Maternity Shirt Renovation Episode 2...

Continuing in the thrifty renovation theme, I cut up some more Maternity shirts and made em all nice and sassy.

First up, you need to meet Mrs. Blah Black Maternity Shirt, sister to Mrs. Blah Yellow Maternity Shirt.

What can I say, I find a style that works and I go with it...should I go ahead and admit that not only did I buy black and yellow, but I also have it in pink and sky blue as well? Hmmm. Yeah, that's FOUR of the same shirts. They looked good, and they were ON SALE!

Internets, meet Mrs. Blah Black Maternity Shirt:



See? BLAH.

Notice the pins running up the left side? That's right, I sliced and diced and un-maternicized it.

However, it was still BORING, BLAH and PLAIN.

I dug around in my fabric stash (one or seven tote bins full) and pulled out two neglected leftover knit sleeve pieces. They are a dark gray with white polka dots on them. PERFECT! Fall is upon us, and gray is still in!

Slice off the edges:



and cut even width lengths (eyeball it, just say no to measuring with this project) and you have:



I got five per sleeve. I tried to quickly baste and ruffle them with my fussy, haven't had a tune-up in five years, sewing machine...which not surprisingly balked at the project.

What to do, what to do.

Craft bugs are a'biting and no sewing machine! NOT ACCEPTABLE.

Send sweet hubby over to borrow MIL's sewing machine (thanks Mom!) and get right back at it.

Quickly basted and ruffled those repurposed sleeves and sewed them onto Mrs. Blah Black Maternity Shirt, which transformed her to Miss Sassy Black Ruffly Shirt, sister to Miss Sassy Yellow Bunchy tank:



Ah, Miss Sassy Black Ruffly Shirt, I believe you and I are going to be long-time BFF's...

A

A Flock of Frames...

I have some very blah walls. They are painted a dark contractor yellow-beige and are quite boring. While searching for something wallet-friendly I found this beautiful wall mirror:



Drool.

But I can't justify the $599 price tag.

I've been digging the idea of clustering empty frames to achieve a simplistic yet eclectic feel:

Apartment Therapy

I think all black or all white create a stunning, pleasing result:


Country Living

So I traipsed down to the local thrift store and lo and behold, picked up about 4 decorative edged frames. PERFECTO! I also had a few lying around awaiting inspiration.

I turned Bubbalu's neglected swimming pool over, threw on a drop cloth and started spray painting.

Frames before:



Can I just say? Get that handy dandy snap and spray paint can handle thingy...I have a massive case of spray can-itis.

I picked up one more large vintage frame at a garage sale last Saturday for $1.50...my kind of price!

Spray spray spray...

Once dry, set out the frames on the floor, rearranging until you feel the look is cohesive and makes you feel all happy.

Enlist hubby's help to hang on wall, as hubby may or may not be the king of centering, leveling and measuring.

Looky there, now I've got something on the wall other than paint!

After:



Really now, this project cost me about $10.00.



Thrifted frames - $6 ish

Black spray paint- $3.99

Lance was doubtful that this would look good. Once I hung them up (and told him I spent only $10) he conceeded that it wasn't a complete disaster.




Off to spray paint more treasures...

A

Check out more DIY transformations at the Thrifty Decor Chick Before & After Party:

Mrs. Goodwill Drab to Miss Sassy N. Fab Chair Revamp...

I've been feeling super inspired by all the thrifty crafty DIY and fabulous revamp blogs I've been reading. So I gathered up my spending cash (less than $20.00 - whoopadeedoo....can you buy ANYTHING anymore for less than twenty bucks?), pawned the kids off on my dear hubby, jumped in the car and headed to our local Goodwill store for some thrifting therapy.

I eagerly browsed around looking for something horrible and decrepit with a splash of potential.

There was one fabulous chair that I passed up because it was too expensive.

Y'all - Here I am, IN A GOODWILL STORE, turning my nose at a perfect revamp project because Mrs. Stinginess did not want to shell out $14.99! Ha! Told ya I was thrifty...or dutch, but whatever.

However, I'm glad I passed up the aforementioned overpriced chair because tucked in the back high up on a shelf I spotted this sad, forlorn and forgotten chair:

Goodness gracious, HELLO POTENTIAL!

I was muchly thrilled. And even better? The stingy dutch woman living inside of me (Hi, Mrs. Stinginess, I know you are in there) was pleased as punch to see a price tag of $3.99.

YOU BETCHA!

I picked this sucker up for less than a Starbucks Venti Pumpkin Spice Latte!



Can ya tell I was slightly ecstatic? I wheeled my chair-laden goodwill cart proudly, wondering if the other patrons were kicking themselves for passing up my treasure.

The seat fabric? Detestable. Fuzzy orange with shiny gold stripes:

Blech!

I unloaded that thing into my garage and took Bessie to it:

Yeah, I named my cowtastic screwdriver Bessie.

Yanked that seat off, threw the fabric DIRECTLY into the garbage, then sanded, primed and spray painted that chair to gorgeousness:

I added a bunch of batting layers to the squashed seat pad:

Stapled on some fantastic new fabric (that cost more than the chair), Bessie reattached the seat and voila!

Meet Mrs. Previously Goodwill Drab, now known as Miss Sassy N. FAB:

LOVE the lines of Lil Miss Sassy...properly distressed, of course.

I have a slight obsession with green. I actually gasped OUT LOUD in the fabric store when I saw this bit o green gloriousness.

Before and after shot, from DRAB to FAB! :

Check out more DIY projects over at : A Soft Place To Land, the Shabby Chic Cottage and Thrifty Decor Chick...

A

Ah, Dear Summer, Where Hast Thou Gone

Ah, dear summer, where hast thou gone?

The summer season is ending soon, is it so horrible to be joyfully anticipating crisp fall nights, hot apple cider, pumpkin pie spices and resplendent trees? The school buses went by today, solidifying the fact that yes, fall IS indeed arriving soon.

I am eager to break out the scarves, hats and gloves and spend more time being cozy inside. Bible Study is starting, sewing projects are needing completion and the summer blooms are slowly fading.

However, we still have a few short weeks left to eke out every last remaining glimmer of summer.

Enjoy the rest of your summer along with me, won't you?

A

Green Season Salad Plate Winner...

The winner of the Green Season Salad Plates is announced over on the Vintage Dutch Girl -giveaways Blog!

Thanks for playing everyone!

A

Just A Reminder!

*Contest is now closed and a winner has been chosen*

Just a reminder to click on over to the Vintage Dutch Girl -giveaways blog to enter to win a set of 4 pretty green salad plates!

Contest Ends August 31st! Only four more days to enter...

A

Ain't Nuthin Chic About Anti-Diarrhea Medication...

You always feel ultra cool when you make an emergency run to the all-night convenience store to pick up a 24 pack of anti-diarrhea capsules and a spray bottle of bleach bathroom cleaner.

Do you ever wonder what the checkers must think? Did they look at my behind when I was walking out the automatic doors thinking, "hmmm, that girl's got the trots"?

I always feel the need to casually bring up in conversation with the checker that no, it ISN'T me who is sick.

This time I didn't say anything...leading me to wonder if they were in fact wondering,"how bad can it be that she needs a 24 capsule supply AND spray bleach? Wonder what her bathroom looks like?" as they surreptitiously squirted a hefty dose of hand sanitizer.

Yeesh.

A

Naptastic...

I am NOT a napper. I NEVER nap. I can't POSSIBLY sleep during the day. It TOTALLY messes up my night time sleep. Napping is for WEAKLINGS.

Y'all.

I was naptastic on Sunday.

I added up all my napping hours. They added up to a normal night of sleep for me (7 hours. SEVEN HOURS!).

Granted, I was quite sick and feeling rather blah. However, I'm a bit proud of my new found napping ability. Whether this is the current seasons' fad or a lasting fashion is yet to be determined...

A

Piano Bench Revamp...

I was all energized and inspired yesterday so I picked up my handy dandy screwdriver (it has a cow print on it...it's pretty much cowtastic) and started taking apart the piano bench:



(Mom and Dad, you might want to look away now. I know this upholstery fabric was o-so-stylin' back in the day, but it had to go. What you'll see next might pain you.)

Next up, boring needle-nose pliers to start yanking out staples:



This got old QUICK. So much so, that I found a better method as opposed to yanking out each staple one by one.

I started cutting the fuzzy maroon upholstery fabric. It was actually kind of strange. Not to go and get all philosophical on you, but all three of us kids sat on this bench to learn to play piano. It almost felt like I was destroying a piece of my childhood when cutting it....OK, moment's over!



I found by cutting and then yanking the fabric I popped out most of the staples:



Then I traipsed up to my craft room to finish the project. I made sure to iron the fabric first and then centered the bench, foam pad side down, on top of it.



Start stapling! I love my staple gun. It's therapeutic. I made sure to pull the fabric tight and mitered the corners, like a good CNA should do.



Trimmed the excess fabric:



Then added a coordinating liner fabric, edges tucked in as nice as you please:



Then began the arduous task of reattaching the hardware...which I completed without the use of a drill or a male. Proud of me Dad? And yes, it DOES open and close, and yes it IS centered correctly.



Nevermind that I have one puncture wound and five blisters.

Here is my finished, revamped piano bench:



I TOTALLY would have painted the wood black, but I respect my Father's health way too much to do that to him. See, he made this bench by hand, and in his book painting Mahogany is akin to spray painting a diamond.

I am happy with the results, it makes me smile:



Hmmm, (peering around the house) what ELSE can I revamp?

A

Check out Kimba's blog for more DIY projects!

Revamp Is Necessary...

I really REALLY really need to revamp this:



...into something stylistically appropriate.

AKA: Make it cute.

Stay tuned for makeover.

And by 'stay tuned' I do NOT mean later today...or this week. Let's just throw it out there that it may not happen this month. If it happens this year I'll be quite satisfied.

And by posting this it serves not only as a a reminder but a promise. A promise to you that I will EVENTUALLY revamp it.

Ideas, suggestions, advice?

A

Mass Coverage And Focused Removal...

The other day I had to make an emergency last minute trip to Rite-Aid to buy more carpet cleaner.

I was NOT thrilled.

I ended up buying a deep stain remover as well as a heavy traffic entire room cleaner.

Uh huh. I was looking for mass coverage as well as focused removal.

Sounds delightful, no?

Followers of my blog will most definitely assume the culprit was the poo-on-the-floor 31.8 lb toddler, but no.

The offspring have joined forces against their mighty foe. Let's just say leaving a naked eight month old poo-factory alone for just a smidgen too long on the carpet to 'air out' isn't such a grand idea.

In my defense, I did have her on an absorbent pad and all...she just rolled off of it...cause she's smart like that.

Then she proceeded to roll around IN it and made quick work of spreading the 'wealth' to all corners of the nation. I'm pretty sure this was a joint collaboration between my two Poo Soldiers to see how frustrated they could make their Mama.

It worked rather well.

I'm gonna need a new battle plan...

A

Spunky Repurposed Ruffly Baby Top...and Tutorial!...

So, apparently I have some addictions.

1. I am addicted to naps...for my children. Mama is a better Mommy when the kids take naps.

2. I am addicted to sewing. I have experienced some major sewing binges over the course of my life. I am experiencing a sewing binge currently.

3. I am addicted to cutting up t shirts and repurposing them. Guess what? Jersey does not require finished seams. COULD. IT. GET. ANY. EASIER!?

Mash them all together and you get: Mama on a mad cutting up t shirt sewing during nap time spree.

First it was the maternity shirts. And don't even think I'm through with them! I have an entire pile in my bonus room awaiting their turn at my sewing machine.

Next up was the 'donation' pile of clothes. I may never donate another article of clothing in my life.

So, I'm just going to go ahead and warn my husband that his closet may soon be raided. Any t shirt that you haven't worn for a few months may be subject to my Fiskars, sewing machine and whim. Consider yourself warned.

During today's mad cutting up t shirt sewing during nap time spree I cut up an old shirt that someone had given me. It was old, didn't fit, and screaming to be sliced up. So I obliged.

Old blah shirt:



SLICE!



After an embarrassingly long time of hemming and hawing (tee hee, pun intended!), I cut out a simple front and back dress shape using the finished bottom shirt hem as the dress hem. I sliced long lengths to use as ruffles, one arm cuff to use as a headband, and some small pieces of the bottom hem to use as shoulder straps:



I sewed front to back and tacked on the straps. Next up I basted then scrunched up the ruffles:



Then started adding them wherever I felt like it. First up, the sleeves:



Don't be stingy with pinning, folks! They are necessary to achieve a nice seam with ruffles!



(p.s. it's MUCH easier to sew on ruffles BEFORE you finish sewing them to the back.)

(p.p.s. - yes, that IS coffee I was consuming in the afternoon. Don't judge me!)

Then I got so preoccupied sewing on ruffles that I forgot to take photos. So I made a quick little tutorial for you:


Here is the finished ruffly dress/shirt and headband:



Melikey RUFFLES. Melikey sewing ruffles.

Besides, Lil Chick was starting to feel left out of the yellow invasion and needed some spunky yellow wear:



See? She's already feeling decidedly spunky:



Off to chop up some more t shirts...

A

300th Post And A GIVEAWAY!!!

*contest is now closed and a winner has been chosen*

I've been watching my post count, and we are officially hitting 300 today! Which means I have wasted many MANY hours writing bloggity nonsense and stories of poo and craftiness.

In honor of my 300th post, we are doing a giveaway! To enter to win, head on over to the Vintage Dutch Girl Giveaway Blog and leave a comment to be entered to win!

This giveaway is from a lovely store that has fun home accessories and dining room furniture.

* You do NOT have to run a blog to enter. Just click in as anonymous and make sure you tack your first name and email on the bottom of your comment. Enter to win and join the fun!

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