This month’s blog tour prompt was “changes.” Admittedly, I struggled a little bit with what this meant for me… I mean, change right now isn’t new – I recently started a new job and that’s caused a tremendous amount of change at home, but for my wardrobe and sewing? Hmmm…. What I came up with was to breath new life and interest into the basics that I find myself craving and reaching for in my wardrobe! So, anchoring there, I sewed up a simple black dress and infinity scarf trio that I hope to get lots of wear out of this season by mixing and matching based on mood!
Fourth time’s a charm? I seriously LOVE the Hey June Charleston!!!
If you have followed my blog, you will see that I have now (including this make) completed 4 runs on this dress (see here and here)! That’s saying alot for me since I don’t have that much time to sew with two little ones at home… I also bore easy and have a ridiculous decent size pattern and fabric collection that leads to lots of jumping from project to project option evaluation (please tell me I’m not alone in this)!
So what in the world is BABY French Terry, anyway???
This go round I returned to View A (the A-line skirt) – which I’d already lengthened (I prefer my skirts to grace or just cover my knees) based on my original version. For the fabric I selected a baby French Terry from Sly Fox Fabrics – and believe me, this fabric is perfect for this project. It is a more lightweight and drapey French Terry than I’m used to… You could almost compare it to a medium weight rayon lycra knit. I am big heart emoji pleased that I was allowed to try it out!
One nuance about a fabric that has both horizontal and vertical stretch is that it can make your pockets “drape/pull” when you place items in them (and also weigh down your waist seam). To combat that, I added in an elastic band to the waist. You are probably noticing that something is slightly different in this version – and that is likely it! I mean – what’s the point of a non-functional pocket??? That would be a tease for sure!
Handmade Infinity Scarf for a chic fabric buster – BRING IT ON!
I had a little more sew time available and had the quick idea that it would be nice to “dress up” this dress. With such a great foundational staple, I knew it would serve as the perfect blank canvas for any accessories I bought (or in this case, made). Since I had already ordered this amazing jersey slub in black and tan (also from Sly Fox), and had already cut out a dolman (more on that in another post) – I knew it was time to think about what else to make with it! I tend to buy my fabric in full yard increments so it only makes sense that I end up with a ton of leftover fabric when a pattern requires less than the 36″ increments. In this case, I took to my good friend google and searched for the perfect scrap buster project and found it!
Enter the DIY Infinity Scarf!
For this project, I looked at several written tutorials and a couple quick videos. Where I landed was that you need approximately 58″ of fabric (in the case of my scarf, I liked the stretch going with the length of the scarf so it would drape better) by ~24″ to make a decent scarf. It just so happens that the 58″ is approximately the standard width of fabric for most knits, so all you are really looking for is the 24″ in length…
DIY Infinity Scarves are like Lay’s Potato Chips – bet you can’t eat make just one!
When I finished that cream one, I went back through the scrap fabrics in my closet and realized that I had two more fabrics that would be perfect for infinity scarves – that were in a very basic neutral color palette. The polka dot is also from Sly Fox Fabrics and is a drapey rayon lycra. The green rib is from Knitpop.
Below, I included a slide show on how I did it – seriously people I spent just about an hour and ended up with 3 distinct wardrobe accessories and it was painless to make!
I’m thinking they will make good gifts for teachers and friends, too – and give me an easy way to share my fabric with others (which is admittedly a process – for sure)! For me, my fabric is like The Ring – I literally call it “my precious” when I am petting sewing it.
I didn’t show this in the slideshow, but to close up the hole used to “turn” the tube right sides out, I use a hand stitch. This tutorial by professor pincushion on the blind/ladderstitch is clutch if you don’t know how to do one!
Ready to see how others interpreted the “ch-ch-changes” theme?
That’s all I have for now! Hope you are inspired to use the “changes” prompt to do something different with your wardrobe! Leave a comment below to let me know how you’re thinking about it!
Also, check out my fellow bloggers’ sites using the links below:
Sunday, May 1st- Sewing By Ti, Tenille’s Thread
Monday, May 8- Sewing By Ti
May 9th- Sewing By Ti
May 10th- Sewing By Ti
May 11th- Lilliepawillie
May 12th- Sewing By Ti
Monday, May 15th- Anne Mari Sews
May 16th- Mahlica Designs
May 17th- Ma Moose
May 18th- The Fairy Dust Bin
May 19th- Harper + Lu
Monday, May 22nd- Margarita on the Ross
May 23rd- Very Blissful
May 24th- Creative Counselor
May 25th- Doodle Number 5
May 26th- Ade Says
Sunday, May 28th- Sew Like a Sloth
May 29th- Anne Mari Sews
May 30th- Stitching and Making
Harper + Lu 
I love your interpretation of the theme! The dress suits you absolutely perfect, it is so classy and stylish! And the scarf is the finishing touch! I loved reading your post!
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Thanks Barbara – I really adore it too!
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Those scarves are a great way to change things up. Love it.
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Looks great on you!
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Looks stunning and totally suits you for casual wear, work, anything! And those scarves!!! *swoon* ❤
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You will get a ton of wear out of that dress! And it’s always nice to have a project you will actually WEAR for those amazing scraps! My favorite is a headband/buff — I wear those a ton on days when I don’t feel like taking a shower 🙂
And you’re not alone in jumping from project to project. I often refer to myself as a magpie when it comes to sewing — always distracted by the next shiny thing!
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Thank you – I totally think to myself people are going to get sick of seeing me in the same dress!!! Hahahaha
Magpie – I like it – consider yourself in good company! 🙂
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