Channeling Spring

The other night I came across a blog I hadn't seen before and was instantly inspired.  Elle Apparel has some nice tutorials for clothing and though I didn't follow any one in particular, her ideas definitely got me thinking about making more clothes for myself.  
I'm not nearly as cute as Leanne and I really hate having my picture taken, so you'll have to bear with me.

First I made this cute shirt dress.  The shirt was $10 at Target and the skirt is fabric I'd had in my stash for a long time.  It's not perfect, but good enough for a first try.  I plan on making more, once it's actually warm out.  Despite it being about 34 degrees, my husband convinced me to go outside for these photos.  True blog dedication. 

Next, I made myself a skirt. I just bought this skirt from Old Navy.  I love the fit and style, so I just traced it and made another.

Once it gets warm here, this skirt will get a lot of mileage.  I made the shirt for our trip to Florida last month. 

 

 What have you added to your wardrobe lately?  Any great tutorials out there I should know about?  I'd love to hear from you!

I don't tend to share a lot of personal stuff here.  But since it is Valentine's Day and I do have "family" up there in my header, I thought I'd take a moment to mention my wonderful husband.

We've had to deal with a difficult situation recently and it has reminded me how much easier life is when you have an amazing, supportive partner at your side.  I'm a lucky woman.

Happy Valentine's Day.

Simple Washcloth Tutorial

I don't know about you, but we always seem to have a shortage of washcloths in our house.  We use them for everything from wiping counters to washing faces.  

This tutorial is more about inspiration and a little tip since sewing a washcloth is about as easy as it gets.

I used a 100% cotton chenille that I picked up on vacation and cotton flannel. 

I made a template from my stash of file folders, 6 inches by 6 inches square.

 Lay your fabric right side together and trace the pattern.  Here's the trick.  See those 2 blue lines perpendicular to the pattern?  That's the opening and you want to actually sew on those lines.  What this does is pull that seam allowance down and make it easier to sew that opening closed when turned right side out.

 Sew just inside your traced lines and trim.

 Turn right side out and press.  See how you can't tell where the opening was?

 Top-stitch around the perimeter.  I also folded the washcloth in thirds and sewed 2 parallel lines to keep the layers together better.

 Super easy!

How cute would these be wrapped up for a new baby?

Here's to easy projects!