Finalists and Final Vote! Lil Blue Boo / Dharma Trading Great Ugly Knit Upcycle

Introducing.....the finalists for the Lil Blue Boo / Dharma Trading Great Ugly Knit Upcycle! The judges (Amy, Ashley, Kari, and Rachel) had a really hard time narrowing all the great entries down to the final 15! Thank you judges! And great job to everyone that entered!

Please cast your vote in the sidebar to the right for your favorite "ugly to beautiful" transformation!! A list of prizes are at the bottom of the bottom of the post. Voting ends at midnight September 9th! Note: the entries are anonymous but I'll add links when the voting is closed.


#1 Back to School
A pile of outdated knits turned into an adorable back to school outfit!




#2 Cowgirl Skirt and Headband
Four ordinary, tacky shirts were used to create ruffles for this precious skirt...and even the scraps were used for shirt detail and hair piece.




#3 Embroidered Monkey Jumper
Two boring brown shirts were transformed with a touch of bright pink and a little embroidered monkey applique. Extra details include metallic gold thread for the crown and hot pink rick rack.




#4 T-shirt Snake
A bunch of green T-shirts from the donate pile and a pregnancy pillow made this fantastic toy snake for a playroom.....so much more fun than a beanbag!




#5 Boring Tees to Boxer Briefs
Ugly, boring tees transformed into to awesome boxer briefs. Other than the original knit tees, the only additional materials are the elastic at the waistband and the thread they were sewn with.




#6 Refashioned Romper
A plain vanilla cabled sweater refashioned into a precious sweater romper!




#7 Toddler Ruffle Dress
A stained, long-sleeve maternity t-shirt was transformed into an beautiful toddler dress covered in ruffles!




#8 Upcycled Gauchos
A pile of old T-shirts ready for Goodwill were begging to become this trendy pair of trousers!




#9 Applique T-shirt Pillow Cover
Ugly tees transformed into appliqued red/white snowflakes and trim for this decorative pillow!




#10 Dress With Matching Flower Headband
Boring tees from the "throw out" pile were made into this adorable dress and headband!




#11 Recycled Haute Couture
Outdated knits are now "recyclé haute couture" ...... perfect for shopping for baguettes and stinky cheese in the streets of Paris.




#12 Eco-friendly Waldorf-Style Doll
An ugly old stained white t-shirt was dyed to become the body of an eco-friendly Waldorf-style doll. An ugly pile of wool became the stuffing and the hair yarns were from the trash pile!




#13 Cowl Neck Toddler Sweatshirt
An outdated sweatshirt transformed into a stylish toddler cowl neck!



#14 Knit Flower Pins
A little boys sweater vest was made into 2 stunning flower pins....the perfect upcycled accessories!



#15 Bunny and Dress
An unsightly peach merino wool was dyed into a perfect "bunny" color and made into this cute stuffed toy. Ugly knits made the cute dress and matching carrot.




The Prizes:

First Place:
$50 Gift Certificate to Dharma Trading
Singer 2932 Sewing Machine
$25 Gift Certificate to Lil Blue Boo

Second Place:
$25 Gift Certificate to Dharma Trading
$25 Gift Certificate to Lil Blue Boo

Click the collage below to view the entire gallery:

First Day of School = Productive Day

Today was Boo's first day back at school! Of all the beautiful clothing I've made her...she picked her Pinto halter dress from last year that she's pretty much grown out of and a pair of cropped white pants. I cleaned her Unicorn Crocs to shiny new appearance (magic erasers are great for this), packed a nutritious lunch and we were set to go!


The first thing I did after dropping her off? I hit all my favorite thrift stores!


I had spent the weekend silk screening some NEW Lil Blue Boo signature knit.....


....and today I used it for the sleeves of this cute dress:


My new backdrop for clothing photos......look familiar?


Oh, and I made Boo's doll Li'l Sally a new Cinderella-inspired princess dress:


Boo loved every second of school today....I missed my little sidekick though.


Back to School Giveaway!


I get so many requests for more photos of my studio spaces I decided to enter this contest to have it photographed professionally! Go and vote for the Lil Blue Boo space....then leave a comment that you voted and I'll pick a random winner for a Lil "Bleu" Boo tee! Just click the button below! Thank you!

"Ware" & Sneak Peeks!

Yesterday was Boo's school open house! I actually was able to get her out of her new wardrobe of "just underwear like Daddy" (disclaimer: Mr. Lil Blue Boo DOES wear more than just underwear during the day) and into a dress. She wouldn't let me brush her hair but I pick my battles carefully.....and, well, brushing our hair just wasn't important yesterday. She was SO excited to meet her new teacher! I can't wait to have some free time to get more projects done!

I did get a bunch of things made last week....here is how the "China Doll" dresses turned out:

I found a small amount of the bottom blue and white lycra knit and made as many as I could. It caught my eye as soon as I saw it on my last fabric hunt. I collect blue and white porcelain...only because I want to be like Martha Stewart and collect some type of "ware." Most of it's from my wedding registry....so I haven't gotten very far in my collection!

Since I'm a studio pack rat....I even keep the broken ones for a "some day" project:

Some of my favorite upcycled dresses of the week:

My friend Lisa (from Ellebows) sent me this adorable photo of her daughter Elle wearing the Lil "Bleu" Boo set I made recently. Elle was born to wear a beret:



Coming this week? Lil Blue Boo Shoes.....complete with Lil Blue Boo screen prints! Eeeep! So excited about these!


A sneak peek of a beautiful photo shoot by Misty Smith and her daughter Keeley for Lil Blue Boo Clothing. I just love it. Misty is super talented and I love her photography style! Stay tuned for the rest of the photos! Only a few of these horse dresses left in the shop!






Hope you are having a great weekend! If you get a chance could you go and vote for the Lil Blue Boo space? Just click the button below! Thank you!

Paper Doll Silk Screens!

Inspired by my Paper Doll Dress pattern......


....I silk screened some paper doll cutouts for some dresses! The "Rock, Paper, Scissors" dresses were available today:


And the "China Doll" dresses will be available sometime tomorrow morning:


I've been collecting some beautiful silky, swingy knits for the bottom of these dress/tunics....so that they are ultra-twirly! It almost hurts to cut into them :)

Li'l Miss Mei (with Download)

I made a new little nesting doll graphic for some doll dresses.....introducing Li'l Mei (modeled by Li'l Sally, Boo's Apple Tree House Waldorf-style doll):


You can use my pirate matryoshka tutorial (with download as well) to learn how to transfer image to doll clothes, t-shirts, hoodies, sweatpants etc. Feel free to use the graphic for your own creations....just remember that it is for personal use only! Can't wait to see what you come up with! (Click the link below if you have trouble viewing the graphic)

LilMei



Pair Li'l Mei with some cherry blossom fabric and you've got an adorable combo!

Fearless Creativity

My sister reminded me of something the other day.....that we used to have an "crafts" room in our house growing up. It was a designated room where my mother kept her sewing machine and all the other projects she was working on. It was overflowing with silk flowers, fabric, thread, craft paints etc......and none of it was ever off limits. We were allowed to go through any of my mother's things and use whatever we wanted.....it made us fearless when it came to creating.


Growing up my mother was always making drapes, comforters, pillows, and flower arrangements for our house. I can picture her repainting the kitchen cabinets, weeding 2 acres of landscaping by herself, and sewing clothes for us. She was super woman....and I wanted to be just like her:

She would illustrate everything from handwritten notes and cards to my baby book with little characters. She still to this day sends letters and cards with little cartoons drawn inside them. She draws little cartoon stories with Boo when she comes to visit.


I wasn't always thrilled about clothing items she made me (that's me in the center, my sister is on the left, my brother is pretending to be a robot...eek)...but I can appreciate the handmade love put into them.

So maybe my love of "making things" began with my mother....but I like to think it runs deeper in the genes....generations of people driven to create something. My father built companies, my mother built a loving household.....and they both encouraged my sister, brother and I to be fearless and try everything. I like to think I've taken the same approach with Boo. My only disappointment is that Boo was born after my grandparents passed away.....but at least I have the stories and photos to pass on to her (click the photos for the posts):

Who has influenced your creativity?

Tie Dyed Satin Elastic Accessories (A Tutorial)

On our road trip this summer I found some hair accessories in a store that were tie dyed...but they were so expensive I was determined to make a bunch of them myself!


The perfect ponytail holder:


Satin elastic is perfect for accessories because it is extremely strong, it has high elasticity and you can dye it! The biggest plus? It doesn't get tangled in hair easily...and with Boo's crazy hair we love "friendly" elastic. It's also nice that satin elastic costs about 30 to 50 cents a yard.



First, I took satin elastic (also known as fold over elastic)....you can find this at most fabric stores:


Then I folded the elastic several times and placed rubber bands tightly around it in several places:


I mixed up a small amount of pink and purple fabric dye in two squirt bottles....


...and applied the dye directly to the elastic:


I place the tie dyed elastic in a ziplock overnight for the dye to set in. To dye a few pieces just one color I just added dye directly to the baggies (the left and center baggies):


The next morning I took the elastic out of the baggies and rinsed the excess dye out.


I added a small amount of dye fixative to a bucket of cool water......


.....and let the elastic sit for about 10 minutes just to ensure I wouldn't have any dye bleed later on.


Finally, I set the elastic pieces out in the sun to dry:


To make the accessories, I just looped a piece of elastic, then tied a tight knot at the end and then clipped off the satin elastic at a decorative angle just below the knot:


I used a tiny amount of fray block to keep the ends of the elastic from fraying over time:


We use these satin elastic bands for so many things....Boo has her own preferences:


I use them for my hair but also to keep my journals and address book closed:



A pretty way to keep some like items together:


My favorite idea? Make a bag of several sizes and colors for a handmade gift...or better yet a bunch of bags for party favors or stocking stuffers!



Note: This tutorial is only recommended for accessories. Many types of elastic will not hold dye due to their fiber content. The foldover/satin elastic typically has enough natural fiber in it to react to dye.