Flowered Boots for Baby Girl

 

A couple months ago, I pulled out my dusty sewing machine and made a fun pair of booties for Evie. I wanted her to have something special to wear for her dedication at church, and this pattern was the perfect thing.

 

 

I did make a couple of changes to the pattern- I used fleece on the inside instead of terry cloth, and I ended up having to reattach the elastic because it kept falling out. But all in all, I was really happy with the pattern and I plan to make a few more pairs to give away! I would definitely recommend this pattern, I think the fabric could easily be changed up to make it boy-appropiate as well. 

 

Sadly, these will have to be packed away soon for future kiddos since Evie is growing so fast! =(

When Creativity Abounds

Now that my teaching is over for the semester, I have a glorious 3 weeks to fill with other things! Of course, crafting is always pretty high on my list. One of the first projects I tackled with my free time last week was this tray. I found it at Goodwill a few months ago and originally planned to paint it white. However, it just didn't feel exciting enough. So, instead, I decided to repurpose some vintage sheet music that I had on hand. It had been damaged so that it was not useful anymore for actually playing, but it was perfect for this project!

  

I was able to make a few Christmas presents this year, which is always a fun thing to do. I made a few table runners out of burlap, and this cute flower hat for a special little girl (my friend's daughter). The hat itself was knitted by my friend Beth, but I made the flower out of felt.

My last burst of creativity came the other day, approximately 2.5 minutes before company was coming over... I looked at the huge mess of lovely Christmas cards on our refrigerator and decided that something had to be done. Every time I went to open the door a card would fall off... 

I fashioned this card holder using twine, mini clothespins, and a 3m command adhesive hook. I love how it turned out! It makes use of some "extra" space in our dimly lit hallway, and now I don't have to worry about cards falling down when I open the fridge. I simply tied the other end to one of the brackets on our fridge. It works perfectly!

 

 

In other news... the forecast is not looking good for snow! We might have a brown Christmas here in Minnesota, which is just utterly unthinkable in my book. I'm halfway tempted to buy all the flocking I can get my hands on and go crazy outside. What's the weather looking like in your part of the country?

(Linking up to What's Up Wednesday at Sew Woodsy!)

Burlap + Gold

I love unexpected combinations. Especially for holiday decorations, where things can easily careen into "gaudy" territory with all the glitter and stuff. Don't get me wrong, I love me some glitter! But, I think it's good to balance those things out.

I saw a magazine article recently (I can't remember which one- it was in a doctor's office!) that had a burlap table runner with gold stripes. I thought immediately "I could make that!" And so I set out to JoAnne Fabrics to gather supplies. I found some burlap fabric in the remnant section for only $1.50! It was less than a yard, but still perfect for what I needed. 

Using the lines of the fabric as a guide, I cut the fabric into two equal length runners. You can make them whatever size you want! Then, I peeled back about 4 rows or so to get a nice fringe around each side.

Then, I made a stripe going down each side using painters tape, and slid some sheets of paper underneath to protect the carpet.

I used some paint that I found at JoAnnes. It's normally used for less porous surfaces, but it had the sheen that I wanted so I thought I would give it a try! It's gold with a bit of silver mixed in called "Champagne Gold." I just can't decide whether to go with the gold or silver as an accent color, so I thought this would be a good mix!

Next, I used a foam brush intended for stenciling to dab paint down each line. Make sure to press the tape down well so you get a clean line!

After letting it dry overnight, I now have a brand new table runner that will work for the whole holiday season, and beyond!

 

I love the subtle shimmer of the gold. It's not overwhelming or gaudy, but it's the perfect accent to the rugged look and feel of burlap.

So I guess my holiday decorating has officially begun! No Christmas lights yet, but they will be coming soon. Have you started decorating for the holidays yet?

Project # 2

It took me a good 4 hour chunk of time on Tuesday, but the curtains are finally done! I was hoping to finish them in under 2 hours, since they were already mostly sewn, but as I tweaked the design a little to incorporate features I wanted it got to be a bigger project! For instance, I added tabs at the top of the curtain for hanging so it would be easier to move the curtains. Originally, I had just folded the fabric over and sewn a loop for the rod to go through, but it made the curtains to difficult to open and close. The tabs are much better, plus I like the way the curtains lay now more! 

The green and cream fabric was from a friend that I helped with her sewing machine. She made curtains for her kitchen and had a ton of fabric left over, I think I still have 2-3 yards left!

Here's that list again- I'm still hoping I can power through the rest of these things before the week is out!

• Paint bookshelf #1
• Paint bookshelf #2 (post coming soon!)
• Finish curtains
• Organize and clean music room
• Prettify music room using things I already have
• Finish wooden tray (I found an awesome wooden tray at Goodwill that needs a makeover!)

Sewing, sewing, sewing...

I was a busy bee the other day trying to whip up some curtains for our 2nd bedroom. I had some fabric that a friend gave me a while back that I was dying to use some how, and suddenly it dawned on me that it would be the perfect fabric for curtains!  

So, using some tips I learned from the folks over at Young House Love, I decided to use Stitch-Witchery instead of sewing the curtains.

I was so excited as I carefully ironed the hem, and them painstakingly pressed the no-sew tape into the seam with the iron.

I got about halfway through the project (1 curtain down, 1 to go...) when I realized that my seams were literally falling apart.

Crapola! Pardon my french, but I was not happy. So after all that ironing and no-sew taping, I still had to go back and sew over all the seams. The moral of the story? Make sure you are using the right strength of no-sew tape for the fabric you are hoping to not sew. I realized the tape I bought was for lighter fabrics like cotton quilting fabric, not heavy drapery material. Lesson learned.

It sure looks pretty in the photo below though, right? I mean, aside from the fact that if I actually hung them they would just drip right off the curtain rods in a matter of seconds...

As I was ironing and practicing my French language skills, Aggie was having fun playing with my measuring tape and then taking a wee nap. At least one of us had a blissful afternoon! 

So, once I have carefully sewn the 2nd panel, I will post pictures of the curtains! In the meantime, please enjoy this cute picture of my kitty napping. Thanks and have a fabulous day!

Edit: Thanks to my awesome commenters, I know know that it's just not smart to use no-sew tape for projects like this! Even if it works for a while and you have the right strength for the fabric, it just doesn't last as long. So, this is one of those instances where it's worth it to put in the work, and get better, longer-lasting results! Thanks guys! 

Tea for Two

Josh and I recently found a new Tea place to buy loose leaf tea (it's called TeaSource, for any of you hardy Minnesotans!). I love going there and browsing through all the different teas and deciding on a fun new one to try!

But even more than that, I love coming home and pouring the new tea into my pretty tea canister. I know, I'm a huge dork. But I just LOVE blue and white ceramics. Ahh.


Last Saturday, after our excursion to the tea shop, we returned with some new tea. However, after throwing away the bag with the directions for steeping, I realized that it might be nice to remember the name of the tea and the brewing directions. Then, I also remembered seeing somewhere that it's super easy to write on porcelain with a dry erase marker.


It was an epiphany.

Friends, I went a little crazy after I found out how easy and fun it is to use porcelain as a dry erase board. I know it's been done before but never actually tried it myself. The possibilities are practically endless!

Here's my favorite idea:


Isn't it cute? Another fun idea would be using tiny porcelain plates for nameplates at a fancy dinner, or you could even hang a plate on your fridge for a handy white board. I think these are so much cuter than the plain ol' white boards you can buy at the store.

In other news, we are still waiting for Spring to arrive here in MN. So if any of you Southern bloggers could try to coax the warmth up here for us, it would be greatly appreciated!

Find the Owl

My sweet MIL is always giving me little presents. I think she's enjoying having a girl in the family. =) She is an incredible knitter and she also spins her own yarn, so a lot of these wonderful presents are handmade! Like this coffee-cup cozy. Isn't it adorable? Can you spot the little owls in there? So cute!

Anyway, I just had to share that with you. She is one of the people who most inspires me to be creative. I love seeing all the amazing things she makes and how she really pours herself into what she is passionate about. I love you, Jody-Mom!

Upcycled Valentines

Do you ever wonder what to do with leftover paint chips? If you love color like me, chances are you have a TON of these fun, colorful thingamabobs hanging around in drawers somewhere.


They are great to have around when you get a hankering to paint something and need some inspiration, but I've found that more often than not, they sit in the drawer and gather dust. So, I decided recently to find some fun projects that can incorporate some of these paint chips.


First- I grabbed some of these ADORABLE little scrapbooking letters that I found on clearance at JoAnnes. Anyone else who is not a scrap-booker still love using the supplies for crafts? I will never make my own scrapbook (I'm not patient enough), but I still love browsing that aisle for things I can use in other projects.

After cutting the paint sample into little squares, I just peeled the protective backing off of the letters and stuck them each on their own little square. SO easy. All it needed was some twine, and some cute mini clothespins (from JoAnnes also) to pull it together.

I love the colors of the paint samples (probably why I picked it out in the first place!), and as a bonus, they all coordinate perfectly!


This just might be the extent of my Valentines decorating...

Project #3: Moss-Covered Christmas Trees

Another fun project I took on this year was finding a way to use 2 foam tree forms that I have had lying around for the past year. I had tried covering them in fabric, tulle, ribbon, and several other things but just wasn't happy with the results. But this year, I decided to try a new approach.

I decided I wanted them to look simple, natural, and un-fussy. So, I used the moss that has been sitting in this jar since last Spring to cover the forms.

I started by pulling out strands and winding them together to wrap around the foam tree, but that ended up being really time-consuming and was using a ton of the moss. So, I switched gears and used hot glue to affix the moss onto the foam in small patches.


Here's a couple tips, if you decide to tackle this project on your own!

1) Paint the tree form green (if the one you have is already green, obviously you wouldn't have to do that!). This helps to make them look more polished since there are no other colors peeking through the moss!

2) Moss can be kind of messy to work with, so I would recommend doing this on a surface that can be easily cleaned! I ended up with green powdery stuff all over myself and my white carpet, which vacuumed up fine but was still a bit of a pain.

3) Finally, hot glue was not the best choice of adhesive because it leaves tiny strands of glue that are nearly impossible to get out of the moss! But I would recommend using a clear glue (or something that dries clear) that dries quickly.

Happy Holiday Decorating!

Project #2: Hanging Mirrors

I actually made something similar to these for Josh and I's wedding last year. It was a really easy, cheap project and I thought it would be fun to replicate for some of our Christmas decor!


You will need:

Small, round mirrors (I bought mine at a craft store near the section where they have mosaic tiles!)

Craft glue/hot glue gun

Ribbon of your choice


I just laid the ribbon flat on the ground, cutting 3 strands at differing lengths. Then, placing on mirror in the back, I glued a mirror over the top (with the ribbon running between both mirrors). Voila! I just used white thumb-tacks to secure the ribbons to our ceiling.

I love these little mirrors- it's hard to get a good picture of them but they catch the light and bounce it all over the place! These could definitely be used year-round. I am already thinking of new ways to use them! You could hang them over a headboard, from a chandelier, in front of a window (ooh lala!). The possibilities are endless!

Look who's finally joining the chalkboard bandwagon!

Well, I must admit that it took me a while. I thought the chalkboard phase would just come and go. But I was wrong.

Chalkboard paint is showing up everywhere these days! I love all the creative uses I am seeing! So, I finally caved and bought a jar of chalkboard paint for myself.

I used it to transform this:

Into this:


I found the wooden plaque at Jo-Anne's for about $7.00. The chalkboard paint is a little more spendy at $10, but I frequently get coupons for 40-50 % off items at Jo-Anne's so that was the perfect thing to buy! After painting 3 coats of the chalkboard paint on, I attached some strong magnets to the back and now it is happily perched on our refrigerator. It's the perfect place to write down grocery items needed, or fun little notes!


I think it goes pretty well with my "Gone With the Wind" magnet set. Teehee.


What do you think about chalkboard paint/the whole chalkboard obsession these days? Are you getting fonder of it, or are you waiting for the fad to pass? I would love to hear your thoughts!



P.S. I'm linking up to Show and Share Day over at Just A Girl's blog! Hop on over to check out some more fun projects like this one!