Halloween Costume: Part II

Hermione needed a Griffindor tie for her costume. Unfortunately, Harry Potter is not as popular commercially as it once was so it was impossible to find gold and maroon striped fabric to make the tie. I had to get creative.

I ended up purchasing a half-yard (more than I needed) of maroon cotton sateen and a spool of gold grossgrain ribbon. I figured I'd adhere the ribbon to the fabric to make stripes. Yes, I'm crazy. But it did work. Here's how I did it all:

I started by following the Little Tie Tutorial from Sewing in No Man's Land. I made my pattern on a piece of wrapping paper, cut it out and then pinned it to the fabric:

I ended up cutting it out with pinking shears to prevent any fraying. Now it was time to make the stripes. I cut a bunch of strips of Heat N Bond the same width as my ribbon:


Then ironed them to the fabric:

I cut off the excess so I wouldn't gum up my iron and ironing board. Then I removed the paper backing and ironed the ribbon on. For some reason I didn't take a photo...? Anyway, it was time to hem the bottom of the tie. I deviated from the tutorial and simply folded over the bottom, pinned it:

and sewed it together with a 1/4-inch seam allowance:


I did the same thing on the other side and then turned them right sides out and pressed:


The next step was to sew the back seam:


Then turn it right-side out and press:


Then, following the tutorial, I made a neck band with a strip of the sateen and some velcro. I followed the instructions for turning the tie, but because my fabric was so stiff with the ribbon, I didn't get the look I was going for:

No neat little knot at top. So. I scrapped that idea and did this instead:


Gasp! I just cut up all my hard work! But it's okay. I took that middle section and turned in the raw edges like so:


Then I threaded the neck band through it and tacked it in place with a few stitches:


Then I turned it over and tacked the tie at that back center seam:

And folded the bottom in half and tacked that in place:


And when you turn it around you have the illusion of a windsor knot:


Much better!

Fun Fall Craft Link!

It's Fall!!! (Somewhere.)

I found these today on V & Co.'s blog. Click on the link for a tutorial for making fall leaves with crayon shavings and wax paper! We've all done it before, but it's nice to have a refresher course so you don't gum up your iron. I think these look fabulous and considering Fall is my favorite season and I don't get to enjoy it here in hell Arizona, I'm making these (maybe tomorrow!) with my daughter so I can at least pretend it's here.

Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy summer, but I'm a firm believer that summer should last no longer than 3 months (hello, 6+ months in AZ!!) and should never get over 100 degrees in a dry heat or 85 in a wet heat. Does anyone know where that blissful nirvana exists? You know, the place where it only snows in December for Christmas and then stays above 45 for the next 2 months? If you find it, let me know. I may even pay you a finder's fee!

****************UPDATE***************

Since making these myself, I have a few helpful hints:

• Instead of using your ironing board, place several sheets of newspaper on your kitchen counter top. You'll have a flatter surface and the newspaper will absorb the wax. I didn't want a waxy towel - not sure how to clean that.
• Your iron needs to be at least as hot as the Rayon setting to get the wax to melt appropriately to spread it around.
• Use a new paper towel with each batch to avoid getting a waxy build-up on your iron.
• Have fun mixing all different colors. Our favorite leaves were a mix of violet red, peach, spring green, and metallic gold. I also did one that was orange and violet that I like as well.
• I ended up making my own leaf template that was a little simpler so that my 6-year-old could cut it out easily. It's only about 3-4 inches across. And I like it!
• We found that the simplest way to shave the crayons (after scraping them with scissors - no fun) is to use the sharpener in the back of a 64-count box. Just open the bottom and pour the shavings onto the wax paper.
  

Now go make some of your own if you haven't already!