Turn your worn out yoga pants into a cute skirt!

If you like to sew for fun and crafting, this project is really easy and literally only takes 20 minutes to accomplish with a basic sewing machine. Here is what you will need...

- Yoga pants of what ever length you have
- A good and sharp pair of scissors
- Thread color to compliment your fabric
- Sewing machine

First, take your pants and lay them out on a flat surface.  Make sure that you have them nice and stretched out and all the seams are even.  You are going to start by cutting the inseam of your pants down both legs.

Once both sides of your inseam and the crotch joint is cut and opened, fold your pants in half at the center seam like this...

Now you will take your scissors and cut from the point on the inseam that it starts to curve out.  You will cut upwards in a straight line towards the pant waist to cut off the triangular portion on the center seam that is pointing out. Make sure to cut as straight as possible so you won't have any funky bulges at the front and back of the skirt when it's finished.  You want to create and nice straight sewing line.

Once that portion is cut, unfold the pants and start to sew the edges closed.  I used a standard straight stitch on these. After sewing both sides to close up the skirt, I wanted to add a little flair to them so I cut the sides of the skirt to form two slits and I sewed the seams with a #5 zig-zag stitch. What this did, was bring in the fabric to create these pretty ruffled edges.  You can opt to leave it as is and it's the perfect maxi skit to couple with any cute top you might have!

I hope that you enjoyed this tutorial and wish you luck in your crafting adventures!  If you upcycled your own pants into a trendy skirt, I would LOVE to see your variations of this project!  Send me an e-mail at mojogirl76@gmail.com or leave a comment with a link to your photos or blog.

Remember to subscribe to my blog for more cool crafts, recipes and more!

XOXO - Melissa :-)

Tip of the day - How to get the most out of your favorite candles!

How many times have you purchased a candle that you absolutely love and you burn it so often that it doesn't last very long before the wick burns out and the wax left looks like this...

This is pretty common for natural soy candles (like the ones I make which are shown throughout this post).  Clearly, there is so much wax left that it would be a total waste to throw it out at this point.  Here is an easy and inexpensive way to continue to use your candle until the majority of the wax is used up and how to re-wick the candle so you can continue to burn your favorite scent!

First, you need to purchase some cotton wick.  I use the 100% cotton braided flat.  It's all natural and will burn clean.  You can purchase the wicks where they are already pre-measured and cut or buy a roll at your local craft shop.  It's fairly inexpensive, especially when you consider how much a new candle will cost you!

To melt down the rest of your candle wax, simply place it in your microwave and cook it on 100% power for 30 second increments until it's fully melted.  ***Important Note! - ONLY microwave the candle if it is in a glass container. PLEASE DO NOT MICROWAVE if it's in a metal container!!!!

If your candle is in a tin, or other type of metal based container, use a shallow cooking pot and place about 2 cups of water in it (or just enough to reach the mid point of your candle jar when submerged in the pot).  Set it to a boil and wait for the candle to melt.

Once your wax is completely melted, make sure you clean out any refuse left over from your old wick, so you have a nice clean candle to use when you are done.  At this point you should cut your wick (if it's not pre-cut) and measure it to just about an inch above the rim of your jar.  This will allow you to drape it over either a dowel, utensil, or something else long enough to go across the top of your jar to hold the wick straight up in place. Once you position properly and set the wick, leave it undisturbed for several minutes to ensure that it hardens evenly.

Once it has hardened completely, you will want to trim your wick down to a 1/2 inch from the top of the wax. And now you are ready to continue burning your candle.

**Another quick tip... once you have burned this NEW candle wick out, don't re-melt the wax.  You should never burn a candle all the way down to the bottom of the jar.  It can cause the glass to burst or if you have a tin jar, it will cause it to warp and open and could cause a fire.  Please discard your candle when you have 1/4 inch of wax left.

For more great tips, how-to's, tutorials and fun commentary, please subscribe to my blog!  If you would like to purchase these great natural soy moisturizing candles that I make, go to my Etsy shop at https://www.etsy.com/shop/trendytrinketsbymely

or at my website www.Skincandysoap.com.

Crafting To Relieve Stress (or just because i'm bored)

Hi!  My name is Melissa Neyor. I am a habitual crafter, and have been since the age of 5.  It all began when my grandmother grave me a square pot-holder loom for Christmas one year.  I turned a cheap gift into an all out business, and by the time I was 8, I was became a flourishing entrepreneur making and selling all kinds of useful crafts!  From pot holders to purses, my sewing, knitting and creative skills became highly developed at a young age. So instead of just making plain old pot holders with the set, I started sewing them together to make pencil holders, hand bags and change purses.  Little did I know that I started to shape trends not only at my local school level, but created some really cool stuff that transcended into the overall fashion market!  By the time I hit Junior High I had already sold hundreds of dollars worth of my pencil bags and purses, (and of course the good ol' pot holder), and I realized I was getting a little bored of that look, so I started on a whole new one...

When the market got stale for those cute pot holder weaves, I decided that I has to start making something that people could use every day, on themselves... maybe a bracelet!  So I took all of those unused nylon colorful loops and started creating unique woven designs to fashion them into bracelets.  Of course I didn't stop there.  I went from bracelets, to necklaces, to hair ties and headbands.  the possibilities of these little loops were endless, and every time I got bored, I created something new with them. But true to form, nylon loops weren't enough anymore.  Just like styles change in the fashion world for adults, tis the same for the younger consumer. 

This is me and my little sister. Yeah, she is wearing one of my earlier creations in plastic fashion jewelry. I was 10 here and she was about 4.  My how far we have come from the 80's... or have we?

So now at the age of 38, I have experienced so many fashionable, (and not so fashionable) trends.  I have seen them come in and out of style, and some come full circle. I am currently a professional jewelry designer attending art shows all over Florida and selling my wares to a much broader crowd of people (world wide actually) and enjoy the diverse group of people I deal with on a daily basis.  

Yes, I still get bored of the mundane. And, I strive to keep creating new things all the time to keep myself at the tippy-top of the fashion industry, as well as to keep my sanity!

This blog is dedicated to all those people out there with vision.  People who LOVE to craft and create as much as I do, and who share my passion for fashion!  Follow me and I will periodically post nee trends I've discovered from across the globe, to local finds that you can easily make at home for yourself, (Or if you want to expand on it and make it your very own!).

I will be posting video tutorials from my Trendy Trinkets workshop, as well as gem finds on youtube, or other locations on the internet that my readers need to know about :-)

Lets embark on this life long journey... Lets share ideas... and lets keep it TRENDY!

Visit my website to check out EVERYTHING I do at www.TrendyTrinkets.net.

Visit my Youtube channel and subscribe to see all the new tutorials as well as showcases of my newest fine jewelry pieces at http://www.youtube.com/user/trendytrinkets

AND visit my Etsy store to get your hands on some cool stuff!  https://www.etsy.com/shop/trendytrinketsbymely