Dupatta Dress/Top

This kaftan gown is one of my favorite piece of clothing. I love to wear this loose fitting silhouette while lounging at home. This kaftan is one-size fits all and extremely comfortable. For my  Recycle and Reuse series, I decided to make a trendy version of this kaftan with an old dupatta as my main fabric.

For those unfamiliar with dupattas, here is a little bit of info. They are long scarves or stoles worn mostly by the South-Asian women over the traditional Salwar Kameez. It  measures any where between 3-5 yards in length and is available in variety of fabrics, colors and textures. It can be draped over the shoulder or across the chest. It is a very versatile piece of fabric and can be used to dress up or dress down your look. Below is the picture of my old dupatta. As you can see it is in perfect condition. I have not used it that often. I love the print of royal blue paisleys on it and knew if I cut it the right way I could get the look I want.

I made a paper pattern by tracing the kaftan. To really make it trendy I shortened the length of the dress/top and kept it knee length. I also changed the neckline from V to bateau and curved it up a little bit. It took me less than a day to finish the dress and just for fun I came up with these three looks.

For the first look, I paired it up with some skinnies and brown heeled pumps.

For the second look, I paired it with some knee length, black boots.

For the final look, I wanted a summery feel so I just matched it with jeans peep toe wedges.

The cost of this project as usual is zero and fortunately for me, I already had the accessories and shoes and as such did not spend a dime on them.

So what did you think of this project? I would love to have some feedback. Let me know which look you liked the best?

Decoupaged Folding Table

This latest project is a borrowed one. I saw this DIY project in the April 2011 issue of Family Circle magazine. The author Suzonne Stirling, a blogger had restored an old folding table using gift wrap paper by decoupaging it over the table. I thought it was a brilliant idea, and was perfect for my "Recycle and Re-use" theme.

I have a folding table at home and I am not using it that much. It is in good condition, except for all the artistic doodling done by my kids.This is the BEFORE picture of the Folding table.

The first thing I did was apply primer. Instructions called for sanding it lightly before using primer. I skipped that part, because I did not have any sandpaper at home.

Next, the author instructed to use two coats of semi-gloss latex paint. I  have a confession to make. I did not find the color of my liking, so I chose to go with acrylic paint in chocolate color. I applied two coats of this paint, allowing it to dry between coats.

I spray painted it with an acrylic sealer and this is what it looked liked when it was all finished.

After the sealer had dried and as per the instructions, I applied Mod Podge to the top of the table and allowed it to dry again. After about 20 minutes I applied another thin layer of Mod Podge.

I had already measured and cut the gift wrap paper of my choice. All I had to do was slowly apply the paper on top of the table, pressing it firmly and making sure there were no air bubbles.

Finally, I applied 3 to 4 coats of Mod Podge on the newly covered tabletop, allowing it to dry in between coats. I sprayed it with the acrylic sealer to seal everything up. Below are the AFTER shots of the table.

My total cost for the project was around $10 for the Mod Podge, Acrylic paint and sealer.

Jeans Skirt

This next project is an absolutely fun one. It was born out of frustration. You see, my four year old has a very, very, let me emphasize...very tiny waist. I cannot find any age-appropriate pants or skirts for her. Waist wise, she still fits into a 12 mths to 2T pants/skirts. As I was cleaning her closet, I came across a couple of rarely used jeans which were in excellent condition. The size 2T jeans were short in length, but fit her perfectly at her waist. So I borrowed and idea from my earlier project the  T-Shirt Dress Project  and decided to remake the jeans into a skirt.

I began by cutting off both the legs of the pants.

From the top edge, I measured about 5" all around and re-trimmed the jeans.

I cut a piece of fabric that was leftover from the T-Shirt Dress Project

I double folded it, wrong sides together....that way I did not have to hem the bottom. I ran a long stitch all along the top edge of the fabric. Pulled the threads to gather the skirt to the appropriate width.

Pinned it to the bottom edge of the jeans, adjusting as I went along. Once I got it all pinned, I sewed it twice to secure it. This is how it looks all finished.

My little one modeling the jeans skirt for me.

Cost of this Project: NIL

Floral Refrigerator Magnet

Who doesn't have CDs, DVDs & other discs lying around at home? I know I have. Dozens of them!! Infact when my DH was about to trash some of them, I told him to hold on. I knew I could reuse them in some way. I had some fabric flowers at home and had no use for them. So I came up with the idea to combine the flowers and the discs and create the Floral Refrigerator Magnet.

The first thing I did was to remove all the flowers from the stems.

 

As you can see below, I cut the flowers further and divided them into single petals. Flowers like sunflower & pansies are perfect for this project.

One by one I glued the petals on the top of the disc. You can use tacky glue or any other kind of permanent glue. I worked with the sunflower petals. My daughter used the cut-up pansies.

I cut out a small, circular felt of matching color and glued that to the center.

On the back of the disc I glued two pieces of magnetic strips. I took these strips from an old mini calender. 

Here it is, a final look. They complement my black refrigerator perfectly. Reminds me of Spring with flowers blooming everywhere.

Note: Except for the glue, everything I used was either old or something I that I had no use for. This a  fun project for the kids. Its super easy and quick. My 9 yr old had such a great time making this, that she wanted to do more.

Recyle & Reuse Projects

Since spring is upon us the theme for the month of April and May is 'RECYCLE & REUSE'. It is a perfect time for spring cleaning. My workspace is filled up with all kinds of scrap fabrics, crafting supplies etc. I am challenging myself to use the stuff that I already have at home. I think it maybe a difficult as I am always itching to go shopping. I am bursting with few ideas...so watch out for this space PEOPLE !!!

Pink & Orange Dotted Tote

I'll pick up from where I last left. As you can see, I sewed the lining as well as the main fabric with all the panels. I must say this part was not easy. I was glad to be done with that.

 

The next step was to attach the main fabric and the lining. I struggled with this step so much that I had to rip it open twice. I almost felt like throwing a fit like my toddler. All I had to do was insert the lining into the main fabric and sew it all around the top with a 3" opening. I did it wrong and instead of a clean finish; it exposed all the raw edges. Finally on my third attempt I was able to get it right.

I cut out two strips of fabric and 25" x 4". Attached an iron-on fusible interfacing to give it some thickness. Folded it and sewed it into straps. I love how the two straps turned out to be of two different colors.

Finally this is how the bag looks like from the inside after the the straps were sewed in. All neat and clean.

A look at the completed bag.

I made two different sized flowers from the leftover fabric and attached them to the front of the bag with a matching button.

The final Look:

Update on the T-Shirt Dresses Project

Finally, I have an update for the T-Shirt Dress project. All the clothes have been packed and shipped to Evelet in Mumbai. I did hit a road block when it came to shipping the package.The quotes, I got from UPS and  DHL were simply ridiculous.  For that price I could have booked a ticket to India and personally delivered  the package to Evelet. Mentioning that this was for charity was no help at all. Anyway, I finally shipped it through the Postal Service (USPS).  Here is a look-see.

These are all the T-Shirt dresses I sewed. I was able to make about 17 dresses in a month. It was an absolute delight and fun project. I wish I will have more opportunities to do this kind of project in the future.

The boys t-shirts were donated by my friends. Thanks to Prathima Lal, Sudha Laxminarayan and Pallavi Rahate for their generosity.

I will have more updates once the clothes have been delivered. Thanks again  Evelet.