Guest Post and GIVEAWAY with Mamma Nene from Serger Pepper

Today I'm handing over the reigns of my blog to Mamma Nene of Serger Pepper to share her first ever guest post with you all! I'll be posting over at The Dusty Attic today, if you fancy a little more reading, but until then I hope you enjoy this wonderful tutorial which Mamma Nene has put together for you all! 

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Hi everybody!

I'm MammaNene from Italy and I'm writing my first Guest Post (exciting, uh?)

 First of all I'd really like to let you know me a little bit: I'm a 30-something working Mom (who in a little will be a 40 something, but: who cares?) of a 4yo little girl (LilPotato) who is my first fan :-)

I love to sew and, starting from this, I decided to start a bilingual blog sharing my passion, writing tutorials and giving away free patterns, always looking to sustainability and refashioning every time I can.

And that's what I'm doing now: I know that Sunae's blog is not a sewing blog, and I've been thinking a lot if it was the right post to share here ... then I decided to do that... basically, if you don't like the topic you can simply skip it and, if you like it, maybe you can discover something new!!!



By the way, this is my tutorial for you:

What you need: 

• old bed sheets... or fabric, obviously! Two pieces about 60 cm x 120 cm
• a little piece of elastic of about 15 cm
• scissors, pins, sewing machine, thread, ruler, a pen, iron and iron board
• my measure scheme:

Let's start:

Take your old bed sheets (already cut with measures above) and fold them in half and then in half again, like this:

You now have a 30 cm x 60 cm rectangle!

Cut out two fabric squares (ehm, rectangles, in fact) like on the scheme and, unfolding, you'll obtain a strange shape, like this:

 

Repeat on the other bed sheet scrap (outer)

Now put the two pieces (main and lining) right sides facing and sew around the center hole, like I did (you can leave 1 cm of seam allowances, or sew leaving the feet edge as a seam allowance, like I did: it's not rocket science, you don't have to get mad about measurements!) including on the seam near one of the corners a piece of elastic you'll use to keep folded your market bag:

When all sewn, on corners, clip fabric until you reach the seam, BUT without cutting it!!Then turn inside out and press with an hot iron all around the seam.

Now the fun part:

We have to roll one side of the market bag inside one of the handles, in order to sew together the main and the lining fabrics, ride sides facing, like this:

Let's sew, starting from one side seam, finishing to the other side seam (two 90∞ angles to sew and clip on corners, like we did on the center hole), then turn inside out, taking fabrics out with your hand: ta-daaa:

Press everything nicely and repeat on the other side (rolling, sewing, turning and pressing, do everything twice!)

Let's close side and bottom seams of both outside fabric and lining in one seam, right sides facing (remember, you have to leave a gap on the lining bottom, so we can reverse everything inside-out).

You can stop here or, if you like some boxy shape, proceed squaring corners on each one of the 4 angles, like this:

When you've turned inside out your bag, you can stitch the gap by hand or, like I did, with a straight machine stitch (lazy girl, I didn't change the thread color, but it's on the lining, who cares?)

Your Lined Foldable Market Bag is done.

You can change measures if you like it higher and thinner,  you choose, this tutorial is ok with any measure!



If you're still reading this: Wow, thank you!

If you're sewing one or one hundred of these, please share them on my flickr group

If you want some more tutorial: please come to visit Serger Pepper and, maybe, let me know you discovered me thanks to Sunae from Little Foal!

Hugs 

MammaNene

SergerPepper.blogspot.it

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Thank you so much Mamma Nene for sharing this tutorial on my blog! Bet you didn't know that Little Foal actually started out as Because I Said Sew and used to be a sewing blog ;) 

I Really hope you all enjoyed this post! Be sure to pop over and check out the other awesome tutorials that Mamma Nene posts on Serger Pepper. She is one very clever and thrifty lady!

Mamma Nene is kindly offering on lucky Little Foal reader the chance to win 2 months 250x250 ad space on her fantastic blog! I have thrown in one month's space on Little Foal as a little bonus, as well and you can enter via the Rafflecopter widget below. 

Best of luck! xx

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Clumsy Girl's Guide to Winged Eyeliner

I would just like to start off by saying there is absolutely no way that I am a beauty blogger, nor will I ever become a beauty blogger. For the most part, that stuff bores me and I'm rubbish at it. Absolutely rubbish! However, one thing I have always envied is normal women's abilities to do winged eyeliner that is actually even and pointing off in the same direction on each eye. I mentioned this to my gorgeous cousin who is a make up queen, and she gave me a quick little tip for doing nice, even winged eyeliner that she used to use when she first started out. Lucky you guys, because I am going to share it with you today! Please ignore the horrendous way my face looks in these photos, I was trying to best showcase what I was doing - not exactly my best angle!

The secret to perfect eyeliner? Sticky tape!

I know, shockingly simple, right? But does it actually work? Follow the steps and see for yourself:

1. Cut a small piece of sticky tape, and play around with it in your fingers to make it lose some of it's sticky. You want it to be just sticky enough to stick flat, without basically supergluing itself to your face. This is so when you pull it off your face, it doesn't hurt and is not too hard when your hands and face are already covered in foundation and whatnot!

2. Align the bottom of the sticky tape with the outside corner of your eye, pointing up and out to the corner of your eyebrow. Slipping the tape under your bottom lashes, smooth it flat onto your face so that the top edge of the tape is nestled right next to your eyebrow (mine are super thin on the ends so I'm sorry if you can barely see them).

3. Use a liquid eyeliner to frame your eye, starting thin on the inside corner of your eye and building it up towards the outer edge, following on with your kicks. Try and make the line as even and fluid as you can (obviously I didn't leave mine looking like that^^^ I smoothed it over when I was done with a wet cotton bud). Here is the great thing - you don't have to worry about how neat your kicks are because they sort out themselves! All you have to do is make each side is an even length and the top edge nice and smooth :) 

4. let your eyeliner dry a little, peel off the stickytape and touch up any bits that need touching up, before continuing on with your make up routine!

Isn't it great? I can't believe I can actually do proper winged eyeliner now! And it actually doesn't look like a five year old did it! Now that I have a little trick up my sleeve I feel confident enough to buy some proper nice eyeliner. The stuff i've been using is $5 crappy k-mart eyeliner because I didn't want to spend money on stuff I had to wash off every morning. Yay for decent make up! And yay for the fact that I have been using tinted moisturiser rather than foundation (nearly) every day! My skin feels so much healthier and smoother since I cut foundation out of my morning routine. Loving it! Do you have any other neat little tricks I can try out with my make up? I suck at being a girl and would love your advice!

And just because everyone deserves a beautiful duck face selfie to brighten up their day:

Isn't this just the sexiest face ever? You're totally welcome!

Heart bookmark tutorial & The Perks of Being a Wallflower

The other day I had writing all up my arm, scrawled on my leg and on about five different scraps of paper. "I need a diary" I thought, and so off I popped to the Newsagency to buy one. The only one they had left. An ugly blue office-like one. So I covered it in pretty fabric and called it a day until I can find somewhere which hasn't sold out of Frankie Magazine diaries!

Then I made this cute heart bookmark to match:

How To:

You Will Need:

A small piece of felt

A piece of pretty fabric

Heat N Bond and an iron

A needle and thread or sewing machine

First, cut out a felt heart, a square of pretty fabric slightly larger than the felt heart and a strip of felt slightly smaller than the width of your heart.

Stitch the strip of felt to the back of the heart like so...

Then iron the fabric to the heat n bond, trace and cut out a heart.

Iron that to your felt heart, covering the stitching, trim off any felt peeking around the edges and you're done!

How cute does it look peeking over the edge of my book?

I made this cute pom pom one today too - tutorial found here. Theres is much fluffier and rounder than mine, but I like my little scruffball :) Matches the cover of "The Perks of Being a Wallflower much better than my cutesy heart bookmark, don't you think? I'm aaalllll about aestetics lately :)

By the way, the verdict is still out on whether or not I love The Perks of Being a Wallflower in book form as much as I loved the movie. The movie is simply uh-mazing! If you haven't seen it, see it! It is so beautiful and sad and weird and funny and ohmygosh - I cried and smiled at the same time! The book is written in letter form, which I think is why I am halfway through and not completely "into it" yet, if you know what I mean. It also doesn't have the flashbacks of the movie, which is weird, cos they would make much more sense written than they did on the screen. Also, I love Emma Watson! I envy her, I want to be her best friend and I want to be her all at the same time! She is so classy, so beautiful, so chic! If I ever met her I think I'd either cry or scare her off by hugging her so tight she couldn't breathe and then getting dragged away by her bodyguards or something. I just love her and what a huge part of my life she is (what with the Harry Potter series and all) without her even knowing! She has been my role model since I was about 12, and what a great role model for a teenager has she been!

Before I get too carried away, here is the trailer for The Perks of Being a Wallflower. I beg you to watch it, it will just leave you breathless!

DIY Rustic Jewellery Hanger

So, I have been seeing these around  pinterest a lot lately...

Via

 

 

Via

 

 

 

...and with needing good display ideas for The Corner Store, I decided to give it a go!

You will need:

• Large wooden frame
• Chicken wire (I used 5mm bird cage wire, available from the hardware store)
• Sandpaper
• Spray primer (or cheap white spray paint)
• Your choice of colour spray paint
• Staple gun
• Pliers
• Sexy male helper *optional but highly recommended*

 

How to:

1. Remove the middle of the frame (glass, backing and picture if any) and sand back any varnish or paint.

2. Wipe your frame over with a clean, dry cloth to remove dust from sanding. Give it a coat of spray primer (or white paint) and leave to dry for one hour.

3. Once dry, paint your frame with the colour spray paint you chose (I did mine sky blue), then leave it to dry (again) for one hour.

4. Give your frame another coat of paint if needed, letting it dry once again, then use some soft-ish sandpaper to lightly rub back paint for a rustic or shabby chic look. How much you sand it back, or whether you do at all, is entirely up to you.

5. Once you have reached the desired effect with your frame, turn it over and place your chicken wire over the back. Put a brick on one side to stop it rolling up if you have to and hold the other over the edge of your frame, using it as a guide to cut chicken wire to fit the back. I'm too unco to hold the wire flat and cut it at the same time, so this is where having a sexy male helper comes in handy. I used this one:

 

6. Use the staple gun to attach the chicken wire to the back of your frame. Trim off excess wire and use pliers to bend back sharp bits and then you are done!

I know its not the easiest or quickest DIY project (or the safest either, for that matter. I cut myself on a piece of glass and stabbed myself numerous times with sharp wire) but I think it is well worth it! I love my frames. I'm going to donate one to the shop, keep one to use as a message/inspiration board in my sewing room/office and I may sell the rest (if anyone wants them!).

Ahh - bright, rustic DIY goodness!

Lavender Pillow/Bag Tutorial

Okay, so this is something which probably doesn't need a tutorial, but I was making some today and thought I would share one anyway. They're a great stocking stuffer or complimentary gift and are great for beginners to sew. Plus, they make everything smell pretty, and that's always a bonus! :)

You will need:

• Dried lavender 
• Scraps of fabric
• Embellishments (optional)
• sewing machine and basic sewing notions.

Method:

1. Cut your scraps of fabric into small strips or squares of fabric, depending on how big you would like your lavender bags or pillows to be.
2. Embellish your fabric if you wish to do so. I find it easiest to embellish first because then you are working with a flat, single layer piece of fabric, rather than a sewn up bag or pillow. You can either machine stitch or hand stitch your embellishments on - I tend to do a combination of both.
3. Fold your strips in half right sides together and sew up each side to make your bags and hem the top. If you are doing lavender pillows, place two matching squares right sides together and sew around three edges to make your pillow, leaving one edge open for stuffing. I like to use my overlocker to sew projects like this because it is quick and easy, and makes a nice, neat edge which wont fray. If you don't have an overlocker, that's fine though - you might just want to zig-zag stitch next to your straight stitch to stop the edges of your bag or pillow fraying, and you can double fold the hem of your bags.
4. Turn your pillows and bags the right side out. To get the corners to look nice, poke a knitting needle or pencil into them to push them out.Stuff pillows with dried lavender and seal the opening by slip stitching. If you are making bags, simply half fill each bag with dried lavender and tie a ribbon around the top to secure.

Now you're done! Wasn't that easy? 

If you're wondering where you can get dried lavender, it can be bought from some health food stores and craft stores or you can dry out the dying lavender buds off a bush in your garden! I used a mixture of store bought and home grown lavender today, both of which were given to me by my Nan. Dried lavender from the store looks much more consistent and is more grainy than lavender grown at home. That is why I mixed mine together - I didn't want some pillows to be grainy and others to be nice and fluffy! I think my bags and pillows turned out great!

Crochet Necklace Tutorial

Look what I've been making!

Aren't they cute? And so easy too! if you know the basics of crochet, you will have no troubles with this tutorial, and even if you don't - grab a crochet hook and watch a YouTube tutorial on basic crochet techniques and off you go! If you have any troubles, just leave a comment and I'll get back to you, or if you're not keen on crochet but still want a cute little necklace, I may just put some on Etsy for you, if you ask nicely! I will also be selling these little beauties at The Corner Store in Evans Head.

I am self-taught at crochet and therefore may not be using proper crochet terms (any that I do use will be Australian terms, more than likely, but I hope you get the gist of what I'm saying!)

Sorry that I haven't taken any photos of the process... I usually crochet at night and my camera is super crappy at this kind of thing. Maybe now I've entered the blogging world it's time to get a digital SLR? I know the thrill-seeking boyfried wouldn't mind me having a good camera to catch him in action!


You will need:

• A crochet hook
• Some yarn
• Fabric stiffener
• A length of chain (I use about 50cm, but just make it however long you like your necklaces to be)
• Four jump rings
• A lobster clip
• Scissors 

Instructions:

 

1. Start your crochet however you usually start it (I make a loop then pass some yarn underneath it and pull it up with my hook, making a slip knot). Chain a length of yarn to the width you'd like your finished panel to be. I usually chain about 28 with the thin yarn I use, if you're using thicker yarn, chain 20. Make sure the amount of chains you do is a multiple of four.

2. Chain three and turn your work. Now treble into every chain you have made, skipping the first three chains. 

3. Chain one and turn your work. Chain three, then treble into every fourth stitch you made. Continue this along the entire work, chaining three then trebling into every fourth stitch below.

4. At the end of the row, chain one and turn your work. Now you need to treble six into each chain four gap to make a scalloped edge. If you wish to make the smaller of the two necklace designs, once you have done this, fasten your work and you are finished your crochet panel. Move on to step 6. If you wish to make the larger, fasten your work and start your crochet on your hook again. 

5. Chain into the first gap between your groups of six trebles to attach your new piece of yarn to your work again. Repeat step 4, trebling six into each gap between the groups of six trebles. Fasten your work when you have trebled into the last remaining gap. 

6. Sew your end threads into your work and cut short so that you can no longer see them. 

7. Stiffen your crochet panel with fabric stiffener. Most labels will give you directions to follow with the choice of dipping your panel into the stiffener or working it in by hand. I find working it in by hand to be most effective and less wasteful. To do this, pour a 50c piece worth of stiffener into your hand and massage it into the panel. Make sure the panel is completely saturated. If it is not, pour a little more stiffener into your hand and work it into the drier areas. On the bottle, it should say to leave your panel in a tray to dry overnight, however, I find this makes it a little too stiff, and am extremely impatient, so I zap mine in the microwave for 30 seconds instead. Don't leave it in for any more than 30 seconds, because you will burn it! 

8. After your panel has been made stiff, open your jump rings and push one into each side of your crochet panel. Cut your piece of chain in half and thread an end loop of each piece into the opened jump rings attached to the crochet panel. I just use crappy scissors to cut my low-quality chain, but if you're using a good quality chain, use pliers. Attach another jump ring to each end of the chain, adding a lobster clip on one side for fastening your necklace, and voila! You did it! You made a necklace! :)

 

I love making these gorgeous little necklaces. They are relatively quick, look super cute, and you can knock up the crochet panels while sitting in front of the TV - and who doesn't like craft projects which can be done while watching TV? It lets you be lazy and productive at the same time! Happy crocheting everyone, and I hope you love your necklaces as much as I love mine!