Beelieve

More new clothes from old t-shirts

Another rainy day today, is this July even?

My hive looked cozy (you are thinking mess probably)

I could not play on Flickr anymore because my "creative assistant" needed to access her sites for a bit.

I have been in a creative frump more or less lately...at least it seems to me because I am not having any brainstorm painting ideas.  So I thought sewing is relaxing.  I went through some of my old knits

stash and found this.. a size 4t dress!

Which quickly became a trend setting 6 year old's skirt.

I also took the red with stripes t-shirt from this stash

and made these pants following Amanda Soule's idea in her book The Creative Family. If you have the book as a reference, I opened up the shirt by cutting across the top of the shoulders to make more manageable and folded the shirt in half with the sleeves openings center front and back.  That way the pants were cut from the neck to the hem in order to be long enough for a 6 year old crop style pants.  If you do not have the book you probably have no idea what I am talking about! 

Both headbands made were thanks to the idea from Maya in this tutorial from last year, I made it faster than it took me to find the link to show you!

I also made a pair of pants from the blue stripe shirt in the stash picture above, just no picture of them being modeled for you.  These were very simple to do and my only problem was not having any of the right width elastic in the house.  Alas, thank goodness for those "shelf bra" tank tops.  I knew they had to be good for something.  Anyone who has had children or is over the age of 40 knows it lives up to its descriptive name "shelf" bra.  Well, the elastic is just the right width for these pants so rip it out and use it and you have officially saved yourself from an unflattering look and have re-purposed every inch of the pants you just made!

Bee spotting will follow in the next 24-48 hours!

make your own t-shirt skirt~minimal skills required!

 

supplies:

• old t-shirts
• sewing machine
• something to cut with

1. I threw in a pile colors that I might like based on a fun graphic (bad grrrls).  I do mean thrown and nothing was ironed or cut perfect during all of this.  I ironed when it was finished.

 

 (I was even too lazy to take the polarizer off my camera so the pictures look  bit off in color.) 

2.Basically you are going to build a giant rectangle.  I started with the orange graphic as potential placement on my backside...the "bad grrrl" side that shows how much chocolate I eat.  This was done all in whimsy for the tutorial and will be the perfect for the beach. 

* From there I work much like the mixed media artist in me by "framing" it with colors that look nice near each other. I tape down the "frame".

 

*I prefer the bottoms of t-shirts with their hems for most of the skirt.  They offer a bit more weight to the hanging of the skirt and they are perfect as a guide for sewing.( I also like to use them inside out) In the above picture I sewed right across the hem stitches to attach the orange piece.  The top of the orange piece that you can not see has a lot of excess and is far from straight.  Once the seam is done, I trim the excess from the back.

3. have fun and experiment, even if you have to cut a piece off that you don't like, what you leave behind leaves an interesting element.  (you can click on the pictures for easier reading)

 

 

 

4. my rectangle is complete so I fold it together with the outside (right sides) together. I do hold it up and wrap it around to test it out several times for size.  Remember it is drawstring so a little roominess is fine but too much is a moo-moo.

 

you can see even my hemline is not even but it works!

5. I used a piece of tape as a line (not pictured) so I knew where to sew.  It served as a straight guide line. Then I cut off the rest.  This one I sort of did  on a diagonal down to the hemline from just below the top part that will be folded over(that part will be straight) . The diagonal adds an interest to it.

 

6. no pictures to show for the waist, this one is drawstring. For the hole the drawstring comes out of, I just created an opening in the seam about an inch or so from the top and folded the seam side edges of fabric back where the hole is and sewed around it sort of like a square button hole.

7. The top edge was folded down to show on  the front of the skirt and I sewed around once.  I then inserted the drawstring which is just more fabric strips.  I then tried it on, tightened it just enough to fit over my hips. Tied it tight and sewed around 2 more times so the waist would not be so bunchy looking.  Be careful when you sew around anything circular that you do not have the other half of the skirt underneath what you are sewing.

 

 

 

The last skirt I made was a wrap around style.  I took the giant rectangle and tri-folded it with the right side out this time.  Then folded the top over from the inside out and sewed a seam pocket around it and the drawstring ended up on the side.

I feel like a kid with homework...whew!  Want to go check out all the Flickr Bench Monday shots but had to FORCE myself to sit here because this was a goal I wanted to finish earlier than now!  If you do not understand anything...and it is not because of you it is because of your teacher.  I am burnt out on answering all of PJ girl's questions!  I also remembered what that brain cell burner question Pajama Girl asked yesterday was when I typed the word "moo-moo" above.  She very sweetly in all seriousness asks me "Can cows sometimes have two heads?"  Just wait until I get my hands on that Mr.Honey....she did not come up with that anywhere else in this world but from something he told her.  Mr. Honey if you are reading dear...guard your t-shirts well boy!

"Bird" house window decor

We have a window in our kitchen I love to change around with each season.  Never standard curtain treatments, just decorate for the fun of it.  Partly due to necessity.  We need to dangle objects in front of the window so the birds do not crash into it.  Since it is our favorite spot to watch bird I wanted to try making some bird watching bird houses.  The actual houses are pages from a field guide and a roof from other scraps all glued down to card stock and hung from some branches.  I stuck tiny little mirrors on the bottoms on the back so light will dance around and warn birds not to crash.  They also serve as great weights for better hanging.  This simple project only took a short afternoon last week and we hung them (finally) this weekend.

Bench Monday~upcycle t-shirt skirt addition

I am typing before I even have my picture ready.  This skirt I made very quick on Friday afternoon.  I upcycled a bunch of old t-shirt scraps together randomly...I mean sloppy cutting, sewing, etc.  I love it and wore it to the Relay for Life where several people stopped me just to tell me they loved it and ask where I bought it.  It was such an impulse thing to do.

This new/old school bench I scored at an antique shop yesterday...cheap.  This is the last week kindergarten for my pajama girl so thought I would mark it with a bench!  A little commemorative item of her hard work, may she always remember how proud we are of her.

My most sought after bag

Here is an "impulse post" thanks to Hélène who noticed a my bag sitting on my necklace holder. I took pictures of it when I was taking some of the bedroom since it was pre-blog made and I realized I had not photos of it.  This little metal bag was a treasure at an antique shop I found a few years ago for maybe $3.  I decided to cover it with french book pages and some art pictures on the sides.  Everywhere I go with it, people want to know where I got it and how to get one.  I have a friend who has been on the antique search for a bag to do for her for some time now. 

So Helene, here are some close-ups...thanks for asking!!!

 

Wedding shower favors with thought

I am pulling some old photos out of my pre-blog archives to share today. I was recently asked about ones that I did a long time ago and thought this would make for a great post. It is the season for weddings and wedding showers.  A wedding is a meaningful occasion and every touch should have equal meaning.  I am about to show you some favors that were well thought out for a honey of a girl, my cousin Amy.  Amy should have a computer and have a blog and show the world how to live life with meaning.  She is a girl with substance, organic from the word go...she even went to New Zealand at one point in her life to work on an organic sheep farm.  She could teach us all a thing or 10,000 but that would be a whole other post.

Thought had to go into these favors and with the help of her mother, my Aunt Vel, we came up with items that gave back.  First was one I was all over, Endangered Species Chocolates.  Lots of great items there and I just discovered perfectly packaged wedding favors ready to go.  They did not have these when I ordered from them.  I just ordered boxes of perfect squares of their delicious chocolates ready to bag up myself.

 

I took 4 squares and wrapped them up in newsprint and then using my computer, I printed out sheets of sweet sheet music and then a sheet of the saying "life is sweet" to add a fancy scroll on top.  My picture is poor but you will get the idea...actually I am happy I saved it!

 

Along with those I added a unique bracelet from Bead for Life. If you are not familiar with them here is their opening statement but I highly suggest checking the site out.

"BeadforLife eradicates extreme poverty by creating bridges of understanding between impoverished Africans and concerned world citizens. Ugandan women turn colorful recycled paper into beautiful bead jewelry, and people who care open their hearts, homes and communities to buy and sell the beads.

The beads become income, food, medicine, school fees and hope. It is a
small miracle that connects and enriches everybody in the Bead Circle."

I do not have a picture of the bracelets but will show you a picture from the website.

 

Hard to see the detail but all the guests loved these and something that will not get stuffed away.  I am still amazed they are made by recycled magazines. (click the picture and you will go to the link)

I had to pack these items up and used those party favor boxes from the dollar store, stuffed a doily inside and decorated the outside with more prints I made on my computer and a vintage button.  Very easy and low cost.

 

I packed them up in a basket and off we went to a wedding shower where the favors were a favorite!

 

I have to show you one last thing.  We bought my cousin and hubby to be some nice linens and towels.  These items are big and bulky.  I wish I had a larger picture nearby but I packed them all up in a wicker laundry basket that I never used and wrapped them with muslin fabric that was clothespinned together with clothespins that spelled out "Amy & John".  I also created an art piece for them to use as a "bow".  The art piece has some very special elements in that have special meaning to our family. 

 

my touch and a touch of the past

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sometimes I just like to look at pictures and not spoil the flow of them with words.  If you would like to learn more about any of these touches in my bedroom just a click on the picture and you will be taken to the flickr page with a brief description of what you are looking at.

DIY~ more lovely "word" projects from my bedroom

There was never much thought about art in our bedroom before my recent refreshing.  I really yearned for a peaceful space.  I highly suggest taking every last dust collecting item out of your dreaming space and think about what goes back in.  Very eye opening and feels great when you realize what you can do without. 

 Andrew Wyeth's adorable dog no longer sleeps over our heads, actually we really did not need a picture of someone else's dog sleeping over our heads we have the real thing from time to time with our own dogs.

The masterpiece we have now was done impromptu by Pajama Girl.  She was fascinated by the words I was adding to the bedroom and I asked her to write me a message.  With an oil pastel on a large piece of newsprint she wished me "sweet dreams".  Now this is more than art to me.  I had been wanting to play with some Magnart I bought a while back.  (they are  little bars of metal you adhere to the wall and use those super strong tiny magnets to hold the art to them)  Very simple, very personal and very dreamy new art.  PJ girl loves that her message hangs above our heads when we sleep.

 

More of our "favorite words" follow in this super-duper quick picture holder.  Take one giant clothespin, whitewash it and stamp your favorite message on it.  We are known as the "Lovely Loves" and every night I must sing versus from 'The Roots, Lovely Love my Family" to miss PJ girl before she will have sweet dreams of her own.  With that said, what else but:

 

 

So much more to show you but it was a beautiful day to be outside and almost time for me to retire to my slumber retreat room.  In my next post I will show you what this is a part of:

For now I wish you...

 

so close your eyes and I will sing for you....

 "Sometimes when I am sitting by myself
Those quiet moments when not with no one else
I’m mesmerized by all the many good things in my life
I think about the time when I was younger
And the older that I get the more that I feel wiser
With the love of friends and family
Get stronger and it carries me on through

So I say lovely lovely lovely lovely lovely
lovely lovely lovely love, love my family
So I say lovely lovely lovely lovely lovely
lovely lovely lovely love, love my family
So I say lovely lovely lovely lovely lovely
lovely lovely lovely love, love my family...."

 

(or you might just want to listen to the song here)

DIY~Clothesline fresh window treatments

 

 

 

Welcome to the first part of my Spring-tacular bedroom makeover.  It was long overdue and a room neglected a bit.  I was hoping to take more pictures today but the gloomy natural light is not cooperating with me. 

The makeover began with curtains, something fresh for spring and something unique.  I have never been a fan of overpriced store bought curtains and have made just about all the window treatments in the house (these being the easiest).  Spring also reminds me of fresh linens on the line, you may have noticed the inspiration extended into all my recent Ki-ki paintings as well. 

This is such an easy way to create a spa retreat right in your own home.  We already have window shades so I could go any direction with my new window treatments.  Here is a list of all I used.

1. white twirly bamboo, bought in home accent dept at Target on clearance ($3 for 6)
2. organic cotton twin size flat sheets (Target)
3. organic cotton dish drying lint free towels (Target as well)
4. large font letter stamps,paint,brayer (had on hand)
5. large cup hooks
6. clothespins and twine (had on hand)

Total cost of needed supplies, probably less than $30 for 3 windows

I washed and dried all new linens.  While doing that I attached the hooks to the crown molding for the height and the strength of the wood vs. 150 year old plaster.

 

Next I checked for length and used the sheet bottom as the top so the finished edge would be on the bottom of the panel.  I made the seam pocket for the bamboo to slide through the hem if you will.  I measured the length it needed to be to go ceiling to floor and only had to sew one straight line across each sheet . Done!  This really does create a much taller, airier room.  Hard to describe the way it felt once done, it was instantly changing to a peaceful room to dream in.  The light filters through the organic cotton so beautifully!

The next step was a fun one.  I tied some twine to the hooks to create the "clothesline valance".  I really wanted there to be a message so I picked one of our favorite "lovely love" sayings.  "Always Kiss Me Goodnight". This worked out great for the 3 windows and spacing.  I chose large letters with a very lightened beige color.  Have fun with this, hand write, stamp, go nuts!  Vintage hankies would be adorable as well...so would vintage baby clothes.

Directions for stamping on fabric:

1.Start with washed fabric. 

2. Next, I like to iron a length of freezer paper to the back of the area of fabric I am working on for stability and prevention of paint bleed through to your work surface.

3.Use a fabric paint, or acrylic with a fabric medium mixed in but follow instructions for use.  Honestly if they are decorative and not washed as frequently as clothing you could go with whatever acrylic you have on hand.

4. A simple trick to keep the letters somewhat in a straight line.  I taped a piece of string across the bottom of each towel at the exact spot I wanted the bottom of the letter to rest.  Always write your word out in front of you on a scrap and start with the middle letter stamped first in the center, don't forget to count the spaces between words.

5.Use a roller or a brayer to apply paint to the stamp for a nice even coat.

  Once dry, hang your valances on the line with fun clothespins!

 

This project is so simple, in fact it probably took me longer to take pictures and post than to actually do it.

For a fun tie back...I prefer to tie window treatments in the center for that hourglass look, I used more twine and a clothespin.  There is a small nail on the edge of each frame to hang them on when not in use.

 

(I would show you how nice it looked if the exterior windows were clean and the yard was not brown and in need of a rake)

Tomorrow, other lovely words and simple decor