how to make a recycled clothespin bag

i wish i had a yard to hang dry my clothes. the smell of fresh air from your dried sheets is almost too much for me to handle. if i had a yard i would definitely make this tutorial for a recycled clothespin bag made from a pair of jeans. the ric rac is too cute!

image by linda permann

i also remembered this post we had up a few weeks back for making your own indoor clothesline from AT. check it out here.

in bloom - men's shirt to toddler dress

i finally finished mackenzie's birthday dress. a little late for her birthday, but hey, we don't mind. this dress is repurposed or upcycled if you will, from one of my hubby's dress shirts. this time, instead of using the button panel for the front of the dress (see previous post here and here), i reversed it. when dreaming up how i wanted the dress to look, i fell head over heels for the pleat in the back of his shirt and knew right then and there that i wanted a little empire dress with cap sleeves. the rest came to life from that moment.

i originally had envisioned a boat neckline, and had sewed it that way. unfortunately, my little one was too small to keep it on her little shoulders - bad measuring on my part, so i waited it out for the solution to come to me. at first i tried adding the adorable yellow button to the cap sleeve to take it in a bit, but no luck. finally, last night while watching the worst made for tv movie ever (they seem to bring me inspiration) i decided to add another layer to the neckline and put in an elastic casing to just close things up. it did the trick!

the flower applique is amy butler and i just couldn't resist adding that little yellow button to the center of the flower and to the hook on the front pleat of the dress. to finish things off i sewed in a dainty, yellow ribbon to add a bit of colour to the back of the dress. perfect for summer, light and airy - she loves it and looks adorable in it. bonus for me is it's one less stained shirt in the donation pile :)

if you haven't tried one of these men's shirt transformations yet give it a whirl. they are loads of fun and super addicting. if anyone is wondering where to find a tutorial for one of these dresses, go check out dana's at made. if you are interested in a tutorial for this one, let me know, i just may be able to whip something up even with my newbie sewing skills to help you along.

have you made one yet?

how to make a tea canister cuff bracelet

i am a huge fan of jessica over on "zakka life" - this is one crafty lady. i saw her latest post on turning a tea canister into a cuff bracelet and said to myself "that is friggin cool". i had to resist the urge to race to the local thrift store to look for canisters to convert into my newest arm candy. i am a huge cuff lover and it's basically the only style of bracelet i ever wear. i still can't believe she managed to turn this into a bracelet.

i will definitely be trying this one out - i have to find the canisters still though....that is unless my hubby finds some sparklies for my wrist first - hint, hint. here's the link.

what do you all think of this project? would you wear it?

(images by zakka life)

how to turn a men's shirt into a toddler dress

i have tons of jer's old dress shirts kicking around our house that i repurpose for projects here and there, but never for a dress for mack. i was so inspired by last week's post by "made" that i had to try one for myself. now, i am not a good pattern follower so this dress was fun for me because i didn't have a pattern. i had the photo of "sunshine in a dress" and just winged it - it was fun!

i am sorry to say that i didn't trust my sewing skills, so i didn't take pictures along the way because i was seriously aware of the fact that this might not turn out. i will try to explain it a bit to you though. i took jer's shirt, took off the pocket - easy. cut off the collar and the sleeves - even easier. cut open the sides of the shirt - voila - a dress in the making. i know some people doing these dresses use the leftover sleeve to make a new sleeve, but i found that when i tried it on mackenzie, the shoulder seam placement on her was great and i could use that seam and the side to make a sleeve already.

here's my version before the sewing was complete

next up i cut out the a-line form of the dress in the shirt, pinned up the seams and hem and sewed that puppy up. for the sleeves and neck i used a tiny elastic, probably less than 1/4" so my casing was not big at all. i added a snap on the neck line to clean it up. the tricky part for me was the waist. i wasn't 100% sure i was going to do the elastic on the waist, so i made the dress first and thought i would deal with it if the dress actually turned out. after seeing that the dress wasn't a mess, at least in my opinion, i decided to add the elastic on the waist. i used another one of my favorite dollar store pillow case finds for the material. i sewed up the 3" band with a casing on the top and the bottom and then hand stitched the casing onto the dress (over top of it essentially).

i am not sure if sewing it on top is the right way to do it, but that's what happened :) i think it turned out and it allowed me to get the fit just perfect for mackenzie's body. the only thing i regret not doing was tidying up my seams. i was in such a rush to make it, that i just cut and sewed. i didn't do that nice, ol'flip over the hem and sew thingie that cleans it all up (pardon my sewing terminology, i am a new sewer).

here's the back - my favorite part is the pleat from the original shirt

mackenzie wore it to a birthday party yesterday over a cute pair of jeans because i had a feeling she was gonna get dirty and end up at the park, which is exactly what she did. dirt on her pants and ketchup on her new dress. ahhhhh, the life with kids - thank god for stain remover.

and again, our little model doing what is obviously, her favorite pose :)

have any of you tried to make one of these yet?

how to make your own padded envelopes

before i had my daughter i worked in office administration. being a creative type working in an office environment had me finding unique and quirky ways to use my imagination to let's just say - liven things up. sometimes you can find art in the weirdest places - i still get a thrill from doing an excel spreadsheet, sick, i know.

when i spotted this great little tutorial from swirly thoughts, i instantly thought of my old job. i would have come trotting in with this and sent out all of our mail the next day in funky little envelopes. what a fun idea! i am definitely going to try this at home. i think it would make a mailman's day to see one of these suckers, and what mailman doesn't need cheering up in this weather - yuck!

make your own knitting needle holder

do you like parmesan cheese? i do. next time your container of cheese is empty, don't recycle it, repurpose it. how about dressing that sucker up with some cute material, slapping on some buttons and voila - instant knitting needle holder. now that's my kind of way of taking care of the trash :) here's the link.

crafting with vhs tape

got some old vhs tapes kicking around? why not craft with them! diane gilleland posted a great tutorial for some unique ways to use vhs tape for craft projects on craftstylish. yes, i said vhs tape - who knew.

any of you interested in trying this project? i think i would but knowing my household, i would just end up with vhs tape all torn and ripped up on my carpet, my hubby with it on his head and my daughter wrapping it around herself in a makeshift dress. click here for the how to.

diy dress decor

i swear my grandma still has the exact sheets as that dress is wearing in our much loved cabin on the lake.

ohedeedoh has a fun tutorial on how to make your own dress decor using thrifted/old sheets, wood and crafting supplies, you can mount those sheets that bring back precious childhood memories on the wall and let the good vibes wash over you. click here for the how to.

make your own toy stove

croq zine has an easy way to make your own play stove with handy utensil, play dishes and food storage inside using a simple plastic storage container. what a great idea!!! click here for the how to.

make your own dust mitt & swiffer cover

image courtesy we wilsons

we wilsons has a kick ass tutorial for making your own dust mitt. we don't use any chemical cleaners in our house and make our own cleaners whenever possible. we also use antibacterial cloths for cleaning and dusting that we can simply put in the wash after using a few times so i love the idea of this dust mitt!

we wilsons also links over to this great project idea if you happen to be a swiffer lover. merwing shows you how to make your own swiffer cover and duster. you can find the tutorial here.

it seems like as soon as spring comes, the dust just seems to multiply and peek it's ugly head out from under that cloud of winter darkness. i will definitely be turning some of our old clothes into cleaners. so turn on your favorite cleaning album and let's kick some dust bunny ass!

(via craft)

how to make gift bags from envelopes

how about orange has a great project for turning your basic envelope into a gift bag. click here for the how to.

fresh spring wreath how to

freshen up your front door with this bright spring wreath. what are the yellow balls made from? can you believe they are ping pong balls? fabulous! you can find the tutorial here.

(via: oneprettything)

how to make an envelope book

i look forward to reading the design sponge everyday and got excited when i saw this diy today. it's tax time and low and behold my hubby is an accountant! what a great way for anyone to keep track of all those little receipts and things, plus recycle old envelopes? i don't know about you guys, but this is one of those super, simple projects that you say to yourself "why didn't i think of that?".

how to make a cell phone holder for charging

photo courtesy of zakka life

ok, you all know i love a good repurposing project, i think they are important, and i get a kick out of it. i am not alone. zakka life has a ingenious way of turning your empty lotion bottle into a handy cell phone charger holder - go here for the details. i could definitely use one of these suckers!

photo courtesy of zakka life

make your own anthropoligie shower curtain

fixer-upper's ruffle curtain - $15

craving one of those ruffly, cloud & spectrum anthropologie shower curtains but don't wanna spend the cash? well look no further. we spotted (via oh, hello friend) how to make your own from some basic muslin and mind-numbing sewing over at fixer-upper.

the anthropologie curtain - $158.01 CDN

beauty of a bedside table

photo courtesy of cucumbersome

inspired by a table she spotted at anthropologie, the lovely brit from cucumbersome decided to take matters into her own hands and revamp a basic ikea piece to look like the gorgeous table you see here. all we can say is wow and congrats for the spot on design sponge! take a look at cucumbersome for the how to.

photo courtesy of cucumbersome

cosa verde: think big, shop small

cosa verde is "a new marketplace connecting independent and emerging artists with environmentally-conscious consumers." you can shop by category or by the following ideologies:

organic, reusable, repurposed, recyclable, conflict-free, cruelty-free, green sources

for every new store they plant 10 trees and they donate 10% of all fees to charity. the sellers feature a ton of info on the products they are selling from materials used, processes used, and they earn extra credit for sustainable material and processes. they also have a great blog featuring new sellers and products.

you all know how i love repurposing and this site is full of creative ways to get inspired to repurpose in your own home and it's a great place to buy handmade while being environmentally-conscious all in one site.

diy hanging lightbulb vase

learn how to make your own hanging light bulb vase here. i came across this handy little repurposing tutorial on the site emerging thoughts. they are:

"an online boutique filled with one of a kind pieces from our favorite independent designers. We scour the country looking for the coolest accessories, clothing and talent. Emerging Thoughts wants to promote creativity and individuality because wearing unique clothing isn't just for people with money. We started the tutorial section to show that with scissors, an old outfit, and some imagination, everyone can easier create an original piece of clothing."

what's not to love?

softies

a friend of mine recently showed me a copy of miyako kanamori's book "sock and glove" and i instantly melted. i have been wanting to start making mackenzie some toys but haven't gotten around to it. the patterns in these books use gloves and socks to make adorable handmade toys.

i also have had on the top of my to knit list these precious softees from ysolda teague. you can find the free pattern at ravelry or on her site.

do you have a favorite soft toy pattern you would like to share?

framing treasured picture books

do you have a book you loved as a child that is falling apart and you want to hold on to the memory? i am lucky enough to have had a mom who kept all my treasured books as a child to pass down to my kids. i was a big reader and still am. thankfully my daughter is the same way. she loves her books.

the images from the book "bow wow! meow! a first book of sounds" from the little golden book series were some of my favorites as a child. unfortunately our copy is falling apart. i have tried to fix it, but to no avail. i decided to turn it into a piece of decorative art for mackie's room instead. we took a simple wood frame from ikea and painted it to match the colors in her room. i took my fave pic out of the book (yes, it hurt me to cut it up) and popped that pretty, little sucker in a frame.

now every time i go in her room i find myself drawn to that picture and to the feeling of the fond memories that wash over me. she wakes up in the morning and has taken to carrying it around the house saying "pretty". she must agree with me. the picture reminds me of my daughter and of all those little moments when we take the time to relish in the beauty of the things around us, especially when they are brand new.