Episode 35

A fun scarf project

Cute video I found on youTube of how to turn a boring scarf into a cute vest!

Dress Videos

I just found this girl on youTube who made a couple of videos showing how to make some easy dresses. I haven't tried them out yet, but I might give the second one a try with some jersey knit so it will be more casual.

Coming this week...

First I want to say sorry for not keeping this site updated as much as I would like to. November and December were very busy months for me with NaNoWriMo (which I didn't finish), traveling, and all sorts of things...but hopefully now I'll have more time to work on videos and to keep this updated :)

Onward...I'm currently snowed in...but that's ok because I don't really have places to go. But it also means I won't be starting my giveaway this week because I can't get to the stores to pick up something to actually give away. So that will have to wait another week or two. In the meantime I'm working on a reversible vest tutorial for this week and then I'll have to get right on to filming next week's video because my birthday is January 5th and I'm going out of town for that!

I hope everyone had a great holiday and I will see you soon! :)

Episode 34

Episode 33- Cooking...

Umm...because I can...

I got bored the other night and filmed some of my room...so now you can see more then the small portion of wall that is usually behind me in my videos :)

Episode 32- Winter Fun!

-The question at the end was kind of last minute...but I'm going to try to include a question each week because I love meeting and getting to know people. If you have any suggestions for questions I could ask then please let me know :)

-Also let me know if you have any projects you want to show on this blog. I would like to include more of what other people are doing.

Bomber Hat

How to make an awesome Winter hat! I wonder if it would look ok if I use black faux fur??

Episode 31

Christmas is on it's way!

Cute stocking tutorial I found on youTube today :)

Episode 30- With New Intro

I know Halloween is over...

...but I just found this tutorial a couple of days ago and it's so adorable! Who wouldn't want to make a Nemo cosume?!?

Episode 29

**Totally forgot to show all the Halloween stuff I got for 75% off**

Winner!

Whitney....Cooks

In Hiding...

For those of you who don't already know, NaNoWriMo began today. NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month. The goal of NaNoWriMo is for those who participate to challenge themselves to write a 50,000+ word fictional novel during the month of November. It doesn't have to be perfect. In fact the novel written in November is simply meant to be a first draft of a novel that will hopefully be completed in the near future.

I am participating this year for the first time. I'm working on my first ever novel...or first ever work of fiction for that matter. I feel like I'm off to a good start and currently have nearly 2,800 words written...but I know this pace will not continue for long. Writers block will set in...then a break through will happen...and so on. So if it seems like I'm in hiding for the next month it's because I'm writing the not-so-great next American novel.

If any of you are also participating in NaNoWriMo let me know so we can be writing buddies on there :) If you want to add me my username is whitneywrites.


**In case anyone is wondering...I will still be making a weekly video throughout November. No guarantees on the quality or how sleep deprived I will look, but there will be videos :)

6 Months Later...

*Make sure to go over to youTube if you want to enter the contest :)

Coming up this week...

Another T-shirt project and a giveaway!

Costume Ideas

First is from youTube user SecretLifeofaBioNerd. She is totally awesome and makes lots of great videos. If you aren't subscribed to her already then you should go do that right now!




Next is from GiannyL. She also does a lot of how-to videos.

Episode 25

Reversable scarf for the win!




*Wanted to give an update on the jacket I'm working on (mentioned in the previous post). I have sewn on the boat and sails and have embroidered the masts. So I'm still working on the riggings that connect the sails to the masts. I hope my boat lingo is right...

Embroidered Jacket

I found this beautiful jacket online last year and have been wanting to try to make one like it. At the time I didn't have a jacket to use...but my mom thrifted me a cute white corduroy jacket. I didn't know how to embroider...but last night I found a ton of great embroidery tutorials (here's a link to one and the others can be found in the side bar on the right of that page). So now I have nothing stopping me! I'm going to bust out some of my vintage fabric and see what I can do!

<--Isn't it amazing?!?

Finally done!!

Go check the link section on youTube for the official tag links :)

Threadbanger- Mad Hatter

I will start off by saying I have never read Alice in Wonderland...I don't even know the storyline...but the Tim Burton trailers look so good that I just might go see the movie (or at least rent it when it comes out on film). This week Threadbanger did a great tutorial for the Mad Hatter costume.

Halloween Decor-it-Yourself

One of the best Decor-it-Yourself episodes to date...

Episode 23- Halloween Edition!!

T-Shirt Dress

Pickled Pandas sent me this link!! Isn't it cute?!?

Q&A

Q: What does Rosie the Riveter, pirates, and a cowgirl have in common??

A: I will tell how to come up with those costumes and a lot more in this week's Halloween episode...using items that can be found in your (or a family member's) closet!




















(Please forgive my awful photo editing skills)

Flintstones From a T-shirt

Episode 22

Easy Costume Idea

Episode 21...Happy Fall

Episode 20

WooHoo

I'll start off by saying that I'm a bit of a nerd...

Every so often I search 'Whitney Sews' on youTube and see what it pulls up. I did it just now and found 22 different playlists with my videos in them (that's not counting my own playlist)! That is so cool! Anyway...new episode up later today...

Costuming!

Last year I had the awesome job of being the co-costumer for my university's theatre department. If you have never been involved in costuming or really theatre in any form then you don't know what you are missing. It is fun because you never know what you will be working on...we made everything from Klan robes (for The Foreigner) to horse costumes (for Cinderella), and sometimes it is torture because you never know what you will be working on. But over-all I can say that I learned a lot and had a lot of great experiences and met a lot of wonderful people through costuming (and got a lot closer to Angela!) So I just wanted to share this video that a classmate of mine did for her Video Production II interview project.**




**If you are interested in some of the other projects we did for Video II here is a link to the playlist. The first episode of Whitney Sews was actually my final project for that same class.**

Canning Jar Sewing Kit

I found this adorable tutorial today. I've seen things like this before and actually have made one myself (am too lazy to take a picture of mine...) So here's the one I found today and the tutorial link so you can make one too...

Coolest Compliment to Date

"You are just a sewing rockstar. : ) "

Some Talking and a T-shirt Recon

Crocheting!

Dierdrelefae on youTube posted this video showing how she crochets! I love the bag she is making the design is neat and the color is really pretty.

Episode 18- Learning to Crochet and Some Bloopers!

Co-hosted with Angela!






Linkage-
Angela's Store
Blog
youTube

This week...

A co-hosted episode with my friend Angela as she gives us a crocheting lesson.

Adorable Western Shirt Re-con

Added bonus...it has puff sleeves! Click here for tutorial...

Episode 17- Puffed Sleeves

T-Shirt Cutting

I'm not sure how I managed to never see this video before...but I found it today and I love it! I haven't tried this yet, but have been wanting to know how to do this style of cutting. This is a great tutorial for Adam Saaks style of T-shirt cutting by itsblitzzz on youTube.

Comments and Posting

Hey everyone...thank you for all the comments you've left here. I just now saw them because I thought I had my email set up to get updates when comments were left...but something got messed up. I was a little bummed thinking no one was looking at my site, but I flipped through and saw that people really are reading it and leaving comments and it made my day! So I'm sorry if you all thought I was ignoring your posts, I'm not and I will get my email fixed so that I know each time one of you lovelies posts something :)

I've added a new widget into this blog...in the upper right hand side is a 'Current Project' section. I always like to see what other people are working on so I thought it would be fun to put it up. Hopefully it will also work as a motivation for me so that I don't just start a project and never finish it like I tend to do a lot.

I'm also working on making posts other then the weekly videos! I want to post personal projects, things that inspire creativity, and viewer submissions when I get them. Well that's all for now... :)

Episode 16

I've been making a lot of jewelry lately, so I wanted to incorporate it into this week's project...

Update and coming up!

This week my channel hit over 200 subscribers! Thank you so much to everyone who has subscribed to my show and for your nice comments! :)

My summer job ended last Saturday so I am now totally self-employed...kinda scary to think about...however it means I can work on my etsy business and on Whitney Sews without having to worry about making it to work on time. So hopefully I will be able to have more in depth tutorials and personal projects starting soon. Anyway, that's what's happening in my life. If you are working on some projects you would like to share please let me know...I live seeing what other people are making! :)

This week's episode is turning scraps into accessories...

Fall 09 Trends

Here's a cute little video I found that tells about some upcoming trends.



She is telling different places you can buy these trends, but we all know that we can DIY them too!! Lace and and studs are so easy to add to an existing outfit. Ruffles are also easy...just cute some strips of fabric, zig zag or serge the edges and sew it on pleating as you go. Super easy and cute...I've been meaning to do a ruffle tutorial but haven't found just the right shirt to add them to. Maybe I'll find the right shirt and do that tutorial soon...

*BTW I'm loving Miley Cyrus's clothing line at Wal-Mart!


On a side note...I'm having a sale in my etsy store right now! Use the code Grand09 for 15% off your purchase (does not include shipping costs). The 15% will be refunded back to you via paypal within 24 hours of purchase.

Shirt Dress Tutorial

I found the Chic Steals website today which has lots beautiful fashion pics to look at. I came across this tutorial for the cutest little shirt dress.



I can't wait to give it a try!

Episode 15- Making a Camera Strap Cover

Adorable T-shirt Recon

from The Great Zenovka...via Threadbanger

Coming up...

...a tutorial to deck out your camera!

Threadbanger T-shirt Recon- 1st Place

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Threadbanger T-shirt Recon- 2nd Place

Threadbanger T-shirt Recon- 3rd Place

Episode 14- Terrariums

Taking a little break from sewing to show how to make some cute terrariums!

T-Shirt Recons!

Tons of them coming up on Threadbanger!



The red shirt 2 seconds in is the video I submitted!

*Coming up this week on Whitney Sews is a project that takes you outside of the sewing room*

Episode 13- Simple Summer Skirt

Original tutorial.

Coming this week...

An easy skirt tutorial for those warm summer days and nights. This skirt looks great with heels or flats for a dressy or casual look. New episode will be up Wednesday!

Episode 12...Embellishing

Coaster How-To

My latest project has been making drink coasters. I saw some on the internet and thought they were cute so I wanted to try to make some.

Start by sewing two different fabric pieces together for the front, ironed the seam and topstitched it. If you want yours to be made from just one fabric then skip this step.

Trim the fabric to make it square (a good size is a 4" X 4" square).

Cut a 4" X 4" square of your back fabric and of a fleece fabric for the lining.

Line the pieces up with the front and back right sides together and the fleece on the outside so that it makes a sandwich (front piece right side up/back piece right side down/lining piece)

Sew around the square leaving a 2 inch gap. *Don't forget to backstitch the beginning and ending of your seam*

Trim the corners.

Turn the coaster right side out and iron.

Top stitch around the coaster making sure to sew closed the opening you turned through.

*Click photos to enlarge*

Episode 11- Resusable Shopping Bag

I think this is a handy little tutorial in this day and age. I hope you like it.



I tried to do an infomercial spoof like the creepy Shamwow guy...hard to do in the 105 degree Oklahoma heat.

Episode 10...

...and finally caught up! This episode demonstrates one of the tutorials in Megan Nicolay's newest Generation-T book.

Episode 9...

...another use for those old t-shirts! Underwear.

Shrug by Cutu

LiveJournal member Cutu posted her shrug to the t-shirt surgery group...click image to view larger.

Viewer Submission by Angela

Episode 8- Making a T-shirt Shrug

Cute tutorial I found for turning a t-shirt into a summer shrug.



Original tutorial...

Shopping Tips for Episode 7

One of my favorite things to do is go shopping/thrifting and find a really great deal. I seem to have better 'luck' at it then most people so I'm sharing some of my tips.




*Forgot to mention my greatest find to date...a wedding dress that is worth nearly $1000 for only *drumroll* $50!

Episode 6...One Tree Hill Inspired

I LoVe One Tree Hill so when I was watching the reruns on SoapNet and saw the episode with the Peyton/Lucas cookie dough fight I just had to try and make the shirt Peyton was wearing.



Here is a neat interview I found with the costumer of One Tree Hill...I always like to hear from costume/fashion designers who are in the 'real world'...they can be such inspirations.

Episode 5

Sewing with non-traditional materials. Going green is easier then you thought...

Episode 4...

...answering some wardrobe upkeep questions from viewers.

Viewer Submission

I got my first viewer submission as a response to episode 3! I'm so excited because it was completely unexpected. The video is from my friend Angela. We met in college while performing in Oklahoma! A year later we became co-costumers for the theatre department and awesome friends!

Episode 3...

...quick and easy T-shirt skirt!

Episode 2

Organizing your sewing space.

Episode 1...

The episode that started it all...

**Update**

I now have 100 subscribers on youTube! Thank you to everyone who watches my show :)

Welcome

Whitney Sews is a dream come true for me. I grew up watching my mom sew my clothes and I got all my crafty ways from her! I went to East Central University and got a degree in Mass Communication…meaning I got to play with a lot of cameras. I minored in Speech Theatre and was co-costumer for the theatre department during my senior year.

The first episode of Whitney Sews was filmed for my Video Production II final project. I had a lot of fun with it. The next week I was bored and decided to film another episode and I just kept going from there. I’ve gotten a lot of great response about the show. I feel so blessed because I never thought I would have as many views/comments/subscribers as I’ve gotten. I love doing this show and I hope you all love it too.

This blog is going to be my sewing headquarters. I’m going to post the Whitney Sews videos, other projects I’m working on, cool ideas I find, tips and tutorials, and viewer submitted projects I get.