These shades look great don’t they?  I love them.  I use them in my kitchen and my bedroom to block out the heat from the sun.  But guess what.  They are completely see through.  Guess what else.  My kitchen AND BEDROOM face a main neighborhood road, and we don’t have a privacy fence.  What’s that you say?  That you knew these blinds were see through?  That I should have known that since I can see right through them to my yard during the day that I should expect the opposite to happen at night?  Well good for you for being so smart.  And I bet you only use them in non-private areas (like not your bedroom) too.

Well, smarty pants, I decided to devise a way to keep using my blinds, since I like them so much, without giving everyone who drives by a show.  For about 5 dollars I was able to buy enough muslin to cover the backs of all five of my shades making them completely private, but not much heavier.

In case you are also as dense as me and are now panicking over your shades, I’ll tell you what I did:

1. I removed the knot where the strings attach to the shade but was careful to study how the knot was tied so I could do it back later.  I unthreaded the strings but didn’t pull them all the way out of the pulleys and everything.

2. Working in about 4 inch strips I used A LOT of hot glue directly on the shade and then pressed the muslin to the shade with a tool…not my hand…cuz it’s hot.

3. I made sure to measure and cut holes for the loops to go through BEFORE I hot glued over them.

4. Then I rethreaded the strings and, rehung my shades, and ran around in my underwear for the rest of the night….which I guess isn’t different than any other night of the week, only this time all those people weren’t hanging around the backyard.

Among other things, I’m trying to redecorate my son and daughter’s room before I get too big to do anything. Part of the room design involves an animal art gallery, for which I am really geeking out over. My first plan was to buy prints on Etsy, but then when I realized how expensive that would be to buy and then frame all of them, I changed my mind to doing just canvases, and painting my own pictures. Then I remembered that I sort of have twin babies growing in my belly and making me hungry every hour and that painting 10 or more paintings would probably not be doable at this time. AND I get really tired of looking at my own art on the walls. So I decided to “commission” my friend’s daughters to do some paintings for me.

I have stretched my own canvases for fine art purposes which is easy and cheaper than buying one. But for kids to paint on I decided that a much cheaper and easier method would be to collect canvases from DI and white wash them.

I found mine for 2-5 dollars and gave them one coat of latex paint from my stash in the garage.

Here’s a TIP: Any texture from the existing painting will not go away unless you sand it, but for kids to paint on, or another type of craft project it should be fine.  A coat of latex paint will suffice. But if I were repurposing a canvas for a more fine art project (which I probably wouldn’t do, I would just stretch my own or buy new) I would sand the canvas and give it a few coats of Gesso.

For about 13 dollars I bought craft paint in white and black, the primary colors, as well as  brown and purple because they are a pain to mix. We spread ample drop clothes on the table, dressed the kids in old shirts, and let them at it!

The older girls had already planned out what they were going to do, because I had “commissioned” them to do so. But the little girls just painted, rather quickly, with A LOT of paint.

My son preferred just eating his.

I love the results! Kids have imaginations that are so unadulterated and I love seeing what comes out of them.  They are going to go very nicely in the animal art gallery, except for the boy,

who will serve as the only living part of our exhibit. He looks quite like an Avatar, don’t you think?

Ah yes, the jumper.  I am pretty sure they were plentiful enough in the 90’s to serve as a type of currency.  You should have no problem finding a jumper, or three.  Extra points to anyone who dares to refashion a denim jumper with an applique of an apple or kitten on it.

It’s hard to say what influenced me to try this jumper on…it may have been the tiny polka dot print which I am always a fan of.  It was an inspired choice nonetheless, because this jumper fit like a glove…it just needed a few changes.

I don’t wear sleeveless things and the length was not harmonious with my cankles. This refashion isn’t complicated enough to warrant a whole tutorial, so I’ll just tell you what I did:

1. Cut the extra length off the bottom.

2. Used the extra fabric to make sleeves.

3. Removed the facing from the sleeve holes and attached the new sleeves.

Tada!  I don’t think anything goes better with navy blue polka dots than red.  Or possibly yellow.  It’s a pretty simple dress but a quick and easy solution to the jumper plague that infects many thrift stores and some of our closets…you know who you are.

Muu Muu, nightgown, housedress, Pj’s, it matters not what you call them.  What does matter is that for some reason I have always been attracted to them and want to wear them as dresses.  Between the delicate lacy details and the breezy lightweight material, I feel like nightgowns make perfect sun dresses…and I aimed to prove that you could refashion them into socially acceptable (meaning, doesn’t look like you are wearing PJ’s) dresses.  Well, the first attempt was a big failure, although I still asked several people their opinions before I was convinced to give it up.  And being the stubborn and slightly crazy creator that I am, I only gave up on that particular dress…I had two more to try again on!  You can’t keep me down.

Embarrassingly, I will show you the first attempt.  Don’t make fun of my faces.

What not to do:

Strike 1. The fabric was way too thin and flimsy

Strike 2. The print was washed out and drab.

Strike 3. The sleeves were too big, even after reshaping them, and the dress was still too full.

I even had a Strike 4. I love a frilly neckline with buttons and lace, but paired with the other strikes, it was just too much.

All these things together gave it the “I just escaped from the Happy Valley Assisted Living Home” look.  When choosing your nightgown pretty much do the opposite of all those things.

But like I said, I had a stash of them waiting in the closet…good thing they are only three dollars each!

What to do:

1. Remove the sleeves, unless you are satisfied with the way they fit already.

2. Wearing it wrong side out, pin the armhole shut to make it smaller.  This will also give you a place to start to take out the extra width in the sides. Follow the natural curve of your rib cage, tapering in slightly at about your bra and ease the line all the way down to the hem.  You can get a rough pin while you are wearing it and once you take it off,  a yardstick really helps to keep your line straight.  Add more pins or use a fabric pencil to mark where you will sew.

3. Do the same to both sides.  Try it on and inspect your work before cutting off any extra material.

4. You are going to need to take out the extra fabric in the front by adding darts.  If you don’t know what a dart is…ask your grandma.  Pin from the tip of your bust (nipple, there, I said it), taper in the most at the empire waist, and then ease back out to about your belly button.

5. Do the same in the back.  Start above your shoulder blades, taper in at the small of your back, and ease out at the largest part of your hips (the tip of your butt).  This will add shape to the back.

ONE THING to remember when putting in your darts;  you still have to be able to pull this dress on over your head…so as tempting as it is, don’t make them too fitted.

6. Reshape the sleeve should you so desire.  I use a pattern piece from a different dress pattern to give the sleeve a better (less Muu Muu-ish shape).  Sew the sleeve back in.

7. Hem the bottom to a more flattering length.

I used the extra material from the hem to make a little bow embellishment for the neckline.  I’m sure there are all sorts of things you could do!

I think the second try is a WIN.  It’s lightweight and perfect for my trip to Phoenix!  I also really enjoy the somewhat Retro feel it has to it.  So, you tell me, does it still look like a nightgown?

I love wearing dresses in the summer time. I wear them more than pants or shorts.  To celebrate the warm weather I’ll be refashioning three dresses over the next three weeks.

I also love suspenders.  This is not my original idea, although I wish I could claim it. I found it last fall over at Thrift Candy and decided I wanted to make my own version.  It’s was pretty dang easy.

What to have:

A dress with thin/no straps

A pair of suspenders, I prefer the button hole kind

Buttons (Have you bought your Bag O’ Buttons like I told you to?)

What to do:

1. Cut off or pick out the old straps.

2. Working on the front first, sew the buttons in place.

3. After the front is attached, decide where you want that back straps to attach on the dress, and how long you need the straps to be.  You may want to use the old straps to measure, but I wanted mine to fit a little different so I didn’t use them.

4. You will probably have to resize and reconstruct your suspenders.  If your pair looks like this:

you will have to resize them at the junction.  If including the junction makes them too long, you won’t be able to use your button hole and will have to sew the straps straight to the dress.   If your pair looks like this:

you will cut the junction off completely, pick off the button hole tips and sew them back on at the desired length.

5. Sew the buttons on to the back and attach your newly sized suspenders.  Hooray!

I am very excited to wear mine.

Almost as excited as Clover who was thrilled to be getting my attention.

Seriously, is she smiling?  She loves, no adores, no WORSHIPS me in an almost creepy sort of way.  But I guess I like it.  And speaking of creepy adoration, this is what happens when I ask Mr. Denizen to help me take pictures for a post:

There are SEVERAL more in this set, as well as some in our home videos.  Christmas. Kid’s birthday parties.  He is quite proud of them.  And himself.

I always thought I was pretty good at determining what looked good on my body, until I started taking pictures of myself in clothing for this blog. Now I’m suddenly experiencing the panic attack feeling of, “how long have I looked this way?!?!”.

The girls over at Created by Chicks have been providing a series of articles on how to dress for your body type. They are helpful, but have still left me with a few questions.  Their fashion expert, Angela, says:

If you start from the bottom of your foot and measure up 3/8ths of the body length, you should hit near the top of your knee, not usually more than 2” above the knee. This particular clothing edge is important since it is a typical break in our vertical line.  Dresses, shorts, and the typical hem should not come far above it or we will have distorted figures.  (Read this post, and this one for more tips from them.)

If I’m interpreting this right, and I never have been all that good with fractions, then I should be ok with anything on or close to the knee.  I searched the web for some further information only to become even more confused. At womensfashion.suite101.com they say the following:

Women with a smaller stature or short legs can create the illusion of longer legs by wearing shorts with a shorter hemline. Petite ladies should never be afraid of high heels; adding a heel is the perfect way to further lengthen the leg and add an instant elevation.

My first problem with that is, what about people who don’t wear short shorts?  When modesty is considered, this doesn’t give me many options.  My second problem is their statement later on in the same article:

Petite ladies are the only ones who can get away with a flat or ballet shoe with shorts.

I thought I needed to lengthen my legs with short shorts and high heels?  Now they’re saying I can wear flats because I’m short?  The statements seem conflicting.

SO, I’m writing this post with two intents.  One is to provide a couple of things to consider when cropping pants into shorts, and the other is a shout out to Angela over at Created by Chicks.  I want to know if I am doing things right and, what’s the truth about short girls (with muscular calves) and flats?

A few tips on changing pants to shorts.

1.  Seriously consider whether it is even worth the effort.  If the pants are ill fitting, other than the length, turning them into shorts isn’t going to solve your problem.

2.  Determine what is the best length for your bodies proportion and also consider what styles are currently popular.  When I was in high school I would have been mortified to wear knee length denim shorts.  Luckily they are in style now.  At least I hope they are.

3.  I recommend using a denim needle in your sewing machine for your jeans.  They break less and will reduce frustration!  I have also bought some orange thread to top stitch with that matches what some of my jeans are already stitched with.  It looks almost exactly like the jeans were manufactured that way and not hemmed at home, also something my teenage self was embarrassed by.

FIRST UP: A pair of high waisted (they’re high on me at least) gray Banana Republic pants acquired from a clothing swap.  They fit really wear…but I never wear them!

Next up, some tweed capri length Anne Taylor pants, bough at the DI.  I have worn them for a while but recently decided that the length was a little goofy on me.

Last for me, is just a pair of jeans that my sister-in-law gave me.  I don’t have enough jeans shorts for the summer.

So Angela…what do you think?

Oh to be a kid and not have to worry about figure, proportion, curves…fat.  My daughter has holes in every pair of pants she owns.  They aren’t getting passed down to cousins in this condition, so I figure I may as well put them to use through the summer.  The picture quality isn’t so great…it’s hard to convince her to sit still.

I stretched the material as I sewed a zig zag stitch on the hem to create the lacy affect.  I think it’s cute.  My girls are pretty darn cute too.  I tried patching her jeans midway through the winter.  The PATCHES almost have holes in them now.

Honestly, the child never sits still.  I think I will bill her for all her jeans and pants when she’s older.