DIY all the way!

Oh wow.. it has been months since i have ever posted anything on this page!

My bad ---just pure lack of inspiration and lack of time! I've been busy at home and at work.

But my blogging mojo and is now back and hopefully I can add more posts here regularly. 

For now, i'd like share my recent do-it-yourself project. These have been taking a lot of my time.  

My son requested this skeleton costume for this year's Halloween. 

Hippie costume: tied dyed shirt and vest made with felt cloth.

Now, why go DIY? There are a lot of ready-made stuff out there. Why spend so much time and effort doing diy?

Well for one, it is CHEAP! For a penny pinching mama, CHEAP truly is the magic word. With just a few scraps of cloth, i can already make a decent output. I ended up spending just Php 85 for the black shirt for the skeleton costume. Then for the hippe getup which the school required during an event, i just spent Php 20 to dye one old white shirt and Php 40 pesos more for the the smiley and peace sign pins.  That was a no-sew vest made from felt cloth which has been in my possession for year. Is used the same black pants for these two ensemble.

Two, DIY is the ECO-FRIENDLY route. Instead of getting new stuff that might and will end up at the back of your closets, why not look at what you already have and work with that piece you already have with you? The idea is to just work with what you already have, before acquiring more new stuff. That way, we lessen our waste because we use up what's already there.

Lastly, DIY brings out my CREATIVE side.  I love how i get to create unique pieces from the materials i already have on hand! I'm always up for challenges - like when my son requested that skeleton costume. I used pure black ensemble and white cloth (from scraps from an old white thirt) applique.

For any DIY person, Pinterest truly is a gem.  It is overflowing with DIY ideas not just for your child's costume but for other crafts as well.  

Stay tuned for more DIY projects from this page! 

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The 5-step DIY kids apron

It's my son's transition period to his new preschool and they have too many requirements! We had to spend one whole Saturday just to put everything together. Finally the checklist has been sorted out but one more thing is missing - a kiddie apron. They'll be using this during art activities. We looked for it at National Bookstore and in art craft stores but we did not find any that will fit our 3 year old son.

I knew i had to D-I-Y this one, eventually. But it's ok because DIYing is really liberating yet challenging, as it squeezes my creative juices. Plus i'll get to use up the remaining junk i have in storage. ;)

No need to bring out the sewing machine (though i wish i own one), just plain hand stitching will do. I got the idea from this blog.

So here's how i made this cute little apron.