Jeans and a sweater...how many things can I make out of them without sewing?

I used this to audition for One Month to Win it!!

Ok, so everybody at work knows I LOVE to repurpose old clothing.  So one friend gave me a pair of ripped jeans (ripped in the crotch...so not patchable unless you want to look ridiculous) and another gave me a sweater she had lost interest in.  So, I looked at my MESSY craft area and decided I needed to make some containers to store things in/organize without breaking the bank.  So here is what I have come up with so far.

Jean leg button container:

Materials:
pair of jeans
glue gun/glue sticks
scissors
marking chalk/pencil
snap
fabric scraps/ribbon
button

Step One: Fit the leg of the pants over the coffee can and measure the length of the can.  Cut the leg off where you marked, make sure you have allowed some room for a "seam allowance" so you can tuck under the raw edges.















Step Two: Fit the can inside the leg, with the bottom of the leg at the bottom of the can.  Tuck under the raw edge and hot glue it into place.






















Step Three:

Hot glue the ribbon of your choice over the top edge.

Step Four:

Take your scraps of fabric, and using a circle and cut out three circles of fabric.  This fabric flower will be used to decorate the container.

Step Five: Cut six slits 2/3 in and around the exterior of the circle, leaving it attached in the center!

Step Six: Round off each of the petals individually.

Step Seven, stagger and stack your three flower pieces, placing your "favorite" on top.  In between each stack put a dab of hot glue, and pinch the flower inward to give it a little dimension.

Step Eight: Glue a button or two to the center, and glue the flower to the container, I chose to center it on the seam.

Step Nine: I am using this to store buttons, and now that I have added all of this extra fabric, etc...there is no way the lid will fit back on.  So, I had to improvise.  I started by cutting one of the back pockets off of the jeans.  Sorry I was cutting with one hand and photographing with the other...dangerous I know, but it ended up blurry as a result...

Step Ten:  I used a snap, but you could use a tab/loop or any closure you would like.  to keep it no-sew I hot glued the male end to the can and the female end to the tip of the pocket.

Step Eleven: Snap it on, and then stretch the pocket over the top of the can.  Hot glue the edges to the back.  I did each corner first, then gathered the slack in the center and voila! Lid is on.

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Step Twelve: Turn it right side up...fill it...and snap it!

I know, it's sideways, and I tried to flip it...but computer not cooperating!

My buttons are happy now;)

Work of Art #2: Jeans and Sweater Storage Box

So, for my second project, I decided to utilize a good, sturdy shoebox I had.  I used a lightweight sweater, hot glue, a button, and the rest of the jeans...well not ALL of it!

Step One: Cut the Backside of the jeans off, make sure the piece is at least large enough to cover the top of the lid.  It would be even better if it covered the edges too...but mine didn't.  

Step Two: Set that piece aside, and cut along the seam to open up the leg (this is only if you don't have enough butt to cover the edges...you will see what I am doing;)

 Cut two long strips--they need to be twice the width of the box lid edge.  I used the seams as finished edges, look below to see what I mean.  Then hot glue the edges to the lid of the box.

Step Three:  Continue hot  gluing each piece around the entire box.  Then glue the top edge so that it sticks, and overlap the lid and glue it down so that it is going to be covered when you add the "butt" to the top.

see how I am gluing it to the TOP of the box too?  I want it to overlap in the end.

Step Four: After you have the edges covered, it's time to put the top on...so position it on top and you are going to tuck under the raw edges and hot glue them in place.

Step Five: Prepare the sweater to line the box.  Cut off the sleeves and cut along one seam to make a flat sheet of fabric.

Step Six: Hot glue the edges of the sweater into the inside edge of the box.  It won't be perfect...well mine wasn't.  Just as long as it covers the edge...I really stretched and pulled the fabric to get a snug fit.  

Step Seven: Take the rest of the fabric and cut it so the edges are straight.  Then I just laid it inside the box and hot glued the edges to the top, as neatly as I could to make a liner.

Step Eight: I had to make a flower, so I cut a strip of sweater leftovers about 2" wide.  

Step Nine: Using hot glue, glue and gather the bottom edge.  Work the fabric into a simple flower.

I added a button center and glued the whole thing on near the pocket.

TA DAH!  It's not perfect, but it's definitely going to be a cute organizational tool for my sewing stuff!!

And...this pair of jeans and sweater have more coming from them...Maybe tomorrow after we visit the Great-Nana;)

And I promised...so I am going to deliver.  Here is the plethora of storage containers I made.  The base objects are 3 coffee cans, 2 shoe boxes, an oatmeal container, and one thread container.

How to Make a Chinese Takeout Purse out of Fat Quarters

Good morning, so, I have ALWAYS wanted a Chinese Takeout Purse, and have looked for several tutorials on how to make them...and frankly...they all didn't quite make me a purse.

I had several failed attempts, one involving interfacing which left me with a limp and floppy purse.  I wanted one that had integrity, one that could stand up on its own!!

So I was in Five Below the other day (like a $5 and under dollar store) and saw a six-pack of takeout gift boxes.  They weren't made of thick cardboard, more of a waxy, plastic cardboard that was thin and pliable. I decided to grab them and see what I could come up with.

Materials:
One chinese takeout container, preferably made of a waxy cardboard that can stand getting wet, yet is thin enough to sew through.

Two fat quarters, or two fabrics of your choice, approximately 18 inches square.

Thread, bobbin, pins, sewing machine.

Tutorial:

Step One:

 Take apart the handle.  Mine just had two knots, so I untied them and slipped them through the holes.  The holes had metal eyelets lining them.  Then pull apart the takeout container.  You might have to gently rip apart any glued areas, and I had to pull the additional layers away from the eyelet and cut a small hole around them to release the other layers.  I left the eyelets in place, and made sure to NOT rip the edges, and do not tear from the edge.

Step Two:

Lay your takeout container with the right side (outside) of the container laying against the wrong side of the fabric.  Pin it to hold in place, note the small holes left from around the eyelets, and the container will want to fold inward, so pin it securely and make sure there is enough fabric underneath.

Step Three: Cut around the edge of the container.  Leave about 1/2" seam allowance minimum.  Do not worry about cutting out the intricate lips of the "envelope" apparatus on top...just roughly outline for now.

Step Four:  If you are a pinner, you can fold over the excess and pin it, as you can see in the upper left corner of the photo.  Or, you can iron it in place.  I on the other hand am a wing-it kind of girl...so I just folded it over as I went along.  Stitch as close to the edge of the container as you can, but keep it consistent so you have a nice seam showing.  I did about 1/4" seam allowance.  Stitch ALL the way around the container.  Once again, don't worry about the envelopey-hook part, just stitch as much as you can and leave it for now.

Step Five: You should now have something that looks like this:

Ok, so it sounds harder than it is. You are going to "stitch in the ditch" of all of the folds of the takeout container.  Use a regular, straight stitch.  I did a "00" 2.0 on my Brother machine.  Stitch in EVERY fold.  If you do it right, you should be able to start at one end, and go all the way across before you have to stop.  Then cut the thread and go to the next side.


Step Six: You should now have something that looks like this:

Step Seven: Now, to do the liner you do the exact same process, but on the other side.  I started out by cutting it out and then adding a pocket.  I used pins to keep track of where the folds were. IMPORTANT: If you are adding a pocket you must sew it in before it is attached to the rest of the bag!

You just want to make sure that you stitch in the ditch in the same spots.  I did it by flipping it over (making sure it was securely pinned first) and stitching directly over the stitches on the "brown" side.  Start and stop about 1/2-1/4" from the edges, since you need to be able to fold the lining under and stitch it.

Step Eight:  Fold under the entire edge of the lining and pin it.  Now stitch along the same seam as the front, making sure you catch the lining.

HANDLE:
I didn't do a tutorial pic for the handle, so I will give written instructions:
First, I cut a 2" strip from the left over fat quarter.   Length depends on how long you want your handle. I folded it in half, wrong-sides together and sewed it with a 1/4" seam allowance.

Then I turned it right side out.

Then I folded it inwards in thirds, so the two ends meet in the middle.  I stitched each piece in place.  You can also fold in half, use ribbon as a handle, or if your original container had a metal handle it can be beaded and reused.  If you look closely at the picture, you can see the construction of the handle:









To put the whole thing together, follow the natural folds of the takeout container.  I tucked the handle in between the two folds on the side. Use a strong thread to stitch through, and watch out for the holes in the original container, since they wouldn't be a strong point to attach!  Here it is pinned.  Notice, I finished over the "envelope hook" with an overcasting stitch, but I am considering alternatives, like ribbon or a binding.

Once you have it all sewn together, you are ready to add your keys and license and head out!