Ice Queen Crown

For Halloween, I decided to dress up as an ice queen. To top it all off, I made a crown with some wire, lavender, rhinestones, and hot glue.

To make the crown, I twisted wire into a circle that was a little bit big when resting on my head. I bent little pieces of wire to make triangular points, and I also glued sprigs of dried lavender on. Along the bottom, I glued some grey rhinestones into place.

 

Wishing you a spooky and icy Halloween.
<3 Mandy

Dried Lavender Pouch

My roommate went on a run and brought back a handful of lavender. We put it in a vase to double up as a table setting and air freshener. While it is pretty and smells nice, however, sprinkles of dried petals always fall onto the table and get into everything.

I filled the fallen petals into an empty fabric tea bag I washed out to make a mini pouch. I sewed it closed with a bit of colored thread. It smells really nice, and I don't have to worry about cleaning up fallen bits.

This pouch is perfect to throw into a sock drawer or to freshen up smelly shoes.

<3 Mandy

Capri Sun and Duct Tape Wallets

To have a crafty wallet to go with my chip bag purses, I decided to make a couple of wallets.
First, I made a duct tape wallet with a pretty teal color, and with alien print piping around the edges. It is really simple, with a couple card slots and, of course, a money pocket.

 

Using 6 recycled Capri Sun bags, I cut and sewed them (using a machine) to make a wallet out of them. Following are the steps I took in making the wallet:

Though I don't drink Capri Sun, if I collect enough from my friends, maybe I can work my way up to making a backpack! 

EDIT (06/14/2015): This is what it looks like to collect and wash a bunch of juice pouches.

 <3 Mandy

Doxie Necklace/Brooch

I love having cute little decorative elements in my wardrobe, especially when they are handmade crafts. Using a template I found online, I made a little stuffed doxie (dachshund) that can be worn as a necklace with a ribbon, or as a brooch with a safety pin.

With a bit of floral fabric, I cut out the pieces from the template and sewed them together, inside out.

I stuffed the dog and embroidered on eyes and a nose.

<3 Mandy

Hair Bows & Fabric Flowers

I sometimes like to add something to my hair, other than a simple hair tie or bobby pin. With some fabric and felt, I created some barrettes as hair accessories.

Back in 2009, I especially loved drawing flowers. I decided to turn one of my drawings into a real, three-dimensional piece - a flower for my hair. With some fabric scraps and a bit of felt, I improvised my way into a flower. I added little embroidered stitches, and as a finishing touch, some beads hanging from the center (with embroidery floss) to act as the stamen.

Using felt in different colors, as well as some beads and embroidered detail, I made two more flowers.

I recently bought a pack of barrettes and was inspired to make more clips for my hair.
With some large scraps of fabric that I cut into rectangles, I folded and sewed them to resemble bows.

 

 

 

Using gold glitter glue, I simply spread a few coats onto a thin rectangular strip of felt, which I sewed onto a barrette. I made two glittery rectangles to have a pair of simple gold clips.

 

Now I have fun ways to incorporate pieces I make into my daily wardrobe.
<3 Mandy