T-Shirt Shrug

While my little sisters were in town this past week I also decided to go through my closet and pass down all the clothes that were either too small for me, or that I had not worn in the past year.

While digging through the pile of clothes I found a bunch of t-shirts. They were all too small on me now, but I was looking for old t-shirts to cut the bottom off of after I saw this tutorial on I Am Momma Hear Me Roar. I love the idea of the modesty of an extra layer, but with out the bulkiness. So I went ahead and took a bunch of t-shirts I had and cut the bottoms off to make my self a few.

My sister Erica had mentioned a little earlier that she would love for me to make her a shrug.
So it worked out perfectly that one of the t-shirts I had cut the bottom off of was a pink t-shirt with a deep scoop neck - perfect shape for a shrug.

I also found a gray tank that had buttons down the front of it (I prefer to use pieces that already have buttons and button holes sewed on. I abhor sewing button holes!).

To make the shrug I first cut a straight line up the middle of the pink t-shirt.

Next, I cut off the bottom of the gray tank, folded it in half, and sewed it to the bottom of the pink t-shirt.

Then I cut off the section of the gray tank that had the buttons and holes on it and sewed it to the edges of the front of the pink shirt.

To finish it off I added a little of the gray tank to the sleeves of the pink shirt for a little extra embellishment.

Thankfully my little sis Erica is a skinny minnie and the shrug fit her perfectly!

Bandanna Tunic

I had a wonderful Mother's day this year! It was so nice to not only spend it with my husband and son, but to get to spend it with my four sisters!

My parent's left on friday to go on a cruise to Jamaica for their 25th wedding anniversary. So friday morning they brought the girls and dropped them off with me for a few days.

I have had a bunch of fun girl craft ideas floating around in my head the past few weeks, so I decided to take this opportunity to make a few things for the girls.

One of the first things I made was this bandanna tunic for my littlest sis!

Doesn't she look cute in it?!

Poor thing had to close her eyes...the sun was making them water like crazy!

And this is her striking a model pose....hehehe! I love it!

All I used to make this shirt was two bandannas and a piece of soft rope.

I simply folded the top point down and sewed a straight line across about two inches down to create a hole for the rope to pass through.

Next I took the rope and cut it in half so I would have two pieces.

Then slid one piece through the "tube" in the top of the bandanna,

made sure it was even on both sides,

gathered it slightly,

then sewed the sides of the rope in place so it wouldn't slide out.

Then I did the same thing to the other bandanna.

next I lined up the two bandannas right sides together and sewed down the sides to attach the two (you might want to have your little one try it on first to make sure it won't be too small or too large).

Since bandanna edges are already finished you don't have to hem anything :-)

The last thing I did before having lil sis try it on was to put a knot in the ends of the rope so it wouldn't fray.

Then I had Emma try it on and tied the rope at the top to finish it off.

There are a few tutorials on other types of shirts and clothing you can make out of bandannas
here, here, here, and here. Check them out and give them a try!

"New" Dress For Lil Sis

This past weekend my hubby, son, and I got to visit my family in Texas...

I always LOVE spending time with my parents and FOUR sisters! -yes a family of five girls....no boys except for dad...needless to say that when I had my son I had no clue what in the world I was supposed to do with a boy! I am quickly learning though ;-)


From Top: Andrea, Miranda, Erica, Me, and Lil Sis (Emma)

My mom is extremely crafty and artistic...it is where I would like to think that I got my creativity from. The last few times I have seen her she has purged her fabric supply and graciously donated it to me! So WONDERFUL! This time was no different...I got three full boxes of fabric, lace, and doilies!! My mind has been going ninety to nothing thinking about everything I want to do with it all!

So while there and going through all the fabric...my mom started talking to me about fixing a few of my little sisters clothes that were becoming too short or had holes in them. She showed me a simple blue dress that had an unfortunate hole at the top near the neck, and asked what we should do to fix it.

I immediately began digging through the boxes to find something to hide the hole and make the dress a little more than just a simple blue dress...

I ended up finding some pretty lacy ribbon...

and here is what I came up with...
STRIKE A POSE :-)
Lil Sis showing off her "new" dress for me. Don't you just love those glasses and big eyes!!!

For the ruffle on top I simply put a running stitch in the top and the bottom of the lace and pulled the thread so that it gathered. Then I pinned the lace to the top of the dress and stitched over the running stitch at the top and bottom.

...and that was it...easy peasy. The hole is fixed...and Lil Sis looks so pretty!!!