Easy Embroidered Coaster and Friday Favorites Linky Party Week 564

It seems like I am always cleaning little drips of soap or water that collect under and around the soap dispenser. 

I whipped up a couple of quick cloth coasters to catch the soap dispenser drips so I can swap them out when I need to toss the dirty one into the wash. I also took the opportunity to try out the embroidery features on my new sewing machine.

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The construction is very simple. After embroidering my design on the top piece of fabric, I traced a round object onto the top, middle terry cloth layer, and bottom fabrics and cut them out. Next, I made a top, middle layer, and bottom fabric sandwich and sewed it together with bias tape. 

I showed you my project, now you show me yours!

Quick and Easy DIY Sleep Mask Gift Idea and Friday Favorites Linky Party 553

The time change is this weekend. No matter how well I think I close my bedroom curtains, the early morning sunlight shoots through the curtains like a laser bean and directly into my eyes waking me up hours before my alarm is set to go off.  I fight back by wearing a cute handmade sleep mask at night to thwart Mother Nature's attempts at shortening a good night's sleep.

I make sleep masks out of super soft flannel which is nice on the eyes. I've also made sleep masks from scrap cotton fabric that are comfortable to wear during the summer because they aren't hot like the unbreathable silky masks sold in stores. Sometimes I embellish them with embroidery. Most often I leave them plain to show off the fabric. 

If you are looking for quick and easy handmade holiday gift ideas, follow my simple how to make a sleep mask tutorial here and make them for yourself or someone you love!

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How to Make Comfortable Padded Headphone Covers

I found a set of headphones with a microphone I forgot I had in that random box of cords you’re supposed to have when you hit 30. The foam ear covers where deteriorated but the microphone windscreen was fine. What good luck I thought! I don’t have to by a new pair! I used them for my next Zoom meeting. 

Of which, the last half an hour was the longest of my life because the bare headphones hurt my ears. OW!

 

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I  went into my craft studio, gathered materials, popped on an audiobook (I use Audible. You can Try Audible and Get Two FREE Audiobooks here,) and started to play. In the end I had new cute and comfortable ear covers for my headphones. (Disclosure: I am including affiliate links in this post for your convenience.)

 

Let’ do this!

How to Make Replacement Headphone Covers

How to Sew a Skeleton Skirt with POCKETS

I plunked a bolt of skeleton print fabric on the store’s cutting table.

 

Fabric cutting lady: what are you making?

Me: A skirt

Fabric cutting lady: Oh! Are you getting ready for Halloween early?

Me: No. Just making something fun to wear for every day.

Fabric cutting lady: (Gives me a blank stare because she doesn’t know what to do with this information and says nothing. This isn’t the first time I’ve gotten this response from her about one of my weirdo projects.)

 

That doesn’t matter because I made a cute, twirly dirndl skirt that has pockets!
 

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And you know what?

 You can make one too!

How to Make a Halloween Mini Tote Bag

I bought a Halloween themed color your own mini tote bag kit (similar to the color your own tote bag kits here) thinking it might be a cute to hold allergy free Teal Pumpkin project treats during Trick or Treat. (Disclosure: I am including affiliate links in this post for you convenience.) 

I wasn’t too jazzed with the colors or quality of the three markers that came in the kit which I expected since it came from a dollar store. No big deal. I planned on coloring it with craft paint and adding a few easy embroidered accents and outlines for fun.

 

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How to Make Button Hair Ties

My hair is growing out and is now long enough to put up into a proper ponytail as long as I use these exact Goody no slip hair elastics because for the first time in my life I haven't had to use a ton of clips, barrettes, bobby pins, and a gallon of hairspray to hold flyaways when I put my hair up. It's a miracle! (Disclosure: I am including affiliate links for your convenience.) I've tried other hair ties that claim to be for sports or no slip and they often slip out of my hair or slip enough that I have fly aways mid day. The same goes for the thin hair ties that look like this that I used as a teen. Bleah. I think they are better put to use around my thread spools and bobbins in sewing room to keep them from unwinding.

So while the no slip Goody hair elastics work fantastic, they are super thick and don't look as cute or subtle. Yeah I could hide the pony hair tie with a ribbon or barrette but it’s been so long that I’ve had hair long enough to use them, I really don’t have any. Besides, I’d like the option of wearing something a little more sleek when I have to be a grown up.

 Let's make a hair elastic cover up with buttons!

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Most of the buttons in this tutorial are vintage buttons from my Grandmother’s button box. I also made a button pony tail holder from a large flat button to see if it would work. It did! 

You will need:

How to Make an Insulated Growler Caddy

My husband and I have a couple of glass growlers for those times we want to bring home a local craft beer from a brewpub that doesn’t put it in cans or bottles. We only tend to use them when there is a BBQ or party where a group of friends will be there to help us drink a little under 2 liters of beer (an open growler goes flat more quickly than a 2 liter of pop) over the course of a long afternoon into the evening with a bonfire. In other words, not very often.

No to mention in Ohio to go growlers have to be made of glass, which are hard to keep cold and carry if you are also juggling pot luck food as you walk from your car to the party spot. There are a lot of wood growler caddies out there but I really want something insulated. That way I can also use the growler as a water jug to refill our sports bottles  from the car when we are out and about.

When I can’t buy, I DIY! I dove into my fabric stash, grabbed some leftover corsetry fabric,  and sewed an insulated growler caddy. If you are looking for a handmade gift idea for men, based on my husband's reaction, this is a good one.  He liked the idea so much that he encouraged me to make a second insulated tote bag for the other growler.

Let’s sew!

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How to Make an Insulated Beer Growler Tote

20 New Sewing Tips, Tricks, and Hacks for Beginners to Professionals!

The first thing I ever sewed was a pair of potholders for my Kindergarten teacher’s Christmas gift and I’ve been sewing in one way or another ever since. I’ve picked up a lot of tips and tricks along the way through formal classes, fellow sewists, and the good ol’ trial and error (and error and error) and I’m pretty good at it. Or at least good enough that other people pay me to sew things for them from time to time.

Lately I’ve been fielding questions from folks who are breaking out their old sewing machines after a long hiatus – a quarantine will do that, you know. I’ve also been brushing up on new sewing hacks from fellow sewing and costuming friends as we dive into sewing cloth face masks for our family and friends. I figure it is my turn to share what I know to help you make your sewing projects go a little easier, a little quicker, or allow you to make that one little unexpected tweak that takes your sewing project from OK to Wow!

 

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20 Sewing Hacks That Will Make Your Life Easier!

How to Sharpen Scissors and Rotary Cutting Blades at Home

There is nothing like cutting fabric with a pair of sharp scissors or better, yet a rotary cutter.

Unfortunately using them to cut fabric also dulls the blades on your scissors and rotary cutter. Have you tried to cut fabric with dull scissors? It’s more like chewing fabric than making nice, crisp, clean cuts.

As a kid, I vaguely remember fabric stores holding fabric scissor sharpening events to draw shoppers to the store. In all honesty, I’ve never heard of one now that I’m an adult with a drawer full of dull fabric cutting tools and blades that need a little sharpening love.

What to do?

Easy! You can sharpen scissors and rotary cutting tools yourself!

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How to Sharpen Fabric Scissors and Rotary Cutting Blades the Easy Way!

8 Reusable Cloth Face Mask Tutorials

When I visited Japan it wasn’t uncommon to see people wearing a simple face mask when out and about because in Japan (and other Asian cultures) when you are sick with the cold or flu. In Japan it is polite to wear a mask when you are sick and  out in public so you don’t accidentally pass it on to anyone else around you. That is something I wish we had in American culture (how many times has someone given you their cold because they weren’t wearing a simple face mask?)  but I really hate that we have to go through a deadly global pandemic to adopt it.

As of April 7, 2020 the United State Centers for Disease Control (and well as the Governor of Ohio) recommends that everyone wear a cloth face covering when out in public. The idea behind wearing a face mask in public is not what a someone yelled at me for falling for “pandemic panic” or a “false sense of security.” My reply was just as less than kind because I'm battling an allergy related sinus infection that never seems to end and don't want to pass this misery to anyone else (unlikely but I get horror looks when I sneeze with and without the mask.)

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The idea is that by wearing  even a simple, non medical grade cloth face mask when you are in public is so you may be less likely to unknowingly pass a virus to someone else when you aren’t showing symptoms and don’t know that you are sick. This precaution leaves the medical grade and N95 filtering face masks and respirators to our front line COVID 19 heroes who need to be protected from known viruses in the air around them in a front line setting. 

How to Sew a Reusable Cloth Face Mask

How to Make a Teapot Cozy

Sometimes when I want to drink more than one cup of tea on a leisurely afternoon, I’ll make it in a teapot. Unfortunately, leisurely drinking the tea in my cup usually means the  tea in the pot turns cold by the time I’m ready for a refill.

Which pretty much negates the reason for making a small pot of tea.

The solution is to put an insulated tea pot warmer on my hot little pot to keep the tea inside it nice and warm as I slowly sip the day away...

Oh, who I am I kidding? I’m usually sewing and forget I made the pot of tea that is sitting on a table across from my sewing machine until hours later.

Either way, a tea cozy is a super simple sewing project to make and is a fantastic fabric stash bust project. I added machine embroidery from a file that came with my machine to get a little more practice in on hooping the embroidery fabric – easily the most tedious, difficult to get right, and important step in machine embroidery.

Let’ s make something!

How to Sew a Simple Tea Cozy

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How to Make a Jester Costume

One of the things I love about sewing costumes is the challenge and I try to do that with every jester dress I make. Normally I cut each piece of my sewing pattern out of a different color fabric to create a color block jester costume, I load it up with jingle bells, and I’m good to go with a costume that’s close to jester’s motley.

I need a new jester costume for renaissance festival and historical performances and when I want to dress to empress on Halloween.

This time, I went for the Crazy Person Challenge of sewing a jester costume with a homemade diamond pattern quilted fabric. I made new everything from the skin out:bloomers, hoop skirt, skirt, bodice, and hat. This project took four months to complete.

Which just goes to show you I don’t just play a fool on weekends, it’s more of a 24/7 lifestyle. I’ve never quilted before and after this project I may never quilt again!

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Photos by Jay Robinson and Checkmate Photography

How to Make a Female Renaissance Jester Costume

Costume Sewing Bee

My renaissance festival performer friends and I recently got together for a sewing bee of sorts. We all have slightly different costuming, prop making, and sewing skill sets which is a fantastic resource when you aren’t quite sure how to make the item you’ve drafted on paper or, like me, its been awhile since you’ve built a particular garment and a second pair of eyes would be massively helpful before you cut fabric incorrectly and hope the store has more.

Or is that just me?

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For one glorious afternoon we turned a condo clubhouse into a dressmaking workshop just like in the movie Cinderella but without the birds and mice helping with construction.

But let me tell you I totally would have taken Fairy Godmother’s help with her wand. Just sayin’.

The Everything Guide to Sewing Jersey Knit Sleep Shorts

I need a new pair of summer pajamas for a marching band trip. A cute pair of sleep shorts fits the bill since I will be sharing my hotel room with roommates. An easy thing to buy, right?

Well not if I want a pair of pajama shorts that are long enough to cover my but, otherwise I risk a sleep wedgie. Have you ever been woken up by a sleep short creeper? Trust me, you don't want to if you can help it.

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DIY Music Summer Pajama Shorts

How to Make a Hanging Mittens, Gloves, and Hat Closet Organizer – Winter Gear Storage Made Simple!

My coat closet is a big, hot, disorganized mess! Hats, gloves, mittens, and scarves play hide and seek way too often. I can’t tell you how many times I took Lacey outside wearing non matching gloves because I couldn’t find a pair in the hall closet.

Disorganized coat closet BEFORE

I am not proud of this

I resisted organizing our hats and gloves using a hanging shoe organizer on the back of the closet door for many years because the pockets aren’t large enough to store scarves (hand knitted courtesy of my mother in law. Thanks Mom!) and they rip easily with heavy use.

The solution was to sew my own custom hanging closet winter hat, glove, and mitten organizer. If you can sew a straight line, you can make this project. It only looks complicated but it is not. I promise!

How to Sew a Closet Door Pocket Organizer

The 15 Best DIY and Green Living Ideas You Need to Try Right Now!

We’re celebrating the New Year by taking a look back at some of our favorite Condo Blues DIY projects for 2017.

From the looks of it, there are a bunch of you who like to garden but hating watering plant and  like to decorate and make things with recycled materials and add green home improvements to our homes, myself included!

Pin this post for later and to share with your friends!

Elizabethan Noble Woman Costume Part 4 – Makeover Reveal

Last year I made an Elizabethan noble dress to wear while performing at renaissance festivals that was an utter train wreck. It was my first machine embroidery project, the fit of the bodice was off, and in an attempt to glam it up  I think my dress looks more like a costume than my goal of period clothing.

No one said anything to me one way or the other about the issues I have with this dress.  I would never, ever point out any of these issues on a patron or fellow performer’s clothing  Many of these things bug me and me alone and I admit I’m shallow enough to let it affect my performance.

Extreme Renaissance Festival Costume Makeover

You could say the Tudors are the originals when it comes to clothing capsule collections because most of their clothing either tied or pinned together so they could mix and match sleeves, foreparts, bodices, stomachers etc.

My costuming focus this summer was making my husband a new embroidered Tudor doublet, breeches, and hat. In the interest of time, I remade and made over the items that didn’t work and kept or tweaked the pieces that do.

Elizabethan Doublet Costume Reveal!

My husband needed a new Elizabethan nobleman costume when he performs at renaissance festivals. It is a tricky business because the history geek in me wants to be as historically accurate as possible.

However unlike a living history museum, what we do is historical entertainment. Being outdoors in all temperatures and weather conditions means there are some liberties I have to take in the clothing design,  construction, and preferences of the guy wearing it. In other words, please don’t yell at me historical clothing purists. I know where I did not follow Elizabethan Sumptuary Laws (dress code.) Thank you.

I gave you a costume project sneak peak in Elizabethan Doublet Costume Work in Progress.  I cut the velvet front of the doublet trim larger than my pattern so I could hoop it and spent a 12 hour day doing nothing but embroidering the border design over and over holding my breath every time hoping everything will line up when I finished. Thank goodness it did!

Gold metallic thread would make the embroidery really sing. After a few frustrating test pieces I learned there is a finesse to machine embroidering with metallic thread that I do not have yet. That is a skill to learn for another day.

Elizabethan Doublet Costume Work in Progress

This time of year most folks are looking forward to their favorite fall holidays and pumpkin spice everything.

As much as I hate to see summer slowly transition into fall, it signals one of my favorite times of the year:

Costume Season!

I gave a tiny sneak peak of my latest costuming project on Instagram (follow me @condoblues on Instagram pretty please?) an Elizabethan doublet, breeches, and hat for my husband.  I'm machine embroidering all of the velvet trim like a crazy person.

Not bad for a beginner! #sewing #embroidery #embroideryart #heraldry #costume #crafts

A post shared by Lisa (@condoblues) on Aug 23, 2017 at 7:33am PDT

This eagle will appear on the back of the jacket, flanked by two embroidered flourishes. I bought the killer machine embroidery files from Urban Threads.

Easy DIY Three Pocket Zipper Coin Pouch

 I don’t like my wallet because the dividers and padding make it quite thick when it is empty and worse when I put dollar bills in it. Which is an issue because that’s what wallets are supposed to do – hold money.

I’ve been hunting for the perfect wallet off and on for quite awhile. Ideally, I want something the same size and thickness as a coin pouch. Alas, those I like don’t have slim interior pockets for my ID and debit cards.

 Keep reading to learn how to more pockets than you could ever hope to fill to a coin purse!