter right to the Mod Podge. This is the key to this technique. Since you mix the Mod Podge with the glitter, it seals the glitter in place, making way less of a mess.

Next you'll need to prep your shoes. All they need is a light sanding with some fine grit sandpaper. You just want to take the shine off of the shoes, so the glitter will stick even better.

Stuff the inside of your shoes with newspaper to make sure the inside stays clean. Take your paintbrush and paint on the Mod Podge/glitter mixture. It might take a couple of coats to get the color you want. Just paint a coat on and let it dry a bit before adding more. It will look white, but the Mod Podge will dry clear and you will be able to see the glitter really sparkle.

Then wait for them to dry. After you have done all of your coats, let them dry overnight, so they will be really dry before you wear them.

Once they are dry it's like you have a whole new pair of shoes.

And voila! Your very own glitter shoes. You can use any color of glitter and any shoes you want to get the look that would be perfect for you.

Any guesses on my Halloween costume this year?

Little projects... a wallet

I had the urge to sew this week, so I decided to whip myself up a new wallet. I originally wanted to make the dress I mentioned in the patterns post last week, but that pattern was sold out at my JoAnn's. I remembered that I had bought some fabric a few weeks ago to make myself a new wallet so it was time to finally get it done.

As you can see my old wallet has seen better days. I made both from my D wallet pattern. I love this pattern because it gives you so much storage in a compact size. Plus it was the first pattern that I really made myself from scratch, so it holds a special place for me.

As you can see, my old wallet had seen better days. I tend to run my wallets into the ground. That's what's great about making my own, as soon as one wears out I can just make myself a new one.

If you want to see more of my wallets, you can always check out the store. I will be adding more wallets soon. I always forget how easy they are to whip up until I make one.

How big is your wallet?

Car litter bag tutorial

About a month ago, I got a new car. I'm loving it, except that I didn't have a little garbage bag in it.  I had made one for my other car, so I figured this one needed one as well. Thankfully it's a super quick project. Here are all the details, so you can make your own.

Here is what you will need:
1 exterior fabric piece 18" by 13"
1 lining fabric piece 18" by 13"
8-10" elastic (depending on the length you need)
Thread
Sewing machine
Scissors

I used that reusable grocery tote fabric for my exterior, which is pretty sturdy. For the interior, I think it's best to use a heavy cotton duck. This way there will be no need to use interfacing. If you are using a lighter fabric, just use some Craft Fuse interfacing and fuse to your panels before proceeding.

Make a small hem on the top of the long side of both panels, then fold in half right sides together and sew down the short side. The top and bottom should be open. The panels should be like tubes.

Stack both the exterior and lining tubes on top of each other matching the seams. Then sew across the bottom of both tubes together. They will be joined at the bottom now by the bottom seam but will still be 2 separate tubes.

Flip the exterior fabric right side out. The lining fabric will be on the inside of the exterior fabric.

It should look like this, with your lining inside of your exterior, with the tops still loose.

Then add a piece of elastic as your handle. I line mine up with the seam on the side, so I can hang my bag off of the shifter in my car.

Voila! There you have your own car litter bag. Just use plastic grocery bags or even better, doggie bags as your bag liner. Just tuck the end in between the exterior and lining to keep your garbage bag in place.

This is a great little project that will really make your life so much easier when you're driving around.

Do you have a garbage bag in your car?

Playing with washi tape

I just had the urge to do a little crafting last night, so I decided to finally personalize my mini journal. I ordered these a while back, and they were just plain board, but there were endless possibilities to make it really my own.

I looked through my non-sewing related craft supplies and found some washi tape that I still hadn't used. Washi tape is a Japanese decorated tape, kind of like masking tape. But, very pretty masking tape.

I grabbed the washi tape and some old school Crayola markers and got to work. My tape wasn't that thick, I was just covering up a mistake I made. See, you can really make a mistake into a design element.

I covered up the spine of the notebook with washi tape too. I have a slight obsession with neat ends. I love how my little notebook looks now, it's so much more me!

I think I may need to order more washi tape after finally using it I can see why other crafters love it. You can give something personality so easily, with just a little tape.

Have you ever used washi tape?

Gym bag redo

The bag I had been using to go to the gym (which was just a reusable tote bag) broke last week. I decided I should make myself a cute new gym bag that incorporated all the features I really wanted. I've been designing my heart away and adding so many little details that it's turning into a slightly bigger project than I anticipated. But I needed a new bag to go to the gym on Monday, so I grabbed one of the many drawstring bags that I have collected over time and made it a little cuter.

I grabbed my basic drawstring bag and some scraps of fabric and a little interfacing and got to work. I measured the logo (8 inches by 2 inches) and made it a little bigger so I could make sure it would all be covered. I also made it taller to be able to use it as a pocket. My final fabric size was 8 1/2" by 6 1/2". I cut two out of the fabric and one of interfacing, to give the pocket some body. 

I ironed the interfacing to one of the pocket pieces and then placed them wrong sides together. I sewed around one long side and both short sides using 1/4" seams. On the other long side, I also sewed with a 1/4" seam, but left a small part open, so I could turn the pocket right side out. I clipped the corners, turned the pocket right side out and ironed it flat. Then I topstitched the top edge of the pocket. I pinned the pocket in place to make sure it stayed centered and then sewed down the sides and bottom, leaving the top part open. Make sure you are only sewing on one side of the bag and not both, or you will sew your bag shut!

This was a little too plain, so I decided I needed to cover the top part of bag, where the drawstrings are. The drawstring pockets were about 1 inch wide, so I knew I had to make them a little wider to make sure the drawstring would still work. I cut 3 inch strips for each of the sides of the bag. I made them a little wider than the bag itself (I eyeballed it), so I could fold in each side to keep the seams clean. After sewing in the short sides, I ironed in a 1/4" seam allowance on each of the long sides.


I then folded these strips in half leaving one side slightly longer than the other (like in bias binding). I sandwiched the strips around the edge of the bag, and sewed them around the existing drawstring pockets on the bag.

There was one strip for each side of the bag and it really gave it the finishing touch it needed.

And voila! I took an old junky bag and gave it a makeover. And now I can show up to the gym without having a half broken bag.

I'm still working on my huge gym bag, and I hope to be able to start working on that one soon. I'll keep you updated on that one.

Have you ever revamped an old item to make an even better one?

I sewed up some pajama pants

After seeing these pajama pants on one of my favorite blogs, A Spoonful of Sugar, a couple of weeks ago, I had to get that fabric and make my own pair.

I loved the cuff detail and the 3/4 length too, so I made mine capris and added a cuff with a great coordinating fabric that I found at JoAnn's.

The pants came together super easy and very quickly. I wanted to add a little bow detail to the front, but since I didn't find a matching ribbon, I made some bias tape out of the cuff fabric. I added the bias the long way first, but found that my bow kept coming out standing up straight. So, I attached the bias like this.

And got the pefect little bow.

Here they are all done. My new travel inspired pajama pants. These will definitely have to take a trip on my next vacation with me.

It was great to get some "me" sewing done this weekend. I may even make some more pajama pants.

Did you make anything this weekend?

Color bar blanket: Take 2

I'm glad to report that I finished my second color bar blanket. My first attempt too me years to complete, but luckily this time I was motivated and it only took me 6 weeks. And this blanket came out way better than the first one.

This attempt at the blanket came out way better than the first one. I attribute it to buying all of the yarn at one time (and all the same brand). I found a great deal on Vanna's Choice, and it was available in all of the colors I needed, so I bought them all at once. That way I wouldn't have to go searching for another color or brand to match what I had.

Another thing that really helped this time was crocheting all of the squares in a relatively short amount of time. I started the blanket a bit before Halloween (and took a break to make costumes) and finished after Thanksgiving. I think doing them so close together kept my stitched a bit more even. Plus, I've had some practice now, so my crocheting has improved overall.

The sewing together of all the pieces didn't get any easier though. Making 140 squares into one big blanket gets hard near the end cause the color blocks are are so big. But it's totally doable, it just takes a bit of muscle.

I love my new blanket at it was a total hit at the office. Those that actually realized it was color bars loved it even more. And the blanket is totally serving its purpose, it's keeping me warm in my office that is an icebox while still looking cute.

Costume time 2012: Honey Boo Boo

Honey Boo Boo was the pop culture sensation of the summer and she is everywhere you look now. My friends and I decided that someone had to be Honey Boo Boo for Halloween this year, and after some convincing, Yoanna finally did it.

Once she agreed, I got working on the costume. Since I had made so many tutus this year, I figured another one wouldn't be too bad, so I used pink this time and added a top layer of sparkly tulle to really make it pageant ready. The leftover tulle was transformed into poufy pageant sleeves that were added to a sequined tank top. Then a ribbon and some glitter paint made a perfect pageant sash to complete the look.

Honey Boo Boo needed to get into hair and makeup, so we got to work poufing up her hair and giving her pageant ready makeup. We added lots of sparkle and pink lips to match the dress. Then a bow and a crown and Honey Boo Boo was ready to go.

Accessories really made the look and her trophy and go-go juice (Mountain Dew) totally made her from regular pageant girl into Honey Boo Boo Child!

Crazy as it sounds, this was the only Honey Boo Boo in the whole office! She became a mini-celebrity and everyone wanted pictures of her and with her. Plus she totally got into character telling everyone to "Redneckognize" and "Holla for a dolla, Honey Boo Boo Child!"

What was your Halloween costume this year?

Costume time 2012: Finding Nemo crew

Happy Halloween! It's time to reveal all of the costumes I made this Halloween. You've already seen mine, but it really was part of a group costume. A few of my friends and I decided to go with a Finding Nemo theme for Halloween this year. My friend, Damaris, had been inspired to dress up as Darla from Finding Nemo since she got her braces this year, so the rest of us decided to coordinate with her.

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Check out Damaris in her thrifted and customized Darla outfit. Her headgear is acutally the handle from a can of paint that she attached with a rubber band. She thrifted and dyed the sweater and took the shorts from her dad. This costume was amazing and had people laughing all day long.

I was Nemo, complete with gimpy fin.

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I took a more creative take on it and made my tutu, fins (one big and one little), and I also embellished my tank.

 

Karina was Dory (if you know her, you know she's the chatty one, so it suits her perfectly!).

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I made Karina's tutu and fins. She added a sparkly tank top and embellished the fins, her hair and ankle with a bit of yellow to mimic the yellow at the end of Dory's fins. Everyone totally loved her as Dory.

And once our friend Carlo heard we were doing Nemo, he wanted in. He loves Nemo and totally knew who he wanted to be, the wise Gill.

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This was a total last minute costume, but I think it came out pretty good. I asked Carlo to bring me a black hoodie that I could add things to. I freehanded the top fin and stuffed it with a bit of fiberfill to keep it standing. Then I attached the fins, one whole and one all mangled. He was totally psyched with his Gill costume.

We had a great time with our costumes, and once people realized who we were they loved it. They are still counting the ballots for the costume contest, so keep your fingers crossed for us.

I hope everyone is having a great and sugar-filled halloween! I'll have another costume post up shortly.