My Daughter's Wraparound Top

My daughter is super creative. She's always taking old clothes and re-making them. Wonder where she gets

Wraparound top

that streak from? Actually my mother started it all. She used to make skirts out of old table cloths. Back then I wanted to die of shame rather than wear old table cloths. Today, that would be uber cool.

Back to my daughter. Her label is Love Laced and you can find her label - Love Laced facebook page - here. She cuts up old clothes and re-stitches them adding beads and trimmings as she goes along. It's all very ad hoc and wildy avant garde. The kind of stuff - Suzie Lau - wears.

Fold and stitch at each end - Figure 1

I gave her my old Elna sewing machine and after she had a sewing lessons, she came back inspired to sew and sew. Last week she made this top. She even dreamed up the pattern. I love, love, love it.

Hook end of wrap top on arm - Figure 2

(Hope she doesn't get embarrassed with all the mom pride going on in this blog post.)

I can't give the dimensions as I don't have the top here. But I'm going to speculate what they are. The sizing would vary depending on how wide and tall you are so you basically need to make it to your own size. My daughter is a dress size 10 and I would say her top was around 1.70 centimetres long and 45 wide. It's a very long rectangle.

Wrap around front of body - Figure 3

Have a look at the way she sewed it to see how it wraps around her body so you can measure how big your rectangle needs to be.

The fabric has to be stretch knit. Very important as it has to wrap around your body. It's a smaller version of a sari but with the ends closed to encase the arms.

Basically you need to edge stitch the rectangle to neaten the

Slip other arm through - Figure 4

edges. And then stitch the two edges together.

To wear -

Hook end on arm and pull up to rest on shoulder. See Figure 2.

Wrap around front of body. See Figure 3.

The back of the wrap top

Slip other arm through opposite end and pull up to shoulder. See Figure 4.

As you can see my daughter used to button badges to secure the top but you could use brooches or if the top is tight enough leave it plain.

You can contact my daughter on facebook - here.

Visit the Greenie Gallery for more ideas on - this - link.

Till next week.

Greenie.

Grungy Green Slouchy Bag

I have made this particular bag so many times over.

Tie dye slouchy bag

It is the perfect bag.
Why?

• It's large enough to carry everything but the kitchen sink. 
• It's lightweight. 
• It's washable.
• It can be made in myriad fashion colours, patterns and textures.
• It is so dead easy to make.

Think along the lines of fabrics in designs such as the current Mary Katrantzou prints or vivid African prints.
How about an embossed brocade or sultry jewel toned velvet?
Neon colours, muted pastels or even a sheer fabric will add an on-trend touch to this great bag

The instructions for the bag are - here. It's all in an older post.

For more DIY's visit the Greenie Gallery on - this link.

Till next week.

Greenie. 

Neon Tote Bag

Neon tote bag

I started making my own clothes and accessories mostly because I knew exactly what I wanted and local retailers either didn't get my kind of style, or they weren't stocking new fashions that I fancied. The only solution was to make my own.

This neon tote bag is a classic example. I love, love, love neon. But it is taking forever for neon clothes and accessories to appear in the shops here. The odd item has shown up but not much to choose from at all.

Even the fabric shops had a dearth of neon coloured fabric. All I could find was this dinkum, genuine High Visibility material. It's a sort of vinyl substance with real glow in the dark pigment on the front and a rubber like smooth finish on the reverse side.

I'm not going to lie. It was hell to work with. I couldn't pin it

Measure the bag

anywhere were the material would be visible after sewing. And it was slippery which made it difficult  to sew straight. But the end result was well worth it. A Super Duper bright tote bag

You need: -
2 pieces of this fabric 45 centimetres x 50 centimetres
2 pieces of facing 45 centimetres x 7 centimetres
2 pieces of strapping 45 centimetres long
matching coloured thread

Cut the bag

sewing machine
pins

You do: -
1. Measure out the bag and the facing on the material and cut it out.

2. For some stupid reason, I chose to cut the 2 squares into quarters and sew them back together. I wanted to add top stitching for effect. It was a bad idea! The material was so slippery and I only complicated things. It is not a necessary step and best skipped if you are using the same stuff to

Sew bag and cut corners

make a bag.

3. Turn the bag inside out. Pin as close to the edges of the material the pin so the pin marks won't be visible

after sewing.

4. Sew the bottom and then sew the two sides. I used a 1.5 centimetre seam allowance.

5. I cut the corners on the bottom. It removes excess fabric that would bunch and helps to make it easy to turn the bag inside out.

6. Turn the bag the right way around and pin the

Pin straps and facing

straps in place. Taking care again that the pins are close to the edge of the material. AND that the straps are facing the right way. I have rushed to sew straps before only to find they are pointing down into the bag and not up. Which means un-picking and re-sewing.

7. Sew the two pieces of your facing together to make one long facing and pin that right sides facing on top of the straps. Allow the edges of the facing to overlap.

8. Start at the one end of the facing and sew the straps and facing in place.

Add one or more rows of top stitching

9. Fold the facing inside the bag and top stitch a few times to flatten and make sure the straps are securely sewn in.

10. Voila! a new tote bag.

Visit the Greenie Gallery - on this link - for more ideas.
Till next week!

Bling Ring

If you think that full on bling a la J Lo, Mariah Carey or even P Diddy is out of your reach. Think again. In this blog

Stainless Steel Eye bolt with Swarovski Crystal ring

post, I show how to make a mega carat ring using a stainless steel eye bolt, a Swarovski crystal and some high strength glue.

I chose a clear, round crystal at a bridal shop. But they come in assorted colours and shapes. Think of an emerald colour square or a ruby coloured heart shape for variation on this ring.

Last week I was saying how I came across steel lock washers in a hardware store in the Netherlands. Been wearing them as rings. Well I also found this stainless steel eye bolt there too. Never heard of them before.

And good news, they are a perfect fit to my ring finger. I could not wait to get home and turn it into a

What you need to make the ring eye bolt, crystal + glue

ring.

Here is a link to images of an eye bolt - click here. You obviously want the type without the screw insert. Or you need to be able to cut off that piece.

The - How To - is dead easy. Mix your two part adhesive. Apply to both the eye bolt and the crystal. Glue crystal to eye bolt. Allow to dry.
Wear with your fanciest outfit ever!

For more DIY fashion ideas and inspiration, visit the Greenie Gallery on - this link.

Till next week!

Greenie.

Lock Washer Ring

Lock washer worn as ring

Phew! Can hardly believe I'm writing a blog post. Feels like forever since I was last able to do this.

I mentioned in the last post that we sold our house and packed up. All our possessions went into storage.
We went to Europe for just over a month during what was the coldest Spring in decades. I was sooo cold. It simply doesn't ever get that cold here in the southernmost tip of Africa.

We finally were able to move into our new home and my sewing machine and craft goods were mislaid. The movers eventually found them but next I had to get a phone and ADSL line installed. And so it went on yadda, yadda, yadda. Been one thing

Lock washer

after another.

While I was in Holland I saw a lock washer in the local hardware store in Zwartsluis. Never heard of them. I was enthusing about it's potential as a ring, and my husband was like "Yeah, it's a lock washer. Duh."

 If you Google images of them - see here - they come in a few shapes. Spiky, ridged and even slightly curved. They are the perfect ring size. So glad I saw them. Going to have to find more.

of them.

They look great with the open ends up or down. And they also worked stacked between other band rings. I wish I could engrave. It would be nice to put inspirational words on the flat sides.

For more ideas and DIY's go to the Gallery page - here.
See you next week and happy DIY-ing!

Lock washer stacked with rings

Greenie.

Taking a short break

Fashion mags, a plastic folder of cuttings, screen savers and pics

OK, am going to have to admit defeat and take a short break from this blog. It's not that I want to. But we have sold our house and everything has to go into storage for a few weeks until we can move into our new home.

This blog is dependant on my sewing machine, my tools, my husband's tools, old clothes and the various threads, fabrics, wire, beads etc . .  that get used to make new things from old. They all have to go into boxes and sent away. Sigh!

Buttons and haberdashery supplies

I tend not to use other people's pictures and have focused this blog almost entirely on showing what I've made or re-made. Even if I use someone else's idea, all the items shown have been made by me. There is usually a link back to the the person, blog or idea I used giving them credit. Though it has happened that I cannot but cannot remember where and when I came across a particular DIY idea as it has taken so long to finally be made.

Am not going to lie I'm a touch panicky about all the things I've yet to make and still want to make. What if they go out of fashion before I get to make them? There are a billion things on my - To Make - list that I have not yet gotten around to making. I could sew and craft things all day, every day.

Fabric, dyes, braids and trimmings in the cupboard

Lurking on my wishlist are - more peplums, a colour block tote bag, a multi-strand rope necklace, more shirt collar upgrades, bell sleeves for a shirt, a beaded chain necklace and a beaded skirt to name but a few.

My trusty Elna sewing machine

I save DIY inspiration everywhere. There are pics from magazines and retail shops on my mobile phone, cuttings from magazines stuck up at my desk and a heap of ideas taken from on-line fashion newsletters and shopping sites are saved in Dropbox. Phew!

Just a note on sewing machines. My first sewing machine was an Elna TSP (Top Special). My daughter has it now, but it was, still is, a fantastic Swiss made machine. My mother has had her Elna Supermatic forever. They are still able to service it and and she has never had any trouble. My latest machine is, of course, an Elna 2130. I wouldn't consider using another make of sewing machine. And just in case you wondering, I don't gain anything from saying this.

I'm gonna miss my stuff but it's not forever. Hopefully we can set up in our new home really soon and get back into the swing of things.
Till then, happy DIY-ing.

Bead stud earrings

Bead stud earrings

Much as I love, love, love dangly earrings, they are hugely impractical when driving a scooter. Each time I take my helmet off, I fear ripping my earrings from my ear lobes. Riding a scooter is a choice to reduce my carbon foot print and sartorial choices have to accommodate riding a bike. That means biker jackets, wildly colourful scarves and espadrilles are on my 'must-have' list. But sky scraper heels, short skirts and yes, chandelier earrings are sadly off the list.

The retail shops have been a little slow coming up with cute neon studs and I cannot get enough lime green right now. Since the bead shop had bright green beads, it seemed a good idea to try and make some stud earrings from beads.

You need lovely crystal or glass beads

I have made a few stud earrings on this blog before. These stud earrings - were made from glass head pins and I made more from buttons - in this post.

So here's how you make them.

You need: -
beads
stud backings
two part adhesive
pliers

You do: -
I used a sponge that came from the top of a tub of vitamins to press the stud bases into.
It helps to keep them stable and upright.
Because the beads are so small I used pliers to dip the beads into the pre-mixed glue and then stick them onto the stud bases.
Next get all your beads ready and close at hand.
Pre-mix the glue.
Dip the beads into the glue and attach to the stud backings.
Allow to dry and that's it!

Press stud bases into a sponge to keep them stable

Visit the Greenie Fashion Gallery on - on this link - for more ideas to revamp and upcycle old clothes or make your own fashionable items. And you can also visit the Greenie facebook page to share your DIY's or give DIY fashion a 'like'.

See you next week.
Greenie.

Beaded shirt collar

OK, I'm a bit late on this bandwagon. There are already a gazillion gorgeous DIY shirt collars out there. If DIY shirt collars - into your search bar, plenty images come up. But, I like embellished collars and I've been meaning to make a beaded shirt collar, so here's my attempt.

Beaded shirt collar

you type -

What you need for this DIY

My first bit of advice is to rather hand-sew the beads onto the collar as opposed to glueing them. I'm really not a fan of using glue on clothing that you would normally put in your washing machine. It means you have to dry clean your clothing as the glue will disintegrate if immersed in water. You can read more about why I don't do dry cleaning - here - and - here.

If sewing tiny beads onto your shirt seems too much like hard work, then sew less of them like in my DIY.

Right, I took a basic white shirt and using a ruler lightly made a small dot with a pencil every 10 millimetres along the edge of the collar. You could space the dots slightly wider apart and make two or three rows of dots.

Marking the place to sew your beads

Next I sewed wooden beads onto the dots using matching colour thread. And that was all there was to do.

The fun part is picking your beads. So think pearls, metallic, wooden or even neon coloured beads. I wouldn't go too large with the beads as the shirt may be difficult to iron. You could vary the size or colour of the beads and create a gradient effect.

To see how I added collar tips to two other shirts, visit the Greenie Fashion Gallery - here - and scroll to the bottom of the page.

You are welcome to share your tips and ideas on the Greenie facebook page. Or just give the Greenie facebook page a 'like' if you support eco fashion.

Until next week!