cloth belts

holy COW!!! these cloth belts are super cute on your little girls. You'll want to make your stinkers one to match each outfit, not kidding. So you'll need an 1/8 of a yard of fabric for a toddler size or smaller. For an adult belt you'll need a length of about 60 in. so buy an 1/8 yard off a 60 in bolt of fabric or get two 1/8 yard cuts off a 45 in. bolt, put right side together sewing one side so you have a long strip of fabric that is about 90 inches. Then cut off 3o inches. For the adult we're starting with a piece of fabric 4 1/2 in x 60 in and for a toddler we have a piece that measures 4 1/2 x 35. Play with the length if you think that's too long or want the belt to be longer. Now that the cutting's done let's get sewing:

1. fold your fabric wrong sides together, hotdog style matching up sides. Press a nice crease in there.
   


2. take you nice, crisp piece of fabric (still folded) to your cutting mat and cut from the short ends in one inch so you get a point. if you don't want the point then skip this.

3. re-fold it with wrong sides together and sew from one end to the other leaving a gap to turn the belt right-side-out.4. Before you turn it right-side-out cut the seam allowance at the corners so you get a nice point when the belt is turned right-side-out.

5. Turn it right-side-out through the gap we left (you might need to GENTLY poke the corners to a point) and iron it. The first crease we ironed in should be there to help you out. Where the gap is make sure you iron in the seam allowance.

6. Back at your machine stitch at 1/2 in all the way around and then edge stitch (sew as close to the egde as possible) all the way around. ANd THat's that.

diaper bag beginings

Here's the fabric that my friend picked out for her one-of-a-kind, belle&me, original diaper bag. If all goes as planned it will be super cute and I'll have a pattern to pump out more diaper bags with. It's gonna have lots of pockets, 'cause that's what I like in a diaper bag, maybe some applique on it and it's gonna be jammed packed with cuteness. It's gonna be a WINNER!!! Or so I hope so. Sometimes when I envision a cute craft the real deal isn't so desirable and I have to re-work things. I'm hoping that that will not be the case here. You will all be able to judge for yourselves in a couple of days as I have fun sewing and letting the laundry pile up.

GIVE AWAY

YaHoo!!!Do ya want one? Leave a comment with your e-mail address letting me know which one is your favorite before sept 6th and you could have a new place to put your little precious things.

Bags

I love to create fun and attractive crafts. My favorite thing to create right now are bags and totes. Here are a few that I've made that have new owners (and some that I haven't parted with):Here is the first one that I made so that my 2-year-old could have something a little cuter than a plain black bag to take her books and "keep-me-quiet things" to church in. Turns out I use it too sometimes. love it

This one was hard work sewing around that applique but totally worth it. It looks super cute. I love the green and brown combo.

This style of bag is my favorite that I have created. I love the center pleat and the cording around it. Super fun. Maybe later I"ll put up a tutorial for this bag.

cute five minute craft

My sister's mother-in-law showed me this little picture holder that I thought was cute. I made one to go in my 2-year-old daughter's room but then I had a vacant spot on a shelf that needed filled and thought it would fit perfectly there so the picture holder has a new home on my shelf instead of my daughter's room. She doesn't seem to mind at all.

All you need to create this picture holder is a large binder clip found at any office supply store (I bought a box of twelve for 6 dollars at Office Max when they were); and scraps of patterned paper; decorative ribbon; and some type of adhesive ( I used my Tom-Bo roller glue and it worked just dandy).

1. cut paper 2 inches x 1 1/4 inches (I did different papers on each side no that I see the back of the photo holder much, but when I do it makes me SMILE!!)

2. glue the paper to the binder clip and tie some coordinating ribbon around the top. Presto!I teach the 16- to 18-year-old young women at my church and I usually have 8 1/2 x 11 quote posters to show or pictures of Christ that are held nicely in these photo clips. Make a couple to use at home, school, office, or whatever. They're fun and simple.