A Simple Happy Birthday!

I'm a little late on this but as I was driving through the Rocky Mountains on my way to Colorado, I remembered. August 12th marked the 1st birthday of H is for Handmade! I am so perplexed as to how it has already been a year? When I first started this blog, I really didn't know what direction to take it. I still don't. Mainly because I have no idea what I am doing. My blog is so very elementary. The design is basic. The format is standard. It is not adorned with a plethora of buttons and links. It has not caught the attention of, or benefited from any sponsors. And that is why I feel hopeful and maybe even a little validated that it has been somewhat of a success despite such simplicities! I must be doing something right? Right? I merely thought it would be a great way to show modest and inexpensive ways to be innovative in adding character and life to the home and wardrobe. It was more of a journal of my creations and a way for me to make Mom proud that I have inherited her love of crafting! I am thrilled and thankful that this blog has grown to several hundred followers through outlets like, Google Reader, Bloglines, Facebook, and yes, even Twitter. (I totally forgot that H is for Handmade was even on Twitter!)  I am also thankful to all the blog author's that have allowed me to be their guest and grace computer screens around the world! I am also grateful to those who have been a guest on this blog and have supported me and shared their talents with all of us. It has been a great year and I look forward to many more. I may now take my gracious bow! 

Belted Cardigan Make Over - Tutorial

O.K. Class, are you ready? This tutorial is so simple! Today we are making this belted cardigan. Who doesn't love cardigans? I, myself, have a nice collection that is ever growing. I was more than happy to add just one more to the assortment! 

Materials that you will need:

sewing machine

cardigan

fabric of your choice

I picked up my cardigan at the local thrift store. I chose this one because it was light weight and it did not taper at the bottom. It was really well made and oh so soft to touch.  The label says Evan-Picone. I have no idea who that designer is, but let's pretend it's some super fancy brand and I scored on a really great deal! I got it for $4.99!

The sweater also has really lovely detailing. A little matronly, but still lovely!

You will want to first lay your cardigan out and measure the full width of it. 

Use that measurement to cut your belt pocket to the needed length and width. I wanted my pocket to be 2" wide. The width of my sweater was 29" so I cut my belt fabric at 2.5"x 30" for seam allowance. Press the sides down with an iron, making sure you measure carefully as you go. 

Now you will want to sew a small hem on the ends of your belt. I folded my fabric over only once on the sides because I didn't want to added bulk. If you have a fabric that is lighter weight, you may want to fold your ends under twice. If not, I recommend using pinking shears to prevent it from fraying.

This is where you will determine where to put your belt. Are you wanting it just under the chest for an empire waist or do you want it to tie right in the middle? You decide!

Now you are ready to pin your belt pocket (I really don't know the proper term for it!) to your cardigan. Again, measure as you go making sure you have the same measurement from the bottom of the sweater to the bottom of your pocket. Be careful as to leaving the sweater in it's natural state and not to pull or tug on your sweater as you go.

Next, just sew your pocket to your cardigan, leaving the ends open. Weave a belt or sash through and you now have yourself a refashioned couture cardigan! 

You're done!

Here is what the back should look like.

My black satin sash is a nice addition, don't you think?

Nothing to "Mock" At

I am back from vacation (only for a short time!) and am ready to get this thing rolling again! I still have yet to unpack, do the laundry and feel settled. Coming back home after a long vacation kind of wipes me out! I may need a few days to get back into the crafty groove again and feeling motivated. Reading blogs is helping! While catching up on a few of my favorites, I stumbled upon these handmade moccasins. Dear husband, if you are reading this (yeah, right!) please add a pair of these to my wish list! 

The Darlingtonia Moccasin Co. is the brainchild of artist/photographer and leather genius extraordinaire, Katie. She says, "After growing tired of the handful of drab moccasin choices on the market I set off to create stylish, fun and functional moccasins I wanted to wear. With my accumulated crafting, sewing and design knowledge I created Darlingtonia Moccasin Company & the moccasins you see here."

All Darlingtonia moccasins are handmade, which means the leather is cut, punched, stitched and woven together by her...and her antique Singer sewing machine. Visit her Etsy shop and take a look around. Surely there will be something your heart desires! Or, you can drop by her blog and see just what is on her busy mind that day.

P.S. She has also started making leather belts complete with a dainty and delicate bow!

Mason Jar Possibilities

I recently returned from a youth camp where I was in charge of teaching several young women a new craft each day we were there. I wanted to choose something relatively easy and that the girls would want to hold onto even after camp was over. I decided to make these clever and ever so useful mason jar lanterns. The girls loved them and they used them each night as they found their way though the woods. They would also use the light to read by or write in their journals at night. I let them wrap the wire how they pleased and told them there was no wrong way to do it. It was fun to see the different results when given their freedom! As long as the wire was secure and the opening was not covered, they were good to go! Inspiration was pulled from here.
P.S. These are also really cute when filled with a little water and some flowers!

Materials you will need:

-Empty Canning Jar

-20 gage wire

-wire cutters

-needle nose pliers

-sand

-tea light candle

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Here are some other great ideas of how to transform your old canning jars into a DIY project!

Full tutorial for antique soap dispenser found at Heather Bullard. The antique glass and zinc lid is so pretty!

I little dirt never hurt! Transform your jar into a terrarium with a tutorial by Craftzine.

 

Cool off this summer with these jars-turned-glasses! Photo and info found on Brides.com. 

Lori Marie is the definition of clever! Glitter Globe tutorial found at Pretty Little Things.

Turn your canning jar into a pie for one! Tutorial found at Little Birdie Secrets. My secret is that I would eat it all in one sitting!

Organize your office or art space! Reclaimed wood, a canning jar and metal fasteners from a home improvement store is all you need to make this handy wall caddy! 

This is a similar concept with another useful purpose. You can purchase this adorable rack from Etsy seller Old New Again.

Keep your supplies handy for your next sewing project! Tutorial by Martha Stewart.

 

Shed some light on the subject with this pendant light tutorial from Design Sponge.

Winners!!!

Congrats to Brits and Keilann for winning the giveaway!! And thanks to all of you who participated. I love reading all of your nice comments! And a huge thanks to Miss Amy for letting me be a guest on her blog this week. I hope that you all have a wonderful weekend.

-Meg

Two can win! July Giveaway - Family Trees by Naturally Meg

I'm so excited to be hosting a giveaway here on Amy's beautiful blog today!

My name is Meg. I'm a wife and a mom to a beautiful little boy. I love bitter, dark chocolate and anything with lemon or lime. I like wearing skirts, painting my toenails red, and listening to good music. I really love making things, especially with my hands. I love to sew, knit, and paint, and try to do something craft every day if I can. I love nature and just about everything in it. I find that my greatest creative inspiration comes from the beautiful things you find in nature. I especially love trees...

I run a little shop called Naturally Meg where I  make custom family trees. I love making these trees. Family is the most important thing in my life and I love that I can make something to represent this wonderful gift of family to others. Each tree is handmade by me, and personalized with the initials or names of your choice.

Today TWO lucky winners will receive a personalized family tree of their choice with free shipping. Take a look, there are many different trees to choose from.

Shop: naturallymeg.etsy.com

Blog: naturallymeg.blogspot.com

Rules of the Contest:

1. Leave a comment

2. You must have an active blog

3. You must be a US resident

4. Extra entries for becoming a follower of the blog

5. Make sure that you have an e-mail address listed on your blog or in your comment so that I can contact you if you win.

***This giveaway is now closed***

Guest Post: Anthropologie Hidden Hummingbird Tank DIY

I am obsessed with chapstick, and am constantly losing my latest stick. I own 27 cardigans, and the collection shows no signs of slowing. My husband and I love visiting national parks, and want to see them all someday. I am usually overdressed. I think shoes might be the most important part of your outfit. I love moody music and YA fantasy books. The 4th of July is definitely my favorite holiday, and believe strongly that fireworks should never be taken for granted. My childhood (and current) dream is to restore a historic home. I like to think I am witty, and I think I am much more funny in person than I am in writing.

you can find my bargain style finds here | überchicforcheap.blogspot.com

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I started coveting this Anthropologie Hidden Hummingbird Tank months ago. I love the floral neckline so much it hurts.


{Hidden Hummingbird Tank - $78}

As soon as I saw that price tag I started plotting ways to make one of my own. Then I remembered this ridiculously awesome fabric that has been in my mother's fabric stash since about 1991.


It's a single side floral printed fleece. My mom said she bought it to make my little first grade self a sweat suit. So awesome.

I cut the flowers and leaves out to use in my design. I also cut leave shapes out of the solid blue portion of the fabric.


I laid the pieces out to decide what order I wanted them in. Then I pinned the shapes onto the shirt so I could begin sewing.


I used this button + carpet (heavy gauge) thread I had hanging around to hand sew the pieces onto the neckline. (I have no idea where this came from or why one would use thread on carpet. But it was in my Grandma's thread collection that I was lucky enough to inherit, along with my adjustable dressform. I owe almost all of my sewing equipment and fabric stash to the women who came before me. end tangent.)

I used a crew cut tee from wet seal that I got on clearance, so I cut out the neckline in a scoop. If I were doing it again, I would snag a scoop or v-neck tee to begin with. Here are some good options:



{Casual Scoop Neck - $2.50 | Basic V Neck - $3.50 | Basic Mid Scoop - $2.50}

I added stitching around the edges while sewing the pieces on. Then, I added beading to the flowers.


Here's the finished product:


{photos courtesy of Jackie Norris}

I am sort of in love with it. It took me a long time to do, but I couldn't be happier.

What do you think? Anything you are craving to make this week? Leave a comment!

{Thanks for having me, Amy!}

Happy Things

Today is the beginning of the rat race - the start of my very busy month! Since I will be out of town all week, I have posted a few videos as a fond and temporary farewell! They made me smile and now I would like to pass the joy along to you. I love innovation and people who think out of the box and break the norm!

Speaking of innovation, I will be having a very cool guest blogger later this week to help me out while I'm away! I'm really excited to have her featured on H is for Handmade so please check back to see what pretties she will be featuring and show her some love! 

Have a great week!

Puppet Theatre Tutorial

I checked out Hancock Fabric's big sale the other day. Very dangerous! Everything is marked so low that it was hard to control myself! There are a lot of really great fabrics on clearance right now! If you want to check it out, I was told that the sale will be going on until July 7th. This fabric in particular caught my eye:

                                 

(P.S. it feels more like a canvas instead of polyester)

So what does one do with 2 yards of red and white stripe, outdoor fabric? 

I use a portion of it to make a puppet theatre, of course!

I think this puppet theatre would be cute in any fabric, really. I am just a little enamored with stripes and anything circus themed right now so, naturally, I opted for that route. I thought about doing a more detailed tutorial, but I found that it was mainly just taking a few measurements and simply hemming all the sides. It was so simple that I just thought I would make a key for you to go off:

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These measurements are for a standard 32" doorway. If your doorway measures differently, you will need to adjust the width of the fabric (see letter A) which will also result in a different length of your peak (see letter c).

(sorry, I have not yet invested in photoshop, so this is blog drawing is very elementary!)

A = This measurement is your doorway's width - remember to add an inch for a seam allowance

B = 46"

C = Find the center of your fabric and measure up from where your window is - or will be, then fold sides in all the way down to almost the top of the window to make a peak. See photo below.

D = 20" 

E = 12" 

F = 20" - This too may vary with the doors width

                    

A total of 3 tension curtain rods will be used to hold your theatre in the doorway. After you have cut out your fabric and hemmed all the sides, including your window, you will need to add 2 pole pockets on the back. 1 right above the window and the other right below the window.
(I purchased my rods at Walmart for $2.50 ea.)

You will also need to attach a ring large enough for your 3rd tension rod to fit through, on the top of the peak to hang your puppet theater.

Additional details I added:

A pocket to hold a flag which I made from felt and a chopstick

A felt scallop banner to the bottom and top of the window to hide stitching for pole pockets

Thanks for stopping in! If you decide to make one, I would love to see pics of your project! Have fun!