Jean Bow

Tutorial

Hey guys! So sorry it's been so long since I've updated but I'm back with my favorite craft yet!

I've been making bows for a while but I finally found a pattern that ends up making the bow more stiff which makes the bow much cuter when pinned in hair. 

Anyways, here's how you make it.

Here's what you'll need:

• Jean material (I was able to make two bows out of one pant leg, but it was men's jeans, so there was a bit more fabric in each leg)
• Sewing materials (needle, thread, safety pins or pins, scissors)
• Ruler 
• Sharpie

Step 1: Cut out a large rectangle in the pant leg

Step 2: Cut off any hems

Step 3: I used a bow to measure out how big I wanted the bow to be, but you could just eye it and see. Make sure to measure out DOUBLE the horizontal length of your bow and add about 2 or 3 inches vertically and horizontally about 1 or 2 inches.

Step 4: I used a ruler and sharpie to draw straight lines for me to cut along

Step 5: Fold the rectangle so that the two ends come together in the middle in the back of the bow. Pin together the two sides making sure that the two pieces of fabric overlap in the middle about 1 inch.

Step 6: Fold in the top and bottom flaps so that the bow won't fray. Pin them down. (Notice the difference between the top and the bottom... MUCH better!)

Step 7: Begin sewing up the middle seam and around the edges of the bow.

Here's what mine ended up looking like once everything was sewn down and the pins were out

Back

Front

I have a very limited supply of sewing materials so all I had was some white thread and a needle to hand sew with, so I had to make do. At first I was just sewing normally which made the thread a little too noticeable for my taste so I started barely moving the needle on the front of the needle and then moving it on the back side of the bow...if that made any sense.. 









You can see the difference between the two sewing methods and maybe figure it out :)

Step 8: Cinch the bow

Step 9: Push the needle through the middle of the bow where you cinched it. You don't have to worry so much about the thread being seen because a piece of fabric will go over the cinched area.

Step 10: Using leftover fabric, cut off a piece of fabric at least 2-3 inches wide and long enough to fit around the cinched area of the bow. It's better to make it too long and then cut off the extra part.

Step 11: Fold the fabric the same way you folded the bow material before (with the two ends of the fabric coming together in the middle with a bit overlapped). Pin down the fabric and then sew down the middle.

Step 12: Wrap the smaller fabric strip around the cinched area of the bow and sew together the ends. Cut off any extra parts.

And you're done! Here's what mine ended up looking like!

To secure it to your hair, You could try to use a big bobby pin pushed through the little piece of fabric that's wrapped around the cinched area of the the bow, but mine was too thick so I ended up using a bigger clip that I had. It may look too big, but the whole clip is hidden behind the bow.

Just test out different things and find out what works best for you!

Here's the final product modeled on my sister, Siena.

By the way, shout out to my parents for the new camera which allowed me to take MUCH better quality photos than just iPhone pictures! Thanks for the AMAZING graduation gift :)

Hope you enjoyed the tutorial! Post a comment below if you have any questions, comments, or your own version of the craft!

Happy crafting!

-Micayla

No Sew Lace Bow

Tutorial

Hey guys!

So sorry for the lack of posts recently! With Easter comes the annual Easter Celebration production at my church, so I've been behind about just about everything- including my blog. But now it's spring break, leaving me with plenty of time for crafting. :)

Speaking of spring... the warm weather makes my knitted bows kinda out of the question, so I had nothing to accessorize my hair with! Until I found some lace fabric...

Here are the supplies you'll need:

• Lace
• Hot glue gun
• Scissors
• Bobby pin 

I went to Michaels to buy some lace but I couldn't find anything except this lace umbrella, so I just bought it and cut the lace off of the plastic frame of the umbrella. It actually worked well, but it would be much easier to actually buy lace on it's own, and I'm sure you get more lace for your money.

Step 1: Fold your fabric in half.

Step 2: Cut your fabric.

Now you can decided how big or small you want your bow to be, but remember that you fabric is folded in half, so it only needs to be half as long. 

Now I meant to cut my fabric much wider so that I could fold the width in half to make up for my sloppy cutting job. 

Step 3: Cut off about an inch of the fabric on either side. Or if you like the size of your bow already, you can just cut off an inch of fabric from the original lace fabric.

Here's what I was working with. Luckily, because it's lace it doesn't end up looking as messy as the purely cut fabric once you put it all together. 

Step 4: Take the hot glue gun and put a line of hot glue down the middle of the bow where you will cinch it.

Step 5: Cinch the lace where the hot glue is.

Step 6: Put a dot of hot glue on the cinched area and then take one of the inch wide, long pieces of lace and press one end of it on the dot of hot glue. Then wrap the long piece of lace around the cinched area until you run out of fabric. You can put another dot of hot glue to keep the wrapping fabric in place.

Just stick a bobby pin in the back, pin in into your hair, and enjoy!

If you have any questions about this tutorial or if you would like to share your own version on this craft, please post below in the comments.

Happy crafting!

-Micayla

Knitted Skinny Headband with Bow

Tutorial

Craft Inspiration

Hey guys!

So this tutorial is inspired by yet another pin that I found on Pinterest. I've done knitted headbands before, like my Cinched Headband, and I've done Knitted Bows before, but this one is a combination of the two. 

This is a skinnier headband than I've done before. The band is actually about half the width of the bow, but I like it a lot! 

Here are the supplies you'll need:

• Yarn
• Knitting needles
• Scissors
• Embroidery needle

I absolutely fell in love with the color of this yarn when I saw it in Michaels! It looks darker in the picture than it actually is.

Anyway...

Step 1: Cast on 10 stitches 

Step 2: Continue knitting until you have a band that fits around your head.

Cast off.

Step 3: Using the embroidery needle, sew together the two ends of the headband, making it a full circle.

Step 4: To make the thicker bow, cast on 20 stitches.

Then follow my Knitted Bow Tutorial for instructions on the bow portion of the headband.

Step 5: You should then collect the following items: A completed bow, a plain headband and some leftover string.

Use the leftover string to tie the bow and the headband together. I would recommend putting the cinched part of the bow over the sewn together part of the headband in order to disguise the sewing job. 

Once you've tied the knot, wrap the leftover string around the headband and cinched bow several times to keep the two together and to cinch the headband a little as well.

You are then left with your final product!

If you have any questions about this tutorial or if you would like to share your own versions of this craft, please post below in the comments.

Happy crafting!

-Micayla

Knitted Cinched Headband

Tutorial

Hey guys!

This was one of my first projects I ever did, and one of my favorites! It's great for winter, really cute and super easy to make!

Here are the supplies you'll need:

• Yarn
• Knitting needles
• Scissors
• Embroidery needle

Step 1: Cast on about 12-15 stitches with the yarn of your choice.

Step 2: Knit until you've made a rectangle that will stretch to the size of your head.

Step 3: End your knitted piece and sew together using an embroidery needle.

Step 4: Pinch the sewed area of the headband to make the cinched area. (same technique as the Knitted Bow Tutorial)

Step 5: Tie a knot around the cinched area.

Step 6: Wrap the area repeatedly. I usually stop once the cinched area is 2-3 inches long.

Step 7: Tie a knot in the back to finish off the headband and you're done!

Hope you enjoyed this craft and your day off from school/work today! 

Happy Martin Luther King Jr Day, and happy crafting!

-Micayla