Costume Ideas 15: Quickie Lace Masquerade

October 31, 2011

Cut out doily to mask shape, coat with lacquer make firmer, add faux diamonds, elastic to tie on each side.
The trick would be finding a paper doily that worked. Something with a long straight edge like this perhaps?
You might get lucky at the dollar store?

Tutorials: Broken Umbrella Parachute

How Does She Takes her broken umbrella and transforms it into some happy fun! So clever.

Ideas: Faux Collar

Just had a rad idea! What if you could make collar inserts? Sort of like dickies but without the faux shirt portion. I've found that a lot of the dresses that appeal to me to have Peter Pan collars. Wouldn't it be great if I could just pop one in when I felt in the mood? It might not perfectly come together in the back but would still look cute. Possibly attach with clips on one side? 
Her version would work with crew neck shirts. Something with a tight neck.



Ideas: Instant Mirror

Isn't it funny. The inventions you never knew that existed! This would be awesome for that mirrored lattice look that you've been seeing on armoires;) You can get glass or plexi glass for a reasonable price at a glass shop. They'll cut it just to your size. I wonder how this would look on plastic. I'm guessing not as good.


For projects like this:

Or this:

Ideas: Lace Rimmed Socks

October 30, 2011

Add eyelet lace to the hem of a knee high for extra cuteness. Takes about five minutes.

White Halloween

Yesterday we had quite a scene. Snow accumulation in October! Pretty neat. I think we got about 5" or 6" that laid. I, of course, had no food in the house and had to run down to the local grocery store. But on top of the roads not being plowed, the store's power was out. We weren't allowed access to any of the frozen or chilled foods, the lights were off and the conveyor belts weren't working. But I was able to get the essentials. Barely. By the time I got back I was pooped.
Today it's bright, sunny and melting all the snow. Hopefully we'll have a mild Halloween night.

Cute Cheap Dress of the Day 30

October 27, 2011

Do you have a celebration coming up?
Only $35 at Oasis. In Blue and Parasol Print.
Use coupon code: OCT11DEL for free next day shipping!


Costume Ideas 14: Mr. & Mrs. Fox

October 25, 2011

I love how this Burdastyle member made the Wes Anderson interpretation of Mr. & Mrs. Fox so true to form. In order to do this the right way follow cupcakedreammachine's direction

For the mask she bought some cheapo plastic fox masks, and then hot glued on the two different types of fur fabric. She cut a few different shapes of fur to try to follow the shape of the mask. Then she used black wool roving for the ears and eyes, then added some ‘craft whiskers. She said, plastic broom whiskers would have also worked and been less expensive.

She also made the dress and altered a corduroy jacket. She made the dress from scratch by altering Elaine May's Coffee Date Dress Pattern and for Mr. Fox, she cut down an existing vintage jacket to make it double breasted and made some quick pants from a similar corduroy. She even added wheat in his pocket and buttons are wooden with a burned in tree pattern! Bravo!

Gift Ideas 8: Felt Bandaids

October 24, 2011

Awww! Felt bandaids for the stuffed animals. The felt should stick to the fuzzy fur. For something super sticky you could try using the rough sided velcro.

You could make a bunch of these and put in a box painted like a Bandaid tin as a cute Christmas gift for a small child.

I'm surprised Build-A-Bear didn't think of this first;)

 

Gift Ideas 7: Swiffer

Know anyone who has a swiffer or some kind of similar idea? Just about everyone, right? So this would be a fairly universally useful gift. Just use fleece. No hemming. Make a couple in different colors for an eye popping surprise! You can buy this set of two here. Or try making your own. Here's a great tutorial for the duster. And here's a tutorial for the sweeper from Sew Much Ado.

Source: etsy.com via Cara on Pinterest

Inspiration 40: Sheer Swiss

Love the sheer swiss dot backing on this dress. A nice alternative if you don't feel comfortable with a totally bare back. I found a very similar sheer swiss in yellow once.

Here's a very lovely sheer swiss on etsy.

Here's another pink on eCrater.

Here's a chocolate brown on eBay.

Here's some in white on eBay.

Costume Ideas 13: Hedgehog

Just when you thought all the cute baby costume ideas might have been used up, along comes this cutie! 
I just want to squeeze him all up!

Ideas: Ambient Light Pillow

October 23, 2011

I wonder if there would be an easy way to make this? I thought I'd find something on Instructables but no such luck. You can buy one but they're really expensive $179 at Yanko Design.

Would be a great gift for that child in your life who is afraid of the dark. Also makes neat ambient light in a room.

If anyone knows of a way to make one of these I'd love to hear it! 

Apparently, it's battery operated and lasts for about 4 hours until it then dims down and turns off.

More Handmade Gift Inspiration

Some really great gift ideas added to the Handmade Holiday Gift Guide! Here are a few of my favs.
There were about 25 more links added since the last time I posted about it! So go check it out!
 And add your own if you feel inspired;)
Finger Puppets Via Meg + Andy
For the link to the child sized pattern follow above link.

Tutorials 89: No-Sew Gathered Christmas Tree Skirt

Love this no-sew burlap gathered Christmas tree skirt! Get the tutorial here! 
I would love to do a gathered skirt this year. I only have the cheapo $2 skirts you buy at Walmart. It's a disgrace.

Costume Ideas 11: Lumberjack

October 21, 2011

Oh Jordan's son is too cute! You could make this easily with face paint, plaid shirt, suspenders and a wool cap. OH, and of course a plastic hatchet;) I think the younger your child, the cuter this costume will seem:P 
See more pics on Oh Happy Day.

Ideas: Fabric Drawer Pulls

Don't have knobs? Try DIY fabric drawer pulls! 

Just drill two holes in the front of your drawer and thread fabric through. 

Then tie in knots on the inside to secure in place. 

Then tie another knot in the front of the drawer to make a bow. 

This would look great for a beachy rustic feel.

Costume Ideas 12: Butterfly Eyes

It's the newest glamor look for the 2011 Halloween holidays! Butterfly eyes. Martha's doing it and so can you! Tutorial here. Also, if you don't like the feeling of faux wings on your eyelashes then try doing it with just makeup. See image below. I think it looks more beautiful when you don't paint over the lid.
For even more butterfly effect, try painting your nails too (see below).

Gift Ideas 6: Ruffled Neck Warmer

Oh gosh! What a great response to the holiday gift guide! Since posting yesterday we already have 50 new entries! I recommend checking them out. And add your own if you think you have a great link to share. 

I just added this one to left. It's some kind of scarf neck ruffle thing. There's no tutorial for it but I bet you could make this from a lightweight upcycled sweater just tuck and hem the edges. It's cute! Dontcha think?














Costume Ideas 10: Rapunzel

October 20, 2011

This would be great for a dress up box too!


Get the tutorial here.

Source: None via Kathleen on Pinterest

Handmade Holiday Gift Guide 2011!!!!!!!

Yesterday I was at the dentist office and totally bored. (I'm always waiting over an hour to be seen even when I have a set appointment. Is that normal?) Anyway! So I started putting together my Christmas List. It seems I have a gazillion people to shop for. And each of those people need multiple gifts. I'm happy to have so many close family members and a few select close friends in my life but I'm also super broke come December 26th.

I always have the best intentions of making gifts by hand but by the time Christmas comes I'm way too behind to do any of the things I planned. Sometimes I even buy the supplies and don't get to finish the project which is super wasteful!

So I'm putting together a handmade holiday gift guide early this year! See new link in sidebar! I'm also adding an option for you to post your own holiday gift ideas to this list (see linky party button at bottom of page). It doesn't have to be something you've already made. An idea is great too! You'll find that some of these posts are ideas rather than tutorials. But if any of you would like advice as to how to replicate something I'm more than happy to give my thoughts!

Cute Cheap Dress of the Day 29: The Eyelets Have It!

Delias is having a great sale on some eyelet and lace dresses. Plus the lengths of 3 out of the 4 dresses are between 37"-39" which is more reasonable for all heights. This might be a better buy for those of you lucky enough to live in those year round warm climates. Eyelets and winter just don't match.  
Use coupon code DCQ382R for an additional 20% off your order!
Use coupon code DCLW25 for free shipping on orders of $25 or more!

Costume Ideas 9:Jaws

October 19, 2011

Cute for a baby that isn't walking yet. This is made by knitting but you could easily make with fleece or recycled sweater.
Source: etsy.com via Kathleen on Pinterest

Ideas: Baby Gift

Store fabric scraps in your used diaper wipe container.
Keep your infant entertained without wasting your tissue supply.
Probably better than any toy! I'm thinking Christmas gift or baby;)

Inspiration 39: Layered Lace Shorts

I know it's getting kind of late in the game for posting shorts but I loved these layers of lace.
Would be easy to DIY. It looks like cream crochet.

Costume Ideas 8: Comic Book Character

October 18, 2011

Lichtenstein-esque.

Gift Ideas 5: Monogram Ring

This would make a great inexpensive Christmas gift for a friend!

I bet you could replicate with strong gage wire and a soldering iron.
Source: None via Hollie on Pinterest

Ideas: Laundry Room

Cute laundry basket by painting a metal trash can and sewing a liner. I know you can buy identical cans at IKEA.

My New Digitizer!

I FINALLY got one! I've been eying these since I started fiddling around with pattern making. But they're kinda expensive. I had an architect friend come over to help me learn Autocad in lieu of buying one of these but ultimately I wanted one. Autocad worked okay but it required a lot of steps and number checking.

So I broke down and bought a used one on eBay for a deeply discounted price which I feel was appropriate and it arrived in the mail yesterday which is why I didn't post anything all day. It took about that long to find all the appropriate electronics to hook it up with. Part of the reason it was cheaper was because it came without a power cord so I had to search all my old cord stashes for one that fit. Then it required a 9-pin serial port to hook up to the computer which my laptop lacked so I had to pull out my old Dell from the basement, clean it up and bring it back to life. THEN I had to install all the software and drivers. THEN I had to learn how to use the thing!

Basically a digitizer will input the outline of your design into a CAD format which you can use to grade later in a CAD program. I have a pattern all set and ready to be inputted in TODAY! Remember the Downtown Holiday Jacket and Pant? I've had this pattern for ages and just never did anything with it. Still debating whether or not to grade it for purchase or leave it ungraded as a free pattern for anyone to download.

Hopefully I'll have something by the end of the day to work with. Let's cross our fingers and see;)

Inspiration 38: Open Backs

October 14, 2011

Love the ruffled back on this dress! But maybe I'm also a sucker for aqua blue;)



Wonder how this could be replicated? Leather straps and pleated black chiffon?



I think this may just be cinched with a bow in the center.
 
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