Easy & Quick Candy Cane Ornament

Scroll down for english, please. 

Esta é mais uma ideia natalícia que fiz o ano passado e que não cheguei a partilhar aqui no blog. 

Adoro embrulhos diferentes e originais quando chega a altura de oferecer as minhas prendas, e esta ideia em particular foi inspirada no papel que comprei no ano passado, cujo motivo eram as bengalas doces (e que podem ver na foto abaixo). 

Here's another Christmas idea from last year that never made it to the blog. 

I love different and original rapping when it comes to wrap my gifts, and this particular idea was actually inspired by the wrapping paper I bought last year, because of it's printed candy canes (picture below). 

Inicialmente o que eu pretendia era comprar umas bengalas doces verdadeiras, mas não encontrei por aqui. Não é que tenha procurado exaustivamente, apenas procurei pelos locais onde ia passando e nenhum tinha. Este ano por exemplo, já encontrei uma caixa de dez unidades numa das minhas lojas preferidas. Trouxe-a comigo e ainda está por decidir o que farei com ela. 

My first thought was to get the real thing but I couldn't find them anywhere. Well, It's not like did look that hard for them, I just checked each place I went on my daily routine and none of those had it. This year though, I have already found a box of them in one of my fave shops and of course I brought one with me, still I need to figure out what to do with it yet. 

Para tal usei pipe cleaners (a tradução literal é limpador de cachimbo, não sei mesmo que nome se dá a isto em português). Foi só juntar um branco e um vermelho e enrolar um no outro. Depois cortei ao meio e cada metade foi usada para uma bengalinha, é só arredondar uma das pontas. Como usei nas prendas (colei) não acrescentei mais nada, mas quem quiser pode também colocar um fio fino na parte arredondada e pendurar na árvore de Natal ou onde lhe apetecer. 

To make this, I just grabbed two pipw cleaners, one red and one white and rolled them into each other. Then I cut it in half and each part was used to make a cane, I just needed to round one of the edges in order to get it finished. Since I glued mine to my gifts, I stopped here but if you plan on hanging them on your Christmas tree or anywhere else, you just have to tight a thin thread to it to do so. 

Podem também cortar mais pequeno ou maior. Cheguei a cortar em 3 partes iguais e foram as que achei mais fofas. Usei em quase todas as prendas que entreguei o ano passado e ainda tenho algumas que talvez use este ano, embora ande à procura de algo diferente para esta vez. E por ai? Alguma forma especial de distinguir os vossos embrulhos? 

You can also cut your canes longer or shorter. I did cut some in 3 equal parts to make mine and those were the cutest ones. I used most of them on my gifts last year but I still have a few that I might use again this year, though I'd rather find something different this time. What about you? Do you have any tips to make your wrapping stand out?

My balance |Fabrics, Refashioning & Thrifting|

It wasn't on my top 5 goals for 2015, but really, I don't need to add that anymore. Sewing from my stash and my refashion clothes pile has just become part of who I am and how I sew. I realised over the last couple of years that sewing doesn't have to be expansive. In fact, I can save a lot while sewing. Last year I tried to keep track of how much I was paying for the supplies I bought, but I got lost somewhere in between and I couldn't keep up with it. This year, I am planning to get a bit more organized, I have a folder on my computer, where I add photos of supplies, fabric, thrift clothes I buy with the information of how much I spent for each item. 

Even though I commited to not buying new fabrics last year, I did get a few new ones. I didn't buy them all, I got a couple from my grandma's friend, as birthday gifts from hubby and also from online sewing friends. In the list of the ones I bought there are more knits than wovens, for the simple fact that those weren't much in my stash before, so I needed these more than the other. When I look at my fabric piles right now, these new in 2014 included, I realise I lack on boys appropriate fabric. I have a few that are gender neutral, but most of them are really for girls. Because of that, I will allow myself buying new fabrics anytime I need it, even though I will always try to go for refashioning. There's all sorts of fabric prints and types in that pile. Some of the fabrics on the photos are already leftovers from pieces I made last year, which is a good sign, I bought them, but I have used them too. I haven't used a lot of them for the simple fact that most of them were bought after S. was born, which was also when I decreased my sewing projects for lack of time or mood. 

I was donated so many clothes last year. Closer to the end of the year I chose through it again and have donated a few of them myself too, there's just too much in my stash already and every now and then I have to do this. It was all getting too messy. I have used some of the pieces from the first photo below as they were, they were given to me by my own who got a little extra weight, and gave it all to me. 

Go ahead. Have fun trying to figure the pieces I have used from these piles already. There are a few. Anyway, a few were donated, and the pile is slightly shorter. I still have too many pieces to go through, and still, it always seems like enough is never enough when you are an addict. Last week I went thrifting in my favourite charity shop. And it is my favourite because all adult clothes and shoes cost 1€ and all kids clothes and shoes cost 0,50€, which is the closest to nothing. I usually thrift for refashioning, but often I fall in love with a piece and buy it to use as is. This was the case this last time. I didn't fall in love, but I was looking for specific warm shirts for both my kids, knitted ones because I don't knit. I eneded up bringing that and more, much more, but all costed me 9,50€, so, why should I complain. 

The butterfly are pieces for G. Ladybug for me (even though the blue skirt was going into my stash until I tried it on and realised I loved it, i just have to fix the waist at 1" less probably), those shoes were NEW, never used before. Snail goes into refashion and the bee is for S. They had so little to his size for boys. 

Sewing from my Stash and Refashioning

NOTE: long post, I made this mostly for myself, so I can keep track of what I have, but it might inspire someone.

Just a little more than a year ago, I joined a challenge of sewing from my stash. Actually I had started doing it before,  but by the time I blogged it, I shared some photos from the stash I had. I am pretty sure I forgot to take photos to some things I already had, but not much. 

Yesterday I thought I would take some photos of the fabric I have right now, after I've spent an entire year buying as little fabric as I could. The first thing I can tell from one year to another is how much more organized I got, and how much better my fabric piles look right now. I've been organizing it bit by bit and some of the fabric is still out of place, but I will get there.

To start, I have moved my fabric from one place to another over and over for the last year. In the photo above you can see my smaller pieces of fabric shelves. They are three of them, I was using the first one for my Burda, Patrones and Manequim pattern magazines. The pile grew and I moved them somewhere else. The two shelves below held my scraps. I can spot a few from there that I no longer have, they have been used already.

Right now, in the next photo, is the same three shelves. They still hold smaller pieces of fabric, but I have fold them properly (or at least much better) and have been trying to organize them by colours. White and black on the top one (and a bit messy right now) and the two below holding the other colours. I think this is the pile that looks much smaller than the one from the previous year. I was able to use a lot of them for my duvet cover.

The next 2 photos below are 1. refashioning clothes and 2. boxes of small scraps, and all the large pieces of fabric I had last time I photographed them. 

When looking at the refashioning pile I can spot at least 9 pieces that were already turned into something else. But they weren't that organized either. There was much more underneath. 

As for the bigger pieces of fabric, I was able to return some to that business partner I had, and I know I used some of them... not as much as I'd like though. Since they are big pieces, they were used, but I still have some left. 

Anyway, if you've missed it, by the end of 2013 I've put up a post with pictures of everything I made using my faric stash and everything I made that was refashioned. Find it HERE. 

 

I'm now determined to keep my fabric organized and visible at all times. Bigger, medium and smaller pieces of fabric, all have to be quickly found when it comes to start a new project. I have been saving card boxes of different sizes so I can store the different sizes of fabric in them. So far, here's what I got:

1. Bigger pieces of fabric - the ones on the vertical are the ones that are already wrapped in the card, the ones on the horizontal are waiting for card for their own. I am trying to keep them by colours. 

2. This used to be a CD case, but when destashing my cds, I threw the covers away, saved them in folders and saved myself A LOT of space. I was going to either give away or try to sell the case, but then I looked at it with different eyes and since it has do many small shelves, I thought it'd be perfect to keeo those very small pieces of fabric that I find hard to part with. It isn't organized yet. I just started there, but it will be in time. Right now you can see medium pieces of fabric in that bigger shelf on the side, refashioning items I bought this year already and are waiting to be put in the right place and if you look to the bottom shelf of the photo, you can spot a yellow fabric, already folded, together with a few others of blue tones. That is what I plan to do all over here. 

3. A box of refashioning potencial items. Most of it, is a fur jacket older than I am that belonged to my mother. 

4. The biggest pile. Underneath (lower shelf), there are clothes for refashion... I got a lot (donated) by the end of the year, so I have even more than I had before. On the top shelf, I have - for now - the very small scraps in the boxes and then there are left overs from previous refashions. Yes, it's a huge pile, but I have a problem of getting to attached to fabric... I always believe I will need them in the future. Eventually I did use some in other projects but most just stay there. 

I did manage to fill a fabric bag with lots of scraps and fabrics I didn't want anymore last year and donated too. And I've tried to put some away as I organized them this time, but not much was out. I am trying to work on this and see if it gets easier to part from those fabrics I don't need or won't use. 

Oh, and I realised as I organized my fabric stash, that most of my bigger pieces are of solid colours. Maybe that's something I should point when it is time to mention my signature style for Project Run and Play & Project Sewn sew alongs... right?!

KCW: The Flower Fairy Dress

It's the third day of the Kid's Clothes Week challenge, and everywhere on the blogland I see people sharing their wonderful creations. I told you I wasn't quite sure if I would join in the fun or not. But with so many great things coming up from basicly everywhere, I couldn't help but to enter my own little thingy too. 

I guess this week's the perfect oportunity to finally finish my niece's dress. It was promised her since the time I made her brother an outfit for the boy's themed week on PR&P season 6. 

If you followed me, you know I had planned to make her something for the details week challenge on PR&P all stars season. Well, I didn't! =( And since I didn't get anything done, I thought it'd would fit pretty well the Spring formal themed week, on the same season of PR&P. Well, again, and just by a couple of days I didn't again. 

As I said above, KCW was just my excuse to get it done. 

I actually worked on it last week, I cut the pattern and all the pieces into the fabric. I used the same french burda magazine pattern I used for my daughter's knock-off challenge, using a bigger size of course, and not doing any changes to the original pattern.

The dress is pretty simple (pattern), but the fabric is so light, and fresh and beautiful in colour and details. And the cherry on top is the detailed flowers belt. I added pink bias on the collar and arm holes for contrast since I used pink ribbon on the belt too. 

Actually my mother sewed the pearls to the flowers while I was busy sewing somthing else. She was visiting and feeling bored, so I gave it to her to help me, since the detail from the belt was done long ago, and left waiting. My first idea was to have it making part of the front bodice piece, but then I visioned it as a belt, and as a belt it was made. It tights on the back, and niece L. can wear it with or without the belt according to where or when she's wearing it. 

Here's how to do the flowers!!!

This is probably my one and only entry for the KCW. It's the first time I sewalong this challenge, and I am loving it, but this is going to be all for this time. I have important things to get done this week. Have fun!!!

Saving while sewing

How do I save while I sew? Besides all things I have been saying in previous posts, using and re-using all that I already have at home (fabric bought years ago, accumulated stash that other wise would lay there forever,etc); I have another trick to share. 

Once some piece of clothes is settle to go to the garbage because it really is something that can't be used anymore, I literally deconstruct it and keep all zippers, buttons and anything else worth saving. Most of the times I get really good quality zippers that last forever, nice coloured ones too, which I sometimes can't find at stores locally. 

Same goes for buttons, in very curious shapes and colours, and just like elastics. 

Why I am talking about it now? Oh, because I was organizing my zipper drawer and realised they didn't fit properly anymore. A lot of them still had their original fabric attached to it, and my job today as G. is napping was going to unstitch them all. 

Of course, I am bored already, so I choose to write about it instead. Most of the zippers on the above picture are from very old bags of mine. 

What about you? Do you do it too? Do you have any good tips to save while you sew?

Tutorial: Sailor Inspired Button Pants

Here's something I never did before. Not until I decided I would make it this time. 

I will tell you the whole story, yes, don't worry. I had this green pants I bought for myself last year, but only wore it once, so, I wanted to make them into something else for baby G. I knew what kind of piece I wanted to make (pants), but I didn't want them to be ordinary. I wanted something different, but couldn't really think of anything that would please me 100%. 

I will surely show you the before and after of the pants refashion, but today I have been working on a new tutorial.. so let me get to this first. 

I made up my mind about what type of pants to make when visiting my sister's I saw these pair from my 5 year old niece. 

Top: original pants from my niece; Down: my experimenting

I liked it so much I brough them with me so I could copy the pattern. I had to figure out how to make the sailor like closure, that's something I had never done before and wasn't sure how it'd be done. So, there I was staring at it, over and over, until I finally grabbed a piece of scrap fabric I use for experiments and tested if my thoughts on how to make it, were any right. They were, so it was time to make it on the final fabric, with no fear of messing it all up. 

First thing you have to do is mark the place where the opening will be on the front piece of the pants. From that mark, measure 4cm into the centre of the pants front. Pin it. Then cut a 12x10cm rectangle, and put in on top of the front piece, right sides together. Make sure, one of the edges is right where you've pinned before (4 cm away from the opening mark). 

Turn it around, we're going to work on the wrong side of the front piece now. Sew a line on both sides of the one you've drawn on the fabric to mark the opening. See images above to understand it better, I'm not sure I am making myself clear. The porpuse is to cut in the middle of those two lines you're going to sew. 

Now, don't be afraid! You can cut your openings. Then turn it around, and pin it. See above images: front and back view, how they both will look like. 

Then, you will sew only one side of the opening. In the front side of the fabric. That will be the side I have marked on the picture below, for the left side, and the oposite on the other. After you do that, get to the back of the fabric again, and fold the rectangle to match the edges (see second picture below). Pin it in place (closing your opening this way). Then you will sew the other seam just like on the 3rd image below. 

On the last two pictures above you can see how it will look after you sew it. Closed and opened. Now the only thing left to do it make button holes and add buttons to it. 

Use your button to mark the correct lenght for your button hole. Draw the button holes on the front of the fabric. Make sure they are symmetric. Sew it on your machine. Add the buttons (I did it by hand), and you're done. 

I really screwed up my pants on one thing. Go back to the start of my post. Look at the original pants. Did you guess what I mean?! There are only two buttons on each side, and one of them is ON the waist band, which I haven't added to my pair yet. What can I do to fix it now? Use three buttons on each side. Easy! The problem? I only had 4 of these buttons. I will have to find another ones, that I have 6 of... =/ Next time I should pay more attention. 

There you go, here's what I've been working on all evening. I hope it's clear and useful. 

Tutorial: Baby's Ant Costume, Part I Body

So, I've turned my little princess into a little ant for Carnival. Her first! And as I was making this costume, I was thinking about making a tutorial to share with you. 

So, you'll need: 

fabric - I used 1m of the black flannel; and just a few red flannel scraps I had from G.'s Christmas Dress.  

elastic - I used white for the body (legs) and black for the hat. 

scissors - I used a zig zag one to save me from overcasting the seams, which is fine, since she'll wear it once or twice. And a scissors for paper. 

black and red thread

brackets - I used 8 small ones (or you can get those ready to sew ones).

buttons - I used 3 for the front bodice

paper and pencil - to trace your patterns

your baby's clothes - to copy a pattern

1. So, to start off, grab you child's clothes that you've chosen to copy the pattern pieces. The one I chose, had the next pieces:

1. front bodice - cut 2x

2. back bodice - cut 1x on the fold

3. collar - cut 1x on the black fabric and 1x on the red fabric

4. little piece of the back pants - cut 1x

5- sleeves - cut 2x

6. front pants - cut 1x on the fold

7. back pants - cut 2x

After you trace your pattern, transfer it to your fabric. Add seam allowances (I used 1cm for all, except for legs and arms, I used 2cm seams. In the front pants, I used a 3cm seam in the middle _ fold side. Also in the front bodice, I made it 2cm). Pin it all and cut, like you see in the previous picture. 

For the ant's two extra arms, you'll need to cut a rectangle with 16cm x 52cm. Fold it in order to get a 8cm x 52cm rectangle. Pin it all around, give a round shape to all corners and sew. Find the middle of it and cut it into half. Turn it around, and you have the extra arms ready to fill. Leave a little seam allowance here too. 

To make the front bodice, just fold the 2cm seams in the middle to the inside. On the right one, sew 3 buttons, and on the left side, make the 3 buttons holes. 

Next thing you're gonna do, is lay the back bodice, and on top the front bodice, right sides together. Sew the line on the shoulder. After you do, your piece will look like this (previous picture). 

Pin the sleeves to the arm holes, with the bodice open like in the picture. Then sew it. Then "close" the sleeves, pin it and sew again. 

When you're done, turn it around, button it up, and it will look like this:

Let's get to the bottom now. Fold the 3cm seams and sew it. You should press it with your iron too. I didn't, because I'm lazy and only did that in the end. You might have to cut a straight line right in the middle so every seam goes it's right side. I know there are better ways to make it, but I just made it like this. 

After filling your extra arms, pin them about 6-7 cm from the waist.

Then, put the back pants on top, right sides together and the arms inside. Sew the seams. Turn it around and it'll look like this:

I did not take a picture, but I did sew the two pieces together of the back pants, and added the little piece that stays in between also. Which is that little piece of fabric you see in the picture above. 

Sew top and bottom together. Your ant's body is almost complete, but there's still a little to get done. 

Use the elastic, just slightly smaller then the width of the pants, pin it 2cm from the seams, and sew it with a zig zag stitch. 

Let's make some bias tape, shall we?! 

Cut some strips perpendicular to the fabric's line, which will make your fabric more stretching. I wish I could explain it better. Pin the strips like you see in the picture, right sides together, and sew it. Press the seams open, and cut out the excess fabric. 

Since I don't have any bias tape machine, I have been looking for an easy way to make my own, and the one you see in the 4th picture, was the most perfect solution I have came up with so far. I use two large pins, and pin it into my ironing board, one down and one up. I then pass the fabric throught it, and iron press it on the other side. You might need to give it a hand sometimes... it's not 100% perfect but it works quite well. 

Once you have pressed it all, fold it in half and press again. 

Pin the bias tape on the wrong side of the fabric - in the back part of the pants. Start in one leg and go all the way through the other. Sew it.  

Then turn it around, fold and sew on the right side. Your bias tape is in the right place now. 

Add the brackets, I sew mine by hand. Fold a 1cm on the bottom seams, and then fold 1cm more. Pin and sew. On both legs. Now close you brackets up and your little ant's body is done. 

PS. I just realised I somehow lost some photos, for example, the ones from when I added the collar to the rest of the pieces. That's missing in this tutorial. Well, I have sewed it somewhere between the process. First sew the red piece right sides together, and then turn the black one to the inside. I personally, hand stitched it. You can use the machine if you prefer. 

click here to convert cm into inches!

How to: fill with little styrofoam balls

Do you ever come across a project that need those little styrofoam balls for the filling? Since I've been making a lot of breast feeding pillows for sell, I've been working with those a lot. And it trully gets on my nerve. The first time was a disaster and ever since I have been trying to find a way to fill my items with no mess, and in a short time. 

Everytime I had to fill something I would think of an easy way to do it. But it was only until the last one I had to make that I came with the greatest one. If you're struggling with the same problem, here's how to do it. 


You'll need an elastic, and the top of a large water bottle (cut the bottle in half). 

 Wrap the elastic around the bottle's small hole. And then just fill the top with the little balls. They will easily roll into the pillow (in my case), and in no time, it is done. Just make sure you keep your fabric straight!