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 click on the picture to link to YouTube A fast invisible zipper DIY tutorial. Easy directions simplify what is normally viewed as a difficult task, using your own machine's zipper foot. See this tutorial & many others on the How to Love Your Home channel on YouTube!
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 After - McKinney Cottage Schmear used to update this dated fireplace  Before - Cleaned with rubbing alcohol soaked rag to remove grime
 Those dirty dogs take our favorite pieces of furniture & turn them into chew toys! How long does one hold on to their damaged chairs before they are tossed or fixed. I wont tell you how long this client waited, yes I will -- she waited for the "ultimate" damage before getting them repaired & slip covered.
See our video for simple repair techniques to salvage that savaged chair. Old Chair Repair - YouTube Tutorial
Lagenlook Restyle - Tie at the Waist Blouse with Scarf
If your blouse does not tie at the waist with a narrow tie, you can redesign your existing shirt. The photo below illustrates how to make it short at the waist and long where the two front sides tie. At the middle back of the waist line, cut a curve from the center back to the bottom hem of the blouse front. Being high at your waist in the back, will give a slimming effect & create more of a tulip style garment. *Before attaching scarf, prepare with hems around perimeter. The scarf being wider than the blouse will create a more tulip like effect. *Fold scarf lengthwise in half to find center. Pin center of scarf to center back of shirt. Pin outwards toward edge of shirt hem. *Top stitched, double seam is about 1/2" wide. 
Cut at dotted line. Recreate waistline with a double 1/4" hem.
Pin scarf to blouse, outwards from center back. Excess width of scarf helps create a more tulip like look.
When top stitching, keep seam close to edge.
2nd row of top stitching, helps structural integrity.
Gather neckline as wide or narrow according to taste.
Why don't today's fitted sheets stay in place? I have fitted sheets from 1976 that still have their elasticity. Today's manufacturers charge a pretty penny for high thread count sheets, but I wake up in the morning wrapped up like I went to a toga party!! What is the deal? The poor grade of elastic used in today's bedding is sub-par compared to American manufactured goods made back in the day. FYI - using bleach deteriorates the integrity of the rubber in the elastic. Do I eat this week or buy another set of sheets? Never fear, food will be on the table and you will no longer "wear" your sheets while sleeping. I suggest you or a trusted seamstress add a fresh stretch of elastic around the perimeter of your beloved fitted sheets. Sweet sleep with your newly fitted sheets!
  I have been building furniture for quite some time and recently made some ottoman with screw-in legs. My client, a shop on McKinney’s historic square, was about to pick up her order, when the wobblies took over my life. What to do! Nothing more annoying than a dancing stool or chair! Brackets or no brackets, occasionally the legs never set right. You screw one side in tight, let out the other side and somehow, you can’t find the proper balance. This idea works for the screw in type, but you can tack a small piece to the bottom of a leg. My gasket is made from a coffee can lid. It’s pliable, sturdy and works perfect for the wobbly leg syndrome. It cuts with scissors and can be layered in small portions until you find the perfect balance.  I love finding new solutions ... it always happens when I am under pressure, no time to think, just do!
Hope this helpful hint can solve your wobblies! Coffee can (or other flat, plastic) lids finding a new use- reusing common household items at it’s best.  Now that were are in the post holiday funk, it's time to look forward to spring. OK, I'm going to back up a little bit--that black whole between January & March is going to be filled! I usually kinda dither my time away trying to figure out what to do at this time but somehow waste it away over thinking it. I ping. . . bouncing ideas without direction and no true commitment to finishing anything. This year will be different, I say that every year, but this year will be different. I am creating a . . . "Personal Project Plan." I will pull out my bulging files of magazine cut-outs, small pieces of paper I'd stuffed in books & make a monthly line up of preferred projects. I usually get 40% of my own projects completed, they are usually done on a whim without plan. So, there is an additional 25% sitting in the back of my closet (or in the barn) crying to be re-recognized. You know how you have those ideas, & you think it will be the bomb & it BOMBS? That pesky idea that just doesn't do what you wanted it to? Now, what you say to yourself, "off to another idea & hope it percolates into a full cuppa. This is where my P3 comes into play. I'm going to place my ideas & whims onto a calendar to give myself structure. There is nothing like a completion date--just like projects for my work- I will achieve my goals for myself. Now creative goals are different than work goals, they are further down the food chain of To Do's. This year they are climbing their way up. The only way to do this is with action. I am by no means a lazy person, I do more than most people, but I can do better & I can do more. So, the calendar is coming out, and with pencil in hand (I do need an eraser) as I will plot out my top 10 projects of the year. It's going to be hard picking the top 10 because I want EVERYTHING. The calendar makes the ideas a little bit more of a reality. I go to the dentist, I celebrate other people's birthdays, why can't I do this for myself? And again I think this year will be different.  My Top Ten list includes 20 things. If a project doesn't run, I still have a horse in the stables. So saddle up & let's get ready! Personal Project Plan - P3 20 ideas for 10 projects - a girl can change her mind, even with a list! 1. Create my favorite dog photos into silhouette pillows or prints 2. Make envelopes from old shopping bags or vintage paper 3. Make totes from recycled fabrics 4. Paint a painting of a photographed animal  5. Create a felted, flower pillow 6. Make vintage, sewing notion jewelry 7. Photograph and blowup a picture and frame artwork 8. Make trendy looking, monogrammed or stenciled hand or tea towels 9. Finish enclosing my back porch with screen doors and shutters. **This is a biggy** I have been collecting doors & shutters forever! 10. Get the "baby" dresser from the attic. Clean, repair and find a place for it   11. Tile my back fireplace & hearth (spending allowance only $40 - ReStore Store visit in order!) 12. Paint a fresh coat on my outdoor furniture - it's a massive undertaking 13. Make a Christmas runner with the vintage patterns I scanned from a client's project I created in 2011 14. Make those Christmas cards I have talked about for 15 years! 15. Do something with those GIANT acorns I have stashed for a year 16. Paint a bird on silk again using a light box 17. Finish that neglected trellis (paint it too) 18. Cover all those mismatched fabric boxes with something I like, 19. Finish painting that vintage bed 20. Rewire at least 2 of those hanging lights in the barn and do something with them  Wow, this is a drop in the bucket of my running list of "wanna do's", but is a good beginning. No more pouring through the magazine "tear outs", no more wandering from room to room, gazing at each wall - trying to inspire myself - then going off doing some laundry. Lucky #13- 2013!
P3 has been chosen . . . some are easy, some - well not so simple at all! These are things that have been waiting in the wings for ages. I will see how I can cut through this list. What does your list look like? I go into this year with a full heart, hand full of artistic materials and a true desire to get it done!  We are offering a practical guide to measuring on the fly. Using an arm & hand you can estimate a measurement by applying these simple tricks. If you're mental about accuracy, go ahead & measure your parts. I'm a guesstimator, but what do I know I'm just a seamstress! The measurements below are approximates. Inches Centimeters Elbow to middle fingertip 18" (1/2 yrd) 45cm Hand width - knuckle to knuckle 3" 7cm Three fingers - Index to ring, first knuckle 2" 5cm Two fingers - Index to middle, first knuckle 1 1/2" 3.5cm Thumb knuckle 1" 2.5cm  |
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AuthorsWe are all worthy of feeling satisfied about where we are in our homes. Our approach to the adventure is as important as the results. The journey of finding our design ideals shifts with seasons & people passing through our lives. We are more likely to enjoy the creative process when things are made easy and How To Love Your Home's passion for finding & sharing tools, tips, & triumphs is here for simplifying the journey to a commonsense approach to homemaking & design! Archives
March 2019
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