DIY camera bag…the easy way

I’ve been abusing my poor camera bag for too long, cramming more things in there than it was built for. The little zipper tabs had long since popped off from all the tugging!

Here is my new camera bag made from a purse and some foam.

First I took out the seam that ran along the bottom of the purse lining.

Then I cut foam (it was about 3/4 inches thick) to fit the bottom and sides of the purse, slid it into the lining and hot-glued it to the inside of the purse…

…and sewed it up again. It was that simple, and now everything fits! 🙂

Vintage baby dress

One of my friends had a baby girl. Clothes for little girls can be a lot of fun! Like this outfit…

First I was imagining an off-white dress. I knew there would be lace somewhere. But I had a problem. All I was finding was bright white stuff. The off-white stuff didn’t feel child-friendly. It wasn’t working into the vintage dress I had in mind.

Then I tea-dyed. First I dyed the lace I found in a box upstairs. I found white fabric with yellow polka dots with the baby cotton at Jo-Ann Fabrics.

I was a little nervous about throwing the whole piece into the water, but that’s what I ended up doing. I boiled a pot of water with two tea bags. The fabric was only in the water for 3-4 minutes, just enough to take away the clean white look.

Next, I threw it in the dryer on high heat until it was dry. I washed the dress when I was finished and it didn’t fade.

I used a Kwik-Sew pattern, but any bodice pattern would do. I added to the bodice to make a long dress. The sides were flared a bit to give her room to move. The tucks were sewn before the bodice was cut. I sewed lace to the collar. The dress was hemmed with lace. I sewed two tucks along the bottom, and sewed lace in the top tuck.

Then I made shoes. I used a pattern from Fleeting Things called Mila Shoe. 

Finally I made a headband. I used cotton yarn. It was a two inch band with simple crochet back and forth. I joined it at 12 inches, the size I found for 0-3 months. The flower was a 1 inch strip of fabric folded in half. I started by bunching it up on top of a circle of fabric. I sewed that down and twisted the fabric as I went around. Try it sometime, it’s much simpler than it sounds. 🙂

One other thing I did… I’ve been printing on fabric. It’s really easy and fun if you have an ink jet printer. Print it first on paper, then tape your fabric securely over the printed word or phrase. After it’s printed, iron it with high heat. It’s a personal, professional touch.