FREE appliques and patterns!

http://www.ottobredesign.com/en/print/index.html

Baby Shoes

http://www.sewing.org/html/fleece_chinese_slippers.html

http://abeautifulmess.typepad.com/my_weblog/2010/04/diy-cute-handmade-kids-shoes-.html

http://www.prudentbaby.com/2010/03/diy-leather-baby-shoes-with-free.html

http://www.youcanmakethis.com/info/featured-products/Crossover-Baby-Shoes-Sizes-0-16mths.htm

http://www.onestepahead.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=536487&cmSource=CrossSell&relatedProductId=536486

http://goosiegirls.wordpress.com/2008/07/23/baby-shoe-tutorial/

http://mollychicken.blogs.com/my_weblog/2006/12/baby_boots.html

http://babypatterns.atspace.com/tutorial1.html

http://www.marthastewart.com/portal/site/mslo/menuitem.0e0eb51a2e6b5ad593598e10d373a0a0/?vgnextoid=5fd9ce908332f010VgnVCM1000003d370a0aRCRD&rsc=related

Heat Press Vinyl

http://www.vanessachristenson.com/2010/05/tutorial-heat-press-vinyl-on-shirts.html

(we really need a vinyl cutting machine...)

Knit Yoke Skirt

http://www.youcanmakethis.com/info/featured-products/Knit-Yoke-Twirl-Skirt-6mths-12yrs.htm

Cardigan to Hat

http://thirtyhandmadedays.blogspot.com/2009/11/hi-everyone-i-am-so-honored-to-be-here.html

Easy Peasant Blouse/dress

You can make this longer into a dress, add elastic around the chest for an empire waist, make it flair out at the bottom and add ties under the arms...so many possibilities!


http://indietutes.blogspot.com/2007/07/peasant-blouse.html

Restyled Men's Shirts

http://thecreativecrate.blogspot.com/2009/04/from-mens-shirt-to-little-girls-dress.html

A more modest version of the jumper I found a while back.

Resizing a Shirt

A tutorial to make shirts bigger or smaller! Plus, it's cute!

Amazingly simple princess dress!!!

http://rowena.typepad.com/rostitchery/magistrate-dress.html

magistrate dress

(this post was originally published 12 september, 2007.)

this is one of the most popular costume silhouettes there is--the generic "princess/angel/medieval maiden/rennaissance damsel/magical wizard/monk/every-fairy-tale-princess-in-grimms'-anthology" gown. if it makes any difference, ella calls this a magistrate dress. this makes sense only if you are a fan of sagwa.

and you won't believe how quickly you can fake this dress. you need one piece of fabric, two cuts, and whatever trim you wish. choose a stretchy fabric so you don't have to have a zipper--i used panne velvet but you could use anything you like.

your fabric should be cut as follows:

width: distance from one wrist to the other, measured with arms out to your sides.
length: distance from top of your shoulder (measured just under the ear) to the floor. multiply this number times 2.

fold your fabric in half (right sides together) across the width, then in half across the length. you will have four layers of fabric. at the corner where all the folds meet, cut a SMALL shallow curve. start SMALL--you can always make it bigger later. this will be your neck opening.

then make one cut, from the side where all the cut edges are, toward the neck opening. the exact shape and length of this cut is up to you. the lower you start the cut on the side, the longer your sleeve will hang.

then unfold your fabric and find out what shape you have just made!

the cuts on the sides are the side seams. sew your side seam closed, sew your trim on your sleeves and hem, and then try on the dress. if you need or want to make the neck opening bigger, do so. when the neck is the right size, add your trim and you are done.

this dress can be worn as is, or you can dress it up to match your imagination. pattern catalogs are a great source of ideas on how you can vary the sleeves, neckline, and trim. and the addition of some simple accessories can change the entire look: if you wish to be a fairy, add wings--if you wish to be an angel, add a halo--for a medieval princess, cover a pointy party hat with scraps of fabric and tack a silky scarf to the top--for a wizard add a cape and a beard--for a magistrate, add ella.

How to make a hat and scarf from a sweater

Something for the boys! Yay!

I got this sweater vest at the Dollar Store several days ago (sweaters at the Dollar Store? How random is that??) and I just knew it was dying to be a little beanie and scarf set! I'm so excited to have a project for little boys!

This would actually work best with a sleeved sweater (then you could just use sleeves for a scarf!), but this is what I had, so...

1) Measure your child's head, and cut out a hat shape through both layers (I free-handed this, but if you had another beanie to trace around, that would be great!), then cut a large rectangle shape through both layers for the scarf.

2) Lay the two scarf pieces right side together and pin the non-banded end. Sew with a zig-zag stitch, being careful not to let it stretch too much.

3) Cut out your "face" shapes from felt or fleece. 4 ears, two big circles for eyes, and two slightly smaller circles for the pupils, and a little triangle nose.

4) Lay two of the ear shapes on top of the other two, and sew around the edges with your machine. (not pictured)
5) Pin the ears to the right side of the beanie, facing downward. Lay the other piece of the beanie on top of it(right sides together), with ears sandwiched in between, and pin.

6) Sew the two hat pieces together, leaving the banded side open.
7) Take your scarf piece and fold it over, right sides together, and pin. Sew all the way down the side.

Turn the scarf right side out, and sew the banded edges closed.
9) Pin the face shaped where you want them, and hand stitch them on.

Ta-da!

Printing on Fabric

Printing on Fabric

By Lisa Otto

While sewing in itself is fun, so is finding new and exciting ways of embellishing and manipulating fabrics to create something new. Printing on fabric with your home inkjet printer is one of those exciting techniques that allow you to add extra flair to a sewn outfit or creation.

Printing photos and images onto apparel and home décor items has definitely become easier over the past few years with the launch of more effective and long lasting inks and fabric photo papers. So, not only can you capture a beautiful image and apply it to a garment or décor item, but it will last after washings, wear and use.

How do you get started?

Surprisingly, it’s easier than you might think. First, decide what you want to decorate with a printed image. Maybe you’ve sewn your daughter a new summer dress and want to add pictures to the skirt or bodice. Perhaps you’ve created pillows and want to embellish them with printed images. The sky really is the limit when it comes to embellishing sewn projects. Be sure to use a inkjet printer for the methods listed below, and not a laser printer which becomes too hot during the printing process.

Next, you’ll need to decide how you want to transfer your printed images to your project: either by iron- on transfer or sew-on. There are several great options in fabric photo papers (often called T-Shirt transfer paper) on the market. Simply, choose the image you want to print and the size of the finished image, and print it onto fabric photo paper which you feed through your printer. Once the image comes out of the printer and has dried, you iron it onto your project. The ironing process heats the ink and helps to make it permanent. This method works great on fabrics which have a high cotton or natural fiber content and may not work as well on synthetic fabrics, so be sure to read the paper manufacturer’s directions and fabric recommendations.

The sew-on method (as I call it), actually allows you to place fabric in your printer! You’ll need 100% cotton fabric and freezer paper. Then, cut both your fabric swatch and freezer paper to no larger than 8 ½” x 11” or the size of a standard piece of printer paper. Then, place your fabric to the shiny side of the wax paper and iron for a few moments, or until the fabric is slightly stuck to the freezer paper. The fabric/paper combo has a tendency to curl at the edges, so be sure to keep a pencil handy for keeping the curled edges down during printing.

Then, place your fabric/paper into the printer and print your images or text right onto the fabric. Be sure there are no stray threads on any of the edges which may get caught on the way through the printer. And, use the pencil to gently feed any curled areas of the fabric through the printer as it processes. Once dry, remove the paper from the back of the fabric. Then, place the fabric ink-side-down onto an ironing surface, and iron on medium-high heat for 2-3 minutes. This will help set the ink for washing. Once completed, you’ll have a printed fabric swatch to sew onto or within any project that you like!

Now, the question is: What will you decorate first?

Button Up Shirt to Toddler Dress!

How to turn a men's button up shirt into an adorable dress:
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=170402.0