stephjacobson

Christmas signs

2011-12-31T08:57:00.001-06:00

I didn't do a very good job of sharing the few Christmas projects I did complete. My favorite project is the two new holiday signs I made:

Remember all those cabinet doors I bought? I used two matching doors to make the signs. I sanded them then painted them with spray paint (Rust-Oleum American accents Claret Wine). It took about 5 coats to get the color I wanted and this is probably the first time I haven't painted the back of my project. After the paint dried, I sanded the edges and added some stain to give it an aged look. I purchased the vinyl sayings from JanDee Crafts on Etsy. The hardware was leftover from my hutch makeover. The hardware had been sitting in the garage for over a year, and I'm glad I saved it because the knobs were perfect for my signs. I hung my signs on either side of the picture window in my living room.

Earlier this fall, I made another signs out of a piece of wood and a Cricut stencil:

I think I prefer the vinyl wording since it takes me forever to cut the stencil, get it to stick to the wood then paint it without messing the whole thing up.

Christmas cards

2011-12-26T19:46:00.000-06:00

I know it has been forever since I've blogged. (Once again, one of my resolutions in the new year is to be a better blogger!) I did manage to accomplish a few Christmas crafts, and I'll try to share them all. Every year I make my own Christmas cards. I love using a photo of my cute little son, and here is this year's card:

Every year I contemplate having photo card made, and every year I decide to make my own to save money. (I always forget to factor in my time, but I do love making them myself.) This year I was really frugal and used cardboard I rescued from the trash at work. I did spray the cards with a light coat of gold spray paint to jazz them up a bit. I had prints made at Walgreens (5 cents each) then cropped them to fit the card. I saw the photo idea on Pinterest--the inspiration photo is here. I stamped each photo with Staz On ink and a "joy" stamp (purchased several years ago for $1 at Michaels). The corrugated cardstock was from my stash. I added a printed tag with our names before I mailed them out. I love the clean and simple look, and I think my recipients enjoyed the cards, too.

zig zag doll quilt

2011-11-13T10:52:00.001-06:00

Even though my Christmas crafting to-do list is growing longer by the minute, I took a break to make a doll quilt for the Pretty in Patchwork Lark Doll Quilt Contest. You can see all the fabulous entries in the Flickr group. Even though I don't have any use for a doll quilt, I found making one to be an excellent way to try a new technique without committing to a full-size blanket. I had everything in my stash, so this didn't cost me a penny. My zig-zag doll quilt:

I was pretty impressed with how well the top turned out. I'm not much of a precision quilter, but most of my points matched up almost perfectly. My little quilt measures about 13 inches by 15 inches. I used gray fabric (leftover from last year's poodle skirt Halloween costume), a yellow and white floral from my stash, and Warm and Natural batting. I made half square triangles and arranged them in a zig zag pattern. (Sorry disappearing nine patch, but I think half square triangles may be my new favorite pattern--there are just so many options for arranging them.) I machine quilted along the zig zags and hand-stitched the binding which took forever but I love how it looks.

This may end up on the wall of my sewing room as a cute little wall hanging.

give thanks sign

2011-11-11T08:54:00.001-06:00

Aside from the Christmas tree, I usually don't do much decorating for the holidays. I decided this year will be different, and I'm starting with some fall/Thanksgiving decor. Using a 1 x 8 board my thoughtful husband cut for me, some paint, and a "Give Thanks" vinyl from Pick Your Plum, I made this:

I tried to layer the spray paint on the edges then sand it off for a worn look but it didn't turn out quite like I planned. I may add some stain to the edges. I'll put this on my mantle for a daily reminder to be thankful for all the blessings in my life.

a finished quilt

2011-10-30T17:02:00.000-05:00

After sharing so many quilt tops, I finally have a finished blanket to show off.

It's another disappearing nine patch (of course) made up of 45 6-inch squares. I made this little quilt completely from supplies I had on hand. I have a bad habit of purchasing little remnants of cute fabrics (like the multi-colored polka dot and the white fabrics), but I never end up using them. Turns out they're perfect for a D9P. Some of the other fabrics (blue and white check and blue and yellow plaid) are leftovers from some of the first blankets I made several years ago. The finished size of this blanket is about 32 inches x 40 inches. I backed it in a blue chambray-type fabric leftover from decorating my son's room, and I quilted it in random straight lines across the width and length of the blanket.

This little blanket is for nobody in particular--I just wanted to make something from my fabric stash. I'd like to make more and donate them to a worthwhile cause like Project Linus or an organization that assists expectant mothers.

painted Halloween treat bags

2011-10-19T15:45:00.008-05:00

I am making my son a Yoda costume for Halloween, and I purchased way too much Osnaburg fabric to make Yoda's robe. Since I have so much fabric leftover, I decided to sew some little treat bags for my son and I to decorate. His adorable little treat bags:

For these bags I cut pieces of fabric 4 & 1/2 inches wide by 13 inches long. Osnaburg frays like crazy so I made a small hem at each 5 inch end. I folded the fabric in half lengthwise and made French seams on each side--way to much work for little Halloween treat bags! We used a clearance Making Memories foam Halloween stamp set I purchased at Michaels a few years back for $1. (I'm kicking myself now for not buying every set they had.) For the paint, I mixed acrylic Ceramcoat paint with textile medium. (Michaels just started selling Martha Stewart craft paint that is suitable for just about everything including glass and fabric. As I run out of Ceramcoat, I'm going to replace it with Martha Stewart.) We'll stuff these little bags with candy and tie the tops with ribbon to make little gifts for his neighborhood friends.

I also stamped some fabric to make larger treat/gift bags. For these, I cut pieces of fabric 6 inches wide by 20 inches long. I like to stamp the design before sewing the bag together in case I totally mess up the stamping. I think I'll stitch them together leaving raw edges exposed so they'll fray and look a little more rustic. I like the way these turned out so much I'll be making some Christmas gift bags soon.

Why bother. . .

2011-10-16T14:21:00.006-05:00

. . .cleaning off the kitchen table when it just ends up looking like this again.

(Not pictured is the baby quilt I'm currently binding, a huge stack of mail, and a wooden Christmas sign I'm in the process of painting.) When we refinished the basement, my husband let me have the really big room for a craft room. But I still prefer to craft at the kitchen table--I'm sure much to his dismay. I know it's been a while since I've blogged about any projects, but hopefully this week I can share the cute little Halloween treat bags we're making today. Hope you had a good (and crafty) weekend!

another disappearing nine patch

2011-09-05T17:22:00.002-05:00

I've decided my new favorite quilt pattern is the disappearing nine patch. There's some nice instructions here at Cluck Cluck Sew. So even though I've done absolutely nothing with this DNP quilt top I made back in February, I decided I needed to start yet another quilt. I used a Moda Fresh Flowers charm pack to make this little beauty--
The charm pack had 42 squares and I cut 3 more squares of Kona snow. With 45 squares I was able to make 5 nine patch squares. When cut and sewn back together, that makes a perfect little baby blanket quilt top. This will actually become the center panel of a quilt for my mother in law for Christmas. (I can't believe I'm actually starting a Christmas gift in September!) On Etsy, I found a bargain--2 yards of two different coordinating fabrics for $10.50 including shipping! That was half of what I would have spent at my local quilt shop. I really try to support local businesses, but I'm on a budget and couldn't pass up that deal.

I think I need to use some of my fabric stash to make some DNP baby blankets for charity.

our happily ever after {another sign}

2011-08-24T08:43:00.003-05:00

On my last trip to the Habitat ReStore, I found this great cabinet door. It immediately caught my eye because it was square, had this neat raised panel in the middle, and was only $2.

After some sanding, paint, and a custom vinyl saying purchased on Etsy from JanDeeCrafts, I have this great sign which will become the centerpiece for my photo wall.

I want to make this area over my stairs a photo wall. I just have to figure out how I'm supposed to get over the stairs to actually hang stuff on the wall. Any suggestions?

boy's Batman shirt

2011-08-10T10:13:00.007-05:00

I rarely buy anything from BabyGap, but I can never resist stopping in just to see if I can score a bargain. The last time I visited, they had super cute Batman t-shirts that my son would love. And they were like $40. For a toddler t-shirt. So I made my own.

Materials:
black t-shirt (though gray would look good, too)
scrap of black knit fabric (I used an old t-shirt)
heat-n-bond lite
freezer paper
yellow fabric paint (or acrylic paint and textile medium)
paint brush
Batman logo template (I found one here)
black thread
sewing machine (or you can hand sew)

Prewash t-shirt. I purchased a pocket-less shirt (yeah!) at Target for $4.

Trace the Batman template onto the freezer paper and cut out around the oval. You can print the template out then place your freezer paper on top (shiny side down) and trace. Or you can wait until your husband isn't watching, put your freezer paper (shiny side down) right on your computer screen and trace lightly with a pencil.

Cut a scrap of black knit fabric slightly larger than the Batman logo and cut a piece of heat-n-bond lite the same size as your knit fabric. Following the instructions on the heat-n-bond lite, apply the heat-n-bond to the wrong side of the black knit fabric.

Place your Batman logo on the paper side of the heat-n-bond lite and trace the oval shape. Cut out around the oval.

Cut out the bat shape from the freezer paper, center it on the right side of your knit fabric (shiny side down) and iron in place.

Apply yellow fabric paint to the black knit fabric. (I used Delta Ceramcoat crocus yellow and Delta Ceramcoat textile medium.) It's best to either "dab" the paint on or brush from the freezer paper out so the paper doesn't peel up and you end up with paint under the freezer paper. I wanted a faded, vintage look so I applied two thin coats.

Let the paint dry. This is the hardest part for me as I immediately want to rip the freezer paper off and see my amazing creation. Bad idea. This is a good time to do some laundry or wash dishes. Or if you're like me, you go to Target. When the paint is dry peel off your freezer paper. (I waited 24 hours.)

Remove the backing paper from the patch and center it on your shirt. Iron the Batman patch to the front of your t-shirt. (The textile medium I used said to wait 7 days before heat setting the paint. I waited 24 hours. I cannot wait a week to finish a project.) I covered the patch with a cloth so the paint didn't destroy my iron and pressed for 20 seconds.

Using a sewing machine and black thread (or you can stitch by hand), stitch around the edge of the patch.

I spent $4 for the t-shirt. Everything else I had on hand.

Linking up to:

the CSI project

Knock Offs Challenge

kids' tent

2011-08-05T08:10:00.005-05:00

My son has way too much stuff. Too many toys, stuffed animals, clothes--everything. My husband and I try not to spoil him, but it seems like every time one of us returns home we bring something new to play with. (And don't even get me started on Christmas when you factor in all the grandparents and aunts and uncles.) With all the stuff kids have, it still amazes me that they really don't need much to create their own fun.

This past Wednesday while I was trying to clean the house, I heard frustrated cries coming from my son's room. He was trying to make a tent on his bed using baby blankets and wasn't having much success. His bed. . .

Yes, my son is 4 & 1/2 years old and the Fisher-Price Rainforest Musical Mobile (complete with dead batteries) is still attached to his bed.

Using a queen size sheet from my thrifted stash and a few clothes pins, we created this for my now-happy camper. . .

He played in it quietly for a good 30 to 45 minutes, and it only needed a few minor repairs during that time. If you don't have a bed like this, you could use a simple card table to create your own fort/tent.

"family" sign (from old drawer front)

2011-08-03T18:14:00.005-05:00

Remember my ReStore adventure? Well I finally finished my first project from one of my 14 cabinet door/drawer fronts. I decided to start with one of the drawer fronts since it was smaller. Only $1 for this. . .

I sanded it and ended up using about 10 different coats of paint because I couldn't decide what colors I wanted and I didn't have a really good plan of what I was actually making. I also learned that spray paint (though a pain to use in the middle of a hot, humid Midwest summer) yields the best results.

I ended up doing a couple coats of satin black spray paint then a couple coats of Rust-Oleum navajo white. (All Lowe's had was gloss but a few coats of Rust-Oleum matte clear spray on the finished project took care of the gloss.) I sanded the edges to reveal some of the black paint and give it a distressed look. The word "family" was part of a rub-on I found at Hobby Lobby in the clearance sections for $2.14. Eventually this will be hung in a little nook next to my kitchen with family photos around it. (If I ever get the nook painted.) Now to figure out what to do with the remaining 13 doors. . .

cabinet doors

2011-07-20T22:49:00.005-05:00

I was feeling adventurous last week and took a little trip to my local Habitat ReStore. I've been wanting to go forever and decided my surprise day off last Friday (with my 4-year-old son at daycare) was the perfect opportunity. I discovered they sold cabinet doors. Amazing pieces of beautifully framed solid wood for $2. So I loaded up a cart with 12 cabinet doors and 2 drawer fronts, paid $14.98 for my treasures and headed for home. I'm pretty sure the guy at the cash register thought I was nuts. I'm glad my son wasn't with me because I'm sure he would have been asking "why do we need so many doors?" over and over and over again. I don't know why I need so many doors. I just do. My favorite find was this one. . .

$2 for a beautiful square door with a decorative raised panel. I have big plans for this one and it's already had a couple coats of spray paint. Hopefully I'll have a project to share soon. The other doors are still in my trunk since I'm not sure where I'm going to put them all!

boy's 4th of July outfit

2011-06-23T12:30:00.001-05:00

The 4th of July is still about 10 days away, and my son's holiday outfit is finished! It's nothing special, just some festive plaid shorts (that kind of look like boxer shorts) and an embellished t-shirt.

The fabric for the shorts is from a thrifted men's dress shirt. I'm always on the lookout for a cute red, white, and blue shirt. I cut the pieces so the shirt's front pocket becomes the short's back pocket. The t-shirt is from Walmart, and I used Heat-n-Bond Lite to fuse fabric stars to the front.

I was going to make a freezer paper stencil and do a saying more related to the 4th, but I figured if I went with stars he could wear the shirt for more than just one day. I also made a couple of wavy rows of contrasting red stitching around the hems on the sleeves and the bottom of the shirt for some added interest.

He's excited to wear it--I told him with the stars on his shirt he'll look like a superhero!

elastic, thread, and Heat-n-Bond from stash

blue t-shirt: $3.50

thrifted dress shirt: $0.99

total: $4.49

painted wood signs (for Father's Day)

2011-06-13T18:03:00.118-05:00

Father's Day is fast approaching and I actually made a gift for my husband. My husband has been wanting some artwork for our newly-finished basement, so I decided to try my hand at some painted signs.

1. Gather the pieces of wood you want to use. I rescued mine from our trash (leftovers from one of my husband's project), and they measure approximately 16-1/4" long x 5-1/4" high x 1/4" thick. I also picked up some mistint paints at Lowe's--only 50 cents each!

2. Using a foam brush, I applied Ceramcoat acrylic paint around the edges of each board. (barn red and brown velvet on the left; blue velvet and poppy orange/brown velvet on the right)

3. Apply one coat of your main color paint to each board. I used a putty-colored mistint. (I also painted the back and sides of each board. I know this isn't necessary, but I can't help it!) Let dry completely.

4. Sand your boards to distress them and let the paint underneath show through. I used my palm sander.

5. I used my Cricut to cut a freezer paper stencil. (More info about how to make a stencil on this post.) I should break down and buy some vinyl for these projects, but I am so cheap and freezer paper works pretty well if you're going for a distressed look. I would not use your best iron to iron the freezer paper to the wood (my iron now has paint on it--I hope it comes off!). I also recommend using a blank sheet of paper between your iron and the freezer paper/wood. If you do not have a Cricut, you can use stencils or trace letters (great post here). I also found this post that uses a computer and printer to generate the letters.

I wanted to make two signs for my husband--one saying "free ice" and another saying "cold beer." Here's the "cold beer" sign ready to be painted.

6. Once the freezer paper is ironed to the wood, use a foam brush to paint the letters. I tap the paint onto the board instead of brushing it on. This helps prevent some seeping under the stencil, but it's still going to happen. It's not a big deal since you sand over the letters, but if it seeps a little too much you can fix it by painting over the really bad areas with your main color. Really bad areas:

Kind of fixed:

7. I didn't do a good job of taking pictures of the next steps. I sanded over the letters with a palm sander, used some Tim Holtz distress ink around the edges, sprayed the signs with an acrylic sealer and hammered an upholstry nail into each corner. My nails were too long for the boards I used, so I had to clip the end of the nail with wire cutters.

7. I stamped the back of each sign.

Wood, acrylic paint, freezer paper & ink already on hand.

Mistint paint: $0.50 (Lowes)

Upholstry nails: $1.49 (JoAnns)

Total: $1.99

vacation's over. . .back to the daily grind

2011-06-12T19:47:00.034-05:00

I've been a bad blogger. I think it's been 2 weeks since my last blog post. At least it was a really awesome post about homemade sidewalk paint/chalk. I have several half-done projects (some which aren't going so well), so I've got nothing crafty to share. My family just got back from a nice, relaxing vacation at the lake. So how 'bout some photos of that instead?

Pouring rain on the drive up to South Dakota.

Finally stopped raining so we could do a little fishing.

A super crabby 4-year-old boy who was bored most of the time and did not want his picture taken. Some day he'll appreciate vacation and the fact that you don't have to do anything but relax.

Finally some clear blue skies and a beautiful sunset on the lake.

Lots of relaxation!

I love vacation. I read 3 books in 4 days. I didn't stress about work. I didn't check my e-mail or Facebook the entire time. I didn't take my iPod. I kicked back and did nothing and didn't feel guilty about it. I drank wine. I enjoyed being with my family. I need to go on vacation more often.

sidewalk paint

2011-05-28T14:52:00.007-05:00

While ~~wasting time~~ looking for inspiration on the internet this past week, I saw this post at Stampin' and Craftin' for making liquid sidewalk chalk. I bookmarked it for a fun summer activity to do with my son. I decided today (when it finally stopped raining) was the perfect time to try it out. You just need water, corn starch and food coloring, so it is cheap and easy and ended up being a lot of fun. Just mix equal parts of water and cornstarch then add the desired food coloring.

Our paint palette. . .

Getting started. . .

The colors start off kind of watery and light, but once it dries it looks pretty neat. . .

A polka dot dinosaur by yours truly. (I had no idea I was so artistic.)

Our favorite was the "abstract" art. . .

The prettiest driveway in the neighborhood!

SMS giveaway winners!

2011-05-28T14:33:00.000-05:00

Thanks for everybody who participated in my Sew, Mama, Sew! giveaway. I was able to complete two additional morsbags so there are three lucky winners!

Bag #1 winner is comment #107--Keriann!

Bag #2 winner is comment #43--Becky!

and Bag #3 winner is comment #102--Alli!

Congratulations to the winners!

other fabric sources

2011-05-25T18:05:00.001-05:00

If you are looking for my Sew, Mama, Sew! giveaway, it is here.

Fabric is expensive and from what I've read online, it's going to get more expensive. I'm always on the lookout for inexpensive sources of fabric, and my most common sources are thrifted sheets from Goodwill (which I know makes some people squeamish) and clearance shower curtains and tablecloths from Target. For $2 or $3 you can get a massive amount of fabric. I like using thrifted fabric because in addition to being inexpensive, I also feel like I'm doing my part to reuse items that might otherwise be discarded. But sometimes my love of clearance bargains overtakes my consciousness for the environment and I end up with this. . .

Do you know how long it's going to take me to use 4 shower curtain's worth of fabric? But they were only $2.48 each so I couldn't resist.

My favorite thing to make from my fabric finds is morsbags. (I know I blog about morsbags all the time, but I really, really like them.) The great thing about using shower curtains or tablecloths fabric is it makes for a really durable shopping bag. I don't have any concerns about using my shopping bags and getting them dirty because the bags are washable unlike some of the reusable bags you buy in the store. And when you find a really cute, fun shower curtain for $3.48 at Target, you can make a bunch of really cute, fun morsbags like this--

And then you can share the love and give them away!

If you're interested in making your own morsbag, there is a free pattern on the morsbags website.

it's giveaway day again!

2011-05-22T16:57:00.005-05:00

It's that time again--Sew, Mama, Sew! giveaway day! I'm giving away the same thing I always give away--morsbags! More specifically, I'm giving away this morsbag--

Morsbags are reusable fabric grocery bags. I usually make them from thrifted sheets, but this one is made from a brand new (clearance) fabric shower curtain from Target. I love the fun, summery stripes. It would also make a great beach or pool bag in addition to hauling groceries. There will be at least one winner, but I will hopefully be giving away three bags to three winners if I can finish the other two this week. (Colors/pattern placement on any additional bags will be different--I'll post additional pictures as they're completed.)

To be entered to win, just leave a comment on this post (one comment per person and US residents only) about something you do (or would like to do) that is environmentally friendly. I will use random.org to choose the winner(s) from all comments left by 12 midnight CST on Friday, May 27, 2011. I will ship the item(s) by Tuesday, May 31(since Monday is a holiday). Be sure to leave an e-mail address if I can't contact you through your comment. Thanks for participating!

baby blocks and rings

2011-05-15T11:03:00.002-05:00

Have you visited Make It and Love It? Ashley makes really cute stuff and shares some wonderful tutorials. I used her cloth baby blocks tutorial to make these:

The cute striped fabric was a remnant I picked up at Hobby Lobby and the blue and brown fabrics were from my stash. I cut blocks in three different sizes (5&1/2", 5", and 4&1/2" to end up with blocks approximately 5", 4&1/2", and 4"). I thought it would be cute if baby could stack the blocks in a tower. Except cloth blocks can be a little hard to stack.

I really liked the instructions for attaching the top and bottom panels to the blocks by clipping out the corners before sewing. The corners turned out perfectly. I also used the cloth ring tutorial to make these--

Cute, cute, cute! I kind of wanted to keep them for myself, but they were part of a gift basket for a baby shower I attended yesterday. Thanks for stopping by!

(I spent $3.15 on the striped fabric remnant, but only had to use about 1/4 yard ($1.05). The blue and brown fabric were from my stash. If you're buying fabric you'll need about 1/4 yard each of three different fabrics. Polyfil is about $2.50/bag, but you'll only use part of the bag.)

quick change trousers & baby bibs

2011-05-14T15:38:00.001-05:00

I've been doing lots of baby sewing for a friend's baby shower. I did buy some stuff including these wonderful heathered bodysuits at Carter's.

(Where were these bodysuits 4 years ago when I had my son? My choices included pastel green and blue with little ducks printed on them.) Using leftover fabrics from the baby blanket, I made a coordinating pair of quick change trousers with a pattern from Anna Maria Horner's book Handmade Beginnings.

I also made a few more bibs--complete with snaps using my new KAM pliers.

blanket for a baby boy

2011-05-11T17:39:00.000-05:00

My friend is expecting a baby boy in June. Her baby shower is this Saturday and I am so looking forward to it. (I love baby showers.) When I found out she was expecting back in January, I started sewing all sorts of handmade goodies including this blanket--

All of the blocks in the border were from fabric scraps. I had a pile of scraps sitting on my sewing table after various projects when I realized how nice they all looked together. The center piece and binding are from a remnant of quilting fabric I got super cheap at Hancock's.

The black backing fabric is from my stash, and I think it's chambray, maybe? I quilted it in a diagonal pattern with gray thread. I'm really happy with how it turned out, and I hope mom and baby enjoy it, too. Thanks for stopping by!

polymer clay herb markers

2011-05-04T15:34:00.001-05:00

I've been wanting some fabulous herb/garden markers. (Any of these on Etsy would be lovely.) I tried making some of the stamped silverware markers last year but it was a flop. I ended up making stamped terra cotta pots instead. They fared pretty well over the winter but the ink has faded some. Since I was in need of a Mother's Day gift for my mom I figured I'd try to make some markers from polymer clay. If it was successful, maybe I'd get around to making some for myself someday. So last weekend my 4-year-old son and I ventured to Michaels. I bought a pack of moss Sculpey III polymer clay for $2.49. My husband then took our son to Cabela's and I had a very rare few hours to myself. Since I have never used polymer clay, I found inspiration at this post and made these. . .

The "chives" marker in action. (I realize this plant is not chives. It's my green pepper plant, but it's the only prop I had.)

I did not take any pictures of the process since that usually ensures the project will be a disaster. I'll include step-by-step instructions (minus pics) of what I did which may or may not be helpful.

Separate the polymer clay into the four premarked pieces. Knead each piece until soft then roll it out into a long strip that is approximately 5 inches long, 1-1/2 inches wide and 1/4 inch thick. (You can also use a pasta machine which I have since purchased since polymer clay may be my new addiction.) I was able to make five markers from my pack of clay--one marker from each section and an additional marker from the scraps plus I still have some leftover.
Using a knife, I cut my marker shapes freehand. The finished sizes ranges from 4-1/4 to 5 inches long and 1 to 1-1/4 inches wide. I made my markers wider at the top and tapered them down at the bottom.
I took a piece of 100 grit sand paper and gently rolled in on top of each marker for added texture. (I didn't think this did much until I added the paint in step 7).
Using a small alphabet rubber stamp set, stamp the desired name on each marker. I made oregano, basil, cilantro, rosemary and chives. Hopefully this is what my mom is planting this year. (I purchased my stamp set for $1 at Michaels a few years ago. I'm not sure if they still sell those?)
I also used some other decorative rubber stamps to make the swirls around the edges of the markers.
Carefully place the markers on a foil-covered cookie sheet and bake according to the manufacturer's directions on the polymer clay package. I used Sculpey III and baked my markers at 275 degrees F for 20 minutes. (Even after cooling completely, they are still pretty flexible but I think they'll be okay. For my set, I purchased some clearance Sculpey Premo so we'll see if it hardens more.)
After they have cooled completely, use a stiff-bristled brush to apply acrylic paint to the markers then wipe off the excess with a paper towel. This will make the letters and stamping stand out as well as the texture from the sandpaper. I used Folk Art Metallic Champagne.
After the paint dried, I used a cotton ball to add a little Tim Holtz Walnut Distress Ink. Because distress ink makes everything better. Really.
After the ink is dry, add a coat of clear acrylic spray. I used Valspar American Tradition ultra clear satin since it's the first can I pulled out of the closet.

Easter eggs

2011-04-26T11:18:00.003-05:00

I realize Easter is over, but maybe this is something you can file away for next year.

This year we tried something new when dyeing our Easter eggs. Here's some of the best eggs. . .

My initial plan was to use all-natural dyes. A few days before Easter, my son and I boiled freezer-burnt cranberries and orange peels to make red and orange/yellow dye. I bought grape juice for purple dye. We saved our old coffee for brown dye. Our results were less than stunning since I didn't realize until egg-dyeing time that the eggs should soak in the dye overnight. So we resorted to the 99 cent Paas dyeing kit. We made our own "stickers" using small craft punches, decorative scissors, blue painter's tape and wax paper.

You can get really small punches from Michael's for $1 and those seemed to work the best. (I'm definitely going to buy some more for next year.) If you don't have punches or decorative scissors, you can use regular scissors to cut your own shapes (like my red/orange "confetti" egg in the first picture). If you don't have painter's tape, you can punch the shapes out of regular paper to make a stencil. Just color over the stencil with a white crayon before dyeing (like my husband's paw print blue egg). To make your "stickers" just put some pieces of painter's tape on a piece of waxed paper and cut your shapes (using punches) and strips (using decorative scissors). Peeling the shapes off the wax paper was a little problematic on some of the pieces. Here's a batch of eggs all stickered-up and waiting to be dyed.

Cheap family Easter fun!

spring skirt

2011-04-20T18:10:00.004-05:00

I am not above using a bed sheet as clothing. Sometimes the results can be kind of cute. I found this fun twin-size sheet at Goodwill and loved the applique detail at the top of the sheet. I thought it would look nice as the hem of a skirt. Too dark picture of skirt. . .

Too bright picture of skirt. . .

I really need to figure out how to take good photos.

I wanted my skirt about 24 inches long, so I cut a piece of sheet 48 inches and sewed it into a tube with right sides together. I then folded the sheet so the skirt had two layers (instant lining). I sewed a casing around the top and used 2 inch wide elastic. Only the inside layer needed hemming since everything else had a finished edge. I like the results and will be on the lookout for more cute sheets to turn into skirts. My only problem is I cut the elastic too short so the waistband is a little snug.

Asking your husband to help with the "photo shoot" will get you "artistic" pictures like this.

Almost 7 years of marriage and he still makes me laugh. (And he's not the least bit embarrassed that his wife is wearing a bed sheet.)

thrifted sheet: $2.99

elastic: $1.19

total: $4.18

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!

another bunny

2011-04-10T08:51:00.005-05:00

I don't make a lot of stuffed toys, but when I do, one of my favorite patterns is the Martha Stewart menswear bunny. There are some complaints in the comments that the bunny is too plain and the arms are too long and skinny but I think that's part of the charm. It can be a little tedious turning and stuffing the arms but the results are so, so cute--

I made this bunny from a very soft khaki men's dress shirt (99 cents at Goodwill). The inside of the ears are leftover scraps from another men's dress shirt after I made these shorts and these bibs. I did make a few alterations/additions to the pattern. I fused strips of interfacing to the wrong side of the ears before sewing them together so they aren't so floppy.

I also sew my arm pieces to the body rather than sewing and stuffing the arms and handstitching them to the bunny. I hope my bunnies end up being well-loved by the recipient, but I don't think my handstitching would hold up very well to a young child. This bunny will be a gift for my friend who is expecting a boy in June, but these would also make adorable (and very inexpensive) Easter gifts.

(I spent 99 cents on the shirt I used for the fabric and still had enough of the shirt left to make a pair of shorts for my son, two baby bibs, plus I still have leftover scraps. I spent $2.47 on a bag of polyfil and only had to use a small amount of the bag.)

Easter cards

2011-04-01T11:04:00.003-05:00

Good thing Easter is late this year--I'll actually get cards made and sent off to the relatives! For this year's cards I used the Day 27 Sunday Sketch at 365 Cards.

I found some cute clearance paper at Hobby Lobby, and even though I don't need any more paper I couldn't resist. (The green background paper is Penny Lane and the bunny paper is the Paper Studio.) I didn't follow the sketch exactly, but I was definitely inspired by it.

The sentiment stamp is one I picked up at Michaels a few years back. I cut the bunny paper into strips and wrapped a strip around the card so it also shows on the inside.

Thanks for looking!

boy's shorts

2011-03-29T09:11:00.003-05:00

I love Goodwill. I love men's dress shirts. I love buying men's dress shirts for 99 cents at Goodwill and using the fabric to make all sorts of awesome stuff. The current project is summer shorts for my 4-year-old son.

While "researching" the internet for new ideas, I found this great shorts tutorial at Saltwater Kids. While I've done the shirts-to-shorts repurposing before, I really liked the idea of using the pocket from the shirt as a back pocket on the shorts. Because I messed up my pattern placement on the first try I had to remove the pocket, move it down two inches, and resew it on. Before moving it, the top of the pocket barely cleared the waistband. After fixing the pocket, it looked much better. . .

The tutorial shows you how to make a pattern using an existing pair of shorts. I used a purchased pattern (Simplicity 2627) because it was cheap and easy and I'm all about cheap and easy. I've continued using the same pattern for a few years now that I finally found one I like. The first summer I made shorts for my son the poor kid ending up wearing what turned out to be toddler boy daisy dukes because I made the mistake of borrowing one of my mom's "vintage" patterns from the 1970s. Apparently boys' shorts were a lot shorter and more fitted back in the 70s. Fortunately, these homemade shorts aren't nearly as embarrassing. Now to get to work on reconstructing this growing stack of shirts .

baby bibs

2011-03-25T08:23:00.001-05:00

I have a friend who is expecting a baby boy in July and I want to give her a whole stash of handmade baby goodies. I figured I better get started now. I found this great pattern for a baby bib at chickpea studio. After deconstructing thrifted men's dress shirts for various other projects, I had several leftover shirt sleeves which were perfect for the bib fronts. (I only buy the 99 cent shirts, so using both sleeves you can get two bib front for less than $1.) So I went into baby bib production. . .

I used some clearance bath towels I found at Target ($1.34 for a 2-pack) for the backing (except for one that is backed in flannel because I had my layers in the wrong order so the towel ended up on the inside). I added a layer of flannel (scraps from my stash) in the middle to make the bibs a little thicker.

I added ties to a couple of them using the tie template from Crap I've Made. So cute!

I don't have closures on them yet. I finally broke down and bought the Kam plastic snap pliers and a supply of plastic snaps. I'm just waiting for everything to arrive. I tried using the metal snaps from the fabric store but it didn't work so well. Velcro probably would have been a less expensive and easier alternative, but I'd already decided I really wanted a snap closure. The only problem with all this baby sewing is it really makes me want another baby. :)

Thanks for stopping by!

a dirt shirt

2011-03-24T19:33:00.017-05:00

Have you heard about the contest over at I Am Momma Hear Me Roar?

It's all about the boys and the contest is to create a shirt (or two) for a boy. And you know I love contests. And I have a 4-year-old boy. And it is so hard to find awesome clothes for boys. So I'm also looking forward to the contest linky day just to see all the great ideas.

I'm cheap so I like to stock up on clothes for my son. The only problem is my son won't wear plain shirts (which I discovered last year after I had stockpiled a bunch of clearance shirts). Even though my son won't wear plain shirts, I still can't pass up a good deal when I find one. So when I found a plain brown shirt at Goodwill I knew I could transform it into something totally cool like this. . .

I made an applique using this construction stencil template at Spay Paint Stencils. I used Heat N Bond lite to fuse it to the t-shirt then machine stitched around the applique twice with white thread to make it stand out more.

The fabric is leftover from a thrifted men's dress shirt I had used to make an art smock. I have a hard time throwing away any of the leftover pieces--I know they can be used for something. The shirt tails were also leftover from the original shirt so I cut them off and attached them to the inside of the t-shirt for a layered look. (I totally didn't measure very well when I cut my "tails" pieces so they're a little narrow. I'm sure it will turn out better next time!)

I used my Cricut and the Plantain Schoolbook cartridge to make a freezer paper stencil with the phrase "i like dirt." I painted the letters with Ceramcoat Georgia Clay (one of my favorites), a little bit of white paint, then another light coat of Georgia Clay for a distressed look.

I added a pocket made from a scrap of fabric and replaced the original plain brown buttons with some orange ones. (Of course I didn't measure the original buttons before I went to the store so the orange ones are actually a size too big but I was able to force them through the existing button holes.)

For the finishing touch, I used white thread to make a couple of wavy lines stitched around the hem on the sleeves and the bottom of the shirt.

Not bad for a couple of bucks!

St. Patrick's Day t-shirt

2011-03-01T08:34:00.002-06:00

Since St. Patrick's Day is right around the corner, it's time for another holiday-themed shirt for my son. (On a side note, I really don't think he minds the holiday-themed shirts. Last Monday he wanted to know why he didn't have a President's Day shirt to wear.) I found a clearance green t-shirt at Target and removed the pocket. This is shirt #2 since shirt #1 was a crafting disaster. Fortunately another Target had another 4T green shirt on clearance. For a good tutorial on freezer paper stencils, check out this post at Crap I've Made.

I have a love/hate relationship with my Cricut. It was a Christmas gift from my husband at least three years ago, and it has been in the box in the closet for over a year. I unpacked it again because I was determined to make this work. After a frustrating hour resulting in a ton of destroyed freezer paper, a trip to Michael's for new blades and cutting mats, and a lot of research on the internet--success!

I found some good Cricut/freezer paper advice here. I used the Jasmine cartridge to cut 4 inch letters for the word "Lucky" and the Plantain Schoolbook cartridge to cut 2 inch letters for the word "boy." I set both my speed and pressure to "medium" and the blade depth to "5." I used the "flip" feature since you put the freezer paper shiny side up and need to cut the letters in reverse. When using the "flip" feature to cut out words, be sure to enter your word in the reverse order. (So I typed in "ykcuL" for "Lucky" and "yob" for "boy.") Also make sure "Real Dial Size" is not engaged.

I then inserted a piece of cardboard into the shirt so paint wouldn't soak through and folded the sleeves under the shirt. Because somehow I managed to get paint on the sleeve of craft disaster shirt #1.

I used white Tulip fabric paint and a foam brush to paint the letters. To avoid getting paint under the freezer paper stencil, I used a "dabbing" motion rather than brushing the paint on.

After one coat of paint. . .

After 4 or 5 coats of paint. (I lost track.) I let it dry at least 45 minutes to an hour between coats.

After my final coat of paint, I let it dry overnight. Carefully remove the freezer paper.

There are a few areas where some paint seeped under the freezer paper, but it still turned out pretty good. Hopefully it still looks this good after washing it.

And because you're all dying to see it, craft disaster shirt #1.

Even though it is tempting, do not remove the freezer paper while the paint is still wet. You'll get paint everywhere. Thanks for stopping by!

cute & easy baby washcloths

2011-02-28T15:57:00.002-06:00

Want to make a cute little baby washcloth?

These are so much better than those washcloths you buy in the baby section. They're bigger and thicker. Babies and toddlers are messy. You need decent washcloths. These are so easy to make it probably doesn't even need a tutorial. But I made one anyway.

Materials:

washcloths or toweling/terry cloth fabric

flannel fabric

scissors

pins

sewing machine

thread

I purchased a stack of washcloths at Target.

They used to sell sets of various colors, but all I could find this time were sets of one color. Make sure you get basic washcloths without a thick rolled hem or decorative border or anything. Mine have a very simple serged edge on them and were $3.49 for a set of 8. Target will run them on sale, and I see them clearanced once in while so you can get them cheaper. Since they're going to be backed in flannel you don't need (and probably don't want) a really thick washcloth. (You could also purchase toweling/terry cloth fabric and cut to the desired size to use in place of the washcloth.)

1. Prewash washcloths and flannel fabric. Remove any tags and stray threads.

2. Place the washcloth on your piece of flannel fabric with right sides together. Using your washcloth as a template cut out a piece of flannel fabric the same size as the washcloth. You could pin the washcloth and fabric together before cutting it out, but I don't. I like to live on the edge.

3. Pin your washcloth and flannel fabric together (right sides together).

4. Sew your washcloth and flannel fabric together. I used the edge of the existing washcloth hem as a guide and followed the rounded corners. Be sure to leave an opening (about 2 inches or so) for turning the washcloth right side out.

5. Turn the washcloth right side out. You made need to use a pencil or other similar object to poke the corners out.

6. Fold the washcloth and flannel fabric in at the opening and pin.

7. Iron around the edge of the washcloth. You can pin around the edge to help keep the fabrics lined up when topstitching, but I don't. Topstitch around the edge of the washcloth. I like to use the inside edge of the presser foot as a guide and move my needle two positions to the right so my topstitching is nice and close to the edge.

8. When you come to the opening, carefully continue topstitching making sure your fabric remains folded in to sew the opening shut. Backstitch at the beginning and end to secure the stitching.

9. Admire you cute little washcloth!

This is a great way to use up flannel scraps or an excuse to buy cute flannel remnants. If you don't have flannel fabric big enough, piece them together to make an even cuter washcloth.

Now to make a stack of them for an inexpensive but totally awesome baby shower gift.

a little spring. . .

2011-02-21T11:45:00.000-06:00

. . .on a dreary February day.

This is my first attempt at a disappearing nine patch which I worked on over the weekend (in addition to free-motion quilting another blanket and binding a third blanket). I used 36 squares from a Moda Central Park charm pack. It's much busier than anything I've ever made before, but I think it will make an adorable little baby blanket/play mat. Not that I have any need for a girly baby blanket, but I couldn't resist the bright, happy fabrics. I think I'll end up using it as a center panel, and this will be the first square blanket I've made. I've decided when it comes to quilt-making, I really enjoy picking out the fabrics and piecing them together which is why I have 5 quilt tops and 0 quilts. The quilting part I don't enjoy so much--probably because it takes me so long! I don't even mind hand stitching the binding. So what is your favorite/least favorite part of the quilt-making process?

patchwork pillow

2011-02-19T15:14:00.002-06:00

Remember this cute Cloud 9 blanket I made for my son? There is also a cute little bunting tutorial. I'd show you the coordinating bunting I made for my son's room, but it's still not done and I started it almost a year ago. I have all the bunting pieces cut out and a few are even sewn together. After cutting all the pieces I was left with several scraps like this:

I knew the scraps could eventually be used for something and pillow month at Sew, Mama, Sew! provided the perfect opportunity. I decided to use just the prints and played around with the pieces until I found a layout I liked:

I started sewing them together:

Until I had two panels:

At this point I forgot to stop sewing and take pictures. Basically, I evened up the edges of my panels and cut each panel in half lengthwise so I had four strips. I then arranged the strips until I found a pattern I liked and sewed the strips together:

I realize very few of the points match up correctly. I didn't start with pieces that had been precisely cut so I guess I couldn't expect much. I evened up the edges again and was pleasantly surprised to discover I had a 16 inch square. What are the chances of that happening? For my pillow top, I used my panel, a layer of cotton batting, and a layer of white muslin. The pillow back is a coordinating blue chambray. I used a 16-inch pillow form which made for a snug-fitting cover, but I like the end result.

Thanks for stopping by!

Valentine's Day cards

2011-02-07T11:03:00.000-06:00

Hello, cardmakers. Remember me? I used to make cards until I got back into sewing, and I haven't made too many cards since. I wanted to make some Valentine's Day cards to send my relatives so I could include birthday pictures of my son. I found this adorable postage stamp paper at Michael's.

I wanted to be able to quickly make a bunch of cards, and the card sketch at 365 Cards Super Sketchy Sunday was perfect:

My cards:

The card base is made from cardboard I rescued from work. The patterned papers are from a really old Provo Craft slab, and the colors worked perfectly with the postage stamp paper. I used my Cuttlebug hearts embossing folder to emboss the hearts onto pink Coredinations cardstock then sanded and inked it. I wanted a vintge look so I inked the edges with Tim Holtz vintage photo distress ink. I think I overdid it a bit. I added some pink staples (from the office supply department at Target) on the corners of the postage stamps.

Thanks for looking!

Anthropologie-inspired patchwork tote

2011-02-06T14:32:00.004-06:00

There's a Knock it Off contest over at seven thirty three. I cannot resist a contest so even though I have a million other projects started, I dropped everything to start yet another new project. The contest is to link up a project that was made by "knocking off" a brand. I started searching web sites looking for inspiration and quickly found this beauty at Anthropologie.

Patchwork. Words of wisdom. Embroidery. On a bag. I think I'm in love. $198??? Absolutely insane. So I made my own, and I think my bag is pretty amazing--

Many of my fabric scraps are leftovers from various projects--mostly baby quilts I've made as gifts and morsbags so this bag is a reminder of doing what I love. I think it will make a nice library tote or shopping bag.

When I make something, I'm not very good at taking pictures of all the steps so here's a not very thorough how-to.

Materials Used:
various fabric scraps (for patchwork panel)
canvas or denim fabric (for bag)
muslin (for lining)
Wonder Under
fusible interfacing
sewing machine
black and ivory thread
scissors
rotary cutter, ruler, and self-healing mat
black embroidery floss
word processing program
freezer paper
pen

1. Select several fabric scraps for the quilted panel. You'll want a mix of lighter colors for the center of the panel where the embroidery will be and some darker/bolder prints. This was my first time making a diamond pattern, and I used this tutorial. I still had a heck of a time figuring it out. After measuring, cutting, and ending up with several rhombus-shaped pieces but no diamonds I decided to make a cardboard template. I was able to make better use of my scraps that way, too. Since I was fusing my patchwork piece to sturdy fabric and the patchwork was just decorative, I figured it would be okay that the pieces weren't all cut along the fabric grain. I almost called it quits several times, but finally ended up with a usable patchwork piece. I thought it was hideous while I was piecing it but ended up liking the finished product even though some of the points don't match and it's not completely squared up.

2. Square up the patchwork piece and fuse Wonder Under (or a similar product) to the back of of the piece. From my canvas fabric, I cut a piece 16 1/2 inches wide by 42 inches long for the body of the bag. (The size was mostly determined by the size of my finished patchwork piece so it would be centered on the front of the bag.) I like not having a seam on the bottom of my bag so I always cut one large piece when possible. Fuse the patchwork piece to the front of the bag. Using ivory thread, zig zag stitch along all the seams between the diamond pieces. Using black thread, zig zag stitch along the four outside edges of the patchwork piece.

3. For the embroidery, I chose the phrase "do what you love." Using my computer's word processing program I typed out the phrase in a font I liked (Bradley Hand ITC in 150 point). Holding a piece of freezer paper up to the computer screen (shiny side to the screen), carefully trace the words onto the paper. (Do not let your husband see you do this or you'll get a lecture.) Trim around the words, place on patchwork piece in the desired location and iron into place.

Using a needle and 6 strands of black embroidery floss, stitch along each letter. As you're stitching, if the freezer paper starts to pull away from the fabric you can iron it back into place. This was another time-consuming part of the project and my fingers still hurt the following day after stitching through all that fabric. (It was totally worth it, though.) After the stitching is done, carefully tear away the freezer paper while trying not to pull the stitching too much.

This is where the pictures/instructions get a little sparse. (There is a nice bag tutorial here at Cluck, Cluck, Sew.)

4. With right sides together, stitch the sides of the bag. I sewed a straght stitch on each side (a little larger than 1/4" seam allowance) and a zig zag stitch in the seam allowance to help with fraying. I made a box bottom on my bag with a 3 inch depth (shown on this tutorial here).

5. Make two handles (or you can use webbing). I cut two pieces of canvas fabric 4 inches by 18 inches and made morsbag handles. I normally don't interface my handles but since my fabric was a little stretchy, I did use interfacing here to make them a little more sturdy. (Instructions are under the "make one" tab on the morsbags link.)

6. Place the lining inside the bag with right sides together. Between the two layers of fabric, insert one handle in the front and one handle the the back. Be careful not to get the handles twisted and I did on my first attempt. Stitch around the top of the bag with a 1/2" seam allowance leaving an opening between the handle on the back of the bag for turning.

7. Turn bag right side out through the opening and topstitch around the top of the bag. I did one seam at 1/4 inch and one at 3/4 inch.

Thanks for stopping by!

subway art-style Valentine

2011-02-03T08:40:00.003-06:00

I'm intrigued by all the subway art in the blogosphere these days. I wanted to try my hand at a very small subway art-type project and this week's CSI typography challenge was the perfect opportunity. And I need a Valentine's Day card for my husband. First I gathered up all of my rubber stamps with the word "love" in them and a few alphabet sets, a black ink pad, and a black brush marker (for those stamps where I only want to use part of the stamp).

Then I started stamping. And stamping. And stamping. It has been a long time since I've made a stamped card so my stamping is a little rusty, but I was very pleased with the result. This is one of those projects where one wrong move with permanent ink can ruin the whole thing. My masculine Valentine's Day card for my husband--

Thanks for stopping by!

crayon wallet

2011-01-26T09:14:00.001-06:00

I've been wanting to make a crayon wallet for my son. A few years ago I made him a crayon roll that holds 16 crayons. I thought that would be a good thing to have in the church bag to keep him occupied. I was wrong, and I realized this the first time we took it to church and he unfurled his incredibly long crayon roll and started whipping it around by the ties. Bad idea. I figure a wallet would be better to take to church because it only holds 8 crayons and has a pocket for some paper. I knew I could come up with some type of pattern on my own but when I started factoring in the time that would take and the supplies used/wasted on prototypes that weren't quite right I decided to purchase a pattern. I purchased a Crayon Wallet PDF Pattern from Vintage Market on Etsy. It was a total bargain at $4 and was well-written and easy to follow. I think it took me less than 30 minutes to make this--

The dinosaur fabric was a remnant I picked up at JoAnn's. I had the orange fabric in my stash and used some gray fabric and my bias tape maker to make the ties. Instead of a notepad, I cut down office paper scraps to put in the pocket. Thanks for stopping by!

love shirt

2011-01-22T19:03:00.003-06:00

I love making my son holiday-themed shirts. He just turned 4 years old, so I don't think I have many holidays left where I can dress him in handmade holiday shirts. I'm enjoying it while I can. He did inform me that he doesn't like tie shirts anymore, so a Valentine's Day tie shirt like the one I made him last year just wouldn't do. While trying to find an idea for this year's shirt, I was inspired by this cute Valentine's Day canvas art at Crap I've Made. I don't really decorate for Valentine's Day, but it was so cute I decided to use the same idea on a shirt. The super-cute results:

I used a bargain Target shirt I bought last year. I did have to remove the pocket, and it went much better than it did on this shirt. I used my word processing program to make the letters (Franklin Gothic Heavy in 300 point) and used a ribbed green knit fabric remnant. (Gray and green--very non-Valentine's Day-ish.) I've never fused knit to knit before but it went pretty well. I cut my fabric letters slightly larger than the fusible stuff so the fabric would fray a little around the edges in a Gap/Old Navy fashion. I stitched around each letter randomly twice. I'm really happy with how it turned out. Thanks for looking!

trying to be patient. . .

2011-01-19T07:00:00.020-06:00

I cannot wait to get home from work tonight and start piecing together this fun little baby blanket!

I'm using the Road Trip Quilt Tutorial from Cluck, Cluck, Sew. My husband works late so after I get my son all tucked into bed I'll have some quiet sewing time to myself. I can't wait!

baby blanket

2011-01-18T09:00:00.000-06:00

I'm getting to that age where I don't have a lot of friends who are having babies. I guess that's because we're getting old. This past summer, I was very excited to hear one of my college friends was expecting and she gave birth to a beautiful baby girl on 12/26. Yeah! A baby girl! Pink and flowers! (I have a son so I don't get a lot of opportunities to make cute baby girl stuff.) So I set out to make a blanket to welcome this sweet little baby, and the result? A very boyish little girl blanket.

There are flowers so I guess that makes it kind of girlie. I love how it turned out. My husband thought I should "just put a pink binding on it." I tried to explain that I couldn't just "put a pink binding on" something that has absolutely no pink in it. Especially when it has orange. He didn't understand. But baby's mom loved it (or at least pretended she did).

using up scraps

2011-01-16T07:57:00.007-06:00

I really have a hard time throwing away any scrap of fabric no matter how small it is. (And you can tell by looking at my craft room.) I even save those long leftover strips of fabric that most people probably throw away. Now what could one possibly do with these???

Why, sew them to a bag of course.

I made a morsbag out of my "chatham tan" shower curtain. It was looking a little plain, so I jazzed it up with some strips of fabric. I left the edges raw then rewashed the bag so it would fray a little.

When I showed my husband, his response was something like "Why didn't you do that to the back? Now you have to make sure the decorated side of the back is always facing out." Typical husband response.

easy fabric gift bag--tutorial

2011-01-09T14:10:00.012-06:00

Another Christmas has gone by and once again I had huge plans to "wrap" all of my gifts in fabric gift bags and never again buy/waste wrapping paper. I only made two, but they were pretty cute:

The bags are made from holiday-themed bandanas I purchased at Hobby Lobby. They had a rolled hem around the edges, and I figured I could easily make them into gift bags since most of the finish work was already done. This is only the second tutorial I've attempted, so if you have any questions or if something doesn't make sense, please ask. Also, if you make a bag using my tutorial, I'd love to see a picture/link.

Materials:
bandana or napkin (something with finished edges)
ribbon, cord, twill tape for the ties (or scrap of fabric to make the ties)
thread
sewing machine
pins
fabric pencil or water soluble pen (optional)

Instructions:
1. Wash and press your fabric. I used a bandana that was approximately 20" x 20".

2. Make two ties. If you use ribbon, twill tape, or some other pre-made tie you can skip to step #3. I found a coordinating fabric in my stash (it had 1988 printed in the selvage so it's really old). I used my Clover bias tape maker to make my ties. I don't cut the fabric on the bias since there's no need for the ties to stretch. I used a strip of fabric 2" wide by about 28" long which will make ties about 1/2" wide by about 13" long. I won't go into detail on how to use the bias tape maker as there are good instructions here.

After topstitching both sides of the tie, knot each end and cut the strip in half so you have two ties.

3. Fold the bag fabric in half lengthwise with right sides together and pin at the bottom and side.

At this point you'll notice that since I'm using a bandana that was not cut very straight, my edges do not match up perfectly.

I would normally cut the fabric to even up the edges, but I don't want to remove the finished edge. (We'll deal more with this a little later.)

4. Decide where you want your ties. I placed mine approximately 5 inches from the top of the bag.

6. Place your ties between the two layers of fabric at the desired spot matching up the raw edges of the ties with the edge of the bag. Pin in place making sure the free ends of the ties are out of the way.

7. Make a seam along the bottom and side of the bag. Backstitch at the beginning and end of the seam to secure stitching. Go slowly when sewing over the ties (there's a lot of fabric here). I like to stitch back and forth over the ties a few times to make sure they'll be secure.

Normally I line up the edge of my presser foot with the edge of the fabric but that didn't work so well since this bandana wasn't perfectly square. It may be helpful to use a pencil or washable marker to draw lines to mark your seams. The seam allowances may not be even on the inside (which nobody will ever look at except my mother), but you'll want your bag to be nice and square when it's finished and look good from the outside.

8. Turn the bag right side out and press. Admire your work!

Make a bunch of these now and next Christmas, when you're thinking "how the heck am I going to wrap this. . ."

Problem solved!

old habits

2011-01-08T15:47:00.001-06:00

One of my many goals this year is to decrease what I buy and use from my stash instead. Easier said than done. I was wandering through Target yesterday and made the mistake of checking out the clearance section in housewares. And I found an entire endcap of clearance shower curtains.

A piece of 72" x 72" fabric for $2.48. It's a neat burlap-type fabric but not as scratchy as burlap. And it's a fancy color--"chatham tan." So what is one to do? Apparently you exercise some restraint and only buy four. Of course I need a couple in "guacamole" too.

Goodwill t-shirt makeover

2011-01-06T15:04:00.078-06:00

I purchased this t-shirt at Goodwill awhile back for 99 cents.

I think I bought it to use as knit fabric for another project? It's been sitting on the floor of my craft room for several months now which is why it's so wrinkled. It's 2 to 3 sizes bigger than I normally wear, but I hadn't re-donated it yet because I loved the color and the soft knit. It is a good length. (I love long shirts). It is a fitted style but was too wide in the body and the sleeves. I decided to use elastic thread (my absolute new favorite crafting supply) and try and shrink it up a bit. It could turn out to be a total disaster, but I figured I'd only be out 99 cents and my very valuable time. Using matching thread in the machine, a ball point needle for knit fabric, and a bobbin of elastic thread I started sewing. And sewing. And sewing. And I love how it turned out. Now the picture is not so great. It's late. The lighting is bad. And I'm trying to take a picture of myself using the timer on my camera. But I do have a great model pose going on.

I made 6 rows of stitching around the bottom of the shirt. Each row is about 3/8" apart. After the first row of stitching is done, use the outside edge of the presser foot as a guide for additional rows so they're nice and straight. This made it more fitted around the bottom. As an added bonus it perfectly hides the boring brown belt used to hold up my jeans.

I made 5 rows of stitching (about 1/4" apart--use the inside edge of the presser foot as a guide) around each sleeve. This resulted in a cute little ruffled sleeve.

I made 4 rows of stitching (again about 3/8" apart) on each shoulder (2 rows on each side of the shoulder seam). This pulled the sleeves up just enough to fit perfectly at the shoulder.

I made 7 rows of stitching (about 3/8" apart) on the front of the shirt. I wanted to add something interesting to jazz up the plain front, but maybe this wasn't the area to do it. It looks fine most of the time, but every once in awhile it will bunch up funny. And nobody likes funny bunching right between her boobs. Sorry-- you don't get a close up picture of this.

I really love the way the shirt turned out. It was a very quick project until the stitching was finished and I had to pull all those threads to the back and knot them with the elastic bobbin thread. That took forever. In 2011 I have vowed not to dress like a complete slob on my days off and to dress a little nicer on the days I work. I also don't want to wear a plain old t-shirt everyday. And I refuse to spend a lot of money on clothes. (I seriously buy all of my clothes at Goodwill with the exception of underwear and socks.) I wore my fancy new shirt today, and I actually felt cute and a little hip and trendy (aside from the old lady shoes I was wearing). No more shapeless, extra large sweatshirts for this girl! Now I just need an awesome accessory to go with my new shirt. Any suggestions?

I'm entering this project in Round 2 of Crafting with the Stars at Sew Dang Cute Crafts. I figure I don't have a snowball's chance, but 2011 is also going to be my year to try lots of new things. And you never know unless you try!

Also linking up to DIY Under $5 at A Little Tipsy.

Sew, Mama, Sew! 2010 Reflections/2011 Predictions

2011-01-05T18:52:00.001-06:00

I may be posting about this late, but here's my answers to Sew, Mama, Sew!'s questions for 2010 Reflections + 2011 Predictions:

Looking back on the sewing scene of 2010, what trends stand out in your mind?
I don't follow trends much, but I loved the red/aqua color combination I saw so much of in 2010.

What were some of your favorite things? (Trends, fabric collections, patterns, blogs? Whatever you really loved.)
One of my favorite collections was Dream On by Urban Chiks because the fabrics remind of the vintage sheets I love so much. I also liked any fabric that was a really fun kids print--especially when it's suitable for little boys. My favorite new (to me) product from 2010 was elastic thread. I can't get enough of smocking and the beautiful ruffles it creates.

What was your very favorite fabric collection or print? (If not listed above.)
Dream On by Urban Chiks

What was the best thing you made in 2010? (Be sure to share a photo!)
I loved most of the items I made in 2010 but my favorite is probably this blanket I made for my son:

Don't ask about the unfinished coordinating bunting that should be hanging in his room.

What is one of the best things you saw that was made by someone else?
I found so many great handmade things in 2010--I can't believe how many projects I have bookmarked. I really liked these upcycled boys hats, personalized baby quilts, and 4th of July shirts.

What do you think 2011 has in store? (Again, trends, fabric, patterns, etc.)
More projects using recycling/upcycling/thrifting? I'm so bad with trends.

Anything you’re ready for the sewing world to get over?
Since I don't follow trends much, I can't really comment on this. A lot of people have mentioned that the whole owl trend is getting old. It reminds me of the hedgehog trend a year or two ago. So I guess owls were the new hedgehog in 2010. I'm going to predict that 2011 will be the year of the skunk. You heard it here first, folks. I would like to comment on two things I'm ready for the fashion world to get over--rompers (for anyone over 5 years old) and skinny jeans.

What’s on your sewing agenda for 2011? What are you excited about? What would you like to learn more about?
2010 was a productive sewing year for me since my son was 3 years old and able to entertain himself while mommy "worked" in her sewing room. I want to accomplish even more this year and actually make some of the handmade gifts I have bookmarked. I want to participate in a craft fair in November. I want to actually try some of the ideas I have floating around in my head instead of convincing myself I would just end up wasting my time because they couldn't possibly work. And maybe I'll finish up a project or two in my "unfinished projects" box. :)

Thanks for stopping by!

my favorite project of the year

2010-12-28T22:50:00.001-06:00

This week's CSI Project theme is your favorite project of the year. Now that my son is almost 4 years old, I've been able to get back into crafting. (The willingness of a child to play independently is such a wonderful thing!) I had a number of craft fails in 2010, but I've also made several things that I've loved. If I have to choose just one favorite project, it would be my Goodwill dresser/hutch makeover I did back in October.

Before (but after sanding because I forgot to take real "before" photos):

After:

I've always wanted to revamp a piece of furniture. I'm proud of myself for finally doing it and completing it in less than a week from start to finish (my husband needed his side of the garage back). I sanded it myself, painted it myself, and replaced the hardware myself. My husband did help me move it (it is heavy). He also primed it for me. I think he knew it was going to turn out awesome and wanted to be able to take credit for helping!

painted wood Christmas ornaments

2010-12-23T12:59:00.001-06:00

I had some leftover scraps of wood from my painted jack-o-lantern project, so I decided to make some little wooden Christmas ornaments.

They were so easy to make. I painted the front and back of the wood pieces with a brush and a light coat of eggshell white acrylic paint. Normally when I paint, I do several coats to completely cover the wood. For these ornaments, I wanted a more distressed look, and one light coat allowed the wood grain to show through. I stamped the ornaments with various Christmas stamps and StazOn ink. I sanded the edges to get rid of the rough spots and distress it even more. A few little holes drilled in the top, some craft wire, a quick coat of matte sealer, and they're done! I'm going to use them as package toppers for my Christmas gifts this year. The ones that turned out less than perfect will find a home on my Christmas tree. Thanks for looking!

SMS Giveaway Winner!

2010-12-18T12:40:00.000-06:00

Using random.org, the winner of my Sew, Mama, Sew! Giveaway is comment #21. . .

barneyn said...

this year i will be making a few of these as gifts! they are soo cute!
http://alemonsqueezyhome.blogspot.com/2010/07/tissue-pouch-tutorial.html

Thanks for everybody for participating in my giveaway and sharing all of the fun gifts you are making for Christmas this year!

Sew, Mamma, Sew! Giveaway Day

2010-12-12T18:39:00.001-06:00

It's Sew, Mama, Sew! giveaway time again! I will be giving away one morsbag (fabric shopping bag) to at least one lucky winner. If I can finish more than one bag this week, there will be more than one winner. Of course I haven't finished any bags yet, but they will look something like this--

--except they will be made out of different fabric from thrifted sheets. (I promise the material I use will be like brand new. I'm pretty picky about the thrifted items I use to make my bags.) I'll post a picture of the completed bags when they're done.

To be entered to win, just leave a comment on this post (one comment per person and US residents only) about a handmade gift you have made or plan to make for somebody this holiday season. (If you have a link to the tutorial or a picture of your completed project, I would love to see them. I'm always looking for new ideas!) If you're not a crafter, leave a comment about the best handmade gift you ever received. I will use random.org to choose the winner(s) from all comments left by 12 midnight CST on Friday, December 17, 2010. I will ship the item(s) by December 20. Be sure to leave an e-mail address if I can't contact you through your comment. Thanks for participating!

krafty Christmas cards

2010-12-08T15:27:00.004-06:00

I have about half of my Christmas cards made. I decided to go very, very simple this year. . .

The cardstock is cardboard I rescued from the trash at work. I have a thing for saving kraft-colored stuff, and some of the cardboard has a really beautiful texture to it. I embossed the bottom using my Cuttlebug. The "Merry Christmas" paper, corrugated green cardstock, and twine are all from my stash so my cards were pretty much free. I'll add a computer-generated sentiment inside, print off my address labels and cross cards off my to-do list. Thanks for looking!

nativity parade

2010-12-07T22:50:00.001-06:00

Char at Crap I've Made is hosting a Nativity Parade. We inherited a manger and nativity figures from my mother-in-law last year after she moved to a smaller home. The manger was handmade by my husband's grandfather in 1973--so it's older than I am. The ceramic figurines are dated 1976 on the bottom.

I also have a clay pot set my friend made me for Christmas several years ago. I put it on my almost 4-year-old son's dresser.

My son keeps asking me why baby Jesus is in a pot, and I don't really have a good answer for him!

painted Christmas signs

2010-12-01T21:25:00.005-06:00

I love this small handmade painted sign I purchased at a gift shop a few years ago--

I've considered buying more every time I'm at a craft show, but I decide not to since I could make one myself. I finally bought a 1" x 2", had my husband cut it in small pieces and made this--

I painted it with Ceramcoat acrylic paint (barn red and lime green) and used foam stamps to stamp the sentiment. I wasn't that happy with the paint job on the words until I sanded them a little. It distressed it just enough to make it look good. (Not that you can tell from the horrible picture.) Now to make about 10 more before Christmas!

easy recycled gift bags

2010-11-30T07:54:00.004-06:00

I tend to save anything that I can potentially use again--great for the environment but not so great for my storage situation. I had a stack of brown paper wine bags like this--

Gather some acrylic paint, foam brushes, and foam stamps--

And stamp your bags--

Tie them shut with a cute ribbon and they can be used as a gift bag for a bottle of wine or other small gift. You can reuse any paper bag or even a sheet of paper to make your own gift wrap. This is a great project for kids, too. My 3-year-old son stamped some gift tags while I was making my gift bags. I must have been really happy with the results because each time he stamped a gift tag he would say, "Mom, don't you just LOVE it? I just LOVE it!" Glad my husband wasn't around to hear that!

Melvin the monster

2010-11-22T18:05:00.002-06:00

Have you been checking out the daily inspiration over at Sew, Mama, Sew! for their 4th Annual Handmade Holidays? I religiously check their site every morning and have already bookmarked too many projects. My to-do list is getting very long. My son and I actually made one of the projects using a Monster Doll Tutorial from Dragonfly Designs. Our little monster. . .

He's already looking a little ragged as he has been well-loved the last few days! I drew up a pattern in a shape I liked, and we used fleece fabric for the body. (I have a whole bin of fleece remnants, and I'm not sure why I purchased so much. I probably had grand plans for it at one time.) My son helped me with the face, and even though I tried to talk him into two eyes, he was insistent his monster have just one eye. We had a lot of fun with our project, and I'm sure there will be monster friends in the future.

cute reversible baby pants

2010-11-17T08:46:00.001-06:00

As I've probably mentioned before, I rarely buy craft books. I'm too cheap, and my local library usually has any craft book I've considered buying. One exception was Anna Marie Horner's Handmade Beginnings: 24 Sewing Projects to Welcome Baby. I was on the library waiting list forever, but it was still "on order" after a few months so I broke down and purchased it. I really wanted to make the Quick Change Trousers for a baby gift. Before buying the book, I tried to make my own version of the pants but the results weren't so good. I just finished up my third pair. (Please be sure to note how perfectly the stripes are matched up at the crotch seam. I'm pretty proud of myself.)

The pants have this cute little contrasting panel across the back--

. The reverse side--

The floral fabric is a remnant I purchased at Hobby Lobby. That's the great thing about making baby items--you can use up all those cute little pieces of fabric. The polka dot is a Michael Miller remnant, and the striped fabric is from a thrifted men's dress shirt. I had purchased the shirt for another project but when I saw it next to the floral fabric on my sewing table I thought it looked perfect together. I love the look of the different fabrics. It's girly but not all pink and over-the-top. This will be a gift for a friend who is having a little girl in December. But I secretly want to keep them even though I have no use for baby girl pants. They're just too cute.

Toy Story Costume

2010-10-25T09:05:00.002-05:00

I love making Halloween costumes. My son will be Iron Man this year. I tried to make his costume. I failed. He will be trick-or-treating in an Iron Man costume from WalMart. I still wanted to make him costume, so I convinced him that he should be Woody from Toy Story for the zoo's Halloween Spooktakular. It was pretty easy to put together if you're looking for a last-minute costume.

long-sleeved yellow plaid button-down shirt--This garage sale Gap shirt inspired the costume. It was hanging in my son's closet, and I thought it would make the perfect Woody shirt.

blue jeans

cow-print vest--I made a pattern for this by tracing the basic vest shape around the shirt. I lined it with muslin and trimmed the edge in bias tape, but you could easily use fleece fabric and not have to finish the edges. I was thrilled with how well the vest turned out, and it will be fun for dress up after Halloween. (On a side note, I thought I was buying cow-print fabric until the lady at the counter handed my cut fabric to me and said "Here's your doggie fabric." Apparently I had picked out dalmation-print fabric.)

cowboy hat--I purchased this foam hat at Hobby Lobby for $2.99.

suede lace for the cowboy hat brim--This is optional. I punched holes along the edge of the brim then strung the lace through the holes.

red bandana

sheriff badge and belt buckle--unfinished wood shapes purchased at Michael's, painted with gold spray paint, stamped with alphabet stamps and StazOn ink, attatch a jewelry pin to the back

cowboy "boots"--My son doesn't have cowboy boots. I made these by sewing tubes of felt that would fit over the legs of his jeans. I cut the tops to look like cowboy boots and tacked the fabric to his jeans so they wouldn't slip off. When paired with brown shoes, they really look like cowboy boots!

belt and holster--belt is a strip of brown felt cut long enough to fit around the waist and pinned in the front. I also made the holster out of felt and sewed a loop to the top which the belt goes through.

That's it! Happy Halloween!

pumpkin spice bundt cake

2010-10-18T07:39:00.001-05:00

It's odd for me to share a photo and recipe of something I made. My husband is a much better cook than I am and does most of the cooking. I do like to bake, especially when there are shortcuts involved like using a cake mix. When fall rolls around, I am totally ready to break out the canned pumpkin and start baking. My first pumpkin item of the season is a pumpkin spice bundt cake--

The recipe was in our local newspaper and included instructions for frosting it to look like a pumpkin. I decided simple was better and just made a basic icing.

Pumpkin Spice Cake

(from Omaha World Herald)

1 package Duncan Hines moist deluxe spice cake mix

2 large eggs

1 cup water

1 cup canned pumpkin

1 cup chopped nuts (I omitted these)

Heat over to 350 degrees. Meanwhile, grease and flour a 10-inch bundt pan. Combine cake mix, eggs, water and pumpkin in a large bowl. Beat at medium speed with an electric mixer for 2 minutes. Stir in nuts. Pour into the prepared bundt pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 to 50 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool cake in the pan for 25 minutes. Invert onto a serving plate and allow the cake to cool completely.

After it cooled, I topped it with some icing.

Quick White Icing

(adapted from The All New All Purpose Joy of Cooking)

In a medium bowl, beat together on medium speed:

1 cup powdered sugar

2 tablespoons softened butter

Add and beat until smooth:

2 tablespoons milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

pinch of salt

That's it! A yummy fall-inspired treat that's kind of homemade.

painted wood jack-o-lanterns

2010-10-12T08:09:00.001-05:00

I don't do much decorating for Halloween. (I don't do much decorating for any holiday, though, since whatever decorations go up always have to come back down.) I do like using stuff that would otherwise be thrown away to make other stuff. Several months ago I dug some wood out of our trash that my husband had thrown away (leftover oak veneer from the basement bar he built). I had him cut it into several smaller pieces so I could paint them with chalkboard paint and make cute little labels. And like most other project ideas, they've been sitting in the garage untouched. After being inspired by these spooky soap dispensers at Crap I've Made I decided to try and make some cute little jack-o-lanterns out of the larger wood scraps. I love it when an idea actually turns out--

Don't the dead plants in the pot make it look extra spooky? I painted it with Ceramcoat Georgia Clay (the best pumpkin color if you don't want obnoxious bright orange) and sanded and inked the edges with Tim Holtz walnut ink. I made the face using a freezer paper stencil. I found several templates online. I was hoping freezer paper stencils would work on wood, and it did. I used black craft paint for the face on this one, but I also used spray paint on some. Don't use too much paint or the freezer paper will start to lift up and paint will leak under the stencil. The freezer paper did leave a little waxy stuff in some spots, but since I inked it you can't even tell. The stem and stake is a shim which my husband trimmed down the top to make it more stem-like. I painted the shim, glued it together, sprayed it with sealer, and my Halloween decorating is complete! I even let Fred (my three-year-old son, not his real name) make one. His is obnoxious orange, and we used a craft stick for the stem and stake. I made the face stencil for him since he's not allowed to use an exacto knife or an iron, but he painted the face himself. His turned out pretty cute, too--

The best part is he had so much fun, he keeps asking me when we can do more craft projects. I love it!

hutch makeover

2010-10-05T12:13:00.001-05:00

I'm ready to start furnishing my new craft room, but I don't want to spend a lot of money. I love the look of Pottery Barn and Ballard Designs, but I do not love the prices. For example, I love this Ballard bookcase:

The price tag on this? On sale for just $599.99. Marked down from $999.99. I'm sure it's a very nice bookcase, but are they crazy? My grand plan for furnishing my new craft room is to purchase pieces from thrift stores and garage sales and paint everything white to match. My first project was a $60 dresser/hutch from Goodwill. I was looking for something that had a cabinet on the bottom instead of a dresser, but you can't be too picky when you're shopping at a thrift store. I'm really bad at taking before pictures, so here are the pieces already sanded. The hutch:

The dresser (minus the drawers):

I shocked myself by completing this whole project in one week. A big motivator was needing it out of the garage so my husband could park his car in there again. After some sanding, primer, paint and $28 in new hardware (total splurge), my beautiful new hutch:

With some of my craft stuff in its new home:

I am incredibly proud of myself for tackling and completing this project in record time. I constantly tell myself I don't have time for projects like since I work full time and have an almost 4 year old son to contend with when I'm not working. But I did it! My husband was a little skeptical at first, but even he was amazed by the results. Now I just need to find that next piece of furniture to transform!

what's in my bag?

2010-09-24T07:28:00.003-05:00

I haven't posted in awhile because I haven't had time to make anything lately--lots of things on the to-do list but just no time. Fortunately, Roo at Nice Girl Notes is hosting a "what's in your bag" linkup so now I have something to post about.

Empty out my purse and snap a picture? I can do that. . .

very large wallet with a broken zipper--I haven't purchased a new one yet because I'm cheap
three pens
Hancock Fabrics ad
small wet bag with fem hygeine products
fabric I'm going to use to make my friend a blanket for her baby--who knows when I might find the perfect coordinating fabric and need to match colors
two sets of keys
two morsbags
calculator--for figuring yardages and such
folder full of work stuff--schedules, days off requests, employee availabilities, etc.
wintergreen Icebreakers
empty watch face package
ChapStick All Natural
empty bottle of hand sanitizer
random key--I have no idea what it goes to
nail clippers
peppermint Dentyne
post it notes
Dum Dum wrapper (cream soda)
mini photo album--the most recent photo I have in there is almost two years old
coupon folder with a broken closure--too cheap to replace this, too
cell phone (not pictured because it was still sitting on the kitchen table from looking up phone numbers last night)

That's actually pretty clean and organized for me. There's usually a mass of receipts and expired coupons in there, too.

art smock

2010-09-06T17:45:00.010-05:00

When I was in kindergarten (many, many years ago) we had to bring one of our dad's old shirts to use as a paint smock. (Apparently there were budget issues even back then.) Using that same dress-shirt-to-smock idea, I made my son an art smock using a thrifted men's dress shirt. The smock is worn backwards with the buttons in the back. I removed the pocket and sewed it the the front of the smock. I also cut the shirt apart, trimmed the extra fabric, and sewed it back together. This made the shirt small enough so it's not in the way but has enough room to fit over his clothes. (If you used a boy's dress shirt in a size larger than your child wears, that would probably eliminate a lot of the extra cutting and sewing.) The front of the smock complete with crusty play-doh:

The very wrinkled back of the smock (or straight jacket since he can't get out of it by himself):

My favorite part is the elastic around the wrists to keep the clothing underneath clean:

Thanks for looking!

menswear bunny

2010-09-01T12:48:00.006-05:00

I check out a LOT of craft books from my local library. I know what sections of the library house the craft books and just go browse. One of my recent finds was Martha Stewart's Encyclopedia of Sewing and Fabric Crafts. I rarely buy craft books, but after flipping through the first few pages I was considering spending $23.10 on Amazon for this book. And I'm cheap, so you know it's a pretty good book. Then I remembered Martha Stewart has a website. All of the projects I want to make are on the website. First up is the menswear bunny.

I think the idea is to use menswear fabrics, but I recycled some actual menswear to make this little guy. The main fabric is from a thrifted wool suit jacket (a total bargain at 99 cents). I only had to use one sleeve to make this bunny so I'll be able to make a few more from the rest of the jacket. The (lopsided) ears are from scraps leftover from a men's dress shirt used for another project. I hand-embroidered the facial features and the heart. (I need to work on my embroidery skills.) My son wanted this bunny so much I had to give it to him. It's such a simple project I know I'll be making more for easy and adorable baby gifts. Thanks for looking!

Linked up to Tea Rose Home Link Party #22.

freezer paper and spray paint

2010-08-16T21:25:00.009-05:00

Back in April I wrote about my love for freezer paper and bleach. My new love is freezer paper and spray paint. On Sunday I finally had time to try this awesome tutorial from Crap I've Made to jazz up a plain morsbag. My husband took my son fishing. They were gone for 6 hours. That's probably the most alone time I've had in the last 3&1/2 years. I made a freezer paper stencil using a google image of a recycling symbol and some metallic silver spray paint. A really bad picture of the really cool result:

I recommend making sure your fabric is completely covered before you start spraying. On the first bag I stenciled I thought I had the fabric sufficiently covered, but some spray paint managed to float under the newspaper I used so there's a faint spray paint line on the side and top of the stencil.

It's not too noticeable, so I'll just keep this bag for myself! On the second bag, I made sure to tape the paper down with masking tape. I love this stencil so much, I want to make a cute shirt for my son. Thanks for looking!

kids thank you cards

2010-08-11T07:56:00.007-05:00

Everybody told me that time would fly after I had my son. I knew it would, but I still can't believe he's already 3&1/2! Next Monday at daycare he moves on to Room 8. He started in Room 1 at just 6 weeks old, and he's already going to Room 8?! And he'll start kindergarten in just two short years?! Time does fly. He learned so much and really enjoyed his time in Room 7, so I decided we needed to make some thank you cards for his two teachers. I used a word processing program to set up a file that would print a blank thank you card.

I would like the outline to be a little darker, but haven't figured out how to do that yet. My son used markers to color in the letters.

I think I'll trace the letters in black marker since some of the letters are hard to see. I also colored a card which didn't turn out that great. It's difficult to color with a Pip-Squeaks marker.

Thanks for looking!

superhero cape

2010-08-10T13:21:00.006-05:00

I am always telling myself I don't have enough time to craft after working full-time and entertaining a 3&1/2 year old when I'm not working (and cleaning just enough to keep the house liveable). I'm constantly looking for new blogs and ideas and have so many projects bookmarked. The truth is, if I spent a lot less time looking for projects on the computer or watching TV and just started some of these projects, I'd get a lot more done. (One of the excuses I use for not starting a project is I don't have the right color thread on my sewing maching. Seriously?! It only takes 30 seconds to change the thread!) Anyway, this morning I decided I was going to make my son a superhero cape using this tutorial from Puking Pastilles. I purchased some navy blue remnants awhile ago for the cape and everything else I had in my sewing stash. I think my total cost was probably less than $2.

The only things I would do differently next time is make the applique smaller and use lighter-weight fabric for the applique. The applique is supposed to be an "L" for my son's name. He wasn't that excited about the cape, but maybe he's just not in a superhero mood today. Thanks for looking!

morsbags giveaway for Crap I've Made

2010-08-01T18:01:00.005-05:00

To help Char at Crap I've Made celebrate her 1,000,000 hit I'll be giving away two morsbags to one lucky winner. The giveaways start Monday, August 1 on her blog so be sure to check it out.

This week's theme at the CSI project is fabric. I love fabric. Right now I love using thrifted sheets as a source of fabric. It's amazing that you can spend as little as 99 cents and get enough fabric to make 8 morsbags. The two bags I'm giving away are the last two made from this cute sheet. (I'm proud of myself for giving away 7 bags/kits and only keeping one for myself since I am also a fabric hoarder!) Currently, morsbags are my favorite sewing project because it's quick, easy, and you end up with something useful. You can make your own morsbag by following the instructions on the morsbags site. If you're interested in receiving a free morsbags kit, check out this post. Thanks for looking!

rescued basket with liner

2010-07-27T09:30:00.005-05:00

My mom and I both have a problem with throwing/giving things away. She is trying to clean out her basement and gave me this basket.

I decided to try and make a lining for it using a thrifted sheet I purchased for 99 cents at Goodwill. I am pretty impressed with how well the lining fit over the top of the basket. I cut off the side hems of the sheet to use for the ties.

I put some pleats in the bottom corners to taper the lining. The inside is a little baggy, but it still looks pretty good.

The basket in action--full of toys.

Thanks for looking!

Linked up to CSI Challenge: Roadkill Rescue

stamped terra cotta pots

2010-07-07T22:23:00.009-05:00

I've been wanting some fancy markers for my herbs. I've been using the tags that came with the plants--it's functional but boring. I tried to make a stamped spoon marker using this tutorial from Crap I've Made except mine turned out like crap. You can't see that it says "basil" because I did such a terrible job with the stamping.

So I decided to get out a set of alphabet rubber stamps and my trusty StazOn ink and stamp directly onto the pot. It would have been a lot easier had I done this before I planted the herbs, but it still turned out pretty well.

I chose a stamp set that was kind of curly so the stamping didn't have to be perfectly straight. My oregano--

And my rosemary--

The ink is permanent, so we'll see how it holds up to the elements. I figured it was worth a try since I plant the same three herbs every year. Thanks for looking!

4th of July outfit

2010-06-29T17:32:00.011-05:00

It's only June 29th, and I've already finished my son's 4th of July outfit! (The picture is horrible--I didn't realize how difficult it was to photograph plaid.)

It looks a lot cuter on, but I've given up trying to photograph clothes on my son--a 3&1/2-year- old boy is NOT a good model. I used Simplicity pattern 2627 for the shorts, and the fabric is from an Old Navy men's button-down shirt I bought for 99 cents at Goodwill. The red, white and blue plaid was perfect, so I bought it just to deconstruct for the fabric. I purchased a new Old Navy t-shirt (I actually removed the pocket without ripping a hole in the shirt) and appliqued the tie using this tutorial from Crap I've Made. When my son showed his new outfit to my husband, he (husband) commented that all that was missing was a red nose and floppy shoes. Thank you, dear, for implying I dress our son like a clown. I'd like to think I'll get a cute matching bucket hat done in time, but who am I kidding? Thanks for looking!

patched up pants

2010-06-25T12:20:00.008-05:00

I buy most of my son's clothes (and mine) at garage sales or the thrift store. Sometimes I forget to completely check over an item before I purchase it. I bought these almost-new jeans at a garage sale for $2. They have the adjustable waist that I like, but I didn't notice the worn out knees until I got home.

So with some leftover fabric from this outfit and some Heat-n-Bond, I made some cute little patches for the knees.

I used my sewing machine to stitch around the patches a few times. I did the wavy stitching on purpose because there was no way I could stitch in a straight line. I discovered the legs of toddler jeans are a very difficult area to sew.

I think I'll also iron some actual patch material on the inside over the really worn area for added durability. They should last long enough since he'll probably only wear them one season, and now he has some cute coordinating jeans for the applique t-shirt I put so much time into. Thanks for looking!

morsbags kit tutorial

2010-06-12T15:29:00.027-05:00

I thought I'd post a tutorial on how I sew morsbags. I've slightly altered how I cut and sew the bags together, and I don't want to confuse anyone making a bag from the kit. (If you're interested in receiving a free kit, check this post.) The original morsbag instructions can be found here. This is only the second tutorial I've made, so if something doesn't make sense, please let me know. So here goes. . .

1. Open your kit. There will be one piece of fabric for the bag, two handles, and a morsbags label.

2. Sew three seams on each handle--one down the middle (close to the fold) and one down each side (also close to the fold). I wasn't smart enough to use contrasting thread for my tutorial, so the black lines indicate where the seams should be.

3. Lift up the fold on the main bag piece and tuck in each end of the handle. Fold the fabric back down over the handle.

4. I like to place each end of my handle 4 inches from the ends of the bag, but you can place them wherever you like.

5. Pin each end of the handle in place.

6. Start sewing across the bottom edge close to the fold. Before you get to the handle, fold the handle up. (Remember to remove your pin first!)

7. Continue sewing the seam over the handle.

8. Make another seam across the top edge of the bag close to the fold. Repeat steps 3 through 8 to attach the handle on the other side of the bag.

9. Now it's time to stitch the strong box and cross where the handles are attached to the bag. I'm sure there are several ways to do this, but this is how I do it so I only make one continuous seam. I also do my stitching on the outside of the bag since that's the part that is seen. Be sure to back stitch and the beginning and end of your seam. First, sew across the top over the previous stitching. Stop stitching right before the edge of the handle. Leave your needle down and pivot. Sew until you reach the stitching at the bottom. (There is no picture of this because I accidentally deleted it, and trying to replace the picture in blogger is a nightmare!)

10. Sew across the previous stitching until right before the other side of the handle.

11. Pivot again and sew the last side of the box.

12. Pivot again and sew a diagonal line to the opposite corner.

13. Sew again across the bottom of the box.

14. Pivot and sew a diagonal line to the opposite corner.

15. Clip your threads close to the stitching, and your strong box and cross is complete. Now you just have to sew three more on the remaining handle ends.

If you don't want to deal with sewing the strong box and cross, you can just sew a bunch of zig zags back and forth over the area where the handle meets the bag. That's how I made my first morsbags over two years ago, and they're still going strong.

15. Now it's time to attach the label. I think it's easier to do it now than when the bag is finished. I like to center my label between the handles. On one side, fold your bag in half lining up the handles to find the center and mark with a pin. At this point you can see what a horrible job I did cutting out this bag. (If you received a kit in this fabric, I apologize for doing such a poor job with my cutting.)

16. Center your label between the handles using the pin as a guide.

17. Sew the label to the bag. I like to use a zig zag stitch, but you can use a straight stitch if you prefer.

18. Now it's time to sew the sides of your bag. Fold your bag in half (fold at the bottom) with right sides out. If your side seams are really uneven (again, I apologize), recut the sides to even them up.

19. Pin each side of the bag.

20. Sew down each side of the bag. I use a 1/4 inch seam.

21. Trim the edge close to the stitching so there's approximately 1/8 inch seam allowance left.

22. Turn the bag inside out and press. Sitch down each side of the bag (approximately 1/4 inch seam allowance). The black lines indicate the seams. This will create your French seams. Turn the bag right side out and press again.

23. Congratulations--your bag is done! Even if this is the only reusable bag you make and use, it still has the potential to replaces hundreds of plastic bags over its lifetime. Thank you for making one!

the first morsbags kits

2010-06-12T10:16:00.003-05:00

I've had three people willing to try out one of my morsbags kits! Here they are all ready to be mailed out--

If you would like a kit, go to this post.

plaid shorts & dino applique shirt

2010-06-07T15:08:00.008-05:00

I'm so glad Sew, Mama, Sew! is having a Make It, Wear It! CHALLENGE this month. It's just what I need to get motivated to get some sewing done. I had purchased a simple boys shorts pattern (Simplicity 2627) and a plaid remnant back in March with big plans to make a cute little outfit. Who cares if it took until June to get it done?

The t-shirt if from WalMart (the only place I can find inexpensive pocketless t-shirts), and I used a free dinosaur applique template. I know the stitching on the applique is all crooked, but I really did it on purpose. I thought it would look more boyish. I hand embroidered "stegosaurus" below the applique.

I am pretty happy with how well it turned out. It reminds me of those cute Carter's outfits I love so much--just a lot less expensive. I think I only spent about $5.50 for everything (including the pattern which I will be using again). When I showed the shirt to my three-year-old son, his response was "You can keep it. I told you I wanted a pterodactyl." (It really wasn't as snotty as it seems--just said in that matter-of-fact, three-year old way.) Thanks for looking!

free morsbags "kits"

2010-06-01T22:09:00.006-05:00

I'm a big fan of morsbags. I like reusable grocery bags in general, but I really like that I can wad up a morsbag in a little ball and keep it in my purse (which is more like a briefcase) so I always have one or two with me. I like to make them and give them away. I really like shopping for thrifted material to make morsbags which is why I have way more fabric than time to make them. While I would love to make tons of morsbags and give one to everybody who wanted one, I simply don't have the time. I do, however, have plenty of fabric and enough time to cut out the pieces, press them, and ship them off to you so you can sew your very own morsbag! They are easy to sew, and the instructions for sewing the bags can be found here. So all you have to do is leave me a comment on this post with an e-mail address so I can contact you, or you can contact me through my profile. I'll just need your mailing address (US residents only for now), and I will ship you a kit like this:

complete with handles, the bag, and a cute morsbags label all ready to be sewn together. The only drawback is you can't be super picky about the fabric. Unless you really hate floral print fabric (or stripes, plaid, or polka dots) then I'll do my best to NOT send you floral print fabric (or stripes, plaid, or polka dots). And I want you to actually use the bag. And I'd love it if you'd send me a picture of your completed bag so I can post it on my blog and/or flickr account. I'm doing this because I truly believe it is the little things we do as individuals that make a difference in the world. Even though my husband (great guy that he is) constantly informs me that making morsbags will not solve the world's petroleum issues or any number of other problems, I personally believe that it counts for something.

Also, If you live in the Omaha, NE area and are interested in joining my morsbags pod, leave me a comment. Thanks for stopping by!

bean bags

2010-05-30T18:12:00.000-05:00

I've realized I'm not very good about blogging--I actually complete more projects that what I get posted. I'm going to try and blog more frequently, so I thought I'd start by sharing some stuff I made awhile ago. Back in February, my 3-year-old son asked me to make some bean bags. He used bean bags to play games at daycare and wanted some at home. So we spent an afternoon making these:

The fabric is from a thrifted sheet I had purchased at Goodwill to make morsbags. I didn't do a very good job checking for stains and such before I bought it. I wasn't able to cut out many bag pieces, but I had enough usable fabric for a small project like this. I cut 6" squares, and the bean bags ended up being a little big. When I make more, I'll try 5" or 5-1/2" squares. I lined them with some cheap muslin remnants I picked up at the fabric store so they're nice and durable. If you use denim or a canvas-type fabric, lining them wouldn't be necessary. They're good for stacking, counting, throwing them in a box, balancing them on your head. . . It's amazing what will entertain a 3-year-old. Thanks for looking!

SMS Giveaway Winner!

2010-05-21T07:51:00.000-05:00

I used random.org to select one winner from my giveaway. The winner is comment #14. . .Allison! Thanks to everybody who entered and shared environmentally friendly ideas.

Sew, Mama, Sew! Giveaway

2010-05-16T18:56:00.002-05:00

I had fun participating in the last Sew, Mama, Sew! giveaway (and even won something!) and am excited to be participating again. One lucky winner will win a pair of morsbags. Of course I haven't finished the bags yet, but they will look like this--

--except they will be made out of this super-cute fabric from a thrifted sheet. (The sheet is like brand new. I'm pretty picky about the thrifted items I use to make my bags.) I'll post a picture of the completed bags when they're done.

To be entered to win, just leave a comment on this post (one comment per person, please) about one environmentally friendly thing you do (or want to start doing)--no matter how small it may seem. I will use random.org to choose one winner from all comments left by 12 midnight CST on Thursday, May 20, 2010. I will ship the item by May 24, and I will ship internationally. Thanks for participating!

ETA: I finished one of the bags, so here's a picture of what you will actually receive--

more shirts

2010-04-30T07:15:00.000-05:00

I made two more shirts for my son yesterday using a stencil I found at spraypaintstencils. There's quite a few free stencils on this site, and I like that there are a lot that can be used for making "boy" shirts. I used the skateboarder stencil and enlarged it on the copy machine at the library to get the size I wanted. First we made this shirt--

The color wasn't changing very fast, so I used a hair dryer to speed it up. I think I took the template off too soon as it started to bleed around the edges, but it gives it a cool, distressed look. Since we had the bleach out, I made another shirt for this fall--

I accidentally dripped some bleach on this one, so I just sprayed the whole thing down. I picked up this shirt for 99 cents at Goodwill. Now I won't be able to pass up all those stained, well-worn shirt since I'll be able to "fix" them. I am loving these freezer paper stencils and will try to paint some shirts this weekend. Thanks for looking!

freezer paper and bleach. . .

2010-04-23T10:39:00.000-05:00

It sounds like a crazy combination. Yesterday, my son and I made a pirate shirt using a jolly roger template at Crap I've Made. I may become addicted to freezer paper stenciling. Aside from a few little issues, the shirt turned out great--

Of course I ripped a hole in the shirt trying to remove the pocket. I have a tremendous amount of experience with a seam ripper so I should have known better. I was so excited that I had made it to the last few stitches without making a hole that I ended up making a hole. So I had to do a little patch job, and it's barely noticeable. There were also a few edges of the stencil that I didn't iron enough so a little bit of bleach had started to seep under the paper. But my son is three and doesn't notice these minor imperfections and thinks his mom is pretty awesome for making him a pirate shirt. Thanks for looking!

one busy weekend

2010-04-18T18:18:00.000-05:00

As a mom, the hardest thing for me to come to terms with was the fact that I was never going to accomplish everything (or sometimes anything) I wanted to in a day. Now that my son is three years old, it is much easier. I still don't get much stuff done, but we do have a lot of fun. Since my husband was working his weekend of two 12-hour shifts, it was pretty much a Mom & Son weekend, and we made the most of it. Saturday morning we were at Boingz bright and early for some bouncing, climbing, and sliding.

Then we were off to pick up Grandma for some shopping at the The Whistle Stop Country Store in Elkhorn. It was such a cute little store with so many treasures to look at. I loved all of their rescued furniture--if only I had more room in my house! After that, we went out to luch with Grandma and Papa then came home to start weeding the garden.

We also got an early start on Sunday and went to the Henry Doorly Zoo. It's not as crowded if you go early in the day. Our big adventure was riding the Skyfari. I was a little worried my son (or I) would get freaked out once we got on, but it was so much fun!

So the house is still a mess, and I have to go back to work tomorrow, but who cares?

2S4Y Kazan's Sketch 50

2010-04-17T21:50:00.001-05:00

I was able to whip up a very simple card based on Kazan's Sketch 50 over at 2 Sketches 4 You--

The patterned papers are from the Making Memories Sydney scrapbook pad, and the sentiment is a K & Company sticker. Thanks for looking!

Cloud9 Quilt

2010-04-13T11:09:00.001-05:00

I finally made a quilt using this Cloud9 Quilt-in-a-Day Tutorial. I actually finished the quilt back in February but am just now posting a picture. This is a very belated baby blanket for my son's bed (he is now three years old). He doesn't even like to sleep with it because it's not as soft as his fleece blanket. Go figure. Anyway, I think it turned out great.

I appliqued stars on the plain blue quilt blocks. It's hard to tell, but the other fabrics have either a star or polka dot print. His room is a red/white/blue/nautical theme, so it coordinates pretty well. Even though he doesn't use it on his bed, it looks pretty good hanging on the back of the rocking chair. Thanks for looking!

CPS Sketch Sketch 161

2010-04-09T08:28:00.000-05:00

I am so excited to be the Facebook Friday Fan for CPS! (Sorry to those of you who have already been to my blog looking for my card. I'm running late as usual.) This week's sketch:

And the card I made based on the sketch:

I'm going to send this off to my niece for a belated (of course!) birthday card. Thanks for looking!

Supply List:

Cardstock: textured blue cardstock (from Tuesday Morning), yours truly moss scallop note card (Archiver's)
Patterned Paper: Making Memories AnimalCrackers Jack DieCut Stars
Stamps: Hampton Art ($1 Michael's stamp)
Ink: StazOn Timber Brown, Tsukineko Walnut Ink Antiquing Solution
Other: Stickles lime green, Marvy Uchida round corner punch, Delta Ceramcoat wedgwood blue and sparkle glaze paint, American Crafts foam dots, sewing machine, thread, scrap cardboard

plentiful patterns

2010-03-19T15:01:00.000-05:00

For 365 Cards Day 18 - Plentiful Patterns, the challenge: Use at least 3 of the following patterns on your card - Plaid, Paisley, Gingham, Houndstooth, Toile. I also used CPS Sketch 158:

My card:

I used three patterned papers--paisley (Heidi Grace), houndstooth (Paper Salon), and gingham (Making Memories, I think?). I also used a little piece of purple plaid ribbon. I bought the Heidi Grace paper today even though I had other paisley papers in my stash. It's just nice to work with something new sometimes. Thanks for looking!

ad inspired card

2010-03-18T10:46:00.000-05:00

For 365 Cards Day 15 - Ad Inspired, the challenge is to make a card inspired by this ad chosen by Gloria--

My card--

I had to go back to Michael's and buy the egg stamp because it was perfect for this challenge. I'll stamp the inside of this card with a "Happy Easter" sentiment and send it off to my mother-in-law. Thanks for looking!

super sketchy Sunday

2010-03-14T19:28:00.001-05:00

So I'm probably a total cheater on this challenge. For 365 Cards Day 14 - Super Sketchy Sunday, this is the sketch:

Which is the same sketch from the recent DT Call. Which I actually made a card for (although not today). But I hadn't posted it anywhere yet, so I'm going to go with it even if it is cheating. :) My card:

I really like the way it turned out even thought it's a little busier than what I normally make. And I decided I really love making square cards. Who cares if it costs more to mail? (That's the practical side of me totally throwing caution to the wind.) Thanks for looking!

circle frenzy

2010-03-12T11:59:00.001-06:00

Over at 365 Cards it's Day 12 - Circle Frenzy. The challenge: "Include 20 or more circles from at least 2 different sources on your card." My card:

I used circle patterned paper (American Crafts), a circle punch, buttons, and a ribbon with polka dots. Way more than 20 circles! I used one of my favorite card layouts. I have made this style of card so many times, but it always ends up looking different. Thanks for looking!

outer space

2010-03-10T16:21:00.000-06:00

The challenge for 365 Cards Day 8 - Imagine This: Outer Space is to make a card inspired by the words "outer space." I also used Laura's Sketch 47 at 2 Sketches 4 You--

I wanted to put a rocket on my card and attempted to use paper piecing to make one.

The patterned paper is "Frenzy - Glee" from We R Memory Keepers White Out Collection. I bought it just for this card (even though I am trying not to buy any more paper). I also bought a Dymo Label Buddy that was on clearance at Michael's. I've been wanting a label maker for awhile, and I thought $3.99 was an acceptable splurge. I think it all makes for a cute little boy birthday card. Thanks for looking!

love you

2010-03-06T15:13:00.002-06:00

I've been reading a book I checked out from the library this week--Other People's Love Letters: 150 Letters You Were Never Meant to See. It's a collection of random love letters written by random people, but it has made me realize that I don't tell my husband enough that I love him. I make cards, and the poor guy didn't even get a Valentine's Day card this year. So I'm going to give him this card for no reason.

I made the heart by Mod Podging pieces of crumpled paper onto a cardboard heart I cut out. I inked it with three different colors of Tim Holtz distress ink until I got the color I wanted. (I had to spray it with sealer because the ink didn't dry so well over the Mod Podge.) I really like the way the heart turned out.

I used Kazan's Sketch 47 at 2 Sketches 4 You:

Thanks for looking!

Sources: Paper Reflection kraft cardstock, Core'dinations Vintage Collection blue cardstock embossed with QuicKutz stripes label embossing folder, "love you" studio g stamp, Tim Holtz distress ink, Making Memories antique copper brads, twill tape, twine.

Linked up to the CSI Mod Podge Challenge.