Little creative projects that make me so happy (also fabric glue is a hero and here are some tips on how to use it)

 

When I saw this adorable little shark named Gordon, I got an idea. I happen to know a Dr. Gordon and a Gordon Mendez so this little shark needed a little doctor coat to become a Dr. Gordon himself. 

It took me a few months to get around to doing it. but once I sat down to do it, some fabric, an erasable pen, scissors, and fabric glue helped me create an adorable accessory for the little shark.

When I first got Gordon, I tried to come up with a good pattern to sew a coat together but, since we were getting some work done on the house, I didn't have access to a lot of my sewing supplies and sewing machine so I didn't do it right away. Then there were various health issues with dad and even a few for myself and a million things going on so poor Gordon was just sitting there for months - until I remembered that I still had some Beacon fabric glue from a project a few years ago and that would help me put together the coat.

Using a piece of white fabric (less than a fat quarter) and a Frixion pen (erasable pen which can be erased with heat) to help me mark where to make cuts for his fins and measure the hem, I cut up the various slits and openings and glued the hems together. Then using little pieces of fabric cut up like rounded half circles I created the sleeves and glued those to the inside of his coat through the arm (side fin) holes. 

The fabric glue allowed me to create hems, unite pieces of fabric such as the sleeves, and even fashion lapels from folding up the front panels of his jacket. 

Some tricks to fabric glue: Sometimes the glue can be a little goopy so be sure to not use too much so you don't have excess seeping out of your hems/seams. Another tip is to work on a surface where any spillover glue can be easily wiped away.

I applied the glue on one side of the hem and then folded over the hem to join the two sides together. Once you have applied the glue, be sure to apply a little pressure. For the purposes of this project, I ran my fingers over the seams a few times and applied a little pressure to make sure the pieces were joined together and then let that dry for a few minutes before moving on to the next seam. Once you have glued all the seams together, let the project sit for a little bit before using.

After leaving the coat to fully dry (about 30 minutes from my last seam), it was time to dress up Gordon and take him to meet Dr. Gordon. 

This was a silly and enjoyable bit of crafting with a fun result. It was good to get the brain cells to focus on making sure that I was properly marking up and cutting the slits as well as making sure all the seam were well fused together. It was a unique way to personalize a fun little gift for someone. All thanks to a bit of leftover fabric glue. 

Have you used fabric glue in your projects before?