Collared Shirt Upcycle

I have too many pictures.

We had to change the way we stored them all last year about this time, and that's part of the reason I haven't been posting as many pictures during this last year.  I finally took the initiative to go back through all my pictures from the last year and get the ones that I would like to remember so that I can put them here.  Hopefully they'll all make it and I'll be able to remember what was going on at the time...  Stay tuned for some picture-heavy posts.

These next pics feel like a life-time ago (sigh, I miss our turquoise bathroom...).  It's funny to see me with hair so straight and short.

Anyway, my mother-in-law knows I like to tinker with clothes, and gave me some quality collared shirts from someone's wardrobe.

 It's just a thin black plaid, if you can't tell.  Nothing special about it.  Just a collared, button-down shirt.

 This is by no means a well-done tutorial.  I never really know what I'm doing, so I don't think to photograph every step since I'm not sure if it will be a good one :)  I forgot to photograph the next few steps but I just put it on inside-out and put pins in my sides to give the body more shape and show off my waist better (which I super need to off-set my super-flat chest).

Then I cut off the collar and cut off the sleeves just above the shoulder seam.

collar cut about 1/2" above the second button

 Then I shortened the sleeves to be short (it's been awhile, but I'm pretty sure I tried to copy another shirt with sleeves I liked.  In retrospect, it would be easier not to cut them off and sew them back on, I would just shorten them since this shirt isn't THAT big on me.  You only want to do this if the shoulder seams are off your shoulder).  Then I sewed the sleeves back on from armpit to armpit (going over the shoulder) and then ran a seam where the pins were at my sides all the way to the sleeves.  I never even trimmed the excess off, so I could adjust it later if I needed to.  (though I never did.)  I used the extra fabric from the sleeves to cut strips about 1.5" wide, pressed in half and then, well, look at the pic...  (Can you tell I've never taken a real sewing class? I don't know any fancy names for anything.  Sorry!)

 I pinned it to the neck and sleeves.

 Sewed the border on the neck and sleeves.  Note that I cannot unbutton the shirt all the way anymore.  I unbutton all the others when I put it on and slip it over my head.  It works fine, but this is no longer able to be put on like a traditional button-down.  After sewing on the embellishment, I pressed it and top-stitched to get it to lay right.

 The bow was an after-thought.  I took one of the cuffs from the sleeve and tied a knot in the middle.  If you look closely, you can see the button-hold on the left side of it.

 ta-da!

 The bow is just safety pinned on in this shot, because I wasn't sure if I'd still like it and if it would wash well.  I take it off when I wash the shirt.

I hate being in photos alone...

I'm actually wearing this shirt right now with a mustard cardi and different belt.  It's one of my favorites because it's long and hides my kangaroo pouch pretty well :)

Hup Cakes

How could I have forgotten to mention "hupcakes"?

hupcake princess, eating a hupcake

necklace and sunglasses are regular additions

We were hand-me-downed (that is not a word) a princessy-looking dress with cupcake fabric on it.  Peach probably wore it once.  Hazel found it a few weeks ago and is LIVING in it.  We're talking sleeping, errand running... she even brought it to church one time and I was late for a meeting so I didn't bother removing it from her clutches before we went inside.  By the time I got out of my meeting, the missionaries had helped her put it on over her church clothes and she wore it in church that day.  *sigh*

purses and crowns are regular additions also

all dressed up to do dishes

Really, though.  I think it's super cute.  :)

Hazel-speaks

Hazel has been talking really well since we moved to New York, and I just realized today that I haven't been documenting her speech very well... (oh wait.  I haven't been documenting anything....) which really doesn't matter, except The Frog loves it when I tell him the funny ways he used to say things, and I know I'm not going to remember if I don't write some of them down.

When I started trying to write this post, I couldn't think of anything she says incorrectly because, in my mind, she has been completely fluent in English since she was 2.  After trying harder to pay more attention, I realized how wrong I was... Really, I've just become fluent in toddler and I hardly notice it now.  So here are some of my Hazel-speak favorites:

mish-a-low = marshmallow
hippo. pawmus = hippopotamus
mato = tomato
atten = pretend
can I do game? = can I either use a kid app or send jibberish texts to your friends?
duff = stuff
seeyol = cereal  (this is often one of the first things I hear from her every day.  "mama, I wan some seeyol. pweeeeez.")
poon = spoon
pah-koo = sparkles
packpack = backpack
pwentzo = pretzel
pah-koles = sparkles
peshel = special
pie-yip = pirate (and when she's being a pie-yip, she walks around saying "aw" instead of "arrrr")

I will probably add more as I notice them...

Also, Hazel has learned to be emphatic when she is especially adamant about something she is saying- her favorite being to scrunch up her face and emphatically say "NOTHING!!"
As in
me: Do you want to nap in your big girl bed or your crib?
Hazel: NOTHING!!

She also knows that zero is nothing, and is pleased to tell you when she notices an "O" or a "0".

Also, I'm amazed to say that she already recognizes all the letters in the alphabet (at least the capitals) and I swear I didn't teach her a thing.  She is also the one most excited about homeschooling - probably because she wants to do whatever her siblings are doing.  Even though we didn't start anything with the others until they turned 3, we have a mini routine we do with her to keep her happy - which is how I discovered she already knows the alphabet!

Jay's mom gave Hazel a baby Cinderella last Summer, and back then she called it "baby Lala".  She now can say "Cinella" but we still call the baby "Lala".  She decided to get another one with some Valentine's money from Nanie and so now she has a "baby Lala" and a "baby Wawa" (Aurora) which I constantly confuse with what babies refer to for "water" and she's always getting mad at me about the misunderstanding.

Kid Conversation

Hazel was clearly doing something very important with her head just underneath the curtains above when I came and interrupted her to inquire about a smell.

Me: Are you poopy?
Hazel: I not.  I jus cwean ah da time. (I'm just clean all the time)

Anticipation

The Frog is notorious for leaving fake bugs in unsuspecting locations, intended for me to discover.  Indeed, I have been showering with a gigantic plastic spider for at least a week...  I can't bring myself to throw it out because it half makes me smile and half freaks me out.

Though I love the explosion of his awesome laughter (people always tell me he has the cutest laugh) when I feign a scream after finding his hidden token of "love", I must say my favorite part is watching his attempted stifling of giggles in anticipation of my demise.