Monday, March 30, 2015

Mama Snow and Young Emma

We got a couple of new costumes this week in a flashback/vision sequence. 

(Screenshots taken by me from Once Upon a Time 4.17 - "Best Laid Plans")


First off is another Snow White woods outfit, with an interesting chevron print and some nice center detail.


She and Charming do love their big fur collars, don't they?


Super exciting was getting another look at what Emma would have worn as a princess - this time with her teenaged self! Pink seems a super weird color on her, but the dress itself is gorgeous!



Love love love the soft gold embellishments!

Thursday, March 26, 2015

Notebooks with Style

I don't know about you, but I am forever going into Target and drooling over notebooks that are way overpriced just because they have some absolutely gorgeous designs on the cover. Occasionally I even buy one.

But what am I to do with all the other notebooks, especially the ones I got for free like this:


It's actually a pretty high quality notebook... it's just not pretty.


I decided to see how professional I could make a cover out of scrapbook paper.


I cut a piece of paper a bit larger than the cover and folded it around and taped it down. This one is smaller than it should be, due to the design.

Go at least a half inch larger on all sides or more as you can see on the second notebook above.

You could also glue it, but honestly tape worked just fine and I didn't have to wait for it to dry or press it to keep it from springing back up.


I did use a glue stick to stick the first page down over the tape and edges to cover them up and make it all look neat.


I repeated the process in the back, although due to the way the wire was bound, I couldn't just flip a page over, I had to cut it out of the book, as you can see above.


I worried that the scrapbook paper would not be a super durable cover, so I decided to coat it with some varnish (you can find at your local craft store). It did cause the paper to bubble a little bit, but most of the bubbles subsided as it dried.


I still had two edges and some spiral wire sticking out that looked kind of cheap, so I grabbed my box of leather scraps, found a piece that coordinated, and glued it down with tacky glue.

(You should be able to get a bag of leather scraps for craft projects at your local craft store)



I wanted to get a really tight smooth edge, so after pressing it down,..


 ...I used a ruler to keep the edge nice and straight and a heavy book to press it down tightly while it dried. I waited for one side to dry completely before doing the other, because I needed to close the book before gluing down the other side to ensure the leather wrapped all the way around.



They turned out even better than I expected! I'm actually rather bummed because I can't handwrite myself at the moment due to muscle problems... but these will make lovely gifts if I don't' just horde them for years...

All in all, a really cheap up-fashion for a freebie (or ugly) notebook. And with scrapbooking paper coming in every design imaginable, the possibilities are endless!

Monday, March 23, 2015

Young Ursula and Current Cruella


Hi. Please forgive the drool on my face. I just have been waiting so patiently for something original and gorgeous in the second half of season 4 and we finally got it. Ursula's character on the show might ultimately be disappointing, but her younger self has infinitely better fashion sense than her older self.

Her bodice and blouse are reminiscent of Belle's original blue dress, but have some very nice ocean-inspired embellishment, as well as really cute peplum petals. And that gold skirt? There are a lot of yards of tulle in that confection of a costume!

I've also been enjoying the current Storybrooke styles of Cruella.



I can't wait to see her flashback episode and find out just why she loves 1930's glam so much!

Wednesday, March 11, 2015

Fabric and Home Decor - Idea #1

I love decorating my home with fabric. Not only do I use curtains on my windows, I also find them more practical and pretty alternatives to closet doors. But you don't need a window or a doorway to decorate with fabric, and when looking at ideas for decorating the apartment bedroom, I came across some really lovely combinations of lights and drapery on pinterest.


As you can see, the bedroom needs some flair.


I whipped up some very simple voile curtains. I didn't even bother to pin the hem allowances, it was a straight edge with a non-stretchy fabric, so I just used my adjustable elastic guide on my machine to freehand the seams.


Then I played around with how to arrange the top drape. Originally I wanted to make it more canopy like, but our ceiling fan just made that look weird. So I settled for this.


The original plan involved Japanese lanterns. We duly went out and got all the stuff... but a) the lanterns were too big, and b) the bulbs (from IKEA so not easily swapped out) were WAY too bright. *sigh*


HOWEVER. Target had a string of little Japanese lanterns on clearance, and with my RED card I could get free shipping. HUZZAH! Decor saved! It adds lovely texture to the wall without distracting from the rich red and beaded embroidery of the comforter.

Thursday, March 5, 2015

If Vintage Patterns had Captions...

...here's what they might say (according to McCallsPatternBehavior on tumblr). Take a break from sewing and have some laughs, fellow seamstresses!* I did! (During a very short break. Busy day at the workshop! Can you believe it is already March? Those deadlines, they're a comin'!

*Warning. Some language. It's tumblr. Do we still give language warnings if it's tumblr? Cuz, you know, that reputation...