Autumnity Accessories! 🍂🍂

I received this grab bag of assorted enamel leaf pins as a gift and adore mixing and matching cascades of leaf pins on my hats and shoulders. However some of these adorable leaves were also broken and not totally my colors or style – so I decided to put them to good use as new brooches, hair clips, and more findings for complete autumnity delights!

Naturally the torti cat supervised as I sorted the pins, leaving the orange and maple leaf pairs that I already wore most as is. The more feather-esque designs, green leaves, and yellow charms were earmarked for new use as hat stick pins, alligator hair clips, and barrettes. Jewelry pliers made it easy to bend the original pin backs, sometimes I could even press them down to lock onto the new clips before hot glue did the rest. Surprisingly, Dollar Tree super glue that I usually use on metals didn't seem to work as well, but the hot glue created a smooth layer binding the unusual black leaves to gold jump rings for a sophisticated statement ring. A duplicate pair of orange maple leaves was re-purposed with new stud earring backs – although I did make them asymmetrical to go in different spots in my back ear piercings. Because, why not? The broken chestnut style leaves anchored two alligator clips alongside red oaks, again mismatched as sisters rather than twins in number and color. Four different colors and leaf shapes were combined on a larger pin back for one large brooch while two more single leaves became fun rings. Single maples became the stick hat pins before one larger barrette used up the last of the broken yellow leaves. Huzzah!

I prefer accessories to match, usually with one accent color per season. The similar reds and oranges maybe, but black and green and yellow at the same time?! Keeping these accessories as somewhat random leaves just looks a little more natural than if everything was absolutely coordinated. Besides, this helps me get out of my darker whimsy comfort zone and if they're in my hair, I don't have to look at them! If these were all accumulated, differently styled and textured pins, the look would be messy; but since they are all of the same enamel and theme, everything makes a statement together. Is wearing all of this all at once a bit too much for my bigely age? Maybe. Fortunately, the possibilities for an autumn hair accessory, brooch, and a ring are now endless. There's a certain illusion between what's a hat pin or a pin on the hat or multiple leaf pins together or just one leaf brooch, and I appreciate the double take when people notice something unusual in my hair and say I look “festive.” Since I had the glue gun at the ready, I also fixed several other broken accessories – including a black folding fan and white and red flower clips I usually put in my bun. Did I fix these summer pieces in time to use them with my Black and White and Red Dress? Of course not! A previous set of red and gold buttons that had been re-invented as hardly worn earrings, a pin, and a ring was also re-purposed as another barrette. A sliver from my Polka Dot Scrap Skirt likewise became a little Scrunchies hair tie. I thought about doing an even bigger one or a polka dot headband and barrette, however that did indeed seem too twee with all the gray infiltrating my hair.

Perhaps this is a silly write up; I feel the need to explain how I did these risk free accessories despite this being a simple have glue gun, will travel day project the whole family can do together. As I wrote in my forthcoming DIY Jewelry column in the #EverydayMagic Fall issue of Search Magazine, go ahead and put a pin back on anything. Is it cheap and tacky? Absolutely! Do I believe nothing is too cheap or so basic a DIY? Also absolutely – because it is customized by and for you and that's worth celebrating. There's no reason not to bling it up with the autumnity vibes. The term “autumnity” itself means “the quality or condition that is characteristic of autumn” and it needs to come back into the mainstream lexicon ASAP.

Join me on Blue Sky for more or visit Kbatz Krafts on Facebook and Instagram for more project photos and more jewelry shenigans including:

White Jewelry Bling

DIY Holiday Jewelry

Black and White Bobbles

View more of my recent autumnity appearance at the Hit the Stars Learning with Horses Apple Festival! 🍂😁🎃🐴

"Oh yeah, you blend." 🤣

Polka Dot Scrap Busting Skirt!

My sewing table was overflowing with a pile of black and white polka dot scraps, and thus inspiration struck to put them all to good use in a tiered skirt!

With the help of my tortitude cat, I laid out all the scraps from my Polka Dot Tank Top; Black, White, and Red Dress; and the Black and White Polka Dot Maxi into piles – rolling up the smaller strips together for future use as straps, binding, or piping. Next, all the odd, square, and rectangular pieces became the top row for my go to 5 Skirts 1 Pattern Butterick 6196. Naturally, I couldn't worry about grain or pattern matching at this point. However I did not fear the shortchanged mistakes of my Black and Orange Polka Dot Skirt because I had enough scraps to make up the full volume of the pattern's widest center and two side panels. The black thrift sheet last partly used as the liner for the maxi dress with my Drafted Nightgown Pattern now became my skirt base while the remaining smaller polka dot pieces would become a ruffled hem. This black sheet would also line the top polka dot row and the middle black skirt portion. I could use the sheet's finished seam at the hem but I did need to piece another part of the sheet to complete the middle liner. Of course, I also laid everything out on the floor and mistakenly cut three layers of the sheet! I'd feel bad cutting excess if this were quality black fabric, but fortunately, I can always use more black backing anywhere.

This seemingly simple assembly took a day of finagling and geometry making sure my polka dot rows and black on black liners were the right sides before doing all the machine seams and then pressing all those seams in between and attaching everything together. It was thick on my thirty year old Brother machine going through four layers of material at the joining seam and there was a slight tension issue where I had to redo the stitching in a few spots. Thankfully, it's all very cute now that it's one skirt panel! That troublesome seam spot is a little uneven, but I decided to add very cheap old Joann black lace as a ruffled border between the fabric changes to hide this mistake as well as the slightly different fabric weights between the polka dot cotton and the thrift sheet. Unfortunately, this lace is a bitch with annoying, large gathering holes meant for infinity scarf making. It's a decorative trim cheat that adds hand gathering time, however I'm glad to finally use most of this stupid seventy-five cent lace! Although frustrated by the lace gathering, I was inspired by a black and white floral hand-me-down skirt that I love and decided to use dollar store white satin ribbon to unite the lace and fabric border. Attaching the completed trim with clean, small running back stitches was easy enough – save for not wanting to stitch through the black liner with my white thread.

Strangely, I am also lacking in said white thread with only a few spools from some discount old variety thread pack. The “Natural” thrift thread cone I often use for basting is an ivory that doesn't match the pure, flat white of my polka dots or the ribbon. Thankfully, those spools held out with me unnecessarily panicking about where the frick does one buy thread these days without Joann? After a few days of all that careful hand sewing attachment, I returned to the machine for my polka dot ruffle. I pinned all the slimmer polka dot strips together to make one continuous row, doing the math to make sure I had double the fabric amount for a good, full gathering. Doing the hem with hem tape stiffened the ruffle a little bit, but that helps to keep its oomph rather than being pleated flat as I again did the gathering by hand. The cat also insisting on helping as I laid out my ruffle across my black skirt end and pinned everything in place. Any black hem touch ups where the finished sheet end couldn't be used on the skirt pattern curve were also done while the black liner was left loose with it's own up turned hem. Finally a second row of black lace and white ribbon could be attached with a running back stitch above the polka dot ruffle for a complete contrasting floppy and floofy twirl.

Of course, I now realized I had gathered so much more of the lace and ribbon than needed and since the double row of lace and polka dots looked so adorable, I went for a spontaneous third lace row. After debating whether it should be centered on the black skirt panel or placed below the initial polka dot row, I decided a third ruffle at the hem was cutest. Did this add more damn hand sewing time to this seemingly simple project? Absolutely! The tricky back seam closure also had to be by hand to make sure I didn't catch any of the flouncy lace, but all my ribbon rows matched up deliciously! Continuing this maximum use scrap busting, I re-purposed the folded top line of the sheet as my waistband with an interior thrift interfacing to encase all the top raw polka dot edges within the inside whip stitch. Initially I pleated the material to strategically hide those odd polka dot seams as much as possible but the pleats didn't look right with the gathered lower tiers so I likewise gathered the top within the waistband. I had to be funny and use a white button closure on the black waistband because I have a massive amount of white buttons thanks to my evil grandmother always cutting them off a discarded shirt. (Her deceptive cookie tin of sewing supplies also contained a pack of dirty playing cards, but that's another story.)

Despite the polka dot patchwork, lengthy hand sewing, cumbersome additions, and cheapness of it all; the idea and execution of this skirt still happened quickly. I like the illusion of pattern, dot, stripe, and floral even if I am not used to this much alternating black and white. There's still just enough black material to show all the cat hair, but all the business makes for a cute, fun, frilly skirt. I'm pleased with the fly by night sewing and outside the box material uses for future scrap busting possibilities.

Join me on Blue Sky or browse more project photos on the Kbatz Krafts Facebook and Instagram. Visit the Kbatz Krafts Archive for more sewing adventures including:

Purple Polka Dot Skirt

The Lemon Dress

Legacy of Sewing for Search Magazine

Easy Thrift Fixes! 💪🏻

 

So often we dismiss clothes that don't quite fit, passed on or left to toil in our closet when a few trick tweaks or simple sewing changes can make a garment feel just right. These are two easy examples from my closet that anyone can fix.

Unlike my me-made Black and White Polka Dot Dress and my unofficial quest to make all things polka dot, I was amazed to find these wide leg black and white polka dot pants at Goodwill for $7. I did not think they existed in the wild! I love the wide waistband and stretchy fit that hides my problem gut, and of course I traced a pattern of these comfy pants for future use. However, I am short, one size does fit all, and these polka dot pants were a little too long. Long enough that instead of looking snazzy, they felt kind of silly being so huge and cumbersome. Fortunately, I braved the fabric shears and cut off the excess! Then it was time to break out the iron and trusty $3 hem tape, turning up the raw edge for a new smooth finish. Granted this stretchy fabric was a little tricky with the hem tape at the inseams, but with a wide leg pattern like this, who's going to notice a wonky dot? The stretchy material was a bit more unwieldy in re-purposing the cut off excess, but I put the inside outs together and zipped them through the sewing machine before pulling everything through right sides out and pressing it all flat. Now I have a sweet little matching polka dot tie belt! Again where the seams were sewn together might be a little uneven, but it's such a showstopping ensemble, it doesn't matter. This could all also have been done with tiny beginner hem sewing and running back stitches, so there's no need for anyone to trip over a pair of pants that can become totally fantastic with one small change.

Of course, I needed to take a dose of my own sewing inspiration to finally fix this clumsy strappy black damask column dress that's been in my closet for years. I maybe wear this thrift find once each August with my Black and White Bobbles thanks to its confusing fit – a loose, open bust line that I practically fall out of with a bodycon skirt that's too long. Perhaps this was meant for a taller smaller bust model, but a few sewing hacks can make this dress work. Several stitches pinching at the bodice cross point helps close that bra line dip, and two inches up with the good old hem tape was easy enough at the ironing board. As a short person however, I've often discovered hemming is not enough and that a whole garment should go up at the shoulders. Here with only summer straps, it's ridiculously easy to take an inch out of the shoulder and re-sew the seam with a tight running back stitch. Voila, everything's in the right place!

There are more complicated thrift alterations waiting in my closet and mending that should be done, but there's no need for anyone to put off these easy sewing rescues. These aren't couture event garments that need tailored fittings or expensive seamstress alterations. With affordable thrift finds or older clothing, these simple adjustments are guilt-free, feel-good savers for any wallet, body size, or sewing experience.

For more project photos, visit Kbatz Krafts on Facebook or Instagram and follow us on Blue Sky for the latest DIY adventures. Peruse the Kbatz Krafts Archive for more sewing escapades including: 

Cheap Elsa Costume

Orange Tablecloth Skirt

Sewing on a Budget for Search Magazine