A "Dog Divided" Bandana Tutorial

Since our dog Rick is both an Alabama fan and a Michigan fan, I decided to make him a "dog divided" bandana.  I looked at a couple of tutorials online, but couldn't find one that showed how to use two different fabrics, so I just sort of winged it.  It took a little while to get it right, but eventually ended up with the perfect fit.

Step one is to pick out your two fabrics.  I ordered the Alabama fabric online and picked up the Michigan fabric at Jo-Ann's Fabrics in town.

First measure your dog's collar and double the length to make sure when you fold the fabric in half that you'll have enough room for the collar to fit through.  Also measure his back to get an idea for how big you want the bandana to be.

Next measure out the fabric to the correct length and stack the two fabrics on top of one another

Then cut the fabrics to match up exactly

Next you'll draw a diamond shape on the fabric with two straight sides.  The sides will be where the collar fits through. 

You'll start by drawing the two sides, then use a ruler or measuring tape to create the two triangles. 

 

Once you get the pattern down right, you can then begin to cut.  Make sure you cut through both fabrics.

Next, fold the fabric in half and match up the two straight sides.  Then, cut off any extra fabric that doesn't match up on the triangle part.

Then cut the two fabrics down the middle

Now unfold the fabric match up the two opposite sides.  You'll end up with patterns for two bandanas. 

The next step is to fold the long side of one of the fabrics and pin it.

Then sew the middle fold

Now stack the side that you sewed on top of the other side and pin them together

Then sew the two sides together

 Next, fold both of the straight edges and pin them.

Then sew the two sides

This is how it will look when the two sides are sewn and the two sides of fabric are sewn together.

Next, fold the fabric in half with the pattern on the inside.  Then pin the two triangle sides, making sure leave the two straight sides open.  The sides need to stay open, because that will be where the collar will fit through.

 After you pin the two triangle sides, go ahead and sew them.  This is how it will look after it's been sewn.

Next, flip the fabric inside out through the open side.

Here's how the finished bandana will look!

Then slide the collar through the open side of the bandana and there you have it!  Now your dog is all ready for football season!

Brewery Tour and The Woodward Dream Cruise

This Saturday Kevin, Katie, Alex and I all went on a walking brewery tour of three breweries in Royal Oak, which was put on by Motor City Brew Tours.  We started out the day at the Royal Oak Brewery where we were given beer samples of each of the beers they make.  After sipping a few samples we were able to take a tour of the brewery.

The vat on the left is where the barley is dropped into after it is cleaned.  Then it travels through the blue thing on the right.

We ended up learning a lot about the brewing process and were told that it's standard practice to add hops to beer three times during the brewing process. So most all beer is "triple hops brewed," despite Miller Lite's advertisements. 

These are the containers where the finished beer is stored

Enjoying some beer samples

The usual suspects

After our tour at the Royal Oak Brewery we all walked over to Lockhart's BBQ for some pork and chicken sliders and a side of mac and cheese.  Our meal was part of the price of the walking tour.  Pretty sweet deal.

After lunch we walked to Bastone for another brewery tour and a beer sample.  We were surprised to find out that Bastone Brewery is the most awarded brewery in the state of Michigan!

Katie's on the left and mine on the right

Bastone beer list.  They also have awesome craft cocktails.

Yummy!

The last stop on our tour was Lily's Seafood Grill & Brewery.  Kevin and I had eaten here before when my mom was in town and we had no idea that it was also a brewery.  Their brewery has glass walls so everyone can see it when you are eating.  Pretty cool.  I wasn't a fan of the beer though, so I opted for their frozen drink special.

At Lily's

After Lily's we met up with my co-worker Amy and her husband Ryan to check out the Woodward Dream Cruise.  This was my very first Dream Cruise and I was really excited to check out all of the cool cars.  We walked up and down Woodward for about an hour and then grabbed some dinner at the Blarney Stone Pub.  It was very cool because inside the pub they had a closed circuit TV that showed live footage of the cars rolling up and down Woodward.

Paddy wagon

Very cool four person bike.  It was funny to see the people try to get down off of the bike!

This was the weirdest car I saw. It was completely chrome with the biggest tires/rims I've ever seen.  Then it had a TV that popped up from the trunk.  It was hard to get a good picture because so many people were crowded around it!