ReDone Denim

A quick post on examples of simple things to do with your pom poms. I made lots of small ones ages ago so decided to tie some of them onto an old hair bobble, it gave me the cutest pom pom scrunchie! I got lots of compliments when  I wore it. I also wore it as a bracelet  and it looked just as cute, I may even try felting them to see how that would look.

I also made a large pom pom garland for my bed, how cute does that look??? I like the mismatching colours and weights of yarn! For this I again just tied my pom poms onto some string and attached that to my bed. Simple and really cute. A handmade decoration out of something I already had to hand, no money spent!

My mum was about to get rid of three old cushions a wee while ago... she was swiftly stopped! I was wanting new cushions to match in with my room but was pretty skint, so I decided to upcycle the unwanted cushions. I had visited a place in Montrose called 'Mollio', a company that handmake sofas and chairs, and they had loads of spare fabric just lying about that they couldn't use. They gave me two bin liners full of off cuts!!!! I decided to put some of this beautiful fabric to good use and here is one of the cushions I made.

So if you enjoy sewing but are in need of fabric then I recommend going to see companies like this. Usually the scrap fabric is just binned or sometimes given to schools for craft projects so get in there first. There is no harm in asking :)

This week I have been trying to upcycle things lying about my room. I always buy photo frames but I never actually print off any photos I want to put in the frames.. pointless. So for my first quick 'upcycle' I took some of the wallpaper I used for one of my walls and simply placed it inside three empty frames. The wallpaper doesn't even need to match (nor does the frames in my case), just any pretty paper you have lying around can make a huge different. I also found some old photos in my loft, no idea who the people are that's in them but I liked the vintage look, that's another small frame filled. Now the empty space above my bed is filled and looks pretty :) I have found a use for the frames and extra wallpaper, simple and effective.

For the other frames, I got the pressed flower images for free in a charity shop. No one was buying them and they were just going to be binned so I said I would take them. (perks of volunteering..dibs!) To try and match them in with my 'bright floral' theme, I used some of the paint I had left over from one of my walls and painted up some old photo frames. This upcycle may not be to everyone's taste (my mum thinks its a bit 'old ladyish') but I love it. Simply painting an old frame to match in with the room is a good example of easy upcycling.  

http://mariclaro.ca/shop/en/

YOU WILL NEED:

-fabric

-sewing machine

-scissors

-an iron

-1inch wide elastic

First of all, take some measurements. Measure your waist and then from your waist to wherever you would like the skirt to sit on your leg (I usually go for an inch or so above the knee.)

Get your fabric and place it on a flat surface. For the waist, depending on how puffy you want the skirt to sit you can double or triple the measurement taken (the bigger you make it the more puffy the skirt.) I usually double mine up, so if your waist measures 28" for example, then make the fabric 56". If you don't think your fabric is wide enough for this, don't panic :) you can always have two pieces of material and attach them together to make the desired width. Now use the length measurement and mark that out as well, then cut out the desired size. 

For the elastic, I think a wider piece sits nicer so I tend to use the 1" stuff. Take the original waist measurement (28") and add another 1". This means I am cutting a bit of elastic out to 29". This 1" extra means you can sew the two ends together to secure it in place. 

Now take your cut out fabric, fold it in half putting the 'right sides' (the pattern of fabric you want to see as the front of your skirt) facing each other. This means that the 'wrong sides' are facing you. Sew down the open side (or sides if you are using two half bits of fabric) like so...

Now you will have a tube shape, turn the fabric so that the pattern or 'right side' is now facing you. Give this a quick iron to make sure everything is sitting flat.

We are now going to sew the 'casing' (the bit where the elastic will sit around your waist.) So fold half an inch inwards towards the inside of the skirt (you don't want to see the fold from the front) and iron that flat, then fold down another inch...then again iron it down flat. Measure your elastic against it to make sure there will be enough room for it to sit in this fold. When you are sure there is enough room, sew this fold leaving a small gap like so..

Thread through the elastic (I find it easier to do so if I attach a safety pin  to the end that is being fed through the gap) until it is sitting neatly in the casing you have just sewn. With each end of the elastic in hand, do what was said earlier on and sew the elastic together with a 1" overlap. Once you are sure the elastic is secure together, sew up the small gap in the casing. 

Almost done now! Last thing to do is the bottom hem of your skirt. Take your iron and do the same thing as you did with the elastic casing. Fold half an inch in towards the inside of the skirt and iron that down, then fold another half an inch and iron that (ironing the skirt throughout just makes for a neater finish and saves you using any pins!) When you are happy with your hem (my 1" hem is an example, you could hem it smaller or larger if you like) then sew away! 

Went to an amazing pom-pom making worshop with the talented knitwear Designer Hilary Grant at the DCA in Dundee. As an absolute pom pom fanatic, this was the perfect way to spend five hours on a Sunday. Fun, easy to make and you can use a variety of materials rather than just yarn - a great way to use up scrap material that is just lying around. 

We made extravagant head pieces with our pom-poms, not something you could just walk about wearing!

Here is a really simple way of making a scrunchie, anyone who knows basic sewing will be able to do this! First of all cut a small piece of fabric out..

Remember, the wider the fabric you cut the larger the scrunchie.. and the longer you cut the more scrunched up it will be. :)

Then fold your fabric in half length ways with the right sides (the pattern you want on the front of the scrunchie) facing each other. Pin in place!

Now with a sewing machine or by hand if you have the patience, sew down the open side of the folded fabric. Once you have done this you will be left with a tube shape. Turn that tube inside out so that the right side of the fabric is now on the outside. 

Cut a piece of elastic about half the size of the length of our fabric out and feed through the tube. 

Once you have caught both ends of the elastic, ruffle up the scrunchie to the desired shape and then tie the elastic in place. Cut away any excess elastic. You should be left with something like this...

Again either by hand or machine, sew up that opening to secure the scrunchie.