Pom-pom love-love

I'm excited, because pom poms have been making a huge come-back, and I am loving it! The trend is definitely on the rise, and the fuzzy suckers are being used in all sorts of things, from home décor - they are added to curtains, edges of pillows, blankets, towels, anything with an edge! - to apparel. They are easy to make from scratch, and inexpensive too, and creative people all over the interwebs are using them in their crafty projects. They simply add a flirty, playful vibe to anything.

I jumped at this opportunity by making these easy necklaces.

You can find the free tutorial from Honestly...WTF here.

Stay tuned, my next post will show you how to make a SUPER-cute pom-pom infinity scarf!

Pop-art clutch

For most of my adult years, I have been a total organizational freak. Think Sheldon in the episode of The Big Bang Theory when he organizes his friend's closet..that's me in real life! I believe everything should have a place to call its home. I think that might be why I really enjoy making things that can contain other things...like bags!

I found this tutorial that got me REALLY excited because it reminded me that there really are a lot of possibilities with transfer paper. You can basically put any image you like on anything! WOW.

I made my clutch out of white vinyl. The tutorial is quite simple, so if you know what you're doing with that sewing machine you can add a few more sophisticated features, such as sewing the lining (instead of glueing it), and a cell-phone pocket like I did, etc.

Hand-warmers, SQUEE! So cute

Where I live, in Phoenix, Arizona, we don't have what my husband calls a "real winter" (he's from the Mid-West). Instead, we have 1-2 months of chilly weather. But even these 2 months are not really consistently chilly. Let me explain: one day I'll be sun-bathing in my back-yard with my bikini on, and the next I'm wearing a winter coat. It's pretty schitz-ey!

Either way I made these cute "happy couple hand-warmers" for those cold evenings when you just have to get out in the dark and take the dog for a walk. They contain little pockets that are filled with rice. You pop them in the microwave for a minute before heading out.

I loved how they turned out! Just the sight of them makes me feel so cozy inside! And I think they make for really good presents. The embroidery takes a while, but that's my favorite part of the project so I don't mind!

The project is from "Zakka Style"

Pillows enrich our lives!

Here is the second ever pillow project I embarked on. Of course, when you start with a sprocket pillow, everything else is downhill from there, right? I added a zipper to them, like I do for every pillow I make, because I can't stand the idea of never washing a pillow case. Gross!

To learn how to sew a zipper I used this tutorial from Prudent Baby, which was very helpful and easy to understand! It shows how to make any square/rectangular pillow case with a zipper. 

Here they are, all 5 of them in their glory! I got these beautiful fabrics at Joann. One day I went there for some supplies only to find out they were closing that store (the closest one to my house, great). So most of the inventory was on sale, and all of the home/upholstery fabric sample squares were sold at 50c !!!!! I went crazy right then and there. I bought at least 20. Because you never know! I used a solid color for the back.

Pillows enrich our lives!

I love pillows. I want one of every size and in every shape imaginable to man kind. I really like to make them myself, and to challenge myself to make more and more difficult and creative ones very time.

One of my very first sewing projects was not your typical square pillow, but a round sprocket pillow! Getting it done was so satisfying :) I was so proud of it. Now I'm like - sprocket pillow? In my sleep!

You can find the tutorial for this one at Cluck Cluck Sew. The instructions were very clear. Try it, it's really fun!

Gift ideas for men, anyone?

I often complain that buying a gift for a man is much more difficult than it is for a woman. And I don't think that that's just because I am a woman, either. Most of the gift material out there in this world is suitable for women only. Shopping for a girlfriend or female relative is so much simpler even that trying to conceive a gift for my own husband, who is my very own soul mate! Let's not even speak about presents for my dad, or for other male relatives! Eeghhh ...Now I try to take secret notes whenever my dad or husband give a clue as to something they like.

So anyway to get to the point, when I first started sewing I was so eager to share my new-found giddiness with other people, that I conceived everything I made in terms of "she'll love this" or "she'll LOVE that". But I didn't know how to share it with Ben. Stumbling accross this project (from "Zakka Style") , upon further reflection I realized it could easi-ish-ly become a "male gadget". I mean, yes, it's a pouch, but a tweed one! Tweed, with it's rough and unfinished look, gives off a casually indie and hipster vibe, which totally reflects both my dad's and Ben's personal tastes in a way! (They are gonna think it's funny I think they have something in common such as style!) So I made one for each of them, for Christmas.

Polka-dot Camera Strap

I gave a make-over to my boring black & yellow "NIKON" camera strap. Why the hell not?? Best thing I've ever done. For cereal. Because now when I take pictures I look really trendy. And it is so cute, I love the polka-dot fabric used. Only set-back is that my husband claimed I should have asked him beforehand, as it's not just my camera but our camera, and that he does not need to "look cute" when he's taking pictures. So bite me! Sometimes it's better to ask for forgiveness rather than for permission ;)

This is a no-tutorial-needed project. Super easy! Just measure the length & width of your camera strap (the part in between the leather pieces). Mine was basically a really long rectangle. Then cut your fabric leaving enough space for the hem, at least one inch on all 4 sides. Use the excess fabric to fold the seam inwards twice. Pin in place, then top-stitch using a sewing machine. It's pretty much intuitive. You like?