Easy Burp Rags

I am on a quest to find cheap ways to make all the necessities for a new baby. This weekend it was burp rags. I used the idea from my sister who made me a few similar to this, using flannel and terrycloth. Joann's had a sale on their flannel, 1 yd for $2.49. Their terry cloth on the other hand was $10 a yard! After a quick trip to Ross I had a full size towel in a cute pattern for $5.00. So for a total of $8 I ended up with eight custom burp rags.
Quick Tutorial:
-I grabbed the pattern from the one my sister gave me, but she found it online.
-Once you find a pattern you like, cut out the flannel and terry cloth and sew right sides together. My original plan was to sew the two together and just pink the edges...didn't work. Terry cloth sheds like crazy!
-Leave a little opening to flip the rag right side out. Close the opening and sew a 1/4" seam around the edges to finish. I used colorful thread for the outside stitch to make them more fun. At that point you have a new soft, thick burp rag.
-You can also grab some cute templates to "baby" up the rags with birds, giraffes, bunnies, elephants, etc.

Embellished Onesie...

A few ruffles and buttons and I have the first of many embellished onesies for our little girl. Total cost: $1.80...
Onesie - $1 thrift store purchase
Ruffles - Old t-shirt
Buttons - 80 cents

Even included making a matching flower to clip on a headband.

Christmas Wreath

Holy Crap!!! Has it really been almost 5 months since I have posted on here?? Wow how time flies! Well with the holiday season approaching I have gotten crafty again and will be posting a few of the projects on here...again.

I'll start back small... Here is an easy wreath I threw together this weekend. All that is needed is a frame, ribbon, and some spare ornaments. String the ornaments on the ribbon and glue to the back of the frame, add a bow and a hanger and there you have it, a festive door hanging for the holidays!

$4 Ruffled Shirt

So I only managed to take a cell phone pic of this, but it'll do.

A short little tutorial would go something like this...
I grabbed a $4 t-shirt from Wal-Mart and an old grey shirt from my closet that never gets worn. I cut the old shirt into 4 strips, the length of the shoulder to the hem. I needed 4 since there are two making the "U." A man's t-shirt would work much better.
Gather the strips using either the basting stitch way, or my cheater way, and then place the ruffles where you'd like, making sure to follow the seam line of the shirt.
I did take the Wal-Mart shirt in AFTER I sewed on the ruffles causing them to separate...mistake. So note to self, take in the shirt before if needed.

Button Bracelet

I needed some 4th of July color a couple weeks ago and threw together this bracelet before church, it is that simple.
All that is needed is a few buttons, and twine or thin ribbon. I have a huge stash of vintage buttons courtesy of my grandma and friend of the family.

Cut two lengths of twine and folded them in half and knotted them together. This loop acts as the clasp.
I picked out a few and threaded them onto the twine, making knots around each button so it stayed in place.
It is finished off with a little button on the very end that fits inside the knotted loop to secure the bracelet. I may need to make another in a different color scheme.

Dress Make-Over

I found this dress at Target a couple weeks ago on sale for $9.98, marked down from $40! I could not pass this deal up, even if it was a size too big and little too short. It was just so darn cute!

Before (w/ my doggie in the background)

I immediately knew I wanted a ruffle to lengthen the dress, but all I could picture in my head was a pleated hem, so I got to work.
I was really excited about trying to make a pleated hem, because I always wanted something like this around the bottom of my wedding dress, but never found one.

I took in both sides, and ripped out the existing hem. I then hemmed the blue fabric first before ironing and sewing in the pleats. And just an FYI that I am SO glad I thought of before sewing anything together. I washed my blue fabric because I had an inkling that it would bleed. Boy did it bleed, the sink looked like grape kool-aid!

Once the pleats were in place I attached them to the dress using the old hem as a reference point.
I was saving this dress for church this weekend because I thought it looked very patriotic, and I am so excited about the way it turned out. The pleats give it almost a 40's look, which works great since I love anything vintage.
For the patriotic touch, I threw together a button bracelet that I will post another time.

After

Fabric Phone Case

Out of necessity comes creativity...that was the case for this project.
I get tired of all of the music on my IPod so I usually just listen to Pandora on my phone. I had an old IPod holder for running, but I needed something for my phone that I could strap on my arm when I go for a run or walk the dog. Since I still had the IPod case with elastic strap, I only needed something to hold the phone.

This was also my first attempt quilting, and tried for a chevron design. It's a little wobbly, but not too bad for a first try.

Here are a few pics of the process...
*(on a side note, I'm really NOT a Lakers fan...but the shirt was cheap, comfy and vintage looking with Magic Johnson's name and number on the back, so I bought it and wear it around the house).