The Up-Cycled Necklace

Hey!  Happy 2012!  For my first blog post of the new year, I'll show you how I created a necklace out of pretty much nothing, as inspired by this post at Bromeliad.  You could go out and buy materials, but my challenge to you is to use items that you already have kicking around your crafting collection, jewellery box or sewing stash.

Gather up some pretty things.

My materials include a long, vintage pearl necklace (clasp was missing), a glitzy button and a satin sash from an old bathrobe.  You might also want to use earrings, flower pins, ribbon, etc etc etc.   Be sure to get out your glue gun!

Since my pearl necklace is reeeeeally long, I folded it in half twice.

I tied a tight knot with the sash at one end and secured it with a bit of glue.

At the other end of the pearls, I made a big bow.  I tried my necklace on before I glued this end to make sure it was the length I wanted....just a tip :)

Glue the button onto the plain old knot and...

...wear!

I've gone full-on, knit-crazy the past 2 weeks.  But, I can't show you what I've been up to...mostly because the 3 projects I've been working on aren't finished yet.  I'll buy some time by showing you what I made for Christmas gifts over the next few posts.  Ciao!

Christmas Ornament Wreath

A few years ago, I saw a Christmas ornament wreath in Canadian Living and I firmly decided that I was destined to make one for myself.  So I did!  Good story, yeah? :)

I realize that my colours are not very...conventional...but those of you who know me know that's not my style.  And it goes better with my wall colour! 

And since I made it P.B. (that's 'pre-blog', not the nut butter) I don't have any 'how to' photos to share with you.  Canadian Living has a great tutorial, but if you want a visual, you can find one here.

So...next post.  Maybe I'll get those Christmas cookies out of the freezer and try out Twenty Second Icing.  Mmmmmmm....sweeeeeeet.

Onesie Party Dress

Ever have a fantastic idea, only to learn that someone else thought of it first? 

I came up with the concept (or thought I had) of a onesie dress one morning, only to find it on Pinterest later that day!  On the plus side, I got to follow a tutorial instead of making silly mistakes.  So that was a bonus.

I altered the pattern a little by making a casing for the elastic of the dress skirt and sewing three lines of stitching across the top to make it a little more decorative. 

And the flower pin.  LOVE the flower.  I'll show you how to make one soon!  It's really easy.

I don't have a photo of the recipient in her dress, hopefully her mom will send one soon!

Little Lumberjack Jacket

Every now and then, if you're an avid sewer (and perhaps even if you're not) you'll come across a length of fabric that just begs to be made into a very special project.  I received a bundle of unwanted items from my Grandma's extensive stash.  As soon as I saw this red plaid wool blend, I knew what I had to do.

Rowan needed a lumberjack jacket. 

And it had to have a fuzzy, faux sheepskin hood.

And lined with brown houndstooth flannel.

I used The Urban Hoodie as the base for this project with several modifications.  I'm pretty sure I want to make this jacket again next year, and when I do...the hood will be bigger.  It is, as my friend Jenn would call it, a 'show hood'.  Meaning it looks great, but does not preform its required hood duties.

Even still, it's cute.  I like it. 

Happy December 1st!  Today is Christmas decorating day at our house.  Except, we're kind of busy, so I'm not sure if it will get done.  Perhaps I'll hang a wreath so I don't feel entirely defeated :)

Bow Clutch by Generation Sue

I have multiple posts to hammer out over the course of this week (Christmas crafts must begin!!), so I thought I'd share one last 'grown-up' creation before I pummel you with baby clothes. 

I found this bow clutch tutorial from Generation Sue on Pinterest.  Do you love Pinterest?  I love Pinterest.  I reference Pinterest in real-life conversations.  I also get slightly giddy when I see items from my blog pinned!

The pattern didn't call for pockets, so I decided to add some following the instructions of the gathered clutch tutorial from Noodlehead.  Also opted for a contrast zipper.  Because....it's fun!

Another clutch made, another clutch given away.  One of these days, I WILL keep one for myself.

Infinity Scarf - Sewn

In case you don't ever plan on picking up a pair of knitting needles or crochet hooks in your life, or if you just want a different kind of infinity scarf - sew this one up!

I found this super cute flower print in the clearance section at Fabricland and HAD to take it home.  The only problem - it's a little too light to wear in late fall and winter.  So I lined the sucker with a medium-weight cotton fabric.  Here's how it all went down:  (excuse the drawings.  I didn't have a working camera during the production process.)

Gather the following:

• 2 meters (yards) each or corresponding fabric.  I did one print and one solid.

• Matching thread

My floral pattern was cut all wonky at the store, so to square it up, I had to shorten it by 5cm.  No big deal.  You can make this scarf any length, really. 

Cut both pieces of fabric to the dimensions indicated above.  Match right sides together.

Pin and sew (like the purple line above) with a 1cm (1/2") seam allowance.  Be sure to leave an opening of about 30cm (12") at one end like in the diagram above. 

Turn right side out.  Fold the raw 30cm edge in and press with an iron if necessary.  Match the right sides (in my case, the patterned side) of either end of the scarf together and sew with a teeny, tiny seam allowance.

Done! 

There are a ton of ways to wear the infinity scarf, use this blog post as inspiration and get inventive!

Thanks for the photos again, Kennedy!

Have a great weekend!

Infinity Scarf - The Knit

Is anyone else ridiculously obsessed with infinity scarves?  I'll bet the answer is yes.  I haven't met a person that DOESN'T like them.  Probably because they're the bees knees.

Thanks to Kennedy for snapping this photo!

If you're reading 'infinity scarf' and thinking "wha??", I'll explain.  They're scarves with the ends attached together.  That's it. 

This knit version I made is ridiculously simple; the perfect movie-watching project because you don't have to constantly refer back to the pattern.  If you haven't learned to knit yet, I highly recommend Very Pink's tutorials.  She's amazing and you'll have no problems following her instructions.

I decided I wanted a loose knit, so I broke out the 19mm (US 35) knitting needles to use with a worsted weight (medium #4) yarn.  I used one skein of Loops and Thread's Impeccable yarn in True Grey.  You'll also need a tapestry needle to join the two ends and weave the tails in.

Cast on 48 stitches.
Round 1: K across entire row
Round 2: K first 3 stitches and P until last 3 stitches.  K remaining stitches

Work these two rounds until desired length.  Just over a meter will give you enough to loop around your neck twice.  If you're joining two skeins of yarn, you HAVE to try this method called the Russian Join.  It's friggin' life changing, man!

To join the ends together I used a kitchener stitch.  I'm not very good at it yet, so I followed this tutorial from Very Pink.  She's demonstrating on socks....just go with it.  The only thing you'll need to do is pick up stitches from the end not currently on the needles. Weave in the tails and you're set.

Stay cozy my friends!