BDR Winner!

Thanks to everyone who entered my giveaway to celebrate the Button Down Rehab series!

I had so much fun with the series, and I hope you enjoyed the projects and found some new uses for your button down shirts!

If you make anything using one of the tutorials, I'd love to see it and possibly feature you on my "Your Creations" tab! Email me at myownroad(at)yahoo(dot)com!

1. Monogrammed Pillow with Krista of Thar She Sews! 

2. The Little Guy Vest 

3. The Little Guy Bow Tie 

4. Roll Cuff Sleeve Refashion 

5. Pillow Monster with Shannon of Details of a Love 

6. Bow Cuff Bracelet 

7. The Shirt Sleeve Bag with Gwen of Gwenny Penny 

8. The Button Down Bib 

9. Bib Dress with Rebecca of Searching Out Simple 

10. The Tuxedo Pillow

I'm officially out of button down shirts after the series, but stay tuned because I couldn't help but make one more thing for the little lady since most of my projects were boy-themed :)

But onto the good stuff! I had a lot of entries and, while I wish I could give all of you free stuff, there had to be 1 winner. Using Random.org, the winner is.......

#15, Beth who said:

Congrats Beth! An email has been sent to the winner. 

Thanks again everyone for participating, I'll be hosting more giveaways in the future, so keep an eye out!

If you missed it, My Own Road is now on Facebook, so hop on over there and "like" me to stay updated on projects, random stuff I'm doing, and other blog shout outs.

Getting to know you

Oh man, just when you thought you heard enough from me, Krista @ Thar She Sews! went and passed on the One Lovely Blog award to me. I'm on the road right now driving the 14 hours back to Tennessee, so I thought I'd take the time to tell you 7 random things about myself. I know, try to contain yourselves ;)

Well, forget about impressing you, I'll just tell you 7 things you probably never cared to know about me :)


1. I have a flat spot on my head. No, really. When I was born, I had craniosynostosis which is a big word that basically means a couple of the bones in my head were fused prematurely. I had to have surgery to separate the bones when I was 3 months old, so needless to say there aren't many pictures of me at that age because I"m sure I looked like a baby Frankenstein.

The surgery left me with the flat spot, which makes a great conversation piece when I go to get my hair cut.


2. In middle school, I was in a band. That is, if you call 3 teenage girlrs who don't play instruments and dress like the Spice Girls a band. Somewhere out there, there is a homemade CD with the song "Be Yourself" on it. Hopefully that "somewhere" is under a couch cushion.


3. I play guitar. I have a really awesome Taylor 314ce guitar that I used to play a TON. Unfortunately, I rarely have time to play anymore (and I also have really skinny fingers, which doesn't help when you're attempting to play a song) so I haven't picked it up in quite awhile. I've also written a few songs. None of them will ever reach the potential of "Be Yourself" though ;)


4. I am extremely clumsy. That might not be a secret actually, but it's an unfortunate fact. When I was a server in college, I once dropped a huge tray of drinks on a woman who was in the middle of a professional lunch meeting with a group of fashion experts. She had to empty pop out of her Stiletto. I repeated the same mistake the next day with a different group of people.


5. Yes, it's "pop" not "soda."


6. I still have my old diary from childhood where I wrote my deepest, darkest secrets. Like how mad I was at my brother when my grandparents sent 2 shirts for my brother and I and my brother picked the shirt I wanted.

I may have called him a weiner head in that entry. Oh, and my diary has Troll Dolls on it. Those were the days.


7. I was born without wisdom teeth. I don't know that happens, but I'm not going to ask questions if it means I get to avoid mouth surgery.

So those are my fun facts! Now you know something new about me, even if they are useless facts :)

If you haven't already, make sure you enter my giveaway! There are 3 possible ways to enter and the deadline is tomorrow at midnight, so go enter while you can! The winner will be chosen via random.org and announced on Monday.

I need closure.

Last week, I had a baby-free girls' night with my friends. For those of you who have kids, you know how glorious (and kind of surreal) it can be to do anything without children. Grocery shopping in particular is one of the hardest things to do with kids - especially when you have 2 kids. When we shop, my husband pushes my daughter in the shopping cart and I push my son in his stroller. This leaves us with 0 hands free. That means while someone steps away to get food, the other person has to guard our son from potential kidnappers in the Wal-Mart deli aisle (hey, this is Memphis) while also keeping our 2-year-old from doing a backflip out of the shopping cart into the chip display.

Parenthood is not for the weak.

So, knowing that I'm nursing and don't get the opportunity to go out much, my husband offered to watch the kids for the night so I could go out with the girls. I don't know what he was smoking when he offered to watch them, but we need to get more of whatever it is.

I was thoroughly enjoying my Baby Einstein-free drive to Bonefish Grill when I got a call from my husband.

"I have big news, HUGE news!" he blurted out.

I immediately thought Connor had taken his first step or something. Yes, I know he's 7-months-old. I mean, he's a genius. It could happen.

"Marina has been replaced on Fresh Beat Band!!!" he said.

O.M.G.

You might already know about my daughter's Fresh Beat Band obsession, but if you don't, let's just say we have every episode of Fresh Beat Band DVR'd and watch them every day. Several times a day. I wake up in the middle of the night to feed Connor, and the songs play in my head. Do you know how frustrating it can be to try to fall asleep with "Friends Give Friends a Hand" playing on repeat in your brain? Try watching the show once, you'll see what I mean.

The Fresh Beat Band show was the first TV show my daughter actually sat still and watched, and since then, it's been her favorite show. For Haley's 2nd birthday, we threw her a Fresh Beat Band party which I'm very proud of considering there aren't any Fresh Beat Band party supplies available (you can read more about the birthday party HERE). So you can understand how the Fresh Beat Band have become like family over the past year. And now, one of our family members was gone. This was huge news.

 source

Marina (played by Shayna Rose) is the redhead in the photo above. Shayna was the only member of the Fresh Beat Band cast that had any actual acting experience. She allegedly quit because she was getting married and was replaced by Tara Perry (below).

source

As I watched the new episodes with Tara Perry in them, it just didn't feel right. I missed the old Marina! I missed her "hip hop and pop" catch phrase, the way she always crushed Twist's big ideas, I even missed her bad dancing. I didn't even get the chance to say goodbye! 

The other Fresh Beat Band members didn't seem to notice that the old Marina had been replaced by a phony. Even her outfit had been modified. I wanted to shake them, to yell "she's a fake, can't you see?" but they never noticed, they just kept on singing their way out of every problem they ran into. Haley didn't even seem to notice. She was just enamored with the fact that this was a new episode she hadn't seen 8,000 times before.

There was no warning, no slow transition, Old Marina was just gone. Gone and replaced by New Marina.

And I didn't even get to say goodbye.

My Button Down Bibs are on Prudent Baby!

I'm not here today....I'm over at Prudent Baby sharing my Button Down Bib tutorial!

Come by and say hi, won't you? I have a free pattern for you so you can make your own bib too!

And while you're at it, make sure you go HERE to enter my giveaway and win some free stuff!

BDR Giveaway!!

***This giveaway is now closed***

Happy 4th of July!

How was your weekend? Full of awesome Button Down Rehab upcycles and refashions I hope?

Mine was full of a LOT of driving. The hubby, kids and I are visiting family for the holiday, which meant a lovely 14 hour drive for us. I'm sure those of you with children understand the horror of spending that much time in the car with young children. Rapunzel was practically on repeat. Now that I'm back on solid, unmoving ground, it's time to kick back, relax, and let the grandparents spoil the kids.

But enough about me, let's talk about you.

I had a ton of fun hosting the series, and I hope you enjoyed all the great projects from myself and my guest posters as well. I've made some new friends along the way, and I wanted to thank everyone for participating in the series. 

And of course, what better way to say a huge THANK YOU to everyone than with a giveaway??

1. Patty Young for Michael Miller: Hive fabric in turquoise.

Did anyone notice this fabric I hid in my fabric stash in my Pittsburgh highlights post? I kinda slipped it in there to see if anyone would recognize that it's the same one I used to make Haley her Bee Pants. Well I loved it so much that I found the same print in turquoise last time I went to Loom, and I picked up a yard to give away!

This could be used to make so many cute things! A clutch maybe? Some adorable beehive coasters? A ruffly skirt? All of the above? I mean, I am giving you a yard after all!

2. Two iron on bee transfers in hot pink.

While I was giving away the cute Hive fabric, I couldn't resist the chance to use my new Silhouette to include a couple of smooth iron on bee transfers as well. Each bee is 3 inches wide and 2 inches tall. And after cutting them out with my Silhouette, I realized that there were a bunch of little pieces that would need to be picked out before ironing, so I sat there with tweezers and picked them all out for you. How nice am I??

I'm envisioning a ruffly skirt and matching top with one of the bee transfers on it for a little girl. That's what I would make anyway :)

3. Four washer pendants.

I made these cute little pendants from washers, letter seals, and Diamond Glaze. Sorry folks, the chain isn't included, but you could find the same kind of thing at a craft store.

4. One of my Bow Cuff Bracelets from day 6 of Button Down Rehab.


My Bow Cuff Bracelet project is tied with my Button Down Bibs as my favorite project of the series. I love it so much because of the "nautical look" that it has with the blue stripes and the red accent. (Oh, and I just might have a nautical-themed dress in the works...)

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So do you ready to win some stuff??

There are 3 possible ways to enter!

Here are the rules:

1. Mandatory: Be a follower of My Own Road and leave a comment on this post telling me that you follow.

2. Check out the Button Down Rehab pojects (the series ran June 20-July 1) and leave a comment on this post telling me which one of the projects is your favorite.

3. Like My Own Road on Facebook and leave me a comment on this post telling me you did.

The giveaway will be open through midnight July 10th, and I'll announce the winner on the 11th using Random.org.

(I love my international readers, but this giveaway is only open to residents of the U.S., sorry guys!)

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Linking up!

Button Down Rehab Day 10: The Tuxedo Pillow

I hope you've enjoyed all the posts from the Button Down Rehab series as much as I have, but unfortunately, today's project is the last one in the series.

But don't be sad, let's make a pillow instead (and maybe next Monday's giveaway will also help a little :)! 

The last Button Down Rehab project comes to you courtesy of an Express shirt I've had since high school.

I've worn the crap out of this shirt since I first bought it. I remember thinking how cool and cute I looked in it when I bought it. Seriously? Calm down 16-year-old me. Thankfully my sense of style has evolved since then. 

In recent years said shirt has become a little too...um...snug...thanks to a couple children who will remain nameless *cough cough*. Here's the original shirt (and my toes):

Pretty blah right?

My husband actually gave me the idea to make a pillow out of it. He has been nagging...I mean gently reminding... me to make him a pillow for our computer chair, which is actually one of our breakfast table chairs. We moved the computer from the upstairs to the kitchen so it'd be easier to use the computer and keep an eye on the kids at the same time. As much as I love hearing "I'm the Map, I'm the Map" 30 times in 1 episode, I need something to distract me.

The old computer chair became my new comfy craft chair upstairs, which left us to use one of the kitchen chairs - which is not so comfy. So I took my old button down and transformed it into the Tuxedo Pillow - so named because of the bow shape and the ruffles, which reminds me of an old school tuxedo...in case you were wondering. 

Supplies:

• Button down shirt
• Pillow stuffing
• Seam ripper
• Rotary cutter and cutting mat
• Sewing machine and thread
• Iron and ironing board
• Zipper foot

Step 1: Cut your pillow shape.

Make sure your shirt is buttoned. Using your cutting board and mat, trim your shirt to the size you want, leaving some extra for seam allowance. Mine was about 25 inches long and 24 inches wide. You'll notice my shirt has a curve to it on both sides, which is what gives the shirt it's bow shape. Mine was already like this due to a few darts in the side, but if your shirt isn't already curvy, you can cut a slight curve in the sides a bit. Don't go overboard on the curvy-ness though or you'll end up with a very funky looking pillow.

You want the top and bottom to be straight. Since the bottom of my shirt had a curve to it, I trimmed it straight across with my rotary cutter

Only the top and bottom are open on my piece since I didn't need to trim the sides. If your sides are open, place your fabric pieces right side together, pin, and sew down both sides then turn right side out.

You should now have a nice little curvy rectangle that will be your pillow form.

Step 2: Cut out the fabric for your ruffles.

Now you want to cut enough fabric for your 2 ruffles. The length of your ruffle is up to you. I made my ruffles almost as long as my pillow because that's all I had to work with but the longer, the better. Measure the length from the top to the bottom of your pillow form and double it to get a decent ruffle that spans the entire length of your pillow. The width should be about 2 1/2 inches per ruffle. You will need 2 pieces in this length and width.

Since my shirt is a short sleeve shirt, the longest piece of fabric that would work for me came from the back of my shirt right below the collar. If you have a long sleeve shirt, you could use one of your sleeves.

I cut out my rectangle and then trimmed it to make sure it was straight on all sides. Then, I cut my rectangle in half to create my two 2 1/2 inch rectangles (1 for each ruffle).

Here are my 2 (pre-ruffled) pieces of fabric!

Now take your iron and, with your pieces right side down, iron 1/4 inch on each side of your ruffle pieces. Using a straight stitch, sew both short sides and one long side on each ruffle.

Step 3: Gather and attach your ruffles.

To make your actual ruffle, set your sewing machine length and width to the highest numbers. Without backstitching, sew across the 1 long side you left unsewn on each of your ruffle pieces, leaving long tails at each end when you cut your thread. Now, tie a knot on one end with your 2 string tails. On the other end, gently tug one string and push the fabric toward the other end, making it ruffle up like a curtain on a rod. When you've reached your desired ruffle length, tie a knot in your threads and cut the excess.

Now to attach your ruffles, you'll need to use your seam ripper to rip the seams on the button closure that is on the front piece of your pillow form.

First, find the side with the button holes. Using your seam ripper, rip the stitches down the side of your button closure to open it up.

See how my seam is now open from the side to the button holes? Tuck one of your ruffle pieces into that side seam and pin all the way down. Now sewing on top of where the original stitches were, sew all the way from the top of your pillow to the bottom to attach your ruffle.

The other side is easy because there aren't any stitches to pull. Just tuck your other ruffle underneath the flap as close to the buttons as you can get. Using your zipper foot, stitch from the top of the shirt to the bottom to attach your second ruffle.

The zipper foot is essential because you have to sew very close to the buttons on your shirt.

You should now have both ruffles attached, and your pillow should look like the picture below.

Step 4: Stitch closed and stuff your pillow.

Turn your pillow form inside out so that the right sides are together. Pin the raw edges together on the top and bottom, leaving a 4 inch opening on the bottom for turning.

Stitch straight across your top and bottom to close, stopping where you left your opening to turn. Turn your pillow inside out. Use a chopstick or knitting needle to push out your corners.

Now, stuff your pillow to the desired volume, and hand stitch the opening closed.

Now decorate with your new pillow!

See, there are some good things that come out of high school ;)

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Thank you so much for joining me for the Button Down Rehab series!! Special thanks to Krista, Shannon, Gwen, and Rebecca who guest posted and shared their awesome projects.

I hope you've had just as much fun as I have refashioning and upcycling your old button down shirts. To say thank you to all of my blog friends, new and old, I hope you'll come back Monday and enter my giveaway to win some great stuff!

Check out all of the projects in the BDR series:

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Linking up!

Show and Tell Wednesday at Blue Cricket Design