Thursday, December 22, 2011

Shhhh...Don't Tell!

I made this pile of scarves for all the ladies in my life back there at our family Christmas party in Minnesota.  Don't tell :0)  They will open the box Christmas Eve and find out there is one for each of them.  I am so excited!

Most were done the same way as the Fashion Scarf I posted a while back, but I also tried a new way that has been rolling around in this empty head of mine.  

Both turned out GREAT!  I knew more what to look for at the fabric store this time.  You want either very thin, light-weight knit, or heavy, drapey knit {for the shirred version}  I bought all my knits at SAS Fabric in Glendale for $2/yd.  You only need about 1 yard of fabric for the ruffled fashion scarf, making it only $2!!!  The shirred scarves I bought 4-5 yards of fabric for length, but was able to get 4-5 scarves out of each piece, again around $2.  I have seen scarves like these for sale at the store for anywhere from $20-$45.  I can't afford those, but I can afford $2 and 20 minutes per scarf.  That makes them a FABULOUS gift for my girls. 

Here is the shirred scarf.  This one was a little long, but gorgeous!  I had a really hard time putting it in the box.  I had a hard time putting any of the scarves in the box {selfish} but this one was probably my favorite!

Here is what it looks like stretched out.  You just "shir" the fabric in three rows.  I shirred the sides, then up the center.  Shirring is SUPER easy if you have never done it before you NEED to check out this tutorial.  The basics, wind elastic thread {by hand} into your bobbin, then set your stitch length to the longest it will go, and sew.  That is it.  It is just regular sewing, on a regular machine, but with elastic thread instead of cotton or whatever.  Love IT!  *BEWARE* shirring is extremely addictive and you will soon be searching your house for more to shir.  You can't say I didn't warn you!!!

LOVE IT! 

Now to make a second batch for the other group awaiting gifts.  There are girls all over the family, innocently sitting in front of their Christmas tree, totally unaware that they are about to get their favorite scarf EVER!
OK, exaggeration, but I can't wait to give these to my girls :0)
Good luck on all of your last minute endeavors, and as always,
Merry Christmas :0)

6 comments:

  1. Oh, these are gorgeous! I have never tried shirring, but I love to try new things and wow, you have just opened my eyes to possibilities! Putting it on my list! Thanks you are going to have some happy girls!

    Merry Christmas
    Carol

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  2. These are gorgeous!!!Thanks for sharing this!!!

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  3. The green stripes in the middle- what did you do for that one?

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  4. That one with the green stripes was a cheater scarf. I bought my fabric for $2 a yard at SAS Fabric in Phoenix {they sell odds and ends fabrics for cheap}. They had a strip of that green with stripe, just the right size. I bought it, trimmed the bottom, and put it in the box with the rest I had made. I wish I could tell you some amazing way to make it, but I just found some awesome fabric :0)

    Thanks for asking, and thank you to the rest of you for your sweet comments. Glad you enjoyed the scarves. I sure enjoyed making them!

    Vanessa
    The Sew*er, The Caker, The CopyCat Maker

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  5. Love this!!! What a simple, yet, stunning gift. Thank you so much

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  6. Thank you so much! These are amazing and such a simple, yet, beautiful gift.

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