Before & After// Lace Trim Sweater DIY

 The other day my friend Leanne was wearing a really cute crochet trimmed sweater from Urban Outfitters. I loved the look and figured I could make something similar. I used a sweater I had thrifted a while ago that I didn't mind updating. The sweater I used was already long enough to wear with leggings, but the lace adds a nice touch and brings the sweater to an overall more comfortable length. I thrifted a lace tablecloth a while back and still had some leftover so I used that for my trim.

I cut two identical rectangles from the lace, doubling over the fabric. So I ended up cutting two 24cm pieces in length and folding them in half to create two 12cm rectangles. The width will obviously vary based on the sweater that is used. I hemmed all of the raw edges to prevent fraying. Then, I turned my sweater inside out and sewed a lace panel to the front and back sides. Easy. This is a really simple and quick DIY and I like the versatility of the lace. This technique would look good on any sweater with a loose fitting hemline.

Cozy Vibes

OUTFIT DETAILS:: Cardigan, DIY // Shirt, She Inside // Socks, Target // Boots, Minnetonka

 I wore this yesterday.

It was gray and moody outside.

I read an entire book whilst snuggled under the covers in my bed

and cozied up with an enormous mug of tea.

It was perfection.

Stencil Sweatshirt DIY

 In a few weeks I'm going on a beach vacation with my family. I am dreaming of sunshine, ocean waves, and warm (sand beneath my toes, the beach gives a feeling, an earthy feeling. I believe in the faith that grows And the four right chords can make me cry.) Third Eye Blind just gets it. But I digress. Here is a relatively simple and customizable (my favorite!) DIY. You will need: posterboard (or some other thick paper), a plain sweatshirt, an exacto knife, fabric paint and brush, a ruler and a pencil. I thrifted my sweatshirt to save money and in case I hated how this project turned out, but I don't. This sweatshirt turned out awesome!

1. Figure out what you would like your stencil to say. Pinterest is a good place to look for ideas. I went with the dream life, vacation mentality, but you do you.
2. Decide how much of your sweatshirt surface area you want to paint, and cut a coordinating sized piece of poster board. I had scraps of poster board lying around so I had a few different pieces.
3. Use a pencil and ruler to plan out the spacing of your stencil. I had five lines of text so I made my letters  about 2.5 inches big with a quarter inch of space between each line.
4. Draw out your block letters on the posterboard. I free handed mine so they aren't perfect, but I like the slightly messy look.
5. Use the exacto knife to score the letters. You may need to go over them several times. Make sure you do this on a hard surface. The letters should be easy to pop out when you're done. Depending on how much text you have, this is a bit time consuming so you may want to do it in stages.
6. Place cardboard or folders in between the front and back of your sweatshirt to protect against any leakage.
7. Tape the corners of your stencil down on the sweatshirt then get painting! Just follow the instructions on your fabric paint for how to set it and wash it.

 I really love how this project turned out! I'll admit, I was skeptical as to how well my stencil would hold up, but it did a great job. I'd love to do another stenciled sweatshirt, but maybe of a ship this time, or a cute animal silhouette! If you decide to try this DIY share your photos!

Leather Pocket DIY

 

 You might remember this popular sweater-to-cardigan DIY I did several months ago. Well, I finally got around to making pockets for it. One of my goals this year was to learn to work with leather. My parents got me a bag of leather scraps for my birthday, a book about working with leather, and some basic tools. Turns out there are a bunch of different kinds of leather. Who knew? The scraps I have are garment weight so I was able to use my regular sewing machine, but you can't use pins when working with leather because they leave holes. To keep my leather pieces in place while I was sewing I used a bit of krazy glue because that's what I had on hand. Rubber cement seems to be recommended as an adhesive, but I think that's for heavier weight leathers.

1. Make a paper template that suits the size of your sweater. I settled on a 5"x4.5" rectangle.
2. Select and arrange your leather scraps making sure you provide enough surface area for your template.
3. Use a little glue to keep your leather pieces in place and sew the arrangement.
4. Place your paper template on top of your sewn together pieces and cut out your pocket. I found it was easiest to use my rotary cutter and mat for this process.
5. Determine where you want the pockets to be located on your sweater, then sew them in place.
6. Flaunt your leather pockets and DIY skills!

I Just Came to Say Hello

 Does anyone else find paint therapeutic? I think paint is the ultimate toy. There is something deeply satisfying about smearing color onto various surfaces. Maybe I just like it because it gives me an excuse to play and make a mess...
Anyway, I bought stencils the other day and decided to jazz up one of my plain Old Navy hoodies. It took me a long time to figure out what I wanted the message to be, but I decided that 'Say Hello' could lead to some interesting conversations. You will need a plain article of clothing, stencils, a fabric or paint brush, fabric paint, cardboard, and tape. Here's what I did:

 Place a piece of cardboard inside your garment to keep paint from seeping through the layers. Then determine the placement of your letters and tape them down.

 Paint inside your letters and allow the paint to dry before removing the stencils. Follow washing directions on your fabric paint for best results.

This is another one of those great projects that is completely customizable and super simple to do. It can say anything you can imagine and be in any color you wish. This song seemed fitting for this project. Enjoy!

Sweater to Cardigan DIY

I promise. This will be the last sweater DIY project for a while. Probably. I can't help it! Our weather has been all over the place. What is a girl to do when one week its 95 degrees and sunny and then 60 degrees and rainy the next? It is unbelievable the difference a few months makes. Had it been 60 degrees in, oh say, April or May, I would have been throwin on shorts and a sleeveless top, ready to go! But now that I'm in summer mode and I got used to 80+ temps, 60 feels wicked cold. Either way, this sweater will be your best friend year round. Good for both those cool summer nights when you need something cute to wear at a deck party or during the winter when you're a bundle of unrecognizable layers.

This project is super easy. You can do it in less than 20 minutes. No joke. I thrifted this sweater. I loved the cable knit on the front and I have an affection for over-sized sweaters. As I already have quite a collection of large sweaters I like to wear over leggings, I decided to turn this one into a cardigan. Slightly more versatile and it looks a lot nicer over an outfit than a hoody. I didn't want to disrupt the lovely cable knit so I decided to cut directly up the middle of the back of the sweater. The label had already been conveniently removed, but if you need to remove a label just carefully use a seam ripper. After I cut up the middle, I folded each side over about an inch and pinned it. Then I just sewed up each side with a zigzag stitch. That's it. Super easy and inexpensive project with really great results. If I can find the right fabric, I may even add pockets one day. I know, I know. You're probably praying for cold weather now, right?

Update: I did get around to adding pockets! Leather pockets at that. We fancy. Check it out here!

Simple Saturday// Lace Back Sweatshirt DIY

 I realize it is summer and as such it is quite hot and heavy outside. So why all the sweater posts?! Because I actually have time to do the projects now. And besides, nights cool down and a sweater may come in handy. This particular sweater DIY is more summer friendly anyway, as the entire back is replaced with a panel of lace. You can show off one of those cute bandeau bras! I had this sweatshirt lying around, having already removed the back panel for a different project and was wondering what I should do with it. Well, I found an inexpensive lace tablecloth at Amvets and thought it would look perfect with the sweater! Here's what I did:

It's a pretty easy project. Cut out the back, pin in the lace, sew and wear! The most difficult part is some of the maneuvering with the sewing machine simply because sweatshirts are a bit bulky, but this project can easily be completed in less than 2 hours. Happy sewing!

The Finer Things::Elbow Patches

I don't know what it is, but I just think there is something incredibly romantic about elbow patches. Maybe because they are reminiscent of a time when people would regularly get dressed up to go out....there is just something about them that makes me swoon! I found this sweater while thrifting in the Fall and bought it with the intention of giving it elbow patches, but I never had time to do so until now. I have a ton of scrap fabric, including the sleeves I cut off of another shirt that has white and yellow stripes and I liked the look of it with the plain gray of this sweater. This project is easy peezy. Here's what I did:

 Put your sweater on and mark where your elbows are with a piece of chalk or fabric marker

 Decide on the shape you want your elbow patches to be and make a paper pattern

 Use the paper pattern to cut out your patches

 Pin your patches in place, centered over where you marked

 Then hand stitch the patches in place! I used pink thread for an extra fun touch :)

And there you have some elbow patches for when you're feeling fine and fancy!