Author: sarahmlboydyahoocom

It’s a teepee party! We were so excited to celebrate our 11 year old and her wishes to have a teepee sleepover! She wanted a garden/spa theme. So…we rented some teepees and incorporated some spa activities, party gifts and games to help celebrate.

When I posted picture of the party I received a lot of questions about the balloon garland. I did a little research on you tube and found a kit on amazon. It was surprisingly easy to put together it was just a little time consuming. I have made two since! Clara requested flowers to be scattered about the garland. I thought they were a great addition!

The party ball! If you have never attended a party with a party ball you are missing out! It’s a fun and exciting way to celebrate. I feel like it’s kinda like having a pinata, but it lasts longer and leaves the party goers on the edge of their seats. I you want to make a party ball you first need to gather your favorite goodies. For this party ball I went to our local Five Below store. The dollar store would also work nicely or the dollar spot at Target! The goal is to collect as many goodies for the party ball as you can. I stocked up on socks, key chains, candy, whoopie cushions, make up, nail polish and pens. I used two boxes of saran wrap to conceal all of the goodies! If you want a party ball tutorial go here! Grab two dice and you are ready!

Gather the participants and put them in a circle. I handed out some mittens to make the task a little more difficult. Give the party ball to one of the party goers or the birthday girl. Give the dice to the person sitting to the left of them. The person with the party ball begins to peal the saran wrap (no ripping or tearing) the person to the left of the starts to roll the dice. They roll until they roll doubles. When they roll doubles they pass the dice to the person on the left and take the party ball from the person to their right. They fun keeps going until the last person unwraps the final gift. It becomes a very exciting game and is equally as fun to play with adults!

During our party we also made a sugar scrub! I picked up some wide mouth mason jars from our local JoAnn store. I also gathered sugar, clear vanilla, coconut oil, and lavender. We passed each ingredient around. We started with 3/4 cups of sugar, 1/4 cup of coconut oil, 1/4 tsp of clear vanilla and a couple drops of lavender. Some girls didn’t love the smell of the lavender so they omitted it. Some of them felt that their scrub was a little watery so they added a bit more sugar. You don’t want it to be “watery.” When the tested the scrub, they were surprised at how soft it made their hands feel.

Who doesn’t love a take home goodie?! For the spa themed take home goodies I purchased these cute gold baskets from the dollar store. I made nail kits and embroidered hand towels. We also bought masks from 5 below.

This was such a fun party and has since turned into a business! Glamp With Me Teepee! You can find us on Instagram and Facebook! After a little research and talking to friends we realized there weren’t any teepee rentals in South Tampa or St. Pete. We had our first teepee party last weekend and have 10 booked over the next few months!

If you are looking to book a party for more information you can contact us through IG or FB or email Sarahmlboyd@yahoo.com.

Another Party Added…October 16th-Sold Out! Halloween may look a little different this year, but you can still celebrate and share your favorite treats with your closest ghouls and goblins. Come sew some snack bags, fill them with treats and “boo” your besties. Pizza and drinks will be served! Parents enjoy a night out! This a a great beginner class!

When: Friday, October 16th

Time: 4-7pm

Cost: $85

You can register via venmo! There are only 6 spots available!

What to bring? Just yourself!

Supplies:

cotton fabric, 18 gage craft wire, 3/8”elastic or bias tape, safety pin, thread, sewing machine, scissors or cutting mat and rotary cutter, ruler, iron and ironing board.

You can watch the video version HERE!

Cut one piece 9 1/2″ x 7 1/2″, Cut two pieces for the inside pocket 7″ x 5 1/4″

Fold over both pocket pieces ½” and sew.

Lay the outside fabric piece and the inside pocket pieces right sides together.

Sew 1/4” from the raw edges and across the top and bottom.

Unfold the fabric pieces and iron.

Turn over and sew a casing for the wire about 1/4” from the top.

Pinch the fabric, fold over and pin into place….3 times. When you are finished with the pleats the width of the mask should be 3 1/2 inches,

Press

Sew the pleats into place. Be careful not to sew over the casing you created at the top or you won’t be able to feed your wire through!

Cut the wire 8”.  Fold the ends of the wire in to prevent poking through the fabric. Feed the wire through the casing at the top.

Fold over the edge twice (on both sides) and sew to create a casing for the elastic.

Sew the casing, but be careful not to sew over the wire! I pushed the wire in and folded the top of the casing down, so I wouldn’t hit it. Make sure you back stitch!

Cut two pieces of elastic 11” long. Feed the elastic through the sides of the mask.

Or jump ahead to see how we use bias tape. You can buy bias tape in the store or you can make it. Go to Made for an awesome tutorial about how to make your own bias tape.

Sew a zig zag stitch and adjust the elastic so the ends are inside the casing.

Now stitch across the bottom and top of the mask to hold the elastic in place.

Congratulations! You are finished!

If you are using bias tape…cut two 40″ pieces of double-fold bias tape. Fold the bias tape to find the center. Line up the center of the bias tape with the center of the mask. Sandwich the mask between the bias tape and pin in place.

Sew across the mask and then finish sewing to secure the rest of the bias tape.

Repeat for the bottom of the mask. And then you are finished!

‘Tis the season to welcome our elves back from the North Pole! What a better way to ring in the holiday season than an elf on the shelf sewing party! I decided, in addition to my weekly sewing classes, I wanted to host a workshop for kids to make accessories to give to their elves as welcome back gifts.

Now, what to make?! I knew it was a possibility that some kids who were going to be in attendance had never sewn before. I wanted the project(s) to be fun for those who knew how to sew as well as easy for beginners. After some research, I decided on a sleeping bag/pillow, elf-sized tree skirt and gingerbread costume! Who’s elf wouldn’t want to dress up to be the gingerbread man?

I went to work creating each accessory. I made a couple prototypes for each until I had the perfect pattern! I bought a mini tree I found in the $1 spot (which has slowly become the $3 and $5 spot) at Target and used it to help me gauge the size of the tree skirt. Then, I had to search for the perfect fabric. I love buying fabric from my favorite little store here in Tampa…Keep Me in Stitches. It happened to be 50% off…score!

After the patterns were created, fabric had been bought and samples made it was time to create an invitation. I found the cutest invitation (for free!) from Daisy Celebrates. I downloaded it and used pixlr express to finish creating the invitation.

Now I love to sew, but I also love to plan parties, especially themed parties! Every party has to have ssnacks and something to take home…right?! I decided that a hot chocolate bar would be the perfect treat! I set up the Keurig and put out candy canes, chocolate chips, marshmallows and whip cream! I also served donut holes and Christmas cookies!

Now if we were going to have a hot chocolate bar the kids would need something to put their hot chocolate in. I began looking for some ideas online and found a cute elf mug. It was $15 (out of my price range). So, I did the next best thing. I purchased plain white mugs from the dollar tree and used my silhouette to create a personalized elf mugs. They made the perfect take home gift and it only cost me a little over $1 a child.

While at the dollar store (one of our favorite places to frequent), I found some cute Santa and elf hats, but I couldn’t resist the adorable elf headbands! So, those too became gifts the kids could wear while they were sewing and take home after the party ended. I was happy to hear many of them say that they were going to wear them for future holiday parties or gatherings!

It’s all about the presentation! When the girls came in the house I wanted everything to look inviting and get them excited for what they were going to me making. I had a table set up with their names written on the table cloth (brown paper from Walmart), a bag with an elf tag and their sewing supplies. The bag would be what they put their finished projects in and serve as a gift bag for their elf. The tag (which I also got from Daisy Celebrates) is so cute, but I wanted to create a poem to add to the back. This poem lets their elf know that the gift was handmade especially for them!

Now, all I needed were my sewists! They all arrived ready to work and brought their Christmas spirit! We had a great morning stitching up accessories for their elves, sipping hot cocoa and listening to Christmas tunes. I can’t wait for my next group!

What elf wouldn’t want to dress up as a Gingerbread boy/girl while visiting from the North Pole? This tutorial will guide you through making a gingerbread costume for your elf. It’s quick, easy and will bring a smile to your little one’s face.

What you need:

• two pieces of felt
• ric rac
• fabric pen
• buttons
• coordinating thread
• ribbon for the bow
• pattern

Viola! You now have a gingerbread costume for your Elf! Pin the bow onto the head if your elf is a girl!

How to make a scrunchie

Materials:

1/2 Yard of Cotton Fabric

1/4 Yard of Cotton Fabric for the border/cuff

12” x 16” pillow insert

• Cut cuff/border fabric using the pattern. (Given in Camp)
• Cut a rectangle from the main fabric using the pattern. (Given in Camp)

After you cut the fabric…

Take the main part of the fabric and put rights sides together.

Mark 3/8” using your invisible pen and ruler.

Clip with alligator pins or straight pins. Sew down each side.

Finish with a zig zag stitch and wet the invisible pen marks on your pillowcase.

Press seams.

Take the border/contrasting fabric and fold with right sides together and sew.  Finish with a zigzag stitch.

Press the seam.

Fold the cuff/border fabric in half and press.

Place the folded border/contrasting fabric on the right edge of the vertical rectangle with all edges of the border fabric lined up with the main fabric.

Pin and sew. Finish with a zig zag stitch.

Turn it right side out.

Press.

Top stitch

ALL FINISHED!

Materials:

-3/4 yard of fabric for the outside of the tote

-1/2 yard of fabric for the inside of the tote

-1 package of heat and bond fusible fleece. (optional)

For this project, the bottom of the bag is 15 1/2 inches wide and the sides 16 inches long.  You can make it any size. You would just need to adjust fabric requirements.

1. Cut two 15 ½”  x 16” pieces (outside)

2. Cut two 15 ½” x 16” pieces (inside)

3. Cut one 4” x 44” of fabric (outside fabric). Then cut it in half. This will be your handles.

4. Cut two pieces of fusible fleece (15 1/2 x 16 1/2) This is optional if you want your tote to be stiff.

Now take the 4” x 44” piece…

-Fold fabric in half and press.

– Then fold both sides to the middle crease and then over again.

-Top-stitch down each side of strap close to the edge.

Now take your outside and inside pieces of fabric…

-If you want your bag to be stiff you need to use the heat and bond stabilizer. If you want your bag to be floppy you will skip this step. Iron the  rough side of the stabilizer to the wrong side of the fabric you will use for the outside of your bag.

-Lay inside fabric right sides together and sew on three sides. Leave one side open for the top!

-Next, sew your outer fabric pieces right sides together on three sides.

-Now we are going to “box” the corners of the bottom of the bag. To do this pinch the corner, iron and sew 1 ½ “ from the corner. You will do this for both the inside and outside.

-Press seems

– Place inside fabric inside the outside fabric right sides together. I slipped the inside fabric up a bit so you can see how it slips in.

– Place straps in between right sides of fabric on each side about three inches from the side edge.

– Pin or clip straps and the top edge of bag well. Stitch around the top of bag 1/2 inch from the edge. Leave a 3 inch opening. We will need an opening to be able to turn the bag right side out!

-Turn bag right side out and press with an iron.

-Close up the opening used for turning.

-Top stitching not only makes your bag look more finished, but also makes the seams more durable.

ALL Finished! Congrats! You did a great job!

Here’s what you need to make your own washcloth travel kit:

• Washcloth or hand towel
• 12″-18″ of washable ribbon
• fabric pen
• ruler
• sewing machine

Start by folding the bottom of the washcloth about halfway to the top.

Use your fabric pen and ruler to mark your “pockets.”

Then sew a few straight lines using your markings as your guide up the ends and middle to create “pockets”.

Flip the washcloth over and attach the middle of the ribbon to one edge of the washcloth, about halfway up. Wet the cloth to “erase” all of the fabric pen marks.

Congrats! You now have your very own travel washcloth kit!