Owl Themed Baby Shower

Hey there! Long time no see:o) You would not believe how busy I have been these past few weeks. Ever since school let out, we have literally had almost every day filled with something to do or somewhere to go. I am exhausted just thinking about it:o) That has left little to no time to do any crafting...I have been so busy that I haven't even desired to do anything crafty...crazy, right?

So anyway, some of you know that I am in the local homemakers club, and we had our monthly meeting at our house last night. One of our members is expecting a baby in August, so we also had a baby shower..you know me..I jumped at the chance to have a special party:o)

The mommy-to-be is decorating her nursery in owls, and as we all know, owls are VERY popular right now, so there were a slew of ideas online to choose from.

Below is a picture of our food table.

The grandmother-to-be made this whimsical center piece...I LOVE hydrangeas:o)

 She also made this cute little fruit baby buggy..she said she found it on Pinterest.

I had some large old blue mason jars, and I filled them as full as I could with flowers. 

 This was one of my favorites of the shower...owl cupcakes:o) They were super easy to make, and would be great for any time of year. I used chocolate cupcakes with chocolate icing. The eyes are made from 2 Oreo cookies & Reese's pieces for the pupils and beak. The platters are just slices of a walnut tree trunk that I borrowed from a good friend.

 The gift table

 My first attempt at a diaper cake...not too shabby..;o)

When the ladies left, they got to take home one of these goody bags filled with chocolate and mints.

We had a wonderful time and the mommy-to-be left with tons of great gifts:o)

Where I found my goodies:

Large White paper lanterns: Oriental Trading Company

Flowers: Costco

Owl on Diaper Cake: Hobby Lobby

How to make a Diaper Cake: Instruction Video on YouTube

Owl Images: Prettiful Designs

White Favor boxes: Dollar Tree in wedding section

Baby Gift

I'm still here, but I have been extremely busy. School has been out for two weeks, so there has been something planned for almost every single day. That doesn't leave much room for blogging unfortunately. 

So, anywhoodles, I have a quick gift I wanted to share with you all today.

I have a baby shower to attend, and this is what I came up with for the gift. I needed something inexpensive & quick. I had all of the materials on hand....doubly awesome:o)

 I love this little hair bow. I'm not sure if the baby will have hair when she gets here, but if she does, she will definitely be able to coordinate with this little bit of sweetness. 

 I hope to get back into crafting mode very soon. 

I sat down in front of my sewing machine for the first time in 2 months yesterday. I have the sewing itch, and I'm dying to scratch:o)

Have a great rest of the day!!

Play mat for Baby

First of all I want to start off by saying THANK YOU to everyone for your comments and compliments. You guys are so sweet. You know how to make a girl feel good:o)

 I did get an apology, so all is forgotten.

On to other stuff....

This is a play mat that I made for my cousin who is having a baby in September.

 I found this pattern on etsy HERE.

 Close up of sweet Mrs. Owl...should have moved her over a bit...her eye is a little blendy with the background.

 Backside of the mat.

 Easy to roll up and pack away in your diaper bag.

To find this pattern, visit The Punky Monkey at etsy. She has so many cute patterns! It was easy to follow, and easy to construct....Thank you Punky Monkey!

Quick Baby DIY Tip

Here is a quick tip for all of you mommies out there with youngin's....I mean really young;o)

Most people have those little tubs for their babies or a bath chair hammock. If you are in a pinch or out traveling and can't take it with you, here is a quick solution.

Use a giant sponge as your go-to.

Here are the step-by-step pictures in how to create a head rest for your baby's noggin.

Easy peasy, right?

Is that not one of the sweetest faces you have ever seen? I'm thinking model material!;o)

I want to thank my Best Bud for sending me this quick tute. She's quite crafty, you know:o)

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I spent most of yesterday working on some furniture(using my chalk paint...details to follow). Today I'll be painting walls, and in between coats, hitting the pool. Can't wait to share what we have been working on!!

Have a great day!

Some Fun Gift Ideas

I know that I said that I was taking a break from blogging this week...I really am.  I had a few moments of not doing anything, so I thought I would share with you guys what I made yesterday for the Homemakers group that I am involved with.

I had to do a presentation about Homemade Beauty products at our monthly meeting last night, and I decided to make a few of the things to hand out to the ladies.

The first thing I made was a Honey Lemon Sugar Scrub.

Here are the ingredients

 2 1/2 cups sugar, 

1/2 cup sweet almond oil, 

4 teaspoons lemon juice,              

 4 Tablespoons honey,

 4 drops lemon essential oil  

Directions: To make the sugar scrub, combine the sugar and sweet almond oil in a large 

bowl and stir well to combine. Add the lemon juice and stir again. Finally, add the honey 

and lemon essential oil and stir again to mix. 

Store in an air tight container.

Another Homemade Beauty product I made was Aloe Vera Lip Balm

This was so simple to make.

I found the little heart containers in the wedding section at the Dollar Tree, and they were half off. I was able to get 20 hearts for $2.50.

Here are the ingredients:

  1 tsp. Aloe Vera gel, 

1/2 tsp. coconut oil, 

1 tsp. petroleum jelly  

Directions: Combine the ingredients in a small glass bowl until well mixed. Heat for 

about 1 minute in the microwave. Make sure to cover the bowl with a paper towel. 

I obviously made this recipe much larger since I was making for 20.

 It should look like this once heated.

Stir and pour into a small container. (I used a dropper from the drug store to pour it into the container.) Let cool completely before use. 

Super simple, all natural recipes for home beauty care. Fun, right?

For more homemade beauty recipes, you can visit THIS link.

I'm Back

Hello my long-lost lovelies:o) Hopefully you haven't forgotten about me...I haven't forgotten you. I have been extremely busy these past few weeks, as I am sure that you all have been too. Trying to squeeze in a few more activities before the new school year starts. My little man will be starting preschool this year...sniff, sniff. He's so excited! He thinks he is going to kindergarten;o) Little does he know that he still has 2 more years before that happens. THANK GOODNESS!
Anyway, I have been working on a few projects over the last few days. I had been taking a little hiatus from the crafting world, but I'm back at it again. I started on our half bath on Saturday. Heading to Hobbly Lobbly for some accessoriztion today. I'm hoping to share the reveal tomorrow or Wednesday.
Here's a little something that I did while on said hiatus. A sippy cup holder for a friend:

This is some fabric that I have had for about 2 years. I made E some jon-jons with it when he was a wee one. They were so cute on him:o) Anyway, hoping to have a tute lined up for you guys tomorrow, so maybe I won't reveal the bathroom until later on this week. Is that wrong to change my mind in the middle of a post?;o) Have a great Monday!!!

Painted Stool and Hot Mess Mommy Bag

I have missed you guys! So glad to be back on here. I feel like it has been ages since I talked to ya'll last. Any-who, I have been super busy on finishing up on some projects that have been filling up the "hub's garage." He has had enough of me bringing home all my treasures b/c he says it junks up his garage:o) I don't have pics ready for all the furniture projects that I have completed, but I do have these pics of some gifts I made for a baby shower I attended on Saturday.

I found this little stool at Michael's in their unfinished wood section. It was very inexpensive. I already had the paint on hand, so all I really needed to do was invest some time into painting. I really didn't realize how many coats of acrylic paint I would have to apply, but I just found something else to work on in between coats. I had fun making it and I think it turned out ok for this being my first attempt at doing anything like this. Don't you just love the name Quinn? I can't wait to meet him!

I didn't want to leave the mom out, so I made her a Hot Mess Mommy Bag. My inspiration came from Prudent Baby. They have a section with ideas to make yourself look a little more presentable when you're strapped for time and you haven't had a bath in like 3 days;o) You know you have had one of those days:o)

I made the bag with some fabric I had on hand. I also made a head band and matching bracelet. The rest of the stuff was just picked up from the Dollar Store. Things that always come in handy: mascara, lotion, lip gloss, hair brush, and hair bands. The bag has velcro on the inside all the way across to keep it completely closed, just in case your having a dropsy sorta day. Mommy was very pleased with both gifts...I think;o) Regardless, I had fun making them:o)

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Remember, I will have a give away when I reach 50 followers.

Travel Changing Pad

Every diaper bag usually comes with a changing pad, so of course I had to make one. It is one of the easiest things to make...ever. I didn't take step-by-step pictures, but this one is so easy that I can just tell you how to make it.

Supplies:
-Terry cloth towel or soft fabric
-Coordinating fabric(with the diaper bag, that is)
-Double fold bias tape...the kind that is used for quilt binding
-Ribbon

How to:
I have a changing pad that came with a diaper bag that I own, so I used that as my pattern. If you don't have something like that just lying around, you can use freezer paper as your pattern. The dimensions are 23"x15"(with rounded edges). Lay your pattern on the towel, pin, and cut. Do this with the coordinating fabric as well. Put wrong sides together and baste. This helps prevent any slippage. Now for the bias tape. You will want to place your cut ribbon at one end, overlapping on either side of the pad, and then pin your bias tape all the way around. Stitch. Make sure to catch both sides of the tape....and that's it. Pretty simple, huh?

 

 

Baby Week-Baby Bag

This week I am posting gifts that I have made for a baby shower that I will be attending. This bag is for a mommy who is having her 2nd bambino, so I wanted the bag to be a little bigger(not by much) since I have 2 monkeys and know how much junk you have to haul around. I had the urge to keep this bag for myself b/c I love the size and the fabric...does it look familiar? Remember the Bo Peep skirt? I used the leftovers from this bag to make S.R.'s skirt. I'm taking her 2 year pics this week, and yes, she will be sportin' the new skirt:o) Anywho, I made a bunch of pockets(7 in all), inside and out, so that there was plenty of space to store stuff. Love, Love, Love it! I got to use my fancy stitches on the ribbon that goes all the way around. That was a little nerve racking just b/c I felt a little out of control as the needle was working like nobody's bid-ness. Did I mention how much I love this bag?:o) Oh well, if I have to make one for myself, I guess I could:o)

 

  

F.Y.I....there have been some requests on how to make this bag....here are the typed instructions, as I remember them...
I did not use a pattern for this. However, I can give you the measurements and how I pieced it together, and hopefully you will be able to make some sense out of it:o)

 I had 3 separate fabrics. The striped fabric, flowers and butterflies fabric, and the lining. all from Hobby Lobby
Bottom= cut 2 @ 20"x7"(one from butterfly, one from lining)
Long sides= cut 4 @13"x20"(2 f/lining, 2 f/striped)
Short Sides=cut 4 @ 13"x7"(same as above)
Pockets on outside=cut 2 @ 13"x20" & 13"x7"
Straps=cut 2 @ 4"x 44"
I ironed stabilizer to the striped fabric and the strap fabric to make it more stiff.
Ribbon
My seam allowance was 5/8"
I applied the ribbon onto the pockets, after I had ironed down the rough edges to make a hem. I used a decorative stitch. Next I basted the pockets to the striped fabric, matching all edges. I did this for all four sides.I made a straight stitch in the middle of the front pocket for 2 pockets. Add bow. Sew together all sides and bottom.  Next I made pockets for the lining. These were a little tricky. I cut one piece of lining  20" long, and about 10" tall. I cut this in half.  Fold down top rough edges to make a hem, stitch. I  box pleated the bottom of the pockets so that there would be extra room, just use a baste stitch. I matched the sides of one long piece, and basted. Sew all lining pieces together. For the straps, fold in half, longways, iron, and then iron rough edges in a 1/2". Stitch as close to the edge as possible making sure to catch all edges. Iron down edges of liner and outside casing a 1/2 inch. Pin wrong side of liner to wrong side of casing, making sure to add your straps where you want them, and stitch all the way around.  And that's it:o) Hopefully I haven't confused you and made your brain hurt:o

Use Whatcha Got Week-Children's Placemats

We have a problem in our household when it comes to sitting down at the table. Spilled Milk. And yes, there is usually crying involved afterward.  My lil man is drinking out of regular cups, and has been doing great....but here lately he has had the dropsies or the knock-it-overs. While sitting at dinner the other night, I had a light bulb go off...amazing, I know... His cups are always sitting at the edge of the table just asking to be knocked in the floor. He needs a target spot for his cup, fork, spoon and plate. Place mats go on tables, so I must make place mats. And of course lil miss needs one too. A while back mother gave me about 50 orange place mats and I think she paid a buck for all of them because the store was goin' outta biz-nass. They have been sitting in my pantry fo-EVUH. Now, I have a perfect project to use them in(only 48 left:o)). Anyway, here's a tutorial on how to make your own place mats:o)
Supplies:
-Vinyl place mat (base)
-Fabric of your choosing(2 coordinating colors/patterns)
-Iron-on Stabilizer
-Scissors
-Rotary cutter
-Patterns for plate, cup, spoon, and fork.(I will post these when I can figure out how to;o))
-Clear plastic Vinyl(top)
-Double wide bias tape

 

How to assemble:

Lay your base fabric on the place mat. With your rotary cutter, carefully cut around the place mat. 

 

Make sure that all the edges are even. Next you will need to pin your base fabric to the stabilizer. Cut it out and iron in place. 

 

Grab your patterns(I actually made the circles on Word, and looked on clip art for a fork and spoon that I thought would work). Lay the patterns out on your secondary fabric for a dry run, just to see how much fabric you will need. Cut the fabric to size, cut stabilizer to fit that size and iron. Pin the patterns to the fabric and cut. It's easier to do it this way, especially when it comes to cutting out the fork. 

Now it's time to applique. When I applique, I always use a tight stitch because I don't like to see any gaps. However, in this particular case, I went with a looser zig-zag to keep everything flat. Pin the cut out patterns into place. Make sure that everything is even. Start stitching. I  kept the place mat rolled up so that it would be easier to maneuver while stitching.

Here's what you have after it's all sewn in place.... Something seemed to be missing, so I added "Let's Eat" at the top left with my embroidery machine.

Sew the base fabric to the vinyl place mat. There is usually a textured side and a smooth side. Make sure that the textured side is facing down. Line up all edges and start sewing.

After making it all the way around, it's time to apply the clear vinyl. When purchasing vinyl, it is usually rolled up in tissue paper with printing. Use this while sewing on top of the vinyl so that it will actually make it thru the machine. Cut the vinyl just a little bit larger than the actual place mat just in case there is any slipping. It's really no use in trying to pin this stuff together because it's thick and it will buckle up. The vinyl goes on top of the base fabric, but I turned it upside down, so that I could see exactly where the place mat was...kinda hard to see thru the tissue paper:o)   Once that is done, rip the tissue paper off and trim the edges.

 

Last but not least, add the bias tape around the edges. This gives it a finished look. 

Now my babies have a target spot for everything when eating, and the clear vinyl on top makes clean-up a breeze:o)

Travel Sippy Cup Holders

I don't normally post more than one blog a day, but I had to put this on as soon as I finished because I was so excited about it. I had to take the kids to the doc yet again today, and on the way home they simultaneously dropped their sippy cups in the floor of the van. Well of course I couldn't reach them, so I got to listen to the poor pitiful cries of two thirsty babies...Then it hit me. I MUST do something about this. When I got home, I got online to see how much sippy cup holders were..the ones that the kids can reel in after they drop them, and they were around $10-$15 each. I have 2 kids...not happenin'. So I pulled out a notepad and started sketching and came up with a design that I thought would work and got to cutting. Here is a tutorial for all of you frustrated mothers whose lil' ones have the dropsy's at the wrong time too:o)
What you will need:
-Fabulous fabric(around a 1/2 yd?)
Cut:
*(1)12 1/2" x 11" square..I guess it really isn't a square if it isn't...square?
(this is the holder fabric section)
*(2)Circles 4 1/2" in diameter(bottom)I used my circle cutter to make a pattern
*(1)22" x 4" strip(strap)
-1/2" Elastic strips(2), 8" & 7 1/2"


Fold the holder fabric in half(the 11" length) and press.


Using your iron, fold the strap in half and press. Then fold each edge towards the center line and press again. This prevents any flipping of which I absolutely detest:o)


Stitch as close to the edge of the strap as possible. Make sure that there aren't any places that slipped and did not get stitched. Fold under one end of the strap and stitch making sure raw edges aren't showing.


Fold finished edge over 3 3/4" over and stitch.


Take the holder fabric and stitch 5/8" to the left of the folded edge. Then stitch another line 2 inches to the left of that. Then another line 5/8" from the second stitched line. These are the slots for your elastic strips.


Grab your 2 elastic strips along with a safety pin to help you run them thru your slots.


Take your 2 elastic strips and run them thru your slots. The 8" strip goes on top and the 7 1/2" strip goes on the bottom. Make sure to have something at each end so that the strips don't slide back thru. Place right sides together. Make sure to add the strap on the inside matching all raw edges. Stitch. Back stitch over the strap for extra strength.


Take the 2 circles that you cut out and put wrong sides together. Baste around the edges so that there isn't any slippage. Now put one of the right sides of the circle and the right side of the holder together matching bottom edges and stitch. Turn right side out.(Sorry that there isn't a pic, forgot to take one)

Slide a cup in to make sure that all stitches are secure and that there aren't any gaping holes;o)



How to attach the holder to your car seat:

Slide strap around bottom of car seat strap as shown here.


Slide the holder thru the loop


Now just pull all the way thru.


Insert cup, and there ya have it! A sippy cup that will never be lost again...unless they try to physically remove it from the holder:o)