Tutorials

Here at Havel’s Sewing, we love a good accessory. And, we love love love a quick and fun sewing project. We also love all the beautiful Japanese fabric that’s coming out lately – but we are a little overwhelmed by how much we’ve spent on a yard here and a yard there.

Make yourself a scarf for every outfit this Fall.

What can we do with a yard of fabric that we want to put on full display? We’ve seen tutorials on one yard skirts and bags, which are wonderful ways to showcase your favorite fabric. But our favorite way? Well, for our money, nothing beats a scarf.

Here are two quick tutorials that you can modify, if necessary, to make your own brilliant scarves!

Spool Sewing – Shot Cotton Scarves

Stop Staring & Start Sewing: Voile ah! A Teeny Tiny Tutorial

No need to modify – but we’ll be making both kinds of scarves out of our Japanese fabric stash. Oh, and we’ll also be hitting up Pink Chalk Fabrics for some shot cotton to make the Spool Sewing scarves exactly like the tutorial says. But you can definitely do this with other fabric, too. You may not want to fray the ends, but you can experiment with stitches all you like.

The Fabritopia/Stop Staring and Start Sewing tutorial calls for soft voile. With all the beautiful Alexander Henry cotton lawn that’s coming out, this is a great way to use a 1/2 yard of such striking fabric.

So, start sewing. You’ll have enough scarves to accessorize every outfit in your closet.

Floppy Hat Pattern from McHats

Keep your cool this summer by making a floppy hat for protection from the sun.  Or, create super cute gifts from hat patterns from McHats Shop on Etsy!  We think these hat patterns are divine.  

Linen Flip Brim Newsboy Hat Pattern - image from McHats

The Linen Flip Brim Newsboy Hat is perfect for back to school – and you have all summer to sew!

Cut Out Beret from Craft Stylish - photo by jack deutsch

Or, if you’re feeling fancy, make yourself a felt beret.  These make terrific gifts – so get a head start on your holiday gift sewing.  Check out this tutorial by Nicole Smith from Sew Stylish.  You’ll need a good pair of small fabric scissors.  We think Havel’s Sewing Sew Creative 5 1/2″ Curved Tip Scissors will do the trick.

If you’ve ever made a collage, then you’ve probably heard of that very popular decoupage product Mod Podge.  The matte and gloss types are very popular with mixed-media artists.  Here at Havel’s Sewing, we’ve even seen one of our very own make a very nice housewarming gift for friends using Gloss Mod Podge.

Project based on Anna Maria Horner's "Marriage Rules" in the June/July issue of Cloth Paper Scissors

But now, we’re completely taken with Fabric Mod Podge.  We’ve tried using Matte Mod Podge to stick fabric to fabric, but it turned the fabric stiffer than we’d like.  That’s why we were thrilled to find out about Fabric Mod Podge.

We’ve even found fantastic projects on the web that call specifically for Fabric Mod Podge.  And, when you need a little Mod Podge inspiration, check out the blog Mod Podge Rocks.

The best blog for Mod Podge news and projects.

Mod Podge Rocks offers a great Mod Podge Formula Guide as well as a Fabric Embellishment Tutorial.

For more projects, check out a tutorial on embellishing plain sneakers with fabric scraps by clicking here.

Learn how to embellish a t-shirt using Fabric Mod Podge by clicking here.

‘Tis the season to make holiday banners, gift quilts and other crafty projects for which you’ll need bias tape.  Havel’s Sewing has found a handy tutorial for those who want to sew their own.  And, for those who have too many projects and too little time: Behold!  The Simplicity Bias Tape Maker.  This little gadget should save you a ton of time.  Just make your tape, cut your banner pieces, fold the tape over your banner pieces and sew it up.

For the easy-to-follow tutorial from savvyseams.com, click here.

Happy bias tape making!

Just this past weekend, when I needed a business card…I couldn’t find one. Usually, I keep a few in my purse. But to clear up some clutter, I removed the few I keep for emergencies. Of course, when I needed to hand one over to a new contact, I had nothing. And that got me thinking…isn’t there something I can make that designates my business cards without being messy or bulky or taking up too much space in my bag? Well, this is what I found:

Amy Butler’s Business Card Keeper Pattern

Erin Schlosser’s Business Card Case Tutorial

How About Orange’s Business Card Cases (made with her Amusement Park fabric) on Etsy.

You have your choice to make your own or purchase one put together by Jessica Jones. I might just do both. Enjoy!

Basil likes handmade gifts.

A few of us here at Havel’s Sewing are devoted dog owners, spoiling our rescued pups with lots of rawhide and ham bones.  But, if you want to dress up your dogs for their daily walks, or just add a little sparkle to their favorite sleep spot, you can get to it with these nifty projects.

1.  Anna Maria’s Dog Leash

2.  Designer Dog Leash from The Purl Bee

3.  The b-line’s Dog Collar Pouch

4.  No-sew Dog Bed from ModHomeEcTeacher

5.  Must-sew Dog Bed from The Stitchery

And don’t think we forgot about all the cat-havers out there. Here’s a few projects to keep your feline feeling fabulous.

1. How to Make a Cat Bed from an Old Sweater on WikiHow

2. Sew a Mouse Catnip Toy from About.com

3. Cat Toy Tutorial from Tiny House

So, sew some pet accessories and let your pet walk proud. Your dog will be talk of the dog park and your cat will show off to all her feline friends.