Thrifty Tuesday - Infinity Tube Scarf Tutorial

Have you seen these Infinity Scarves? They're apparently really popular right now. My sister sent me a link to one and asked if I would make one, or two, or three, or...I'm sure she'll keep bringing fabric over and asking for more. Perhaps she'll read this tutorial and start making them herself!

Note: No matter how much this looks like me, I swear it is my sister.

These are actually extremely easy to make. So easy that it's really a waste of money to go out and buy one. Want to know how to make it? It only takes 2 straight stitches!!

Buy 1.5 to 2 yards of 40 inch wide fabric. Check the clearance section, you never know what great things can be found there! Cut in half the entire length of fabric (it will be 20 inches wide). This will actually make 2 scarves. If you don't mind an extra seam, you can buy 1 yard and sew the two pieces together to create a 2 yard strip.

Fold the fabric in half lengthwise, right sides together. You should have a strip of fabric that is now 1.5 to 2 yards long that is folded to be 10 inches wide. Pin and stitch along the long side. I give myself a typical 5/8inch seam allowance.

Turn the scarf right side out. The seam you made is now on the inside. Take both open ends of your tube and pin right sides together. You will NOT be able to pin the entire way around.

Stitch along the pinned edge. Once again, you will not be able to stitch the entire way around.

Push this stitched edge into the scarf. You will be left with a small opening. Hand stitch this closed.

You now have an Infinity Tube Scarf for a fraction of the cost!

You can even wear it as hood! Note: This is a different fabric from the first Infinity Scarf that I made.

Also my sister, not me.

Jack Danielle The Ripper

I'm all about taking things that would be deemed useless and giving them new life. Why throw something out or keep it in the back of a closet when it could be fixed or altered in some way?

Sometimes it only requires taking out a seam ripper! I don't know about you, but taking out a seam ripper is much easier than dragging out my sewing machine, filling a bobbin, threading the needle, and finding a way to amuse a very curious two year old.

I recently received several hand-me-downs for Thérèse. She now has some of the most adorable clothing! You should have seen me looking through bags, it felt like Christmas! Anyway, I pulled out this one dress that I absolutely fell in love with, then I noticed it. Across the front it read "Flirt." I don't know about you, but I'm hoping to keep my little girl from being labeled as a "flirt" for as long as possible (if not forever). So...out came the seam ripper! And now, we have the most perfect dress that I am very excited for my little girlie to wear.
After a day of wearing this "new" dress, I discovered that one of the snaps didn't hold properly. My mother-in-law suggested taking a hammer to it. I have to admit that I was extremely skeptical, but what else was I to do? Boy was I excited when it actually worked!! If you have a snap that isn't working correctly, hammer the knobby side, you'll be happy you did!

A few days ago, Hubby was running around trying to leave for work and somehow he got the pocket of his dress shirt stuck and ripped a hole in it. I looked at it and there was no way for me to salvage the pocket and still have it look professional. So...out came the seam ripper! He now has a pocketless dress shirt, but who really needs a pocket anyway?

What do you have laying around the house that could be used again with the help of a seam ripper??

Homemade Moby Wrap

With the arrival of our new little girl, Thérèse, I have been having fun finding new ways to carry a newborn. I didn't really get into baby-wearing with Peter until he was a few months old, so this has been an exciting adventure!

I started off using a pouch sling and a ring sling. They worked well, but definitely haven't been my ideal solution. I then decided to venture into trying out something like a Moby Wrap. The only downfall was the price: $40! With my crazy money saving ways, I headed to the fabric store.

After plenty of searching, I found the perfect 100% cotton jersey knit fabric! A wonderful tan (a nice neutral color) with sparkles throughout!! Yes, sparkles. Every girl needs a little extra flair and sparkles always do the trick! The best part of my beautiful fabric, it was in the clearance section and I was able to buy enough fabric to make two new wraps for only $7.50 each!!

So how do you make this wonderful wrap? Well, it doesn't even have to include sewing! Does it get any easier than that?

You'll need:

• Any jersey knit fabric (t-shirt material). I prefer 100% cotton as it breathes better than anything with polyester. You'll need 5-6 yards depending on your size (I'm an average size and went with 5.5 yards).

     
Most fabric comes in a 45" width, but you'll only need half of this width for your wrap. Cut down the entire length of the fabric. VOILA! You're done. Yes, it was that easy. You now have a new wrap for yourself and for a friend! Or one for the car and another for the diaper bag.

To finish your wrap further, you can hem the sides (although knit doesn't fray, so it isn't really necessary). I haven't done so yet, but I'm planning on tapering the ends of my fabric. This will help with tying the final knot when wearing the wrap (although this also isn't necessary).

How to wear your new wrap: Wearing Instructions

Homemade Rags

So I know that rags are supposed to be just that, rags. But who really gets motivated to clean when you have a huge pile of cut up old t-shirts? Definitely not me.

Over at Joyful Hope Gift Shop they sell the most beautiful bedspreads. They're second quality, so there's some minor imperfection, but you save a TON of money because of it. Our bedspread is from there and the only imperfection is that it was dyed in a slightly wrong color. Anyway, when these bedspreads are made, the ends of the fabric are cut off. At Joyful Hope, you can also buy these remnants! I have found these to be the most amazing rags.

I recently bought a bunch of remnants for only $2 and cut them down to rag size. I ended up with about 20 new rags!! Since they do tend to fray, I had Hubby (yes, Hubby) sew a zig-zag around all of the edges. After a little bit of Sewing 101, he can now sew an impressively straight line, fill a bobbin, and thread my sewing machine!

Now if only I hadn't already gone through my nesting phase and scrubbed my house from top to bottom. With a 2 year old, I'm sure it won't take long before they come in very handy!

My New Ring Sling!

Awhile back, Hubby banned me from buying more carriers to wear my babies. He didn't however ban me from buying fabric (although he probably will once he reads this post)! Which is how my adventure of sewing baby carriers began.

Several months ago, I was at our local surplus and salvage store and found a beautiful 100% organic cotton for only $2.99 a yard!! I grabbed it with the intention of eventually making a ring sling out of it. Months later, I finally sat down and worked on it.

I have a Maya Wrap that I absolutely love for wearing itty-bitty babies, they're great for nursing, sleeping, and they support them really well! The one that I have is a darker color that doesn't work well in the heat of the summer, so I've been determined to make a new one. On their site, I conveniently found a pattern to make their slings!!

After ordering some rings, I quickly got to work and succeeded in making myself a new ring sling!

I ended up paying about $12 for fabric and rings for my sling. If I had purchased an organic sling from the company, it would have cost $95! For only a few hours of work (mostly spent fending off a very curious two year old) it saved me an awful lot of money. Perhaps that's why Hubby hasn't banned me from buying fabric...

Disclaimer: I tried to get Peter to model the sling with me, but since he hasn't been in one for awhile he was constantly yelling "uck! uck!" (translation: stuck). I instead resorted to using one of his stuffed animals.

Pouch Slings

The sling for my Godson

I have recently begun an adventure of sewing my own pouch slings. My first attempts have been very successful including one for a friend and her baby (my soon to be born Godson).

With this new found enjoyment, I have been contemplating making and selling them. There are many slings out there, but this one is small enough for my purse and therefore very useful for on the go baby-wearing. I am also looking forward to using it with a newborn as it cradles a baby very well.

Peter showing off Mommy's sling

Now is where you come in. I have found many beautiful fabrics and prints online but have not yet purchased them in fear of an endeavor that may or may not succeed. Would you purchase a pouch sling for yourself or for someone you know? Do you think I'm crazy? Let me know all of your thoughts!