DIY Costume - Princess Dress

Okay so dress-up week would be a joke without at least one princess dress!  Addy is obsessed with Princesses and girly stuff (along with 90% of her fellow three-year-old girls), so this dress is a must have.  This one is already a full-on costume, for Halloween, just add tomorrow's crown and you're good to go!

And a note, this one is a real-live sewing project (not hard at all, but it is sewing!) so if you hate sewing, see ya tomorrow. ;)

There are so many ways to customize this dress, the easiest of which would be choosing amazing colors and trims.  But feel free to lengthen the sleeves, make a short ballerina-style skirt, or add extra ruffles.  Note that I used a serger in this how-to but you definitely can use a regular machine.

Princess Dress How-to

What you'll need:

• Main fabric for your dress (I used silver/blue) - 1 1/2 yds+ depending on the size of your child. 
• An overlay fabric for the skirt, tulle or lace (I used a cream netting) - 1 yd+ depending on the size of your child
• A contrasting fabric for the bodice detail (I used bluish floral) - 1/8 yd (a scrap!)
• Bodice pattern downloaded from here: http://www.burdastyle.com/patterns/child-summer-frock
• A short length of velcro
• 1/4" elastic
• Various trim/buttons
• Fabric glue (I used Fabri-tac)
• Scissors
• Sewing machine/supplies

Child's Measurements:

• Waist/hips (whichever is largest)
• Arm/bicep measurement
• Skirt length

Quick and Easy Halloween Wreath

Hello my dears! I know I've been terrible at blogging but I have a bunch of fun projects lined up for you guys the next couple of weeks for fall, so forgive me! I've been falling behind with blogging a bit because I got a job! Hurray! It's just a part-time seamstress position but it is perfect for me and I'm so happy.  Thanks for all those who gave me job leads and suggestions, it helped a bunch. :)

Today I have a super simple project--an easy Halloween wreath! I love making wreaths but who has time for all of those intricate things you see on pinterest? Also I'm not too into super cutesy or overly scary Halloween decor, so I think this wreath lands somewhere in the middle.  Cute but modern and classy and will look adorable with any type of decor.

I made this wreath last year and I'm still in love with it.  However, since I made it last year I don't have awesome step-by-step photos for you all, but thankfully for us it is super super easy and you don't really need how-to photos.  You could make a cute version of this wreath with different colors--orange ribbon or a black, orange, or purple base fabric. Also, this wreath can be used as a base for tons of different Halloween designs: hang a pumpkin cut out in the middle of the wreath, add a little holiday banner or black cat--anything! Have fun with it!

Easy Halloween Wreath

What you'll need:

• A styrofoam wreath form
• A long strip of fabric (I've used white) or thick ribbon
• Thin ribbon for wrapping (I've used black)
• Ribbon for hanging the wreath (I've used black and rust orange)
• Hot glue gun
• Scissors

1. Use hot glue to secure the end of your base fabric to the back of the wreath and begin wrapping it until it covers the entire wreath.  A couple of things I did:  Folded the fabric in half so that there weren't any raw fabric edges showing, wrapped at a strong diagonal so I didn't have to use so much fabric to cover, used hot glue to periodically secure the fabric.  When you've covered the whole wreath, glue the other end to the back of the wreath. Don't worry about making this layer look too perfect, you'll hardly see it after you add the other color.
2. Get out your ribbon for the top layer. Use hot glue to secure the end of the ribbon to the back of the wreath. Wrap the ribbon around the wreath and periodically use dots of hot glue to secure the ribbon on the back of the wreath.  When you've covered the whole wreath, hot glue the end of the ribbon to the back of the wreath.
3. If you'd like, add about a yard of two different ribbons to hang your wreath.  Adorable!

Okay and this next bit totally isn't a how-to project because, um, just find sticks and spray paint them black... but I just wanted to put forth this idea for lazy decorators like me.  I love how creepy this vase of sticks ended up looking and it took like 10 minutes to make.  Love easy projects with a big payoff!

So easy! Just make sure to let the sticks dry out before you paint them.  This is my table centerpiece right now along with some cute mini pumpkins I bought from the grocery store.  Hurray for easy decorations!

And announcement: To keep the holiday spirit going, I have a mini series coming up next week of DIY Halloween costumes (or dress ups) for kiddos! I'm excited to show you all so come visit next week to get inspired!

Simple Fabric Button Earrings

Confession: I am a fabric hoarder. I love sewing and when I see fabric I like, I have to have it.  I've gotten a lot better (especially since I'm running out of space in my sewing room, yikes!) but I have so many scraps of cute fabric that I swear I'm going to do something with and I never do.  This project is the one of the BEST fabric stash busters, because you hardly need any fabric at all (great to use up the tiny, bitsy scraps that I have no business keeping but can't bear to throw out) and you get to showcase your cute fabric finds on your ears while you're out and about. ;)

These are the most fun, easy, quick little earrings that you can possibly make!  They are made just using cover buttons and your fabric scraps, and honestly take only 5 minutes. These would make perfect little birthday gifts for friends, and how fun would it be to make these in matching fabrics for every outfit!? Cover buttons come in lots of different sizes, so make sure to pick ones that would be good for earrings.

Fabric Button Earrings How-to

Supplies

• Fabric scraps
• Cover buttons
• Earring backs
• Super glue (I used E6000)
• Pliers
• Scissors

1. Use the pattern on the box of buttons to cut out two circles of your fabric.
2. Using pliers, pull out the button shank and discard it.  (The shank is the squiggly piece of wire you can see in the second photo above)
3. Place the circle of fabric on the front of the button, and begin gathering it in toward the center of the button back--catching it on the teeth-like hooks around the edge.
4. Continue gathering until all edges of the fabric are caught on the hooks.  Double check the front side of the button to make sure there aren't any folds or puckers as you go.
5. Snap the back of the button on, which will secure the fabric in place.
6. Use super glue to attach an earring back to the middle back of the button.  Let dry.

These earrings are so fun and so quick, I want to make them to match every outfit!

Happy Tuesday everyone!

Homemade Jewelry Cleaner

Hi there friends! Is everyone having a good Wednesday? All of my American friends out there are halfway through the week to a 3 day weekend with Labor Day coming up.  I'm so excited! I feel like I need to plan a party or something to celebrate the last days of summer--I can't believe it's already almost fall!

I wanted to let everyone know that if you've been wanting a polka dot printed pillow, now's the time to get them while they are only $18.99 on A Painted Nest deal site!

And in other awesome news, Fifth and Mae US state necklaces are only $9.99 on Brickyard Buffalo for the next couple of days! I am obsessed with mine.

I've got something a little different for you guys today: Easy Homemade Jewelry Cleaner! I love love love this stuff because it's super cheap, uses ingredients that everyone already has, takes only 10 minutes, and it works wonders! Just check out how sparkly some of my jewelry came out below! (Don't judge me on how nasty the before photo is. ;))

This is an iphone photo I took when I used the solution a couple of months back.  Look how sparkly the diamond was after I used the cleaner! You'll be so surprised at how dirty your jewelry was and you didn't even realize it!

Homemade Jewelry Cleaner

Recipe originally from Food.com

Important Note: The source says this solution is good for "gold-filled, brass, german (nickel) silver, and sterling silver". Please check out the reviews here to read about how it worked for different materials. Be aware that it will remove any patina (blackened areas) on a piece--only use this for jewelry you want to be super shiny!

Ingredients

• 1 piece aluminum foil
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 1 tablespoon baking soda
• 1 tablespoon dish soap or dish detergent
• 1 cup hot water

 

1. Cover the bottom of a small bowl with the aluminum foil.
2. Put the salt, baking soda, and dish soap/detergent into the bowl.
3. Add hot water (I just use the hottest water that comes out of my tap).  Mix with a fork so that everything is incorporated.  You will probably still have grains of salt at the bottom, this is fine.
4. Add your piece of jewelry.  Let sit for 5 to 10 minutes in the solution.
5. Pull out your piece of jewelry and rinse in clean water.  At this point, I also use an old toothbrush to clean out any crevices on my piece. 
6. Dry off and polish your jewelry with a soft cloth.  So clean and sparkly!

So I didn't get the best photos of my ring before/after, but hopefully you can see a bit of a difference.  When you do your own jewelry in person, you'll be amazed!

My other jewelry had an amazing transformation! It was all tarnished and dirty since I haven't worn most of it in a while.  Look how incredible:

And that's that! The solution is not reusable, so make a new batch each time you want to use it.

Happy cleaning!

Confetti Party Tablecloth

I'm running around like crazy today, I feel like I have so much to do and no time at all to do it in! So I just have a quick project for you guys today, it was so fun to make (okay, I'm a little kid, think I like playing with paint wayyy too much) and very easy!  I want someone to have a birthday now so I can whip out this fun confetti print tablecloth!

I love the confetti on this tablecloth--it looks kind of like sprinkles on a cupcake (imagine how cute this could be for a table with party cupcakes on it!).  You can even make it more grown-up by using all gold paint or even just black to make a fun monochromatic design.

Dyed Pillowcase Shirt

Happy Friday everybody! Hurray for the weekend! I'm still getting used to juggling everything, so sorry that it's been so long since I've updated, but I have some great projects coming up for you guys!

First just wanted to let you know, BIG summer sale at Nonpareil Home -- most of the pillow covers are marked all the way down to $19 to make way for new inventory! Head on over and grab them before they're gone!

Today I have a pillowcase shirt DIY for you guys!

 So my mom is moving out of her house and I've been helping her pack and get rid of things.  She is a craft author and artist so she has a lot of supplies and materials with the attitude of "I'll use it in a project someday!"  Okay, we have very different ideas about what should be saved, versus what should be thrown in a fire and never looked at again. I had been putting almost everything in the "Throw Away" pile and shoving things into trash bags when she wasn't looking.  But when I came upon these amazing 1970's pillowcases, my mom immediately held out the trash bag and I had to be the one saying, "But I'll use it in a project someday!"

Okay, I probably just have some weird childhood nostalgia with these things because, they really are just old 70's pillowcases, but I had to keep them and make something with them!

This shirt was too easy to make and turned out so cute! Dig those old pillowcases out of your closet or maybe even hit up the thrift store to make one of these cute shirts for yourself! I ended up dyeing mine so it didn't look too pillowcase-y, but feel free to skip that part if you already have a color you love.

Paper Flower Wreath

I am obsessed with this project! I love love flowers and my poor little bare door needed a colorful wreath for the summer.  Can you believe how real and beautiful these paper flowers look? And, bonus, they are easy easy easy to make.  Like I kind of felt like a little kid making them, they were so fun.

This project is all about color! One of my favorite sites is design-seeds.com and it's a great resource for color palettes when you're making anything.  This was the color palette inspiration I used for my wreath. There are millions of gorgeous combinations to help you get inspired in making your wreath.

DIY Plate Wall

Okay so confession: the walls in my house are bare.  I've lived in my house for over a year now and I have maybe like 2 pictures on the wall.  It is pretty embarrassing, especially considering that I have a shop based in home decor items.  One thing I did put up when I moved in, though, is this awesome cute plate wall in my kitchen.  I wanted something that would work well for the large wall space that I had in my kitchen but would also be subtle and modern.  One thrift shop trip later and voila! A fun plate wall that brightens up my kitchen.

This is the perfect project for the kitchen, or really anywhere else in the house.  It is so versatile because you can get any color combination of plates and arrange them in any crazy arrangement you want to!  I am sharing this tutorial because I learn a lot of DIY things the hard way, and for this project I tried like three different methods to hang these plates and get them straight (and I have the patched up holes in my wall to prove it!) So here is my method, I hope it works for you too!