Guess who published my tutorials???????!!!!!!

I checked my gmail today, and guess what?   Allfreesewing.com published not one, not two, but THREE of my tutorials!!! WHOOP WHOOP!!!!!  I haven't even been able to blog much lately, due to business and a naughty sewing machine!  I'm SO excited, and SO blessed!  If you haven't been to http://www.allfreesewing.com/ yet, you should definately take the time to visit them, they feature all kinds of patterns from tons of different sites and bloggers! Here are the links to my tutroials; Check 'em out!

Jean Bag/purse

Baby-Bib

Upcycled-Apron

Upcycling Jeans with my daughter

I have passed my love of upcycling jeans to my oldest daughter, Raegan (she is 14 now, but was 13 when we made these). I thought I would post a couple skirts that we did together.....

This skirt was a lot of fun to make.  I had cut the pant legs off another pair of pants that I just wanted the waistband from and saved them because of how pretty the white embroidery was.  I was unsure of what to do with it as yet.  Then, Raegan decided she wanted a skirt, so she took some blue jeans, chopped off the bottoms(she likes t-length skirts) and started looking for fabric to put in it.

I then stepped in and told her I had something that would work...the bottoms of the other pair!

So, We attatched them...and VOILA...an adorable skirt! People usually ask what store it came from! (One question, Raegan...what's it like to be so skinny?)

On this skirt, Raegan did most of the work herself.  I helped by finding her the cute camo fabric with blue embroidered butterflies in my stash as well as the butterfly sew-on patch. 

She did the leg chopping, seam ripping, fabric cutting, and most of the sewing.  Her sewing machine was getting ready to bite the dust, so, I did help her with the top part and the hems.  (this skirt is a little tight  now, so she's going to give it away to someone else)

I will be posting a basic tutorial on these soon......as well as some fun variations!

Upcyled Skirt / Dress Tutorial

I was given an adorable little "dress" for my daughters.  It, however,  wasn't something I would have let my daughters wear.  I just couldn't see getting rid of such a beautiful item.  I knew it could become something new, useful and even more beautiful!

Here is the pic of the dress "before" transformation:

Pretty, eh?  So, what did I do?  I CUT IT IN HALF!

If you look closely, you'll see that I lifted up the bottom ruffle and cut it where it wouldn't show. The fabric I was working with was a lycra which doesnt fray, but it would still be smart and look better if at this time the under layer that was cut was got a serger run-through. AND....this is what I came up with:

I did shorten the straps as well because it was just too low. Next, it was time to deal with the bottom half, and, once again..I reverted to my love of denim upcycling!

I grabbed a jean mini skirt that a well intentioned person gave my daughter and merged the two! (it's important to note here that if I had had my serger out, this would have been a much sturdier and cleaner merger! It's not too late though....!) Then turn it over and top stitch just a smidge onto the denim edge. AND....:

A cute and flirty skirt!..... here is a pic of them together:

Now, it should be said here, that the outfit was NOT complete for my daughter....but, with a little black t-shirt.....

(pay no attention to the adorable doggie behind the dress!)

THEN....add a cute long sleeve denim shrug....and VOILA!....

An adorable and funky outfit!  Ok, ladies....challenge time...Get out those tiny dresses and CUT EM UP.....and show me what ya get!!!!!!!!!!

Recycled Paper from Jeans and more!

On a whim, I googled "make paper out of denim" and guess what?  You can TOTALLY do it!

 There are actual sites out there that show you how! This site has easy, clear instructions on turning those bluejeans into stationary.  If you want to make your own paper from other things, Hub Pages has a great tutorial along with great how-to videos!  Here is another site explaining papermaking.   You can make your own deckle  too .

 Basically, a deckle is a frame with a screen in it inside of another frame with a screen.  AND....get this...you can make paper from DRYER LINT!  No kidding!

  I've used lint for doll and pilllow stuffing and with wax for fire starter,



 but THIS one excites me...Think of all the different colors you can get!

 Go to This website to see how to use your lint!  This site has a lot of great pics as well as another tutorial on making your own deckle.

I haven't made my own paper yet, mostly because I have a small house and this seems like a project better suited to my back porch, but I DEFINATELY have it in my to -do  list!  The thing I'm most excited about is the use I have for the paper!  I am going to embed wildflower seeds in it and cut it into tag sized sheets.

 Then I'm going to attatch it to my items for sale. Then people can plant their tag, water it, and watch it grow! If your interested in using seeds....check this site out .

There I told you about it....now get making paper and share your links to what you made!

My latest Baby Bib

Ok, I'm thinkin I might have caught the Bib Bug.....they're cute, they're small, they're quick, and they're fun!  Here is another Bib I made....hmmmm....what will I make next????? hehe

This bib is made from a pair of grey denim jeans I that I rescued from a resale shop that had slated them for trash.

I edged and embroidered it. I had SO much fun putting the embroidery it!

I made the trim by placing a transparent ribbon over another one. All I needed were some little scraps...glad I kept them!

I cut the seams out of the jeans and embroidered them with turquoise on top and light pink on bottom for contrast.

I made button holes, put the jean seams through them, and knotted the seams.

And...VOILA....a super cute, scrappy, upcycled bib!

Upcycled bag / purse tutorial ....or... Mean Green Blue Jeans! (pt 4)

The idea for this project came to me in the middle of the night and is the reason why I now keep a notebook by my bedside! I couldn't stop thinking about it and ended up writing it down so I wouldn't have it floating in my head (or floating OUT of my head!)  In fact, my husband had to threaten to TAKE the notebook away from me because the ideas wouldn't stop comming out of my head! The pics are almost in the form of a tutorial, but , I tend to not work from patterns a lot, so, help yourself to copying it, but be prepared......no measurements!

Look...A pair of jeans...I think I'll make a purse...a HUGE purse!

But, I don't want it to be bulky, so I'll cut off these parts...

And these...(maybe these will be inside pockets when I'm done!)

I think I'll leave the pocket liners.....yeah, i will!

These two paisley fabrics that I got from a resale shop will work!

Hey, these cut-outs make great patterns for the fabric....I'll just cut the fabric bigger for seam allowances!

One from the pre-quilted paisley for the outside and one of the cotton paisley(cut facing away) for the inside of the purse!

I'll fold under the edges and iron them....then I'll attatch them with a zig-zag stitch!

Not until I fold and iron the inner fabric so I can pin and sew them at the same time though! 

I will lay them over and under the jean and sew along the edges.

Sewing around the front pocket insert is tricky, I'll have to sew the inside and outside seperate here so I dont sew through the pocket!

Whew, that was tricky!

I could just sew the bottom together and then sew off little triangles at the edges to make the bottom, but the CIRCLE is what was in my head last night, so thats what I'm gonna do!

I'm folding the circle twice to find exact centers.

Four center points are needed.

Now I'll attatch and sew the bottom. (wish I'd had my serger out here, then I could have finished the edges nicer!)

I kinda forgot to take better pics of the part where I sewed on the straps and belt, but here are some close-ups!  I just cut long rectangles, sewed, and inverted them.  Then I attatched them inside the pockets in the front and just under where the belt would cover in the back.

I did the same for the belt, but I didn't sew it down, I just laced it through the loops and knotted it.

Here is the back end of my gigantic purse.

And here is the front! (modeled by my oldest daughter...which makes it look even bigger!)

I would LOVE to see your version, so comment with a link to yours!