green gift wrapping

I'm pleased with myself this year for my economical gift wrapping !

By buying attractive inexpensive boxes that can be used for storage in anyone's home I minimized the need for wrapping paper (thanks IKEA!) the box gets to be part of the gift and not a landfill : )

Then by using this lovely blog tutorial : http://howaboutorange.blogspot.com/2009/10/make-gift-bow-from-magazine-page.html
I made a bunch of magazine page bows using gluestick instead of a bunch of staples (no unneccessary metal use) hope she doesnt mind my sharing! : P

My ribbon was primarily salvaged gift bows with the staple pulled off (carefully as not to tear) taped and wrapped around a tube to get the creases out. <>

Finally my gift tags are actually personalysed ornaments. I had the idea for these last year but didn't have the time. They were made with cinnamon dough and the recipe is below.

Every year since I started giving gifts as a kid I have tried to do something different in the wrapping process. Last year instead of ribbon bows I used fake poinsettias and another year I made origami stars. Thank goodness for the internet and all these ideas at our finger tips!

TO YOU AND YOURS, HAVE A WONDERFUL HOLIDAY SEASON!

or

HAPPY CHRISMANUKKAHWANZAADAN!




cinnamon dough

3/4 cup cinnamon

1 and 1/8 cup flour

1 cup salt

1 cup water

1 Tbsp. ground nutmeg (optional)
1 Tbsp. ground clove (optional)

Mix dry ingredients. Add water to form dough. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper. With fingers (because dough is very sticky!) flatten enough to use cookie cutter and pull dough from sides before lifting cutter on the parchment. Or mold your dough. Make these about 1/4 inch thick. Use a toothpick to make stringing holes. Bake in oven @ 350 F for 15-20 mins.

*if you let dough sit for a little bit it stiffens (the salt seems to dry it moderately fast) If you want white tops let air dry a little while before baking. Mine became white on top because I had to keep stopping to attend to my 8 month old... happy accident? maybe : )

**sea salt creates pretty little sparkly flecks :)

give a H(@,@)T!

Made this owl pillow today for my little girl for christmas : ) I guess to be sharing for the season maybe it should be a turtle dove or even a snow owl : P oh well! i like it! and i like it enough to share here : )

I didnt take pictures of the process for a tutorial but i've put the templates i made at the bottom of the post if you'd like to make one like this one^ I LOVE making HOMEMADE GIFTS!!!!

<>

^my own caricature of an owl : ) if i ever have my own design line ( i hope to!! ) this may very likely be my own "signature owl" i was surprised when i googled images i had not seen an owl interpretation with a heart face. i got the inspiration from the face of a baby great horned owl : ) definately suits my style : P (i need a new ink cartridge otherwise i wouldve just scanned and enlarged this image, ooooh well)

( @,@)
(),,_,,()

Templates in case you would like to make your own : ) cut with fold on right side and pieces joined together

* first snowy morning of the season *

my sliding door, made this morning : )

and the kittens never lost their mittens

Or not again that is : ) (my little kitten lost some already this year : P) This isn't a really creative, of my own invention, project But I wanted to offer mainly just the idea here in case you haven't thought of it and how simple but helpful it is!

No doubt when you were a kid you likely had some mittens or gloves on a string inside your coat running through the sleeves so you wouldnt lose them. : ) You remember now? Well this is a 2-step project so simple and so useful!

You probably don't need a tutorial but here you are anyway! : )

What you need:
.mittens or gloves

.ribbon or yarn or skinny strip of fleece or jersey (whatever you'd like really!)

.(scissors, needle, and thread)

.and your coat to measure, unless your little kitten will kindly let you measure : P

*First: (ribbon method and simple string only)

Measure your "string" across the back of the coat with a couple inches to spare at the ends.

*Secondly:

Sew ribbon to mittens folding end in and over so it doesn't fray at the ends. : )

*Knit alternative:

If you have knit gloves I would use some coordinating yarn and with a large eyed needle poke it through, tie it off with a loop, and crochet a simple chain the length to the next mitten cut the yarn with a few inches. Pull the end through the other mitten with the needle and tie it. : ) or you could sew it on and not poke through...

( : Now let's have pie!!!!!! : ) meow, meow, meow

Sssssso.... cold draft ssstopper

Burrrrrr! I am cold! My apartment is soooooo drafty!, from the doors! from the windows! and my little ones want to play on the floor! Grrrrr! is more like it from this momma. But fortunately here's thisss guy delivering a HiSSSSSSS........ (well, not literally, but you get the picture) : )

And here's how you can make your own door draft stopper snake to protect you from the cold.

what you need:
.a long rectangle of fabric for the body. mine was 46" x 7" but doors come in different sizes and I trust you can use your basic math skills to decide how long and how thick you'd like it to be.

.fabric scraps for the inside of its mouth.

.fabric scrap for tongue - hopefully something that does not fray like felt

.2 buttons for eyes

.thread (scissors, small piece of paper, pen, needle, and sewing machine) : P

.rice or some other filling

} To Create {

First fold your fabric for the body in half lengthwise, then in half again lengthwise. At one end cut a curve that will be the corner of the snakes mouth to the front of its face. Unfold once so you the fabric is halved, and as you can see above on the right you will have the head shape.

Now place the body on the paper to make a template. For a seam allowance of 1/2" I put it on the edge with the corners of the snakes mouth 1/2" from the edge. Trace and cut out. Then cut two pieces for the inside of the snakes mouth. Cut a forked tongue for snakey with remaining scrap. : )

Now would be the time to sew on the eyes. (@.@) Then with the tongue centered inside the two mouth pieces sew them together with your 1/2" seam.

Now here's the tricky part. Open the body piece with right side up. Pin and sew, with the tongue down and inside, one of the matching mouth perimeters. Fold the mouth peice in half upward leaving the tongue down. Refold the body in half lengthwise right sides together. Pin and sew the second set of matching perimeters. If you start at the body fold you can continue down the side of the body in one go. ***down the body and around the mouth I used only 1/4" seam with the exception of where I tapered in.



Once you're about halfway down the length of your snake gradually taper inward going to the end until you reach it with about an inch or two open at the end. *note you want it wide enough you can pour into it your filler.

Turn out and fill ! : ) I used rice and though I think beans would work too it would be a lumpy snake, but that may be just what you want : P

After filling (which mine was solidly packed with about 6" of tail unfilled so when evenly dispersed it wasn't too hard) sew the end closed :) You could use the machine but I hand sewed and gathered to create a rounded effect when it filled.



Isn't he cute!?! Problem now is my children think it's a toy, ha ha! : P So we shall see how much door action he gets : )

please excuse my ucky apt. rug, door, and trim : )

Keep in mind you can make one of these so simply without being a snake with just a long rectangle (such as 46"x7") and it can have just as much character with a beautiful print! Express your self! I would love to see any you make too and show them! I know there are so many creative wacky print combos that would be sooooo great to see : )

BE GREEN!!!! USE LESS ENERGY! : )

Conserve even more and make one of these from something else! a pant leg, the sleeve of a big sweater, or maybe an old scarf folded in half and sewn together - if it has holes in the knit use an old t-shirt and double layer : )

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and making thissssssss : P ... I could definately see this being stuffed with cotton too and made an actual toy. And I hope this can keep your home warmer and hearts happy in this coooooold weather! lower your energy bills too : ) even keep in the cool on hot summer days !

love our earth and reduce, reuse, and recycle : )

remove the stain restyling

I never got to pre-spotting this chocolate stained shirt, and now my lazyness has turned into a happy fault : ) And lesson learned: don't eat chocolate laying in bed, in the dark : P unless you want stains and a husband laughing at you (and not for the mess on the shirt but your face). I don't actually mind the latter though : D
not horrible, but not unnoticable ->

The Plan: cut out the stain and shorten sleeves to create a 3/4 sleeve V-neck out of a long sleeve crew.

the V-neck.

1st cut: your desired neck line w/a little extra for seam (unless you want a rolled/raw edge : ) the loveliness of knit!) I suggest using a v-neck you already own and like and inserting it inside the shirt and marking where you want to cut ( i used a regular pencil because it isnt white).
2nd cut: separate from the shirt with another cut the desired width of your neckline (with extra for seam).
3rd cut: from the front only of the shirt trim about 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch to achieve a gather when you sew it all back together.

I then sewed the back 'collar' to the shirt because the fabric likes to roll and to prevent a pin mess : )

I continued to pin the shirt's front neckline, inside out, until about 2 inches from the center. There I hand sewed a simple stitch to gather there, and pinned in place (i should've taken more care to do mine but it turned out okay)...... Then it was sewn shoulder to shoulder : P and the hand stitch was removed after.

then a seam was sewn around the edge, but this is optional... a rolled edge is completely acceptable with t-shirt fabric, it wont fray : )

the sleeves.

I wanted a cuffed sleeve rather than a cut off and stitched seam, or rolled cuff. to get the length i wantde i put the shirt on and folded one sleeve up to the desired length. when i took off the shirt i compared it to the other side and added about 2 inches; I used the existing sleeve end to get a straight new edge to cut . Then, the excess 2 inches was folded over (shirt is inside out) then, folded inward and pinned (fan effect).

A zig-zag/triangle stitch was used on the edge where pinned in the picture on the right shown above.

below left - unfolded after sewing

below right - turned right side out

And there you have it!!!! A much more attractive and feminine top! I don't think you need a stain to want to make a pretty top out of an otherwise boring long-sleeved tee, but it served as great inspiration for this project : )

enjoy!

btw...... i still eat chocolate in bed : )

kooky cake

My baby girl turned 2yrs old yesterday! And she loves the show Wow Wow Wubbzy : ) He is ultra cute, I have to admit : D Last year she loved Yo Gabba Gabba, and I'm already curious what it will be next year : ) . . . I made this cake for my special girl's special day. It was a lot easier than I was anticipating. This is the first time I've ever iced a cake and only my 2nd cake ever!!! : ) So if I can do it, anyone can!

I used a 13x9 inch pan for the cake and made the limbs and tail out of rice krispy treats. http://www.wubbzy.com/ has a printable template you could use of a Wubbzy with a curly tail. It is just cake but I thought it was too small and wasted too much cake so I drew my own templates.

To make the krispy parts I laid wax paper over the templates, and wearing gloves sprayed with cooking oil, I shaped the cereal. The limbs sat over night to be stiffer and I used wooden skewers broken into a couple inches (watch for splinters!) to attach them to the cake that was cut for the ears : )

The face I did freehand, and because I couldn't find black or even chocolate decorating icing I mixed blue, green, and red and used a butter knife : P

Katie, my daughter, is so sweet she even liked her cake : ) We had cake and then opened presents and after that she wanted to see "Wubbzy" again. It made this Momma's day : D

If you'd like to make this, here are the templates I used.

unfortunately, when I saved and printed it from here it was a little smaller than it is supposed to be Wubbzy's body is supposed to be 9inches wide. But they are still here for you : )

recycle an old sheet into a laundry bag

I haven't had a new project to post in a while, instead I've had a new baby to take care of : ) Harrison Matthew Taylor was born two months ago healthy and handsome : D Of course my creative energies have been boiling inside me but I haven't been able to satisfy the fire, nor will I be able to as much for a while. This project was out of neccessity for me right now. If you've read my other posts you may know we live the apartment life right now, and that means I take our laundry to our parents' houses. I've been using a normal bag and the insert part of my hamper. The insert doesn't cut it, : P it's too small and awkward to carry. I have some twin size sheets I dont have a use for anymore and instead of giving them away or throwing them out I thought this project would be a great use for them.

What you'll need:

one 54inch by 35inch piece of fabric (doesnt have to be a sheet but it's awesome to repurpose!)

one 64inch by 4inch peice of fabric or 64inch cord or rope; this is your drawstring so it really is up to you, and the length really only needs to be at least 54inches

thread : )

Your bag will have a seam on the bottom and one side. To begin fold the large fabric right sides together to have it 27 by 35. (I should've taken more pictures of the process to show more rather than describe things that would seem obvious)

The edges will be sewn twice to make the bag strong enough to carry heavy laundry. First, I used the zig zag stitch on my machine with the triangles to finish the edges together. Secondly, about a 1/4inch from its edge I straight stitched the seam.

Sew the bottom completely across and when sewing up the side leave about 2inches at the top unsewn.

Fold the top edge over ( this is for your drawstring ) And then from its edge fold back inside, so you almost have a fan effect, and pin.

Sew, full circle, with the same double seam.

Now where you left the top 2 inches of the side seam unsewn you can insert your drawstring.

To create mine I made it like a strap. I folded it in half in folded the sides into it and straight stitched the edge. Just like in the cloth diaper prettifying http://shift2theheart.blogspot.com/2010/02/pretty-little-burpies.html . So 4inches became 1inch. I turned in the edges and sewed them closed.

boppy pillow cover

This was a spur of the moment project I decided I would try, and take pictures along the way, so if it was successful I could share it here : P.

I wasn't really finding prints in the store bought covers that I really liked when I did an internet search, hence the inspiration here. The ones I did like were a little more than I wanted to spend also. I had bought this unicorn flannel a few months ago because I thought it was sooo cute knowing I could use it for something, just didn't know what then. The flannel turned out to be a really great fabric for this. : )

I used two peices of taped tissue paper to make to make my pattern. It's cheap and on hand : ). I traced around a cover I already had and cut it out 1/2 inch wider all the way around for the inseam. I marked the start and finish of the zipper with astericks. The bought cover actually has a piece that is roughly an inch that is in the inside of the curve; in this I thought I'd try making it simpler without that piece and am very happy with the result.

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When cutting the fabric I actually did an additional 1/2 inch wider for the zipper between the marks. This will be obvious, but you cut out two pieces, and you'll want to line up the fabric's pattern if it has one : ). The extra 1/2 inch where the zipper will be only needs to be on one of the pieces. The excess creates a flap over the zipper so if your zipper matches and you don't care if it shows, it isn't necessary.

As I mentioned above, this was a spur of the moment project. This means I used what I had on hand, and that was a black 21 inch zipper from a past plan that never came to fruition : P. I had 1 yd of the fabric 43" wide and used about half of it. (the amount you need may vary on whether you have a print or not) The bought cover's zipper was slightly longer, about an inch or two but I figured this would help to give me some comfort space at the end of the zipper.

Right sides together, I sewed around the case from one asterick mark to the other.

Then the zipper was sewn in one side at a time. The picture below on the right shows the gap between the zipper and the seam that will create a flap that will conceal the zipper.

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Below, left shows the excess open seam because the zipper was shorter than the bought cover.

Below, right shows it pinned for the inseam to be completed. pretty obvious, i'm sure

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Zipper in place, I sewed below each end, perpendicular to it, to have a more secure placing of the flap and zipper itself. I apologize the quality of this picture isnt great but you can see better what I mean by the right side.

Below, left: The excess mentioned earlier is brought up higher than the zipper, pinned, and then sewn to achieve the flap concealing my unmatching zipper : ) shown on the right.

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I've had an extra pillow in the bag since my daughters baby shower (2 yrs ago! :P) so now of course it's time to break it out and make a cover for my little guy : )

I've got to say I do Love these pillows!, they have really saved my bottom playing on the floor with my daughter! She likes them too, and so does our cat : ) Unfortunately the covers you can buy is really limited, but fortunately this was really simple and fairly quick : ) From start to finish it took about 2 1/2 hours, and that was pulling it from nowhere.