Hello lovelies,

here something completely differently...

But I figured that some of you might think about using a preview picture on blogger without it being in the blog post. 

Well, search no more because I have the answer and it's super simple.  

1. Go to the top of you post, right before the first word and insert a few empty lines.
   
2. Upload a picture as you would normally do in the "Compose view"-> "Insert Image" -> Upload from computer. 
3. Insert your picture. 
4. "Edit picture" and change the size of the picture -> I usually go for XL
5. Then go to the HTML view. Your code should look like this.
   
   Look for the "width" right at the end of the code and change it to 1. Do not change anything else, just this one width. 
   Go back to "Compose view" and you will see a small line instead of the picture, either horizontal or vertical.
   
6.  Publish your blog post.

And that's it! Easy peasy, isn't it?

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial!

Have a great day,

 

Auris Lothol

 Hi lovelies, 

it seems like prisila hair clips seemed to have been forgotten quite a bit since their popularity in the 2010s as quite a few people asked me how I did my big fluffy hairdo.

That inspired me to show you how I do my hair style and film a tutorial.

Sorry for the quite harsh light but I bought a big ring light and it was a bit brighter than my smaller one. 

Enjoy the video!

 

 Auris Lothol

 

 

 

Add caption

Hello lovelies,

sorry for the lack of blog posts, I have been super busy filming videos and didn't have time to blog. I used to update weekly during the lockdown and as the numbers are rising again in Vienna, it seems that a second lockdown is close. Maybe I'll have time for writing again. But my time table is so full, plus I have my first bachelor seminar about film noir that I fear I can only concentrate on one medium.  

 I started filming short sewing tutorial to make myself acquainted with the video software and everything else. After that, I already have plans for bigger projects, and there is a swan -, strawberry -, and regency dress waiting to be finished and then cut and edited. My hopes are to upload a video at least a month. So if you are interested, follow me on youtube! 

Watch the video here of the sleeping mask tutorial I did back in May. 

The paper pattern can be downloaded from by dropbox.  

 

Enjoy watching it!

 If you want to read or print the written version, click here to get to the blog post.

All the best,

 

Auris Lothol

Hello lovelies,

nap time is one of my favourite activities, especially after a mentally exhausting day at work. But also on weekends I tend to take a nap after lunch. To be honest, I can't wait to retire and just fill my days with long naps.
Usually I fall asleep very fast at night but during the day I sometimes need a sleeping mask to make my brain think it's dark. M. envies me on how fast I fall asleep at night and therefore I get quite grumpy if I do not fall asleep immediately after closing my eyes. I know, some wish to have this problem.

The mask I own has a unicorn on it and I bought it in Primark. The only problem is that the elastic is a bit tight on my head.
Last weekend I found a stash of scrap pink satin fabric and suddenly the idea formed, after a nap of course, to just make my own sleeping mask. And why not? 
The cotton for the lining also came from my scrap material, only the inner felt layer was from my big stash.

I can really recommend this project as it is super easy and also well suited for beginners. 
Download the mask pattern from my Dropbox. 

You will need:

• Outer and lining fabric of your choice, I recommend cotton and would stay clear of anything elastic like jersey.
• Felt Fabric
• Pins
• Sewing needle
• Thread
• Sewing Machine
• Scissor
• Elastics
• The paper pattern

Print out the mask pattern from my dropbox or create your own. 
It is my first project where I made the pattern on the computer and boy that was complicated. But I learned a lot and I hope to make a few more patterns in the future.

If you use the pattern, you can scale it up or down with your printer. Cut the paper pattern out with the seam allowance or cut it away and use your own length.

If you want any embroidery on your fabric, now is your time.
I went for a small ribbon, vines and a heart. It was a super quick embroidery project and I think that was the part I enjoyed the most. 


When this is done, you can start on the fabric.

Pin your paper pattern onto the fashion fabric and cut along. If you cut away the seam allowance, then draw your seam allowance.
Cut and do the same for the lining.



The felt fabric does not get any seam allowance, cut it along the pattern.

You have three pieces of fabric now. Place the felt material on the left side of the lining and go over it with a running stitch. This will now be one piece.

Pin the elastics to one side, then hold the fabric up to your face and go around the back of your head with it and pin it to the other side. Make sure it is not too loose or too tight.
Cut your elastics with 1cm sewing allowance.



Unpin the elastics, turn the mask over  and pin the elastics to the right side. Also pin the elastics to the middle so it doesn't get under the sewing machine by mistake.
We are almost there!


Pin the fashion fabric to the lining, right sides together and go over it with the sewing machine.



Cut into the fabric. Especially at the rounded part and the bottom middle part.

Now turn the mask inside out. Be careful of the needle that is still inside with the elastic.

Take your needle and a thread and close the open gap. Use a ladder or invisible stitch.

Get rid of the thread in the back and you are done!

The mask is now done.

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial. The Video will follow soon,

all the best,

Auris Lothol

 The rectangular mask

I got the pattern from a face mask I bought in Japan. It is small and designed for petite women, therefore it is much too small for my boyfriend. But as it's only a rectangular, you can always change the length of the pattern and the elastics.

Disclaimer: These cloth masks are not designed to protect you from COVID 19. They may protect others though!

You need:

• scissors
• elastics
• paper
• pins
• sewing machine 
• ruler 
• iron
• fabric

My mask is 17x16cm, I drew it on a piece of paper and cut it. It is much easier to use and does not require drawing freehand on your fabric every time.
It also has all the information I needed directly written on it:

• placement of folds
• placement of elastics 
• the opening

The  seam allowance is already included, I used 1cm.


Start with pinning the paper pattern onto the fabric. And then cut around it, as the seam allowance is included, no other lines are needed.


Cut your elastics. For this project I used thin elastics because I had run out of the thick white one. My elastics was 21cm long. For small heads I recommend 20cm and bigger ones 22cm.


Pin the elastics on the right (outer) side and with the needle on the left side.

Close it with the other fabric and pin around the edges. Leave a gap open of about 4cm at the bottom,  so you can turn the piece inside out afterwards.

 Sew around the edges with your sewing machine. And like with the half round mask, go over the elastics a couple of times to secure them.

Before turning it inside out, cut away the edges.


Turn your mask inside out in this step.  Be careful to lightly pull the elastics afterwards to get out the corners nicely.

Your piece should look similar to this. Turn on your iron and iron it flat.


The next step would be marking then folding the plaits. At the top and bottom I left about 2cm free and then marked every 1cm with a water erasable pen.

As seen in the first picture, pleat the folds and pin them on the sides.



To be sure that the plaits look even on both sides and then iron it. 


The last step is fixing the plaits by going over it with the sewing machine. Go over all the sides and you are done.





All the best,

Auris Lothol

Hello lovelies,

I have another quarantine project which was actually made with scrap material from a bigger project because I hate to throw away expensive material.

It all started with a piece of buckram I had cut away from the sewing pattern. It was about 10cm long and 12 cm wide, not enough for most projects but just enough for a base of a small hat, bonnet or a round head dress. I decided to go for a round head dress, because they are easy to make and also a very quick project.


You will need these materials:

• Buckram
• Fashion fabric
• Felt fabric 
• scissors
• needle
• thread
• pins
• flower heads
• glue gun
• 1 or 2 Hair clips 

Open the compass and measure out 5cm. Draw a circle on the buckram. It should be 10cm in diameter now. Afterwards, open the compass a bit further to 7cm and draw another circle but on the fashion fabric. Cut out both and lay the buckram piece on the left side of the fashion fabric.


I always use this method to tuck in the seams when working with round shapes:
Take your needle and thread and hand sew around the circle. If you get to the beginning, don't fasten it to the fabric put pull it like making frills. Like magic the fabric will slowly close over the fabric will close over the buckram.

You can either go over it with the sewing machine, set with the largest stitch length, or hand stitch it.


Afterwards pull the thread carefully until the frills form.
Pin the lace to your round base, about 1cm to 1,5cm from the edge and handsew it onto the fabric. I would not recommend using the machine for this.

Take the felt piece and lay it over the back side, stitch over it with a hemming stitch. This step hides the buckram and adds even more stability. 

Now it's time to take out the glue gun and glue on the hair clips. I added them to the top and bottom but both can also be glued on one side in a V- shape. If you only have one clip, that should be fine too.


And the final step is adding the flowers. But you can also add ribbons, bows, glitter, pearls or rhinestones. With this base, you can do almost anything.


My coord with my new headpiece is a pretty in pink and the btssb op fits perfectly.


How do you like this project?

All the best,

Auris Lothol