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blue and yellow custom sweater bag

It’s been awhile since I’ve made a sweater bag and I had forgotten how much fun it is to work with felted wool. I especially love how you can whip it into shape with a hot iron and a little steam.

thrifted felted custom sweater bag

My friend Cathy LOVES tote bags. She frequently brings a thrifted sweater to knitting group and asks me to make the largest bag possible. This sweater felted up so well that I was worried it wouldn’t be big enough for her. I added denim at the bottom to give her some more room.

thrifted felted custom sweater bag

Cathy is on the Board of Directors for our local Sewing for Babies. She is constantly knitting and sewing the cutest baby items. That’s why she likes having lots of big, roomy totes. She also asked me to make a box bag for some of her smaller projects. Don’t you just love this fabric?

measuring tape fabric box bag

project notes: Thrifted sweater was 100% lambswool from the Gap. Their lambswool sweaters always felt nicely. Lining and box bag fabric provided by Cathy. Denim from a pair of thrifted jeans in my stash. Garage sale interfacing and zipper for the box bag.

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quick and easy birthday shirt

third birthday shirt

My daughter’s birthday was last week and I wanted her to have a special shirt. Turning three is a big deal! I used one of her summer t-shirts, some Heat n Bond, and some fabric scraps from my stash.

stash: Appliques are great way to use up your fabric scraps! You can usually find Heat n Bond at garage sales, but it’s so inexpensive that you should go ahead and buy some with your 40% off coupon. One package lasts a long time!

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pretty, plastic granny squares

I try hard to limit our impact on the earth. When I’m at the grocery store, I look for items with recyclable packaging. Sometimes, it isn’t always possible, though. For example, we eat a lot of frozen peas, I don’t always have time to make our bread, and I don’t have any time at all to make tortillas!

I know I need to cut myself a break now and then, but this week we were overwhelmed with plastic. Last week was my daughter’s birthday and there were bags filled with air, bags to hold toy parts, and for some reason, a lot of food bags. Every time I went to put one in the trash I had this question in my head: How long will this be sitting in a landfill?

Yes, I worry about our landfills. I’m concerned about what seeps into the ground and finds its way into our drinking water. I wonder how many big piles (or holes, I guess) of trash will exist when my daughter is my age. I know this worry is kind of crazy, especially for someone who tries hard to minimize my impact on the planet, but I know I can always do better.

plastic crochet granny square

Yesterday I grabbed a bunch of clear plastic packaging bags and made some granny squares. I’m thinking of turning them into a small zipper pouch. It was hard to capture with the camera, but they are very sparkly.

plastic crochet granny square

They just made a dent in my bags for the week. I’d like to fuse my extra bags and make “fabric” for sewing totes, but I’m concerned about the fumes. I am very sensitive to smells and I’m worried about getting a headache that might last all weekend. Maybe if I did it outside on the deck? Does anyone have any experience with this?

recycle: I’m always looking for ways to recycle our non-recyclables, but in the end, I think the best thing to do is limit what we bring into our homes. It’s hard, especially in our convenience-packed culture, but it’s something I think is really important.

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chromium star blanket finished!

chromium star baby blanket

Not only is it finished, but it’s blocked, too! I really love this project and Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece has got to be one of my favorite yarns. I will definitely be making more of these.

project notes: I used exactly one skein of white (I had only inches left over) and two skeins of red. I didn’t measure, but it’s lap-blanket size. It would be a nice size for a newborn, too.

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easy backpack with bias tape straps

My daughter starts preschool next week and she needed a backpack. I asked her if she’d like me to make one for her and she said YES!

I let her choose fabric from my stash and helped her with coordinating the colors. I really like how it turned out and she loves it. My only problem is getting her to wear it. Right now, she just wants to carry it by the straps.

martha stewart easy beach bag

I used Martha’s Easy Beach Bag pattern with a few modifications:
• inside is canvas instead of nylon
• inside has two pockets
• used fabric instead of cord for the straps
• serged the raw edges inside

drawstring back pack with lining

Drawstring Strap How-to:
Feed strips of denim through a 1-inch bias tape maker, fold the tape in half and stitch it together. Once threaded through the loops, sew the ends together because they’ll be too thick to knot.

drawstring back pack with lining

stash: This is one of those occasions that I love having a stash of fabric. It’s so easy to dive right into a project when the motivation strikes! Plus, using a thrifty stash is so affordable. I’m guessing this cost less than $2 to make. Sweet!

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lincoln safari: peterson park

It’s been awhile since we’ve done any of the Lincoln Safari. Bella is obsessed really likes Mickey’s Clubhouse, and there is a lot of detective work on that show. Her favorite is The Case of the Missing Muffins. She’s loves looking for clues, so I thought it would be fun to start up again with the safari.

This park’s clue was southwest of the pond, under the tree that has a branch that almost touches the ground. She was so excited when we saw that branch! I have a feeling we’ll be doing these more often in the coming months.

We spent the rest of the morning at the playground. I’m paying for it this evening, though. I think all around the pond was ragweed. Yikes!

swinging at the park

tunnel at the park

seesaw at the park

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new on julie-k: how to refashion a dress into a skirt in five easy steps

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thrifted placemat dilemna

crochet placemats

I bought these crocheted placemats at daycare garage sale a few months ago and I still can’t decide what to do with them. At first I thought I’d make two tall totes, but after seeing them folded in half on my shelf, I also considered four zipper pouches. Then I thought maybe just one large tote. I can’t make up my mind. (Yes, I did consider actually using them as placemats, but they are kind of small.)

Any suggestions?

thrifting: Usually I pass up things I can easily make myself, but I really liked the pattern of these. Plus, they were only 25 cents. I wonder what the person who made these by hand would think of that price.

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how to refashion a dress into a skirt
in five easy steps

Even though I wrote this tutorial for a kid’s size dress, you can do this with adult sizes, too. This is the same way I turned a shirt into a skirt.

My daughter and I both love this dress. She only wore it a few times last season because it was too big. This year it is too small. It probably would have fit her best when it was 20 degrees outside.

easy kids skirt tutorial

The other day she insisted on wearing it. (Yes, it was still hanging in her closet even though it was too small.) I let her try it on so she would see that the buttons could no longer be buttoned. While she had it on, I realized that it was just the top that was too small. The bottom fit just fine. Hmmm… what if I turned it into a skirt?

easy kids skirt pattern

Step 1
Cut off the bottom of the dress. If your daughter is as tall as mine, use a seam ripper. It takes longer, but she needs every bit of length I can save.

Step 2
Measure your daughter’s waist. Add an inch and then cut a piece of elastic. I used 3/8″ wide elastic.

Step 3
Fold the top edge down 1/4″ and press. Then fold 5/8″ and press.

easy kids skirt tutorial

Step 4
Sew the waist leaving an opening for the elastic. Edge stitch the top to help the elastic stay in place.

Step 5
Thread the elastic through the waist casing, sew elastic ends together with a 1/2″ seam allowance, and close up the waist.

easy kids skirt pattern

My daughter was so excited to see her new skirt. She especially loves the bow. The original dress had a two inch hem. If she’s still in love with it next season, I guess I’ll be letting the hem down, too.

refashion: Sewing clothes is sometimes easier if you don’t start from scratch. Refashioning a favorite piece of clothing can make you happy, your budget happy and the earth happy.

Thanks to whipup.net for linking to my tutorial and welcome new readers! For more crafty updates, visit my Facebook page!

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how does our garden grow?

I took these pictures last week, but I’m so behind with my blogging! The tomato looks about the same. We’re just waiting for that bad boy to turn red.

tomato

Our cucumber is almost ready to harvest. We’ve also got a few more growing.

cucumbers

The cilantro in our big pot didn’t make it, but these little guys that Bella planted are going strong.

cilantro

I think the problem with our tomatoes and cucumbers is that they are on our screened-in porch. There are no bees/bugs/birds to pollinate them! I’m having good luck manually pollinating the cucumbers, but I’m not getting any blossoms on the tomato plant. Oh, well. We’ll at least get something from our efforts this year. We’ll know more for next year.

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new on julie-k: handmade baby shower gift, mixing bread bags and wool with crochet, and wardrobe refashion: crochet top to tote bag