DIY- Special Treatments

Happy New Year lovelies! To get back into the swing of things, I wanted to start off with a quick DIY. Looking ahead there's a vast amount of projects that I want to accomplish this month. I decided to create a a good old-fashioned personal inspiration board of tear sheets, essentially a collage of bits that influence me. Of course, it's quite easy to do it online; however the visual, yet tangible elements of inspiration often aids me more in semi-developed projects at times.

A Glimpse of Inspiration

No Hassle Tassels!
Here's a pair of what I like to call "To-Go Tassels," accessories that I made for my shoes. They may be used as a trim embellishment for tops, pockets, and more!

Take a strip of fringe or running yardage of tassel fabric, cut approx. 3-3.5"L/ 8-9cm, {measurement may vary if you want your tassels to be wider or skinnier} fold each side toward the (inner) center. Press. Dot a small amount of glue under each fold. Let dry. Finger press close. Take a needle and thread to create sewn loops starting from one top-edge, and ending on the opposite (bottom) edge. Secure tightly by double knotting ends with thread. Cut excess threads.  Repeat for second tassel.

Use fabric glue or metal/plastic glue to adhere one clip to each of the tassels. You're finished!
*If you want your To-Go Tassels even more versatile, try adding a ribbon to the top-edge of each tassel instead of a metal clip. This way you can tie them to your shoes, ankles, and neck along your collar.

Quick Blouse Details:

To add a dashing touch to your shirt or blouse, try one of my favourites: neck ruffles, gathered trimmings. I wanted to give my boring shirt a bolt of excitement, so I decided to create ruffles for a couple of them.

To do this take approx. 1" W X 6" L+/- (depending on your neck length) of contrast/amazing fabric. Fold each end inward 1/8". Top-stitch. Make a basting stitch lengthwise going down the center. Holding the top edge pull the bottom edge side of one of the excess threads. As you do this gathers will form. When you reach a desired ruffle/gather make a staying stitch in the center, lengthwise once more this time securing the gathers together. Clip excess threads.

 (Click to enlarge image)

 

Stitch a 1/4" W elastic band to each side of the ruffle. Now, you have a neck treatment for your shirt! (See images.) I've added brass button details on my collar. To do this just mark hole placement, and add a brass snap/button to the ends of each collar with a hammer or sewing rivet gun. Use the same guide if you want to make variances of this, I also created a crochet and pleated version. Mission complete!

*Lastly, here's a sneak peak below of my newly designed clutches and bags that I've been working on... What I created with old (woolly) printed yardage. 

Have a smashing and productive week!

*Don't forget to link back to this post if you were inspired. Thanks.

 All design and images copyrighted.