Completely Unofficial Macklemore Challenge!

Last week Young House Love presented a challenge...the Unofficial Macklemore Challenge!  If you are unaware of the fabulous song that is "Thrift Shop" by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis, check out the clean version here...and the original version here.

Sunday Jessica and I headed over to one of our favorite thrift shops, Savers, and had a bit of fun.

Step 1: Go to the thrift shop with "$20 in your pocket"...

 

Step 2: Continue on your shopping excursion spending no more than your $20...(in our case we didn't really find anything worth buying...you can't always win)...and find some of the sweet stuff they mention in the song.

(not entirely sure HOW you "pop some tags" but this was our attempt!)

 If you have a secret love of white rappers and thrift shopping go forth and enjoy!  We certainly had fun...although we got quite a few weird looks from our fellow shoppers :-)

Are you a thrift-shopaholic?  What kinds of things do you always search for?  Anyone else a closeted white-rapper lover?  Or just secretly enjoy doing things that make those around you go "huh?"

Crazyness!

Things have been a bit crazy around here lately...but good crazy.  The end of summer has brought a lot of things to do like run our first 5k (under 37 minutes baby!!!), host a few dinner parties and a wedding shower on our back porch with our new door-turned-table that you can find here, go hunting at tag sales and estate sales, attend a vintage clothing auction, and go to the last Brimfield Antiques Market of the season.  So, needless to say, there are a lot of projects and fun times to catch you all up on, but first I have to process all the pictures and write up the posts.  Maybe I'll take advantage of the cooler evenings and sit with my laptop on the back porch with a warm drink...hmmmm....  There are also a lot of things coming up, like out-of-town guests to christen our guest bedroom, another race (this time 5 miles during a team marathon...), and an art show!  I'll post again later (after the house is all clean for this weekend) and fill you in even more with what I've missed telling you and what's going on now.

Last Minute Crafting

Some craft projects are thought about long and hard and executed after hours of hard work and creative problem-solving.  Others are created out of an immediate need.  This is one of those projects.

I came home the other day and it was particularly stuffy in the apartment.  You see, we have only one window in the living room and this gorgeous double door out to the deck.  However, the door doesn't have a screen, so if you want to open the door to let in a breeze but don't want to let in the bugs, it is nearly impossible.  And thus instant craft time ensued.

Have you ever seen those insta screen doors?  Like this one.  Well, it gave me an idea...so I gathered supplies and got to work.

I actually ended up not using the cardboard, but forgot to retake the picture.  It was a pretty simple project with a pretty simple idea.  Plus it was the best kind of project because it used things I already had around the house, including some leftover nylon screening.

* Cut screening the length of the door plus about six inches.
* Fold over the top 3" to create a casing, and stitch.  I decided to use some fun embroidery floss to add some interest.

* Slide the tension rod through the casing and adjust to fit at the top of the door.

You can also create a casing at the bottom of the screen and slide in some cardboard, weights, or anything you can think of to weigh the bottom down.  I left enough extra at the bottom to do just this, but I was desperate for some cool air and decided to add that feature later.

Somehow I got lucky enough that the screening we had was the exact width of the doorway.  Not sure how that happened, but I sure am glad it did!  If your screen is too wide, just trim it down a bit before you start.  You want to make sure it will fit from side to side with a bit of extra to close any gaps.  Now, this does not work for keeping cats in or out (it took Annie about 2 minutes to figure out if she headed to the corner she could just push it back).  However, that might change depending on what we use to weigh it down.  But it did significantly cut down on the house flies and flying insects that came into the house.

So, yay for instant crafts, a cooler house, and a project using nothing but found supplies!!!



Have you done any instant crafts lately?  Become so desperate you just have to finish a project right now?  Or just any home improvements?  Or, in our case, removable apartment improvements? 

The Story of a Tank Dress

My sister Emily posted a link on my Facebook to a blog she thought I would like...well, as usual, she was right.  Not only did I immediately fall in love with, and make, the tutorial she linked to, but I spent a good portion of tonight reading all the way to the beginning!  What was this wonderful blog and tutorial my sister sent me, you may ask?  Sweet Verbena, right here on Blogger.  Katy has some great tutorials, plus an adorable puppy that I sort of covet...he looks like Josephine, only a dog :-)

The tutorial Emily sent me was for Katy's tank-top turned dress, you can find it here.  Now, I forewarn, this is not a tutorial, it is simply a few pictures showing you how it went when I followed Katy's tutorial.  If you want the real thing, click on over to Sweet Verbena.

Here is the fabric, and the tank top I used.  They made for a nice combination.

I followed along carefully and cut my tank top, sewed the elastic to the bottom, cut the fabric, and cut out the pockets...see...

It's a little blurry, but you get the idea.  I was surprised at how easy doing the pockets were.  I don't know why I always assumed pockets would be difficult, they aren't...at all.

Next, it was time to sew the skirt portion together.  It looked a little funny lying on the floor...

But it turned out just how it was supposed to!  Next I gathered it at the top and stitched it to the tank top.  I had Jessica try it on before I ironed it, it was sort of funny because the freshly gathered skirt before ironing made it REALLY poofy at the seam and it gave Jessica a very odd shape.  Luckily, after some ironing it looked pretty good.  Here's Jessica's finished tank dress.

I think I just may have to make one for myself!  As with all tutorials, I learned something about my own materials and how you sometimes have to adjust what you are doing based on slight differences.  For instance, since ribbed tank tops have much more built in stretch, I should have made the elastic piece around the bottom a little larger to make it even easier to get on and off.  Oh well, at least it still fit!


Have you discovered a new blog lately?  Saw something you just had to create right then?  Or just shared some inspiration with family?