Crafts
Paper Pumpkins
Hello, hello! Earlier this week I briefly showed you a mini-paper pumpkin I made before I decided that my fingers were too big to make more of those pint-sized spheres of cuteness. I do adore it though! That little craft was based on a pumpkin tutorial I used last year to make a whole patch of paper pumpkins using 8.5 x 11 sheets of paper. Seriously, I got addicted and was worried I wouldn’t be able to stop. Can you blame me? The pumpkins mainly survived being packed in a box and trucked clear across the country. They were a little mushed when I unpacked them and some of the tape…
Spider Hair Clips using Hand-Curled Fabric Ribbon
I see a lot of blog tutorials about crafts, decorating and cooking. A lot of it is eye candy because I look and file it away in my sub-conscious for later. I’ve concluded two things. 1) There are so many, incredibly talented people out there. I am in awe. Seriously, DIYers rock! 2) I don’t have the time, money or patience to recreate 99% of the things I read. So, when I saw a recent tutorial on how to curl fabric ribbon and make spider hair clips. BAM! I was on it! Of course, I had to finish cooking dinner and wait two days to go to the craft store, but seriously,…
How to Curl Fabric Ribbon – Corkscrew Ribbon
Am I the last one to know how to curl fabric ribbon? Have I been living under a rock? All of those corkscrew ribbon hair thingies that little girls wear…I could have been making those instead of spending a fortune on them. Apparently, this ribbon can also be called corker ribbon. That just sounds odd to me, so I’ll just go with corkscrew. The kicker is that it is super easy! Ridiculously easy. All you need are: 1. ribbon (duh!) 2. wood skewers 3. tape, binder clips or anything else to secure the ribbon 4. cookie sheet to place your creation on 5. An oven Secure one end of the ribbon…
Lettered Wall – Work in Progress
Do you collect things? The only thing I “collect” are playing cards from places we’ve traveled. I throw them in a big basket in our living room and they are a great conversation starter. They are also a practical reminder of places we’ve been and experienced. The irony is that I really don’t care to play cards…I just like to collect them. But let’s not delve into my issues! Lately, I realized that I have the beginnings of a collection of the letters “A” and “J” for the first initial of my name and my husband’s name. Here’s how I grouped them in our last home. I kind of miss…
Halloween Countdown Lunchbox Notes – Free Printable
Update: A sweet reader told me there were some font problems with the PDF. I’ve converted the PDF to Jpeg files. This should fix the problem. If not, please let me know! Who loves Halloween? My kids sure do! I love how much fun you can have with this holiday. The anticipation is already building around our house! The costumes have been selected and now it is time to start the countdown! I made some printable lunchbox notes that I can use to start counting down Halloween. It will be a fun switch from our day-of-the-week lunch box notes that we’ve been using. (Those things are still working so…
A Sweater Vest + Knitting Practice = Pillow
A million years ago, when I had a corporate job and wore heels with nylons and had to get up at oh’ dark hundred, I had a sweater vest. I loved to layer it with a pantsuit and a while collared shirt. Fashion mavens, watch out. Turns out, I don’t miss heels, pantsuits or getting up at oh’ dark hundred, but I still do like layering. Clearly, I have my priorities. đ Somewhere along the way of having babies and owning a business with a “business casual” policy (emphasis on the casual), I realized that styles had changed and this vest wasn’t working with my long waist. However, I loved the colors…
Hand-Knitted Dishcloths
This is not a “look at what I can do” post. The actual accomplished knitters out there would bust-a-gut laughing. This is more of an “I’m learning to knit and you should try it too” kind of post. Last year I wanted to learn how to knit. My aunt showed me the basics and then I watched a lot of how-to-knit YouTube videos, which were so helpful. I liked this one from Good Knit Kisses. I’ve made a couple of headbands, a scarf, a pillow back (more about that in another post) and now I’ve tried dishcloths. This is the first time I’ve used a pattern and I have to…
Child Painted Horse Artwork
When my daughter was 5, we redesigned her room in Oregon. Gone were the baby things – she was a big girl! Part of the process included me trying to figure out how to incorporate some of my daughter’s artistic masterpieces into the space. The problem was that most of her artwork from school was just one random piece after another and I wanted a pair. Plus, I was hoping to get the artwork to be in the right color scheme. I asked her if she would be on board with making some art! When she found out she’d get to use my paints and brushes, she couldn’t get into her paint clothes…
Cookie Jar Refresh
Do you ever have those projects that go great in your mind, but then you finish it and it’s not quite how you imagined it would turn out? This is one of those projects. I received this apple-shaped cookie jar as a wedding gift 15 years ago. (Time flies!) I think it has only held cookies once though. Way back when we first got married, we forgot about whatever was placed inside. When I opened the lid weeks (months??) later, I was greeted to a gooey moldy mess. *shudder* *gag* Now you know why we binge eat cookies around here and then swear them off for months! đ Due to mold-fest,…
