Naughty Notions Clutch...just in the nick of time

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A few weeks ago I stumbled across the Naughty Notions Challenge and immediately signed up (because it's not like I had a million other things that I needed to get done first...and is it really necessary for me to get 6 hours of sleep a night?  I mean, how ridiculous am I? *wink*wink*).  But, I love a challenge and just can't resist.  

I spent the first few days contemplating my design.  The voices in my head debated over several different ideas...zippers and buttons and bias tape, oh my!  Then it hit me....eyelets!  Lots and lots of eyelets!  I decided I would use them to create an outline of something.  But what? After hours and hours and hours and hours of research on Pinterest, I decided there was no better inspiration for an accessory than Audrey Hepburn.

Sadly, it turns out that even though I have a high school diploma and a college degree, I am not even close to being qualified to operate the eyelet gun.  I apparently lack that skill and need to hire an eyelet installation tutor. So ashamed!

But, I picked myself up, dusted myself off and started all over again!  And here it is...

 My notions are tulle, ribbon, a button and elastic rope.  With a satin base, I attached rows of tulle ruffles focused from the center out.

Then I covered the bare center seam with a satin hounds tooth ribbon and attached a black and white cameo button from my collection.  A small loop of elastic rope was attached on the reverse side to allow for a closure.

I really wanted to have a little pop of color, so I decided to add it to the inside.  I had this great remnant of satin with blue circles that I used as the lining.

I love how it turned out!  I can't wait to carry it!  

And now I am ready for the next challenge!

Don't forget to vote!!

  

Old Shirts = New Scarf

A while back I decided I wanted to do a few recycled projects with old t-shirts.  I asked everyone I know to clean out their dressers and donate a few t-shirts to my cause.  I couldn't believe how they all came through for me...

Three quarters of this pile is from my brothers and their families.  The other quarter is from the 98 cent sale at the DAV Thrift store.

I already had several projects in mind. Revamp a few t-shirts into a new look, a scarf, an ipod case, a laptop sleeve, a few green bags, a scarf, a skirt, maybe a few pair of pajama shorts, etc.

I may not get through all of those projects, but I will definitely get several of them made.  So, let's start with the scarf...

I decided to get a little scrappy with this project.  I picked 25 t-shirts that had fun or colorful prints on them and cut them up into 9" x 4" rectangles.  I made sure not to put two t-shirts of the same color next to each other, but other than I just start picking up pieces and stitching them together to create the front of the scarf. Then I took a piece of solid navy jersey fabric that I had in my stash and cut it to the same size as my scarf front.

To add a little feminine flair to the scarf, I stitched a ruffle on each end before stitching the front and back together.

The coolest thing about this scarf was that when I wore it around my family, everyone could look at the scarf and see what used to be there t-shirt...and everyone had a little piece in there.  

Plus, it keeps me a lot warmer than I expected.  Perfect for cool days.

Upgrade your shades

As I was surfing the blogosphere, I came across this great tutorial on  I Spy DIY on adding a little bling to your sunglasses.  And who doesn't love sunglasses?  I do, but I definitely prefer the $5 sunglasses to the $75 ones.  So, this is a great way to have the best of both worlds...cheap and glamorous.

The tutorial I was following was for cat eye sunglasses, but I couldn't find the right pair with the cat eye design...however, I found these great sunglasses and they were just the right price.

I gathered my materials, curled up in front of the TV and glamorized my new shades.

20 minutes later and viola...they are no longer boring $5 sunglasses.

I added a clear coat of nail polish.  Mostly because it felt like that was the natural next step.

Check out the tutorial on I Spy DIY here.