I have to give myself a reality climate check every fall down here in the South. It’s something like - H E Y, I know everyone and their cousin is posting pixels filled with spiced lattes and covered toes but you live down where it’s still, not technically, but actually summer. The humidity is still here to slap you in the face upon the exit of any a/c-filled abode and building and, your deoderant, yeah, it’s still working overtime. You’d think I’d be used to it by now but no, no, no. I actually grew up in the midwest where fall really feels like fall and summer stays back in summer. But, I’m not complaining. Sure, I miss the snow but I don’t miss the months on top of months of it and it’s great to not have to dress the kids up with 75 layers and then their Halloween costumes every year…you know, so they can actually go out as a little butterfly without looking like a stuffed butterfly.
Anyway, the past couple of weeks have seen a little bit of chilly weather (chilly as in under 70) and so I jumped at the chance to finish a little project had started last fall…and by started I mean, I pulled out the fabric one day, threw up an Instastory about it and then never got around to moving it to my sewing machine. But, with Gianna and Sebastian doing their synchronized napping thing, I was able to whip this up in a half hour and get the regularly scheduled homeschooling in with the twins one day last week. #werkit
Without further chatter, let me introduce my new, faux fur, infinity scarf:
button-down: Target via Dirt Cheap // similar
jeans: Old Navy (I heard great things about the Rockstar Built-In Sculpt jeans from ON last year and was so excited to try a pair but when I did, I was sadly disappointed. I felt like they smashed my rear end down and were really uncomfortable. Darn. When I returned them, I tried their Rockstar Super Skinnies instead and LOVE them!)
wedge booties: eBay // Amazon (I bought mine new off eBay three years ago and they are still going strong. They’re really comfortable too!)
Want to make a fur scarf of your very own? You know you do! And guess what? You could hand sew one in under an hour, maybe even in under a half hour.
First, grab some faux fur.
I bought mine at Hancock Fabrics back when I made the girls their fur vests. Hancock’s isn’t around anymore (I almost cried when I read they were going out of business) but here are some similar furs – Joann’s & fabric.com. I grabbed a yard and, out of that yard, I got their vests, this scarf, and I still have another piece large enough to make either another scarf or another vest for the baby girl over here. Sooo, that’s four items of fur fashion for $12. Muy bueno. You wouldn’t even be able to buy one of those things at a store for that much, right? I tell ya, there are times when making your own stuff is thee way to go. :D
You can make your scarf as big or snug as you want but the piece of fabric I used measured 13 inches by 36 inches and my scarf is pretty snug. Side note: Cutting fur is tricky. Here’s a handy video with helpful tips!
Next, fold your fur in half lengthwise and stitch the long ends together, forming a long tube.
You can either do this with a machine or do a quick whip stitch by hand. The really awesome thing about fur is that it’s really good at hiding imperfections and, as long as you get the fur out of the way when you’re sewing, you’ll barely, if at all, be able to tell where the seams are.
Speaking of getting the fur out of the way, just comb it away from the edge like so:
You might have to comb as you go while sewing like I did to make sure it all stays away from the edges.
Your seam, if machine sewn, will look like this when you’re done:
Now turn your fur tube right-side out just like you would a sleeve.
Once you’ve got it competely right-side out, bring the two open ends together and whip stitch them to one another.
It was really hard to get good pictures of how to do this with all that fur in the way but basically, I just tried to butt the ends of the fur up against eachother as closely as I could, and then I whipped stitched them tightly together. I didn’t overlap the edges because I didn’t want an edge peeking out and smashing fur and because I knew that the fur would hide the seam in the end.
Oh and don’t worry at all about doing a perfect stitch. Mine looked completely awful:
Once I got a little farther down the stitching road, it was a little easier to get some pictures of how I started the stitching in the first place. First I ran a piece of thread up into one side of the fur and down the other. Then I tied those two strands together a few times to get a good knot. 
This is what my hand-stiched seam looked like immediately after I was done:
But, with a few little tugs here and there, I was able to pull most of it out from under the thread and now you’d really have to look to find the seam. :)
So, a fur scarf. Easy, right? :D
Now let’s dive into some ways to style it, shall we? My favorite might be with jeans, a jacket, and button down like the first picture above but it can swing so many other ways.
Business casual…because we all know I go that route on a regular basis these days. #lovemyclients 
tank: Old Navy (THESE ARE THE BEST TANKS EVER!!! They go with everything and I am not exaggerating! I wear them alone, under cardigans, under sweaters, tucked in, half tucked, untucked, you name it, they rock. They’re super soft, they hide post-baby stuff fantastically, and the fabric just falls so well. The curved bottom hem is my fave part.)
pants: old from Target clearance // similar
wedges: old from Dirt Cheap // similar // similar with an ankle strap
Sightseeing?
white skinnies: Walmart (I was on the hunt for white skinnies for a long time a couple of years ago before I found these for $13 (now they’re listed at $8)! FYI, they run small. I’m wearing two sizes larger than my usual size.)
boots: old from Target clearance // similar
Church/Special Occasion/Date Night:
dress: Target via Dirt Cheap // similar
leggings/tights: Dirt Cheap // similar
booties: Goodwill // similar
cardigan: Target (I found mine on the clearance rack so keep your eyes peeled there!)
tank: Old Navy (Tucked!)
skirt: thrifted via the Salvation Army // similar // similar in velvet
heels: old from Target // similar
I’ll end by saying that it’s never really desirable to have a hairy neck. Or at least almost never. Here’s your exception. ;)
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*affliate links included in post
Love it!
ReplyDeleteYou're so stylish!!! And creative. :) Great post.
ReplyDeleteRight back atcha Mandolyn! ;)
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