Make-it-Monday: Taking-in a Sweater at the Sides

This week's DIY went so much better than I had expected. Of course, I had a lot of Internet knowledge to draw from. I'm proud to say that I can now transform a large sweater into a small.

Here's the garment in question:

I found it (where else?) at Goodwill, and was immediately drawn to the unique neckline. It's a cross between a scoop and a V neck and it's great. 

To take it in, I first flipped it inside-out. Then, I took a shirt that fits me really well and laid it on top.

I marked the sleeves with a pen, because I knew I needed to move the sleeves in. As it originally fit, the shoulder seam was way too wide. 

Next, I marked the sides of the T.

I cut the sleeves off at the seam and pinned their new location. I put the pins really far in so that I'd have plenty of room to sew the seam. I did the same with the sides, so that the fabric wouldn't shift around under the sewing machine's foot.

Then, I simply sewed-up all the seams and cut-out the extra fabric. Easy-peasy.

In all, this project took me about an hour, but that was mostly because I'd never done it before. I feel like I could do this project again in half the time.

Now I just have to wait 6 months for fall to wear my new sweater. Wahoo!

Make-it-Monday: Customizing Sunglasses with Nail Polish

It's been a crazy few days, but I'm back where I belong - sitting in the King Bufu chair, sipping a homemade latte, typing a post, and halfway watching an episode of Supernatural (I'm on season 4! Halfway there!).

In honor of my mini-vacation, this shall be:

(Mostly) Nashville Week!

But today's post isn't about Tennessee, so settle down. This is a hometown craft. Get ready, though - the rest of the week is going to take you roughly four hours north. Pack light; there's a lot of us, and we all need room to stretch our legs.

Make-it-Monday: One Earring

Is there anything sadder than losing just one earring?

Um, yes.

But losing an earring is a special kind of frustration. It leaves you with one perfectly functional, yes useless, piece of jewelry. I have a graveyard section on my jewelry tree devoted to earrings who lost their mate. But thanks to some creative thinking (and clever suggestions from the Internet) I'm slowly repurposing them.

My favorite way to use an old earring is to turn it into a necklace. It's ridiculously easy to do this with hook earrings. Go to Wal-Mart, Michaels, or JoAnn's, picked-up some silver chain, jump rings, clasps, and a pair of jewelry pliers. It took me all of five minutes to turn my pretty earring into a pretty charm. Voila, new life for an old earring!

IT'S ALIVE!

Got a solitary post earring? Try using it as a thumbtack for your corkboard.

(Photo by Cup + Penny)

You can also attach a brooch back to an old earring - wear it on your lapel like a champ. Or glue it onto a headband for a little extra sparkle.

Really, just about anything can be bedazzled it with old jewelry. I took a spin through Pinterest, and found some really great ideas. For most of these, all you need are pliers, wire cutters, and metal adhesive.

(Photo by georgiapeachez)

(Photo by georgiapeachez)

(Photo by theresamariejewelry)

(Photo by Ryoan)

(Photo by Ruffles & Stuff)

(Photo by Ruffles & Stuff)

(Photo by Ruffles & Stuff)

"All this is great, Galen, but what if I just don't want to lose my stuff in the first place?" Well, if your earring comes off while you're at home, you can try to find it using the hose attachment on your vacuum cleaner. Put a pair of pantyhose over the nozzle and run it over the floor. When you get to the earring, the pantyhose will trap the sucker for you (this also works for contact lenses). Thank the lovely Gillian for this tip - she's the one who taught it to me!

I once heard someone say that for post earrings, you can put a dab of eyelash glue on the backing. It'll give you a boost of holding power. You'll have to clean your earrings every time you wear them, though - be sanitary, ladies!

UPDATE: Tune-in next week when I show you how to make your own necklace in less than ten minutes. I guarantee you'll spend more time assembling your lunch than your jewelry.

Make-it-Monday: Lip Scrub and the Roomie Refashions

I don't know if you guys have noticed, but it is winter and the air is DRY. I am guzzling about a gallon of water every day, but I still have crackly lips and scratchy palms. You know it's bad when the magical balm by Fresh can't even keep your lips hydrated. So I turned to Pinterest in search of a lip scrub recipe - and I wasn't disappointed.

The best thing about these recipes is that you already have all the ingredients. You do, I promise. All you need to make your own lip scrub is a few of the following:

• Sugar (brown or white)
• Honey
• Olive oil
• Coconut oil
• Vitamin E
• Essential oils (lavender, vanilla, rose, etc.)
• Grapefruit juice

All you have to do is take some sugar, mix it with a conditioner or two (olive oil, honey, Vitamin E and/or coconut oil), and add essential oils or  fresh grapefruit juice to give it some flavor. I used 1 tsp Turbinado sugar, 1 tsp honey, and 1 tsp olive oil. Stir the ingredients together, and then massage the mixture onto your poor, chapped lips for a minute or two. Rinse away with warm water, and apply your favorite lip balm. Hallelujah! Happy mouth!

This recipe isn't just useful for your smackers; you can use it as an exfoliater all over. I wash my face with oilve oil every night, but I rarely exfoliate. Last night, I used this mixture as my cleanser, and it worked great! Olive oil is the BEST makeup remover you could ever imagine, and it is beyond gentle. I will say, if you're going to rub this all over your face, be careful - sugar is quite coarse, and over-exfoliation can make skin look worse, not better. I have super sensitive skin, so I only use the scrubby stuff once in a blue moon. 

I used my freshly exfoliated lips to make part of the Very Excellent Boyfriend's Valentine's Gift. Shh, don't tell him! I'd post a sneak peek, but Lord knows it'd be the one time he actually takes a look at my blog. I'll let you see it on Friday. 

In other creative news, my Roomie did a refashion yesterday! She has had this jumper for a while, but it hasn't had much circulation recently. 

Last night, she decided to give it an update, and turn it into a skirt. It was an easy fix. She removed the straps and buttons, cut away some extra fabric from the bust, and then reattached the straps horizontally to form a waistband. 

She reattached the buttons at the end, and now she has a delightful new skirt to swish around in!

Maybe if I'm nice she'll let me borrow it.