Kanga skirt with stretchy yoga waistband tutorial

What you will need:

A kanga – Kangas are a piece of African cloth, 150cm wide by 100cm, but any woven cotton fabric will work just the same. 

Patchwork Bookmark Tutorial

What to do with lots of little fabric scraps? Turn them into a cute patchwork bookmark! This would be a cute gift to pop inside a card for an avid reader, or just to keep for yourself. Here’s mine, which will soon be available for sale along with some others in my madeit.com.au shop, and here’s how I made it.

My new banner using GIMP, and how I did it

Yesterday I spent some time creating a new banner for my madeit.com.au shop using GIMP. It was quite simple, I used a photo of my fabric and added text to create a very simple but colourful header for my store. It’s a bit ‘fresher’ than the one I had previously, so I’ve added it to my blog as well. GIMP is a free photo processing software which can be downloaded here. 

I usually have trouble getting the sizing right, but with this software it was so easy. Here is how I did it (I use windows):

Open GIMP, Click ‘File’, then ‘New’, and there you can select your image size. Click OK

Next, open your Pictures folder which contains the image you want to use. Drag this image into GIMP.

Select the ‘move’ tool in the GIMP toolbox (a cross with four arrows). This will allow you to drag the image around, so that the preferred section of your image is shown.

Then it’s time to add your text. Click the ‘A’ in the GIMP toolbox, then click on the image where you would like the text to go, and type your text. You can select your font, size, colour etc in the bottom section of the toolbox.

When you have your text in the right place, and you are happy with the way your banner looks, click ‘file’, then ‘save as’ and give it a name. Also you may have to change the file type to a jpeg before clicking save.

I hope that makes sense! Here is mine. Next thing I need to work out is how to give my text a shadow so that it stands out a little better against the pale section of my pic. 

Easy peasy fabric yoyo tutorial

I have been seeing cute little fabric yoyos everywhere lately, from hairclips and hats to t-shirt embellishments. I have heard that people used to make whole quilts out of them! I learnt to make them about ten years ago, and thought I’d share. They are so easy you don’t even know how to sew, and you don’t need a sewing machine. 

1. You need: a piece of fabric, something round (I used a tea cup which gives a pretty small yoyo), a pen, a pair of scissors, and needle and thread.

2. Trace around your round thing with a pen

3. Cut out your circle

4. Take your threaded needle, and tie a knot in one end. With the fabric the wrong side up, turn the edge over and straight stitch, turning the fabric edge down as you go. Try not to make the stitches too small, and it’s ok if they aren’t exactly even.

 

5. When you have stitched all the way around, take the thread and gently pull so that the fabric gathers and the hole closes. 

6. Tie both ends of thread together, then flatten out your yoyo.

And you’re done! You can do different sized yoyos and stack them (just stitch through the middle to keep them together), or stitch a button to the top to make a little flower like I did with this one. 

Simple Baby Bib Tutorial

This is (hopefully) an easy to follow tutorial on how to make a simple baby bib, a project suitable for a beginner. I’d love to hear if you try one out, they are fun and easy to make and so very useful. I decided to use a bib as my first tutorial post to coincide with a bib giveaway I am holding on my facebook page, which will be drawn on Tuesday 3rd May. Here is the link,  good luck! Otherwise, have fun making one if you give it a go, and don’t forget to let me know! 

What you’ll need: 

• a bib to use as a pattern
• two pieces of coordinating fabric a bit larger than your bib. I have used a printed cotton for the front and white flanelette for the back. 
• small square of Velcro
• scissors, pins, tailors chalk (or a pencil) and some matching thread

Step 1 – After ironing your fabric, place your bib on top of one of your fabric pieces. To make sure your bib will be symmetrical it is a good idea to fold your fabric in half first, also fold the bib in half and line up the bib fold with the fabric fold. Draw around the outline of the bib with tailors chalk or a pencil, leaving a 1cm gap all the way around for the seam allowance. 

Step 2 – cut out along the line you have just drawn.

Step 3 – Unfold your bib shaped peice and pin face down to the ‘right side’ of your top fabric. Right sides will be together.

Step 4 – Sew straight stitch almost all the way around, leaving an opening about 10 cm long on the side, as shown in the image above.

Step 5 – Turn inside out through the section you have left open on the side.

Step 6 – Iron the bib flat, making sure that the edges are turned in and even where you have left a gap.

Step 7 – Topstitch – Stitch all the way around the outside very close to the edge. I use the edge of the foot as a guide, and set the needle to the right hand side using the dial at the top of my machine to make sure it is even.

Step 8 – neaten the loose threads by tying a simple double knot and trimming close to the fabric

Step 9 – Pin the velcro tabs – one on the front, the other on the back.

Step 10 – Sew the velcro tabs on very close to the edges, then neaten as you just did with the topstitching.

Step 11 – There is no step 11, you have finished, and now have a very cute new bib!