Ashley's Craft Corner

Animal Ears Templates

2011-11-21T16:58:00.001-08:00

I've had several emails from asking for templates for the animal ears headbands I posted about here. This is a work in progress, but here are some of them. Click on the link, then right click with your mouse to print. It should print at full scale (there is a 1 inch square on each of the pages for you to check the sizing, but if it is off a little it won't be the end of the world).

Sheep Ears

Cow Ears

Fox, Bunny, Cat & Giraffe Ears

Monkey & Mouse Ears

Pig Ears

I had to convert the images to pdf, which I've never done before, so I'm hoping these links work. If not let me know and I'll see what I can do to fix them. Also, if you have any questions on assembly, don't hesitate to ask!

My Memories Suite Giveaway (and promo code)!

2011-11-02T19:56:00.000-07:00

I told you guys last week that I had another great way to scrapbook to share with you. I was recently contacted by the people over at My Memories to see if I wanted to do a giveaway of their program My Memories Suite 2.0. Yes, I would! I've never used digital scrapbooking software before, and I was able to create this design in under half an hour. I'm excited to make Christmas cards to send out this year!

The program is pretty easy to use, so don't hesitate to enter even if you've never scrapbooked digitally. Some of my favorite things about this program? There are almost 100 free kits you can download (in addition to what comes already loaded onto the software). And there is a dollar section with over 250 items!!! I love things that cost $1 or under!

Ok, you want a copy of your own?

1 entry - Go to www.MyMemories.com and tell me your favorite paper pack (mandatory for entry).

Want extra entries?

1 entry - Follow the My Memories blog and leave a comment telling me that you do.

1 entry - Follow Ashley's Craft Corner and leave a comment telling me that you do.

That's it! Three chances to enter and please make sure you leave your email address in your comments if it isn't attached in blogger. Good luck! Giveaway ends on Tuesday, November 8th at 11:59 MST. Winner will be announced on Wednesday the 9th.

In case you don't win or don't want to wait to find out if you're the winner, here is a promo code for $10 off the purchase of My Memories Suite software and a $10 coupon for the MyMemories.com store - STMMMS5415

I received a copy of My Memories Suite 2.0 to review. All opinions are my own.

Halloween 2011

2011-10-30T20:01:00.000-07:00

Madie wanted to be Princess Aurora this year for Halloween. So we went to Joann and got some pink sparkly satin for her dress. I was inspired by this post at Crafterhours. Madie then decided that she needed a Prince Phillip to go with her costume so daddy got the part. Once that was decided, Zach kept asking me what I was going to be and we settled on Maleficent (since there was a witch costume in my mom's closet already).

Prince Phillip's hat was made using two sheets of felt and the cape is from a shirt from the dollar store. I would have liked the cape to be a few inches wider, but it was slim pickings when I went. I used this template for the Maleficent headpiece. I cut four pieces out of black knit, sewed two together and stuffed each with batting then glued them to a headband. The staff is a piece of pvc pipe wrapped in black electrical tape. The ball is a plastic ornament that I coated the inside with green food coloring mixed with some Mod Podge. Right before our party last night I broke a glow stick, cut it open and poured it into the ornament. I covered the opening with a little piece of plastic wrap secured with a pony holder and then wrapped the electrical tape around it to attach it to the pvc pipe. I also added a crow from the dollar store to the top of the ornament using E6000 glue. I am so pleased with how it turned out. It looked awesome when it was glowing and since the ornament is just tapped to the pipe I can take it off and add a new glow stick for tomorrow night.

Happy Halloween!

Animal Ears Headbands

2011-10-29T12:51:00.000-07:00

So a couple of weeks ago I showed you the wedding dress-up that I made for my niece for Christmas. Her little sister is not so much into dressing up...at least not with the fancy dresses. She usually plays the part of the kitty cat or the butterfly. So I decided to add to her dress up wardrobe with these animal headbands.

From left to right and top to bottom: bunny, giraffe, bee, fox, monkey, jaguar, pig, mouse, lion, cow, sheep & elephant. Some of the ears might seem really low on the headband (monkey, pig & elephant), but once they are on a head the placement makes more sense and looks really cute.

Here are the backs of some of them.
Cow -

Jaguar -

Fox -

Some of the ears are one piece that wraps around the headband, like the pig.

On some of them the front and the back are two separate pieces that overlap on the underside of the headband, like the monkey. See that line down the middle?

Some are just glued to the tops of the headbands, like the jaguar.

Most of them have pipe cleaners in the middle so that the ears can bend and to help with stability.
And what's a post about animal headbands without a little model action? The pig is one of my favorites (Madie's too). I'll definitely be making a second pig headband so that one can stay at our house.

I kept most of my paper templates that I used, so if you are interested in making these but don't want to free hand the shape or spend forever scouring google for a suitable one, let me know and I'll email you a copy.

***ETA - I've started uploading the templates!!! You can find them in this post. I'm still working on the elephant and the lion.

Scrapbooking the cheating way

2011-10-25T16:42:00.000-07:00

So remember when I told you about a calendar I found? Remember? Probably not, here is where I talked about it. Basically it is a calendar that is scrapbook page layouts. It is meant for kids so the quality isn't the greatest. The pages are kind of thin so areas that are white you can see through to the calendar on the back side. But I was able to scrapbook 2 years of our lives in just a few hours. I worked on it after Madie went to bed (not for more than 3 hours at a time) for a couple of nights one week.
Here is one of the finished pages. All I really had to do was add some pictures and some journaling. But I decided to take it one step further. I added a few embellishments to each page.

Here you can see the hat and eyes I added to the snowman.

The buttons and ribbon atop the printed tag.

And a snowflake in the corner of the picture.

It was so easy and so fast. I think I'll keep doing this in the future. Here are a few other pages I really liked.

The Halloween one is my favorite. I love the googly eyes on the pumpkins! Heads up...I'll be sharing another great way of scrapbooking that might also include a giveaway! ;)

Etched glass temple block

2011-10-24T16:36:00.000-07:00

Etched glass projects are a little difficult to photograph. Here is the best shot I got of my etched glass temple block. I just got a clear glass block from Home Depot for around $5, cut the Mesa temple out onto vinyl using my Silhouette and then added the etching cream. I left it on for 20 minutes instead of the 5 recommended on the bottle. I read reviews on other blogs and the general consensus was to leave it on for 20-30 minutes. It looks really pretty with a candle lit behind it or just near a window where the light can shine through it. I also made one as a wedding present for my sister-in-law.

Fall/Halloween Mantel...a little late

2011-10-23T16:35:00.000-07:00

So time slipped away from me again. I've been busy working on a felt quiet book, a Princess Aurora costume (along with Prince Phillip for daddy and Maleficent for myself), and more Christmas gifts. Like promised, here is my fall/Halloween mantel.

How about a few close ups?

The pumpkin is a can painted orange with gold shimmer Mod Podge over the top and a green sparkly pipe cleaner for the vine. The two smaller ones on the other side of the mantel also have a cork for the stem but I ran out so the big pumpkin is stem-less. The mummy is a can painted white with strips of cheese cloth wrapped around and secured in a few places with hot glue. I added some large googly eyes and dabbed a few areas with distress ink (not that you can really see that in this picture, but in real life it looks good). Then there is also a coffee filter pumpkin that I made last year.

One more?

I loved this the second I saw it on Pinterest! I couldn't believe people actually took the time to hot glue on each individual eye. There was no way I was going to do that. So I came up with a better way...Mod Podge! I love Mod Podge (seriously, I own 7 or 8 different kinds). I painted my frame black. Let that dry then painted on a small area of Mod Podge and stuck the eyes on. I worked in 2 inch sections so that it wouldn't dry before I got the eyes on. It went so fast this way. Seriously, less than 30 minutes including painting and waiting for paint to dry! I added a cute ribbon and a picture from Halloween of last year. I love it!

If you want any more details of how I made any of my decorations, just ask. I'd be happy to share!

Dress Up - Bride

2011-10-11T08:16:00.000-07:00

Christmas is approaching. This year I am on the ball...so far...we'll see how long it lasts! Most of my in-laws are taken care of so now I've started working on my side of the family.

I made this cute bride dress up for my niece. The skirt flares out at the bottom more than what shows in this picture. I made the bodice peasant style so that she can easily get it on and off by herself. I also made a veil to go with it, much like the one in this post.

I did make the denim Tinkerbell backpack like I talked about in my last post (over a month ago...yikes!). I'll try to remember to get pictures of it this week. Also, on deck for this week *hopefully* - my fall/halloween mantel (including an easy way to make the super popular googly eye frame like seen here), an etched glass project & how I managed to scrapbook 2 years of my family's life in just a few days.

If you want more details on how I made the dress let me know, I'd be happy to share.

I Heart Pinterest

2011-08-23T11:24:00.000-07:00

Can I just say how much I LOVE Pinterest?! I'm sure by now you all have heard of it. I was a little hesitant to sign up at first, but I am so glad that I did! Instead of searching through my bookmarks folder trying to remember the name of the project I'm looking for, I simply find the picture. Plus, it helps me remember things I bookmarked forever ago that I had forgotten about. I love that I can create separate boards (folders, basically) to pin my items to. I also love that I can pick any of the images on the webpage to show up as my "pin". If you want to see what I've been pinning lately, you can find me here. If you need an invite, just leave me your email address and I'll send you one. Trust me, you won't regret it!
I found this cute toddler backpack on Pinterest today and I'm totally in the process of making it. It is from Chickpea Sewing Studio.

photo via ChickPea Sewing Studio.
Madie has wanted a backpack with Tinkerbell on it since January, I think (yikes)! We are painting Tink on and once that is all dry I'll sew it up for my little munchkin. I'll post pics once it's finished.

Dress Up Veil

2011-08-08T15:36:00.000-07:00

This was so easy to make! I took a piece of sparkly white sheer fabric (left over from this dress) and singed the edges so they wouldn't fray...you know, because I was too lazy to hem them all. Then I made a casing on one side and slid it onto a plastic headband. I put a dab of hot glue over the fabric on each side so that it would stay on the headband then I glued a little bow and jewel on top.

Now my little princess can pretend to get married whenever she wants.

Hand Print Pot Holders

2011-06-16T12:00:00.000-07:00

For Mother's Day, Madie and I made these pot holders for my mother-in-law. The idea is definitely NOT a new one, although I haven't seen one before with a ruffle added. This could also be used for Father's Day (maybe without the ruffle, though).

Baby socks

2011-06-15T14:35:00.000-07:00

Back in April, my older sister had a baby. It is her third girl, so she didn't really need anything but I wanted to get something for the baby anyway. I saw these cute socks at Target and couldn't resist.

They were plenty cute as it was, but I knew they could be cuter. So I got out some ribbon, jewels, thread and hot glue and here is what I came up with.

The ribbons were both stitched and glued. I just used hot glue but if you were concerned about it the jewels coming off in the wash you could use E-6000 or get some sew on jewels. I've used hot glue before and never had a problem with the wash.

And for fun, a little close up. Please excuse Blogger for rotating my picture.

Double Layer Tutu - a semi tutorial

2011-06-06T21:09:00.000-07:00

I got an email recently from a friend of my husband's family. She sent me a picture of a tutu that she wants to recreate for her friend's daughters but wasn't sure how to get the double layer look without having to sew and wanted to see if I could figure it out. Here is the picture she sent me:

Is this not the cutest tutu?! It makes me wish that my daughter would wear one so that I had a good excuse to make it! Anyway, I did a quick google search and found several places that I could buy the instructions, but I'm cheap and decided that I could figure it out on my own. Sure enough, I did. And can I just say that this is SUPER EASY!!! Don't be fooled by the cuteness of it, it isn't any harder than your standard tie-the-tulle-onto-elastic-tutu.
Ready to learn how to make one yourself?
Start by cutting the tulle for the bottom layer into strips 6 inches wide (the width is entirely up to you, anywhere from 2 to 6 inches wide will work just fine) by twice as long as you want the finished length to be (so for a 10 inch long tutu cut 20 inch long strips). Now for the top layer, cut the strips equally as wide and about half as long. Then you are going to want to stack one top layer strip onto one bottom layer strip so that the middles line up, like so.

I realize that this isn't tulle, but cotton photographs better and quite frankly when I started this I couldn't find my stash of tulle.
Now that you've got your tulle strips stacked together we are ready to tie them onto the elastic (either use plain elastic measured to the size needed and stitched into a circle or depending on what size you need you might be able to get away with a narrow elastic headband like this).
I start by draping them over my finger like so,

then slip the strips under your elastic (which I like to put around my thigh while doing this). I don't have a picture for this next part but you are going to pull the bottom "tails" of tulle through the circle where your finger is.

It should look similar to this (sorry for the blurry pic). Now pull it tight!

Just keep adding your strips of tulle until you just can't fit any more onto the elastic, or until you are satisfied with the fullness of the tutu. If needed you can pull the top layer up to more fully separate it from the bottom (I found my tulle! Light pink is still light pink, what was orange in the pics previously is now hot pink) and trim the ends to make the even if needed.

You should now have two very distinct layers! I didn't finish because I didn't have enough tulle and like I said before, my daughter won't wear it anyway, but this should give you an idea of the finished look.

To get the red and white stripes on the bottom layer, I would do three red then three white and just go back and forth with the blue on top every time.
I hope that made sense and if any of you make a double layered tutu I'd love to see it!

Family History Journal - Mother's Day Gift?

2011-04-26T19:53:00.000-07:00

So I'm not ignoring you all, I promise! I have quite a few things that I need to blog about (some I even have the post written and pics taken just need to upload them off my camera), but I'm hosting another craft night with the ladies at my church this week, so I probably won't post much again until next week. But I saw this today and just had to share! Isn't this little decorated comp book super cute?!

source: here

I have a soft spot for comp books (you can see some I've done in the past here, here and here) but what's different about this one from Kissing the Joy as it Flies is that it is more of a family history journal. Kira decorated this comp book and wrote several personal questions in it before gifting it to her Grandma a couple of years ago. Well she got it back recently and posted about it; she even includes the list of over 30 questions she put in this journal. Wouldn't this make a great gift for Mother's Day (or if you're crazy like me and already thinking Christmas...)? I know I'll be making these for my grandparents & my hubby's grandparents.

Friday Fun Feature - A different kind of singed fabric flower

2011-04-08T12:19:00.000-07:00

Maybe you all have seen this before, but I hadn't until earlier this week. How cute is this singed fabric flower!?! I love it.

I made one this morning and I'm wearing right now. I will definitely be making more of these!!! Photo and tutorial from Craft Snob.

Easter Chick

2011-04-05T06:33:00.000-07:00

So I'm sure by now you've all seen this adorable idea at Giggles Galore, right? Well as soon as I saw them I knew that I needed them (yes, needed not wanted)! I had one problem...no 2x4 readily available. I would have had to wait several days to get the wood that is laying in my driveway cut and I just couldn't do it. So as I was checking to see that we had all of the ingredients for my husband's birthday dessert, I noticed something. The pudding box was just the right size!!!
Isn't she just adorable!?!

I didn't have yellow feathers, and at the time my hubby didn't have a job (but he does now, YAY) so I was definitely NOT going to buy feathers. I thought about it for a little bit and realized that baby chicks really are more fuzzy than feathery. I filled my pudding box with paper, taped it shut and gave it a coat of acrylic paint (yellow for the chick, white for the sheep which I'll post after I finish the face). Once dry I hot glued some cotton balls on and then took it outside for a coat of spray paint!
Right before the paint job...

and after the paint job. The paint did harden the surface of the cotton balls, but I don't really care about that.

Then I cut a beak and some feet out of felt, painted them the color that I wanted with acrylic paint (because I didn't have the right shade of orange felt) glued them on along with some googly eyes and a pink bow.

Yep, she definitely makes me happy, and you'd never know that under all that fluff is a box of pudding.

Friday Fun Feature - Wood

2011-04-01T06:00:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I've done a Friday Fun Feature, so today there will be more than one! I've noticed wood being used a lot in crafting lately and I love it! And I don't mean 2 by 4s, I mean wood straight from the tree in your front yard.

This beautiful cake stand from Once Wed

Wood thumb tacks

and photo holder, both from Homework

I'm also crushing on this vase from Tradewind Tiaras.

And the one that started it all for me...carved initial centerpiece from Etsy seller BraggingBags.

I think it's time to bust out the saw and the wood burning tool!

Bunny face candy jar

2011-03-31T08:00:00.000-07:00

I saw this idea on Inspiring Creations and just knew that I needed one for myself. It's a little bunny pot/candy jar.

For the ears, I sewed fusible fleece in between two layers of white cotton and appliqued the patterned fabric on top. Then snipped around the edges and ran my fingernail over it to help it fray more. I just used hot glue to attach the ears to the pot.
Here he is doing his rightful duty of holding candy.

Doesn't he look so cute next my to egg topiary?!

Egg decor - part 2

2011-03-30T06:22:00.000-07:00

You've met the Egg Wreath...now meet her sister, the Egg Topiary!

I LOVE IT!!! I've never seen a topiary quite like this. The eggs are made of styrofoam and were intended to be used as ornaments. I got them at the Dollar Tree *last year* and they don't have them this year, but they have something similar. I think the mini glitter egg picks would work just fine.

source: Dollartree.com

All I did was rip out the piece of ribbon that was the hanger and then cut the eggs in half with a serrated knife. Then I glued them to a foam ball and glued some Easter grass in the gaps and plopped it in a painted pot.

*moment of truth* It actually sat like this for a few weeks and Madie carried it around like it was a princess wand. And the back half of the ball still looks like this (I got sick of working with the grass).

It's colorful, it's glittery and it goes well with my wreath. Smile.

Egg decor - part 1

2011-03-29T20:17:00.000-07:00

I love this egg wreath! I've been wanting one for over a year (I even bought all of the supplies last year but never got around to making it). I recently starting hosting a craft night for the ladies at my church and decided that March seemed like the perfect month for a wreath. I was really hoping to make this wreath, but the majority decided otherwise. So I finally decided to just make it for myself.
There are several tutorials floating around blogland, This is My Life... is the one that I used as a reference.

For some reason I find it extremely difficult to take good pictures of things on this mantel, which is odd to me given how much natural light pours into that room. Anyway, this was a cheap, fast & super easy craft (although the grass makes quite a mess)...and it makes me happy!

Clocks By Staci giveaway winner!

2011-03-17T12:51:00.000-07:00

True Random Number GeneratorMin: Max: Result:28Powered by RANDOM.ORG

Congrats to number 28 - Lauren @ Young Nester!

Now I'm off to Sea World & the beach...be back in a few days!

Burlap And Blue Winner!!!

2011-03-15T07:16:00.000-07:00

And the winner of the $10 shop credit to Burlap and Blue is...

True Random Number GeneratorMin: Max: Result:6Powered by RANDOM.OR

Jaime @ I'm a Mom not a Professional!

Congrats Jaime!

Clay Pot Leprechaun

2011-03-14T11:01:00.000-07:00

How cute is this little guy!?! He was super easy to make. I used three different sized clay pots, acrylic paint, felt, ribbon, paper, a sharpie, some googly eyes and hot glue.

Here you can see his cute little felt arms and hands, along with his ribbon belt and paper belt buckle.

And what's a leprechaun without a pot of gold (or yellow pom poms)? Do you like his freckels? I do.

He was so much fun to make and Madie enjoyed helping me paint the pots. We don't really do anything for St. Patrick's Day, but I enjoy looking over at the mantel and seeing him and the felt shamrock garland I made a few weeks ago.

Another Giveaway - Clocks by Staci

2011-03-10T05:00:00.000-08:00

Click here for the BurlapAndBlue giveaway.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

I told you guys that I had another giveaway lined up in celebration of reaching over 100 followers - enter Staci!
Staci blogs over at Craftify It where you will see some amazing things, like her home renovations, such as this breakfast nook.
Before:

After:

And how stinkin' cute are these beadboard key racks!?

Not only does Staci have an awesome blog, she also makes custom clocks which you can find at Clocks by Staci.
Here are a few of my favorites:
I love the simplicity of this framed beadboard clock.

Staci is so clever, she actually used a toy monster truck to created the tire tracks on this clock!

What's not to love about this one...pink & green & polka dots...sigh.

Freakin' awesome - chalkboard clock!!!

I love the idea of using vinyl to put the clock right onto your wall!

These tin tile clocks are gorgeous.

I think this is probably my favorite of all of Staci's clocks. But then again, I'm a sucker for black & white and damask.

Now that you've seen the loveliness that Staci can create, want to know what's up for grabs??? A $25 credit towards a custom clock of your choice!

Here's how to enter:
- Visit Clocks by Staci and then come back here and let me know what speaks to you.

Want some additional entries?
- Follow Ashley's Craft Corner (1 extra entry)
- Follow Staci at Craftify It (1 extra entry)

*make sure to leave your email address in your comment/s if it is not attached to your profile
*leave a separate comment for each entry
This giveaway will close on Wednesday March 16th @ 11:59 pm (MST). The winner will be announced on Thursday the 17th.

Painted Flower Hair Clips

2011-03-09T05:51:00.000-08:00

Looking for the BurlapAndBlue Giveaway? Click here (or scroll down).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Here is the awesome tutorial I posted over at Keeping it Simple and Gluesticks (in case you missed it)!

I love making bows and flowers for my daughter's hair (really, that kid has over 70 hair clips...most of which I've made). I especially love making things that match her clothes. I'd been taking white flowers from the dollar store and giving them colored centers to coordinate with her outfits, when one day I had an epiphany. Why not paint the flowers!? So I did!
I'll show you how to go from this...

...to this!

For this project you'll need:

- White "silk" flowers (I get mine at the dollar store)

- Acrylic paint

- Paint brush (I generally use foam brushes because they are dirt cheap)

- Hot glue

- Jewel or glitter for the center (optional)

- Iron & ironing board (optional)

I usually try to get Daises, but you could probably use just about any faux flowers. Here are what mine looked like for this go round.

Here is a side view of the bunch. This particular group came with 12 flowers.

1. Disassemble the flowers and separate the layers by size. Each flower was double layered but there were three different sizes of petals. I like a three layered flower, so from this 12 flower bunch I actually ended up with 8 flowers.

2. Iron the flowers flat. You don't have to do this, but it gives a much nicer look. Just make sure your iron isn't too hot.

See the difference? Ironed on the left, not ironed on the right.

3. Paint! This is a great time for letting those little hands help out. Some colors (generally darker ones) will need a second coat once the first one dries. I recommend painting on a non-stick surface of some sort, or moving the flowers before they dry completely so they don't stick to the paper underneath...because they will stick to the paper underneath!

4. Once dry, assemble. Starting with the largest flower, put some hot glue around the center.

Now put the middle layer on top of the bottom, making sure to keep your fingers away from the little hole in the center (the glue will ooze out through that opening).

Continue with each layer until you are satisfied with the look.

5. Glue the newly assembly flower to a clip (I use alligator clips lined with ribbon)

6. Add a center to the flower. I like jewels and glitter, but you could just use the center that came with the flower.

For a glittered center, put a blob of hot glue right in the middle, like so. The rounder the better, but don't stress about it.

Then just sprinkle the glitter on top. Let it sit for a minute or two before you shake off the excess, so that the glue can firm up.

See how sparkly?!

Look at how perfectly it matches her dress! That's not photoshopped or anything. It really does match that well!

How about a few variations...

1. Super sparkle flower - just sprinkle the glitter onto the flower while the paint is still wet.

2. You can coat the flower in Mod Podge for a shiny finish. And yes, that is a black flower.

FYI - I've found that the Mod Podge doesn't hold up well on a flower being worn by a small child. Case in point - all that nasty cracking near the center.

Want a few more examples of flowers with their matching outfits? Ok.

Now take your new knowledge and whip up some super awesome customized flower clips...just beware, this is kind of addicting!
I'd love to see your version if you make some!

100+ Followers = Giveaway time!!!

2011-03-08T07:58:00.000-08:00

So I am thrilled (and shocked) beyond words that there are over 100 people who follow my little blog. I did a little happy dance when I saw that. And since it made me so happy I thought it would be a good idea to spread the happiness to you! I'm sure you know what that means...it's GIVEAWAY time! Hooray!
I have a couple of giveaways lined up for this week, so make sure you keep checking back.
Today's giveaway is being brought to you by the lovely Linda from Burlap+Blue. Have you been there? No? Well I'll give you a little taste of what you'll find.
First up is this lovely dresser transformation

and then there is this super easy inspiration board

You'll also find home decor inspiration and etsy finds. Speaking of etsy...Linda also has an etsy shop - BurlapAndBlue and she has so kindly offered a $10 gift certificate to her shop to one of you! I'm a little jealous (ok...a lot jealous). So what will $10 get you from BurlapAndBlue (click pics to be taken to listing)?
fabric flower pins

or stamped clothespins.

And if you're feeling a little spendy, you could take the $10 and use it towards something a little pricier (don't worry, currently nothing in her shop is over $40) like these tile coasters

personalized coasters

dessert pedestals

clock plates (there is also a tutorial for these on her blog, here)

one of my personal favorites - personalized photo matching game. You email her your pics and she puts them on wooden tiles to create a matching game. LOVE IT!

Another favorite of mine - imperfect pedestal. The base slipped during gluing and is slightly off center so Linda is offering it at a discount price (I love discounts!). It's still gorgeous and functional, just not perfect.

And then there's this chalkboard dessert pedestal

and this beautiful pedestal (but you can't buy it because I want it and that would make me sad).

I could go on and on...but I'm sure by now you are dying to enter! Here's how:

- Visit BurlapAndBlue and leave me a comment with your favorite item from the shop!

Want some extra entries?

- Follow Ashley's Craft Corner (I don't usually do this but since this giveaway is because of my lovely followers I'm going to throw it in there). If you already do, awesome, just let me know!

- Follow Linda's blog, Burlap+Blue

Make sure you leave a separate comment for each entry! Also, if your email isn't attached to your profile make sure you leave it in your comments.

This giveaway will close Monday March 14th at 11:59 pm (MST) and the winner will be announced on Tuesday the 15th. GOOD LUCK!

Another guest post

2011-03-08T06:32:00.000-08:00

Hey everybody, I'll be over at Gluesticks today! You've got to check out Brandy's blog...it is AWESOME!

Ribbon Loop Headband

2011-03-07T06:00:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday morning I saw this ribbon loop headband tutorial on Me Sew Crazy and knew that I needed to make it.

photo from Me Sew Crazy
So I go right to it and made one...and later made three more. Here is my favorite of the bunch.

I used 7 pieces of ribbon instead of the 6 that Jessica used and I didn't overlap my ribbon as much as she did. This was a great project for using up ribbon scraps as the longest piece of ribbon I used was 7.5 inches. I love the way it looks (it seems almost feather-ish to me for some reason) and get compliments on it every time I wear it. Not bad for scraps and under 30 minutes of time!
Here it is in action!

Don't mind the super close up cropping...that is to mask my unshowered self...see when I said I got right too it Saturday morning I really meant it!

Felt Shamrock Garland

2011-03-06T19:18:00.000-08:00

We have this mantel in our family room that most of the year houses a clock and a few knick-knacks. Last October I decided to make a felt garland with some ghosts and pumpkins (which I apparently never blogged about), and then came Christmas time so that mantel got some more garland love. Well since Christmas decor came down the mantel has been kind of bare. So that is where all of my Valentine's decor went and now my St. Patrick's day decor. I decided that it was time for another garland and the Felt Shamrock Garland was born.

This was super simple to make. I picked up 4 different shades of green felt from the craft store and cut shamrocks of three different sizes. I used the largest as the base and then hot glued either a small or a medium shamrock on top of the large one. I didn't place them right in the middle, they are all off to the side at an angle and each one is different. Then I added glitter (because apparently I glitter everything these days, well actually I saw the glitter felt at the store but was NOT about to pay 4 times more just to have it sparkly). To do that I simply drew along the edges of one clover leaf at a time in hot glue and then put the glitter on it. Make sure if you are going to use hot glue that you let the glue set for a minute or two before you shake off the excess glitter. My shamrocks are hot glued to some twine with a green pom pom in between each one.
How about a little close up of one of the shamrocks.

I love it...it makes me happy!

Guest Posting

2011-03-04T07:19:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone, I'm guest posting over at Keeping it Simple today. Want a peek of my post? You should go check it out...it's way more awesome than you might think!

The Patchwork Chronicles

2011-03-03T05:51:00.000-08:00

One of my lovely followers, Beth, asked me to be a part of her Inspired Spotlight Thursdays over at The Patchwork Chronicles, so that is where I'll be today. You should go check out what I did with an old bridesmaid dress, and then stay a while and peruse Beth's blog.

St. Patrick's Day - Glitter Style

2011-03-01T06:00:00.000-08:00

After making the glitter candle in pink for Valentine's Day I knew that I would be making one for each holiday. Here is the all green version for St. Patrick's Day.

What's that in the background behind the candle? It's this from last year.

Sweater turned cardigan

2011-02-28T06:00:00.000-08:00

Back in November & December Kathleen from Grosgrain did a whole bunch of sweater refashions. A couple included taking sweaters and making them into cardigans. I loved the idea and knew that that was something I could do. So I waited for sweaters to go on sale at Target and scored a couple at $5 a piece. They were both just plain pull over sweaters, very much like this one.

photo source
Just like Kathleen did, I cut right up the front of each sweater and covered the edges with ribbon (because I didn't feel like making bias tape). On this green one I added a tie to the middle and some bows with button centers.

I love the bows!

On this blue one I pleated ribbon and sewed it right along both sides of the front.

I have yet to wear the blue one out, but I get compliments on the green one every time I wear it.

Gingerbread apron & matching candy jar

2011-02-27T15:00:00.000-08:00

This is LONG overdue...here are pictures of the apron and matching candy/cookie jar that I made for my brother and sister-in-law for Christmas. I took some of the left over fabric from the apron and Mod Podged them onto the jar. I thought it was cute that they matched. The apron is similar to the ones I made for my sister and her daughters last summer (post here). Maybe one of these days I'll make a tutorial for how I make the apron out of an old pair of jeans.

Friday Fun Feature - Crochet Headband

2011-02-25T06:57:00.000-08:00

How cute is this crochet headband from You Seriously Made That!?

I love me some headbands, even though I don't wear them very often, so I decided to make my own. There was only one problem...I don't crochet. Not even a little (I'm one of those people who doesn't really know the difference between crocheting and knitting). In some of the close up pictures of Cami's headband I noticed that the strands of yarn almost look like braids. I can totally braid! I got out some narrow ribbon and braided away.

Now, Cami lists her measurements in crochet terms, so I did a quick little google search to find out how long 300 chains is (about 5 feet). So I measured three strands of ribbon about 5'6" and three strands about 3 feet long. If I were to do it again I would make my strands a little bit longer, you'll lose quite a bit of length when braiding. Once I had my two braids, which took just over half an hour, I followed Cami's instructions for assembly and I think it looks remarkably similar. I think the biggest difference is that mine is narrower, which I actually like.
So now whether or not you crochet you can make a super cute, easy and fast headband!

Mod Podge Rooster Art

2011-02-24T06:06:00.000-08:00

In case any of you missed my post over at Creativity Is..., here it is!

My inspiration came from this project. I contemplated making something very similar for my older brother and his wife for Christmas and asked my sisters what they thought. We decided that it wasn't a good fit for my brother, but Lori said that she liked the idea. I knew that if I was going to make some art for Lori that it needed to be a rooster. This is what I came up with.

I found an image I liked online, then had my hubby take the image and make an outline of each section as a vector image so that I could cut it out with my Silhouette. I can't really give a better description than that because I don't really know what/how he did it (I just sent him the image and asked him to make it work with my machine).
If you don't have a Silhouette (and hubby who is good with computer stuff) here is what you can do:
Print out your image.
Cut out each section. It will be kind of like a puzzle at this point.
Trace each section onto your paper of choice. I prefer to trace onto the backside of my scrapbook paper so that I don't have to worry about any lines showing on the finished product.
Cut out each traced section.
Mod Podge each "puzzle" piece onto a sheet of card stock. Add any wording you want at the bottom. Once it is dry give the whole thing a coat of Mod Podge, then frame it (after it dries).

I was pleased with the results and I think Lori was too!

Guest Posting

2011-02-21T06:23:00.000-08:00

Hey everybody, I'm guest posting over at Creativity Is... today.

Blog Makeover

2011-02-19T06:00:00.000-08:00

As you may or may not have noticed, my blog is getting a makeover! It's nothing professional like many other blogs out there, but I think it looks more put together. I also have buttons now. Yay! Feel free to grab yourself one ;)

And if you've been featured on here before there is also a "featured on" button under the tab at the top. I still need to go through and organize my labels on my posts, but hopefully I'll get that done in the next few days. I hope you enjoy the new look...I do!

Friday Fun Feature - Skirts I Want to Make Someday

2011-02-18T06:00:00.000-08:00

I have this really bad habit of bookmarking websites or sending myself URL's in emails of projects I want to make someday but not saving the pictures anywhere. Which is all fine until the link no longer works (which I've had happen several times). So this is more for my sake than yours, but here are some pictures of skirts and dresses I would like to try and recreate someday!

Source: ModCloth

Source: ModCloth

Source: Patternreview.com

Source: ModCloth

Source: ModCloth

Source: ModCloth

Tonight - menu boards

2011-02-17T06:40:00.000-08:00

I'm hosting a craft night for the ladies at my church tonight. We will be making these dry erase menu boards.

I'm excited and nervous (because people tend to not show up when I host things like this...I try to not take it personally and attribute it to the fact that I'm a terrible salesman). Wish me luck!

Farm animals on a stick

2011-02-14T08:41:00.000-08:00

My cousin turns 1 on Saturday. I wasn't sure what to get for him but then I remembered this from Make It & Love It and decided to do something similar. I found a cute lift-the-flap book about farm animals in the dollar spot at Target. Instead of making the animals stuffed, I decided to put them on popsicle sticks (because apparently kids LOVE things on sticks!). Here is the line up...

Mr. Sheep

Mr. Rooster

Miss Pig

Mrs. Duck

Here they all are partying together.

The sheep is my favorite. Here he is next to the sheep from the book.

Want to know how I got him to look so similar the the drawing? I traced the animals out of the book onto tissue paper and used it as a template for cutting out my felt! If I had tried to free-hand the animals they would have looked like blobs...or aliens...or some sort of giant mess.
Let me know if you are interested in a more in depth tutorial because I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to make more (even though Madie knows these are for baby Jack, I don't think she realizes that that means she no longer gets to play with them come Saturday).

Friday Fun Feature - Valentine's Crossword Puzzle

2011-02-11T06:00:00.000-08:00

How cute is this crossword puzzle valentine?! I want to make one for my hubby (but I am the one who is more into crossword puzzles and we don't do Valentine's day). I found it here at I'm a Mom not a Professional.

Princess Silhouette Shirt

2011-02-10T06:00:00.000-08:00

Here is another shirt I did for my niece for her upcoming birthday.

I originally saw this idea on the Honey Scrap blog. I had my hubby create an outline of Cinderella for me and opened it in my Silhouette. Then I cut the fabric...with my Silhouette! And I didn't even buy that ridiculously expensive fabric interfacing that Silhouette sells. I just used some plain ol' fusible web! I learned some things though when cutting the fabric. The settings I used were speed of 3 and thickness of 33 with the pink tip, put the fabric against the cutting mat so that the paper backing of the fusible web is facing up, and to double cut! I didn't double cut on one of the pieces and ended up having to cut it out with scissors (it cut through the paper and adhesive but not the fabric).
The black is a knit so no worries about fraying and the blue headband piece is satin. I was going to do a tight zig-zag stitch but totally forgot until after I had started, so I just treated the edges with some Fray Check. The jewel is totally hot glued on. I've yet to have anything that I hot glued onto clothing come out in the wash. E-6000 holds up great in the wash, but it also makes the finish on the back of the gems crackle. Weird.

Monogrammed Football Onesie

2011-02-08T06:00:00.000-08:00

I made this onesie months ago for a friend of mine who was on bed rest. Isn't it so stinkin' cute!?! I make so many girly things that it was a nice change to make something for a boy. I cut the "T" shape out of fabric and the football out of felt and appliquéd them both onto the onesie. This was before my Silhouette owning days so I just freehanded the shapes/letter.

Purple and teal flower shirt

2011-02-07T06:00:00.000-08:00

Purple and teal are my niece's school colors. She is almost 7 and is a skinny little thing, so none of the shirts that her school sells actually fit her, they are all baggy. My sister picked up a purple shirt for super cheap at Walmart and asked me to cute it up with some teal. Here is what I came up with.

And not that you really need it, but how about a close up?

I used my Silhouette (which I totally LOVE!) to create a flower shape and then had it cut some freezer paper to use as a stencil. I can't wait to see it on her! If you don't have a Silhouette (or other craft cutter) you can just send your freezer paper through the printer and then cut out your desired shape with scissors or a craft knife.

Linking to:
Creativity Is...

Sundae Scoop

Motivate Me Monday

Market Yourself Monday

Friday Fun Feature

2011-02-04T07:33:00.000-08:00

I thought I would start featuring other people's creations once a week. Today seems like as good a day as any to start (well actually better because 1. I don't have pics taken of any of the projects I've finished and 2. I really like alliterations). I'm always open to new things, so if you would like me to feature something you've made send me an email!

For my first Friday Fun Feature I give you this awesome binder wall organizer from Creativity Is.... Lori (hi sis!) uses it to keep her weekly grocery ads and coupons and such organized (and off her floor!). Head on over, take a look, and give her some love. Also, make sure you stop by there tomorrow for her first ever link party!

It is very much like the book organizer I showed you in this post, but using a three ring binder. I thought using a binder was such a great idea that I actually made one the other day, but instead of covering mine with cute paper, I slipped a calendar page into the front pocket so it doubles as a memo board (dry erase markers come off the plastic beautifully).
Happy Friday! Have a great weekend and I'll be back on Monday with something new to share. :)

Coffee filter carnations

2011-02-02T06:00:00.000-08:00

I was a little hesitant to post this, thinking that maybe these didn't really look like carnations. But then I was at the dollar store this weekend and saw some fake carnations that looked exactly like mine (only white and green), plus a few of you said that you would like a tute...so here goes!

How to make coffee filter carnations.

I don't have pics for each and every step, but I think I have enough to make it pretty clear.

To start, you are going to make an "O" shape with your fingers and thumb.

Then you are going to lay the coffee filter over the top of your "O" shaped hand and press down in the center. This will push the filter down in between your fingers and thumb.

Keep pushing until you have about 2" sticking up out of your hand. Then twist the part that is against your palm until you get something similar to this. Don't worry about it being perfectly circular, once you have a bunch of these together you won't even notice the shape of any one particular flower.

Now it's time to paint! I mixed a little bit of acrylic paint with water. You want it fairly runny so that the filter will absorb the paint, but not quite as thin as water color paint. Play around with it until you get it the way you want it. If I had to guess, I probably used about 2 parts paint to 1 part water. Dab your paint brush along the edges of the flowers, the paint will soak in a little bit. You don't want it super runny, just enough to soak in about 1/4" to 1/2" down from the edge.

Once these dry (which doesn't take very long) adhere them to your ball of choice. You could use a styrofoam ball, you would probably have to cut off most of the "tail" of the flower and then just hot glue them on. I used a ball that looked like this.

I found this at Dollar Tree. It was in the toys section. I think they were calling it a baseball practice ball. I would call it a wiffle ball, though. I thought it was perfect! I stuck the "tails" of the flowers into the holes (one per hole). If you are concerned about the flowers popping out, you could run a line of hot glue around the holes before putting the flowers in. Most of the flowers seemed secure enough to me to not even need gluing. Since I planning on putting my carnation balls into pots, I only covered half of each ball, which took about a dozen flowers.

Here it is all nice and finished.

If there is any part of this that is unclear please let me know! I'm still a bit of a novice at writing tutorials. If you make this, I would LOVE to see it! Either put a link in the comments on this post or send me a pic in an email (at the top of the blog click on Contact Me).

January Recap

2011-02-01T06:00:00.000-08:00

Here is a recap of the things I ~~created~~ posted in January. I created a lot more than this...I just haven't posted about any of the other projects yet. Hopefully I'll do better at posting in February.

Click the picture to go to the original post.

My new addiction

2011-01-31T09:17:00.000-08:00

I'm sure you've all seen the epsom salt candles floating around the blog world. I liked the idea, but thought it could use improving. Here is my version...the glitter candle.

I love how sparkly it is! I painted hot pink onto the bottom 3/4 of the candle (2 coats) and when that was dry had my little helper coat the paint in Mod Podge. Then we covered the Podge in glitter! I didn't seal the glitter, because I didn't want to take away any of the awesome sparkle but since it will just be sitting on a shelf I figured it was ok. Now, I don't know about the safety of burning this candle, but with as stinkin' cute as it is why on earth would you want to! Once it was all dry I just tied a ribbon around the top of where the glitter ends.

Here it is next to my coffee filter carnations. If you want me to put together a tutorial on how I made the carnations let me know!

I think I'm going to have to make one for each holiday because as soon as we were finished Madie said to me "I want to make more" and since she rules this roost I think I'll just have to oblige. :)

Did you win? And some random things about myself.

2011-01-27T07:02:00.000-08:00

True Random Number GeneratorMin: Max: Result:12Powered by RANDOM.ORG

It was actually out of 33, but for some reason the number generator chart keeps changing the max back to 100.

Congratulations to Patricia, winner of the $35 CSN Stores gift card!

I loved reading the things you all wrote. Here were some of my favorites.

Pamela - Let's see. Last year, while pregnant I had to try and catch a skunk that decided to move into some poor camper's trailer while they were at a state park. I came out a little smellier but was able to trap the skunk. As part of my job as a wildlife biologist I also rescued eagles, hummingbirds, caught an alligator and relocated rattlesnakes and gila monsters. I'm now a stay-at-home mom having fun baking, birdwatching, and organizing my fabric stash and craft room.

Patricia - Something interesting about me.. I am 25 and going to be a big sister yet again , this will make the 8th sibling for me!

Lori - I always fold my papers into thirds or sixths, never halves or quarters.

Lacey - I'm a sixth grade teacher, and I'm shorter than 5 feet tall...that means MOST of my elementary students are taller than me!

Kaity-Bug Crafts - My interesting fact: I have to put my left shoe on first-always. Otherwise, everything feels weird!

Lisa J - something interesting about me... I only dry my face with toilet paper. strange I know... :)

. - I can wiggle my nose like Samantha on Bewitched...though it's been a few years...so I might be rusty. :)

This was so much fun for me! And since I promised to reciprocate with some random things about myself, here goes...

- My husband and I met on myspace. We joke that we are the only good thing to ever some out of that website.

- I can actually touch my elbows together behind my back.

- I met Chris Farley when I was in elementary school.

- I did taekwondo for several years growing up, I'm a black belt.

- I'm part Choctaw...one of my ancestors was a Chief.

- I play the flute and kind of play the piano.

- I can lead 3/4 and 4/4 timing at the same time (each with a different hand).

So apparently I'm not that interesting. I even asked my husband to help me come up with something and the elbows thing was all he could come up with.

Bath toys holder

2011-01-25T05:35:00.000-08:00

I had to throw out the holder for Madie's bath toys this week...it had seen better days. I didn't want to spend $15 or $20 on a new one, especially if it is only going to last for about a year like the last one. While at the dollar store this week I came across these mesh laundry bags. They come 2 in a bag and are 12" by 15". They are intended to go through the wash, so I thought they would be the perfect candidate for bath toys.
Perfect! Now all I needed was something to hang the bag up, like these!

Image from dollartree.com

And since getting my Silhouette, I've become a bit obsessed with using it, so the bag got a little paint job. The "O" in "toys" is a little ducky.

Here it is in action!

I love it, Madie loves it (she loves anything with a zipper) and it's hard to beat $2. Plus, there is another bag so when this one bites the dust, I'll already have another one! Oh, and the suctions cups didn't want to suction to the tile in my bathroom, so I hot glued them up.

I love you frame

2011-01-23T18:45:00.000-08:00

Looking for the CSN Stores giveaway? Click here.

________________________________________________________________

This is the first thing I made using my Silhouette. We don't do much for Valentine's around our house, but with all of the cute decor out there, I just couldn't resist making a little something.

"Be mine" seemed kind of silly, since we kind of already agreed to do that one, so I just went with "I love you". And you can't really see it from the pictures, but the white background is sparkly. This was fun to make and Madie even helped me.
I printed out the words in the font "Love Letters" from dafont.com, took a piece of white cardstock put a coat of Mod Podge on it, sprinkled glitter on the Mod Podge, put the letters on the cardstock and then painted the frame pink and just tied a little bow around one side of the frame. Pretty fast and pretty easy...my kind of craft.
And here is our whole mantel (my dad built the brick wall and mantel and my mom painted the picture hanging up...I guess crafting is just in my genes). I think it needs something on the other side of the clock next to the taller vase of "carnations"...I'm just not sure what.

Do you like my little "carnations"? I bet you'll never guess what I used to make them (ok, you probably will).

CSN Giveaway!!!

2011-01-19T19:39:00.000-08:00

Look at what the FedEx man brought me this morning!!! :D

Yep, I won a Silhouette SD!!! Thanks to QuickKutz & the ladies over at Brown Paper Packages (linked over on the right side of the screen under "blogs I check out"...you should check them out too!). I've been impatiently awaiting her arrival for 2 weeks and I must say it has definitely been worth the wait. I've already made something with it...but it's still drying so you'll have to wait until tomorrow to see it. So you will be seeing more out of me this year.

I don't want this post to make you all feel bad...so how about I give you something? Have you been to CSN Stores recently? If not, then go spend some time on one of their many sites deciding what you will spend your $35 on if you win.
Maybe some modern dining room furniture, like this Swiss Cheese dining set?

Or how about some nice buffet lamps?

Here's how you can enter -

1. Leave me a comment telling me something interesting about yourself. I would love to get to know you all better! I promise I'll reciprocate with some random info about myself in the near future.

That's it. Nice and simple.

Giveaway will end Wednesday, January 26th at 11:59 pm MST.

Open to residents of US & Canada only.

Good luck!

I need your input...

2011-01-14T06:00:00.000-08:00

The dress I wore at my SIL's wedding is a beautiful shade of blue (like a powder blue, or as we call it in our house Cinderella blue). But...I'll never wear it again, which is unfortunate give how much it cost. So I want to turn it into a skirt, but I'm torn on what style.

Option 1 - Anthro knock off from Ruffles & Roses

Option 2 - Charlotte Russe knock off from Sew Dang Cute

Option 3 - Joann project sheet

image source patternreview.com

Any ideas what I should do???

Princess Dress

2011-01-13T09:12:00.000-08:00

My SIL got married last Saturday. She didn't ask my daughter to be a part of the wedding party, but I thought she needed a little matching dress anyway. Madie calls it her "princess dress".

Showing me which shoes she picked to wear with it :)

This one just because I think it is cute! Playing in the tree outside the temple.

I used Simplicity 4647 combining views A & B.

After making her dress, I remembered why I hated sewing...patterns! I HATE using a pattern. If I don't have to use a pattern, then I enjoy sewing but patterns kind of kill it for me...especially when they take me over 5 hours to construct! In the end, I think it was worth it.

Linking up:

Purse Notebook

2011-01-10T19:40:00.000-08:00

After I saw this on Sister's Stuff I knew I had to make one! I made this one for my SIL, who is almost 12, for Christmas. I also made ones for my niece & nephews (but I forgot to take pictures). Hers was a purse similar to this, only pink and the ones for the boys looked like Spider Man & Iron Man. I'll see if I can get my SIL to take pics of the ones I did for the kids and then I'll post them.

I'm still alive...

2011-01-05T17:53:00.000-08:00

I promise to get some projects posted...but not until after this weekend. My SIL is getting married on Saturday and I've been hemming & altering bride's maid dresses (5 down, 1 to go) and making a dress for my daughter to wear. Next week, I'll get pics of some of the Christmas gifts I made.
Oh, and I can guarantee that I'll be crafting more this year (which will hopefully translate into blogging more also). Want to know why? Well, you'll have to wait and see ;)

CSN Stores Review

2010-10-09T06:27:00.000-07:00

I was recently contacted by CSN Stores and asked to review one of their products. I chose this frying pan. I LOVE IT!!! It's big, it's non-stick, oh and did I mention that it's big??? :)

It's a 14" Farberware skillet. I've been meaning to get a picture of this baby in action, which is why this review is so late in coming, but I keep forgetting to get out the camera come dinner time.
I cooked 8 pork chops at once and 4 pounds of ground beef at once! The ground beef did great...the pork chops I had to move around since there was uneven browning. It was just around the very edges of the pan that it didn't get as hot, but I wasn't really surprised by that since the pan is larger than my burners. I've had the smaller version of this pan for years and love it, so I'm really looking forward to being able to use this pan for many years to come!
If you cook for a crowd on a regular basis, I highly recommend this pan!

Gourd Windchime

2010-09-27T15:02:00.000-07:00

I got this idea from the Michaels website over a year ago, but it is no longer there. As soon as I saw it, I thought of my mom. So I went down to the craft store to get the supplies and was shocked at how much the gourd cost! Well a few weeks later, I happened to be at Michaels and the gourd was on super sale (I think I only paid $2 or $3 for it!) so I got one and put it in the closet until just a few days ago. I made this for my mom for her birthday last week.

It is kind of hard to see from the picture, but the windchime part at the bottom is sticks of bamboo that I painted. After painting the three sticks of bamboo (from an existing windchime) I attached them to the bottom of the gourd using the screw hooks they came with. To get the hooks into the gourd I stuck a push pin in to create a pilot hole.Then I printed out a fancy M on the computer and cut it out with an xacto knife creating a stencil (word of advice: if you are going to do this, paint the initial before you screw in the bamboo!). I traced it with pencil, since my stencil wouldn't lay flush with the gourd, and then painted it, drilled two holes in the top and laced some wire and ribbon through to hand it by.

Also linked to The Idea Room

Tasty Thursdays #3 - Fall Recipes

2010-09-23T10:07:00.000-07:00

I would love to see your favorite Fall recipes! Here is one of mine...

*photo from Make It & Love It

Pumpkin Sausage Pasta found via Make It & Love It last year.

Shirt Dress

2010-09-22T05:00:00.000-07:00

I'm sure by now you've probably all seen at least one version of a shirt dress. Well this is mine. It is a combination of several tutorials I've seen floating around the web.
It's perfect for dancing like a princess...

or feeding the birds.

A view of the back:

And when asked for a pretty smile, this is what I got:

Not quite what I had in mind, but it made me laugh. :)

Let me know if you're interested in a tutorial for my take on the shirt dress and I can put one together!

Tasty Tuesdays - Crockpot Fiesta Chicken

2010-09-21T06:56:00.000-07:00

Looking for a super easy, delicious Mexican dish to serve for dinner tonight? Then you've got to try the Easy Crockpot Fiesta Chicken from The Girl Who Ate Everything.

We used this chicken mixture as burrito filling and as quesadilla filling. It was delicious!

Tasty Thursdays #2 - Linky Edition

2010-09-16T06:55:00.000-07:00

Here is one of my favorites. I adapted this from a Betty Crocker cookbook that I got for my wedding. In the cookbook it is called something along the lines of "Rustic Vegetable Baguette" but in my house we call them "avocado subs".
The picture isn't the greatest...it's from a few years ago before I really started blogging.

Ingredients:
Sub rolls - one for each person you intend to feed
Italian dressing - approximately 1 tablespoon per sub roll, enough to cover one side of the bread
Cheese - we like colby-jack, cheddar, or Mexican blend
Roma Tomatoes - 3 or 4 slices per sub
Avocados - I like a lot of avocado, so we use one medium avocado for every 2 subs, but you could use less

1. Slice tomatoes
2. Smash avocado...in the food processor works great, or you can just scoop the flesh out into a sandwich bag and smash it in your hands...it's super fast and easy cleanup!
3. Slice sub rolls lengthwise
4. Spread Italian dressing on one side of each roll
5. Sprinkle cheese on the other side of each roll, just enough to cover the bread
6. Broil until the cheese is melty and bubbly
7. Lay tomatoes on one side of subs and spread the avocado on the other. I find it works best to put the tomatoes on top of the cheese and spread the avocado onto the dressing side.
8. Eat and enjoy!!!

Let's see some more of your recipes!!!

Want to Craft That Wednesday - Tin Can Windsock

2010-09-15T14:08:00.000-07:00

How cute is this tin can windsock from Under the Table and Dreaming!

I love this flag version...but the possibilities are endless for how you could decorate it!

Tasty Tuesdays - Muffles

2010-09-14T08:00:00.000-07:00

Muffle (muhf-uhl) - Noun 1.the delicious baby of a waffle and a muffin 2.muffin batter baked in a waffle iron.

My sister told me about muffles a few months ago and we made some recently, so I thought I'd post about it. Muffles are super easy to make. Take your favorite muffin batter and instead of putting it into a muffin tin and baking in the oven, get out your waffle iron and cook it in there! The taste is the same as when baked as a muffin, but the texture is different. It isn't quite the same as either a muffin or a waffle...it is just kind of it's own thing. And it is delicious!

Tired of the same old blueberry muffins/waffles/muffles/pancakes??? Sometimes I add in a bit of cinnamon and other times I add in chopped up white chocolate chips and coconut! YUM! You should seriously try that combination.

Tasty Thursdays #1 - Linky Edition

2010-09-09T06:00:00.000-07:00

Cheddar-cornmeal Waffle BLT's

This is a great take on a blt...but I recommend you follow the recipe! I tried to use a boxed cornbread instead of making them from scratch and the waffles kept falling apart! Oh well, live and learn.
Cheddar-cornmeal Waffle BLT's from Taste Buds.

What are you loving to make in the kitchen lately? Let's see those recipes!
The link will be open until Monday evening...if you want me to lengthen or shorten the time frame allotted for the linky party let me know! Also I would love to know if you have any requests/suggestions for themes for future linky parties.

Want to Craft That Wednesday - Cozy Cone Motel

2010-09-08T12:16:00.000-07:00

Yep, two in one day...my folders are that out of control!

Cozy Cone Motel from One More Moore.

There aren't any instructions for this...but it can't be that hard to figure out.

Want to Craft That Wednesday - Scrabble Magnet Board

2010-09-08T08:00:00.000-07:00

Part of the reason I created this blog was to put links to ideas I want to try. It's time to start doing that again, because my bookmarks folders are getting super out of control!

Scrabble Magnet Board from The Twice Remembered Cottage

Scrabble isn't really my cup of tea (I'm not great with words) but I love this idea. It actually makes me think of a few of my siblings.

Tasty Tuesdays - Caramel Brownies

2010-09-07T07:38:00.000-07:00

I have a goal to post more often on this blog, since I feel that I've neglected it a bit over the summer. A new recurring post I plan to have is "Tasty Tuesdays" & "Tasty Thursdays - Your Recipes". On Tuesdays I will post a recipe I tried recently (or the link to where you can find it) and my honest thoughts. Thursdays will be linky parties where you can upload your recipes. I would like to have Tuesday's recipes be one of the Thursday links, so start digging through your recipe boxes for things you would like to share with us!

Caramel Brownies
*Warning: a spoon may be required*

The recipe and photo are courtsey of Kristan from Confessions of a Cookbook Queen. This is one of my new favorite food blogs. I've tried several of her recipes and LOVED them all and her posts are hilarious!

Caramel Brownies

I didn't make the brownies from scratch like in the recipe...I just used a boxed brownie mix and they turned out great. They were a little goopy though, so instead of pretty squares like Kristan had I got a big ol' mess (hence the warning at the top). These were a huge hit at family dinner on Sunday and I'll definitely be making them again!

Another CSN Stores Review coming soon!

2010-09-02T15:58:00.000-07:00

Are you in need of some new Corelle dinnerware?

How about a new frying pan?

I'm super excited to be getting one of these items in the mail soon to review for CSN Stores. Have you checked them out yet? If not, go do it...now! :)

Ribbon Embellished Kitchen Towels

2010-08-24T10:00:00.000-07:00

My brother-in-law got married at the beginning of the month. Between airfare, a dress & a tux (luckily we didn't have to rent a car or hotel) it cost us a pretty penny to attend. So I needed a nice, cute & affordable gift to give. I saw these flour sack towels at target for super cheap. They came in a four pack but were twice the size of regular kitchen towel...so I cut them in half! Then I added holiday-ish ribbons to each of them.

Valentine's Day

St. Patrick's Day

Easter/Spring

4th of July (and my favorite)

Halloween

Thanksgiving

Christmas

Mommy & Me Aprons

2010-08-23T20:17:00.000-07:00

For my sister's birthday I made her an apron...with matching ones for her two daughters. The girls' aprons even have their initials appliqued on the pockets. I used some old jeans and some fabric from my stash, so it only cost me my time! Apparently they turned out pretty good, because one of my sister's friends asked me to make some for her and her daughter. Hopefully I will remember to get a better picture of the "mommy" apron before I send them off this week.

Happy Birthday Cards

2010-08-22T20:17:00.000-07:00

I enjoy making cards...I just wish I didn't make such a mess doing it! Anyway, here are a few birthday cards I've made. I really love the pink & green ones!

Sorry this one is sideways...I'm having trouble getting it to rotate properly.

My Sister's Craft Blog

2010-08-17T07:08:00.000-07:00

My little sister recently started a craft blog! You should check it out and give her some words of encouragement since she is pretty new to this whole thing.
http://creatingis.blogspot.com/

And I've got several projects that I need to post this week, so check back in a day or two. :)

Polka Dot Pleated Sundress

2010-07-27T12:32:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago my little sister was getting rid of some old clothing and other random things, so I asked if I could look through her stash before she dropped it off at goodwill. I scored several shirts, a few skirts and a comforter. I have no need for a twin sized comforter, but I loved the fabric so I deconstructed it. I wanted to make either a skirt or a dress for Madie and as soon as I saw this tutorial for a pleated sundress on Crafterhours yesterday I got straight to work!

I did mine a little differently. I didn't do the growth pleat hem, instead I cut my lining fabric about 2 inches longer than the top fabric (since the polka dot fabric was a little bit see through it needed lined). I also added two bows to the middle of the bodice.

This was my first attempt at shirring something and it was WAY easier than I expected!

I LOVE IT! I'm pretty convinced that I need to try and make a matching one for myself.

Ruffle Butt Onesie

2010-07-21T08:15:00.000-07:00

I used this tutorial from Crap I've Made to make a onesie for my friend who had her baby in April. I used a red fabric with white polka dots and think it turned out super cute. Next time, I'll definitely set up the serger though!
Apparently I didn't get a picture of the actual ruffle butt part, but you can kind of see the ruffles peeking out from the side in this picture.

Super Delicious Chocolate Cake

2010-07-12T19:43:00.000-07:00

Today is my older sister's birthday (happy birthday, Kristi) and when I asked her on Saturday what kind of cake/treat she wanted at her celebration yesterday she told me to surprise her. I immediately thought of two recipes and after further review of the ingredients I decided that this one sounded more like her. It's called Praline Turtle Cake from Ur Baking Me Crazy! I would post a picture of the one I made, except I just ate the last piece...yum! So here is a picture of Hannie's cake. She left out the pecans but I HIGHLY recommend you put them in.

I didn't exactly follow the recipe...I used a boxed cake mix with a cup of sour cream for added moistness instead of baking the cake from scratch. It was so good and I'm totally bummed that it's all gone now. However, I've been inspired by this recipe and if what I have in mind tastes as good and I think it's going to, I'll post the recipe and pics in the next few days. And even if my experiment doesn't work out, I'll definitely be making this cake again!!!

New Winner!

2010-07-02T10:20:00.000-07:00

Since I never heard from Gabby, let's visit random.org again...

True Random Number GeneratorMin: Max: Result:7Powered by RANDOM.ORG

Who is the new winner of the $40 CSN Stores gift certificate?

Lori, who said: "If I were to win, I'd buy some sort of Kitchen goodie :) Probably something fun like a waffle maker, or maybe more practical like bread pans. I've been wanting to make banana bread for some time now. "

Congrats Lori!

Happy 4th of July!!!

And the winner is...

2010-06-29T16:31:00.000-07:00

The winner of the $40 CSN Stores gift certificate is...

Random Integer Generator

Here are your random numbers:

Timestamp: 2010-06-29 23:24:10 UTC

Who is lucky number 18?

Gabby who said..."I would put it towards a child size pink baby grand piano for my daughter. We've been looking at it for a while!"

Thank you to everyone else who entered...sorry that you can't all win.

Congrats Gabby! Contact me here by Thursday so I can get you your gift card!

FIRST GIVEAWAY!!!

2010-06-22T16:54:00.000-07:00

***GIVEAWAY NOW CLOSED***
I had always figured I would do my first giveaway when I reached 100 followers (since that seems to be how everyone else does it), but you guys are awesome! There were enough of you that checked out one of the over 200 online CSN Stores, that I was contacted to host a giveaway of a $40 gift card! Need a new sofa?

How about a grill?

Or maybe some new shoes?

How to enter:
- Leave a comment (with your email address) on this post telling me what you would use your $40 gift card on.
- Only one comment per person please.
- Open to residents of US & Canada only.
- The winner will be chosen through Random.org

Giveaway closes Monday, June 28th at Noon (PST)

Review: CHEF'S CHOICE INTERNATIONAL KRUMKAKES EXPRESS

2010-06-02T15:42:00.000-07:00

How yummy does this look?! Can I just say that I'm so glad that I decided to get the KrumKakes Express to review.

CSN Stores was great to work with. The order was processed quickly and shipping was reasonably fast (it wasn't slow, I was just so anxious that one week felt like FOREVER).

The iron worked like a charm, once I figured out how much batter and what setting to put it on. The recommended heat setting to start with is a 2, but apparently I like mine crispy because I ended up putting it at 4.5 and I used twice as much batter as the instructions said to use. I guess technically this lovely piece of equipment is supposed to make Norwegian cookies that you fill with whipped cream or ganache but it works great for making waffle cones and bowls (plus I liked the fancy design better than the standard grid of a waffle cone).

I made a few of these to serve at my daughter's birthday party last month...

It has been so much fun to make my own ice cream cones. I've even started experimenting with different flavored cones, so look for those in the future. I love it, I'm so glad that I decided to get it and I think I'll be eating a lot of ice cream this summer!

Vegas Vacation

2010-05-11T07:49:00.000-07:00

My family is going to Las Vegas in a couple of weeks. It's just my husband, me & our 2 year old daughter. We've never been there (unless you count sitting in a plane at the airport) and this will be our first family vacation with just the three of us.

That being said, I'm posting to ask for your help. Have you been to Vegas? Is there anything that you recommend we do while there (we'll be driving up on a Monday and coming home on Thursday)? Is there anything you've done that was totally NOT worth the time/money? I'd love to know what you all think!

Thanks!

Hehehe, I'm so excited!

2010-05-05T18:32:00.000-07:00

I finally decided what item I'm going review for CSN Stores! Check out this beauty!!!

Chef's Choice International KrumKakes Express - 8390000

I'm going to be making me some waffle cones! Please feel free to let me know if you have any recipes that I should try. :)

CSN Stores Product Review, Coming Soon

2010-05-04T07:10:00.000-07:00

A tv stand & fireplace all in one? How awesome is this?! I found this while browsing for tv stands on one of over 200 CSN Stores. Have you heard of this place? If not you should definitely go check it out!

They seriously have everything you can think of! They've got a store for hammocks, kids toys, mirrors (and just about every other home decor item), and my personal favorite...cookware!
I'm on a mission to find the perfect addition to my collection of kitchen tools. Once I do I'll be sure to let you all know what I'm getting and what I think of it. I can't wait!
I'm not generally an indecisive person...but too many awesome choices!

*Full Disclosure: CSN Stores contacted me with this promotional opportunity. I am being compensated for my review concerning my personal experience with CSN Stores.

Birthday Ideas

2010-04-16T08:06:00.000-07:00

My little girl is turning two in May. I have no idea what to do for her birthday party. Last year was Elmo themed. Here are the cake & cupcakes I made.

These ones looked better when I first made them. The frosting got too soft and so the eyes started to move around. At least now I know to keep things like this in the fridge!

My problem is that she isn't in to any one thing/character for more than a couple of weeks at a time. Right now she is on a Lion King kick, but that will probably be over before May gets here. She does like the Disney princesses, Ariel in particular, but she also likes Curious George. And she is really into colors right now. She loves to point out the colors she sees!

So basically I'm lacking direction and would love some input on where you all think I should go with this. Thanks!

Oh, and to get the fur look on the cupcakes I used what is called a "grass tip" and I think it is Wilton number 233. Super time consuming but way cool looking!

Soda Can Picture Frame

2010-04-13T10:00:00.000-07:00

I bought a cheapy cheap unfinished wood frame for $1 at Michaels and after seeing this mirror decided my picture frame could do the trick. And in the spirit of Tab-ing, I of course used a can of Tab.I just cut the top and bottom off of a soda can and the cut a slit up the side so that I had a rectangle of aluminum. Then I cut that into *roughly* 3/4 inch squares. I felt no need for perfection in this area of the project. Hot pink acrylic paint & a little (or a lot) of hot glue later and I had a masterpiece.

But it didn't seem right to give an empty picture frame to my cousin who just so happens to be a new dad. So after the suggestion by my little sister, we printed a picture of his son to go in it...

After we photoshopped him snuggling a can of Tab, of course!

Everyone loved it!

Thanks sister for the photo idea. Thanks husband for your awesome photoshop skills!

Half Apron - Tab Style :)

2010-04-11T19:55:00.000-07:00

My SIL asked me recently if I wanted a bag full of old jeans. She had purchased the jeans at Goodwill, or wherever, with the intention of making a quilt but was no longer going to be doing that. I happily took the bag of jeans and knew that even if I didn't make a quilt I would come up with some good use for them. And I did! I made this half apron for my grandma for her birthday last month.

For my "stencil" I cut the "I" & the heart out of cardstock, laid it on the denim and painted with acrylic paint. I didn't do any fancy mixing with fabric medium or any of that (mostly because I'm cheap and this was a gag gift anyway). In my googling of the matter, the only downside to using straight acrylic paint on fabric is that it makes it stiff. Which it did, but not enough for me to do anything about it! For the "Tab" stencil I printed two pictures of the can of soda onto cardstock. From one I cut out where the pink went and painted that on then for the other I cut out where the silver (top & bottom of the can) & wording went. Add a Tab colored ruffle to the bottom and some ribbon to tie it and in the words of my almost 2 year old, DATAA!!! (she says tadaa backwords...it's pretty cute)

Please forgive the unedited, late at night, taken by the husband picture (yes, this was the better of the two).

I Need Baby Shower Ideas

2010-04-09T09:40:00.000-07:00

I'm throwing a baby shower for a friend of mine at the beginning of May. I've never hosted a baby shower before so my list of ideas is quite small. I would love your input on fun games, delicious desserts and/or cheap decorations. Other than the invitations and a few of the food items I don't have anything!!! Oh, and not sure that it makes much of a difference but she is having a girl.

Thanks!

Soda Can Bow Holder

2010-04-07T19:32:00.000-07:00

For my aunt's birthday I made her some bows that she had asked me for. Given our tradition of Tab-ing people I decided at the last minute that I needed to some how *creatively* include a can of Tab in with her gift. So I turned a Tab into a bow holder! All I did was hot glue some ribbon around the outside of the soda can...

and clipped the bows to it. It doesn't hold very many bows, so it's not very practical, but I wasn't going for practicality. It made her laugh and that was the point!

Final Mop Up & Plans for April

2010-04-01T08:42:00.000-07:00

I didn't do a Mop-Up round up last Friday because I had planned on doing it yesterday. Well I'm a day late. But I'm happy to say that I got through 10 of the 11 projects that I had wanted to finish in March. And somehow, I don't feel relieved. Maybe it has something to do with the handful of projects I started in March and have yet to finish...haha. I guess I can't help but have at least half a dozen projects going at once!

So what was the final Mop-Up project for me? Finishing my mom's Christmas present. For Christmas I decided to put all of her old pictures in albums (that my little sister bought). So I sneakily took stacks of photos out of the box under her dresser and organized them before placing them in albums...20+ years of photos in a box this size.

I underestimated how much could fit into a box that size and ran out of albums. Ten photo albums, each with a capacity to hold 100 photos, and I needed at least three of four more. I gave her what I had finished on Christmas and told her I would finish the rest at a later date. So I spent the last few days putting away the rest of the photos. And while I realize that the pictures probably won't be viewed very often (if ever) it is nice to know that they are organized and easily accessible instead of shoved into a box in a giant mess.

Have you checked out Dollar Store Crafts lately? You should check out the April Stash Bust. I'm way excited for this. I really need to work on using supplies I already have, since my craft corner is kind of bustin' at the seams! And to go along with it there is a Stash Swap! You send something out of your stash that you have an overabundance of to another swap member and someone else will do that same to you. I've been wanting to do something like this for months, so I'm very excited!!!

So what's on my stash-busting list? Aprons using a bag of old jeans I got from my SIL and hopefully I can put a dent in my pile of things that need to be scrapbooked.

Bunny Bags

2010-03-29T08:56:00.000-07:00

How cute are these little bags?! I made these to give to the kids in my primary class. I saw something similar in a book that I borrowed from my MIL and decided to give it my own twist. I love how they turned out.

Inside I put a few plastic eggs filled with bunny marshmallows and a little flower pot with a packet of seeds (since our lesson is on being thankful for trees, plants & flowers I thought this would be fun for them to take home).

TMOC Part 3: Cookbook

2010-03-25T08:48:00.000-07:00

My husband and I started dating when I was 17 (he was 22...and given the whole situation, it's a miracle my parents agreed to let us go out, but that's another story all together). He is the oldest of 6 and happens to have a sister just my age (really, our birthdays are just one month apart). In my family growing up, once you turned 10 you had to learn how to do grown-up chores, like mow the lawn and cook and clean. So I had a good 7 years of cooking under my belt when I met his family. Needless to say, I was a little shocked that his sister didn't really know how to cook much. So for Christmas two years ago, since she was no longer living at home, I made her a cookbook. It was compiled of recipes that were all either fast, easy or super cheap (or all of the above). To top it all off, I tried each recipe out first to make sure it wasn't disgusting and took pictures of each one to put in the cookbook. One of the things I hate about cookbooks is that they get professional food stagers and photographers to make the food look perfect. Mine rarely looks like the pictures!

Anyway, she liked it so much that this past October she asked if I was going to be making her another cookbook for Christmas. Hmm...I hadn't really thought of that and it was WAY too late in the year to be taking on something like that (at least for the way I like to do it). After that comment I decided I would make her another cookbook for this Christmas. And I already have an idea (or two) for next year's installment in her series of cookbooks.

So this month I have been compiling and testing and photographing recipes for a cookbook. Since I haven't done any of the computer work on this yet, I don't have anything to show for it. So here are a few pictures of things I included in the last cookbook I made for her.

Grilled Cheese BLT

BBQ Chicken Potatoes

Baked Steak Burritos

This will probably take up two or three months in my TMOC. Maybe next time I'll share a few of the new recipes.
p.s. Sorry for all the background info...sometimes I ramble.

McKlinky is now up

2010-03-20T07:28:00.000-07:00

Sorry guys. I totally spaced it yesterday and forgot to add the McKlinky to week 3 of the Round-Up. It is up and running now...so get to showing off! :)

The Mop-Up Round-Up: Week 3

2010-03-19T09:30:00.000-07:00

Three weeks down, one to go! I am doing great getting things accomplished. But before I show off the fruits of my labor, I thought I would show off some of yours. There haven't been very many projects linked up...and by that I mean 4. Yep, only 4 so I'll show them all to you! Ready? Here we go!
Shannon over at Quarry Orchard recycled an old *kind of creepy* piece of art from this:

To this:

She also made some lovely sisal covered styrofoam balls.

Next up is Summer from Sumo's Sweet Stuff and she shared a tutorial for an easy baby book:

as well as an ingenious storage solution. Yep, those are gift boxes covered in fabric.

Now for what I've been working on this week.
Projects #1 & 2 - Red Corduroy Skirts
I actually made the skirts before Christmas but just got around to adding the super cute flowers (as well as the hook & eye on mine).

Project #3 - Paper Holder
Remember this post? Of course you don't (that was FOREVER ago!). Anyway, I finally got around to finishing the one I started...also before Christmas. Notice a theme for this week? :)

The Domesticated Skirt

2010-03-18T12:00:00.000-07:00

As soon as I saw this skirt

*The Domesticated Skirt*

over at Sew A Straight Line I knew I had to try my hand at it. Well it just so happened that my mom wanted to go to Joann that same morning, so off we went in search of three unsuspecting fabrics. I am very pleased with the final outcome.

And I happened to have enough left over for this:

What can I say? I like when we match. :)

I've got a few ideas to tweak it a little bit to help the inside wrapped part stay inside. I'll give an update if I find a solution that I like.

I also have a few projects in mind for some of the scraps, but it might be a while before I get to them.

Clover Candles

2010-03-17T14:50:00.000-07:00

I saw these candles on the Martha Stewart website that had blades of grass glued to them. I like the look but came up with an idea that I like even better. I glued clovers to my candles instead of grass...and I love them! They make me smile every time I walk by them. I just used a glue stick (like Martha suggests) to attach the clovers and then put a coat of Mod Podge over them for protection (I have no idea if they are safe to burn, you'd have to ask Amy, but I have no intention of burning them anyway). I also tried using Mod Podge in place of the glue stick, but it wasn't any easier and a little bit messier...so I would stick with the glue stick.

Pictures are up

2010-03-16T21:59:00.001-07:00

I finally got around to uploading pics for week #2 of the Round-Up.

Mop-Up Round Up Week Two

2010-03-12T05:23:00.000-08:00

Week two was not as productive as week one for me as far as crafting goes. We spent the last several days trying to learn how to use the potty and boy is it exhausting! Here is my round up for this week:

Project 1 - Luck Wreath

Wait, you can't see the wreath in this picture. That's what I get for trying to take a pic while hubby was in the room! He thinks it looks like he has a halo over his head.

Project 2 - Case for body pillow
I made this using leftovers of the sheet set that I turned into curtains and a bed skirt.

The Mop-Up Round-Up: Week 1

2010-03-05T05:00:00.000-08:00

Well, this was definitely the motivation I needed to get things done! I was very productive this week (although I'm not going to share everything I accomplished just yet...we're starting potty training soon, so I probably won't get much done that week but still want to have something to share with you all).

Mop-Up #1 - Bow Wreath
I LOVE ribbon wreaths and especially love the look of this one. Although I think it still needs something...I'm just not sure what. I know that it is no where near Christmas, but this ribbon was taken off of Christmas packages (I just can't bring myself to throw it away) and seeing it in the box on my floor, well, I just couldn't resist.

Mop-Up #2 - Bloomers Turned Skirt
I love the paisley fabric, but the shape of these bloomers was not made for my child. So, I whacked off the bottom (which was only about 1/2" in the longest part) and added some ruffled eyelet fabric along with a little eyelet flower and now it is a cutie skirt!

*please excuse the poor "before" picture...this was actually taken after I had sewn the eyelet ruffle along the bottom, but hopefully you get the picture of how they looked*

Mop-Up #3 & #4 - Shirt Turned Skirt
Yes, I have a thing right now for making skirts for my little girl. I'll have done 5 by the time the Mop-Up is over! These were hand-me-downs from my sister's neighbor. I always liked the pattern of the fabric, but I didn't love they way they looked on her. So after being inspired by Disney (specifically this post) I decided that those shirts were about to meet the sewing machine.

Now it's your turn! Link up some of the projects you finished this week! I can't wait to see them and next week I plan on showing off some of your accomplishments as well.

Introducing....

2010-02-28T20:24:00.000-08:00

I have a little confession to make...I have a hard time finishing projects. You see, by the time I get 75-90% of the way done with something I can see the final results in my head. Since I can already "see" how it looks, I decide that it is time to move on to something else. As I was writing down all of my "almost finished projects" I was kind of disgusted and disappointed in myself that I had that many! How many would that be, you ask? ELEVEN! That is only counting things that I have actually started, and not anything that has been on my to-do list for quite some time. That may not seem like a lot to you, but for me it is! So, in an effort to finish things up I'm dedicating the month of March as the...

MARCH MOP-UP!

*Mop-up: Perform the minor tasks that conclude a project or activity (definition courtesy of answers.com)

My goal is to finish at least three projects each week and post my results on Fridays. I would love for you all to join me, so I'll be adding a MckLinky each week for you to show off what you've accomplished. I can't wait to see your results! The first MckLinky will go up on Friday morning, so get crackin'!

EDITED TO ADD:
I got the March Mop-Up button up & working and I would love for you to put one on your blog! You can copy the code below, or from the top right of my blog. And I've already finished three of my projects today! Hooray!