30
Oct 12

I Could Make That: Constellation Lights

When I was younger, I had a book on constellations. It wasn’t very long or detailed, definitely a children’s book to discovering the sky, but my sister and I used to pour over it—mapping out star patterns during the day, standing outside in the summer amidst the fireflies at night.

I love stars. I love the way they look, I love what they are, I love what they have represented for years and what they continue to represent today.

If I could, I would map the constellations onto the ceiling of my dorm room in glow in the dark paint, just like those plastic stars I used to stick on the walls as a child.

I needed a way to bring the stars into my room at night, so I made one.

“We’re made of star-stuff. We are a way for the cosmos to know itself.”

The Project: Constellation Lights

The Inspiration: These lamps.

The Materials: Cans. Hammer. Water. Freezer. Nails.

The Steps: My mom did me a huge favor while I was home last weekend, and cleaned out three metal cans for my project this week. Thanks, mom!

When I got back to my dorm on Sunday night, I filled these cans with water and froze them in the freezer. My mom told me that this would prevent the cans from bending while I was trying to hammer holes into them.

While they were freezing, I designed my patterns.  I found an awesome picture online of all the astrological star signs and decided to use that as the pattern on one of my cans.

I cut out each constellation and taped it onto the side of my can. I then took my hammer and nails— Thanks, Dad! —and put holes everywhere on the can that a star would be.

In between hammering each constellation, I had to put the cans back into the freezer, sometimes adding more water if a chunk of ice fell out.

The cans weren’t finished defrosting by the time I made this post, but I’m hoping to be able to post a picture of them soon.

I’ll add a candle to the inside and have constellation shadows all over my walls.


23
Oct 12

I Could Make That: Dip Dye Tee and Shorts

To start off, I want to say a HUGE thank you to Emma for giving me the tees to work with this week. I hope you like how they turned out!

I love the way sweaters and jeans look when they begin to fade. When your favorite sweater begins to thin at the elbows and wrists and your jeans fade white on seams and joints.

I love the way colored tees begin to look after about a hundred washes, when they start to fade from the middle out, with bottom edges holding onto color, when seams have long given up.

A well-loved item is the perfect addition to any closet.

And when I found out that the Dip Dye look could provide an awesome fade to any white tee, I was more than pleased!

The Project: Dip Dye Tee and Shorts

The Inspiration: Dip dye trend. This Free People blog post.

The Materials: White tee. Grey jean shorts. Gloves. Dye. Plastic container. Hot water.

The Steps: If you’re thinking about using any form of fabric dye, the first thing to do is read the package. The dye I was using was capable of dying a couple pounds of fabric—and I definitely did not need that much—so I only needed to shake about a quarter of the powder into a clean plastic container. Mine was rectangular, a little wider than the width of a t-shirt bottom, and not very deep.

The dye I was using also called for about two cups of hot water. I didn’t have a measuring cup, so I eyeballed it and used my favorite teacup as a substitute.

I knew I wanted my tee to be darker on the bottom and fade up, so I held the very bottom edge in the dye for about 30 seconds, before gradually increasing the amount submerged and holding each new addition for 15 seconds longer. I’d say the shirt was under the dye for somewhere around a minute total.

When I was finished with the main dye, I wrung out the shirt as much as possible before moving it to the sink and rinsing it with cold water. When the water stopped running pink, I wrung it out again and placed it flat on top of a towel on my desk.

From the Free People Blog I linked above, I got the idea to sprinkle dry dye onto the damp shirt to create a speckle trend. My dye must have been different than theirs, because my speckles turned more into shooting star shapes. (But hey, I still like it!)

I then left the shirt to dry completely.

Once it was done, I brought it back to the sink and rinsed once more until the water ran clear. I hung the shirt up on a hanger, and let it dry overnight.

While that was drying, I made an unplanned second project: dip dyeing a pair of grey shorts I had with the extra dye!

Following the same process, I dyed just the top half of my shorts.

I have to admit, I really like the way they came out.

Emma’s Two Tees: Dipped Dye Tee. Skull Back Tee.

 


16
Oct 12

I Could Make That: A Spine Like Lace Tee

My parents visited again this last weekend—bringing more good memories and Halloween presents, but less time to spend working on or shopping for a new project.

I think I’ll have to resort to doing some online shopping for supplies in the next couple weeks. After all, there’s only so much you can get from the pharmacy downtown.

I did get a chance to stop in at a few clothing stores downtown (where I fell in love with more skeleton shirts) and got inspired to throw together another quick Halloween-esque project.

WARNING: This project did not photograph well. Colors and finished product do not look as they appear under dorm room lighting.

The Project: Spine Like Lace Tee

The Inspiration: This shirt.

The Materials: An old black tank top. Leftover black and brown lace. Bleach. Gloves. Small cups. Scissors. Mini pharmacy sewing kit.

The Steps: First, I got to prepping my shirt. As the black tank would serve as the background for the brown and black lace, I wanted to lighten it up a bit to add some dimension to the pattern.

Did you know that some black tees lift to a red-orange color? Perfect for Halloween.

I wanted the bleaching to be two-tone, so I poured about a tablespoon straight into one paper cup and mixed about a tablespoon with water in another. While wearing gloves, I dipped the tips of my fingers into the bleach and water mixture and flicked it onto the shirt. I then did the same with the straight bleach, using my fingers to apply it more heavily on the collar where I wanted it to fade more. Just like my last project, I then rinsed and hung the shirt up to dry.

Next, I got to work cutting out my lace spine. I made a pattern piece out of computer paper in the shape of a vertebra, and used that with the black and brown lace to make my applique pieces.

Once my tee was done drying, I used a mini sewing kit I bought downtown at the pharmacy to sew on the backbone. I used a messy stitch to add to the “destroyed” feel. The most important part was to make sure that the lace stayed down.

The final touches on the shirt were more little details: adding holes around the spine applique and randomly around the shirt, fraying the seams using the flat blade of the scissors, cutting the edges off the sleeve and bottom of the shirt, and stretching it out.

How many more days until Halloween?

 


09
Oct 12

I Could Make That: Bleached Denim Shirt

I love denim. Blue denim, faded denim, ripped denim, colored denim. I fill my closets with anything and everything I can find made out of America’s signature fabric.

I boast an impressive collection of denim shirts, denim vests, denim jackets, and denim jeans, topped off by an assortment of colored shorts and skinny leg pants—a collection best described as enough to keep me in denim every day for the rest of my life.

With the passing of the Autumnal Equinox, I can feel the crisp air creeping into Happy Valley in the mornings and evenings—just chilly enough to render all my shorts obsolete, but still not cool enough for my knit winter sweaters.

The solution? You guessed it.

Denim.

The Project: Bleached Out Denim Shirt

The Inspiration: This shirt.

The Materials: Thrift store denim button up. Bleach. Gloves. Time.

The Steps: I asked my mom to stop by my favorite thrift store and pick up some denim garments before she visited a few weeks ago. She did not disappoint. My favorite was a dark wash denim jacket that I am still contemplating, and this denim shirt.

To start off, I laid my shirt front side down on the inside of a bathtub. I wanted the sleeves of my shirt to be heavily bleached, so I concentrated there first, pouring the bleach directly onto the fabric and massaging it in with my gloved fingers.

There was no rhyme or reason to the bleach spots on the shirt I was emulating, so I didn’t use any particular techniques when applying the bleach. I merely poured about two cups on top of the shirt and massaged it into the fabric. (The easiest methods can sometimes be the best.)

After leaving the bleach to sit for about five minutes, I took the shirt and twisted it into a tight spiral, then twisted it again to form what I can best described as a “cinnamon bun shape.” I let it sit until the color had lifted to exactly how I wanted it.

Then, I began the rinsing process with cool water, concentrating on body of the shirt first and the sleeves last—I didn’t mind if they continued to lift in color. I kept rinsing until I was certain all the bleach was out.

Finally, I ventured down to the basement of my dorm and threw my completed shirt into the dryer.

(Then went back to my dorm, threw open the windows, and tried to get the smell of bleach OUT.)


02
Oct 12

I Could Make That: Skull Back Shirt

My mother and I both share a love for Halloween.

Having her and my father visit this past weekend—right when the air was just starting to get cool and the leaves were just beginning to change color outside the windows of their hotel—has only made me that much more nostalgic for all our fall activities.

Driving down back country roads to the farm on the edge of the apple fields to pick up freshly made cider donuts, screaming and laughing as I reach my hand into the ice cold insides of a freshly carved pumpkin, and singing along to “I Put a Spell On You” every time we hear that Hocus Pocus song.

I miss you, mom. Thanks for the visit, the memories, and the bowl of Halloween candy—even though I know I told you I didn’t want to gain the Freshman 15!

The Project: Skull Back Shirt

The Inspiration: This shirt. Halloween.

The Materials: White V-Neck. Scissors. Pencil.

The Steps: Like I said, my parents visited this weekend, so my DIY time was limited. Sunday night, I decided to cut out this little number while eating my Halloween candy and talking to my sister.

The first thing I did was lay out my white tee, front side facing down, on a hard, flat surface. I grabbed a pencil that had a point, but wasn’t too sharp. (I figured out that it was must easier to write with.)

Then, I traced out my skull face. I didn’t worry too much about it being perfect. My favorite part of this shirt is the destroyed, slightly grungy look.

Next, I took my scissors and got to cutting! I followed pretty closely to the line I drew, then went back in and made certain parts of the hole bigger. If you want to keep parts of the fabric intact and stretched across the opening, leave the strip about three times as wide as you want it. I’ve learned that they rip during the stretching process!

Next comes my favorite part of DIY clothes: the little details! I added some extra small holes around the upper neckline and bottom hem to continue the destroyed look. I cut around the edge of the sleeves and neckline, making sure I was outside the seam line to prevent it from completely fraying.

Once I was done with cutting, I worked on stretching the shirt out. I gave it a few tugs vertically and a few more horizontally, then worked around the holes on the back until they looked how I wanted them.

To finish up, I hand washed my shirt in the sink with a little bit of bleach to remove all the leftover pencil marks and hung it up to dry.

Now all I need is a Halloween.


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