Upcycled Knit Top...From Too Short and Too Low to Sassy and Sweet!

Once upon a time, this pretty cotton knit top fit me well.  I loved the print and the colors.  Plus 3/4 sleeves work for almost 3 seasons for me here in Southern Indiana.  But then, after some washings and partial dryings, it became too short and the neck line began to stretch and be too low.  Rather than put it in the Goodwill pile, I started researching ways to upcycle it.

Then one Sunday at church, I saw such a cute top.  It was made from some kind of Chiffon type fabric and had a lacy gathered 'skirt' around the hem.  Ooohhhh.  I liked it!  And then I remembered I had some white lace in my fabric stash.  And within an hour, I had an upcycled top!

I just cut a piece that was about 8 inches wide and about 1.5 times longer than the bottom edge of the top.  I sewed a basting stitch along the top of the lace in order to create slight ruffles in the fabric.  I pinned it with, inside the existing hem of the top, trying to keep the gathers mostly even all the way around.  Then I sewed it in.  

I also took up the neckline about an inch by increasing the seam on each shoulder.  And lastly added a lace panel above the pink crocheted neckline decor.  

I left the lace unhemmed, as I like the slightly shabby chic look.  It washes up great and does not ravel.  I even made a little lace embellished pin to wear with it, as seen in the 2nd photo, but mostly will wear it without.  

So enjoying my 'new' top that now fits nicely and has a sassy little lacy skirted hemline.  This is my 2nd or 3rd attempt to upcycle or refashion clothing.  Such fun...can't wait to try something else!  Thanks for reading!

Be Blessed,

Donna

Linked to
lMy Romantic Home
Tip Junkie

UpCycled Knit Scarf

It was a beautiful snowy morning.  And I had declared it to be my 'craft day!'

I love this top.  A ton.  But alas, it makes me look pregnant.  And since I am now 50 years old, that is not a good thing.  Ha! So I saved it for the fabric and today decided it'd be perfect for making a knit scarf.  Bridgette of Ette Studios has a great tutorial which has been making the rounds on Pinterest.  So I give her all the credit and thanks for her inspiration!  You can see it HERE.

Cutting the body of the top into strips.  Stretching them out.  And using the coordinating ties from the top to be my 'wraps.'

Alternating the side seams so that when I wrap them, they are not all in a bunch.

Using the wrap to hide the side seams, keep the strips together, and add a cute contrast.

Now to wrap the other set of side seams.

Pinned into place, making sure that the hand sewn side will be on the same side when the scarf is worn.

Handsewing the ends of the wrap together and alittle bit to the scarf.

Trying to take my photo in the bathroom mirror!

The sweater I plan to mostly wear with the scarf.

Oh and this sweater works too.  I doubled the scarf up today and it looked cute.  The picture isn't that great...but my 13 year old son was the photographer.  :)

So there!  I have FINALLY made a T-shirt or knit top scarf!!  Wanted to for months!

Thanks for stopping by!

Blessings!
Donna


Linked To:
My Romantic Home

Starbucks Cup Scrapbook

I'm excited to share this fun craft with you today!  I learned this idea from Angie at Echos of Laughter last year.  She is such a creative girl!  Be sure and check out her delightful blog for a full tutorial on this little scrapbook.

This Starbucks cup was my holiday drink from last December...white mocha I think!  It's fun b/c the markings on the front of the cup are a remembrance of what I had that day while Christmas shopping with my mom.  :)  I  brought it home, washed it, and saved it for making a cute December scrapbook.

You cut the bottom of the cup off and then cut the cup down the seam to make the cover of your book.

Then you make a template for your pages.  I covered the inside of the 'cover' with cute paper and then made double page spread pages for the rest.

Since my b-day is in December, I decided to make my book about all the festivities of December rather than just Christmas.  Because the pages are small I had to get creative with the photos...cropping them when I was able, or cutting them and squishing them together.

It's cute to use as many 3D touches as you can...so I used foam dots under embellishments and little photos.

I also put photos of a craft I made for gifts and of some decor I used for a dinner party.  Note the C'mas tree embellishment with a button on top.

Our Christmas Eve appetizer buffet...I had to cut part of the photo and superimpose it over the main part of the photo to get most of it on this page.

Using a circle punch I was able to put all of the photos of our family that were together for Christmas on one page even though the page was small.  And I put a foam dot under three of our photos for some depth.

Our puppy dog's stocking!  And I found that one of my photos had this picture of my Gooseberry Patch calendar in it, so I cut it out to add to the book.  :)

We had a white Christmas!

My sweet puppy-girl...Gracie.  She was enjoying Christmas Day!

Here you can see that I cut the photo in half and spread it over two pages.

The back of the book is where I attached the baker's twine to be the little closure for the book. A circle of paper hides the attachment. A button on the front is perfect for wrapping the twine around to keep the little book closed.

And I used a pick to poke 2 holes in the middle (folded part) of the pages and the cover.  This baker's twine ties it all together.  Worked out really well.

I hope you enjoyed this little sweet idea!  And thank you Angie for this adorable, brilliant idea!  I really love it!  

Merry Christmas!!
Donna


Linked To:
Whatever Goes Wednesday 
My Romantic Home
Tip Junkie
Here's to Handy Andy

Another Cute Trash to Splash Project!

It took just another 15 minutes to make this fun organizing set for my daughter. Two clean veggie/fruit cans and an ice cream bucket were saved from the dump and the budget was saved from purchasing caddies for storage. Just use some spray adhesive, pretty papers, punches, and buttons to make your own cute storage containers in just 15 mintues. Yay!