DIY Halloween Patch Jeans

 We are on the cusp of the entire holiday season circuit, and if you've been into any store recently, you will see Halloween everywhere. It is also popping up on my Facebook and Instagram feeds. Cute holiday clothing that's not in your face cheesy or old fashioned will always speak my love language. I saw these darling distressed jeans, with various holiday themes and other cute design motifs, on a site called Evaless. But instead of dropping $50, I knew that I could recreate the look for well under $50. Dare I say $25? And I did! And I can help you with yours!

First, you need a pair of distressed jeans. If you have a pair that you're tired of, and want to upcycle them for this DIY, go for it! I love all of my existing distressed jeans so I picked up this pair at Savers for $4.99! That's right, under $5 and we're still under budget. My mom had a ton of cute Halloween fabric in her sewing room, so I borrowed hers. I didn't spend any extra money there, but I can tell you that you can get remnants from your local craft store or a 1/4 of a yard in several different motifs. I found some darling pre-cut bundles on their website. They are on sale for $9. So we are now at $14. 

You will need fabric glue. I have tons of bottles, in various sizes, so if you aren't planning to use much, get the smallest bottle they offer. You can get a 2oz bottle for under $4 at Joann's as well. That's a total of $18 so far.

You will need to pin your fabric pieces into place. Do you have pins? If not, pick up a pack of 75 count for under $4. That's $22! We are under the $25 budget. Look at us go!

So now we get started. Look at your fabric. Does one speak to you more than another? For me, it was the white piece with the darling witches dress, hat, broom, and ghost. And because the knee had the largest distressed area on the jeans, I decided my favorite should go there. I cut a piece larger than the hole I was covering. Place your fabric from inside the leg of your jeans and move it around until you find the perfect scene in the window. Pin it in place. Do the same thing for all the distressed areas you want to cover on your jeans. 

I even decided to cut a small hole in the back pocket, on the opposite corner of the distressed front pocket, to create a mirrored effect. I used the same fabrics for both pocket.

Now it's time to glue your fabric into place. Turn your jeans inside out, being careful not to poke yourself with the exposed pins. Full disclosure, I do it all the time!

Add the glue in a thin continuous line either across the fabric patch or around the hole you are covering. Make sure you put the glue on the right side of the fabric, as that's the picture that will face out of the distressed portion of your jeans. Place the fabric where you want it, moving it around if need be. Do that quickly as this stuff will start to dry, making it hard to remove. Do this for every patch of fabric you've cut. Allow 24 hours to dry. Cut away an excess fabric that you don't want.

And just like that, you have knock off Halloween patch jeans for under $25!! I'm planning to recreate a Christmas themed pair and maybe one for Valentine's Day, because why not! I love a good holiday piece that may seem a little corny, but that I can give my own personal style to jazz it up!

What do you think? Is this something you would recreate? 

Happy DIYing!

XO,

Andrea

Fashion DIYRainbow Accent Hat

Back in May, I did a segment on Better Kansas City regarding a fashion DIY that included rainbows! I was inspired by Orly Shani's Home and Family segment, totally created my own denim jacket rainbow, but thought about other ways to incorporate a rainbow on other articles of clothing. One of my favorite accessories is a hat! I wear them year round, but a large straw hat for summer is a must! I found this darling hat at Target and decided it needed a little sprucing up and a rainbow is just wanted it needed!

Here's what you need to complete the project. A hat, fabric glue, scissors, and rainbow ribbon. I went with a small pompom trim, but you can use whatever material you feel fits your fancy.

I started at the bottom with purple and worked my way up the hat with the rest of the rainbow colors. Start in the front with a small string of fabric glue and then apply your trim from the middle. You want your ends to meet at the back of the hat. Continue this process all the way around the hat. I finished up half of the hat before moving onto the other side. Again, my ends met at the back and overlapped just a tad.

The glue dries clear, so don't worry about any excess that may peek over the edges. Just smooth down the trim to ensure the glue grabs hold. And remember, the other colors will be layered on top as well.

Isn't it the cutest!!!

I am pool, zoo, farmstead, and any other outdoor activity ready with this darling hat! And I love that it's specific to me! No one else in town will have one, until you make yours! 

What do you think? Will you be making your own rainbow chapaue? What would you apply a rainbow trim to?

XO,

Andrea

Valentine's Day Fashion DIY

How many of you have seen the darling sweater with heart elbow patches floating around Instagram? I see it all the time and it inspired me to create my own version! With Valentine's Day around the corner, and McKinley's class party that afternoon, this little sweatshirt is going to be perfect! 

The top that inspired it all! Isn't it too cute?

Here's what you'll need:

A sweatshirt, a red sweater, a heart shaped cookie cutter, and a pen. This will get you started.

I found the sweatshirt at Target on the clearance rack for $9 and the red sweater at Savers for $3.99. I had a 20% off coupon at Savers from our last donation so I actually spent a little over $3 for the sweater.

Turn the sweater inside out that you're going to use to trace your heart. This way the pen mark won't be on the right side of the garment.

Place your cookie cutter on the sweater. I placed it as far down on the sweater as possible so that I have the remainder of the sweater for a different project. Also, make sure your sweater is a tightly woven fabric. You don't want it to fray once you cut it.

Guess what! The pen didn't show up so I switched to a Sharpie. 

Cut out your heart. Oh, and with the fabric doubled over, you will have two hearts! You need two anyway, right?

Two hearts!

Even though the fabric is a tight weave, I went ahead and used Fray Check to keep the hearts from fraying. Allow to dry for a minute or so before using your hearts.

 You will need someone to help you with this part. Try on the top to pin the hearts in the place you want. I knew I wanted mine slightly above the elbow. My mom measured the bottom of the heart to the top of my elbow so that each heart was as centered and roughly the same height as possible. Pin them in place with a safety pin.

Once pinned, start gluing. I left the pin in place and glued around it. I started in the center and moved around the edges and bottom of the heart and pressed down. From there, I removed the pin and glued the heart from the center up. You want to use a fabric glue for this so you can wash it and the hearts won't come away from the top. You can always go back and do a loop stitch to secure it even more.

The glue dries clear so don't worry if any seeps out the side. I tried to clean it up a little, but you won't see it in the end.

Here is the end result!

I love it!! It turned out exactly how I imagined it would! I can't wait to wear it next week! It's so soft and warm to boot. I've always known it, but now I can tell everyone that I truly wear my heart on my sleeve!

XO,

Andrea

Fashion DIY & Orly Shani

For those of you who know me, know I love fashion. I had a personal style blog for six years before turning my attention to blogging about motherhood, McKinley, and our adventures around Kansas City. And from to time to time, I'm sharing my Mama Style File opinions about current trends and what I'm wearing while running around town. If only I could find a way to incorporate my heels....

When I discovered the Hallmark Channel show Home and Family a couple of Christmas's ago, I found my fashion spirit animal, Orly Shani! I watched her years ago on a show on E! called The Fabulist. A precursor to Fashion Police, Shani, along with Kristin Cavallari, would talk about the current trends in fashion and beauty. Prior to The Fabulist, Orly was seen on the NBC reality show, Fashion Star which appeared to be based loosely on the Bravo hit Project Runway. I have to admit I never watched it. Wah, wah.... When the show aired, Orly designed on the principle that all women should have quality, multi-functional garments at a great value.  

In 2010, Orly started tuc+wes, a colorful collection of convertible t-shirts. And, it was based on tuc+wes that Orly was chosen as a designer on Fashion Star. Orly designed the “convertible skirt” which became the highlight of the season and made her a stand out designer. The convertible skirt was a tight miniskirt under a chiffon over-skirt that could be removed with a zipper. Orly has taken the knowledge she gained on the show and is currently expanding tuc+wes into a full e-commerce retailer providing weekly fashion under $50. And she has introduced her own Tuc+Wes Collection. If you haven't checked out the site, go now! Shop some of the coolest, easiest pieces for a super chic daily look! And I love the under $50 concept! 

As the resident fashion guru on Home and Family, she brings us some of the best DIY projects that I've taken on at home! What I love, is that she's taking major designer runway pieces and making them available to those of us who can't afford $1000 camo jackets or custom clutches. Remember the Butterfly Field Jacket? Designed originally by Valentino, and retailing at roughly $2000, it was a gorgeous bomber. However, who can afford a $2000 jacket? The DIY version was so easy and one of my all time favorite things to wear! Then there was the 3-D paint Spider Web sweater. These are two of the most complimented pieces I've made and it I wouldn't have them in my wardrobe if it weren't for Orly. 

On my list of things to recreate are the Peace stenciled jacket, the fringe concert tee, the Palm Tree jacket for summer, and the newly added Confetti sweater inspired by the Anthropologie version that retails for $150. 

I mean, a Mama has to have the latest fashion trends at an affordable price, right? And when you can make it yourself, it's even better! And thanks to Orly Shani, I can do that! Now, if I could capture her effortless style and obtain that enviable hair!

What do you like to DIY? Have you tried the any of the fashion DIY posts I've shared? Let me know! I would love to see them!

XO,

Andrea