Quick Handmade Gift: Infinity Scarf

I sometimes peruse the red tag aisle at JoAnn in hopes that I'll find a gem of a fabric that will spark an idea. Last week during such a perusal (I swear that's the last time I'll use that word in this post) I found a handful of those gems that were begging to be taken to the cut counter. What were they begging me to make them into, you ask? Scarves, of course! So I'm here today to share how I made one of the fabrics I found into an infinity scarf.

You've probably seen a few tutorials here and there on how to make an infinity scarf. I think I even pinned a pretty lace one myself at one point. But never having looked at any of tutorials, I just decided that I was going to figure it out on my own. I have a couple of infinity scarves, and since I'm sewing instead of knitting, I figured it'd be a pretty simple project. If I hadn't been taking photos as I went, I'd estimate that this scarf took about 10 minutes to make, tops. So those last few holiday gifts you need? Done. Right here. Quick and easy. Check it out:

What you'll need:
• 1 yard of fabric. This fabric should be something with a bit of drape to it: voile, (what I used) jersey, silk, you get the idea. Heck even flannel would probably do. It's up to you- I just wouldn't go for anything stiff, like canvas, or really even quilting cotton. Save fleece for a regular old scarf. Think soft and flowy. And a slightly wider width- mine was 58". Anything between 50-60" wide should be perfect.
• Scissors
• Sewing machine
• Coordinating thread
• Pins

So first, lay out your fabric and cut the long side in half. So I started with a 58" x 36" rectangle, and when I cut it, I ended up with two 29" x 36" rectangles.

Next, lay your two rectangles on top of one another with right sides facing together. Pin the edges of one 29" side and then sew a straight line with up to a 1/2" seam allowance. I spent a lot of time pinning on this step since my fabric has a very fine, gold stripe, and I wanted to make sure it matched up as best as possible. (Note: if you want to skip this step and NOT have a seam in the middle of your scarf, get 2 yards of fabric, cut in half length wise, and you can make two scarves!)

Then press your seam open. Now you should have a really long rectangle, about 29" x 71". Folding your fabric in half longwise, pin the two raw edges of the longest sides together. I chose to cut of the selvedge of my fabric at this point since it's so sheer, I didn't want to add to much bulk inside. (Pardon my cheesy paisley ironing board cover... that's another project in process to be shared here at a later date.)

Next you're going to sew a straight line, again with about a 1/2" seam, all the way down the two 71" sides. Basically you'll be making one big tube of fabric.

Once you've finished that, you'll need to fold over the hem on one of the short ends 1/2". I used a seam gauge and the end of my ironing board to press my hem- wrong side of the fabric still facing out, wrong sides together.

Now you can flip your fabric right side out so all your seams are inside the tube. Lay the fabric flat and press. Bring the two unfinished ends together in the middle (one with a pressed hem, one without)

I chose to add a little twist (literally) by flipping one side of the fabric so that the seam of the long ends didn't match up when I put the two short ends together. This is optional, but I think it adds a nice touch to an infinity scarf.

Fit the raw hem inside the pressed hem 1/2" and pin. Then sew a straight line down the middle of where the two edges meet. I lined my pressed hem up with the left edge of my presser foot to make sure I picked up all of the layers.

Next.... wrap it up and gift it, or wear it! That's it. Easy-peasy. I loved the fabric I found because it seemed like a weight that could be worn year-round with a variety of outfits. That and the little bit of sparkle in the gold stripe reminded me of the friend I'm going to give it to tonight! Who do you plan on making an infinity scarf for?

Secrets, secrets

No doubt you've seen at least part of the royal wedding coverage today. If you haven't you should probably head on over to CNN asap. For me, the most intriguing part of it all was finally getting to see Kate's oh so secretive wedding gown.

Oh, the lace... I wish I could see this gown in person to examine all the little details. Though it's not exactly what I had imagined her wearing (I kind of imagined a dressed up version of what her sister and Maid of Honor Pippa wore to the wedding) Does Kate's gown remind you of another historic bride's notable gown?

(Grace Kelly)

And just for kicks... remember when I went shopping for my own wedding dress? Well I'm still not going to show you my actual dress until after the wedding, but I will show you one that I didn't end up choosing. I think this gown could turn into a top contender for brides who are going for a Duchess of Cambridge look as they pick their own gowns:

As beautiful as this gown is, when I put it on I kind of felt like a little girl who was playing dress up in her mother's closet. This gown has to be owned by the bride wearing it for sure, and as a 25 year old bride planning an outdoor wedding, I felt a bit too modest and formal in it. Perhaps if we were having a ballroom wedding it would have made sense. I do think I remember it having pockets though, which I think is an excellent trend in wedding gowns. I look forward to seeing the Watters Escalante on other brides on my favorite wedding blogs!


What did you think of the royal wedding? What about the criticisms you may have heard about Kate's (small) bouquet and their (short) kiss on the balcony at Buckingham Palace?


Oh and PS, I would be 100% thrilled if my wedding guests decided to go the British route and wear an assortment of fabulous hats and headpieces in October :)

30 for 30: Days 25-30

Let me just preface this post with a few facts: I was really sick of the 30 for 30 challenge this week. It also rained and got cold, I had limited time to take photos, and I wasn't in the best mood to be photographed... I wore my hair up or didn't style it, and I couldn't get out of bed in time to work out, let alone make my hair and makeup look nice. Excuses, excuses... I just want you to know that I'm human and not always as bright and cheery as my posts might seem :) I'm glad it's over!  In lieu of a Sunday Snapshot, here's the last six days of the challenge:

Day 25: Tan cardi, long sleeve white shirt, gap jeans accessorized with turquoise necklace (gift from Sean, purchased on Etsy) LeSportsac purse and black moccasins from Old Navy.

Day 26: long fuschia cardi, gold blouse, banana republic jeans accessorized with black Nine West flats, beaded clutch (NY Chinatown)

Day 27: White handmade skirt, short purple cardi, grey tank and black leggings accessorized with Old Navy boots, madebyhank bag and necklace (gift from mom, used to be my grandma's)

Day 28: Blue cardi, purple dress, floral tights accessorized with tan boots from Macy's, thin blue belt, brown Nine West purse, gold bracelet from Etsy and pearl earrings

Day 29: tan cords, burgundy long sleeve top accessorized with black coat, black Old Navy moccasins, Target scarf, glasses

Day 30: black skirt, mint long sleeve shirt, grey cardi, tan textured tights accessorized with white necklace- gift from MOH Emily, silver bracelet- gift from mom, black purse from H & M, black Nine West flats and pearl earrings

• I'm so glad this is over, as I've missed my closet and am looking forward to wearing a new (to me) skirt and dress that were given to me by my maid of honor Emily last week.

• I'm about to do a major closet cleanout

• I can't wait for consistent Spring/Summer weather after the ups and downs of the past few weeks... 70 one day, 30 the next!

• I'm not going to feel bad about spending money on quality pieces from the stores that I always thought I couldn't shop at due to their prices. I'll be looking for more things that can be remixed and will probably end up spending less (gasp!) at places like Target and Old Navy. Quality over quantity.

• I'll be back tomorrow to share more details about this challenge!

30 for 30: Days 19-24

Day 19: I thought you might enjoy my goofy expression in this photo. Finally got around to adding the tan textured tights, though you can't see the texture in the photo... sorry. Accessorized with thin blue belt, silver dangle earrings and tan ruffle heels.

Day 20: Blue sweater, white tank, grey pants. Accessorized with peach enamel necklace, black purse, plaid flats.

Day 21: Mint green skirt, blazer, grey/lace tank. Accessorized with orange drop necklace and nude heels.

Day 22: Black pencil skirt and 3/4 sleeve cardi. Accessorized with floral and gold belt, black purse, gold bracelet and nude heels. I always get lots of compliments when I wear this skirt... which makes me want to wear it more!

Day 23: Gold blouse, grey cardi, white pinstripe pants. Accessorized with Nine West bag, black flats, pearl earrings.

Day 24: Champagne blouse, Banana jeans, cream lace tank. Accessorized with Nine West bag, grey heels, thrifted belt and pearl earrings.

Findings:
• I'm ready to wear my other clothes.
• I need to hem the dress mentioned in this post if I want to wear it again during this challenge.
• I've worn almost everything at least twice, except for my floral leggings (haven't worn them at all) the other two leggings/tights (once each) and the blue dress white skirt (once each)
• I don't know what I'd do without my Banana jeans. I've worn them a total of 6 times so far, the most out of any piece in this challenge. The Gap jeans are a close second. Weekends = jeans for me!
• Only one more week...

30 for 30: Days 13-18

Day 13: Jeans- Banana Republic, long sleeved tee- Target, sweater vest- Target with nude kitten heels-thrifted, peach bag-madebyhank, peach earrings-World Market, bracelet-World Market

Day 14: black pinstripe skirt- Ann Taylor LOFT, champagne blouse- H & M, long purple cardi- Old Navy with grey heels- Off Broadway Shoes, peach bag- madebyhank and gold/pink necklace- gift from mom

Day 15: white pinstripe pants-Gap, blue cardi-Target, grey tank- Target with yellow sandals-Gap, silver necklace-vintage from Miss Ohio Vintage

Day 16: khaki cords- American Eagle, white blouse- Old Navy, floral cardi- Old Navy with brown flats- hand me down from my MOH Emily!, belt-thrifted (Express), gold earrings- gift (World Market), glasses

Day 17: jeans-Gap, tee-Target, tan cardigan-Gap with boots-Old Navy, necklace-Etsy, headband- Clever Betty

Day 18: jeans- Banana Republic, tee- H & M, sweater vest- Target with boots-Old Navy, black cord jacket with printed lining-Target, red beaded necklace- JC Penney

What I've learned:
• Still thinking I could have included shoes instead of leggings and tanks.
• I'm going to be doing a massive closet clean out sometime this month.
• I tend to pose the same way every day without even realizing it.
• I'm ready for it to be warm for good. No more of this snow one day, sun the next, tornadoes the following...
• Need. More. Accessories.
• I'm running out of good ideas for outfits.
• The closer we get to 0 days left, the closer we are to this lady leaving me :(
• All of this talk about fashion and remixing clothes really makes me want to break out the dress form and sewing machine and make a ton of skirts for Spring!

30 for 30: Days 7-12

Day 7: skirt-handmade by me, tee-Target, cardi-Target, with textured bag-Fossil, brown/orange buckle flats- Target, gold pendant necklace- New York and Company and glasses

Day 8: grey pants- Old Navy, white tank- Target, purple cardi- Target with grey heels- Off Broadway Shoes, charm necklace- Forever 21, white gridded trench- Target

Day 9: mint pencil skirt- thrifted, white blouse- Old Navy, grey lace tank- Target, with brown/orange buckle flats- Target, tan belt-thrifted (Express), textured bag- Fossil, gold earrings- gift (World Market)

Day 10: jeans-Gap, gold blouse-Target, blazer-Forever 21 with gold bracelet- gift (World Market), teal purse- Old Navy, ruffle kitten heels- the best shoe store in the world, Granada, Spain

Day 11: jeans- Gap, white tee- H & M, cardi- Old Navy, with peach purse- madebyhank, paisley scarf- Target, ruffle kitten heels- the best shoe store in the world, Granada, Spain

Day 12: jeans- Banana Republic, white blouse- Old Navy, cardi- Gap, with belt-thrifted, yellow peep toe flats- Gap, necklace, gift from Sean's parents (via Etsy) and clutch, Clever Betty

What I've learned:
• Still, drooling for more accessories.
• I have my favorites, especially when it comes to shoes.
• Putting three pairs of tights in my 30 for 30 was probably not the best idea so far.
• We really did pick an odd time to do this challenge. During days 1-6 there was still snow on the ground and I was wearing a winter coat. During days 7-12 I wasn't even wearing tights or jackets with my skirts it was so warm! Gotta love Missouri weather.
• I feel a lot better when I style my hair. (unlike days 8 and 9, when I was running late for a couple of appointments, obviously...)
• I have a feeling this is going to start getting harder once we hit the halfway point...

Which one's your fave? Only 18 days left!

Weekly Obsession: Skirts

It's 66 degrees in St. Louis right now. SIXTY SIX. Last week everything was still covered in snow. I still wore a jacket this morning, and ended up close to sweating on my walk in to work. That, plus the fact that I can't buy any clothing or accessories for the next 22 days or so is really making me envious of these skirts:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10

30 for 30: Days 1-6

Day 1: Cords- American Eagle, Tee- H&M, Blazer- Forever 21, with plaid flats-Target and gold/pink necklace-gift from mom

 

Day 2: Dress-Dillard's, Tights-Target, with boots-Macy's, belt-thrifted, and earrings-gift (World Market)

Day 3: Jeans-Gap, Tank-Target, Cardi-Old Navy, with boots-Old Navy and necklace-Forever 21

Day 4: Jeans-Banana Republic, Tee-Target, Tank-Target, with boots-Old Navy, Scarf-gift from mom and silver earrings- Forever 21

Day 5: Jeans-Banana Republic, Tank-TJ Maxx, Cardi-Target with plaid flats-Target, red beaded necklace-JC Penney

Day 6: Blue dress-Dillard's with gold bird necklace- Forever 21, Grey heels- Off Broadway Shoes, and Tote-Paperchase, gift from mom

What I've learned: 

1. I'm really itching to buy more accessories. Not really shoes, though I always want to buy those, but jewelry and bags. I have my fair share, but I tend to go back to my favorites because they work so well with everything. 

2. This is easier than I thought... so far. I probably could have done the shoes if I hadn't included tights and tanks. I've used four in the first six days, and these are the shoes that I tend to wear the most, so we'll see how the remaining 24 days go! 

3. I need more pattern in my life. I don't know whether I've mentioned this on my blog before but... I once won a contest to do a $500 shopping spree with Clinton Kelly at a local Macy's store. He taught me to make an outfit, you should always include color, texture, pattern and shine. There is indeed a bit of all four of those in each of my outfits- but I'd like to make pattern more obvious.

4. I remembered to start including my purse on day 6. I'll be better at this from now on.

Today's the Day...

Yeah yeah, bet you thought I was going to say something about Valentine's Day. Well, Sean did manage to surprise me this morning even though he had to improvise because I told him I was going to go swim this morning and then I decided to sleep in instead. He's getting really good at that improvising thing- I was definitely still surprised, and he gave me a wonderful gift with some pretty pink tulips. He gets to wait til dinner tonight for my gift to him :) Anyway, what this post is really about is wedding dresses.

Anthropologie wedding dresses to be exact.

Their newest line, called Bhldn (pronounced Beholden. In my opinion, they should just include the vowels so no one has to explain it when they're writing about it but...) includes wedding gowns, hair accessories, lingerie, boleros, shoes, dresses, and accessories.

I'm breathing a total sigh of relief right now, as I debated waiting until this day to purchase a wedding gown. So far the only dress that could match up to the one I did purchase back in September (which I should be getting a call about in the next month!) is the very top image. However, it's about twice the price I paid for mine so I don't feel so bad! Plus I was definitely looking for a long gown. Sigh with me now.

Although I wouldn't choose any of these gowns over my own, I can't wait to see the brides that do wear them. And for the 'maids- there's some really unique options as well! Or maybe a rehearsal dinner dress? Hmm... I haven't found one of those just yet...

I will never be able to bring myself to spend so much money on shoes, but they've got an adorable collection. Like these:

Really, stop screaming my name. I'm much to frugal to ever actually purchase you.

Of course they also carry plenty of belts and jewelry and headbands and pretty little purses. And veils. Oh how I love dotted voile...

Clearly I can't fit the entire shop into one blog post, so you should go visit Bhldn to see the rest.

BTW, if you're any website other than Anthropologie and you want to get blogged about more, you should totally follow their lead and A. have the "download image" feature and B. have the "flow player" feature. Everyone wants to know how their wedding gown will twirl.

30 for 30

I've been chatting with a few friends lately about how we enjoy the "30 for 30" posts we see at some of our favorite blogs. Though it's kind of an awkward time of year in Missouri to take on such a challenge, we're totally up for it!

The rules:
> 30 items of clothing
> 30 different outfits
> 30 different days
> no new purchases
> items of clothing do not include coats, undies, jewelry, handbags, belts, other accessories or shoes (we're doing this because the seasons this time of year in Missouri are totally unpredictable; many 30 for 30 bloggers do count shoes and I probably will if I try this again in the summer!)
>Pants, shirts, skirts, dresses, blazers, blouses, tanks and leggings DO count
>Post outfits on our blogs to share. I plan on doing a weekly post, so check back around this time each week!

The point:
>Working with what we've got; this is especially handy right now as I'm trying to save for a lot instead of spending on clothing!
>Creativity
>Being aware of what we have versus what we need; the fun of figuring out outfits we never knew existed in our own closets
>A much needed self-esteem boost. This time of year I get so tired of being cold I tend to give up on how I look. Taking photos of my outfits everyday to share with you means I'll put in the effort to look good!
>Something new that I've not really shared with you before... fashion!
>One last hurrah as this lady leaves St. Louis for her new job... we're oh so conveniently starting this challenge 30 days from her last day of work.

The picks:

One vest (Target), one blazer (Forever 21)

Three blouses (Old Navy-white, Target-gold, H & M-champagne)

Six cardigans (clockwise from top left: Old Navy, Gap, Target, Target, Target, Old Navy)

Two dresses (left to right: Jessica Howard, Jones New York)

Five pants (left to right, Old Navy, Banana Republic, American Eagle, Gap, Gap)

Three skirts (left to right: handmade, Ann Taylor Loft, thrifted)

Three tanks (left to right: Target, Target, TJ Maxx)

Three long-sleeve tees (H & M, Target, Target)

Not pictured: Black leggings, tan textured leggings, and floral leggings. Leggings just look weird when they aren't on a body, so I spared you the photo.

Things I've already learned:
>It's no surprise to me that much of my wardrobe comes from Target but wow, can they get a frequent shopper card?
>I wear/buy a lot of neutrals. They're safe. I seem to like myself in purple and blue shades as well. We'll just have to see how accessories can spice everything up!
>I have a lot more clothing than I thought I did, and lots of it I rarely wear. I clean out my closet (5-6 items) about every 5-6 months, but I have a feeling this will give me a good reason to want to do that more often. Or the opposite. We'll find out.

Want to participate? I'd love to share your challenge with my readers as well! Send me your blog info and I'll add it to my 30 for 30 page.

Mama Z... and Dresses

Here's some top contenders... None of which are the correct color, but can be ordered in what we're looking for:

We both apologize for the obstructive undershirt, but she couldn't help it. Her surgeon probably would have been angry to find us trying dresses on in the first place, due to this:

For each of the longer ones, we would end up chopping them off at the knee. I think our family is really just built for knee length over floor length (which doesn't stop me from wearing a floor length wedding gown, don't worry.) My mom is also 6' tall so that whole "we're gonna charge you for extra length" issue is part of the deciding factor. No need to hide great legs when you got 'em, right?

I've already made my decision... which dress would you choose for my mom?

The Yellow Dress

I finally had a chance to take some photos of that yellow vintage dress I acquired by fate. I have to admit, though, after trying it on, that I

a. need to get an appropriate slip for said yellow dress (and not wear blue undies!) and

b. have to, as suspected, take in the seams on the bodice. Story of my life.

Here 'tis!

I have the top clipped in the images since the dressform is my size, just so you can get a better idea of how it will look once I figure out how to take in that organza at the top...

and a closeup of that beautiful embroidered applique:

I realized when I was putting it on the dressform that it has loops for a belt at the waist, but it didn't come with one! Thank goodness I've been building my collection lately, so I'm sure I have something that will work just fine. Adding this one to the pile of "needs alterations" in my studio...