Sparkly Skull T-Shirt DIY

While shopping at a local store, I saw this shirt that had the cutest skull on it. Much to my dismay it was a child's size (5T) - which even though, in my head, I am thin and small...never in a million years will I ever be THAT small. LOL. So I decided to buy it because I knew I could do something fun with it and...it was only $1.25 (with all the after Halloween discounts applied). As I looked at it and got lost in the sparkle, I realized that I could cut it out and sew it onto a normal size t-shirt that I can wear! :) So here is what I did.

I am using Wonder Under and cutting it to "size"

I iron the Wonder Under onto the back of the area I want to cut.

I start cutting the skull out, making sure to leave enough of a border
around it so I can sew it

Once it is all cut out, I remove the paper from the back to
expose the Wonder Under. I can now line it up on to the back of the
blank black shirt that I want to put it on.

Once lined up, I cover the graphic with dry wash cloth so
I don't damage the applique. I use the cotton setting with the steam on
(this worked for me, it may be different for you)

Now I am ready to sew it on. I decide that I want to use
Glow-In-the-Dark thread so I can have a fun outline
of the skull even when it's dark.

I used Glow-in-the-Dark as the top thread and then black for underneath.
No use wasting good Glow thread on the inside of the shirt!

Started sewing around the bones, and then for the skull I sewed a little
closer to the outline and also outlined the bow.

Here it is in all its Sparkly glory! I will make sure to get a
pic of it tonight when it is glowing :)

Let's Get Crafty for Valentine's Day!

Everything you need for a homemade Valentine's Day! Enjoy!

Handmade Gift Ideas

• Salt Dough Hearts
• Seed-Starter Valentine
• Fabric Valentine Hearts Garland
• Crochet a Sweet Heart Garland
• Knot Bracelet
• Cushiony Valentines for All Your Crafty Friends
• Necktie Valentines
• Heart Bookmark
• How to make Valentines from an Onion
• Valentine Cozy
  
• Handmade-Paper Valentines
• Bath Fizzies
• Button Heart Cuff Links
• VIDEO: Pop Up Heart Valentine
• Blossoming Brooch
• Heart-Felt Bag

Clipart, Cards & Templates to Download

• Pirate Valentines
• Valentine Maker
• Valentines Day Cards from Cupid
• Lovebirds Card
• Color Your Own Valentines
• Vintage Valentine Cards
• Vintage Valentine Hearts ClipArt 
• Teeny Envelope
• Super Valentine's Cards
• Football Valentines
• Sweetheart Cards 
• Vintage Valentine Cards
  
• Valentine Schmalentine
• Robot Valentines
• Dinosaur Valentines
• Love and Rockets Valentines (not the band) :)
• Alligator Valentines (Card & Envelope)
• Skunk Valentines (Card & Envelope)
• Cowboy Valentines
• Don't Shave Valentine (Card & Envelope) 

Edible Valentine Gift Ideas

• Valentine's Tea Bags - 3 Different designs
• Creamy Fudge Hearts
• Valentine Cut-Out Rice Krispies® Treat
• Cheesecake Pops
• Oreo Truffles 
• Big Love Chocolate Chip Cookie

Handmade Packaging Ideas

• Dressed Up Sweets
• VIDEO: How to Fold an Origami Valentine's Box
• Valentine Treat Cups
• Valentine Gift Cones
• Vintage Label Keepsake Boxes
• Mini Valentine's Day Gift Bags
• Valentine Treat Box
• Fold-Up Box

Handmade Items for Your Pets

• Catnip Heart Pillows
• Valentines for Shelter Pets (this is only available until Feb. 14)
• Valentine Dog Treats

Today is Make a Hat Day!

Here are some great video's for making your own hat today! 

DGulley DIY Project: How To Make An Easy, Trendy Hat
 
How-to Make a Ruched Hat, Threadbanger


Here's one for the guys! (and girls if you like em) 

How to make a Bomber Hat, Threadbanger Projects

I think these will come in very handy this winter since I have a lot less hair then I used to!

They call me a fabric nerd :)

I am happy to be called a fabric nerd by my friends! I love fabric! I make lots of stuff including my own line of dog and cat collars (leashes too!). But it has to be cool and mostly retro fabrics. I try to make sure to only by from Etsy sellers. Although I will go to a fabric store online to find a specific fabric that I am unable to find on Etsy. Here are some great people on Etsy that I purchase my fabric from...

Would love to hear where you love to by fabrics from!

Handmade Crafts & Tutorials - Day 3 of Valentine's Week

I think today is my all-time favorites. I love making stuff and encouraging others to make stuff as well. Here are some great links for handmaking your valentine's this year. If you have a great tutorial that fits with this theme, please leave the link in the comments section for all to see. ENJOY!!!

Favorite Craft Sites & Tutorials

With a year full of birthdays, anniversaries, holidays, promotions, graduations, etc. why buy gifts at a large retail store when you can make them your self? One thing that is a lot of fun is to have a craft party. Everyone brings what they are currently working on. You can learn new crafts by watching what others are doing during the party, or you can host a tutorial party yourself. Be creative! Have fun! Happy crafting!


Here are some of my absolute favorite sites that feature tutorials (some are free and some are for a fee).

• The Long Thread - at the beginning of the year they listed their Top 100 Tutorials of 2009. So many great ideas!
  
• Photojojo - Make Your Own Photo Journals and Notebooks
• You Can Make This - This is a great site that has both free and ones for purchase. So many creative people and ideas!
• Etsy's How Tuesday - These are fun and for all different levels of difficulty.
• Lara Cameron - my favorite is the reversible notebook cover.
• ThreadBanger - I love this site - it has video tutorials and awesome ideas!
• Instructables - This brings out the hidden geek in me! From the Make a cheap backyard ice-skating rink to the How to build a Nintendo arcade this site is fun for everyone!

What is your favorite crafting website for tutorials?  

Book Binding

For many years I have wanted to learn how to make journals with book binding techniques. Not to go into business doing it, but just as a fun hobby. So this year with the help of YouTube, I learned how to make journals using the coptic binding and also ones using leather (or vinyl in my case) as a cover. I am sure that there are plenty more techniques out there and I plan to try to learn them all. For Christmas this year, I wanted to make my dear friend a book that she could write her stories and ideas in. I have to admit that I am a bit of a perfectionist, especially when it comes to making things for others. So it took me a couple of days. But I am very pleased with how it turned out.

I started out using this awesome green vinyl that I had bought prior in the year. I matched it with a cute fabric that I bought on Etsy and the ideas just started flowing! I made a place on the right for her to keep her pencils in and used a piece of left over vinyl as the strap to keep it closed. It was a process, but I enjoyed every minute!

My first homemade pie

Today I went to a friends house to bake my first pie. Blueberry Rhubarb with homemade crust. The rhubarb was from her garden, what a treat!

Making the dough wasn't as difficult as I had always thought it would be. As we combined the ingredients for the filling, I was overwhelmed by how fragrant the two fruits together were. The aroma in the kitchen was so yummy that it was hard to wait until we baked it to eat it.

The blueberries were so fresh and the colors of those two fruits together were amazing. I was having so much fun! I had no idea that baking a pie could be so much fun!

We covered the top with more dough and decorated it a little. I couldn't wait for it to be done! This is a picture of my friend putting it in the oven. Now to wait....wait for it to cook and then wait for it to cool! The waiting is agonizing! The fragrance in the kitchen was making my mouth water!

Ding!!! Music to my ears! It's done!! Well its done cooking anyways! Now to cool! Waiting, waiting and more ....

Screw the waiting! Let's dig in!! Oh it was so yummy! The guys came home from work and we had to share.

So now I know how to bake a pie. Hopefully I won't be so scared of making one in the future! Happy baking!!