Rainy Tuesday Mornings

Crayon Roll for Twist-up Crayons

2011-12-30T11:23:00.000-08:00

Mushroom and Fairy Crayon Roll

Since Hannah has upgraded from "regular" crayons to twist up crayons, I decided to make her a new crayon roll. I used the tutorial from Skip to my Lou, but changed the dimensions to fit the twist up crayons.

The pockets for each crayon are 3/4" wide

I also added two additional pockets, one at 3/4" for a pencil, and this one at 1" for a twist up eraser.

I used a 1/4" seam allowance on the entire piece.

Outer Piece & Lining - 11.25" long and 8" tall

Inner Pocket - 11.25" long and 10" tall (folded in half so it measures 11.25" long and 5" tall

20" piece of cording and a cord stop

If you are just making one for 12 twist up crayons without the extra slots then it would measure 9.5" long (instead of 11.25" long)

Hannah's is SO into mushrooms right now this this fabric worked perfect!

The little fairies are cute too.

All rolled up which fits nicely into my purse, for drawing at restaurants.

The cord stop keeps everything nice and tight so no crayons slip out.

Hammered Spoon Place Settings

2011-12-02T13:41:00.000-08:00

Finished Spoons!

Used for Place Settings!

I saw this idea on Pinterest and decided to make it for Thanksgiving, not realizing how hard it would be! I ordered the stamping set from the recommended place on the tutorial, however I would not order from them again.

I was overcharged for shipping (items shipped in a flat rate box) and the heavy items were only packaged with (free) cut up USPS boxes, no bubble wrap or protective packaging of any kind. Everything arrived unharmed except for the plastic case the stamps were housed in, which was badly damaged.

I found the exact same set at my local Harbor Freight for half price (on sale), normally $2.00 less for regular price AND no shipping costs. The seller also claims that the stamps would last through 9000 stampings, but I only got about 5 stamps out of the letter "D".

You can see that the "D" is all smashed on one side and will not leave a good impression. To the sellers credit, he told me to return the letter and he'd send me a new one.

Here are some tips that I hope will help those who might have this on their "to do" list.

1. Use CHEAP/NOT QUALITY spoons. I went for pretty first, buying spoons at my local thrift store. Even though they were cheap in price, they were good quality spoons. Surprisingly, even nice things get donated.

We went with .50 spoons from target, but they wouldn't flatten. Who makes a quality spoon for .50?!? We finally went with .10 spoons from our local Restaurant Supply store. If the spoon bends easily you're in good shape.

2. Make sure you have extra spoons. I ended up with 16 finished names, and used 36 spoons!

(yes, I messed up 20 spoons) Luckily I had bought 48 spoons.

3. Have the right supplies. Quality Stamping Set, Hammer, Sledge Hammer, Metal Block, Tape and Cheap Spoons

4. Use a metal block and small sledgehammer for flatting your spoons.

Here's the side by side of a regular spoon and a flatten spoon.

Here's what happens when you use the concrete front porch steps to flatten spoons

(instead of a metal block)

The spoon gets all scratched up too.

5. Use a Metal Block to stamp your spoons. Wood and other materials have too much "give" and won't make a good impression.

6. Use tape to hold your block and spoon down.

Every time the hammer hit the stamp, my metal block would "jump" and move the stamp slightly, resulting in this effect.

7. Make sure you are stamping on the correct side. Since your spoon is flat, it's easy to make that mistake. Note spoon below.

8. Test out your letters on a "practice spoon". My J would get a great impression on the bottom, but not on the top. The spoon above became one of my (many) practice spoons...

9. Make sure your stamp is facing the correct way. The "S" below is upside down, but since it's an "S", it didn't make a huge difference.

10. You can use a thin sharpie to accent the letters. You can also use the sharpie to fill in where you might not have gotten a good enough impression. (like the "A" and "N" in the spoon above)

Without Sharpie...

With Sharpie.

11. Space out your stamping. I had 16 names to do and with my mistakes, it ended up being a lot more. Had I more time I would do about 5 a day. My hand was red and shaking after about 5, so I took about an hour break in between stampings.

12. It won't be perfect, and be ok with that (something I'm not too good at). After all, the imperfections are part of the charm and character of the spoon.

I also made a "Baby" one since one of the moms is pregnant :)

Everyone LOVED the spoons which made all the struggles worth every second!

Quilt for Madelyn

2011-11-27T13:20:00.000-08:00

Finished Quilt!!

After seeing the quilt I made for my sister, my sister-in-law requested one for her soon to be born baby girl. I started on the quilt BEFORE the baby was born... but didn't finish it in time :(

I finally got it done and will deliver it during our Thanksgiving visit. (although I have this post scheduled to post AFTER I give it to her!)

I used the "Vintage Baby Quilt" pattern again which I love!

The quilt pattern has rows of squares in a 14x14 pattern, and I had 14 different colors/designs of fabric for the squares. This made it perfect for laying out the squares without having to repeat any pattern in a row. I thought I could do this myself, but after I was 90% done laying out the squares, realized that I messed up somewhere and couldn't fit the last few squares in their rows without there being a duplicate pattern in the same row. I know I could have left it, but I wanted it to be perfect...

SO I turned to Suduko!

I found this Sudoku Site and printed out a 14x14 finished puzzle.

Then labeled my fabric.

To correspond with each letter in the puzzle

It made the process MUCH easier!

I crossed out each row as I laid them down

All done with the layout!

On the picture above there is a huge white strip on the right because the backing wasn't as big as the white cotton!

Luckily it just fit!!

And the finished quilt!!

The back..

the closeup...

and the binding.

I love the colors in this quilt and I know my sister-in-law will love it too!

Style from the Past

2011-11-22T21:57:00.000-08:00

My little model

A few months ago, my mom sent me this outfit of mine. My best friend's mother made it for me probably when I was 6 or 7. My mom thought it would be fun to see Hannah in it. I am so glad she saved it, I love this little outfit! My mom promised that one day she'll go through the old photos and pull out the ones of me wearing this outfit.

Hannah thought she looked pretty cute in it.

You can tell these pictures are from April

(there's the Easter baskets!)

I love the waistband detail.

Thanks mom for saving everything!

T-Shirts for Max

2011-11-18T19:48:00.001-08:00

Finished Shirts!

I made these back in April for a friend of my daughters. He did get them on his birthday... I just haven't blog it until now!

I searched the internet for some graphics that would work on shirts.

I used freezer paper and then painted the design with craft paint.

I think the shirts turned out looking just like the originals, although it was harder than I anticipated.

Of course it would have been easier to just give him 3 store bought shirts, but I like the idea that he now has 3 one of a kind items!

Edison Quotes

2011-11-06T18:49:00.000-08:00

Finished Art

I made these three art pieces for my Dad's birthday which was in June. He received them in August when we went to visit, but I'm just blogging about it now.

I originally wanted to buy this from etsy, but the $70.00 price tag (plus shipping to Hawaii!) wouldn't work for me. So I settled and bought this wooden board from Hobby Lobby to use for my quote.

Each board measured approximately 8x10. Knowing I was going to put this in a suitcase to take to Hawaii, I didn't want to get much bigger than this. Because the 8x10 was a lot smaller than the original piece I wanted to buy, I decided that one wasn't enough and I bought 3 boards for 3 different quotes.

There were about $2.00 each, had wonderful edges AND the holes in the back for hanging!

I painted each board black.

I used the Outdoor Opaque, since he lives in such a wet climate, I wanted to make sure the boards were durable.

I used the silhouette, and cut out my 3 quotes with cream vinyl.

(The vinyl is not smeared or fuzzy, it's just my camera)

I was a little sad, that the vinyl didn't stick like I thought it would. I don't know if it was the paint I used or the vinyl itself. My dad said he would spray each board with a clear coat of some kind... something I didn't want to do before packing the boards in the suitcase.

Quote 2

Quote 3: The original inspiration

My dad LOVED the gift, and each quote had a special meaning for him.

31

2011-09-25T14:20:00.000-07:00

Finished Pumpkin

I saw this idea from Family Circle October 2011 issue. I LOVED the white 31 pumpkin and downloaded the template for it from the Family Circle website.

I bought an off-white "Funkin" (fake pumpkin) from my local craft store.

I didn't have the specialty rub-on paper to make the pumpkin in an easy one step process, so I created a cheaper 3 step process...

1. I printed out the 31 on my ink jet printer and was able to rub enough of the ink on so that I could see the number on the pumpkin. I used a Popsicle stick for the rubbing.

2. I tested my sharpie on the bottom of the pumpkin to check for any bleeding effects. The sharpie worked great with no bleeding, so I used the thin sharpie to outline my rub-on.

3. Using my thicker sharpie, I filled in the number 31. I am loving the end result!

Bring on Halloween!

Appliqued Shirts

2011-08-29T15:41:00.000-07:00

Finished Shirts!

While browsing my favorite blogs, I found this post with a lot of really cute appliqued shirts. I made these in July before my trip to Hawaii. They are for my sister's baby and I wanted to take them with me, so I wouldn't have to ship them. I knew the first one would have an elephant on it because my sister loves elephants.

I found this clipart of an elephant

and changed the trunk a bit.

Into this.

(I wanted to add a little heart above the trunk and thought this design would work great.)

I cut the entire thing out of blank paper before cutting it out of fabric. This would give me a better idea of how it would look without some of the details on the internet version. Sometimes I have a hard time visualizing the end product so this helps.

I used Wonder Under to attach it to the shirt and then zigzaged around the edges.

I added a button eye.

and here's the super cute tail in the back!

I love birds, and since I'm not an artist, I had to scour the internet for a clipart that would work.

I found these cuties.

I enlarged the green bird and printed it out.

Here's the finished bird!

Of course when I gave these to my sister, I received lots of love, which is another benefit of delivering them in person!

Job Jars Redo

2011-07-12T20:45:00.000-07:00

"New" Job Jars

I made some job jars a few months ago. I had one color for weekly jobs and another color for monthly jars. Each day the kids would pick a weekly job to do and then on Saturday we would pick a monthly job to do. The problem that we had was children selectively picking which jobs they wanted to do, or forgetting the "normal" things they need to do daily like put away clothes or pickup toys. So I came up with this redo.

Each child still has their own jar, but these are the "new" sticks. The sticks in each jar are daily jobs and must be completed before any playtime. Doing all the items in the jar should take more than an hour, so doing them before playtime shouldn't be a big deal. The "Mom's Choice" stick is an idea from another blog. The "Mom's Choice" might be a monthly job to do (green sticks) or to put away the recycles or take out the trash. Some days it might even be a fun treat instead of a job.

These are for Ernest...

On the back of the "Job" stick is a list of his jobs to do. Since he is here for only part of the week, he only has 3 jobs listed.

Here are Hannah's jobs

Here are her three jobs to do on the same days that Ernest does his jobs. On the days that Ernest is not here, she will do his "Swish and Swipe" job.

I don't have a jar for my "jobs" (I think it would be too full!) I just listed them in my Google Calendar. I (and the kids) will do one house cleaning job a day, this way the entire house gets cleaned each week without having to dedicate an entire day to cleaning.

We still have the monthly jobs to do. We will still pick one of these each weekend (this will be a "Mom's Choice") and we'll work on the job together. This way the jobs that don't need to get done every week, will still get done in a timely manner.

I decided to keep them on my computer desk so that I see them every day and we won't forget to do them!!

4th of July Shirt

2011-07-04T18:36:00.000-07:00

2nd Attempt (it's a keeper!)

I made a 4th of July shirt last year from the Makes and Takes tutorial. UNFORTUNATELY, I did not test the red t-shirt fabric first, and when I wash it, the red dye transferred all over the shirt!

This year I wanted to make the "girl" shirt again, but had SO much trouble with the gathering and sewing the ruffles onto the knit shirt, that I finally gave up and made the "boy" design.

The button stars are perfect for the shirt.

Even though it's the "boy" design, Hannah loves it!

Recycle Bag Redo

2011-07-03T20:40:00.000-07:00

"New" Recycle Bags

I made a set of Reusable Recycle Bags a while back and

washed one of them soon after and it shrunk... BADLY!

I put off washing the rest of the bags as long as I could!

Finally I could wait no longer and washed them all.

Due to the 2" shrinkage, the (once cute) arrows looked horrible.

I removed all the "old" arrows..

...bought some cute fabric from Brown Paper Packages

...and used that to create new arrows.

I love the fabric that says "love a tree", "good earth", etc.

I did add a couple special items to two of the bags.

This little "recycle" tag

and the little birdie perched on top one of the arrows.

I love how they turned out and that I can use them again!

Flannel Rag Quilt for Baby

2011-04-05T15:47:00.000-07:00

Finished Rag Quilt

While my sister-in-law Julie was visiting she requested that we make a baby blanket for her baby due in September. We used the tutorial from Just Enough Style for the blanket.

We picked gender neutral colors because she doesn't know if she's having a boy or a girl.

I think it turned out great!

Pinch Proof T-Shirt

2011-03-17T13:45:00.000-07:00

Pinch Proof for St. Patrick's Day!

I followed the tutorial from Skip to My Lou to make this t-shirt for Hannah.

Retro Dishes

2011-03-16T18:52:00.000-07:00

I bought these dishes from Savers.

They were about $2.00 each set, for a grand total of $8.58.

I love them!

Jeff says they're Grandma dishes...

I say they're retro.

Tile - Tic Tac Toe

2011-03-07T17:54:00.000-08:00

I saw this idea at Lowes and knew Hannah would love it. When her friend Max came over they did this craft together.

Hannah couldn't find any "natural" tiles that she liked to use for this project, so we decided to go with a 6x6 white tile. The black and white mosaic piece was on clearance and because there so many missing and broken pieces, they gave it to me for half off, so total cost for the tiles was $1.78

I had some leftover sticky back felt....

that we cut up and put on the back of the tile.

This was it won't scratch any surface you play on.

I drew the black straight lines on the white 6x6 tile with a black sharpie and a ruler.

I let the kids use all the other colors for decorating.

Max chose a simple design

Hannah chose a more ~~interesting~~ intricate design.

Her board

Her tiles

The kids had a great time with this and especially loved drawing with sharpies!

Polka Dot Elephant

2011-02-25T15:15:00.000-08:00

Polka Dot Elephant

I made this for my sister's new baby, and delivered it to her during my December 2010 Hawaii trip.

I used Simplicity 2613 with polka dot minky fabric for ultra softness.

I also added the "p.s. I love you" tag

My sister loved it so much, I'm not sure the baby is ever getting to play with it!

Piggie and Gerald

2011-02-23T15:39:00.000-08:00

Elephant and Piggie

Hannah LOVES these Elephant and Piggie books by Mo Willems.

so we set out to make our own Piggie and Gerald

Here's Piggie...

and Gerald

of course they are not exact, but I am not creative enough to design something myself,

so I used the Simplicity 2613 pattern.

I think they came out pretty close

don't you think?

Hannah has her own set, but these were a gift for a very special girl who turned one a few ~~days~~ months ago!

Valentines Chair Backer

2011-02-22T09:33:00.000-08:00

(some of the pictures were taken in different lighting situations, so the photo above is the true color of the bag)
Valentines Mail Bags!

I found this amazing tutorial of a Pottery Barn Kids Valentine Chair Backer or Valentines Mail Bag. I knew I needed to make one for Hannah. Then realized that we have another little girl in our family (my sister's baby) who would also love one. So I ended up making two!

Here is my fabric. I made sure to buy washable felt, just in case... I also pre-washed the fabric, to minimize shrinkage.

Hannah picked this one.

It has the white heart and red lining. It also has covered buttons made with the red fabric.

This one is Aliyah's.

Her's has the red heart...

the white lining, and buttons from my grandma

They both are perfect for hanging on the back of a chair and filling with Valentines treats!

They both have buttons from my Grandma on the back...

and working buttonholes.

The buttons on the front of the bag are just decorative, it is velcro that keeps the bags closed.

It makes for easy access to Valentines goodies!

I added some hand stitching with embroidery thread on both. I love the detailed look of it.

...and both have a p.s. I Love You tag on the inside

They were both finished the evening of February 13th, and since I had to mail Aliyah's she won't be able to use her bag until next year. Luckily she is only 3 1/2 months old and has many years left to use it!

3D Heart Card

2011-02-18T13:44:00.000-08:00

Perfect for Valentines!

This idea came from Little Birdie Secrets and her easy note card tutorial. I made sure that my papers were pink and red (for Valentines), but I love how all Little Birdie Secrets used such a variety of papers!

I used 4 different patterned papers and used my Silhouette to cut out the hearts.

I stitched using pink in the front

and cream thread in the back.

I hoped it would make the thread a little less noticeable, but it didn't help that much.

Job Jars

2011-02-17T13:25:00.000-08:00

Job Jars

Hannah has been asking to do jobs around the house for a few weeks now. Of course I wanted something fairly cute, so using some Ikea jars I found at Goodwill and some craft sticks, this is what I came up with. The sticks fit in the jars, and the jars sit on a basket/tray that my mom gave me. The tray has been around ever since I can remember, and she let me take it home with me after our Hawaii trip. It works perfectly for holding our little jars.

There is one "To Do" jar that holds all the job sticks. The Red are weekly chores and the Blue are monthly chores. I didn't bother with daily, because we're already good with that. Each person has their own jar with their initial on it. Jeff and Takeshi are exempt because both of them have "real" jobs (Jeff also takes care of the pool).

Each day we take out a red stick and then Friday or Saturday we also pick a blue stick.

Weekly Chores:

Wash Kitchen Trash Can
Clean Mirrors
Refill Soap Dispensers
Dust
Wash Kitchen Floor (Sweep Kitchen Floor is a daily chore)
Clean Stainless Steel
Wash Down Kitchen Cupboards
Sweet Bathroom Floors
Vacuum Stairs and Upstairs (Vacuum Downstairs is a daily chore)
Clean Bathroom (there are 3 of these, since there are 3 bathrooms)

Monthly Chores:

Wash Kitchen Counters (This is more of a deep clean, where everything gets moved and EVERYTHING gets cleaned)
Clean Patio
Wash Walls (fingerprints, etc)
Dust Ceiling Fans
Wash Tile Floors
Clean Baseboards
Wash Light Switches
Wash Out Fridge
Wipe Down Doors
Wash Stair Railing

There are still many chores that Hannah and I have to do together, but Ernest can handle any of these on his own.

Emergency Pocket Kit - Round 2

2011-01-27T15:02:00.000-08:00

My sister Jenny requested another Emergency Pocket Kit that I had made for her. I didn't realize how hard it would be to find square potholders! I went to 5 different stores, 3 of which were kitchen specialty stores. They had rectangles, ovals and mittens... no squares. I finally found the 2 above at a thrift store. Thank goodness!

I seriously wanted to keep the red flowered potholder for myself!

It's the perfect colors for my kitchen :)

But I caved and made them both for her.

She's going to love them!

Tutorial here

Heirloom Dolls

2011-01-25T15:04:00.000-08:00

Dolls from my Mom

The girl doll above was a gift to my mom from me when I was a teenager, and the other my mom bought for herself. From day one, she kept them in a prominent place on her bedroom shelf. I loved them both and was always so proud that she cherished my gift so much.

On our recent trip to Hawaii, my mom wanted to know if I wanted to take them home. Of course I said yes!! Their outfits were a little dull after 20+ years on their shelf, so I washed them when I got home. The pictures on the left is AFTER they were washed, which didn't really help at all. So I got out my Shaklee "Nature Bright® Laundry Booster and Stain Remover" and soaked them for 6 hours. The picture on the right is AFTER they were soaked and washed in the Laundry Booster. It worked great!

The overalls are still a little faded, but it took out all the the brown!

Now the dolls have a fresh look and a new home :)

Vinyl Letters (Silhouette Project)

2011-01-25T11:47:00.000-08:00

Red and White Wheat

This past Friday we had Leisa Card guest speak in our ward about her book "I Dare You to Eat It". We wanted to set up a small display, so I decided to use some old milk bottles and fill them with wheat. Then I used my **new** Silhouette and cut out some cream vinyl to make letters (font is Santa's Sleigh) for the bottles. I think they turned out super cute and it was very easy to do!

Sorry I didn't get a picture of the completed display, we were too busy setting up for the presentation!

Button Display

2011-01-23T08:00:00.000-08:00

Love the buttons!!

While visiting my sister, her new baby and my mom in Hawaii, my mom let me look through her buttons. My mom, Hannah and I spent hours looking through her extensive collection, and then she let Hannah and I pick out our favorites! I knew I didn't want to use the buttons on an outfit, but instead I wanted to display them somehow. These buttons are from my grandma and my mom, and all have special meanings. My mom told me how she remembers her mom wearing the coat or dress that these buttons came from. I even added a few buttons from some of Hannah's clothes, a button from an outfit I wore when I was a teenager, and one of the buttons from my Dad's Aloha shirts. What could be better than that?

I couldn't find any shadow boxes that I wanted to use, so I ended up getting an "8 Opening Collage Frame" from Wal-Mart.

I put up paper so I could make sure of the placement before nailing holes into the wall.

The smaller papers were for my Thread Storage

I then laid out the buttons on the frame to get an idea of how I wanted it to look.

I cut out black card stock into 4x6 sizes and fit them into each of the frames.

Since this frame wasn't a shadowbox, I had to remove the glass because of the depth of the buttons.

I used different size and thickness of Glue Dots to stick the buttons onto the card stock.

I also put this quote from President Uchtdorf, that I found in his talk "Happiness, Your Heritage"

*font is Santa's Sleigh

My favorite are the reds and oranges

I just love that there is thread still on some of them!!

Here is my sewing wall!! I'm VERY happy with the finished product!

Thread Storage

2011-01-17T08:00:00.000-08:00

photo by Crazy Mom Quilts

I saw the above idea by Crazy Mom Quilts and LOVED it!! I didn't think I would be lucky enough to find something similar in a thrift store, so I started searching the craft stores. I found a "Collector's Treasure Frame" at Joanns that would be PERFECT for my thread!! I originally bought one, but realized that if I bought any more thread, I would need a second one.

Here's the insert that was in the frame/shadowbox. Sorry, I didn't remember to take a picture before I set it all up.

I taped pieces of paper together and then taped them to the wall to make sure of the placement before nailing holes in the walls.

I love the way it looks!! *

The frames/shadowboxes had glass covering the fronts, but obviously I had to remove those completely.

I also put some sticky tack on the back of each frame to hold it to the wall securely. I don't want the entire display falling down when I thread out of the frame!

*You'll have to wait until Sunday to find out what the last paper is for ;)

We ARE Cool!!

2011-01-15T08:00:00.000-08:00

I never planned on posting about this, mostly because I thought everyone would think I was weird (or weirder than I already am). However... today I feel validated. On MADE, Dana (who's very popular, cool & hip) blogged about this (well... a form of it anyway).

You see, every time the girls in the family get together we play Rummikub.
We take each game very seriously, and a few years ago I made a book so we could keep score.

This book has seen a lot of entries

and I included some rub ons to make it even sweeter :)

One day we (my mom and I) decided it would be very funny if the winner of each game received a trophy. Not a "real" trophy, but a toilet paper roll trophy. I think it was her idea, so she could laugh at the winner when they received a toilet paper roll as their "prize". (poor mom doesn't win very often) lol

So our quest had begun. I decided that decorated toilet paper rolls were the way to go, and made this one :)

Here's a closeup

SO on my trip to Hawaii I scored a few of these babies!!
Decorated in cool awesome fabric squares from an estate sale!

I left a note for my sister, just in case she got jealous and tried to steal my trophies!

Then... she left me THIS note!

THIS is the huge basket that she's talking about. HOWEVER, I must point out, that these trophies are not hers, but are waiting to be won. (by me.. hehe) This phenomena has gotten everyone involved. My mom has friends and co-workers who are now saving toilet paper rolls for her and giving her decorating advice!

Hannah was inaugurated on this trip. She won a game and was told what her "prize" was. She was NOT thrilled until she saw the one and only paper towel roll. She said "Oh Yea!" and then picked out her decorations :)

Resistance is futile

New Sewing Box

2011-01-14T11:28:00.000-08:00

quick picture from my iPhone

Right after the new year Hannah and I went to Joanns for some shopping. She saw the sewing box display and knew she had to have one! We probably spent 45 minutes looking over all the boxes until she knew she had picked the right one. She bought it with her own money and she absolutely loves it! It now has buttons from Grandma's house, some ribbon and pins. LOVE that girl!!

Perfect Pillowcases

2011-01-13T15:37:00.000-08:00

Birthday List

Hannah was SO upset when she realized Ernest's birthday was the next day and she didn't have a present for him. I told her not to worry, and she got busy making a list of things she would want to buy for him. The fabric (last on the list) we turned into two pillowcases for him. He really needed them...

His old pillowcases have holes by all the seams

and the ends are frayed and coming apart!

Here's our finished product! Hannah saw this fabric at the store and knew immediately that Ernest would love it. It's a soft flannel, is the color blue and is a Hawaiian type pattern. She made one pillowcase and I made the other.

She even picked the ribbon as a nice contrast.

I didn't follow any pattern, I just took his old pillowcase and used the measurements from that.

Vintage Baby Blanket

2011-01-07T22:19:00.000-08:00

Finished Quilt for Aliyah!

Originally I was going to have this quilt ready for my sister when she came to visit in August. It didn't get done in time, so then I decided I would make it and have it ready before the baby was born. It didn't get done in time for that either! I finally got it done in time to take to Hawaii when I went to visit baby Aliyah and Stefanie in December. Better late than never, and my sister loves it too!

Pattern is "Vintage Baby Quilt" by YoYo Mama Designs and fabric is Moda "Love U" Jelly Roll.

The jelly roll made it SO easy to cut out 196 2 1/2 squares. I took multiple strips and lined them up on my cutting mat. Since the jelly roll is fabric already cut into 2 1/2 wide strips, I only had to cut them in one direction. I have enough squares to make 2 more blankets!

To make the quilt, you need to draw on the background fabric with a washable fabric marker. Mine did NOT come off all the way when I washed it! I'm hoping after a few washes, it will come off entirely.

Of course you can't see the blue lines unless you're up close.

I absolutely love the little frayed edges!

and the binding...

and the backing.

I think my favorite is the p.s. I Love You!!

Nursing Covers

2011-01-07T21:48:00.000-08:00

Designer Fabric is a Must!

My sister had her baby in November and asked for a couple of nursing covers. I found a quick tutorial on Diary of a Quilter and used that. The only changes I would make is to cut the ties 3" wide instead of 3.5" and to use the 1 1/4 D rings. I felt the 3/4 D rings were too small.

The nursing covers went together very quickly!

Here's the finished edges of both nursing covers.

Not surprisingly, nursing covers don't photograph well.

Here's the best shot that I could get ;)

Visiting Teaching Gifts

2010-12-13T21:08:00.000-08:00

I saw this cute idea on How Does She? and thought it would be perfect for the girls that we Visit Teach each month!

The font on the tag is Santa's Sleigh from dafont.com

Monogrammed Hand Sanitizer

2010-12-03T16:16:00.001-08:00

Christmas Gifts for Hannah's Teacher

Infarrantly Creative has a great tutorial for Hand Sanitizer or Liquid Soap gifts. Your Homebased Mom also has a cute "hands" idea, but there is no downloadable version. I bought the Target brand of hand sanitizer and Office Depot let me buy just a few sheets of transparencies from their copy center at .40 each. I'm sure Hannah's teachers will love their personalized gifts.

I might need to make myself a monogrammed hand soap!

"Lil Blue Boo" UNLV Dress

2010-11-20T15:22:00.001-08:00

From this....

to this!!

Hannah has been wanting to watch a "real" basketball game with her daddy for a long time! Jeff bought season tickets for the UNLV games, and today was Hannah's first chance to go with him. I thought it this inaugural event deserved a special "One-of-a-Kind" UNLV dress. I bought the Recycled T-Shirt Sienna Dress pattern from Lil Blue Boo, and found 2 UNLV shirts at the Thrift Store. The Red one had holes in the front right where the Rebels logo is, however I still wanted to use it for the ruffle and sleeves.

Grey Shirt - $4.99

Red Shirt - .99

Pink Shirt - .99

Total - $6.97

A great price for a One-of-a-Kind dress!

Closeup of the neckline.... I'm sure some of these stitches popped when I put the dress over her head. The neck was a tad small for her!

I absolutely LOVE how it turned out!

At the game - She looks GREAT!!

And, I still have enough red for another set of sleeves and a neckline. I also have the long sleeve from the gray shirt with Rebels printed on it. I'm planning on using this as a ruffle on the next one :)

Button Magnets (blogged by Hannah)

2010-11-12T15:27:00.001-08:00

This picture is the creator and it is Hannah Casey

We saw this at Quiltique, and we made our own. This is how we made it. We got buttons and then we got the sizes together and then we glued them with a hot glue gun. And then we glued it on the magnet.

This is the side view, which for you to see the magnet part

It holds up pictures too.

*blogged and worded by Hannah (age 5) and typed by Mama

Tie Rattle Snakes

2010-11-06T10:29:00.001-07:00

Hannah and Max with their new "friends"

I don't like snakes, but these guys are cute. We followed the tutorial from Skip to My Lou to make these fun snakes. The kids didn't want fat tails, so we didn't stuff the ends of the snakes. I would have loved to make the rattle part for the tail, but we didn't have any tiny containers to fit in the tails... maybe I'll look for some cheap ties at Goodwill, and make some more when I can get a little container. Max's snake was decorated from a previous project, so it's covered with fun stuff. They also went a little crazy for the stick on eyes. Max's snake even has an eye on it's belly!

We have a couple of Alien Snakes!

I think it's safe to say they love their snakes!

Red Letter Words Knockoff

2010-11-05T08:00:00.000-07:00

Games People Play by Red Letter Words

I have had "Games People Play" on my wish list for over a year now. I adore games, love playing them and have an entire closet full of them! I thought this sign would be perfect, but I haven't bought it because I just don't want to pay $55.00 for it. This week at DecorChick, they are having a giveaway for... Red Letter Words! I was so excited and entered as many ways possible.

Hannah saw what I was doing and I showed her which sign I wanted. So she got busy and made me this!

It's perfect!

Halloween Costume

2010-10-31T13:40:00.000-07:00

Cute fabrics from Etsy

In the beginning of October, Hannah and I went to Joanns to look at costume patterns. We looked at princesses, fairies, and all other girly costumes. Hannah decided she wanted the princess costume....

and since the patterns were only .99 each, I decided I would also buy the fairy costume.

We came home and Hannah saw this pattern.

So that what I made for her! We are not sure *exactly* what she is, but we've narrowed it down to Court Jester/Joker/Harlequin

I don't think it really matters, since she loves it! Happy Halloween!

p.s. I also made the mask, but it doesn't work too well with glasses.

The First 5 Year Old Sewer

2010-10-28T19:42:00.000-07:00

LaLa

During the summer I taught sewing to 3 girls. Hannah saw how much fun we were having and decided that she would like to sew as well. In September, she sewed a few things all by herself, such as a little 4 patch "blanket" and a beef jerky holder for her brothers. While she was sewing she asked me "Am I the first 5 year old sewer?" Of course I said yes, because I don't know of any other 5 years olds who can sew.

She decided she wanted to do more, and seriously, I was thrilled! We went to the fabric store and she picked out a few patterns that were "easy" level. Then she saw this simplicity pattern that I had made a few animals from. She decided that she wanted to make the giraffe.

She picked out some scrap fabric that I had, and she ended up with LaLa (that's her giraffe's name). I cut LaLa out of the fabric, but Hannah did all the machine sewing with ~~lots~~ some guiding of her fingers by me. Hannah and I both stuffed LaLa, and I hand stitched her up.

I think LaLa turned out SUPER cute!

Skirt with a Border Print

2010-10-20T21:28:00.000-07:00

Tillbrook Fabric by Alexander Henry

With the Girly Skirt by Pink Fig, I used this fabric by Alexander Henry to make a border print skirt. I couldn't resist these flower fairies! So cute!

I did not use the bottom border piece from the Girly Skirt pattern, instead I just used the middle skirt piece and lengthened it.

Here's the waistband piece. I love the mushrooms!

Hannah loves her skirt! The best part was how fast it came together!

p.s. I used the leftover fabric (the flowered lines in top photo) to make a dress for "Little Dresses for Africa"

Framed Disneyland Collectible Pins

2010-10-03T22:56:00.000-07:00

A Set of Three

On our recent trip to Disneyland we "Pin Traded". I bought a lot of miscellaneous trading pins on eBay for about .50 a pin, which is a great price! Then at Disneyland we traded with cast members to get the sets we wanted. My son wanted the Puffles, I wanted Disney Pirates and Hannah just traded. The Princess set above we bought at Disneyland. It's nearly impossible to find the glitter princesses to trade for!

Pirate Mickey!

I am not a fan of lanyards, so I decided to frame our pins. I bought an 8x8 shadowbox at Wal-Mart and some black velveteen at Joanns. Then I wrapped a piece of cardboard with the velveteen and popped the pins onto the fabric. The hardest part was keeping the lint off of the velveteen! I'm glad that we can look at our collection all year round and not just on our yearly Disney trips!

Bandanna Checkers

2010-09-06T23:05:00.001-07:00

I saw this flyer at my local Jo-Ann store and knew we would have to make it. Here are the instructions from the website, and in PDF format.

CHECKERBOARD

Lay a plain print bandanna on a flat surface over a piece of paper. Fabric markers could bleed through.

Measure and use pencil to mark a checkerboard grid with 8 rows of 8 squares each.

Outline grid with black fabric marker pen. (We used Crayola)

Alternate coloring squares so no square touches another of the same color. Squares do not have to be solid colors. Square can be designed with hearts, seashells, circles, any other icon as long as matching designs are not are side by side horizontally or vertically. (The kids got tired of color after 1 row, so I ended up finishing the rest. They were more excited about making the checkers)

CHECKERS

Roll 1 color combination of Model Magic into 12 balls. Press down to make disc-shaped checkers.
Roll a different color combination of Model Magic into 12 balls. Press down to make disc-shaped checkers.
Allow checkers to dry for 24 hours.

(We made most of our checkers differently. We rolled out the Model Magic and used cookie cutters and Play-doh cutters to make our checkers. Hannah chose Stars and Hearts. Max chose Stars and the suggested method above.)

I love how it can be wrapped up for easy storing!

More Homemade Cards

2010-09-03T08:00:00.000-07:00

Set of 3

I made these cards for my mom and each one has a special meaning. This first one is a doll pattern that I picked out as a little girl, with my mom's promise of making me a cute little doll. One that looked just like me with brown hair and blue eyes. Years later, it's still not made, but I do have the pattern to make for my little girl. And yes... it's not made for my daughter either. I didn't cut the original pattern to make the card, I just scaned it into my computer and printed out a copy. I suppose someday I'll make this pattern...

This card reminds me of my childhood days. We had a *super* spirograph and loved making spirally pictures on any kind of paper we could find.

This last card is my favorite!! It's LOL for "Laugh out Loud". Recently in a conversation with my mom I learned that she thought LOL meant "Lots of Love".

So I printed this on the inside of the card. I love her interpretation of LOL much better!

P.S. LOL Mom!

Glitter Shoes!!! (...failed)

2010-08-31T15:38:00.000-07:00

Beautiful (but unwearable) glitter shoes

I was so excited to find a cute tutorial for Extreme Glitter Shoes on Lil Blue Boo. I searched forever for a pair of cheap canvas sneakers with velcro tabs. I finally found a pair on clearance at Payless.

Score!!

I bought the Extreme Glitter and got to work. Hannah even helped. It was very, very easy to do and they turned out so cute!

Hannah wore them on the 1st day of school, however this morning on the 2nd day of school, we couldn't get the velcro straps detached from the tongue of the shoe! They are now permanently fused together. And it's not because they didn't dry long enough. They have been ready for 2 weeks, just waiting for the first day of school. Hannah can't even slip her foot into the shoe. We were very sad, but at least we get to go shoe shopping now!

Free Mitered Corner Blanket Pattern!

2010-08-27T17:53:00.001-07:00

Blanket for Stefanie's Baby!

Utah State University has a free Mitered Corner Blanket pattern available online. The pattern is amazingly easy and the finished blanket looks so cute!

I used a decorative stitch to give it a little more character.

You can really see the detail on the back. The best part is that my sister loved the blanket!

Birthday Balloon Wreath

2010-08-17T08:04:00.001-07:00

Birthday Wreath

Takeshi FINALLY had his birthday party a month after his real birthday! I didn't finish the wreath in time because I ran out of supplies, but I hung it up after the party anyway :) I really don't think my 16 year old cared about the balloon wreath, he just wanted the balloons for a water balloon fight, and even stole some off of the wreath!

I followed this tutorial from "How Does She?", but used double the supplies. I don't know if my balloons were too close together or my straw wreath was bigger. Either way, I LOVED how it turned out!

Happy 4th of July!!

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

Shirt tutorial here

Art in the Park (with Jell-O)

2010-06-18T23:27:00.000-07:00

Finished Project!

Our friend Natalie hosted an amazing "Art in the Park" activity for all our friends and kids. She brought all the supplies to make a great smelling piece of art using Jell-O and glue.

Supplies Needed:

Fruit Bowl (click to download)
Jell-O in these flavors: Strawberry, Pineapple, Grape, Raspberry, Lime, Lemon, Orange, Cherry & Banana
Elmers Glue (or generic brand)
Paintbrush for each child
Paper cups or other similar item to hold each flavor of Jell-O
Paper cup or other similar item to hold the glue

Directions:

Print out your Fruit Bowl (one for each child) and have them color the bowl any color they want.
Color the stems & leaves of the fruit green.
Pour some glue in a paper cup
Pour each flavor of Jell-O in it's own paper cup (NOT with the glue and don't mix the flavors). Label your cups! Many of the Jell-O's are the same color, but not the same scent.
Take your paintbrush and dip it in the glue cup.
Paint ONE fruit at a time (for the orange you can paint both). After the entire fruit is covered with glue, pour the matching scent of Jell-O onto your fruit. Pour any excess back into the cup.
Repeat with each fruit until it's covered.
Smell and enjoy!

Piano Bag

2010-06-18T08:00:00.000-07:00

New Piano Bag

Using the HP Inkjet Transfer Paper, I made a Piano Bag for Hannah. For almost a year she's been using a plain bag and making a personalized bag for her has been on my list for that long as well. I bought this clip art from iStock Photo. I searched Treble Clef and there were so many to pick from! The only problem was, all the ones we wanted were about $8.00 to $14.00 each!! We finally found this one for $2.00, which was something I could live with.

There were free ones on the Internet, but not many that were large enough to give a nice clear, clean image of this size. Here are a couple others that we considered.

ETC - Fairy Holding a Music Banner
EDU Pics - Basic Treble Clef

One thing I had to make sure is to mirror image Hannah's name BEFORE printing it onto the Transfer Paper. This way, when you iron your image down, the name is viewed correctly.

Next time I'm going to try using SuperSoft Inkjet Transfer Paper. I heard this is easier to work with and lasts longer. The HP wasn't hard... it's just that with the amount of heat they said to use, it discolored the bag slightly. It does show up in the picture, but thankfully, it's harder to see in "real life". I have read reviews saying SuperSoft lasts a lot longer in the wash than the HP brand. Since I'm not planning to wash this bag, the HP brand will work fine.

Just a note, you can use Transfer Papers for color designs. I just didn't have any color ink for my printer.

Library Bag

2010-06-15T08:00:00.000-07:00

Our Bookshelf (at home)

With summer here, we needed a bag for carrying all our books home from our weekly trips to the library. I accidentally spilt hot chocolate all over one of my reusable grocery bags and had to wash it... well, it shrunk (badly!). As you can see it's at least 2 inches shorter than a non-washed bag.

And the cute recycle arrows didn't look too hot either. I decided this was the bag to use for our reading bag.

I removed all the arrows and used HP Transfer Paper to iron a design onto my bag. Next time I'm going to try using SuperSoft Inkjet Transfer Paper. I heard this brand is easier to work. I have read reviews saying SuperSoft lasts longer in the wash than the HP brand. Since I'm not planning to wash this bag (again), the HP brand will work fine.

I searched the Internet for "reading" clip art and found a design that Hannah and I both loved. It's from Karen's Whimsy and only cost .99

I love how it turned out!

There were lots of clip art on the Internet, but not a lot that were big enough to make a crisp, clean 8x10 page. Here's some other artwork that we liked and would work great as a large transfer:

Karen's Whimsy - More Fairies
Fith Fath - Girl Reading under a Tree
WP Clipart - Girl Reading by a Window
Clipart ETC - Girl Reading at Desk
Clipart ETC - Girl Reading Large Book
Elizabeth Dulemba - Reading Fairy

Just a note, you can use Transfer Papers for color designs. I just didn't have any color ink for my printer.

Saturday Pajamas

2010-06-12T20:42:00.000-07:00

New Pajamas

A few Saturdays ago, I made pajamas for all the kids. They picked out their own fabric and their own patterns. Hannah picked out green flannel and her pattern is Simplicity 4767. I also included a cute PS I LOVE YOU tag in the back neckline for Hannah.

The boys picked out some Japanese print fabric with McCall's 4678 as their pattern. I was under strict orders that no pictures be taken with them in pajamas.
I knew they wouldn't be happy with the "I Love You" tag, so I made my own. I cut out one of the square kanji's, sewed it and turned it right side out and sewed it in the back waistband. I think it's perfect for them.
Of course, we couldn't leave Twyla out! She is wearing the same green butterfly flannel as Hannah in Simplicity 3883 (with modifications for her size).

I think Hannah's happy with the outcome!

Tie Dye - A list of Video Tutorials

2010-05-31T22:51:00.000-07:00

Tie Dye Friends

Our first time creating Tie Dye t-shirts was a lot of fun. We watched several different tutorials from You Tube, and since I have no expertise in this area, I will just list the tutorials we used. From left to right, they are...

1. Sunburst

2. Heart - You really can't see the heart because Tywla (Hannah's kitty) is covering up her shirt. Next time we do this, I'll get a better picture.

3. Bullseye

4. Spider Design - This one didn't come out exactly like the video, but considering it was our first time, I thought we did pretty good.

We used Tulips One-Step Tie Dye Kit and it was very easy to use. A couple other videos are Swirl & Ombre Techniques. The Ombre technique is on my list for our next Tie Dye session.

Crayon Monograms (with Tutorial)

2010-05-20T15:41:00.000-07:00

Finished Project!

I found this cute project on Testosterone Times Three and knew I had to make it for my daughter's teachers.
I found some Shadowbox Frames at Walmart for about $8.00 each.

The 8x8 size was perfect.

Using Microsoft Word I made a template and printed it out for each teacher.

**********************************************

**Update** At the end of the tutorial I have included a link to download each specific letter (A-Z) from Google Documents. You MUST download the files to view the large monogram and fonts correctly (The fonts do NOT look right UNTIL they are downloaded). Let me know if you need a different format and I'll try to see what I can do. The fonts used are Batang (for the initial) and Lucinda Handwriting (for the script name).

If you do not have Word or cannot get the files to download properly, let me know and I'll typeset the teachers name and initial for you. I'll send a PDF for those of you who don't have Word. You MUST leave me a way to contact you, preferably email :) If you are worried about leaving your email address in cyberspace you can either write it out like this "lisainnevada (at) gmail (dot) com" OR you can ask me to delete your comment (and I will gladly do so) OR you can email me directly at lisainnevada (at) gmail (dot) com. That way I can just hit "reply" on my email.

I have also started a Flickr group. For those of you who make the Crayon Monograms, I would *LOVE* it if you would post your picture in the group. It's also my first group on Flickr, so let me know if you are having any problems with it.

************************************************

I had lots of crayons saved from the start of the school year (bought at .25 each) and dumped those out to use.
I found that if I poked a hole in the crayon with my exacto knife, that the crayon broke cleanly

and right where I wanted it to.

I printed out a 'test' sheet on plain copy paper and then lined up my crayons the way I wanted, before gluing anything.
Then I printed out my 'good' copy on a thick ivory cardstock.

I filled in my monogram letter with tacky glue and started transferring the crayons. I put tacky glue on some of the crayons directly. I didn't use a hot glue gun, because I always seem to get the "spiderweb" effect. Tacky glue also has a longer drying time, which is a benefit with this project in case you need to move a few crayons around.

I also made sure to break my crayons in long enough lengths so they covered my printed monogram.

I let them dry overnight and then put them in the frame.

I think they turned out perfect!

Hannah wrote a note to each teacher, which I laminated and put on the back of each frame.

The best part was that the teachers LOVED them!

Here are the downloads from A-Z. These are all made to fit the 8x8 Shadowbox frame from Walmart. If you need a special size (such as 8x10) let me know and I'll make you a custom template.

*Just a Reminder* If you do not have Word or cannot get the files to download properly, let me know and I'll typeset the teachers name and initial for you. I'll send a PDF for those of you who don't have Word. You MUST leave me a way to contact you, preferably email :) If you are worried about leaving your email address in cyberspace you can either write it out like this "lisainnevada (at) gmail (dot) com" or something similar OR you can ask me to delete your comment (and I will gladly do so) OR you can email me directly at lisainnevada (at) gmail (dot) com. That way I can just hit "reply" on my email!

A Chinese Birthday!

2010-04-12T19:03:00.000-07:00

The Birthday Girl!

Hannah decided that she wanted her 5th birthday to be a "Chinese" birthday, which somehow turned into a Kai-lan themed birthday. We used this Kai-Lan Chinese Lantern Template for her birthday invitations. We added a small paper on the bottom with her birthday party specifics and printed them using the font "Bonzai". We asked the guests to bring their invitations to the party to hang as decorations. Which looked great blowing in the (very strong) wind!

Here's the pile to be (hand) delivered!

Our craft was growing wheat grass with a Kai-lan printable to tape on the front. Somehow ours didn't make it home, but that's ok, since we grew wheat grass for Easter.

Hello, Peeps!

2010-04-01T10:00:00.000-07:00

Hello, Peeps...

Using MADE's Freezer Paper Stencial Tutorial and her Peeps pattern, I made this cute shirt for Hannah.

I printed out her peeps pattern about 50% smaller than the original (it turned out to be approximately 4" tall), and then traced the peeps onto freezer paper.
After I ironed the freezer paper onto the shirt I was able to paint the peeps. I wanted light pink to match the "real" peeps, but my store was out of that color. I ended up using Tulip Soft Fabric Paint in Azalea Matte and Sunshine Yellow Matte. The font for "Hello, Peeps" is Candara (100 pt size) and the paint is Ebony Black.

After a few hours, I peeled off the paper (so fun!!). Here are the peeps without eyes and a nose :)

With eyes!
(Ebony Black for the bright pink and Chocolate Matte for the yellow)
I bought a size Medium for Hannah, even though she only wears a small. I think she'll actually fit it for a few more Easters!
Here's my girl!! (now if only her skirt was pink... or yellow)

4/4/10 P.S. I made it onto the MADE blog! (how exciting!)

Easter Wheat Grass

2010-03-31T12:55:00.000-07:00

Easter Display

I followed Make and Takes tutorial for growing wheatgrass and love the results. Hannah was able to do most of it herself and Ernest even did one for himself.

I love the dew drops we found on our blades of grass this morning!

Easter Lollypop "Flowers"

2010-03-30T13:36:00.000-07:00

Springtime Blooms

Make and Takes had the cutest tutorials on their website. I used the Coloring Rice Tutorial and the Lollipop Flowers Tutorial to make these. It was easy enough for Hannah (4 years old) and her friend Max to make these (almost) all by themselves. I did help with the food coloring though! Next time I won't add the rubbing alcohol, the smell was nasty, and I'm pretty sure it's dry enough in Nevada that we didn't really need it anyway.

Here's Hannahs!

Split Pea Shamrocks

2010-03-17T21:47:00.000-07:00

Happy St. Patricks Day!

MADE has the cutest tutorial on how to make these split pea shamrocks. I didn't make as many as she did, but I had to make the shamrock hanging for my front door. It turned out great, although I think I should have stuffed the peas in a little better, they seemed to settle towards the bottom and left the top looking a little empty.

I also made a smaller version for her to wear as a necklace to school today. She loved it and so did her teachers. They kept trying to swipe it from her :)

Fabric Card

2010-03-09T14:16:00.000-08:00

A "Just Because" Card

Here's another card that I made for my mom. Unfortunately, I don't think I'll ever be able to part with another scrap of fabric (no matter how small), now that I can make these cute cards and ponytail holders!

I made the dot of the 'i' a heart, and here's the view from the back. Not as perfect as I'd like, but I know my mom will love me anyway. (right mom?)

Cute (& Easy) Pony Tail Holders

2010-03-03T14:02:00.001-08:00

Tutorial from Make it Do

Yesterday Hannah and I went over to a friends house to make hair bows and accessories for our girls. I decided to make some fabric covered button pony tail holders. I used Dritz Aluminum Cover Button kit in a 7/8 size, that I bought from our local craft store. They are sold at most sewing & craft stores, so it shouldn't be necessary to place an online order. Make sure you buy the one that has the tool inside! After you have the tool, you can just buy the refills which are slightly cheaper. I followed the tutorial from Make it Do, which is very easy to follow. Just don't use a hammer to put the back on the button, (like I did the first time) it will flatten the button slightly and won't look nice and rounded. Just push down hard on the tool and the back should pop into the button. I also put a dot of tacky glue inside the button (before I popped the back in), to help keep the button together.

I made these ponytail holders to match a few of Hannah's outfits. The green is for upcoming St. Patricks Day and the pink with circles is going to match a Pink Fig outfit that I am still working on. The little red flowers was made using fabric that my mom had when I was a little girl. I love how cute they look! It was a lot of fun and these were so easy to make!

Here's my favorite pair! Hopefully we won't have to wait until Valentine's Day to use these :)

Handmade Card

2010-02-08T16:14:00.000-08:00

Fabric Card

I saw this post from MADE and thought it was a brilliant idea. I decided to make this simple one to give to my mom for Valentines Day. I even used some of her fabric that she gave me a few years ago when I was visiting.

Here's some other cute fabric card ideas from MADE and Old Red Barn Co.

Mail Love

2010-01-28T17:08:00.000-08:00

Love it!!

Quiltin' Like Crazy had an online garage sale and I was lucky enough to be the 1st one to claim these two quilt tops!! The 2nd one is supposed to be the back of a quilt, but I think it's too pretty to be the back, so I'm going to make it the front :)

I'll be able to get a lot of practise stippling on these two, since they are already done for me. I really need the practise too!

Talented Boy

2010-01-14T17:15:00.000-08:00

Japanese Pendant

Takeshi (my 15 year old) made this pendant for one of his school mates. He hand carved it out of a block of pine and engraved the japanese letters with a wood burner. The japanese is her last name in kanji. I think he did a great job! I wouldn't mind a gift like this from him someday :)

First Attempt at Stippling

2010-01-10T16:12:00.000-08:00

Closeup

I trying to learn how to free motion quilt, and thought a (very) small project would be a good way to start. I used Sew, Mama, Sew's Doll Quilt Sew Along to make this doll quilt for Hannah. It measures about 16 x 19 and is the perfect size for any baby doll. It was harder than I thought, but hopefully I'll get better with practise (lots and lots of practise). There were no puckers on the backside, so I consider that a success.

Here's the quilt, with just the binding needed. Hannah loves it.

As I finished stippling the quilt, I looked at my thread and saw it was totally empty! I thought I would have to go back and redo some quilting, but thankfully my thread had just run out!

Perfect planning on my part, I guess :)

Fabric Covered Notebooks

2010-01-05T15:33:00.001-08:00

Presents for my 5 nieces

I made these the day before we left for Utah. They are very easy to sew and I used the same color thread for all 5 so I could sew assembly line style. This is the second time I made this pattern and this time I remembered to wash the fabric first! The pattern is from Skip to My Lou who has a wonderful blog!

I let the girls pick which one they wanted when we arrived in Utah. They were so sweet and said how much they loved them.
I put a fun colored gel pen in each pocket. Hannah picked out which pen went to which notebook. The fabric for the notebooks is Woodland Bloom from Pink Fig.

Just in Time!

2009-12-25T17:00:00.000-08:00

Working on Takeshi's Quilt

The boys Christmas quilts were finished just in time for Christmas, and I do mean just in time! I was pulling Ernest's quilt out of the dryer at about 11:00 pm on Christmas Eve, and had it ready to go by midnight. I will never again question the high cost of handmade quilts. There is so much work involved and it is very time consuming. Here's proof...

3200 corners
2000 yards of thread
804 quilters safety pins
160 finished blocks (480 total cut blocks)
20 hours of machine quilting (just quilting the top, this does not include sewing the blocks together)
19 bobbins used
8 hours of hand binding (plus numerous scratches from dangerous pins)
6 nights up till midnight (including 1 am and the midnight before Christmas)
5 days in pajamas

Of course, I probably should have started sooner, 2 weeks before Christmas is not enough time! It was all worth it, Takeshi and Ernest LOVE their quilts and were wrapped up in them all day long.

Ernest's Fabric
(bottom fabric is for the back of the quilt)

Takehsi's Fabric
(bottom fabric is for the back of the quilt)

I followed Crazy Mom Quilts "How to Make a Ragged Squares Quilt" tutorial. It's very simple, and the top came together quickly, but progress slowed down when I started to machine quilt. It was very hard wrestling that much fabric into a machine for quilting. I swear I have bigger muscles now.

Takeshi's Finished Top

Another View

Hannah also helped me decided on the binding. Since this quilt had a scrappy look, we used all the long scraps to bind the edge. You can see the different fabrics along the edge in this picture.

Here's the back of Takeshi's quilt. You can see the square pattern here.

Hannah also participated in making the quilts. She helped me pick out which squares should go where, getting pins on blocks, & taping the quilt to get reading for basting.

Ernest has always loved blue, so here is his finished quilt.

Another View
and the scrappy binding

Hannah is getting a quilt (purple, of course) but I ran out of time to finish hers. I'm going to started my presents for next year in February, I'm taking January off!

Scrabble Tile Pendants

2009-12-25T09:00:00.000-08:00

Scrabble Tile Pendants

I decided to have Hannah made some Scrabble Tile Pendants for her brothers for Christmas. We decided to do Shaving Cream Art and pick our design from the finished picture.

Here is our finished art for Ernest's pendant.

Then I took a piece of cardstock and cut out a scrabble sized rectangle. We moved the hole around the picture until Hannah found a spot she wanted to use for the pendants.

Then we traced inside the rectangle and cut about 1" around it.

Here's our leftovers to recycle.

Here is the piece we are keeping. You want some around the edges so you can work with it easier.
Using tacky glue, glue your paper onto the scrabble tile and slice off the extra pieces of paper using an exacto knife.

Then we followed the tutorial from Make and Takes to get our finished product! The 1st two are for Hannah's brothers and the last one is for her!
And of course. the backside.

The Maddie Top!

2009-08-13T16:13:00.000-07:00

A very happy girl!

When we returned from Hawaii we had a very special package waiting for us! It was the Maddie Top I won from Bits of Sunshine during the Sew, Mama, Sew! May Giveaway. Hannah loves it, and wears it as a dress, since it's a little large on her. Bits of Sunshine also has a FREE tutorial for this top and is selling a super cute finished top in her Etsy shop.

Growth Chart

2009-07-16T07:30:00.000-07:00

Growth Chart - Finally!!

I've had this on my "to do" list for many, many months now. Yesterday I got tired of seeing it on my list and decided to make it. I bought a 6 foot piece of molding at Lowes and the numbers I bought on ebay. All the numbers I saw at local craft stores were too large or too small.

I measured and made lines with a fine sharpie every inch and hot glued the numbers every foot. The chart is going to sit 1 foot off the ground, so there was no need for the number 1. I love the look of it, but I'm sure you could make it more colorful if you just had small children. I'm sure my older boys appreciate this look.

Now I just need to transfer the names, heights & dates from the wall to our new growth chart!

Old Red Barn Quilt Along - Week 4

2009-07-02T09:57:00.001-07:00

Finished Quilt Top

The top to the Old Red Barn Quilt Along is finally done! I love it, but I am VERY scared to quilt it. I have no scraps left over to make a small quilt and practise on, so I am going to make a few doll quilts from other fabric that I have. I am already 2 weeks (or is it 3) behind, so I'm sure this is going to set me back some more. Oh well... I took pictures of the quilt on a queen size bed, but the quilt is too small for the bed. I'm sure it would look great on a twin, but we don't have any twin size beds in our house.

I copied Crazy Mom Quilts idea and added a row of fabric to the top and bottom of the quilt, just to make it a little bigger. I think it looks great.

I had 39 squares and 13 small pieces. I made the quilt 6 squares wide by 6 squares long, using 36 squares. I am cutting down the last 3 squares to make a small row on the back, like Leisel did in this quilt (isn't she talented!). I used 12 of the 13 small pieces to make the extra row on the top and bottom of the quilt.

I think I might buy some extra fabric to make a couple pillowcases too....

Oh, Cherry, Oh!

2009-06-22T17:13:00.000-07:00

10 Charm Packs!!

I just love this quilt by Quiltin' Like Crazy. I decided I wanted to copy her, so I bought these Charm packs on eBay. I just love this line!! I also found a light yellow sheet at Goodwill for $2.49 that I am hoping will match the yellows that are in this line.

This is only the 10th quilt that is on my "to do" list, so I'm not sure when it will get done! Luckly there is NO cutting on this one :)

Old Red Barn Quilt Along - Week 3

2009-06-20T17:07:00.001-07:00

12.25" Squares

I'm done with Week 3 of the Old Red Barn Quilt Along. My squares turned out to be 12.25" in size, instead of Dana's 11.5" size. This made my extra pieces 5" x 12.5" long. I have 39 squares and 13 extra pieces. Now to sew them together...

Old Red Barn Quilt Along - Week 2

2009-06-17T16:54:00.000-07:00

My 2.5" Strips

Here's all my strips for Week 2 of Old Red Barn's Quilt Along. I'm supposed to be on week 5, but I'm just a little behind. I'm hoping to finish Week 3 tomorrow! I cut out all my 12 fabrics into 2.5" strips. I was able to get 7 strips out of all of them except for one! I cut it into a 2" strip instead and hopefully I can use it in a project sometime in the future.

Here's my lone 2" strip. It's too bad, this was my 2nd favorite fabric!!

This 2" strip is by Timeless Treasures

Foot #57

2009-06-15T08:00:00.000-07:00

Patchwork Foot

Since I am going to be doing a lot of quilting, I decided to purchase the Patchwork Foot #57. this foot has a little guard on the edge so you can sew 1/4" seams perfectly! I will be using this foot a lot this week since the boys will be at Scout Camp and Hannah will be at Day Camp! I am hoping to get caught up on the Sew, Mama, Sew! Quilt Along during this time. (I'm only 4 weeks behind!)

The Patchwork Skirt

2009-06-14T17:43:00.001-07:00

(Did you notice the shoes?)

I finally finished "The Patchwork Skirt" by Pink Fig. I love her patterns and love the fabric her aunt (Lila Tueller) designs. All the fabric is Woodland Bloom by Lila Tueller. The pattern was very easy to put together and Hannah loves the skirt. The shirt is from Gymboree and I'm not sure if I want to embellish it or not.

Sewing Machine Meme

2009-06-13T17:44:00.000-07:00

June is Sewing Machine Month at Sew, Mama, Sew! I thought it would be fun to participate. It's still June, so I figure I'm not late yet :)

What brand and model do you have?

I have a Bernina 1530 Inspiration

How long have you had it?

My machine was bought on August 14, 1992. I've had the machine for almost 17 years!

How much does that machine cost (approximately)?

The machine cost me $2800.00 + $165.96 tax for a grand total of $3014.96. Yes, I still have the original receipt :)

What types of things do you sew (i.e. quilting, clothing, handbags, home dec projects, etc.)?

When I first bought the machine I did lots of paid sewing. I paid for my machine that way. Then when my boys were little I made clothes for them. Now I make some clothes for my little girl and am just getting started quilting. It's so much fun.

How much do you sew? How much wear and tear does the machine get?

I used to sew every day. As my boys got older, I used my machine less and less. I even thought of selling my machine at one point because I hadn't used it in a few years. Now that I have a little girl it gets used a few times a week. I am hoping to be using it every day, especially when my daughter goes to school.

Do you like/love/hate your machine? Are you ambivalent? Passionate? Does she have a name?

I love my machine! It works so well and I have never had a problem with it. She should have name, but she doesn't.... any suggestions?

What features does your machine have that work well for you?

I love the knee lift that lifts the pressure foot. I think that's my favorite feature. I also love the large backstitch button & the option to finish a stitch with the needle in the down position.

Is there anything that drives you nuts about your machine?

Nothing!

Do you have a great story to share about your machine (i.e., Found it under the Christmas tree? Dropped it on the kitchen floor? Sewed your fingernail to your zipper?, Got it from your Great Grandma?, etc.!)? We want to hear it!

When my son was about 1 (he's now almost 15) he climbed onto my sewing table and climbed behind my machine. Both wouldn't fit, so the machine crashed to the floor. Luckily it was carpeted and the only thing that was damaged was the 2nd metal thread holder on the top of the machine.

Would you recommend the machine to others? Why?

I would definitely recommend this machine. Bernina doesn't make this model anymore, but you can only buy it second hand (on ebay), but any Bernina would be a great choice. They are so user friendly and are great workhorses.

What factors do you think are important to consider when looking for a new machine?

Ease of use, Quality, User friendly & Features.

Do you have a dream machine?
Yes! It would be the Bernina 820 or 830.

Old Red Barn Company Quilt Along! - Week 1

2009-06-02T08:00:00.000-07:00

My Supplies are Ready to Go!

Old Red Barn Co. is having a quilt along, so I thought it would be lots of fun to try and follow along. I'm only a week or so behind, but I figure I can let the housework slide so I can catch up :)

Here is my fabric. They are all from different lines, but I am hoping they all work together to turn out great.

The bottom fabric is going to be the binding.
Now, it's time to cut!

And the Winner is...

2009-06-01T10:21:00.000-07:00

#12 - VanillaBean said...
They are all great! The drawing case caught my daughter's eye and she loves it so that would have to be my first choice, followed by the bag! Great material! Thanks!
Please contact me with your information! Your blogger profile is not accessible.

Sew, Mama, Sew Giveaway!

2009-05-27T02:00:00.000-07:00

Here is my 1st Giveaway. Sew, Mama, Sew is hosting a "May Giveaway Day", and I thought it would be lots of fun to participate. Here are the rules...

One entry per person
Leave a comment telling me which ONE item you want (there are 3 to pick from)
Comments will be open until May 31st at midnight
Winner will be picked via Random.org
I will mail to the 50 United States (no international shipping at this time)
Item will be shipped by June 3rd
Good Luck!

Here are the three different items to pick from. Sorry, you only get one, but you can like them all :)

1. Reusuble Shopping Bag! (arrows will be in a different color)The original idea came from Elizabeth Kartcher and this post of hers. The bags are very sturdy and hold 2 gallons of milk side by side. I have my own set of these and use them everytime I go shopping. Here is my original post for this item.

2. Crayon Rolls! (you get to pick boy or girl colors)

Here's the online tutorial from Skip to My Lou that I followed to make these. Pictured above are some samples of crayon rolls that I've made and given away. You will get to pick if you want a boy or a girl crayon roll. I have trucks or airplanes for the boys, and pink butterfly fabric for the girls. Here is my original post for the crayon rolls.

Here's a picture of the crayon roll two ways.
Rolled up ready to travel and all laid out ready to color!

3. Little Artist Drawing Case!

I bought this super cute pattern from CraftApple.com. She has an amazing blog with lot of wonderful ideas, sewing tips and tutorials. Here's the drawing case closed. You will get this exact drawing case. Here's my original post for the drawing case.

Now DON'T FORGET to tell me which one you want!! I'll be checking out all the other giveaways too, so wish me good luck :)

3 Pocket Tote

2009-04-19T08:22:00.001-07:00

3 Pocket Tote

I wanted to learn the correct way to bind my quilts, so I took a binding class last Monday night at my local fabric store. We made this 3 Pocket Tote that is basically a 18" quilted square, hand bound on all 4 sides. I loved my class and Hannah loves the purse.

Here's the pattern

Here's one of the 2 side pockets

Here's the middle pocket
Closeup of my binding.

Here's our cute model with purse :)

Happy Easter

2009-04-12T20:16:00.000-07:00

Our trio of Easter baskets!

I love Skip to my Lou, and found these CUTE bunny Easter toppers for a treat bag.

I made green for Takeshi...

Blue for Ernest...
& pink for Hannah.

They loved it!

Ugly Fabric Challenge

2009-03-30T10:09:00.000-07:00

Ugly Fabric

Our local quilt store hosted an "Ugly Fabric Contest". They had 6 different bags of "ugly" fabric sets (1 yard of the "ugly" fabric and 4 coordinating fat quarters). My ugly fabric was the brown and teal paisley. I didn't think it was ugly at all, but the some of the matching fat quarters I didn't like. I didn't know what to make and asked several people for their opinions. Kira referred me to Freda's Hive, where I found this umbrella pattern. I thought it was perfect for my fabrics I had, so this is the finished project! Finished size is 31 x 33

"Welcome Spring"

It's hard to tell from the picture, but in the teal it says "Welcome Spring". Here's a closeup of the word spring.

Here's a closeup of the quilting. I didn't quilt it myself, but I'm taking a class to learn how. I love the pattern she quilted!

Here's a closeup of the umbrella part and the quilting.

And finally, the back of the quilt. I think it turned out pretty nice for my first "real" quilt :)

The finished projects will be on display at Quiltique from April 1st to April 29th. The project that gets the most votes from customers during this time will be the winner. I'm crossing my fingers and hoping I win!! Make sure you go to Quiltique and vote for me!!!

More Personalized Bags

2009-02-28T16:10:00.000-08:00

Max's Church Bag

I made a few more bags to be used as quiet bags for Church. The one above is for my 4 year old nephew Max. The 2 bottom ones are for his friends. Their names were too long to put on the bag, so I decided to stick with their initials. I just love this fabric!

For the C & D I used the font "Shangrila" in 900 pt. For Max's name I used the font "Maiandra GD" in 450 point for the letter "M" and 300 point for the "ax". I used "Heat n Bond lite" and edge stitched to secure the fabric even more.
While I was using the iron to seal the fabric with the "Heat n Bond", I didn't realize how close I was to the nylon webbed handle. As you can see it melted part of the handle. The handle is still strong, but I was so upset by what I had done! I didn't even notice it until after I had melted the 2nd bag's handles too!

I still think the bags turned out cute, even if I'm still upset about the handles :)

Valentines Fabric!

2009-02-03T13:40:00.001-08:00

Too cute!

I found this fabric at Joann's today for 1/2 price! It's perfect for Valentine's Day, but I know I won't finish it for this Valentine's Day! I bought the last of the bolt and it measured 2 1/4 yards. Maybe I can use it for the back of a small quilt? Any suggestions?

Fabric Notebook Cover

2009-01-12T15:07:00.001-08:00

Fabric Notebook Cover

Here is a super easy Fabric Notebook Cover from Skip to My Lou. The pattern is only $1.99 and is worth every penny. Hannah loves to write and I thought this would be a cute way to keep her busy in the car.

I love this fabric! (Woodland Bloom by Lila Tueller)

I bought a 3 pack of steno books from Walmart. I think they were $2.98 for the pack. I bought extras so I could make some for Christmas next year. Next time, I need to remember to wash the fabric first. I washed the fabric cover AFTER I made it (Hannah drew on the fabric cover) and it shrunk slightly. I had to trim the cover of the notepad down just so it could fit again! Oops!

Summertime on Harth Farm

2008-12-11T23:38:00.000-08:00

My Photo Collage

This summer we spent a week at my Aunt's farm in Minnesota. I was enthralled with farm life and took tons of pictures of everything around me. I decided to make her a picture collage of my favorite photos from her farm. Brooke gave the pictures a vintage look and feel and Bridget gave me the idea for the small plaque on the bottom. I love how it turned out. I hope my Aunt loves it just as much as I do.

Recycled Crayons

2008-12-10T08:00:00.000-08:00

Recycled Crayons!

Crafty Dasies has a great tutorial on making recycled crayons. I already had a box of crayons that had an unfortunate accident,

and even more crayons that are the the larger (aka baby) size that my daughter won't use anymore. Perfect for making recycled crayons!

1. Using an exacto knife (or a 3 year old), take the wrapping off all of your crayons and break them into 1/2" to 1" pieces.

2. Option 1: Put "like color" crayon pieces into a mini muffin tin and bake at 275 for 6-8 minutes.

3. Option 2: Put "like color" crayon pieces into a microwave safe cup/mug and heat for 30 seconds to 2 minutes, depending on how many crayon pieces you have in the mug. When it's melted, pour into a cute shaped ice cube tray or candy mold. I found my snowman and santa ones at Deseret Industries for .50 each. Don't use ones that you love or paid a lot of money for, because mine broke when I pulled it out of the freezer.

4. After the crayons come out of the oven, let them sit on the counter for a while, and then put them in the freezer for about 30 minutes. They should just pop out of the molds and you've got some great recycled crayons for little artists!

Put them in a gift tin with some tissue paper and you're ready to go!

Aren't these snowmen so cute!!! I love them!!

For the snowmen, I found a tin that fit the 8 colors perfectly and had some room to spare for a few sheets of blank paper (rolled up and tied) for coloring. This one is for my nephew :)

Here's just a couple of "crazy" santas we did with the extra melted crayons.

Cleanup was pretty easy too. We just soaked our mugs that we melted the crayons in, for about 30 minutes, in hot soapy water. The crayons cleaned right off the mugs!

Quiet Book for Church

2008-12-08T08:00:00.000-08:00

My Sister's Quiet/Busy Book

When my (very active) sister was little, my mom made her this cute quiet book to keep her busy at church. Now my sister is all grown up and has a (very active) son of her own. I decided to refurbish her quite book and give it to her son. The plastic bags were ripped and falling apart, so I ripped out the stitches, and replace the bags. Then I put some fun activities and crayons for her son to do. It's so nice to still have this great book that my mom made. Hopefully it will be in the family for quite a while!

Here's the double stitching to hold the bags in place.

Here's a quick tutorial to make the book.

(I'm sorry this is a horrible tutorial, I'll make a better one when I sew my own bag. With lots of pictures!)

2 pieces of fabric 8 1/2 x 20

1 piece of lightweight batting 8 1/2 x 20

2 lengths of ribbon about 10" each

5-7 ziploc bags (Glad quart zipper bags work the best and look the nicest)

Optional: Sew ribbon, ric rac or lace to the front of the top piece.

Pin ribbon to inside of the fabric on the 8" ends about 4" up. One ribbon on each side, baste if needed. Place fabrics wrong sides together, with batting on the outside of one piece. Sew (seam allowances 1/4") all sides together, leaving about 3" on a 20" side for turning. Clip corners and turn right side out. Press and either top stitch edges or slipstich 3" opening closed. Fold and press bag so that it measures 9.75 x 8. Slip 5-7 bags into folded bag and double stitch on folded end, about 1/2" in. Fill with crayons, paper, snacks, etc.

Emergency Pocket Kit

2008-12-06T08:00:00.000-08:00

Emergency Pocket Kit

Cost for unfilled kit - $1.24 each + tax

1 Wal-Mart Potholder (2 pack for $1.50) - .75
8 Snack Sized Ziploc Bags (100 for $2.68) - .24 (.03 each)
1 yard of ¼” or 3/8” Ribbon - .25

This is a cute little emergency kit that I saw in an Etsy shop. It was such a cute and simple idea that I thought I'd make a few for Christmas this year. It was easy, except that the Ziploc bags are really slippery!

1. Take tag off potholder.

2. Tape 4 bags together, and then another 4 bags together. This picture is just 1 set of 4 bags. You will need 2 different sets.

3. Overlap ends of bags together about 1/4" to 1/2", alternating sides.

4. Pin bags down to potholder (see photo). The pins work just fine if you just stick them straight down into the potholder. Just like you would use a thumbtack. Be careful, pins do leave holes!!

5. Sew Ziplocs onto potholder down the center of the Ziploc.
6. Attach 18” of ribbon (folded in half) to one side of potholder.
7. Optional: Sew ribbon down center of Ziplocs to cover stitching. Here are 2 examples. One with the optional ribbon and one without.
8. Fill with items of your choice (Band-Aids, wet wipes, medicine, Kleenex, safety pins, cough drops, toilet seat cover, etc)

Santa Bag

2008-12-04T22:48:00.001-08:00

Our Santa Bag

This is a cute Christmas bag that I made about 10 years ago when my boys were little. This is another bag that I received for free from one of my Dad's medical conferences. It works perfectly as a Christmas bag since the top is green. I love the drawstring handles that makes it look like a peddlers sack.

Here is the up close detailing. I put very lightweight batting under the applique and then zig zag stitched around the edges. I didn't think it looked "finished" enough, so I stitched on some of the black outline, so that the design would "pop" more.

Here's one of Santa's boots. I think this might be my favorite detail :)

Here's the inside of the bag. Can you see the faint outline of the medical logo/design that I covered up?

Finished Dress!

2008-11-30T22:05:00.001-08:00

Hannah November 2008

I've finally finished a dress for Hannah! I actually started this over a year ago, and just finished it yesterday. It's a good thing the size 3 runs large, otherwise it never would have fit her :) Hannah says she loves her beautiful dress. If that's not motivation to make more clothes for her I don't know what is!

I used Butterick 3350 for the dress

Simplicity 8953 for the sash,

and Pink Fig "The Lily Top" for the kerchief.

Rubber Duckie Door Stop

2008-10-28T16:46:00.000-07:00

Rubber Ducky

I bought some art by Ken Greenhalgh and decided to hang them in the bathroom. Of course I needed a Rubber Ducky Door Stop to match.

Step 1: Buy generic rubber duck from Walmart and cut a half circle in the bottom.

Step 2: Stuff with river rocks.

Step 3: Hot glue the bottom closed. It doesn't have to look pretty, since no one will see the bottom, right?

Step 4: Replace current door stop

with new Ducky door stop!! (now I just need to paint the walls yellow to match)

Halloween Trick or Treat Bags

2008-10-15T16:33:00.000-07:00

Trick or Treat Bags

I made these bags about 10 years ago when the boys were little. The bags were from one of my Dad's medical conferences that he received for free, so under the cute Halloween picture is a medical logo or slogan :)

I don't remember what fabric company this is from, but I still think it's so cute! Here is the back of each bag.

Here is the up close detailing. I put very lightweight batting under the applique and then zig zag stitched around the edges. I didn't think it looked "finished" enough, so I did a straight stitched on some of the black outline so that the design would "pop" more.

Ribbon Hair Clips

2008-09-16T16:06:00.000-07:00

Ribbon Hair Clips

I found this cute tutorial on The Long Thread's "Make it Monday" segment. I love this idea, but couldn't find ribbon as cute as hers. I do like how it turned out and think it looks great in Hannah's hair.

No more pictures!!

The Very Hungry Caterpillar Bag

2008-09-12T15:27:00.000-07:00

Finished Bags!

I love what Kira did with her Hungry Caterpillar fabric that I had to make my own bags! I bought the bags at Joanns and the fabric at Quiltique. I used Heat n Bond Ultra Hold so I wouldn't have to sew around the detailed edges.

I'm planning to put "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" book in each bag and give them as baby shower gifts. Now I just need to find a Hungry Caterpillar card, to complete the gift!

Quiet Bag (for church)

2008-09-09T17:53:00.001-07:00

H is for Hannah

Kira saw the cutest quiet bag idea on Just Trying to Remember's blog. I asked Hannah if she wanted her whole name on the bag or just an "H", & she picked her initial. Then I printed out "H"s in different fonts for Hannah to pick from. She picked D.J. Inkers "Love" Font for the H, which was my 1st choice too. I printed out the H in a 500 font size, and the little heart is from D.J. Inkers "Heart Art" in about a 200 font size. I used Heat n Bond to hold it to the bag (from Joann's), so no sewing! It's really simple, but I love the look of it.

**Updated 10/2008 ** Since I used Heat n Bond lite (instead of "ultrahold") to set the "H" & heart, it did start to come off of the bag. I sewed a straight stich close to the edge of both and it looks great!!

Here's what's inside:

Pencil pouches (.97 each) from Walmart to hold crayons and paper
Coloring Book
Shapes matching game from Finch Family Games
3 Ring binder to hold pouches, coloring book and matching game.
Snacks & water (not pictured)