Tuesday, June 23, 2020

DIY Bow Belt

Before I begin, I just want to thank everyone for their support! I know a few people have been waiting for me to finally write this up, so thank you for being patient with me. 

If you're in the discord, you're well aware of my obsession with belts. They're a great way to add detail to the center of an outfit and spice up a simple look. These bow belts are quick, easy, and cheap to make.


Supplies
  • 1 1/4 in width elastic 
  • 1/4 yard of cotton fabric 
  • Stuffing
  • Sew-in Velcro (DO NOT USE STICK ON! IT WILL NOT WORK)
  • Access to a sewing machine and a basic sewing kit
  • Paper and a pencil
  • Ruler
Steps

1) Draft the belt
Take your waist measurement. On your paper, draw a line that matches this length, and another that is 1.75 inches long intersecting it at a 90 degree angle. You're essentially just making a very long and skinny rectangle. Using the waist measurement from before, add an inch to that number and cut that length of elastic.
 
I'm using my acrylic ruler, but you can use a standard one as well!
I use contractor's paper for drafting my patterns since standard printer paper is not long enough for something this length. If you don't have access to something like this, just tape pieces of paper together to create the length you need.

2) Draft the bow
This took a few tries to get right sizing wise. Ultimately I decided that a pattern that was 4.5 in wide and 3.5 tall created the best looking bow. The center part is made of a long skinny strip that is 1.5 inch wide and 5.5 long and cut on the fold.



3) Cut out the fabric
Lay your pattern out and cut out the pieces. Sew your belt pieces together to make one long strip that is double your waist measurement. Press the seams open and iron all of the fabric before sewing!

Ignore the bow pieces here, this was for an earlier attempt and these were far too large for the belt.
Sewing my belt pieces together
Make sure to press your seams!
Make sure to iron all of the pieces before sewing.

4) Pin everything together

Fold the belt and the bow strip hot dog style and pin in place 
Again, this bow is sized differently than the finished product! But the method of pinning is exactly the same.

5) Sew your pieces together



Make sure to leave a small opening to flip the bow inside out and stuff it later.

6) Assemble the belt
Flip your belt tube inside out (this typically takes a while. I use a chopstick to help move this process along) and insert your elastic. Using a safety pin, pull your elastic through the fabric casing. I overlocked my edges, turned them under, and stitched these into place.

Using a safety pin for this process will save you so much time.
Overlocked edges to prevent fraying
 Next I attached my velcro strips. I used about an inch and a half for the closure of my belt.
Pinning the velcro into place
Sewing on the velcro!
Stuffing the bow! I just used a small handful of stuffing and made sure both sides were evenly plump.
tada finally I show the 'right' sized bow haha
I apparently forgot to take pictures, but when I make bows I like to baste down the center of the bow to create a a nice even gather. Just pull the thread taut and it will give your bow that cinched look without putting tension on the center piece.
Once again I just overlocked the ends since they wouldn't be visible once the bow was attached. Sew these ends together.

Finally, sew this bow to the belt! I sewed it on at the center and sides as well just to hold it in place

The Finished Product


I've worn this several times so far, and I love how versatile it is! It just adds a little pizzazz to the center of your outfit, and is really great if you want to break up a monochrome look. These belts are really popular for spank style looks as well, and I plan on making another one in the iconic white x black polka dots for my spank outfits. 

Let me know what you think in the comments below! And as always, if you try this, please tag me on social media. I'd love to see it!

Until next time!
~RoseQuartzRoyalty

Thursday, May 28, 2020

Fairy Kei DIY Masterlist (With Pictures!!!)

Over in the fairy server we've all been crafting up a storm. Lots of us are learning new skills, and others refining our existing ones. If nothing else, quarantine has given us lots of time to craft!

I took the old forum masterlist (which can be found here), removed all of the dead links, added some new ones, and created this list below! For the sake of time I didn't include every single fluffy star or polymer clay tutorial available. I also prioritized high quality sewing techniques when tutorials were available. This means that there may be more 'kawaii' tutorials out there, but I ultimately went with the one that produced the highest quality product. Just because something is handmade doesn't mean it has to be low quality! High quality handmade is just as good, if not better than brand at times.

I also threw in some general inspiration images at the bottom of the page that don't have tutorials to go with them, but I feel like are easy enough to make without a tutorial! Use the tutorials and techniques in the tutorial section and let the inspiration... inspire you!!!

Not all of these tutorials were designed for fairy kei, but if you find the right materials, they can easily work for the style! Remember that texture is just as important as colors and patterns are in fairy kei. Adding ruffles or trim to any garment can usually help 'fairy-ify' it!


TUTORIALS

Tops

Spank! Inspired Cami Top - CarlaMakesNoFilms
Applique Sweater - CarlaMakesNoFilms
Two Colored Hoodie Tutorial - Cherry's Pastel Life 
Teddy Bear Hoodie - Sew&Tell
DIY Jacket - RoseQuartzRoyalty
Peignoir Tutorial - Only Frills and Horses

Bottoms


Ruffle Skirt Tutorial - Sew Aldo
Basic Circle Skirt - The Shapes of Fabric
Heart Pinafore - Annika Victoria
 'Lolita' Tiered Skirt (Not actually suitable for lolita!) - Alice in Cosplay Land
Skirt-Shorts - YumiKing
Petticoat - Riiko Kuin

Tutu Skirt - Being Creative with Shilpa
Ruffle Skirt - BonbonBunny

Harem Pants - ProperFit Clothing Co.

Bloomer Shorts - Sasa Time

Shoes

Drippy platforms - Mimichi Loves You
How to Repaint Shoes - The Stitchess
Yumekawa Shoes - LaFary
Ribbon Shoelaces - Marina Si
Shoe Wings - TiffyQuake


Accessories

Fluffy Clips

Fluffy Star Clip - Violet LeBeaux
Yumekawa Star Charm - LaFary
Fluffy Stars - Popiatom
Heart Brooch - Candy Q


Hair Accessories

Pompom and Sequin Hair Bow - ScrapandCraftQueen
Plush Bows - CarlaMakesNoFilms
Simple Bows - CarlaMakesNoFilms
Ribbon Tutorial - LOOKNAM RIBBON ART
These are just ribbons, but they'd be fantastic as hair accessories! Just tie the ends onto a hair tie or barrette! 

Pompom Hair Ties - I Wear a Bow
Plush Hat - Himehood
Pompom Hair Ties - Violet LeBeaux
Crochet Pompom Scrunchies - Meladoras Creations


Leg Wear

Knit Legwarmers - TheWittyKnitter
Sock Tutorial - Yumi King
This same method can be used to create your own leg warmers!

Crochet Leg Warmers - Knitting-Crochet

Jewelry

Cotton Candy Polymer Charms - ToniEllison
Mini Cotton Candy Earrrings - minicuteclub
Polymer Clay Marshmallow Bracelet - London Jewellry School

Yamikawaii Syringe - LaFary
Casette Tape Necklace - Fairy Kei Heaven
Beaded Chain - Catie Mae

Heart Shaped Macaron - Deco-den

Misc Accessories

Heart Shaped Brooch and Choker - The Stitchess
Bow Belt - RoseQuartzRoyalty
Fairy Kei Wings - TamanimalsKrafts YT
Baseless Rosette - Co-Kan
Muffler - Just Dandy
Detachable Sailor Collar - MadeByAya
Fur Collar - Cookie & Noichi
You can use all sorts of fabric for these detachable collar tutorials! These are great for layering over t-shirts to create a more layered look! Check down in the inspo section for some really cute fairy ones!

Bags

Heart Bag - Yumi King

Teddy Bear Backpack - Rainbow Redwood
Bag Decoration - Kawaii.i
Care Bear Backpack - Henrijetta
Fancy Circle Purse - CarlaMakesNoFilms

Misc Tutorials

Heart Pocket Tutorial - What Abi Makes
Balloon Wall Decoration - LaFary

Scalloped Hem Tutorial - Professor Pincushion
Fancy Felt Baby Blocks - LaFary


INSPIRATION 

I do want to briefly preface this by encouraging you all to draw inspiration from these images rather than replicate them. All of these designs are by small artists and businesses and the original designer is listed underneath the photos. Make sure to go support them too!

My favorite places to look for inspiration are handmade brands like Monascas Banana (one of Spank!'s sub-brands), Nile Perch, and Miss Alphabet. These items are usually called 'remake' items since they take older items and upcycle them into something new!

One of my favorite materials for handmade are vintage bedsheets! One of my favorite skirts is made with 1990’s Barbie bedsheets and it's one of my favorite pieces. Almost all of the Barbie, Care Bear, My Little Pony, and rainbow fabric you see below are vintage sheets! These can be found quite easily on ebay or other thrift shopping websites. I also suggest checking the nursery sections of your local fabric stores for cute pastel prints!

Tops

Nile Perch
Monascas Banana
Nile Perch

Miss Alphabet
Monascas Banana
Monascas Banana

Monascas Banana

Monascas Banana
Nile Perch
You can use the applique tutorials listed earlier to make your own appliques! Just add them to a solid colored T-shirt or sweater. Lace, bows, ribbons, beads, crochet details, and other trims can really take your looks to the next level!

Sakura1tama
Sakura1tama
Create your own bib-front cutsew with some ribbons, pearls, and bows!

90884 x Dreamy Bows Collab

Sakura1tama
Adding lace or bows to the neckline and cuffs of existing cutsews is an easy to add some super cute details!
Monascas Banana
Lithefider
Monascas Banana


Monascas Banana
Monascas Banana
Add patches, appliques, lace, or paint details onto old jackets to give them new life.

Monascas Bananas
Painted acid wash overalls with ribbon and cute appliques!

Monascas Banana
Monascas Banana
Monascas Banana
This dress is actually a T-shirt with a long lace hem sewn onto it!

Bottoms

Monascas Banana

Spank!


Refuse to be Usual - Picture by Who Killed Cock Robin?
Pizacato Kei
Pizicato Kei - Picture by Sporkii

Shoes
Pastel Raindrops

 Pastel Raindrops
Spank!
Cadney
Fairy-Kei Baby
Milklim

Accessories

Popsicle Productions
My favorite bracelet hack is to use pearl beads as spacer beads when making beaded bracelets. I find that this makes them look more professional and less 'summer camp-y'

Kikyow
You can purchase plain berets from places like aliexpress or ebay and add your own bows, beads, or felt decals

Nile Perch
Nile Perch
Sakura1tama
Use the detachable collar tutorials from earlier and try making them with fluffy or sheer fabric! 


...


This masterlist should be a constant work in progress! If you find tutorials you think I should add, make sure to leave them below so I can add them.

I have a new tutorial coming out sometime next week, so stay tuned for that!

~RoseQuartzRoyalty