Zipper Accessories Tutorial

I did this tutorial as a guest post for Dorian over at that's SEW me a little while ago, and thought I would post it here in case you missed it the first time.

I have been loving the zipper accessories trend. It's so unique and simple to make. I have seen them in stores as pins, earrings, necklaces, and even hair clips. In my tutorial today I'm going to show you how to make a pin, which is a great way to dress up a scarf, and a simple hair accessory.

Supplies:

Zippers (I used 7" with metal teeth)

Pin Backs 1 1/2"

Bobby Pin

Coordinating Thread

Needle (I found it best to use a thicker/longer needle)

Scissors

Hot Glue Gun

Your first step will be to unzip the zipper and make it two separate pieces. I found it easier to cut a small circle out of felt to have a base for my flower. When you are done with that you sew one end of the zipper to the middle of your felt piece, as shown above.

Next you will loop your zipper around, making your first petal, and sew that to the felt. You will continue to make three more loops, putting a few stitches in after each loop.

After making your fourth loop, and sewing it to the felt, you should start to see your flower form.

When you are finished with your loops, you will have some excess zipper. This is what you will roll to form the center of your flower. You will make a couple of rolls and the sew a few stitches, to hold it in place. Repeat this process until the excess is completely rolled. To finish your flower you will sew the excess bud to the center of the flower. I simply put a few stitches down the middle of the bud, and it held it in place.

This next step in optional, but I had two extra zippers, so I decided to make little buds. I made this repeating the process from above, rolling the zipper, stitching every few rolls.

To make my flower and buds one piece, I cut a strip of felt. I hot glued the buds to the felt, and glued the pin back to the felt.

Now you have a great way to dress up a scarf or a jacket.

To make my hair accessory, I made my zipper flower like the above tutorial. I then hot glued it to a bobby pin. I put the bobby pin on a piece of card stock, and if your quick about it, it may not stick. you may have something better than this, but it was all I had at the time.

I was not having the best hair day, but you get the idea.

You can go here to see where I'm linking up.

                                          

The T Patchwork Dress

I have been pondering what I would make for my daughters Christmas dress for a while. I thought I would go simple and just make a pillowcase dress, but when I saw the T Patchwork dress on Lil Blue Boo, I had to make one. I bought the pdf pattern on her Big Cartel Shop. It is very inexpensive, with easy to follow instructions. I have loved her blog and designs for a while, and encourage everyone else to check them out.

I hope you can see the dress enough from the photos. You can't expect much modeling from a 1 1/2 year old.

Clutch Bag

A while ago I made a cowl neck scarf from and old sweater that I had lying around, which you can see here. When I came across the remains of the sweater, while cleaning my messy craft space, I really wanted to do something with it. I decided with a little work it could make a really cute clutch bag. I will apologize in advance that I really don't have any measurements for this project. I kind of just went with it, and it happened to work out. I love it when that happens.

I started by cutting the sleeves of the sweater off. This will be the outside of your clutch bag.

For the lining, I used a chocolate brown flannel. This is where I don't have any measurements. I simply laid the sweater on the flannel and cut around. What can I say, these are nap time projects, and you have to be quick. You will do this for both sleeve pieces. 

Next, you will put one piece of flannel down. Place your sweater pieces on that piece of flannel, right sides together. Now place your last piece of flannel on top. Basically, your sweater pieces are sandwiched between the flannel. Pin the sides and bottom, then sew about 1/2" in. Leave the top open. I made, what were the wrists of the sweater, the top of my bag. 

Now it's time to turn the bag right side out. I folded the flannel at the top of the bag under, and pinned. I also centered the ribbon, that will close my bag, and pinned. You will now sew all around the top of your bag, to connect your flannel, and secure your ribbon. 

I used a chunky button, and hand sewed it on. You can use your machine for this, it's just quicker for me to hand sew.

The little flower that I put on there, I got from a tutorial from I am momma hear me roar.  I did mine a little different, but it's where the idea came from. It's the perfect size bag for my phone, keys, and wallet. It will be perfect for date night, when I don't have to carry my diaper bag. It's the first clutch bag that I've ever had, so lets hope I don't leave it.

Thanks for stopping by my blog. You can go here to see where I have linked.

Fun Photo Session!

I took my first photography class back in August, and I've mostly been taking pictures of my hubby, and kiddos. After all, that was the whole reason I wanted to take the classes in the first place. After some practice with the camera and the editing programs, it has quickly become an obsession. I now see things driving down the road that would make a good photo, that I would have never noticed a few years ago. When my sister asked me to take some fall photos of her and her husband I jumped at the chance. We went to a small town that is a 20 minute drive from where we live. It's was a beautiful day, and a small town with lots of history. It made for great pictures. Of course, my sister is super cute, so my part was easy.

I mentioned above, the old town that we took the photos in. When we decided to take a quick ice cream break, we walked into the cutest little ice cream parlor. I felt like I walked back in time. Honestly, I have been to this town many time, but it's usually for a craft fair, so I have never really been into the little stores. I took some quick photos of the store. They are not the greatest, because of the size of the store, and the amount of people that was in there. I still thought they captured the charm of the old ice cream parlor. I definitely plan to go back to enjoy what the little town has to offer.

I had no idea that there were that many different kinds of Moon Pies. I guess that's what you can expect from a town that hosts a Moon Pie festival every year.

I loved this sign. It was posted on the door of the cafe. I'm sure you would only see this in the South.