A Tiny Peek - #WIWT

I'm wearing several things I made today.

I try, everyday, to wear at least one handcrafted item.

Basic white tank from Target embellished with a pretty emboidered lace flower.  The flower came on a thrifted lace nightie.  It was awkwardly placed so I took it off and into the stash it went.  I added it to the plain tank for a little extra bit of spice.

Sorry this is flipped! Blogger keeps uploading it wrong! ::sadface::

Simple necklace.  Supplies from Shipwreck Beads.

Glass pearl earrings. Supplies from Shipwreck Beads.

Also flipped... boo!

I threw on this clip at the last minute this morning.  The yellow in my outfit was kind of an afterthought.  I thought it was perfect for this fall day though!

This piece is made from a canvas flower, burlap, feathers and a button.  I love it!

Flower from Oriental Trading Co. Burlap and vintage button from Fun Junk. Feathers, Joann's.

Keeping Busy

I haven't been blogging,

but I have been trying to keep my little hands busy in other ways.

 

I made some art for my walls.

tutorial via

I made a rediculously large flower brooch for my jacket.

I made this chalkboard thought bubble. 

I'm going to make some more for a back to school themed photo shoot.

tutorial via

And then I made these feather earrings.

I saw a friend wearing a pair and the next day,

I was at Joann's and found the feathers on sale for $.99.

It was meant to be!

I have a few other crafty projects planned for the weekend.

They include painting a mirror for Goose's room,

more feather earrings

and a photoshoot.

Oh, and I am getting a bed!

YAY!

Thanks to @joeltelling!!

He is an awesome photographer, super dad and great friend.

And we are having a BBQ with some out of town friends we haven't seen in ages.

And its a three day weekend.

Do you have plans???

Those Who Can't Buy, MAKE!

 I really wasn't intending to post for WMW today, out of sheer laziness but what the hey...Here are the prompts... #1. Favorite recipe, organizational tip, or money saving tip!
#2. Would you rather have more money and less flexibility at your job, or less money and more flexibility?

I'm gonna go with #1 today... can you guess what my tips are?
It's about clothes...

BUY USED!
Make it NEW!

Recently I started posting some "I Bet I Can Make These" posts
here, here and here.
They consist of things that I love but can't afford but think I can make myself.
(I think the title is self-explanatory)

I love fashion. I love shoes. I love clothes.
I don't have a lot of money.
A lot of my clothes are hand-me-downs or second hand.
Many of my "designer" high end pieces... Good Will.
Yeah.

Not only do you support your community when you shop at Good Will, but you can save a FORTUNE and look great! Often, Good Will has close outs from stores that are new-with-tags. Can't beat that.
Salvation Army and Value Village are good ones too.
In my town, we have a store called Dumpster Values.
Its a second hand store with some amazing pieces.
In fact, the top I am wearing today came from their $1 bin.


Here are a couple blog links that have some great re-fashioning ideas.
Scissors, Glue Paint - Aynie posts her favorite links from around the web.
Grosgrain - Kathleen has a "Thrift" feature to show her readers how to make the most of their thrift store clothing finds.
Clothed Much - Eileen shows how to make the most of a limited wardrobe.
Kendi Everyday - Kendi is the brain behind the 30 for 30 wardrobe remix. Its a great way to expand your outfits without spending money.
UCreate, tatertos & jello and Tea Rose Home
are also some great sites with awesome crafting ideas!

Even Julia has refashioned some clothing for her daughter!

For alot of things, you don't even need a sewing machine.
With just a needle, thread and some patience you can have a one of a kind, fashionable (and CHEAP) wardrobe!

Quite a Pair - Of Chairs!

Have you ever wondered WHO actually picks up the crap people leave on the side of the road with a "FREE" sign?

Yeah, well, I am one of those people. 

And in our neighborhood, people do it all the time. And sometimes its pretty nice stuff.

On the very day I saw this tutorial on Elsie's blog, I found a chair on the side of the road.

It was equally as sad as the one pictured, but I didn't draw a smiley face on mine.

I patched the hole with duct tape and dissassembled the chair, which was pretty easy since the directions are printed on the underside of the seat.  Unfortuately, the top of the chair wouldn't come off, the screws were rusty and bent, so I just covered it with a plastic bag.

Then I painted it with Krylon in a nice aqua blue. My plan was to make it opposite of this chair, so both Goose and I can have a seat in my craft room.

I found this rusty red cotton fabric at JoAnn's. It's the same kind of fabric I used for the first chair, only a different color. The reds aren't quite the same shade, but I like the way they look together. I used my glue gun to attach the fabric to the chair. I carefully folded the fabric and glued it in place.

The pillows are from Dollar Tree.  With some left over fabric, I sewed a few rosette flowers and attached them with my glue gun.  I don't know where they will end up, but I thought they looked cute in the pictures.

Thanks for looking!

Tutorials!!

Pea Pod Necklace

Just Something I Made

Sailor Knot Bracelet

Etsy Storque

Embellished Tank

Elle Apparel

Lace and Pearl Bracelet

Flamingo Toes

Linen Pillow

Flamingo Toes

Antique School Desk

Lemon Tree Creations

Phone Book Shoes

Shannon Makes Stuff

Flower Flip-flops & Tote

Flamingo Toes

Shoes and Tote

Food Face Plates

Dollar Store Crafts

Having a clean craft room is getting the creative juices flowing.

I've been on a jewelry kick lately...

And I totally have that SAME exact desk. And now I know what to do with it!

ENJOY!

Quickie Tank Top

I was cleaning my craft room on the morning of the 4th. I finally had some time to spend in there, unpacking and cleaning.  I found my stash of vintage fabics (yay!) and two particular prints caught my eye.  Red/white stripes and blue with white dots. Prrrrrfect.  I was already wearing a pink striped tank, something I picked up on sale at Old Navy for a couple bucks.  And Goose was wearing a pink/red/blue shirt for the day. (I like to match her. ::blushes::)

I plopped my butt on the floor, took off my shirt and got to work.  Hubs came in and laughed at me.  Sitting on the cluttered floor of my craftroom in only a bra and skirt.

"Ready in 15?" He asked.

Haha... not a chance. 

Actually though, I made good time.  First I tore a rectangle of the striped fabic and a square of the polka dot.  I rolled and pulled them to make them look more frayed.  I glued my pieces together with "No-Sew" Fabric Glue from Aileen's.  I really like this stuff for small appliques.  It's a liquid glue, made for fabrics, specifically to wash out w/o any residue.  I glued it in place then used a simple running stitch to attach it to the shirt.  I like the pink thread, it gives a nice contrast to the red/blue. 

And done!

And I think I actually ready in time, too!

I added a red scarf, navy cardi, cut-off kakhis and flip flops. 

Comfy, cute, and no one else was wearing it!

An Un-Blogged Craft Project

My craftiness is well known in the family and my skills are frequently recruited.  For the last wedding it was the beaded wine glasses for Tara's wedding and this time it was flower girl baskets for Cherish's wedding.  I got to make two of them and her wedding colors were some of my favorite colors to work with.  Pink and Black. Yummm. 

My mother in law and I went to Joann's to pick out the supplies, found cheap baskets, and spent too much on fabric.  I have a very shabby chic/unpredictable/vintage kitchy type style.  The general idea I had was to sew rosettes out of the various fabrics and attach them to the front of the baskets.  And for the inside, I glued in a fabric lining with the polka dot fabric.

I used the braided ribbon to cover the seam of the lining and the heart is to cover the part where the ends of the trim meet. Hot glue guns are amazing.  Invest in a good one, its totally worth it!

Once the flowers were glued in place, I used various sparkly embellishments for the centers of the flowers.  Then I added ribbon to the handle.  I only decorated the front, since that was the only thing people would see. 

And both of the girls did wonderfully.  They were too cute. And of course, were bestfriends before the weekend was over.

Both Goose and Naia got to keep their baskets.  I didn't add anything wedding specific to them, so they can be used again.  I'm thinking next Easter, perhaps?

PS - Sorry the pictures of the basket aren't better.  Camera situation is complicated right now. Taking pics on the cell phone is just easier.

Bargain-ista.

I went on a little Goodwill shopping spree yesterday.

And I was pleased to find everything 40% off!

I only spent about $15.

This trench was only $6.50.

Mossimo (from Target) and in nearly new condition!

And this dress... a whopping $4.

It has an Asian-language tag on it.

And this tunic, only $3.50

It looked like a traditional Indian kurta. It was definitely handmade.

It had slits up either side that went up pretty high, but it was pretty long,

Almost to my knees.

So, I decided to turn it into a dress.

Using hem tape, I sealed the slits on the side.

Then, I sewed some lace ruffles over the seams.

Last, I added another ruffle down the front and some pearl buttons.

Paired with black accessories (tights, shoes, belt) it looks pretty darn cute.

And did I mention it has pockets too? 

I lurve dresses with pockets!

I'm sure I will end up wearing my new dress sometime this week, so I will post full shots then.

I just really wanted to share my bargain finds with you.

I'm always so proud of myself when I score a great deal.

Made

Told you I was gonna make these shoes!

*source - Lulu's*

I was digging through my craft stuff, working on my Craft x NW display and I found a long black zipper!

And then I dug out an old pair of Old Navy flipflops got to work.

*Ew, I need a new pedicure! I know what I'm doing tonight!*

I think they turned out pretty cute.

I think I want more colors.

If I didn't have everything on hand, I would say these could be made for under $5.

Cool, huh?

I think next time, I want to experiment with a different shapped bloom.

But these are fun!!

Here are another pair of plain shoes that I spiffed up a bit.

Cheapo slipper shoes from Walmart.

Made pretty with blooms made from reclaimed jeans.

I had bought them to be house shoes,

but since adding the flowers I have actually worn them a few times.

As real shoes.

Got any projects planned for the weekend?

Nothing for me here.

Got a baby shower for a friend on Saturday.

Then, just lots of packing and cleaning.

WE ARE MOVING!

(More details to come)

YAY!

And it even has a craft room.

And a small garden so I can plant stawberries.

Anyway, no crafts planned for me, although, I'm sure I'll make something!

:)

Hopefully I will get my JillofallTradesCRAFT stuff photographed so

I can have a "preview" of my Craft x NW merchandise!

TODAY IS THE LAST DAY!

*LINK*