Denim Shape-Up

Tutorial: How to change the shape of your jeans

You know the thrill of buying a new pair of jeans for an incredible price? You don't try them on, because they are your size, and there is no way on earth you are going to pass them up for that price. When you finally do try them on at home, you discover they fit wonderfully. Score! I love that thrill too. However, there have been times that the more and more I wear those fabulous jeans, I start to notice little things that make them not-so-fabulous. I think there was one time I didn't pay attention the the cut of the jean, and later found out that they were flared jeans. The more I wore them, the more I felt like an extra from That 70's Show. Flared jeans look cute on some people, but I prefer the bootcut style. It seems my husband had this same experience, and as we were talking about lengthening his jeans (see that tutorial here), he also mentioned there were some he needed taken in on the leg. He was feeling pretty gangster in some of his wider leg jeans, and if you were to meet my husband, you would find that he is anything but gangster.

On that note here are the materials you will need:

• Sewing machine
• Good sewing shears
•  Navy blue  thread and bobbin thread (thread to match the wrong side of your jeans- navy is usually a close match to any blue jean). 
• Jean thread and needle (any thread that is a heavier weight than normal thread will do, or you can use 2 spools  of the normal size- thread that is meant for jeans is of course the best option, but there are some other alternatives as well.)
• Pins of tailor's chalk

The first thing you will need to do is try on the jeans. This step is easier with two people. You will want to take in the seam that is a normal seam, as the flat fell seam that is found on most jeans is more difficult to take in, and if not done correctly could leave a lot of bulk in the seam. You would also lose the seam that is the most appealing to the eye on jeans.

 Flat-fell Seam

 Regular seam- this is the one you want to take in! It is usually on the inseam.

Ok, so you're trying on the jeans now. Take the extra fabric on the inseam and pin it where you want it taken in. Move around to where it feels like you want it too. If it's too tight,this is the best way to find out before you make anything permanent. Unless skinny jeans are what you are shooting for. My husband is certainly not one to wear skinny jeans, but everyone has their own tastes.

Excess fabric in the inseam - don't mind the Huggies behing my husband. 

 Pin the excess- I took in quite a bit.

Fitting the jean this way is going to ensure that your jeans fit the way you want them to. However, there is another way you can do it. I am not a huge fan of this method, but it would work if it is your only option.
If you have another pair of jeans that fit you well and you like the shape, you can lay these over the jeans you are altering, and pin. I see this method alot on Pinterest, and it works ok, but in order to get the best fit, you will want to use the method I explained above. Make sure the crotch/inseam intersection on both pairs match up. See pictures below:

The pair I am taking in is on the bottom. You can see how much difference is here as compared to the try-on method. If I had done it this way, it would have worked, but it would not have allowed for the best fit.

Crotch seams lining up

Measure how much you need to take in the pants, turn pants inside out, and insert pins all the way around. This works well if you are also taking some out in the crotch area. If you take the stitching out in the inseam and crotch intersection, and about 3"-5" down each side, you can get the fabric to lay flat and it is much easier to sew.

If you are not taking anything out in the inseam, you will want to taper the seam out to where you are taking it out. If this is confusing, let me know and I can go further into depth. 

You will want to make sure the hem is let out completely, it will eliminate alot of bulk and help you get the seam straight.

You will want to use the navy thread here- and a normal sized needle should work just fine. Begin stitching at the bottom of one of the legs. This way you can go all the way around without stopping. If you are taking it in below the knee, you can start at the thighs and follow the stitch line and slowly taper it to the point where you are taking it out. If you are taking it out in the whole leg, but you don't need to take any in the inseam, start in the inseam and work your way down. The last two methods will require you to take it in in individually on each leg, rather than without stopping, as in the first method.

Quick tip: Make sure the bottom hems line up!

Once you are finished sewing around the pant legs, you will want to cut off the excess. I used my serger, because it cuts and finishes the raw edge all at once. If you don't have a serger, you can cut the excess with scissors- leaving 1/4"-1/2". You can then use a zigzag stitch on the edges. 

Turn the pants right side out and finish the bottom hem where you took it out. You can follow the original stitch line. This is where you will need the jean thread and the heavier needle. Keep the navy blue bobbin thread in and use the jean thread to topstitch.

You can press the seams if you want, by using a hot iron and lots of steam and pressure. If you don't press it, it will still look ok, and will fall more naturally after its been washed.

And you now have jeans you can love forever!
Check out the before and after pictures:

Before

After

You can tell from the pictures that I also lengthened these pants.Again, that tutorial is found here.
Let me know if you have questions!

*K*

Timeless Hair Studio Grand-Opening

I had my grand opening open house last Friday for my hair studio and it was so much fun! My family helped me out tons in knowing exactly what to do! 

Welcome

I had little lotions and hair product samples for door prizes and we had lots of fun! A lot of people were interested and I even made quite a few appointments!!

We had strawberries and watermelon for the people that came by and we also had Kayliegh’s cute bows and headbands out on display! 

Kayliegh and her cute bows

I had taken flyers advertising the open house around the neighborhood earlier in the week and those that were not able to make it have contacted me and are wanting to come to me as well! I got to show off my salon and all of my hard work and I was very happy and proud of everything I have accomplished this far! I 
could not have done it without my family and I am so grateful for their help and their faith in me! 

A kind of funny thing happened the day after I took flyers around. I was at work and I got a phone call from the post office. Well I guess it is illegal to put flyers and really anything that doesn’t have a postage stamp on it in a mailbox.

Pretty well all of my flyers had gone in mailboxes so they weren’t too happy with me. They were nice though and let me know that I can’t do that again and let me off with a warningJ oops… at least now I know!  

Thanks for stoppin' by!

*H*

Baby Crochet

One of my favorite memories with my Nana, (Mama's Mama), is when she taught us all to crochet.  She is left-handed so naturally, Amery, Kayliegh and I picked it up rather fast. (Sorry Hana!).  Well I thought it was the most fun thing I had learned to do so far, besides cartwheels, so I kept at it. Over the years I asked friends, and figured out a way to do the single stitch to add to my chain. I thought I was so smart. I could make things!

Turns out I never really knew what I was making, I just liked how I could piece the yarn together to look like something. One time I actually made a little purse. I had to tie the strap to it though, because I had no idea how to connect them otherwise. It was cute! I wish I had a picture, but it's somewhere deep in storage.

As part of my nesting stage of pregnancy, I picked up crochet again. My family gave me loads of yarn for my birthday around Thanksgiving time. I was so happy! I made a little blanket for Kayliegh's baby girl, Lilly.

LillyBug's Blanket

The pattern isn't my favorite, now that I look at it finished. It turned out differently than I thought. But it is the first blanket I have ever finished! And Lilly is the first grand-daughter and niece from the Casper girls. So it's special.

I wanted to see if I could improve my skills, so I finally joined Pinterest. I found many guides and tutorials on simple and complex stitches. Also youtube has so many tutorials on how to make, flowers, hats and anything really. It was so great. I wanted to try everything. I also found a website that is like a knitter's/crochet club. There you share patterns and get tips. It's a great website and free to join. It's called Ravelry.

From Ravelry, I used a pattern to create this cute thing.

Newborn Hat

It took me 15 minutes to make. Such an easy pattern! The flower pattern was from a site that I found upon Google-ing, crochet flower patterns.

I also made a purple newborn hat and added matching ribbon, weaved throughout the hat instead of a flower.

I love crochet. The look, the creativity and the fact that it ties me to my Nana. It's fun to show her all the projects I've finished. Can't wait to do more!

*B*

Avocado Dip Review

A few weeks ago my husbands extended family had a get together and everyone was to bring a snack. I wanted to try something new and had seen this super easy avocado dip circulating on Pinterest. Thanks to the blog, Two Peas and their Pod, this recipe was a success!!

The dip was very good, but be careful when adding the jalepeno, we put too much and it was pretty spicy for a dip. It gave a nice kick at the end, but the wasn't emptied due to the spiciness. Also we used a Blendtec and it ground up the avocados very finely so it was like a yogurt dip. I would have liked to taste the avocados more, but hey next time we'll try adding the avocados last and after we have mixed up the other ingredients.

We had it served with tortilla chips, but my favorite is with cucumbers and sweet peppers. Try it, it's very flavorful and you're getting your vegetables for the day!

*B*

...And we're back!

Whew! What a busy, wonderful 4th of July week we had last week! We fully intended to stay in touch, especially about our Give-Away week results, but with family, cute babies and no work, it is easy to not do the things you planned!
So without further ado- here are the results for our Give-Away week:
The winner of the custom-made baby blessing dress is,,, ( drum roll).... Aubree Ashbocker!
The three winners for the headpieces are...:
*Rachel Haxby
*Danielle Lafond
*Dana Albouq

We wanted to have a few more things to give-away, but since this was only our first ever Give-away week, we can only go uphill from here! Keep an eye out for our next Give-Away week- it could be just around the corner! In the works are home decor, possibly some custom-made adult dresses, and of course some more cute  tiny baby things! Stay -tuned...

***For those of you that won, please shoot us an e-mail about where to send your prize!***

**4pearlsinthemud@gmail.com**