{No-Sew} Fabric Scrap Tutus

A few years ago I made a no-sew tulle tutu for my niece's 2nd birthday. It was so easy and I have been meaning to make more, especially now that I have a second niece to spoil! So when I saw the new trend of fabric scrap tutu's, I knew that I had to give those a try.

This was a super easy project and took no time at all. And what a great way to use up your scrap pile! Here is how my youngest niece's skirt turned out:

Hers is made up of 4 different fabrics and I cut a point on the ends of the orange flowered strips for some extra dimension

Want to see how I did it? Let me walk you through the steps I took on my older niece's skirt. To get started you want to measure the waist of the person you are making it for (I used my 4 year old to get a rough estimate) and then subtract 3 inches. This is how much elastic you want to cut. I believe I am using the 1 inch wide elastic here. Then you want to sew the two ends together to create a waistband. (Okay, I said no sew but this step is super easy so I don't think it counts:)

Then you want to find some coordinating fabrics and start cutting strips. My strips are between 1 and 2 inches wide and to determine length just measure from the waist to wherever you want the skirt to hit and then double. It doesn't hurt to go a little longer because you can always trim it down. You can also cut the different fabrics in various lengths for dimension. The number of strips you need is going to depend on how big your skirt is. For this skirt I used almost 50 strips (this isn't all of them, I had to add some at the end):

Now you are ready to assemble your skirt. Find a comfy seat {and if you are like me, some ridiculous Reality TV show to past the time} and slide the elastic band up over your thigh.

At this point you need to decide what order you want to add your fabric in. You can alternate colors in an ABCD pattern or clump them together in various ways - AABCCD or ABACAD, etc. This will depend on what you want your skirt to look like and how much of each fabric you have. You can also just wing it as you go and see what looks good. When this is decided, you can start adding the fabric to the waistband. This is done with a simple slipknot (I will label the directions with numbers that correspond with the following pictures for those of you who need a visual). Fold a strip of fabric in half so that the non-pattern sides are touching[1]. Slide the folded piece of fabric under the elastic[2]. Create a loop at the top of the fabric[3] and pull the ends through the loop[4]. Pull and adjust until it has created a tightened knot on the waistband[5].

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

Continue doing this until your entire waistband is covered and you have a full skirt.

You can see that I got through my first pile of fabric strips and had a gap so I had to find some more fabric to add to it. The nice thing is that you can slide the knots around so you aren't limited to adding to the gap, fill that fabric in wherever you want to:

I also added in a few ribbon strips and a bow and then I was done!

This is such a versatile pattern, you can feel free to add in ribbon or tulle as you go for accents or embellish with fabric flowers or bows. The possibilities are really endless! Wouldn't this be fun in team colors for a little fan? I think tights and boots would be darling with these skirts. Can't wait to see them on my already adorable nieces!

{Waste Not} Vegetable Broth

Two weeks ago I made my first homemade chicken broth. I am totally hooked! So when I read this post from Simply Frugal on making your own vegetable broth I knew I had to try it. I think that what I love most about this is that it is frugalness at it's best...not only do you save money by making your own broth versus buying it, but it doesn't cost you anything to begin with because it simply contains all the scraps from the vegetables you are already using! I am so smitten with any thing that lets us pinch that penny a little further {my husband works HARD for those pennies and the more I pinch them, the more I have him home to pinch as well} so I knew this would be right up my alley. Plus, anything homemade is just better.

Have I lost some of you already? Those of you who hear homemade stock and imagine slaving over a stove for hours and doing 20 different steps...have you tuned out? Don't! Trust me when I say this is easy. Don't believe me? I dare you to keep reading. Don't make me bust out the double dog dare!

First step: Save all of your veggie scraps. Really, anything goes just make sure it is clean and not rotting. Throw said scraps into a resealable bag and keep in freezer until full. Here is my first full bag from the last week or two - celery stalks, cucumber and mexican squash peels, onion and garlic skins, cauliflower bits, bok choy stems, pepper tops and some other random stuff.

Second step: Once you have a bag full of scraps you are ready to make your stock. Dump the bag in a stock pot and top with water (don't even have to bother defrosting!).

Third step: Put it on the stove, add black pepper and a bay leaf and put it on high until boiling. Then turn it down and let simmer for an hour {this is where all you busy folks walk away and get an hours worth of stuff marked off your to-do list}:

Fourth step: Let the broth cool down, strain out the veggies and store in a sealed container in the refrigerator or in the freezer. I am saving large yogurt containers for keeping this in my fridge. For freezer storage try putting the broth first in ice cube trays and then into a ziploc bag will allow you to grab the amount you need without defrosting an entire batch. Want to keep those veggie scraps working for you? Add them to your compost!

So...did I keep my promise? That was easy, huh? Let me know if you try it and for those of you who are light years ahead of my homemaking and already do this, feel free to share how you do it and what you use it for. I am planning to use part of this first batch in cooking some dried garbanzo beans for homemade hummus. I think it is going to be great in some veggie chili as well!