Three Favorites Thursday--Christmas Ornaments

I know that it isn't even Halloween yet, but I can't wait to share these fun Christmas ornament ideas.  All crafters know that you don't wait until the season is here to make stuff anyways. 

I think this little gingerbread cookie guy is so adorable.  Looks pretty simple to make too. 

Source: noodle-head.com via Jen on Pinterest

The next person whose wedding I attend will be getting this. :)  I think it is such a great idea. 

Source: None via Jen on Pinterest

Baby's first Christmas.  Awwwwww. :) 

Source: Uploaded by user via Jen on Pinterest

Are you making any ornaments this year?


Linking up at:
5 Minutes Just For Me

DIY Heart Crayons

     There is nothing like a brand new box of crayola crayons.  They look so pretty all nice and sharp.  Pretty soon that box of new crayons becomes a box of dull crayons, broken crayons, not as fun to use crayons. :)   I had a plastic shoebox full of these used and broken crayons so I made them new again by making chunky crayons.

     I found this cute heart tray at Ikea for a few dollars.  I peeled the crayons I wanted to use and broke them into pieces that would fit in the hearts.  I kept the color families together because I can't stand the color you get when random crayon colors all mix together.  After I took this picture I actually added a few more crayon pieces to each section.  When they melt they will shrink down.

The next step is to put the tray of broken crayons in an oven at 250 degrees.  I checked mine every 3-5 minutes to see how they were melting.  It took about 15-20 minutes for the crayons to fully melt.

 (I don't know why blogger is posting this picture sideways...)

After the crayons cooled I just popped them out.

Fun new crayons!

These would be great to give as a Halloween treat for your child's class or tricker treaters (if you don't get a ton of trick or treaters) as an alternative to candy.  I think mine will become Christmas gifts for the little ones on my list. :)

Parties I link to:

Not Just a Housewife

Tatertots and Jello

I {Heart} Naptime

Ask Anna

House of Hepworths

Colorful Fall Wreath

My front door needed some fall cheeriness so I gave myself a mission to make a wreath as inexpensively as possible. 

Here are my supplies:

Burlap: $2.39/yard  Used less than 1/4 yard=$.60

Wreath:  $.97 tubing from plumbing section of Home Depot.  Used 1/2=$.50  (Will talk more about this tubing in a post later this week.)

Flowers $1.00 for a bunch.  Used 2 bunches=$2.00

Total cost (without tax)=$3.10

First, I cut the tubing the size I wanted it and used packing tape tape the ends together to make a circle shape.  I cut the burlap into about 3 inch strips and wrapped it around the wreath frame. I used a glue gun to attach the burlap.   I then cut the flowers, arranged them how I wanted them, and glue gunned them on also. 

Now I come home and smile when I see my cheery, colorful wreath!



These are parties I link to:

Tatertots and Jello
Keeping it Simple
Not Just a Housewife
DIY Under $5
Under the Table and Dreaming
Sugar and Dots
Whip it Up Wednesday

Love my new Purse!

   There are a few blogs on my favorites list that I try to check out every week (sometimes it is everyday ;) ) for new stuff.  I am Momma Hear Me Roar is one of them.  A few weeks ago she decided to find a way to encourage people to give money to aid in helping Japan after the earthquake and Tsunami.  She was (and still is!) offering the Tohoku Purse pattern to anyone who donates more than $8 to help relief efforts.  Here is the link to see details if you are interested in donating.  You don't have to donate through a specific organization, I donated through my church.

This purse is ADORABLE!  The pattern is easy to read.  I would definitely buy another pattern from Cheri.
Her pattern has a pleat on the front, but I have never been a pleat kind of girl (okay and maybe I didn't want to mess up my first try of this purse)

The finished purse is about 12" tall not counting the straps.

As usual, please ignore any threads still hanging in the pictures.  It takes a few days for me to find them all and cut them and I didn't want to wait that long to take pictures.

Here is the inside with a pocket for my cell phone and one for my keys.

Love the bow!

As you can see I already started using it.  By the way, that planner is a time.mine planner.  I have used Dot Mine planners for the past few years and they are the best!  I was not paid to say that, but if someone from time.mine sees this, getting a free one for 2012 would make me very happy. :)

Off to go make an outfit to match my purse. ;)


Here are link parties I linked to:
We Did it Wednesday on Sew Much Ado
Weekend Wrap-up at Tatertots and Jello
Tip me Tuesday at Tip Junkie
House of Hepworths

Not for camping, this Tent is for a Carseat!

I made this carseat tent for a friend's baby shower last spring. I waited to put it on my blog so I wouldn't ruin the surprise and then I forgot to share! 

These tents are nice when the baby is sleeping so people don't try to disturb your baby when you are out and about.  My friend that I gave it to shared that it is also great for keeping the baby dry on rainy days (while running from the house to the car, etc).  The handles make it so you can grip the carseat handle easily and so the blanket doesn't slide off while carrying the carseat.

Peek-a-boo!

 I can share a tutorial if anyone is interested.

*I would not recommend using this while in the car.

I linked up to these parties:
Feature Yourself Friday
Whatever Goes Wednesday
We Did it! Wednesday

Ginormous Fabric basket

Last week I shared my desk into tv stand remodel.  I originally wanted baskets on the bottom two shelves and spent a lot of time debating what size baskets and where to find the size I wanted at the price I wanted.  I found a basket at Joann's (at 50% off!) for the middle shelf and decided to tackle a fabric basket of my own for the bottom shelf.  I wanted the dimensions to be around 21" by 20" and 10 1/2" high.
I kind of just jumped in not knowing what I was doing, but here is kind of what I did.

I made plans for figure out how to cut fabric for the outside of the box.  I wanted the front of the box to be a patterned fabric (the new colors of my living room) and the rest of the box to be black.  In the picture the colored sections meet each other and get sewn together (so green to green, pink to pink, etc) to form the four corners a box shape.

After I had the box shape I cut out pieces from cardboard boxes to make a cardboard box the size I wanted. I hot glued the pieces together. This gives the box its shape and keeps it sturdy.

Next I fitted the fabric over the box.  I folded the top edge of the fabric over the box and hot glued it down.  I almost left the box like that since you can't see the inside while it is on the shelf.

The inside fabric is all black and was made the same way the outside was only a tad smaller since it is the inside.  I used some hot glue to keep the inside fabric in place and finish off the top with a "seam."

Here it is on the shelf.  Super easy and way cheaper than buying one!

Here are the link parties I linked to:

Made by you Monday--Skip to my Lou

Tuesdays Treasures

Friday Favs Party

We Did it Wednesday

Desk Transformed into TV Stand Part #2 Big Reveal

You ready for it?  Here is a reminder of the before picture.  

Here is the big reveal!

It isn't perfect, but I really love the look.
If you haven't seen Part #1 check it out for the background story.  Here are the steps of what I did to transform the desk into a tv stand.

1. Sand, sand, sand.  This desk had 1 layer of stain and about 2-3 layers of  paint under that.

2. Paint.  I painted just the desk and not the drawers at first because I had no idea what I wanted to do with the drawers.

3.  Tackle the drawers.  I kept all of the side drawers and got ride of the middle one to make room for the shelves.  These were a pain to sand! 

4.  At first I was going to leave the drawer handles, but I really wanted a more modern looking piece and the handles didn't fit. They had also been stained with the desk and I didn't really want to take the time to clean them off.  Unfortunately the handles were a weird size and I couldn't find new handles that would fit in the holes.  I decided to go with knobs instead of handles.

5.  I took off the handles and patched the holes (and resanded after that.)

6.  To make placement of the knobs easier I made a template to use.  I placed the template on the draw as a guide to drill the new hole. Thanks Dad for that suggestion!

7. Shelves.  I  don't even want to talk about these because they caused me so much trouble!  I will say that part of the problem is that it is difficult to put shelves in an area that is not "square" (different measurements at the top and bottom and the back isn't straight).  The other part of the problem was me ;)   I have never made shelves myself before and learned by trial and error.

And again, the finished product :)

I linked up at these link parties:

Sunday Showcase

Tatertots and Jello-Weekend Wrap Up

Thrifty Decor Chick-Before and After

Desk Transformed into Television Stand Part #1

  Have you ever started a DIY project only to realize it was way bigger than you realized?  Being a beginner this is usually what happens to me! 

    For probably the past year I had been looking around for something to fix up into a tv stand to get rid of my huge tv cabinet that took up too much room.  I thought I would use a dresser and had been searching Craigslist.  I actually almost bought one, but nothing seemed "just right" and at the right price.
   My neighbor was throwing this old desk away because he had tried to stain it and it didn't really turn out right. If you look at the pictures below you can see how uneven the stain is, especially on the side.  The desk also had some deep scratches in it and just wasn't in really good shape.  When I asked if I could have the desk he laughed, but gave it to me...that's where my journey started. ;)

   I was so excited to try to make the desk into a television stand.  I started working on it bit by bit during Christmas break.  Unfortunately this desk has required a lot of sanding and painting (a little resanding and repainting too) and the weather has been quite rainy and not paint friendly the last few months.  So here we are in March and I am SO CLOSE to finally finishing.

   Here are a few before pictures from the day I started working on it.  Come back on Monday to see the big reveal!

  

Recycled Book Wreath

     I put up a hook on my front door a few months ago to hang a Christmas wreath.  The Christmas wreath has been packed away for a while and my front door was looking a little empty...so I decided to make a new wreath to pretty up my front door.  I have been seeing styrofoam balls or wreaths covered with "roses" made with recycled book pages lately and I love the look.  I had a few books in my get-rid-of pile so I decided to give it a try.  The idea of ripping apart a book made me cringe a little, but I got over it after making my first few roses. :)

        If you make one, be prepared to roll a lot of roses.  I estimate about 100 on my wreath.  Most of the roses I made using 3 pages put together, but I mixed it up a little by making some with 1 or 2 pages to make some looser and a bit smaller looking roses.

Here is a close-up.

I am not going to write a tutorial because I saw a great one you can use if you are interested in making your own. The blog is Under the table and Dreaming. I did not make mine the same was she did, but the results are pretty much the same.


I don't know if I will leave it on my front door or not.  I am a little worried about it getting wet.  I really like the end result though!


Linked up to these parties:
Tatertots and Jello: Weekend Wrap
Feature Yourself Friday
Sunday Showcase
Whatever Goes Wednesday
Made by You Monday at Skip to my Lou
DIY under $5

Going Green--Reusable grocery shopping bag

     I feel a little bit guilty every time I get home from the grocery store and empty my pile plastic grocery bags and add them to my stash.   I do reuse those bags for other things, but I have a lot of them and I don't need them all.  I started out recently by asking for no bags for things I can carry--like if I am only getting a few items at a store or with gallons of milk.   A few weeks ago one of my SIL showed me this tutorial that was perfect for me and my many extra bags issue. :)  ---Reusable shopping totes made from sheets.  I didn't follow the tutorial all the way, but used it as a guide.

     I didn't have any old sheets lying around so when I was at the thrift center I browsed the linen section and found a flat sheet that I fell in love with!  I don't know the size, but it is bigger than a twin so I think that I can get 3 or 4 bags from one sheet.

I threw a book and a few stamps sets in to show how roomy it is.  If you click to enlarge, please ignore all the threads hanging--I was so excited to take pictures I didn't stop to cut them all first! 

 I realized how useful it is when I threw a bunch of envelopes in it to go mail them at the post office and I decided it makes a nice regular tote too. :)

Click here to see where I linked.

Layered skirt made from t-shirts

I went to the thrift store the other day hoping for some deals.  This store is my least favorite thrift store, but they have good sales at times.  The sale for that day was 20 articles of clothing (without lines on their tags) for $5.50.  Pretty sweet deal...except that it didn't take me long to realize that most of the clothes I would want had lines on them and therefore were not on sale.  I did however find some clothes that I have big plans for repurposing!  Here is the first one.  I made it for me, but it would be so easy to make a kids version.

I don't have a before picture, but this skirt was 2 red shirts with a logo on the front pocket area and high on the back so I had to work around these areas.  The first shirt I cut to make the main skirt and the second shirt I cut into 4" strips and sewed on the main skirt (no hemming or serging on the layers).   The picture is from before I washed it.  After it was washed the layers curled a bit giving a new cool look.  I will try to get a picture of that soon.
I got the idea for this skirt at Make it and Love it.

eta: here is what is looks like after being washed.

Click here to see parties I link to.

Chair makeover

When I first moved to California I drove here in a car with all of my stuff.  Whatever didn't fit in the car, didn't come.  So, needless to say, I did not come with any furniture.  After my dad and I moved all of the boxes into my new place we went to sit down only to discover that there was nothing to sit on besides the floor!  That day we went thrift store shopping and I came home with my first piece of furniture...this chair.

 Pretty?  No it is not.  But it has sentimental value (and is comfy) so I have kept it.
I decided it was time to fix up the chair and "pretty it up" to match the room it is in.  I sanded it and gave it a good paint job (to match the desk I use it with) and recovered the seat with upholstery fabric.  I think it looks much better after its makeover.  What do you think?

Here are a few "in between shots"

Linked to:
The DIY Showoff



Metamorphosis Mondays

and sorry I forgot this one before: