Belts

It all started with a black belt, or rather the lack thereof. It is remarkably difficult to find a non-leather black belt. I searched and searched. When ribbon belts became fashionable a couple years ago, I thought that I would be able to find a black belt. I could find ribbon belts with black in them, but none that were primarily black. This winter I finally decided it was time to make my own black belt. I looked at the belts I own, and did my best to mentally unmake them to determine their component parts (why I didn't immediately look for a tutorial online is beyond me). Then I tried making one, and it worked pretty well:



I used a black-on-black fabric backed with black grosgrain ribbon. I like the pattern as the black (or dark gray) sunflowers give it a little texture without making it look like anything but a black belt from afar.

Since the experiment was successful, I played with other fabric and ribbon combinations, most of which I've given away as birthday presents.


As I continue to make belts, I'll also work on how to best photograph them. If you're interested in experimenting with belts, Creative Little Daisy offers a tutorial on patchwork belts while J Caroline Creative provides instruction for double-sided grosgrain belts. My first belts would have been much quicker to make had I followed these instructions! But trial and error has its value too.