Tutorial Tuesday & Linky Party - DIY Maxi Dress

Good morning, bloggers! I have a really awesome tutorial to share with you today. I know you're going to be shocked, but it's not something baby-related! It's a full grown sewing project, it's super fast, WAY cheap, and easy enough for anyone to do.

The DIY Maxi Dress

Now, I don't know about you guys but I have had the hardest time letting of my maternity tank tops. I love them. For me, it's comfort and coverage. Being rather, how should I say this... "top heavy" I have always struggled to find tops that can accommodate the load, lol, and offer me some decent coverage without showing my bra straps. Until I got pregnant, I just assumed I would never find this magic tank. Then came the world of maternity clothing. I can't really wear any of it anymore as it all looks funny, but I just couldn't let go of the tanks. So I decided to modify! :)

What makes this project so easy is the fact that you're using an already constructed shirt. No arm holes to sew, no serious measurements, and no trying to pin while wearing. Nice. :)

Materials List

1. Tank top or t-shirt that fits you well. 
2. 1 full yard (at least) of coordinating fabric. I used a jersey knit so it's stretchy and forgiving. ;)
• A note on the skirt fabric: I used an entire yard because I planned to ruffle it to give the dress some fullness and movement, and not have it be too fitted. You can use more or less as you like, and as measurements allow. 
3. Coordinating thread. Though it can really be any color because it doesn't show.
4. The usual suspects: sewing machine, scissors, measuring tape

Here we go... Photos reflect instructions from left to right and top to bottom.

Tutorial Instructions:

1. Choose your shirt and fabric.
2. Try on your shirt and make a mark where you want your skirt to start. Then draw a guide line across the shirt and cut through, removing the bottom half.
3. Since we're using the entire yard, fold the long sides of your fabric together and hem together to make a giant tube. I used a regular running stitch twice, and then serged the ends together for extra sturdiness. You can also use a zig-zag stitch in place of serging.
4. Next, decide which end of the tube will be your at your waist, and sew a single line all the way around, being careful not to overlap at the seam. Pull the ends of the thread to ruffle until it fits your waist measurement.
5. Now, turn your tube inside out (if it's not already), and put your tank inside the tube with the right sides facing each other and the open ends matched up. Pin together securely.
6. Sew together the tank and fabric tube. You can probably use just about any stitch for this, but I used my #9 which is like a slanted zig-zag stitch. This stitch will give you a little stretch, which is good when dealing with knits and jersey fabric.
7. You can see the finished #9 hem in box #7. Now trim your threads, and any errant fabric.
8. Turn right side out and inspect your hems.
9. You can hang and measure for a bottom hem, but it's not necessary. I didn't because for one, jersey doesn't fray so it doesn't need a hem, and secondly, I have such long legs that my whole yard was just about the right length to hit my toes. When it comes to dresses, I like 'em long and swishy!

And that's it! You're finished! How easy was that? Now have fun dressing it up, or wearing it plain... there's nothing this fun maxi dress can't do. 

Now it's your turn! Link up your projects below for this week's linky party!

Linky Guidelines:

1. Please feel free to link up as many projects as you would like!
2. Please link directly to your project post, it makes them much easier for everyone to find.
3. Please no etsy shops, or generic blog links. Specific posts links only.
4. Visit someone else's link and share the bloggy love!
5. Grab yourself a button and post it in your project post or on your blog. Optional of course, but the more we share the party, the more people see your posts! :)
6. Have fun!!

<a href="http://www.littlebirdiebaby.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjybpWehEcQYkr_bcTNwQtjMs-pSV-lbAnKMq0wQAbpkfm8Vn6I1fmUjYtVvzwqfTuazi67qG1Z7SWKRWPfgV3kkRVaYGnhKP7LJ0txiH6AQQj2x8KUcYdEuPtOudXo4oDmxEdFyxqjJ7RO/s800/Tute%20Tues%20LB.png" height="150" width="150" /></a>

Have a great week!!

XOXO

Tutorial Tuesday & Linky Party - Pretty as a Pear

Good morning bloggers!! I have a little cutesy tutorial for you today, something quick and easy that you can whip up in no time.

A Pretty Pear Pincushion

This was a little project born of necessity. The little one is now perfectly capable of reaching pretty much everything on my desk. In the aftermath of a huge pin spill, I thought it high time that I make myself a little pin cushion to keep my sharps safe and out of the way.

I found this pattern online, though I can't be sure where it came from. I am constantly downloading patterns and pulling instructions for projects, even though I already have more bookmarked than I could ever complete in my lifetime, haha!!

Anyway, here it is PLUS an extra pattern for an apple pincushion as well! With some fun and funky fabrics, you could have quite the little bushel here. ;)

Click the pattern to enlarge it in another window, then print. 

I'm not sure what the size should be, I just printed as is and went to it!

Materials list:

1. 1, 2, or 3 different fabrics for the body of the pear or apple. You don't need much. I think I used 3 half strips of jelly roll fabric.
2. Sewing machine or needle and thread- this can TOTALLY be done by hand!
3. Felt for the leaves. Again, you could easily get away with using scraps.
4. Poly-fill, sand, or rice for filling.
5. Hot glue or fabric glue
6. Coordinating straight pins (optional)

Tutorial Instructions:

1. Print pattern and cut out pieces.
2. Cut 6 of each shape (pear or apple) from your fabrics, and one or two leaves (I used felt for these).
3. Start sewing together the body pieces by placing them right sides together and sewing along ONE EDGE only.
4. Piece and sew them together this way until you have what looks like an inside-out pear shape.
5. Sew the opening together (again, inside out) leaving a 1" hole for turning.
6. Turn right side out and fill. I used rice so it would have a little weight to it, and even threw in some lavender to keep my sewing table smelling lovely.
7. Sew up your hole and tie off.
8. You can either hot glue the leaves down or use fabric glue. I'm impatient, so I went the hot glue route. Plus I love hot glue. ;)
9. If you found some coordinating straight pins, pop those in right on top of the leaves for a little extra accent and you're done!!

See? Easy, quick, and super cute! Now it's your turn! Link up your projects and visit one another's pages as you go. We all love visitors and comments, so share the love! :)

Linky Guidelines:

1. Please feel free to link up as many projects as you would like!
2. Please link directly to your project post, it makes them much easier for everyone to find.
3. Please no etsy shops, or generic blog links. Specific posts links only.
4. Visit someone else's link and share the bloggy love!
5. Grab yourself a button and post it in your project post or on your blog. Optional of course, but the more we share the party, the more people see your posts! :)
6. Have fun!!

<a href="http://www.littlebirdiebaby.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjybpWehEcQYkr_bcTNwQtjMs-pSV-lbAnKMq0wQAbpkfm8Vn6I1fmUjYtVvzwqfTuazi67qG1Z7SWKRWPfgV3kkRVaYGnhKP7LJ0txiH6AQQj2x8KUcYdEuPtOudXo4oDmxEdFyxqjJ7RO/s800/Tute%20Tues%20LB.png" height="150" width="150" /></a>

Have a great week!!

XOXO

Tutorial Tuesday - The Cutest Clutch in Town!

Good morning everyone! It's time for another edition of Tutorial Tuesday, complete with linky party fun!

I did {another} sewing project this week. I hope you guys are not getting too tired of the sewing tutorials, I am really coming into my own with my machine and I'm just so excited to try all these new projects. This week I jumped even further out of my comfort zone and tacked the oh-so-scary ZIPPER!!!

I know, just thinking about it used to make me cringe. Now, not so much. I'm excited about all the new projects I can do now with my new zipper skillz. {That's right, I spelled it with a z... because that's how mad my skills are. ;)} What do you think? Introducing...

The Cutest Clutch in Town

{a.k.a. The Aviary Clutch}

A friend and I were talking the other day when Joel Dewberry's Aviary 2 collection came up. It inspired me to pull out my little Aviary 2 stash and make myself something lovely. :) I'm a sucker for purple, and turquoise is currently holding 2nd in that poll, so this collection is right up my alley.

I found the tutorial on the Noodlehead blog, so you can pop over there to check out the details, but I made some adjustments so give you a quick rundown here, too. :)

Here's what you need:

Materials List:

1. Fabrics of choice- I used 4 different fabrics, but you can use as few as two.

• Main front fabric: one 5.5" tall by 9" wide, and one 5.5" tall by 13" wide (the longer piece will be the gathered/ruffled front)
• Front band: one piece 4" tall by 9" wide.
• Lining: two pieces 5.5" tall by 9" wide
• Zipper end covers: two pieces 1.5" tall by 2.5" wide.
• Medium weight fusible interfacing: (2) 5.5" tall by 9" wide (for fusing to inside of exterior pieces of clutch)

{Optional Pieces}

• Divider pocket: one piece 8" tall by 9" wide (apply interfacing to half, you'll need a 4" x 9" piece)
• Card holders: one piece 7" tall by 9" wide (apply interfacing to half, you'll need a 3.5" x 9" piece)
• Cash pocket: one piece 5" tall by 9" wide (apply interfacing to half, you'll need a 2.5" x9" piece)

2. Zipper. Can be longer and cut down, but finished size will need to be 8.5" long

3. Medium weight fusible Interfacing (see above for measurement details)

4. Coordinating thread

Now as far as the basic pattern goes, I followed the Noodlehead tutorial pretty much to a T. And she's got some great pics to go along with the steps too.

I took some liberties when it came to the inside. I like pockets in my wallet/purse so I had to make some.

I took the large "divider" piece (folded over and fused), and top stitched about 1/4" from the folded edge then top stitched another row 1/4" below that. Next, I basted the sides of the piece to one side of the lining.

Next, I took the 7"x9" piece folded it over and fused it together and top stitched it the same way as the first piece. I then basted the ends to the other piece of lining. 

This is where it gets personal. ;) Depending on what you're going to be using the pockets for, the measurements for the stitching will be different. I wanted to have credit card pockets, a pocket for my business cards, and a pocket to hold my chap stick so I used each of those things to help me measure off the sections.

I also added a shorter pocket in front of the larger set of pockets for stowing cash in. That's the 5"x9" piece, just fold it in half and fuse it the same way as the others and sew it on in front of your first set of pockets.

Just to make myself feel good, I also sewed in one of my tags. You know, so it's custom. ;)

Finish following the Noodlehead tutorial and you should be all set!!

Tips for this Tutorial:

• When sewing together your lining, leave a larger seam allowance than you did when sewing together your outside pieces. (ex. 1/4" seam allowance on outside pieces, 3/4" seam allowance on lining.) This just helps the lining and pockets fit nicely into the clutch without bunching up.
• If I were doing this project again, I would make the front ruffled part 5.5" x 15" instead of 13" so I could have better ruffles. Who doesn't like more ruffles? ;)
• Mix up your fabrics for a truly unique piece!

So now it's your turn! 

Link up your projects below, and grab a button for your project post. 

Be sure to visit other links on the list and share the love! :)
Today's Creative Blog

{I'm linking up HERE this week!}

<a href="http://www.littlebirdiebaby.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjybpWehEcQYkr_bcTNwQtjMs-pSV-lbAnKMq0wQAbpkfm8Vn6I1fmUjYtVvzwqfTuazi67qG1Z7SWKRWPfgV3kkRVaYGnhKP7LJ0txiH6AQQj2x8KUcYdEuPtOudXo4oDmxEdFyxqjJ7RO/s800/Tute%20Tues%20LB.png" height="150" width="150" /></a>

Have a great week!!

XOXO

Tutorial Tuesday - Cutie Booties!

Hey everyone! Welcome to Tuesday! I am really excited to show you what I've been working on lately. I've been on a roll making baby shoes. :)

It was a pretty big leap for me, but I'm glad I did it. I feel more confident about my sewing and less afraid to try something new/harder. As much as I would love to share this pattern with you, I purchased it from a fellow etsy seller as a "one per person" thing. BUT, I am at work on my own pattern so that I can share it with you and start popping these bad boys into my shop.

Here are the girly ones I did:

And I couldn't forget the boys...

What do you think? I'm pretty proud of myself and looking for some babies to dress now, haha! :)

Now it's your turn to share!

Link up below and let's see what you all have been up to...

XOXO

Tutorial Tuesday & Linky Party - An Old Fashioned Sleepover

Well... not actually. But that's what it felt like! My very own bestie came to visit me yesterday all the way from Lubbock. Well, actually her and her man were down this way visiting his fam, so she stole away for the day to come and hang out with me and Baby A. We spent the afternoon chatting away, playing with my little Baby A, and doing things that girls do. Like my hair. It almost reminded me of when we were 13 and staying up late watching Princess Bride and talking about boys. :)

Did any of you see Lauren Conrad's funky July 4th hair on her blog the beauty department this month? We did. It was incredible! And as often happens, we were instantly in love and had to try it out. Unfortunately, since Lauri is still growing out her bob from last year, I am the only one with hair long enough to give it a go at the moment. But just wait 6 months and we'll be back with pictures of her hair too! ;)

Ready for this??

What do you think?

I LOVE IT!

We could not have been happier with the way it turned out. Especially since we were both new to the whole self-bleaching thing. Thank goodness, I would have hated to post to you today about how we burned my hair off last night, haha! Hopefully I can get some better pics when the hubbs gets home from work later. It's kind of hard taking pictures of your own hair... especially when it's soooo long.

If you want to try it out, the beauty department has their tutorial HERE. Of course, I am always happy to answer questions if you need me to! Luckily, I got lots of great info from the lady at Sally's Beauty Supply, so if you purchase your goods there don't be afraid to ask for help!

These are the colored dyes that I used. They came highly recommended by Sally's lady, and they're supposed to have great holding power. They're also really vibrant, and that was a huge plus for me. I think Sally's had about 15 different colors in this brand:

We only ended up using a tiny bit, so I probably have enough dye to do this another 50 times, haha!

Enough of my silly antics, let's see what you've been up to! Link up your crafts and projects below! Be sure to use the direct link to the actual post, and be nice and go visit some of the other great links on the list. :) Feel free to grab a button from below and get linking!

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As always, I hope you all are having a great week!!

XOXO

Tutorial Tuesday & Linky Party - A Little Taste

I don't know about you guys but I feel extra inspired this summer. I have so many things in the works that I haven't finished even ONE yet! But that's okay, at least I'm having fun. :)

Since I don't have a finished tutorial to post yet, I thought I would post some progress pics of some of the things I've been working on.

A little cookery...

A little painting...

A little weaving...

A little planting...

A little backyard building...

And LOTS of things I don't even have photos for yet. Whew! It makes me dizzy just looking at all these. Methinks there will be some late night blog writing going on in the next few weeks, haha!

In any case, I am still excited to see what you all have been working on, so don't forget to link up below! Grab a button if you'd like, and feel free to link up as many projects as you have. Just please be sure to link to the ACTUAL project post to save us all some browse time. Now... link up! :)

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XOXO

Tutorial Tuesday with Tori from Busy B Family!

Welcome back everyone! We are finally all moved in, and have some MUCH needed internet access. I have seriously been having withdrawals for the last week. Ack! So without further ado, I would like to turn this week's Tutorial Tuesday over to the super sweet Tori from Busy B Family. Take it away Tori!

...

Hello all Little Birdie Blog readers!  I’m Tori from Busy B Family and Rachael was kind enough to let me invade her space today!  I started my blog as a “scrapbook” when my little boy was a few months old and instead of having a separate blog for crafts, I just throw them on here every once in a while!  (So if you go there and don’t want to see my kids, just click on crafts and you can see them there!)  Before having my own blog, I was strictly a blog stalker for years, which was great but I LOVE having a little outlet for creativity and memories all in one place. 

A few months ago I had a whole bunch of those cute little mini cereal boxes and made some storage box magnets for my fridge.  They were SO easy and quick, and I have gotten so many compliments on them!  Even better, you really can use stuff laying around your house to decorate them!

After making those, I thought it would be nice to have a specific place to put all those pesky take out menu’s from restaurant's.  Cause if you’re anything like me, I never can seem to find the one I need when I want it!  So why not make something?!  So, here we go!

For mine, I used a graham cracker box and Pop Tart box  (since I’m a good daughter, my mom gets one!)

Here’s the supplies you’ll need:

Boxes –whatever size you want!

Cute paper

Glue stick (or Mod Podge – that’s what I used on the cereal boxes, either are fine!)

Magnets

Decorations of your liking

Letters of some kind

Transfer paper

I cut the top off the box and about another 3/4 of an inch

Mark on your paper about where you’ll need the height to be

Cut your strip and glue it on

Go ahead and glue it around the sides and onto the back.  I used 12” paper and this is how far around the back it wrapped.  It’s okay that it doesn’t cover, cause you’ll never see the back!

Front

I originally cut out 2 strips of contrasting paper but only ended up using one

This is what it will look like after gluing your paper on

For the Pop Tart box, I did the same thing.

I added a few decorative stick on jewels to each box and then got my letters ready.

I used my Make the Cut software for the letters and cut them out on my Cricut (love that thing!).

After peeling off the excess vinyl, use either transfer tape or contact paper to stick it on your box

Pop Tart box

Graham cracker box

I had a leftover magnet sheet, so that’s what I used but you could use any type of magnet, just make sure they’re strong enough to stay up!

Cut it close to the size of the back of your box

Mine has a sticky back but you can definitely use hot glue to attach it

Here it is compared to my original mini cereal boxes

And the final products!

Easy enough right?  And best of all, you can pretty much use up your scraps and recycle your kids snack boxes and breakfast cereal boxes!

My next idea?  I wonder if file folders would fit in a regular size cereal box (ya know, turned on its side?)?  I think it would be great for each family member to have their own folder, so you’d always know where “stuff” was! hmmm.

Thanks SO much Rachael for having me today! I’m so extremely flattered you’d allow me to take over for the day!

I hope you’ll come visit me at Busy B Family! Stop in and say hi and let me know if you make these (or any form of them!), I’d love to see them!

Tori

...

Thanks so much Tori! What an awesome idea! I know at my house when it comes to take out (which unfortunately, happens alot!!) I am always finding myself rummaging through drawers for the menus. I will definitely be trying this one out!

Be sure to go check out Tori's blog for her other great projects and tutorials!

Now it's your turn! I am so excited to be re-launching the Tutorial Tuesday linky party after our little hiatus. Like I said, I am in serious withdrawal!! haha! So link up, grab yourself a button, and spread the word! Tute Tuesday is BACK! :)

<a href="http://www.littlebirdiebaby.blogspot.com" target="_blank"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjybpWehEcQYkr_bcTNwQtjMs-pSV-lbAnKMq0wQAbpkfm8Vn6I1fmUjYtVvzwqfTuazi67qG1Z7SWKRWPfgV3kkRVaYGnhKP7LJ0txiH6AQQj2x8KUcYdEuPtOudXo4oDmxEdFyxqjJ7RO/s800/Tute%20Tues%20LB.png" height="150" width="150" /></a>

XOXO