I cannot remember for the life of me where i got those ugly trousers but i’m pretty sure I didn’t buy them.

I thought I’d keep them and use the fabric when an idea would come up. And ta-da! the idea came today. At school we are frequently asked to dress up our kids in fancy costumes depending on the historical topic they are studying. The last time we had to dress them up  was as Stuart people (no kidding!)…

Though isn’t it?  For girls it’s quite OK but for boys I had to rack my brain to finally just send him to school dressed in black. Although i did propose to make a full costume, when my son saw the tights and colerette he just went berserk “no way I’m wearing tights!!”.

For the next time i will be prepared: I turned those funny looking trousers into old fashion bloomers. They will cover from Stuart to Victorian time. Bob’s you’re uncle!

I started by cutting the legs off and kept the remaining fabric aside:

I then cut some strips out of the remaining fabric (approximately 3″ but i didn’t measure the length because I wasn’t quite sure how bog the leg hole would be)

I then sewn the strips on the long edge together:

I also sew a zig zag along the edge of the bottom legs of the culotte so that it won’t fray :

I then sewed a basting stitch by hand close to the edge and tightened the thread to gather the fabric:

Next sew your strip raw edge together like so:

the joining strips at the end is a tad tricky you need to sew it together and cut off the excess fabric:

and you need to turn the strip over and you are done!

I’m happy with the result. Next week stiff ruffle collar tutorial… (as  if!)

Maya’s tote bag tutorial:

My friend’s daughter Maya had a sewing machine for Xmas and is experiencing with it. I  thought it was just fabulous! So I decided to whip up a very quick and simple tote bag tutorial for her. I hope you find this easy to follow and if you have any questions just contact me!

First you’ll need: outer fabric (I used a strong upholstery one) inner fabric (plain cotton is OK), thread, scissors, fabric pen or plain pencil works too, pins, an iron and your sewing machine!

First start by cutting all your fabric bits:

From outer fabric cut 2 rectangles measuring 13 ½ “ X 15”

From inner fabric cut 2 rectangles measuring 13 ½ “ X 15”

From outer fabric cut a square measuring 7 ½ X 7 ½ “ (this will be the pocket inside the bag)

From outer fabric cut two long strips measuring 4” X 26” (these will be the straps)

Then take all your fabric bits to the ironing table:

On the outer fabric fold the top edge (smaller edge) ½ “ from the edge and press with iron

Fold again and press with iron.  Repeat on the other rectangle.

On the inner fabric fold the smaller edge ½ “ from the edge and press with iron, fold again and press. Repeat for the other inner fabric rectangle.

On the small outer fabric square, fold three edges ½ “ away from edge and press with iron.

Now on the last edge you need to fold once ½ “ away from edge and press.

Fold it again on itself and press. This will be the opening of your pocket.

For the strips you have to fold ½ “ away from the longest edge, press with iron and repeat on the other side.

Now fold it in half and press again. Repeat for the other strip.

Now move on to your sewing machine:

Take the pocket fabric and sew just the top of the pocket, I sewed it twice to make it more secure.

Pin the pocket on the inner fabric that way:

And sew ½ “ away from the edge but not on the top edge!!

With right side facing, pin the inner fabrics together and sew all the way round but not the top edge!

Next sew the handles together on one side and top stitch on the other side, repeat for the other handle.

Moving on to the outer fabric rectangles: with right sides facing each other, pin the fabrics together and sew  ½ “ away from edge (again!).

Make sure you sew a couple of backwards stitches when you start and finish to make the bag a tad stronger.

You now need to clip the corners of your outer bag (careful not to cut too close to the sewing) and turn it right side out.

It’s starting to look like something right?

Insert your inner bag into the outer bag like so:

Now that’s the tricky bit: you need to pin the two bags together on the top edge while inserting the handles.

Start by pining the two bags on the seams on the side:

Then pin in the middle and insert the handles :

Pin them:

You can now start sewing let’s see… ½ “ away from the edge! In the inside of the bag. (make sure you back stitch a couple of time  on the handle to make it more secure)

Turn it and sew again (on right side of bag)  ½ “ away from the previous seam:

You are now finished!! Yeah well done!

I decided to decorate mine with a fabric flower and a button. But you can do what you want: sew button on, or felt flowers… let your imagination run wild! or leave it as it is depending on the fabric you used!

(if you’re interested as to how I made the flower let me know and i will post a tutorial!)

I haven’t been posting much lately, but I have been busy with family life and work. I have also been busy sewing a little girl’s quilt for my friend’s daughter. I used that jelly roll to make a small lap quilt.

I sew 4 stripes of the same shade together and cut some 8 ½ “ blocks.

I then cut some 2 ½” X 8 ½” white stripes and sew them between the stripy blocks:

In between the rows I sew a 2 ½”X 38” white stripe.

I then sew on the borders, sandwiched it and binded it. Et voila!

I left a part of the binding white because I am going to embroiderie her name. As you can see i haven’t finished the binding entirely hence the loose piece of threads… will get to that soon. I have really enjoyed the hand sewing stitching a heart in each box and framing it with straight lines:

I also have been looking for a great jelly roll pattern online so I can at last get on with my sister’s quilt and I found one on the fat quarter shop web site where they have section full of free patterns. Nice! I chose to follow the “Super zig” quilt pattern from Leicen fabrics

using this red jelly roll instead of fat quarters so I need to recalculate the dimensions. I cannot wait to get started, I’ll let you know how I get on!

I have finally received my little woven labels with my name, web address and Quiltylicious sewn on it!

They look fab , I have already sewn a couple on some quilts and I have to say it makes the quilts look finished and pro! (Although I’m far from being one!!)

So I’m going to be busy making my sister’s quilt and in between I’ll pop in a few tutorials!