WIWW + DIY Chiffon Flutter Scarf & Button Cluster Earrings

For today's issue of WIWW {what i wore wednesday}...I have two DIY projects. Why? On Saturday my husband and I spent the day shopping, decking our halls and then having dinner and drinks with friends...thus there was no time for blogging Saturday...{thanks for not calling me out on it}...and I promised a DIY project for every day this month...and am a lady of my word!

So...let's get started! First...an outfit overview for today!

outfit overview
red sweater with button detail {a gift from my in-laws}
white t-shirt under sweater {holidays}
dark wash skinny jeans {alloy}
chiffon scarf {handmade DIY project...see below}
button cluster earrings {handmade DIY...see below}
suede + faux fur boots {alloy}

So...I've had this really fun white chiffon fabric with navy blue flowers on it for about 6 months now...and have had no clue what to do with it.
I somehow got on a chiffon kick a while back and fell in love with the movement of it. If you're looking for a flowy, fun scarf with a unique personality...try this DIY project out! It only took me about an hour to make and I'm really happy with how it turned out!

Chiffon Flutter Scarf
What you'll need:
1 yard chiffon fabric
thread
scissors
1 small button

First, figure out how long you want your finished scarf to be. {I decided to go with a shorter length, so just cut a third of my yard of fabric off to start with} Once you've determined the length you'd like, cut a rectangle of your fabric off in desired length. {make sure that the height of it is about three to four time thicker than you'd like the finished product to be on your neck} Place fabric on your work area horizontally and find the center. Once you've found the center of the fabric, move slightly to the right of it and fold fabric inward. {see below}

Once you've folded the fabric into the desired thickness that you'd like it to be when wrapped around your neck, sew area closed. {about 1 to 2" total for closure} Add button to cover stitches.

To embellish the scarf, {and add fun movement} cut remaining fabric into varying sizes of triangles. {anything from 3" to 6" is generally a good size to work with} Make sure to mix the sizes and placement up for added interest.

Once you've cut your triangles and are ready to add them to the scarf...pick them up by the center and pull directly up.

Insert needle into the top of the folded triangle and then sew onto scarf. {this technique will help to add an organic quality to the triangle shapes and give a little more volume}

Keep on adding triangles until you're happy with your finished product.

You're done!

All that's left to do is to put your sweet little scarf on and enjoy it!

If you love the kind of organic elegance of raw cut chiffon {where it's a little frayed on the edges and gets more so with time...just cut your chiffon fabric and run with it!...but...if you like a little more control with no raw edges, feel free to run your fabric through a sewing machine to keep the edges from having free range. either way...I think you'll really enjoy this project!}

Next!...Button Cluster Earrings...

So...I have a lot of buttons! {I think I might have a problem} Most of them are vintage ones picked up here and there that live in a jar in my craft room. I've just recently figured out that I might just have more buttons than any one person should have and am starting to wonder how this happened...My solution...crafts with buttons! Enter Button Cluster Earrings!

Button Cluster Earrings
What you'll need:
buttons {varying shades of one color...or just your favorites}
thin twine or smooth rope {check out the craft section at Wal-Mart}
earring settings {check out the craft section at Wal-Mart...or online}
scissors

First, get your materials together. I wasn't 100% sure where I ws going with this, so I grabbed way more than what I needed.

Cut a length of twine and thread through button holes.

Keep adding buttons to the twine until yu have a cluster. {tie knots between the buttons to keep them from falling on top of each other. When you have a nice round shape, tie twine to the bottom of the earring fitting. Repeat for the next earring. {a good thing to do is to pull one similar button to the side each time you add one to your cluster for the first earring...that way you'll know that the second earring will be consistent with the first}

When you're finished...your earrings will look similar to this!

From start to finish...it only takes about 15 minutes to make these cute little earrings!...and it gives me something to use my plethora of buttons for!

Hope that you enjoyed these projects...and try them out! They're great for a quick craft project, a holiday gift, or a fun way to spice up an outfit! Have a great night!