Panties Here, Panties There, Panties Everywhere

Yesterday I was all about panties.  I went to the Goodwill and purchased some t-shirts.  I walked down row after row of shirts stretching them and found about a dozen that I thought were perfect.  When I got home I tossed everything in the washer and sat down to review the tutorial.

The unisex panty pattern that I chose was from Etsy (link below).

http://www.etsy.com/listing/62428988/boy-cut-brief-unisex-underwear-pattern?ref=sr_list_2&ga_ref=auto&ga_search_query=girls+underwear+pattern&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade

After the t-shirts came out of the dryer: I removed the sleeves and set them aside, I removed the neck band or collar and tossed them, and then I cut the shoulder and side seams.  I took the main pieces front and back, and pressed them well.  Since the pattern was one piece and I planned on making multiples I made a posterboard pattern so I could trace the pattern onto the fabric.  I cut these pieces out by hand.

Using my rotary cutter and stretchiest fabric I cut out all the bands.

After I cut everything out I assembled them using a stretch stitch that both seams and over casts the edges.  The tutorial that comes with the pattern is excellent and well worth the investment.  And look at these darling panties! 

What do I have on the agenda today?  Panties of course!

Bias Tape Folder $6... Ralph Lauren Sheet...$1 Cute Pillowcase Dress...Priceless!

Call me old fashioned but I like to make my own bias tape. The other day while I was looking for something to spend my money on I purchased one of those bias tape makers by Clover.

I have an electric one by Simplicity but we have a love/hate relationship. It wants to choose the fabric every time we work together. BUT when I want to choose the fabric it revolts by jamming up which requires a fast thinking and a speedy rescue. In theory it is a great idea however for now it makes a good doorstop for my sewing room. But I digress.

Last week there was a big sheet sale at our local Goodwill…$1.00 each. I found a pretty blue and white striped Ralph Lauren sheet blue that I cut into stacks of 2” strips. ~drum roll~ I stuck a strip in to the little Clover tape folder and off I went.

While I was cheering myself on….my husband wandered in. He's a nice guy and is always ready to lend a helping hand...so he held the unfolded strip and directed it into the tape folder while I sprayed and ironed. 

I give this little gadget a thumbs up.

I may eventually learn to love my Simplicity bias tape maker but for now I don't have time to argue with it.

There’s a nice breeze today and I want to keep my door open so I can catch it. :^) Where’s that doorstop?

Have a peace-filled weekend my friends.

Sheets, Shirts & Tees

On the way home from my mother 86^th birthday lunch today I stopped by the Goodwill. It has become one of my favorite places to shop. In fact I haven't been in a department store for over a year since I discovered  the Goodwill.

Today I splurged... I bought 7 sheets $1.00 each (pink, 2 blue, 2 white, pink & lime striped, stars) and one of them was still in the package! I can make at least 4 dresses out of each sheet (28 dresses).

I also bought 5 darling t-shirts $2.00 each (5 t-shirt dresses), 5 striped men’s shirts $3.50 each, which will make (10 dresses).
That’s 50 upcycled earth friendly dresses for $38.00. Less than $1.00 per dress. What a deal!

19,192 Dresses

Hi my name is Karen. I design and sew upcycled kids clothing, but best of all I work with a program called Dress A Girl Around the World.

One sentence on the Dress A Girl website grabbed my attention “Imagine a World Where Every Little Girl Owns at Least One Dress…And what if that dress was made by you!” “Awesome” I said outloud. “Sign me up.”

To date Dress A Girl has delivered an amazing 19,192 dresses to 36 countries.

Please consider sponsering a Dress A Girl event or Sew-Along with your friends, family, club, or church. 

I can't wait to get started...how about you?

http://www.dressagirlaroundtheworld.com/