DIY: Over Sized Envelope Clutch Bag

What you'll need:
1 poster paper 18x26 inches
Decorative button and magnetic snaps
Lots of bobby pins
2 paper clamps
Pen/pencil
Ruler
Fabric glue
Foam
Hobby knife
Vinyl or leather 18x26 inches



This is a great present to make for someone with out spending loads of money or its a great way to make your own clutch that you can take any where and design the way you want it to look like. Plus this is a great clutch that you can use and say yeah that's right i made it! So if you want to see how to make this then watch the video below!

DIY: Low-Back Bra

 What you'll need:
Elastic
Bra hook and eye
Sewing equipment
1 bra

The before steps:

1. Make sure the bra hooks match up with the bra you're using; if your bra has 2 hooks, find an eye with 2 hooks. 

 Any sewing or craft store will have these; alternatively, the dollar store or thrift store might have bras you can salve hooks/eyes from (you might get funny stares at the checkout line though). I would personally get them at a discount fabric store, like Fabric Outlet in SF ($.99 up by the cash register). They're overpriced at stores like Jo-Ann.

2. Make sure the elastic is the same width as the hook and eye. It should be long enough to comfortably wrap around your waist--but don't cut it yet! Keep in mind that it will be in contact with your bare skin.

The steps:

1.  Sew either the hooks OR the eyes to one end of the elastic. I like to keep the elastic on top so the raw edge won't chafe. The type of stitch shouldn't really matter since you're not sewing in the direction of the stretch (just make sure it's securely attached).

1. There was a pre-attached elastic tag I didn't need, which I just trimmed off. Do whatever works best for you; if the hook/eye has two pieces of fabric, sew the elastic in between them.

2. Put your favorite bra on, and attach the bra's hook to the eye on the elastic. Wrap the elastic around your waist once; imagine where the elastic would attach on the other side of your bra and mark it.  

Alternatively, you can use something like 9/10ths of your waist measurement. Since it's elastic, you don't need to be exact. If it ends up being too loose, you could always sew off a pinch of elastic and trim it off?

Remember: this should be able to hold 'everything' in place, so although it shouldn't be uncomfortably constricting,it shouldn't be loose (who wants a loose bra?). Getting the right length is probably the most important step.

3. Sew the remaining hook or eye to the place you marked on your elastic, and trim the remainder. Make sure you sew on the correct sides--if the hook is facing up, the eye will face down. Try to keep the raw elastic edge on the side that won't be in contact with your skin.

How To Adjust:

To make the back tighter, tug on the elastic on your waist. To make the back looser, tug on the elastic on the back.

To make the bra back higher or lower, simply pull up or down. Adjust tightness (and bra straps) accordingly.

DIY: Bow for a racer back shirts

What you'll need:
Ruler
Scissors or somthing to cut with
Racer back tank top
Chalk







This is a great way on how you can make your own bow to sew on the back of your racer back tee to make it more pretty. And if you want a removable one like the picture above shows that comes in many colors you can get it at etsy.com for about $7 for each.

DIY: Gift Bag

What you'll need:
Paper 2x the size you need
Tape
Handel's from the store

1. Take a sheet of paper or wrapping paper approximately double the size that you desire your bag and fold it in half horizontally.



2. Fold both the sides horizontally inwards and slot one side into the other, then tape together with washi tape or normal tape.

3. Then you fold the base of your bag in and press down forming a crease.

4. And then you open out one side of the base by flattening the corners into a triangle shape.

5. Then you will repeat step 4 with the other side of your base.

6. Then you fold your base inwards as shown in the picture. 

7. Then repeat step 6 on the other side of the base.

8. Tape together the base using tape.

9. Take store bought handles or use the handles off another paper shop bag.

10. Tape your handles to the inside of your gift bag and your bag is ready to go! 

DIY: Lace Shorts

What you'll need:
1 pair of shorts
Matching lace 2 inch wide, 6 yrds
Pins
Matching threads
Sowing needle
Ruler
Scissors



 So this is just one way on how to do it and if you don't like them you can always use different lace like the one on the right, by using vintage white lace that you can get anywhere.

DIY: Heart Sweater

What you'll need:
Print out of a heart
Wool felt
Fusible Web
Scissors
Iron



 This is a way to make your own personalized heart sweaters with having to pay a fortune for one form wild fox or forever 21. And if you have a plane sweater but you love then you can personalize it so it can look even better!

DIY: Wall Art Decor

What you'll need:
Printed out pictures
Hot glue gun with glue
Mod poge
Brush
Low order clear mat
2 16x20 Canvas
1 12x16 Canvas
Toilet paper rolls
Spray Paint


So this is a great and cheap project that you can do your self to decorate your room, house, or apartment. My Favorite is the flower one! So watch the video below to see how to create these amazing decorations that you can also give a gift!

DIY: Skull Cut Out Shirt

What You'll Need:

A black t-shirt 
Scissors
Marker or chalk

So this is a diy on how to make your own cut out skull t-shirt that you might pay $50 for at a store or you can make it your self and where it with pride! So if your interested on how to make this then watch the diy video below!

DIY: Reusable Glam Tote Bag

What you'll need:

2 pieces of 18"x21" Fabric
2 pieces of 24" belting
Stapler
Scissors
Tape measure or ruler
Duct tape
Iron

So below if you watch the video it will show you all the steps on how to make this inexpensive bag that can be used for so many things and take as little to 30 minutes to make! And you can design it any way you would like and use it for anything! Plus don't forget that you can buy lots of different colors of tape like the color in the video or used in the bag above!

DIY: No Slip Book Marks

What you'll need:

Ribbon

Hair elastic

Button scissors

Tape measure

Sewing pin

Thread

Step 1: Measure how long you want your bookmark to be. I cut mine at 17 inches and the finished piece is 14 1/2 inches from sewn area to the button. This size is good for medium to regular sized books, but for large books or small paperbacks you will want to measure for their specific size.

Step 2: Fold one edge of ribbon down to prepare for sewing. If your ribbon tends to fray, you may want to fold it twice.

Step 3: Add hair elastic, fold over and pin.

Step 4: Sew a straight or zig zag stitch along the ribbon fold. If you don’t have a sewing machine, you can sew this by hand. If you do sew it by hand, make sure to stitch the area twice to reinforce it.

Step 5: Measure from the folded, sewn area to where you want your button and sew button in place. Optional - Gather fabric behind button and hand-stitch it together for a finished look. The solid brown one attached to a book below shows it without a gather. Also, if your ribbon tends to fray, you will want to finish the edges of the ribbon.

And then your done!!

DIY: Beaded Leather Bracelet

What you'll need:


Leather or suede cording
Needle (need to be a strong needle)
Matching thread
Scissors
Beads
Thimble


Step 1: Fold a piece of leather in half so you have a rounded end piece like below and two sides that run parallel. Cut the length of leather you want. You should cut enough so your bracelet will comfortably wrap around your wrist at least twice.




Note: I could not find a thimble, so I used the cap to this lip moisturizer to help push the needle through the leather. Hey, don’t knock it…it worked




Step 2: Push your needle and thread through one side of the leather so your thread is coming out in the middle of the folded leather. Add a bead, then needle through the other side of the leather and continue stitching back and forth and repeating with the add of a bead all the way down the middle of the leather until you reach about an 1.5 inches before the end.

The pattern I used here was 10 blue beads, then 1 gold bead, repeat.

Step 3: (Optional) I added a little Opal charm to the end of my leather, before tying the knot to secure it, just to add a little something.


Step 4: Wrap your finished beaded leather around your wrist and tie a knot around the folded end to secure it in place. And that’s it…you now have a cute new bracelet.

DIY: Big Striped Everyday Bag

This is what you'll need:


A big striped polo shirt

A belt









Step 1: I sort of “eye-balled” everything based on the size of the shirt I started with and how big I wanted the finished bag to be. So I started with a folded in half piece of tissue paper and I drew out half of the bag with the strap bases and all. Then, with the paper still folded in half, I cut the design out. FYI…by folding your design in half and cutting it that way, you will ensure your finished piece is the same size on both sides.




Step 2: Place your pattern on your shirt wherever fits best for the pattern you want, but also leaving enough material to cut for the bottom and sides.




Step 3: Cut out your bottom and sides. I didn’t have enough space to cut one long piece for this so I had to cut 3 separate pieces. Note: I was not at all concerned about matching the strips from piece to piece in either direction. In fact, I think it kind of looks cool to have them mismatched.




Step 4: Because the material of the shirt was not that heavy, I wanted to add some strength to the bag so I cut out identical pieces to the pattern I just cut from the shirt with some canvas material I had left over from another project. The only difference, I made the bottom and sides one long piece because I did have enough room with this material.




Step 5: Sew the bottom and sides to your bag base. And sew the canvas bottom, sides and base as well.




Step 6: Turn the t-shirt material inside out and the canvas material right side in and pin and sew them together leaving the straps and one side un-sewn. I also sewed in a piece of elastic at the top of both side panels to give the bag a bit of a gathered look at the sides. Pull the right side of bag through your un-sewn opening. Then hand stitch the opening closed.




Step 7: I used a belt and some hardware from a falling apart bag to connect my straps. Since I used one strap instead of two, it was a bit challenging to make it look clean, so I’d recommend going with two traps if you’re going to try this.




And then you'r done and you have an amazing bag that you can tell people you made!