DIY First Communion Veil

Tomorrow is our big day.  First Communion and Confirmation.  The veil is the cherry on the top of the the First Communion ensemble.  It's also the easiest part to make.

I made my own bridal veil and it was important to me to make my daughter's First Communion veil.  They are not expensive to buy - you can get them anywhere you find First Communion dresses and even in bridal sections of craft stores.  But why buy when you can make your own?  (I should note that the following images are not mine, but come from various commercial sources.  You can find any of these images and corresponding vendors through a Google search of "communion veils," but I have also linked the pictures to the source website.)

First, you need to decide what the headpiece will be.  You can use a crown

A headband

Or a bow, barrette, cluster of flowers

They are all basically made the same way.  First thing is picking the right veil material.  You want sheer bridal fabric, not a coarse tulle.  The bridal tulle comes in wider widths than other fabrics and the wider the fabric, the fuller the veil can be.  You can also buy fabric that is already trimmed in lace or finished or do it yourself.  Finishing can be as simple as a rolled hem with a serger.  I didn't finish the ends of the veil, preferring to keep it simple.  Most store bought veils are finished.

After you determine the beginning width of the veil, decide how long you want the veil.  My daughter wanted a veil that went over her shoulder near her elbows.  That's about 24".  After you cut the tulle to your desired length you can cut the edges in curves.  We didn't do that, creating a more horizontal feel.

Using a clear monofilament thread (fishing line), create tiny gathers and use a hand needle or machine stitch to gather the veil.  If you use a hand sewing method, use a machine zig-zag stitch to fasten the gathers.  Make the gathers as full or loose as you choose.  

Now it's time to attach the gathered veil to the headband.  In our case we had a headpiece we purchased. My daughter wanted it to be more like a headband, so we cut it.

If you leave the round headpiece intact, you can sew the veil at the gathers directly onto the headpiece.  If you stretch it around the ring, you will have a veil that is loose on top of the head.  That's fine if it's the look you want.

Otherwise you can gather it more tightly.  Transparent combs are excellent for this and can be found in the bridal sections of most craft stores.  Hand sew the gathered veil onto the comb.  You can add beads, crystals, ribbons or flowers.  We just used it like it was part of the headpiece.

And there you have it - a veil that is very versatile in its look, but constructed in the same easy method.

cindy

Chance Encounters

I ride the bus to work everyday.  I go to a park and ride to catch the bus.  There is a security guard there who is well into his 70s.  Everyday he comes out of the little guard house and stands on the platform with the commuters as we wait for the bus.  Then he does something that makes my day. As we each board the bus he looks us each in the eye and tells us to have a good day.  It's like having a warm granddad sending you off to school in the morning.  Rain or shine (or more likely searing heat) he's there. On Fridays it's "Have a good weekend."

Don't we all want someone to send us on our way as we begin our day?  Isn't it wonderful to have another person looks us in the eye and speak kindly and directly to us?  I'd like to "pay that forward" to a stranger I see today.  After all, aren't strangers just friends we haven't met yet?

I hope you have a great day!

cindy

DIY Fabric Shelf Storage

I'm almost done with my craft room.  I don't want to show the whole reveal because I'm still thinking of ways to decorate it.  However, it's almost completely functional.  One of the things that really shocked me was just how much fabric I have!

Yikes!  What a mess!  I don't buy too much of any fabric (usually not enough by the time I get to a project), but I am a sucker for the remnant bin at JoAnns.  It's a great place for fleece and flannel.  Anyway, I digress.  I am lucky to have these wonderful built-in shelves in the closet:

No problem, I thought.  I'll just neatly fold and organize the fabric on the shelves.

I was able to organize the fabric by type and fold the smaller fabrics into fat quarters and arrange them by color.  But there was still too much fabric!   The flannel I have was especially difficult.  I don't have a lot of any particular pattern, but I do have lots of different patterns.  Flannel takes up a great deal of space when you fold it.

I love reusing stuff and I came up with this great idea to use old DVD cases to wind flannel for storage.  Your know, like this:

By creating little "books" of flannel, I was able to use this discarded bookshelf.

Hey, I can see the floor!  I also love looking at my fabric stash.  I just wish I could make all the things I am imagining.

cindy