Sew the Seeds

DIY: Shirt Makeover

2012-07-05T15:16:00.000-07:00

Do you, or any of your children, have any stains on the front and center of a shirt? Do you love the fit of the shirt, but can't wear it because it has an unsightly stain there for everybody to see? Or maybe I should ask how many shirts you have that fit this category. I know we have several in our household. We also have a few hand-me-down shirts that are in need of a makeover. Take this shirt, for example:

It is my 4 yr old daughter's size and has a good shape, but I really don't care for dogs and cats on clothing. So, instead of transforming one of my own stained shirts today (they will have to wait for yet again another day), I am going to transform the above shirt. The same idea will work on either a stained shirt or one you just want to reinvent. It will become this when it is finished:

To start, you need whatever shirt you will be transforming, a sewing machine, and one strip (approximately 1-1.5" by 90") of contrasting fabric, depending on how big you want the ruffle flower to be.

Step 1:
Take the long strip of fabric, and starting on one end, sew the entire length of the fabric using a long basting stitch.

Step 2:
Find and pull on the thread from the back of the strip you just sewed.

Continue pulling until the entire strip is ruffled, taking care not to pull the thread out the other side. Try to make the gathers pretty evenly spread without being too tight or too loose. When finished, it should look something like this:

Step 3:

Take the shirt, and find the center point for where your flower will be. Pin the edge of the fabric strip at this point.

Step 4:
Begin sewing the flower on from the center out. You may wish to remove the arm of your sewing machine to make it easier to maneuver the fabric in a circle. (Also, make sure the stitch length is back to normal. Finally, make sure you are only stitching through the front of the shirt and not the back... otherwise, nobody will be wearing the shirt.)You will need to stitch a few stitches, leave the needle in the fabric, and pull the fabric strip around so it keeps moving in a circle, then repeat.

Step 5:

Continue until you have finished the sewing on the strip, or until you have achieved the desired size of the ruffle flower. Since I am trying to cover up the image on this shirt, my flower has to be at least that big. As you can see from the following photo (I folded the outside edges so you can see that I need more), I ran out of the ruffle, and needed to make another ruffle strip in order to completely cover the image.

If you want a bigger flower than what you have, make another strip and start where you left off, overlapping the ruffle slightly where you ended before.

Step 6:

Optional. If you are trying to cover up an image and want to tack down the outer edges to make sure it is entirely covered, go ahead. If you are only covering up a stain and have already completely covered it, this is not needed.

Step 7:
If you want to add something to the middle of the flower to embellish it, go ahead. Just make sure it will be machine washable if that matters to you!

If you have any questions about this tutorial, let me know.

I would love to hear about your experiences if you try this out and would love to see a photo of the finished product.

Thanks!

DIY: Rustic Burlap Wreath Tutorial

2012-07-03T15:03:00.003-07:00

Since I already showed the picture of my burlap wreath (made out of scraps of burlap... I told you I was frugal!), I thought I would start the sewing DIY with showing you how to make one of your very own. Just because I used burlap doesn't mean you have to - if you would rather use another fabric, I'm sure it would work splendidly. I like the natural look of the burlap, and the scraps add to the rustic appeal with the extra-frayed edges.

Here is the finished product from today's wreath:

On a side note, before you begin this project, let me give you a boost of confidence... This morning, I thought I would get up, quickly help the kids finish up breakfast, and get right on making the wreath with pictures to post on my blog. It seemed like it would go quickly, and the finished post would be up by 11 before I headed off to play volleyball. However, reality set in when I realized we were all out of milk so cold cereal was eliminated as a breakfast option, and the only bread we had left was Rye, which 3 out of the 4 older kids won't touch. So it was a no-go on cinnamon toast, either. By the time I got a different breakfast made and on to making the wreath, my baby (who just turned one in June) spent most of the time on my lap, reaching for the hot glue gun every chance she got. My 8 year old and 4 year old were fighting over who got to take the next picture, and I was interrupted four times with the other two for hitting each other. Finally, my camera battery died and I needed to charge it before I could continue. My point in telling you all this is to let you know that it is okay to get interrupted by your kids... don't give up! You can always stop in the middle and come back to it when you get the chance. After all, I always hear older women say to enjoy these years because they go quickly. Sometimes it is hard to remember, but I am trying to enjoy the interruptions.

On to the directions!

You will need: -pipe insulator (found at Home Depot for a bit over $1)
              - tape
              - burlap, or other fabric -you'll probably need about 1/2 yard
              - twine
              - silk flowers/ leaves, whatever embellishments you want
              - scissors, glue gun

Depending on the size of wreath you want, you will cut the pipe insulator and then tape it together, as the picture above shows. I saw this idea on pinterest; it is great for saving money!

Next, cut 1-2 strips of the burlap in about 2" by the length of the yard of fabric (~60"?). It doesn't need to be exact, and you may need more or less depending on the size of your wreath. ( I used several scraps instead of the long strips since I had them already, so I just glued at the starts and ends of the pieces I used.)

Heat up the glue gun. Glue one end of the strip of burlap to the wreath, and start wrapping it fairly tightly around the wreath. Glue every little bit (it doesn't need to be everywhere, just every little bit to help hold down the burlap). Don't worry if some edges stick out a little bit - it will add to the rustic nature!

Continue until you have covered the wreath in burlap.

Next, take the twine (I bought it long ago at Home Depot, but I'm sure it could be found at any craft store, or Target/ Walmart, etc. for pretty cheap.) and tie one end around the wreath in a double knot.

Next, cut several small pieces, anywhere from ~ 1" by 8", (or simply scraps like I have). Take one and fold it back and forth on itself, then place it on the front of the wreath next to the twine you just tied.

Wrap the twine tightly over the piece you just put on, and continue placing additional pieces and then wrapping with twine about 1/2 to 3/4" apart.

Continue adding pieces and wrapping with twine until you have made it all the way around. Tie the twine on itself tightly, and leave the end piece long. You can use that piece to make a hanging as long as you want it. Here is a picture of the finished actual wreath portion:

Get the silk flowers that you would like to use, and cut them and arrange them on either the bottom right or left. Glue them into place with the glue gun.

Feel free to add any other embellishments that you would like. Voila! You have a new wreath that probably would cost about $5 including the materials. If you have a stash of crafting supplies in your home, you may not even need to buy anything!

Following is a picture of some other embellishments I added on another wreath.

Please let me know if any of the directions are confusing, or if you have any questions!

If you use this post and make your own wreath, I would love to hear about it (and see photos)! Feel free to modify any portion that suits your fancy to make it you, or keep it as I have done it.

Thanks, and happy wreath-making! Hopefully you can get through yours in one shot, unlike me. :)

Parenting: When a Child goes missing for a few minutes

2012-07-02T10:50:00.000-07:00

Have you ever been busily going about your daily tasks of cleaning up after your kids, aka being a stay-at-home mom? In my home, they are never-ending. Let me give you a scenario of breakfast in my house if you haven't ever had the privilege of such a feat. Luckily, my older boys are big enough that they can get out the bowls, spoons, cereal, and milk all by themselves, and they can even get them for their younger siblings. I am quite proud of this talent of theirs to always be able to get things out, whether it be food, toys, clothes, etc. I am mildly concerned, however, about their ability to put these things away when finished using them. To my more experienced readers of older children, is this a trend that corrects itself with age? If the answer is no, please don't tell me. I would rather remain blissfully optimistic at the moment that this cleaning up after oneself talent will emerge soon.

So this is the daily scene I find upon entering the kitchen in the morning (after having cleaned up the entire kitchen the night before after the kids were in bed): there are 6 boxes of cereal on the table, all open and one fallen down with cereal spilling out onto the table. There are two gallons of milk on the table: one is empty (yes, we go through milk like you wouldn't believe... and my oldest is only 8. What the food bill is going to be like for milk alone when they are all teenagers, I don't even want to think about right now...). The other gallon of milk is missing the lid, which is nowhere to be found. If I'm lucky, a bowl of milk and cereal has not been spilled all over the table, chair, child, and ground. Four bowls are strewn across the table, two spoons are still in the bowl, and the other two are on the ground under the table.

Although my children are no longer at the table, I can easily pinpoint which child sat where that particular morning based on the cleanliness or lack thereof of that spot. We'll begin with my oldest: his spot may be fairly clean, with the spoon still in the bowl. He may have a couple drops of milk off to the side of his bowl from pouring in the milk. There will probably be a few pieces of cereal on the ground and on his seat. Then my second: there will be cereal surrounding his bowl, spilling onto his seat and on the floor. His spoon will possibly be on the ground, and milk will definitely be dripping down from his bowl since he filled up his bowl too full of cereal, then poured in too much milk. On to the third child, her spot will be pretty clean. She may have left some cereal in her bowl in the past, but she is getting better. Today, it may be entirely eaten. And finally my newly- turned 3 yr old: his bowl will still be half full of uneaten and now soggy cereal. He will soon come in, whining to me that he is hungry. I will tell him he needs to eat the rest of his cereal, and he will start to cry and whine, saying he hates it and won't eat it. I'll tell him he won't get to eat anything else until he eats it, and he'll scream and whine some more until I take him to time out. After a few minutes, he will ask to come out, and this whole scenario of whining and crying after I tell him he still has to eat it will begin again. My baby didn't get out of this scotch free, either. She has managed to spread cereal found on the ground by her older siblings throughout the entire main level, after managing to eat a few pieces for part of her breakfast.

You may be wondering what this scenario has to do with the title of the post: when a child goes missing for a few minutes. Read on: I am about to tell you. So I was cleaning up one of these aforementioned daily messes a few days back. This particular day, my fourth child did not come whining in, saying that he was hungry. Two of my other children did, meaning that they were in with me, but that is not the point. After a few minutes, I began to realize how quiet it was elsewhere in the house. "Where is Cael?" I asked my older children. Nobody seemed to know. I called out to him, asking him where he was. No response. The cereal on the floor still needed to be picked up and the milk washed away, so I continued cleaning. A few minutes later, he still had not made his way back to the kitchen. "Cael! Where are you?" I called again. I heard a fairly quiet "Here. I'm right here, mom." coming from my bedroom, which is just a hallway away from the kitchen.

This is what I saw:

He seemed a little worried about what trouble he might be in. Yes, he got into my make-up, and somehow managed to spread it pretty evenly across his entire face. Luckily I had the presence of mind to take some pictures, although I wish I would have grabbed the video camera. As I was giving him a bath and I saw the pinkish-brown water washing away, so too did the hope that this could have been the $100,000 prize winner on America's Funniest Home Videos. Who knows - maybe he will become a famous make-up artist when he gets older. He reminds me of Nightcrawler from X-Men, but maybe the light and good version:

So, the moral of the story is: if you find yourself doing anything and are enjoying the quiet that your kids are affording you, beware! It may result in greater messes to clean up later. Or, remember to grab your video camera, and maybe you will be sporting that $100,000 grand prize from AFV.

2012-07-02T09:41:00.000-07:00

The time has come to jump into the world of blogging! For starters, let me introduce myself. My name is Jen, and I am a wife to a wonderful and supportive husband, and a lucky mother of five beautiful children aged 8 to 1 years old. We have three boys and two girls, and are definitely done if you ask my husband. Beyond staying at home raising my children, in my ample spare time (on a daily basis I have to think of things with which to fill my time... wink wink) I love to play sports, sew, cook, clean the house, even though my kids never make messes (and IF they do, they immediately clean up those messes without being asked), play the piano, and spend time with my family. Since my life is a combination of many things, I think I will format this blog to include some (luckily not all) of the adventures that I have undertaken.

My lovely fam:

First, an emphasis on sewing. Since I recently opened a children's clothing line on Etsy (found at http://www.etsy.com/shop/kickandgiggle), some children's clothing items will be included. It is so fun to make children's clothing, especially for girls, so I want to share some of my endeavors in this regard. However, in addition to the children's line, my own wardrobe also needs a transformation. One day a week, I would like to focus on some diy tips to help you transform your wardrobe along with me! After all, who has the money to go out and buy a whole new wardrobe? If you do, you could share some of that money with me and we could both bypass this section. On the flip side, then we would miss out on the feeling of satisfaction and accomplishment that comes from creating something beautiful and meaningful out of something ordinary that comes from such a task. I am also toying with the idea of starting some sewing classes out of my home, possibly for pre-teen girls, but need to figure out some more logistics on that. Lastly in the sewing department, who doesn't like some occasional change-ups with their home decor? More diy projects for the home will be explored. And since I haven't mentioned it already, you may as well know now: I am extremely frugal. My husband could recount numberless conversations we have had resulting in frustration for him over this matter... But, despite my efforts to change this, it remains. So rest assured, the projects included in this blog will not make a hole in your pocketbook!

Burlap wreath I made out of scraps:

Second, a day in the life of being a mother to five young children. I'm sure any of you out there with children of your own have had multiple experiences which may make you want to scream in frustration in the moment, but later become funny memories (as long as it doesn't happen again... I might add). Yes, I have had many of these occasions as well, even though my children never say "I hate you!" or that I am mean, and they always listen the first time without questioning why I am telling them that doing homework is important for their future :). My barely three year old has never thrown a tantrum or whined in his entire long life, and none of my children have ever had to spend a minute in time-out... All of that being said, I hope I can make you smile upon recounting some of our *now* (but not so much at the time) funny experiences. I'm sure many new ones will arise along the way, so I will be sure to keep you informed. This is just to prove to all the people who tell me I am always so calm and they can't imagine me ever getting upset that I am human after all.

His expression says it all:

Finally, I need to have a section to add whatever whim I may be on at the moment, whether cooking, or gardening, or sports, or exercise. I have found that I need great flexibility in being a mother since anything can come at me at any time, and I want that same flexibility, or room for error if you would rather I call it that..., in my blog! That way I can justify telling you (rather than on Facebook...he he ;)) about my trip to the grocery store and all the items I saw and which ones my kids whined for me to buy for them... oh wait! I told you earlier that my kids haven't ever whined... the truth has a way of manifesting itself. I think the opposite may be true: has there ever been a day when they haven't whined?

I would love any feedback or requests for posts on specific topics or projects! I am new to this, so please... help me figure out how to spread the word and gain readership! Thank you!