Striped Shorts....Made from Polo Shirts!

These shorts started out as thrift store polo shirts. They were in great shape (men's size XL) and only $2 each. They are the perfect size to turn into size 6 or 7 boys' Coastal Craze Baggies. (affiliate link)

I had purchased the polo shirts last year with the intention of making more PJ shorts (I made a bunch last summer, see here, here, here, here, and even made them into pants here). 

I completed these several months ago, but hadn't gotten a photo. I made the waist a little larger since using the pre-existing seams on the shirt eliminates the seam allowance. I used the existing hems on the polo shirts which left cute little vents at the leg openings. It also made them a little longer for my long-legged boys. 

Only one pair has pockets. It was simple to eliminate the pockets from the pattern. I recommend this pattern if you are looking for a fun and easy pattern for kids' shorts. I also highly recommend using existing knit t-shirts or polo shirts as a fabric source! They are less expensive and available in so many fun colors.

KCW: Upcycled Red Polo Shirt

I could spend hours upcycling clothing. And admiring the upcycled projects of others. (Check out my archives of repurposed clothing and other items.)

Yesterday, I was inspired by the polo shirt recycle found here.

KCW: Flannel Lined Pants!

It’s Kid’s Clothing Week! That means it is time to sew for my boys. Oh, wait. I usually sew for them anyhow. (And I'd had this project cut out for awhile.)

I made some super fun pants for my oldest! They are LOOOONG. Which is great. Because he is TALLLLL. And skinny. So they should fit next year, too.

Scarf from a Thrifted Shirt

I have been loving thrifting. I wrote about this great shirt I found at a thrift store a few months ago and how I completely butchered it by trying to make it fit me. I really loved it.

I wrote about trying to make it into a scarf. And you know what? It worked. So many pleats in that shirt…I spent an hour one day seam-ripping the pleats.

That hour turned into a waste of a perfectly good naptime. Because I ended up re-pleating the shirt to try another idea.
















That idea still didn’t work. So I just cut the whole thing apart and made it into a scarf. I serged the edges.

And I love it. I wore it two times this weekend.


I’m still enjoying my thrifted clothing. But I think I’d better stop trying to repurpose everything. It is so much easier to start with plain old fabric.

I’ve been making more clothing for my boys lately. I’m working on a few items for Christmas. I did finally make a pattern I’ve had forever. I’m learning that I do waaaaay better with sewing when I have an actual pattern to start with.

Also, after I make the pattern once, it’s much easier making the same pattern a second time (for the second boy).

Catching up with Life Lately. And Projects.

This summer, I feel like my life has been exponentially busier. Its like someone has hit ‘fast forward’ on my life. I spend my days accomplishing everything and nothing. I do the same tasks of daily life each day.

My house remains a disaster.

I desperately need to have a professional photo taken of my children. I tried to take them out for a photo shoot one day.



My oldest turned five. He stopped going to bed at night. He’s up until we go to bed. It’s been a real issue.

Sewing. I sort of miss doing that. I made another pair of shoes for my littlest guy. He’s working on walking alone!

Knit Baby Bibs

Only about five more weeks until our new baby arrives! I’m excited to meet the baby and find out if it is a boy or a girl. I love not knowing while I’m pregnant, but I’m always excited to find out when the baby arrives!

I made some bibs for this baby because I bought some new clothes for the baby (I have two older boys but most of their clothes will be in the wrong season.) And if it is a girl, she’ll need a lot of new things! So I figure I’d better cover up any cute new outfits with cute bibs.

Turning a Dresser into a TV Stand

We have a guest post from my friend Abby, who has a handmade crochet business called GouldThreads. You can check her out via my sidebar or her links below! She's sharing how she and her husband turned an old dresser into a TV stand.
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Hi Monkey See Monkey Do fans, I'm Abby from GouldThreads.  I blog about my crochet (and some knit) creations but also enjoy other crafts and DIY projects.  Today I'm here to show you how to turn an old dresser into a new TV stand! 

Handmade Tags and Some New Fabric.

I started making crocheted hats and some custom (sewn) bibs for a local store, Perpetual Childhood. Read more about that in this post.

But anyway, the owner wanted me to have tags for my items. She suggested a print shop in town could do them for me. I checked them out, but at this point, they’re a little out of my price range. 

Bunny Applique Shirt

I know we are not all that close to Easter. However, my littlest boy will have a sweet little Easter-theme shirt to wear around this spring. I got this adorable bunny applique pattern from Make it Perfect. The blog’s author has a book and a whole line of patterns. I have not worked much with appliques, but this turned out to be fun.

Sleepy Bunny Bib

I made this bib as a gift for a cousin on my husband’s side who is due with a baby at the beginning of April! It is a refashion project as well….I’ll let you know how at the end.

I got this adorable bunny applique pattern from Make it Perfect. The blog’s author has a book and a whole line of patterns. I have not worked much with appliques, but this turned out to be fun.

Recycled Robot Craft for Kids

I save garbage. Like scraps of paper, scraps of yarn, boxes from food or tea…you get the idea. I have the intention of making crafts with my three year-old. Maybe you remember the owls we made back in the fall.

Let’s just say my three-year-old doesn’t make a lot of for doing crafts. Until I told him we could make robots. (I made him a robot shirt a few months ago. He likes robots.)

One problem: He thought we were making REAL robots. That would have working buttons. And talk.

Knit Argyle Shirt

Continuing with working through my refashioning pile (see Monday’s post for info on that--items needing an update are falling out of my linen closet on me), I took a stained green shirt and added some embellishment that is boy-worthy.

Upcycled Corbel Shelf

I wanted a shelf for school supplies in our study room. If you recall, I painted a chalkboard-topped desk a few months ago for this same room. 

I wanted a shelf to keep certain items out of the little hands of two little boys. I was able to upcycle the corbels I used for this shelf from the old farmhouse that used to sit on our property. Quick explanation of the old farmhouse can be found here. 

A Wreath Made of … What?!

Wood Shavings. And a coat hanger.
 
My dad uses a plane to smooth wood in his shop. And the plane makes these curly wood shavings which he felt were rather decorative. And he was trying to think of a way to use them. Because he (like me) can’t bear to throw away scraps of anything.

So he challenged me to use them.

And maybe by itself, it isn’t that great of a wreath. But behind some glass jars, it looks decent and adds some texture to my shelf.
 
I think I’ll keep it there for now.

Would you like to make one?

Woven Belt Tutorial

This tutorial is for a nifty belt. It’s made out of t-shirt yarn! If you don’t know how to make t-shirt yarn, see my tutorial. (You’ll need yarn from 1-2 t-shirts for a belt like this. My belt is 38” long.)

I have several ‘swing’ type cardigans and I wanted a belt to make them look more fitted.
Want to get started?

Newborn Hats with Buttons

I love using old t-shirts to make something fun and new. I made a whole bunch of baby hats from old t-shirts awhile back; you can use my tutorial to make a knit newborn hat.
However, I ran across a tutorial on this website and liked the way the pattern had a different seam on the top. So I tried a few using it. My church collects hats for new babies at the local hospital (where I had my younger child) and I decided I’d make a few of these hats to donate.

Zippered Pouch.

I don’t know what it is about zippered pouches. I just love making them! I have a few in progress right now and they all came from lovely fabric I had in my scrap bin.

Squared-Off, Stand-Up Tote Tutorial

I like when tote bags stand up on their own (instead of flopping over onto their sides). Here’s a brief how-to on making a square bottom, or gusseted bag using the Upcycled Tote Bag Tutorials I’ve previously posted.

Messenger Bag Refashion Tutorial

Random ugly trade-show items are rampant in our home. We have several bags at the moment that are proudly declaring various company names. We use them for library books or other needs. I decided this orange one (below) needed a makeover! I’m really excited about the result. You might recognize the makeover fabric from these bags.

Do you have an ugly bag you’d like to refashion? Oh, good.

Kids’ Black Pants: Upcycled

Black pants. Not too exciting. But they fit. And they were free. My husband had been given a pair of pants a few years back that were just a smidge too small. They had been cast-off from someone else. Barely worn. So I cut them down to fit our little guy.