Sweet As Steel

A change is coming :)

2012-02-08T08:12:00.000-07:00

I have neglected this blog far too long. So I am going to change things up a bit. When I started this blog I was just a stay at home mom who made crafts. I tried to share fun tutorials, as well as items I had been working on. But since then my little hobby snowballed into a growing business. I have decided that I will use this blog to keep my customers informed on any news related to my shop. As well as posting the random tutorial from time to time. So to start off I am going to share some pictures of some of the newer items I now make for my shop :)

Shake Up Your Christmas

2011-12-12T14:15:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone! We've partnered up with four other boutiques to host a fantastic auction on our Facebook page. The boutiques include: Bow So Beautiful Boutique, RahRetro Bowtique, Whimsical Charms, and HollyWho? Designs. Check out the auction and these fabulous shops for your last minute holiday gift giving needs!! What is better then shopping from the comfort of your home? Hpe you can check it out! And Happy Holiday from Sweet As Steel!

Homemade Christmas and Birthdays

2011-11-15T16:38:00.000-07:00

My husband and I never planned out when we were having our kids. It just so happens that between Dec. 20th and Jan. 24th is all three of our children's birthdays and Christmas! So I always try to find deals through out the year and such to save us some money when trying to throw together Christmas and Birthdays. Well this year I didn't buy much at all. So here it is half way into Nov and I have NO Christmas gifts and only Birthday gifts for one child. My youngest is going to be three in Jan. I remembered that a couple years ago I got on a felt food kick and made a bunch of donuts. I also got together with a few crafty moms and did an exchange. Her brother loved the stuff. I had made him a camp fire with all the fixin's for S'mores. It was adorable. So I started looking for stuff for my daughter. I came across this fantastic shop on etsy with amazing patterns Gulf Coast Cottage. There are things for boys and girls. There are a couple different specials too. One is a buy 4 tutorials get one free. Or there is a bundle set on their store front that is for 10 patterns of your choice for $45. What a great deal! Thanks to these patterns I now have my soon to be 3 yr old's birthday gifts planned out. If you have a little one who loves to play pretend check out this shop and their adorable patterns!

Altered Flip Flops

2011-06-29T14:59:00.000-07:00

I am one of those people that can never wear those cheap knock around flip flops with the rubber straps. They hurt between my tows. So when a friend shares this tutorial from The Mother Huddle, I knew i finally had a reason to take advantage of all those great summer sales! Are these not the cutest thing? You could do so many things with these! You could forgo the fabric and try rope, leather, lace, ribbon, etc. And think of all the ways to embellish them! Buttons, beads, flowers, feathers, bows, etc. No one will ever have the same flip flops as you again! LOL Anyway back to the reason for this post. These are the pair I made today. I love them, They are super comfy! And when my daughter breaks hers... it never fails she breaks the knobby thing off the bottom of at least one pair a summer.) I will now have an easy fix for it! I am going to try to make my 2 yr old a pair soon.

I hope you like these! If you make some please leave a comment with a link to yours!

Ducktape Rose Pen

2011-05-31T21:27:00.002-07:00

I know I have been MIA with the tutorials. Sorry about that. My husband has been working out of town a lot more. Leaving me with three munchkins to entertain more. So, my spare time has been spread really thin. Now we're on summer break and I need activities to help curb the summer boredom. I am sure many of you are facing the same issue. Hopefully this is something that can keep the kiddos busy for a while. My 9 yr old really likes this project. She is requesting more tape. lol

Ducktape Rose Pens

Supplies:
Ducktape on the roll or sheet, I prefer two or more colors/patterns
A ruler (if you are using a roll)
Scissors
Pen

Start by cutting your ducktape into 2x2 inch squares, or close to it. I find the sheets are easier for the kids because there is a grid pattern printed on the back of the sheet. With one sheet you should get 20 squares. If you want the rose fuller you can cut more squares if you'd like. If you are using the roll it may be easier to cut as you go since the tape can be so sticky.

You will also need to cut a small piece to cover the top of the pen. I had a strip that was approx 3/4 in wide so I just cut a piece of that.

Place that over the top of your pen and smooth it down on the sides.

Take one of your 2x2 squares. Fold one corner diagonally across the square piece of tape. Leaving about a 1/4 inch of tape at two edges.

Now take another corner and fold it across again. This time leaving the edge on one side only.

Take your triangle and attach one end to the top/side of your pen. Spin the pen to wrap that tape edge around it.

Repeat that step again making sure to stager them along the way.

Continue adding petals until your rose is as full as you'd prefer.

Now we are going to make a base for the stem. (I didn't have green duck tape so I am using 1 inch vinyl tape instead) Cut a couple pieces approx. 3 inches long with angled ends

Wrap that around the base of the flower as well as part of the pen.

Repeat that step again.

Now you can wrap the tape the way I did here, spiraling down the pen. Or you can cut a piece of duck tape the length of the pen. Attach it to one side all the way own the pen and then roll it on that way.

There you have it! Your very own Ducktape Rose Pen! If you replaces the pen with a chop stick it'd make a cute hair stick!

A sew along for Japan!

2011-03-20T17:03:00.000-07:00

This is a fun and simple way to help kids in Japan. Participate in the sew along and make a shirt that will be sent to Japan for one of the many children effected by the devastating earthquake and tsunami! Just think of the smile you'll put on a child's face! Check out the link below for all the info!

Sweet As Steel Etsy Launch This Monday!

2011-02-11T12:36:00.000-07:00

Sweet As Steels new etsy shop will launch Monday, Feb. 14th! In honor of the new shop we now have a Facebook Fan Page. Each new fan we get on the page between now and Monday, Feb. 21st will be entered into a drawing. One person will win a custom Sweet As Steel prize pack! Check out the page and get yourself into the drawing! Good luck everyone!

I am not above begging....

2011-02-09T07:46:00.001-07:00

:) I entered my two girlie's into a model search for an amazing web store. I am hoping that I can get as many of my lovely virtual friends as possible to vote for them. So I am going to post it here and beg all of my readers to do the same. All you have to do is visit the Your Sparkle Box Boutique facebook page, like the page, and then like my daughter's pictures. PLEASE! LOL Also while you are there check out her amazing handmade products! She sells things for infants to adults. Her stuff is gorgeous! Thanks everyone!

These are the pictures posted:

Button Rings!

2011-02-06T12:39:00.000-07:00

These are so fun and super easy to make!

Supplies:
2-3 buttons various sizes
Embellishments: I am using a feather and a rhinestone
Glue (hot glue, e6000, glue dots)
1 ring blank

Start with the ring blank and put a dab of glue on it.

Attach the ring blank to the back of your largest button.

Grab a smaller button and add a dab of glue to it.

Attach it to the larger button. You can center it or have it off to the side.

Put some glue on the top of that same button and attach your feather.

Put a little bit of glue onto your rhinestone (or a small button)

Attach the rhinestone to the top. Making sure to cover the end of the feather.

And here is your finished, one of a kind, totally unique little ring!

Hoops!

2011-02-06T12:29:00.000-07:00

So about a year ago I decided I would try hooping as a way to get more in shape and in all honesty just to have a little fun. I got all my supplies and made myself and 2 of my kids hoops. Last year was full of so much craziness I never really got into hooping. But recently i got a fire under my butt and decided I am going to dedicate 30 minutes a day to my hoop. Well after a couple day I realized that my hoop I made last year was just too big for me. it wasn't spinning as fast as i wanted. So this week I made myself two new hoops. And I LOVE them! This is turning into a bit of an obsession for me hehe. I haven't started learning any tricks, right now I am working on the basics and trying to just get a feel for the movements and gain some muscle memory. It is my hope that over the next year I will improve and begin to nail a trick one at a time. Anyway I wanted to share my two new hoops.

This one is so fun. The white under layer is actually glow in the dark tape. I love it!

This one is my zebra hoop. The zebra print is actually ribbon, rather then tape. Just something different. I think it turned out pretty cute!

Sprinkle Filled Resin Pendants

2011-02-06T11:48:00.013-07:00

Supplies:
2 part resin, I use Envirotex Lite (Got it at Michaels)
A container to mix the resin in (it will not be usable for anything else afterwards)
Something to stir with, I like popcicle sticks because they are cheap.
Sprinkles
Molds (I use silicon ice cube trays)
Glue such as e600
A necklace bail
a necklace of sorts
An empty box
a straw

Most importantly a warm work area!

First mix your resin according to the directions. Mine takes two equal parts mixed well. I like to mix small amount at a time to be sure it doesn't set up too quickly on me.

Don't worry about the tiny bubbles we'll get rid of them later.

Pour a small amount of resin into your mold. Just enough to cover the bottom.

Let it sit for 5-10 minutes or so just to thicken up a bit.

Next pour sprinkles into your mold.

This is what it looked like once the tray was filled with sprinkles

Pour resin over the top of the sprinkles. You don't need to totally fill the mold. but you want to be sure they sprinkles are covered.

Cover the mold with a box for 5-10 minutes. The box keeps the wet resin protected from dust, little fingers, etc.

Come back to your molds and check them, many times bubbles form on the surface. Take your straw and lightly blow on the surface of the resin. The bubbles should start to pop. If you have larger ones that wont pop with the straw, use a pin to pop them.

Now set the mold back under the box and leave it alone until tomorrow! Now be sure your work area is warm. If it it so cool the resin will not set clear, it will be foggy. My resin instructions recommend the temperature being between 70 and 80 degrees.

Day 2!

We are going to first pop the resin from the molds.

They should look something like this.

If you have some jagged edges or some wispy edges, just take a low grit sand paper to those areas.

Put a dab of glue onto your bail.

Attach the bail to the back of your resin.

Once dry place the pendant onto your necklace.

There you have it! a fun and funky necklace!!

A look into my Suessiful craziness...

2011-01-24T15:52:00.002-07:00

I have been busy planning my three their birthday party. With their birthdays within weeks form the other, we opted for one party this year. Trying to find a theme that would work for a 9yr old, 5 yr old, and a 2 yr old took a little work. But they finally decided on a Dr. Suess themed carnival. I have been making outfits, games, decorations, and prizes. This is a peek into what I have been creating....

Bottle Cap Necklaces - Prizes

Juice Pouch Wallets and Change Purses - Prizes

A Grinch Top for my oldest

Seuss outfit for my youngest

And some foam core cut outs. But you will have to wait until the party pics are posted to see what I do with them! There are also a couple games and another cut out, but you'll have to wait for those as well.

A little help from my friends...

2011-01-01T08:33:00.000-07:00

Would you like a chance to win a trip for two anywhere in the world? Well I entered a photo contest in early Dec. from the Cheesecake Factory facebook page. I was selected as a finalist! I have a chance to win one cheesecake a month for a year. Anyone who votes has a chance to win a trip for two anywhere in the world. You can vote once a day until the 13th of Jan. So could you lovely readers, help me, help you? LOL Mine is the first picture, it's a silhouette of a little boy jumping in the air. If you use facebook, please vote for my little man's picture! Thanks everyone!!

Super C

2010-12-07T09:10:00.001-07:00

My son is your typical little boy. He is going on 5, loves robots, candy, and can get dirty from head to toe in 2.3 seconds! He has always been the hardest for me to make things for. My girls are easy there is always something I want to make those two. But my son always seems to get left out. Which has made this years Christmas even harder. I wanted all of my kids to have a few hand made gifts, other then the typical pj's, pillowcase, and blanket. While searching for ideas I ran across this Cape tutorial on The Long Thread. It was perfect! I knew that my son would LOVE a superhero cape for Christmas. I only hope he likes it as much as I do! Anyway I loved this tutorial so much I had to share it with you guys! Happy crafting!

Fabric Treat Boxes

2010-12-06T11:31:00.003-07:00

I am sure i am not the only one with a list of people I still need gifts for. Do you need a gift for someone still? These little fabric boxes are perfect! You can make a set for someone or make one and fill it with some home made treats! They can be used all year round. I have mine out for all of our Christmas cards! These boxes are so easy to make you can easily make other sizes too.

Supplies:

Two pieces of fabric (I like the basic quilting fabrics)

Interfacing

Ribbon

Something to seal your ribbon ends (Heat tool, candle, or Fray Stop)

Thread

Sewing machine

I cut my fabric to 16x16 squares

I attached fusible interfacing. This will help stabilize the boxes shape when it's complete.

Cut 8 pieces of ribbon, 8 inches each

The ends of your ribbon will fray. So it is important to seal the ends of the ribbon so it stays neat. I use a wood burning tool. Just slide the edge of the ribbon to the heat tool and it melts the ribbon together, making it a neat sealed edge for you.

Next we need to pin the ribbons in place. I pinned each 4 inches from each corner on one of the fabrics, facing right side up.

Place your other fabric on top, right side down and pin the fabrics together.

Sew the fabrics together, being sure to leave one space open so you can flip it right side out.

Snip the corners. This makes the fabric lay better once it has been flipped.

Flip the fabrics right side out.

Press the edges.

Sew around the edge to finish the edges and close the hole we left open. I used a zig zag just because I like how it looks. You can use any stitch you'd like.

Fold the the fabric in half at the corners, making the two piece of ribbon meet, and tie a bow.

Once you have tied all four corners you should have an adorable fabric treat box!

I hope this helps you knock a few gifts of of your list!

Happy Holidays

2010-11-26T07:47:00.001-07:00

Stylish Snowflakes Black Christmas Card

Make a statement with Shutterfly Christmas photo cards.

View the entire collection of cards.

Altered Canvas

2010-11-01T15:29:00.001-07:00

Altered canvas can be used for so many different occasions and themes. These make wonderful personalized gifts and great decor!

This one is a bit different then my usual step by step instructions. Since canvas comes in many sizes you may need to adjust to your projects needs

Altered Canvas

Supplies:
1 canvas - mine is 12x12
acrylic paint
Mod Podge
Sponge prush
printed scrapbook paper - mine is cut to 6x12
Ribbon
Stapler
Embellishments - I used chipboard stickers and rub-ons

First you need to paint the canvas. Any part that will be showing needs to be painted. Since the bottom half will be covered by the paper, I only painted the edges. make sure you paint the outer edges as well. I wanted more of an abstract multi colored look. So I did blue, purple, and pink.

Lightly coat the canvas with Mod Podge where your paper will be going. If you use too much Mod Podge the paper will get air bubbles. So remember a THIN layer.

Carefully place your paper onto the canvas. Gently rub it smooth, pushing any air bubbles to the edges. Flip the canvas over and rub again to be sure the paper is evenly attached. If you want you can wait for a bit for the mod podge to dry before moving on.

Coat the paper and canvas in a thin layer of Mod podge to seal the paper. And to give it a protective coating.

Next you are going to mount your photo(s) to the canvas. If the mod podge you used to coat the paper and canvas are still wet, use that to mount the photos. Otherwise make another thin layer of the mod podge then place the photos onto the canvas. be sure to smooth out the air bubbles.

Wait a little bit for this to dry before moving on.

Make thin coat of mod podge across the top of your photos.

Allow to dry.

Embellish and decorate as you wish. I used black chipboard letters that I roughly painted pink, Chip board stickers on the photos, and I used rub-ons on either side of the word "love" and across the top and bottom.

Seal it all with another layer of Mod Podge and let dry. After it is dry you can spray with an acrylic coat if you want another protective layer. I didn't do that on mine.

If you want to hang it on ribbon, you will need to attach the ribbon to the back of the canvas. I used a stapler. I attached mine in the center, but You could also attach it on the corners.

I finished it off by hot gluing a bow to the center on the front.

I am planning on making a few of these for gifts this year. They are so easy to make. And I have seen quite a few deals lately on the canvas. So they don't cost very much either

Monster Eye Hair Clip

2010-09-28T18:04:00.002-07:00

With Halloween coming my daughter is a tad excited. She asked me to make her some Halloween hair clips. So I made a monster eye clip. But after making I realized with a couple changes I could make it look like a pumpkin too. But I don't have the right color ribbon to make those yet.

Supplies:
Hot glue gun
2-3 different color ribbon (5/8 or 5/16)
Alligator clip(s)
2 Small buttons (smaller then 1")
Ruler
Scissors

Ribbon lengths:
Clip cover -1- 3"
Whites of the eyes -2- 5 1/4"
Outer eye -2- 5"

I suggest cutting all your ribbon lengths and heat sealing the ends first. This makes sure your ribbon wont unravel. There are a few ways to do this. They sell some stuff that is called Fray Check that is sort of like a glue for the ends of the ribbon. You can use a wood burning tool to cut and seal the ribbon at the same time. Or you can use a lighter or a candle to seal them. I used the candle technique. Hold the ribbon close enough to the flame that the heat melts the ribbon a tad. But not too close, otherwise you could scorch or light the ribbon on fire.

Now we are going to cover the alligator clip in ribbon first. You will need 1 piece of ribbon cut to 3" and 1 alligator clip.

Squeeze the clip open. Put a dab of glue onto the underside of the top half and place the end of the ribbon over the glue.

Next carefully put glue along the top half and fold the ribbon over it. Careful not to get too much glue into the hole in the center. It will end up getting onto the bottom half like I did. Then you have to scrape some glue off LOL But if you do don't worry. you can use a hair dryer to melt away any little strings of glue left after you scrap some off.

Put a dab of glue on the bottom, right where your thumb would pinch to open the clip. Wrap the ribbon around and glue it down.

Your covered clip should look like this.

Now lets make the monster eyes... Start with one of the 5 1/4" pieces of ribbon. Wrap it around your index finger making a circle.

Glue the ribbon to it's self making the small circle.

Wrap the ribbon around it's self making a larger circle around the smaller one.

Glue the end of the ribbon to about the same spot that you glues the smaller circle at.

Repeat this to make the second eye.

Using one of these double circles. Glue one of your 5" ribbon tips to the same spot. Wrap it around and glue the other end down as well.

Repeat on the second eye.

You will end up with two pieces that look like this.

Glue the two pieces together in the center.

Carefully put a drop of glue inside the smallest circle and attach one of the buttons. Let that cool then repeat for the other eye.

Next flip the eyes over. In the center put a dab of glue and attach the eyes to the clip. I marked the area with a green dot.

There you go! A cute Halloween inspired clip!

Cake Pin Cushions

2010-08-31T17:17:00.003-07:00

I found these on The DIY Dish and they are so cute and super easy! Perfect for last minute gifts!!

Supplies:

4 sheets of 9x12 felt. Cut into: 8- 2 1/2 x 12 and 4 1 1/2 x 12

Glue gun and glue sticks

1 magnet (either a disc magnet or sheet magnet cut into a small circle)

Any embellishment... Buttons, ribbon, ric rac, ribbon flowers, beads, etc.

Start with your 8 pieces of felt that you precut to 2 1/2 x 12. Lay two pieces one on top of the other and begin to roll them up. When you have about two inches left at the end lay another one on top and continue to roll, repeat this until you have rolled all 8 pieces together.

Take your hot glue and glue the end down.

Repeat these steps with your 1 1/2 x 12 strips.

You should now have the two layers of your cake.

Next embellish as you wish.

Once you are done embellishing you will have an adorably unique pin cushion!

Now were you wondering what that magnet on the top layer was for?

Easy right? How many are you going to make?

I am sure you could make these a little differently and let your little ones play with them as felt play food ;)

But this one is definitely going on my sewing table!

Slouch neck halter

2010-08-24T17:39:00.002-07:00

I am enjoying t-shit recons today! After watching this video on Generation-T I had to try it out. I love this little top. I think I will be making myself a few of these! I think I will make them a little longer. I'll still do 3 inches at the top and 7 at the bottom. But I think I will measure longer then 24 inches to give it a little more length.

Upcycled T-shirt

2010-08-24T13:21:00.003-07:00

I have been a fan of Generation-T for a while now. I love all the ideas of things you can do with a t-shirt. I have used some of my old baby doll style t-shirts to make my daughters new clothes. But I have never made myself something from a t-shirt. I have had a Goonies shirt for a while now. But I hardly ever wear it. I love the shirt though so I decided to make something that I would likely wear more often. So I made a halter dress. I didn't follow any real pattern. It was some trial and error with inspiration from Generation-T, but I think it came out great. It's a comfy little dress that is perfect for the AZ summer! What do you think?

What have you made out of a T-shirt?

Pillowcases!

2010-08-23T09:20:00.000-07:00

I have seen recently that sewing pillowcases has become very popular. Then last week on The Crafting Pot I read about a great cause, 1 Million Pillowcase Challenge. American Patchwork & Quilting has set a challenge for sewers to help reach the goal of donating 1 million pillowcases to local charities through out 2010. I am sure we (well most crafters anyway) have a stack, box, cupboard, etc of fabrics we just haven't found the right project for. Well, here's your chance! Whip up a few pillowcases and donate them to a local charity!

If the thought of making pillowcases has ever had you a bit nervous, by following a photo tutorial (I admit it, I was) The girls at The Crafting Pot also found a wonderful video tutorial. I personally love video tuts, because I know I am following the steps correctly.

Anyway stop on by The Crafting Pot through out the month of Sept. for some great challenges!

T-Shirt revamp

2010-08-05T21:48:00.000-07:00

While shopping today I found some cute outfits for my daughters. But I wanted to give them a little more umpf.
I started with this top. It is a girls xs which is a girls size 4/5. My youngest is in 18m/2t, but I loved the top. I figured with a little altering it'd make a cute dress.

So I sewed elastic onto both sides. The elastic bunched up the sides a bit and shortened the top.

I then used some ribbon and made a flower pin.

Since I was already playing with the ribbon I also made a couple hair clips to match.

I LOVE how it turned out! I can't wait to get her in it. But since it is after her bedtime I guess I'll have to wait LOL

I also got my oldest a basic black t-shirt.

I used Tulle and fabric to make a flower pin.

I love how it looks with her new skirt!

And again I made a matching hair clip ;)

Here are some blogs with some great flower tutorials!
http://www.thebridescafe.com/?postID=892&diy-t-shirt-flower-wedding-bouquet

http://boutiquenutmegdesigns.blogspot.com/2008/07/fabric-flower-tutorial.html

http://maizehutton.blogspot.com/2007/08/frayed-flower.html

Sweet As Steel has a new look!

2010-08-05T17:16:00.001-07:00

Hi everyone! I recently entered a contest on Giveaways For Mom to have a custom designed blog makeover by Leah at Cutesie Blog Designs I found out earlier this week that I was the winner! So exciting! Leah had me look through different digital scrapbooking kits to find the one I liked best. I answered a few key questions and the rest was in her hands. Leah made the process so easy! And look at my amazing new bog! Sweet! If you are looking to have your blog redone, I whole heartedly recommend you go to Leah! Thanks Cutesie Blog Designs and Giveaways For Mom for my fabulously funky blog! You guys rock!!

Hooded beach towel

2010-07-10T15:14:00.002-07:00

Who doesn't like hooded towels? I know as a mom I love them. And if you are a busy mom like me, then this is perfect for you... These are so easy to make! And fast!!

Supplies:
1 - beach (or bath towel)
1 - hand towel

First take your hand towel and cut it in half. I like to fold it and use a pin to mark the middle on each side, mark it and cut it. Set one half aside for another project.

Fold the half of the hand towel in half. making sure the raw edge you just cut is along the top. And pin it together. About 2 1/2" from the top, on the side with the fold, mare a curve. Then cut it.

Next sew that raw edge shut. If you have a serger, I suggest using it. If you are like me and you don't then I would do a straight stitch first. Then go back over that stitch with a zig zag.

Flip it right side out and you've got your hood.

Fold your beach towel in half and mark the middle with a pin.

Fold the hood in half and mark the middle with a pin.

Lay the hood on top of the beach towel, lining up the pins, and pin the hood to the towel.

Using a zig zag stitch, sew the hood to the towel. (Since the hand towel and beach towel had finished edges there is no need to reinforce the stitching)

Voila! You made your very own hooded towel!

Bandana Top/Dress Tutorial

2010-07-10T15:10:00.002-07:00

I have really been neglecting my blog. I hope that a couple fun tutorials will make up for it!

Things have been very crazy here the last couple months and I have missed posting tutorials. So to make up for it, I'm going to post more then one this month. Up first...

A girls top or baby/toddler dress made out of bandanas! I got my bandanas at Walmart for $1 each. So you can easily make these for under $5 each

Supplies:
2 bandanas
1-2 yds of grosgrain ribbon (I am using 7/8")
Thread

Start by making a seam across the top of each bandanas. This will be where we run the ribbon through at the end.

For a baby dress, if you's like it shorter. Trim a few inches off the top. Then sew your seam. On this one I trimmed 4" off the top.

Next we need to mark where the side seam ends and the arm holes begin. Measure from the top 4-6 inches down and mark the fabric with a marker.

You'll have two that look something like this.

I like to pin the bandanas together, stopping where I put my mark. Then sew up both sides, stopping at your mark.

Flip the top right side out and run your ribbon through the top seam. I just have the girls stand here to figure out the best length. But if they aren't around, I like to pull the ribbon through both sides, then pull the looped end out about 2", and have 6" of loose ribbon on the other end. Then I cut the ribbon.

Gather the fabric up a bit. And have your girl put it on. Tie the bow. (sorry the pics aren't better. It's hard to convince a 19 month old to be a model)

Now if you don't want to cut it shorter, you can still use the bandanas to make a toddler dress. Peyton is in 18m, this is her in the top Annsleigh was wearing above. I personally like them a bit shorter though. I think this would fit her better if she were in a 3t.

You can add other embellishments if you wanted. Like trim or a ruffle along the bottom, an applique or embroidery, etc.

Another way to make a summer top for older girls is to make it a tie back halter. For this you only need one bandana.

You do the top seam the same as the others. Then attach a strip of ribbon to both sides. Since it's for Annsleigh, I cut the ribbon's length, the same width as the bandana. I like to get the ribbon placed as close to the middle of the bandana as possible to attach them. For the ribbon length at the neck I double the width of the bandana. Run the ribbon through the seam and you're done! You can do a similar top to this by making the top seam from one of the corner sections. This makes the bottom go to a point.

Tissue Paper Flowers.

2010-05-10T10:41:00.000-07:00

The Crafting Pot has a "Flower" challenge going on. I made tissue paper flowers and attached them to a foam ball. It came out so much better then I expected. I love it! I ended up giving it to a very close friend for Mother's Day. I think she really liked it too. :)

Treat Bags

2010-02-01T13:15:00.001-07:00

Since Valtentine's Day and Easter are occasions for candy in bulk, I found these and had to make them. They are both SO simple too! Enjoy!

I found the tutorial for this one on SplitCoastStampers

And this one was on ustamp4fun
I made mine a bit longer then what the tutorial says to fit the fruit roll up better.

Been MIA

2010-01-13T11:04:00.000-07:00

Sorry I haven't been around lately. But I have been trying to get organized and purge my house of clutter. I still have my creative juices flowing. I am getting ready to paint a few rooms in my house. Starting with the kids bathroom. I am so excited to be doing this though. Here are my color choices and my inspiration.

The wall color - Glidden paint - True Turquoise

Accent Color- Glidden paint - Onyx Black

The inspiration prints to be framed and hung:

Each of the individual prints will represent one of my children. They will each have a color coordinating set of towels to go with one robot. The two oldest have picked their colors. I plan to hang the individual ones above the towel rack. The other print is larger and will be hung on another wall. I will paint the walls in the terquoise and in the black I will randomly paint cogs and sprockets on all the walls. The kids can't wait for it to be done. And neither can I for that matter. I can't wait to turn their drab white bathroom into something fun and colorful!

More to come!

12 weeks of Christmas - Week 12

2009-12-15T09:18:00.000-07:00

Wow week 12 is here already. Since we are down to one full week plus a couple days until Christmas I am sure many are now just grabbing gift cards. I know I grabbed a couple! But wouldn't it be fun to give a gift card in a little more then an envelope? So this week we are going to do a couple gift card holders. And as a bonus I will throw in a way to dress up some concert or sporting event tickets!

I love the explosion boxes with a pocket for a gift card.
Denise at Paper Pastime has a great video tutorial for making one with one or more pockets for gift cards I love that she added a 3D element right in the center! So I took that concept and combined it with the explosion bow with a paper bow tutorial from Christmas With The Cricut and combined the two to make this:

I took this basic idea and tweaked the measurements and made a similar box to hold some hockey tickets. The measurements are different but the box it's self goes together the same way...

Ignore the football tickets. I wanted to see what it looked like with tickets and the hockey tickets haven't arrived yet. ;)

For the box:
1- 8x12 piece cardstock
Score at 3" on each side.
Cut and remove the square from each corner.
Fold on the scored lines inward on each side.

The Lid:
1- 4 1/8x8 1/8 piece of cardstock
Score at 1" on all sides
Cut a triangle from each corner making a tab attached to the long sides.
Fold scored edges inward.
Glue tabs to inside of short sides.
(Click on the pictures to see the cut diagrams larger)

Pocket for the tickets:
1 - 3 1/4x3 cardstock
Score at 1 1/2" down the longer sides
Fold both sides inward.

Using one of the triangles cut from the lid.
Score 2 sides at 1/16" and cut of the little square the score lines make.
Attach one side of triangle to the bottom of the box and the other to the backside of the pocket.

The Bow:
1- 4 1/2" circle from BT paper
Cut 8 curved lines from 1/4" away from the center outward to the edge.
Punch a hole in the center.
Put brad through the hole.
Fold the pointer corners inward attaching them to the brad, making a pinwheel.
Fold open the brad to hold the bows shape.

Band:
1 1/2"x12" strip of BT paper.
Wrap around box & lid.
Over lap edges and glue down (I used a glue dot)
Attach the bow with 3D foam dot.

Some other fabulous gift card holders can be found all over the net. Some of my favorites are:
The cupcake from The Stamp Goddess - I love this project! Gorgeous presentation for a gift card!
Holiday House from The Paper Monkey
A Beanie from Caorolina's Creative Pad
Pop Up holder from Chic 'n Scratch

12 weeks of Christmas - Week 11

2009-12-07T13:48:00.000-07:00

Because I love all things funky and fun. I decided to make my kids, nieces and nephews some fun and funky gifts this year. All you need is a sewing matching, some scissors, and some empty and clean juice pouches. And you can make some really cool gifts. I have had a lot of fun making these. And it's nice to know we are reusing something that would otherwise take up space in our landfill. I love when I can find a project to upcycle something!!

Wallets - These are for all the kids. I think we are putting a gift card to an ice cream shop or a couple bucks in each one. I found these over at Mojo But I attached the pockets to one juice pouch first. Then I stitched the outer pouch on three sides. That way there was a pocket for money like in a regular wallet. The velcro I used comes on strips with adhesive on the back.

I wanted something to hold change as well so I used the tutorial I found at Craft Bits to make a little change purse. I made the flap edge rounded, I thought it looked cleaner that way. Again I used velcro dots for the closure.

I also made my daughter a purse. It is a little more technical then the change purse and the wallet. But it was too cute not to pass up making. I found the tutorial for the purse at Mormon Chic

If those aren't enough for you, you could also make a belt, lunch sack, checkbook covers, or a back pack. It's nice that these projects are so simple and you can easily add your own touch to all of the projects. You could add pockets, accessories, make a gift set. etc.

12 weeks of Christmas - Week 10

2009-12-02T11:02:00.001-07:00

My daughter is nearly 8 and loves anything "cool". So she saw these and begged me for them. Turns out they are actually pretty popular. And super easy to make! She doesn't know it yet, but she will have a few sets of these in her stocking. :) Fleece Sleeves! They are so cute, comfy, and even a little edgy. You can use plain fabrics and embellish them or you could use busy prints. I found great instructions for these at Riotflower's Realm . I made mine a tad different. I wanted a blanket stitch rather then a folded seam. It didn't make them feel as heavy or bulky at the openings this way.

12 weeks of Christmas - Week 9

2009-11-24T08:00:00.000-07:00

Week 9? Already?! Wow! This weeks gift able craft is actually a twofer! I figured I would make sure you had a little time to get this set done. How about a Chef's Hat and an Apron! I love that both came in a size for kids and adults. The hat was an even more exciting find because it actually comes in 4 sizes, adult, child, toddler, and baby. Plus, you use velcro on the back because they become adjustable. The apron is simple enough, I figured I could come up with a toddler sized one on my own. I am making 2 children's sets, a toddler set, and one adult set. So I can honestly say I am not finished with mine yet. But these have been fun to work on!

By the way, when you get the hat instructions there are two separate files. One is the cut guide and the other is the step by step instructions.

I hope this knocks another person or two off of your list!

I am having computer issues at the moment. So I will try to get the pictures up ASAP. But until then here are the ones from the tutorials...

Memoboard Tutorial

2009-11-18T16:16:00.000-07:00

I was asked to be a guest designer at The Crafting Pot. I put together a tutorial for a memo board. You can use it as a bonus giftable craft if you'd like. I hope you enjoy the tutorial and The Crafting pot. It's a fabulous crafting blog!!

12 weeks of Christmas - Week 8

2009-11-17T08:52:00.001-07:00

This is a gift you can easily do for the whole family. With three little ones in the house buying PJs can get expensive. So why not make your own? I found this great tutorial Instructables for making pajama pants. And making a set is simple, get a plain t-shirt and use part of your fabric scraps to make an appliqué. You could make these out of flannel for a warm and cozy pair of pans. Cotton for those warm nights. Or even fleece for those chilly nights.

So far these are the only completed pair. But I have a stack already cut for all three of the kids.

I hope this is something you can do for your family! Happy sewing!

12 weeks of Christmas - Week 7

2009-11-10T09:55:00.000-07:00

This week's project is Chipboard albums. These were made from coasters. There are very simple instructions at Craft With Me... If you don't have chipboard you can cheat and recycle boxes, cereal boxes would work perfect!

For some fun accessories you can make shrinkiy dinks. I stamped mine. But you can also run them through the printer. It would be a cute way to personalize your album.

Also rather then using a key chain like suggested in the link. I used binder clip rings. They make it much easier to assemble and to add more pages later if you choose.

12 weeks of Christmas - Week 6

2009-11-03T09:38:00.000-07:00

I found a great tutorial for a soothing eye mask. They are easy to make. Low cost. And adorable! The tutorial calls rice to fill the mask. But I went with flaxseed. I also used a satin fabric to match a set I am working on. If you want to add an even more soothing touch, add some lavendar buds or lavendar essential oil to the rice/flaxseed before filling the mask.

Just a quick tip if you are going to store this in the freezer, be sure to keep it in a zip lock storage bag.

12 weeks of Christmas - Week 5

2009-10-27T06:06:00.000-07:00

Remember that scrap denim I told you to hold onto a couple weeks ago? Well today we are going to break it out and make something super cute, Holiday Hanging Stars. These stars are perfect for decorations and gift giving. The pocket can be filled with flowers or other decorative items. Or you can fill the pocket with items for gift giving. These little guys are so cute you will be so glad that you made them! Like always I didn't follow the given instructions to a T. I do not embroider, so instead I stitched on a few buttons, ribbon, and a little heart clip. I backed it in this swirly print fabric. This is definitely something you can decorate for men, women, and children. Have fun making these adorable stars!

Return Envelope Challenge

2009-10-20T13:35:00.000-07:00

The Crafting Pot has a challenge to use those return envelopes from the bills we pay online. So I decided to use mine in a Christmas morning layout of my kids. The envelope is addressed to Santa. My daughter filled it out herself. I thought it would be a cute way to preserve her writing. I had two extra pictures and still needed a spot for journaling. So I made a 6x6 page that will go in between the two 12x12 pages. I have no idea where my 6x6 page protectors are though. Isn't that how it goes? I used the picture of the kids as a pocket to slide the picture of the kids tree into. I also used the sanding technique to make my title. And I used pop dots on all the packages to give the pages a little dimension. All the papers and inks are CTMH ;) Thanks for looking!

12 Weeks of Cristmas - Week 4

2009-10-20T07:15:00.000-07:00

I have 2 little girls. And what little girl doesn't like to play Dress Up? I know my kids love to pretend. So, how about an easy NO SEW project for the little girls in your life? A Tutu! I followed this tutorial from JCGrace Girls. It is very easy to follow. And you can be as creative as you wish. If you want to go all out, she also has a fabulous tutorial on fairy wings!

Here are the tutus that I made my girls for Halloween costumes. My oldest has requested another one for Christmas. She wants bright colors and skulls LOL Luckily she just asked for it this weekend, which means I still might find skull ribbon for it.

12 Weeks of Christmas - Week 3

2009-10-13T11:15:00.002-07:00

This one was so fun to make. And you can do so many things to personalize it! We are going to upcycle a pair of jeans into a cute apron. And for those crafting on a budget you can get 2 aprons out of one pair of jeans! Here is a simple tutorial from Cut Out + Keep Now for mine I added a panel of fabric across the bottom and made my ties look like a belt run through the belt loops.

With this one I also made a matching birthday card and bandanna. It was a gift for my little sister.

Save your scrap pieces for denim (legs) We will need them for a future project!!

Devil's Food

2009-10-10T14:43:00.000-07:00

Since my baby girls is going as Angel Food Cake fr Halloween I thought it would be fin to make her older sister a costume along the same lines. So my oldest will be going as Devil's Food Cake. She will have a black and red tutu that isn't quite finished yet. But I just finished the shirt and was dying to share :)

Angel Food Cake

2009-10-09T20:04:00.001-07:00

My 9 month old will be Angel Food Cake for Halloween. Well my take on that anyway. I made a no sew tutu and made appliqués for her top. I am pleased with how it turned out. I may do a little more to it by adding sparkles and such. But as of now this is her costume.

Monster Mash

2009-10-08T09:38:00.002-07:00

After seeing all the cute monster softies all over the net, my 3 yr old asked if he could be a monster softie for Halloween. Of course I obliged, how often do crafty mom's get such a request? I dug through my fabric stash and found that I still had blue fur from last years costume (a flying monkey from the wizard of oz ;) ) It as as if it were meant to be! I also have a ton of felt on hand from making his baby sister Felt Food. He picked the colors for the dots himself. Then I decided they would look cuter if they were 3D. So, each polka dot if stuffed with a little batting. Since he is so active i wanted to do something that he could easily put on and take off. So I went with a sandwich board costume. Very simple not may parts, nothing to untie, zip, etc. I think it turned out great. And after seeing his face when I finished I think he is completely ecstatic. Here are pics of the costume and his treat bag. I had planned on making his bag, but when he saw this in the dollar bins at target he had to have it. Which meant less sewing for me. :) Pics of him in it to come later.....

Halloween Explosion Treat Box

2009-10-07T13:04:00.001-07:00

made this Halloween themed explosion explosion treat box for the Treat Bag Challenge on The Crafting Pot

Halloween Treat Bucket

2009-10-07T12:57:00.001-07:00

I made this for the Halloween Treat Bag challenge at the Crafting Pot

12 Weeks Of Christmas - Week 2

2009-10-06T07:21:00.000-07:00

So many people give adorable pictures during the holidays. Why not dress up those pictures with an amazing photo frame? So this week I am suggesting that you follow this great tutorial at The Pink Elephant Challenge to make some Altered photo frames! I made mine a little different then the actual tutorial. but that's the beauty of it all, follow the basic instructions and don't be afraid to use your imagination!

Domino Magnets

2009-10-05T13:23:00.001-07:00

I have been working on magnets lately. I stamped some with Stazon and colored them with permanent markers. Then others I used alcohol inks and stamped on them using the blending solution.

12 weeks of Christmas - Week 1

2009-10-03T07:05:00.003-07:00

I know many of us would love to make hand made gifts for Christmas. So I have decided that I will post project that I have made, along with the tutorial or a link to a tutorial so you can make it yourself. I will post a new item every week from now until the week of Christmas.

This weeks project is Felt Doughnuts. My daughter is going to have a felt play food Christmas. The first felt food I made was doughnuts. They were pretty simple to make and I had a lot of fun making them. I can't wait to see her Christmas morning!

If you don't have a little one I have seen miniature ones made as well. They add a little ribbon loop to them and use them as key chains. Once you know how to make them the possibilities are endless.

I would love to see what you make!

Lisa J Honey has a great tutorial on her blog. I love how talented she is at making felt food. Check out her other tutorials on her blog. As well as her amazing foods in her Etsy shop!

BTW, I was late posting this, so don't be surprised if the next one is posted in a few days.

Blog Hop - Sew many Cards Challenge

2009-10-01T08:45:00.000-07:00

My kids fell in love with the image provided for this challenge. My 7 yr old liked it so much she made her own card submission. She used Crayons, markers, and stickers. :)

Blog Hop - Two in One

2009-10-01T07:30:00.001-07:00

It's All About Me - Color and Scraplift
Practical Scrappers - Die Cuts

Blog Hop - Three Challenges in One

2009-10-01T07:21:00.001-07:00

Scrap Sketch - Scraplift
Chirper Challenge - "Sweet" - We call our baby a "Chubby Cupcake"
Just Buggin Challenges - Altered Die Cut - Used Glitter on them

Blog Hop Challenge - Creativity With A Twist

2009-10-01T07:13:00.000-07:00

"Lets Get Down And Dirty"
This was perfect timing, last week my son played in the mud. So it was the perfect opportunity to scrap his pics.

Coffee Filters

2009-09-16T14:06:00.001-07:00

The Crafting Pot's Oh Craft! challenge for this month was to make something using a coffee filter. So, I made a coffee filter book. I used 5 filters, each one had a tag slid into the "pocket" and each was decorated on both sides with BT paper. (the paper is CTMH, but it's not longer available)

From Challenges

Altered Composition Book

2009-09-09T09:34:00.001-07:00

I made this for a challenge over at The Crafting Pot. It turned out a little different then I had first envisioned. But I like it none the less. I plan on making a few other things to match it... It will be a gift for a Christmas gift exchange ;)

From Challenges

Happy National Stamping Month!

2009-09-01T07:10:00.001-07:00

Today Close To My Heart launched their new Idea book! It is full of all sorts of holiday themed items, papers, stamps, card kits, tools, and more. I have found my favorites and I am sure you will as well. I am looking forward to all the creativity that grows from these new products.

We have a wonderful new stamp set for Sept. Stamp of The Month! It's called Treasures and is filled with Dandy Lions and cute sayings. You can use it to make cards, scrapbooks, and more, definitely a versatile set. But be sure to snag it while you can, because after Sept it wont be available!

In case you didn't know it Sept is also national Stamping Month! In honor of National Stamping month Close To My Heart is offering a wonderful card set Eveyday Celebration This set has an adorable card kit was designed exclusively for National Stamping Month. The kit includes everything you need to make these adorable cards! The stamp set is only available in this kit, papers, embellishments, card bases, envelopes, ink, step by step instructions, and more. You can purchase the kit or earn it for free,! Just ask me how!

New Crafty Blog - Check it out!

2009-08-31T14:12:00.001-07:00

I know some of you are just as addicted to crafty blogs as I am. So I have to share this new one with you! A couple girls I know are launching their new blog The Crafting Pot The launch is scheduled for this week, Wen. Sept. 2nd. They have been dropping hints about their sponsors and such for a couple weeks now. The excitement is brewing as the days go on. So if you are looking for a new place to be inspired, challenged, or possibly learn something new, be sure to check out The Crafting Pot!

Premade Card Kit and Box

2009-08-25T15:01:00.006-07:00

I was blog hopping and ran across this tutorial. I had to try it out. And am I glad that I did. I could not be happier with how this turned out. I changed mine a bit though. I have a friend who's birthday is this week. She is always telling me how she wishes she was more creative. So I made her a premade card kit. All she has to do is color one of the pre stamped pieces, glue it down,, add a couple embellies, and she's done. I made six cards, stamped out titles like "Happy Birthday, Thank you, etc". The bag of embellies has buttons, brads, and spiral clips. I stamped out images that will fit onto the premade mats already attached to the cards. So she has no cutting. I liked the idea of the note book and the tags. But I left out the pen holder and used the stamp pocked for the little titles. This is a great tutorial. I am sure you'll want to try it out. If you do link back to here so I can see what you have come up with!

BTW The inks, stamped images, and Card Sock are all CTMH. But the patterned paper is by Autumn Leaves.

Alcohol Ink

2009-08-23T21:05:00.005-07:00

Today was my first time for me to play with alcohol inks. I have been admiring Tim Holtz work on his blag since last Dec. I have also watched all of his demos. But I had been resisting trying this stuff out for fear of getting addicted to something new lol But a friend keeps showing me these wonderful things that she has made. And I couldn't resist any longer. So I decided to try something easy first. I decided to star with Tim's Splatter technique. I used the same things that he uses in th demo. But I gave it a twist. Rather then using glossy cardstock, I used clear sheets that I had bought over a year ago ti stamp on. They worked out perfectly. These are sheets that you can run through printer, so one side is a bit textured. I used the alcohol ink on that side. Then stamped with Stazon on the smooth side. I then used a basic glue runner to attach my cardstock photo mats to the pages. I absolutely LOVE how they turned out!

Dyeing Dipes

2009-08-04T14:46:00.005-07:00

This is what we did yesterday afternoon. It was a fun art project for the kids. And we got to make some boring prefold dipes a little brighter. I think they came out great. We used a kit by Jacquard that I picked up at Save-On-Crafts The kit was for 10-15 adult shirts and it dyed 12 prefold cloth diapers beautifully. I went with the Jaquard kit becasue it had everything we needed. Even a DVD that showed you haw to get different designes. The hardest part was waiting the 12-24 hours to rinse and wash to see what they looked like. We had a great time doing it and want to dye again soon. I strongly suggest this kit to anyone who wants to try dyeing on their own!

Photo Cube

2009-06-02T06:46:00.003-07:00

I have seen these one quite a few consultants blogs lately. They are so fun to make. I had to try it myself. It's a photo cube that is made from 4 cd cases and a couple peices of paper/cardstock. I made mine using the new Tickled Pink kit. I love how it came out.

Getting better at these dresses...

2009-05-22T06:42:00.003-07:00

Now to master the bloomers. Why on Earth are they so stinking hard for me to make?

Pillowcase dresses

2009-05-11T06:23:00.004-07:00

This is my first attempt at making these. I have seen them for months and have been wanting to try a couple. But I didn't have a pillowcase that would work. So I gave in and cut out rectangle fabric and hoped for the best. The babies didn't go together so well. LOL I made it a bit too narrow. So I altered it into an apron dress. I like how it turned out so much, I plan on making a few more for her. My oldest's turned out great. But the length is too short for a dress and too long to wear with shorts. So the next one will be a different length. She likes it, that's what counts right!

Cupcakes and a Girliy Girl Accordion

2009-04-30T14:42:00.005-07:00

I got the new CTMH stamp set Cup Cake Sprinkles recently. And I LOVE it! I saw it in the spring catalog and new I had to have it. I have so many wonderful ideas for this little set. Especially some really fun cards. The possibilities are definitely endless for this set. Here is a set of eight 5 1/2 x 5 1/2 cards I made. I used the More To Adore Papers with Bubblegum and Chocolate inks.

This is my 6x6 Memory Showcase album. I used Daydream Bulk Paper and Honey & Hollyhock Cardstock. The stamp set is Girly Girl. I know it is plain, but I was afraid to go overboard with embellishments and no pictures.

Cover:

Page 1 & 2:

Page 3 & 4:

Back Cover:

Back 2 pages:

Looking for a good deal?

2009-04-21T07:07:00.002-07:00

How about a steal? Over the last few months I have become addicted with a web store. BabySteals is a great way to get baby and maternity items for a fraction of the price. Each day they offer one item, it goes up and is sold until it is sold out or for 24 hours only. In the recent weeks I have gotten two of my favorite baby things in the world. I got some really cute baby legs for Peyton. They were a three pack and I paid just over what I pay for ONE pair. Then there is my Sprout Shell Oh how I LOVE my Sprout Shell. This is the coolest thing and a must have for anyone with a small baby. Baby steals has turned me on to items I never knew existed and some are now my favorite things in the world. I had never seen a sprout shell until it was up as a steal. Now it is one of my most coveted baby items. I have told countless friends about baby steals. But I am turning to you guys as well. I know many of you are mom's grandma's Aunts, etc. We all know someone who could take advantage of these great savings. Or you could , yourself. So check it out. You never know what you may get to steal today ;)

Pay it forward!

2009-04-20T17:16:00.001-07:00

Here is how it works-the 1st 5 people to leave a comment on this post will receive at some point during this year a handmade gift from me. If you don't live by me give me some way to contact you so I can send it. What it will be and when it will arrive is a total surprise! The catch is that you must participate as well. Before you leave your comment here write up a pay it forward post on your blog to keep the fun going( or cut and paste..no one will judge you, cause that is what I did). Then come back and let me know you are going to play, and sit back and anticipate the arrival of your gift. Remember only the 1st 5 will qualify. Good Luck!!!

Cupcake Pops

2009-04-06T09:40:00.006-07:00

I follow Pioneer Woman's Blog. She has all sorts of yummy recipes, great gardening tips, great photography tips, and more. I absolutely love reading her blog. A while back she mentioned Bakerella in a post. Then last month Bakerella and Pioneer woman got together and had a weekend of lessons. One being Bakerella's cupcake pops. I of course had to look up Bakerella's other creations. All I can say is OMG this woman has an awesome talent. She makes cake pops of every shape and color. I used one of her tutorials to make cupcake pops this weekend. They came out great. We took them to a birthday party yesterday and they were a hit. Everyone loved them. So I had to share a picture of my yummy cake pops with all of you. I made mine with a white cake mix that I doctored up a bit. Instead of using the water it called for I used maraschino cherry juice. The cake turned out so good! They are now what my daughter is asking to have for her birthday... in Dec. lol Anyway I recommend both of these blogs to everyone. I definitely think everyone should try the cake pops. They were so fun to make and just so stinking cute when finished. I think I have a new addiction!

BTW, if anyone has seen the new CTMH stamps Cupcake Sprinkles... I think these would look cute with something made from that set ;)

Introducing Miss Peyton!

2009-01-27T11:06:00.002-07:00

Ok I am slow on this. But Peyton was born on the 11th. She is absolutely perfect. We are blessed to have a healthy baby. We are all in love with her.

Polka Dot Halter Top

2009-01-08T09:35:00.004-07:00

I made this yesterday for my 7 yr old. I am hoping to make her entire spring/summer wardrobe this year. I see lots of these little tops in my future LOL I used the Mamu Designs Emily Pattern to make it. I love how versittile this pattern is. And it's great that I can use one patter to make my 7 yr old and the baby clothes. I think I may make a coule of these reversible as well. Thanks for looking!

The Emily Dress

2009-01-06T16:35:00.005-07:00

Recently I discovered that I have a facination for euro patterns. I had never used one before. I had been told they were hard because you have to trace the patterns and such. But I had seen some clothes for my girls that I was dying to make. So last week I gave in and ordered a few patterns. This is my first attempt at a euro patter. it is by Mamu Designs, called the Emily Puzzle Me pattern. You can make shorts, skits, shorts, bloomers, dresses, halters, etc. Some very simple and some elaborate. There are only a few pieces to work with but depending on what you want you just piece them together like a puzzle. I got it here at http://buntefabrics.com/ Another fun designer is Tantrum Studio. I ordered two of their patterns as well. This was so much fun to make, I can not wait to make more. Since it is a euro pattern it has eruo sizing. So this is a 62/68 which is a 3-6 month US. I am hoping the new baby will fit into it this summer. :)

From Sewing

Peyton's going to be here soon...

2008-12-05T12:22:00.005-07:00

So I decided I needed to get the birth announcements and thank you cards made. So I sat down today and cut out all the paper, stamped out all the stuff, and then put one of ech together. I wanted to stay simple with them. I am just second guessing myself now and wondering if they are too plain.

What do you think??

I used Black, Holly Hock, and White Daisy Card stocks. All CTMH

The monkey is from Lifes a Jungle CTMH and the Random Stamping I used stamps from With Love CTMH.

Magnet sets

2008-12-04T13:13:00.001-07:00

Incase anyone is interested. I listed 8 sets of Domino Magnets into my Etsy Store. Some are from the previous post and others are new. Enjoy!

Domino Magnets

2008-11-18T12:45:00.006-07:00

I found myself in need of some quick gift ideas. Then I ran across these on the CTMH bulletin board. I had to try my hand at them. They were super easy to make as well. I think I am in love with Stazon inks lol

Quick instructions...

Supplies:

Dominos

Stazon Ink pad

Versamark (or embossing ink pad)

Chalks

Embossing powder

Modpoge or other sealer

Makeup sponge

Magnets

An adhesive for plastics (I used Amazing Goop)

Stamp directly onto the domino with Stazon.

Press the stamped domino onto the versamark pad.

Apply chalk by dabbing it onto the stamped image. Do not wipe, it will wipe the versamrk off the domino. And that is what it holding the ink to it.

Press the domino into an embossing pad then cover with embossing powder and heat set.

With a make up wedge sponge apply the sealer to the the domino and let dry.

Attach a magnet to the domino using the adhesive.

See like I said pretty simple. You can add glitter or micro beads to these as well. Get creative!

My Swaddle Pod

2008-11-11T16:06:00.002-07:00

A friend was given something similar to this for her new baby. Since I have one on the way myself I was intrigued but this little number. So She sent me pictures and without anything else, I made my own pattern and came up with this. I can't wait for my little girl to be born so I can use this. I think I may do another with terry for the inside and use it after bath time. This one has a flannel shell and fleece inside. It turned out pretty good for my trial run at it. And I had never done button holes before. So I am pretty pleased with myself lol Sorry I don't have a real baby to show it off. My daughter's doll will have to do for now.

I won!

2008-11-10T07:14:00.003-07:00

Ok, so this may not be as exciting to some of you as it is to me. But I never win anything. I have been doing the Great Diaper Hunt and one of the sponsors A.B. Baby Boutique had a great hunt for that little icon. And on their blog they were doing a drawing for a very cute keyring. Anyone who was participating in the hunt and left a comment on the blog was entered into a drawing. It was that simple, I left a comment, and I won an adorable wristlet keyring. I of course picked the Butterfly one, since it has pink in it LOL

Earth, Fire, Wind, Water

2008-11-07T13:52:00.004-07:00

Well sort of LOL It does have water animals, fire, dragonflies (air?), shirts are made of cotton right (earth) All joking aside... This is another quilt I made. Just finished it. Again not sure if I wanna keep it or get rid of it. Why does that always happen?!

Butterflies Everywhere!

2008-11-07T07:35:00.003-07:00

So lately I have been taking a break from paper crafts. I found a very cool website and discussion forum called Sewing Mamas. It is a fantastic place to share ideas, tutorials, tips, and projects with other women who sew. I pulled out all of my fabric and got the sewing bug. This morning I finished up the edges on a quilt. I know it is rather basic, but I have not sewn a quilt in quite some time, so simple was the best way for me to make it, and not mess it up. It is rather girly and full of butterflies. I had planned on selling it or using it as a gift. But it is too darn cute. I am now thinking I may keep it for the baby. LOL What do you think?

Let's have a little Fun with Food!

2008-11-06T07:00:00.004-07:00

Who doesn't enjoy food? And wouldn't $500 in groceries be nice? Well Prego and 5 Minutes For Mom have teamed up to give someone just that. It's a photo contest to show fun with food. And the winner gets $500 in groceries!

Bookmarks!

2008-11-05T09:11:00.002-07:00

My friend Crystal has been working on some really cute bookmarks lately. She put what she has on hand on her etsy store. If you know a reader who would enjoy a sweet little gift, check out her store. http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16951104 I can't wait to see what else she comes up with!

All People Love List

2008-10-28T11:56:00.002-07:00

Ok this isn't a real crafty post. But I was on this blog Operation Nice and I saw that there was an assignment to make an All People Love List. I felt inspired to make the list. And in the future to use my list to create some great scrapbook pages. So here is my list.

I love how my husband can make me laugh at any given time. And that it is a full hearted belly laugh that he knows when I need to have, sometimes before I do. I love that I can sit around with him doing absolutely nothing and still enjoy myself.

I love that my daughter has this determination, despite how much it may annoy me at times. It is a determination that I admire. She puts her mind to something and insists on completing whatever the task may be. This determination is going to make her an amazing woman some day.

I love that my son has this way of loving everyone and everything. He has this tender side that most people try to stifle out of boys. He is 100% boy, but he has this tender hearted light that just shines through his smile! I know if he keeps this, he will be an amazing father and husband some day. I can not wait to see that.

I love that we have neighbors that we can truly trust for anything. I know they will always be there for us. And I love the fact that I have a mom/friend right across the street. It is nice to have a person to go to when I need a "mom" moment and my mom is too far away for me to go to her.

I love that I have friends that I have known most of my life. So many people come and go in our lives. It is comforting to know that I have real true friends that will and have always be there for me. And to top it of they are all a piece of my childhood that I will never have let go of. I can always be goofy with them and they will never fault me for it. I can go to them knowing they will be brutally honest with me. And it wont be out of spite or to be vindictive, I know it will be coming from their heart, because they truly care. They make me feel very blessed.

I challenge everyone who reads this to make a list of your own. You never know, it might just make you feel a little happier when you're done!

Another Wedding Layout

2008-10-24T09:23:00.004-07:00

I wanted to play with my piercing tool yesterday. I thought it would b neat to use with a corset. But how often do you have a chance to put one on a scrapbook layout? So I went through photos and decided to use it with ones that were taken the morning of my wedding. Once I made the corset I thought it needed matching panties. lol I love how it turned out.

I random stamped with CTMH's Playful Petals in black. The Card stocks are Black, White Daisy, and Holly Hock. I sand papered on the holly hock in the layout. But left it alone on the flowers. I was hoping it would give a little more dimension to the entire layout. Not sure if I accomplished that. But the flowers are cute none the less.

MIlk Carton Treat Box

2008-10-12T13:22:00.004-07:00

I am making a few of these for my family. They will be filled with candy. I think I may hide some other goodies in a few as well. Maybe gift cards? I am hoping to hang them on the tree :)

I used the CTMH Snow Friends stamps. Yes again LOL I love these guys!

Mini Pocket Album

2008-10-10T16:43:00.004-07:00

I got this idea from Tresa Black, A fellow CTMH consultant. She does some amazing work! As well as some ver nice tutorials. I used my little Snow Friends set again. I can't get enough of these cute snowmen. If you want to know how to make this cute little album check out her blog Fabulously Artsy

Memory Showcase Album

2008-10-10T09:07:00.005-07:00

I am so into the Christmas mood lately! I just got the new CTMH Merry Pursuits stamps. They are absolutely adorable! I had to do something fun with them. So I made this 6x6 Memory Showcase Album. I stuck with traditional holiday colors for this one. But I already have ideas flying around my heard for the next one. Zit is amazing how many different things you can do with these albums. And the stamps are too darn cute to not get all creative ;)

Cover:

Inside:

Back & inside back:

Back and front covers with inside pictures from back:

Made some Holiday Card Sets

2008-10-08T09:11:00.003-07:00

I used two CTMH card kits to make these cards. The Tropical Christmas cards were made using the From me To You card kit. And the Glistening Snow set was made using Just Because card kit. They turned out great. I also broke out my favorite holiday stamp set, Snow Friends. I made a set of cards and a flap top box to hold the cards.

From Card Sets for sale

http://picasaweb.google.com/TwylaBug/CardSetsForSale#5254796026292003058

From Card Sets for sale

More Challenge pics

2008-10-01T11:15:00.004-07:00

Ok here are the rest of the challenge. You can finally see how the pages turned out.

Challenge day 3

1. Journal around a picture.

2. Create a journaling space

Challenge Day 4

1. Do NOT add additional embelishments.

2. Add any final touches that the layout requires. But please remember that the best final touches are sometimes nothing at all.

Another Challenge

2008-09-26T13:17:00.006-07:00

I am in the middle of a challenge with some CTMH girls. This is like the last one where we get a little more info every day. So I am posting pics of today and yesterday's progress on the pages.

Day 1:

1. Create a base using at least three different papers.

2. Find ribbon, fiber, lace or string and attach something to it.

3. Now add the ribbon, fiber, lace or string with its attachment to the layout.

Day 2:

1. Add photo(s) to the base.

2. Add photo corners or a band of ribbon to the photo(s).

3. Create a title and add it to the base.

4. Add at least 1 item that you have had in your stash for longer than 6 months. You know the one that you are waiting for the PERFECT page!! Well this is it!!

Birthday time... With scraps

2008-09-24T09:44:00.003-07:00

I needed a quick birthday card. And decided to dig in my scrap bin. I have to many scraps of paper right now, so I wanted to start using them up. So I only allowed myself to use what was in my scrap bin.

Christmas Cards

2008-09-22T10:05:00.002-07:00

I couldn't sleep at all last night. They joys of pregnancy LOL Anyway I needed something quiet to do to keep me busy while everyone else in the house were sound asleep. So I pulled out my Dickens Village paper, my Snow Friends, and water color pencils. They turned out really cute. I think I may add some glitter to them. But I don't have any on hand at the moment. (two yr olds find glitter so fun!) I think these will be my only cards for this year. I have a few more I will need to make. I have a dz. complete right now. It will help get a jump on things and have everything finished early. BWT, the inside reads "Happy Winter!".

Challenge 1 from the CTMH board

2008-08-28T08:43:00.004-07:00

So I was on the CTMH board the other day and noticed a group of girls who were doing a challenge that took a few days to complete. I was so in love with the idea. I followed the thread on my own to complete the challenge. It was a 2 page layout, and each day we got a little more info on what we needed on our pages.

Day 1 - Create base pages using various colors of card stock. Then to decorate it with various words that will be connected to the subject of the layout.

Day 2 - Pick the photos and mat them... Use four pictures to form a square and also have photo to be the centerpiece of the layout. We were also told to use a 3d element of wording in the center of the 4 photos, but I couldn't think of anything lol We also needed to decorate the center piece photo or mat in a way to draw the eye to that photo.

Day 3 - Create a journaling space. But various words in the journaling should be high lighted in a unique way.

Day 4 - Decorate and mat two seperate quotes and place one on each page.

Day 5 - Embelish to complete the page.

Gel Card

2008-08-19T10:31:00.003-07:00

Someone on the CTMH boards mentioned the Gel Card tutorial on SCS yesterday. So I had to go over and check it out. It was such a cute technique I had to give it a try. But I don't think this will get used as a card. I think I am going to add it to a scrap page instead. It seems to busy to keep as a card. My 6 yr old seems to love it. It will take a lot more playing around until I get it right.

Newest Challenge Layout

2008-08-18T14:42:00.002-07:00

This challenge was to use a minimum of nine squares and a minimum of three photos. I used CTMH stamps Todays date and Just because (from the card kit). It's pretty simple. But turned out cute. I think it has enspired me to do an scrapbook of DH and I before we were married.

Greens

2008-08-14T06:45:00.003-07:00

I had a challenge this month to scrap the color green. This is what I came up with. It gave me a chance to play with my new "Whoo Loves You" stamp set. I love this set! I used my Cricut for the titling. It looks like a different shade of green IRL, but it was hard to see the difference in the photo.

Pirate Party Pages

2008-08-13T16:18:00.004-07:00

These are the pages I started for my son's first birthday. As you can tell we did a pirate theme. I am far from done scrapping all the pictures I have from the party. But these are the pages I made today. I used the Ahoy Matey and Giggle Caps CTMH stamps - Honey, Cranberry, and Lilac Mist Card Stock - The skull Card stock one is DCWV. I also used my Cricut on these.

Kids say the darndest things...

2008-08-12T14:11:00.003-07:00

Ok so this has nothing to do with my crafty side. But my son was cracking me up today. We were chatting before nap time. I think he was trying to avoid going to sleep. But he was saying the funniest things so I pulled out the camera to tape some of it.

Christmas in July

2008-07-24T11:14:00.006-07:00

I know it is summer. But I am already trying to decide what I will be making this year for the holidays. These are a few things I made last year. i am hoping once I look at them again I may be inspired to make new things this year. Or maybe inspire you for your upcoming holiday projects.

I love how my cards turned out. I used the CTMH stamp set, Tropical Christmas. It worked out perfect because last year we moved to AZ. So everyone teased us that we wouldn't know what Christmas was like anymore because it would be so warm. So I played off of that with my cards.

I also used the Tropical Christmas set to make little Tic-Tac cards. I used these as gift tags for so many people. They were so fun to make. last year I saw many girls use this idea with a snowman on the front and whit tic tacs. I am sure there are hundereds of ways to used this little tag.

My memo boards were such a hit last year. I already have requests from friends to make more this year. I did holiday card holders as well as personalized memo boards. They were fun to make, fairly simple, and everyone loved them.