So, do you like the new header??? It was long overdue. Oliver looks
completely different now! Plus, I
was getting sick of looking at that one. Weren't you?? I'm SURE that is exactly
what you worry about,
as you lie awake at night. Haha! Here are a couple new images of the boys. We
are all doing great here,
trying to manage cabin fever as well as we can. Hey, look at Oliver! I can not
imagine a cuter kiddo!
Here is Noah, watching the cars outside. In the nude. (the best way to be,
right?)
February 17, 2010
My VERY Basic Sewing Projects
I consider myself a beginner sew-er (haha). I have made some baby
quilts, curtains, kids things, aprons,
and that is about it. Nothing too challenging or complicated. So when I saw
these adorable projects, I
just had to try them! Let me tell you. They are EASY. I seem to say that a lot
don't I?? Well, they are
quite basic and if you own a sewing machine, I think you are qualified enough.
Let's take a peek at what
I am talking about.
A girls jumper & a stuffed horse/giraffe!
I made them for Charlotte's (the girl I babysit) 1st birthday. The jumper was so
astonishingly easy, I made FOUR more today for my nieces! Also, they are so
inexpensive!
I paid less than a $4 a piece. Want to see how you can make one for yourself??
Well, let's go!
Supplies:
- 1/2 yard of fleece. Joann's has SO many choices. I paid (with a coupon) $12
for 2yds.
Now that I have made them, I really needed less than 1/2 a yard, but it depends
on the size.
-2 Buttons. I used 3 different kinds since I couldn't make up my mind!
-Scissors, sewing machine, measuring tape, & thread
1) First start by measuring the little one. You need to measure her chest &
armpit to knee.
Add about an inch to the sides to account for the seams. The great thing about
fleece is
that it does not fray! So, you don't have to hem the top & bottom if you don't
want to.
2) Cut your fabric. Fold the fabric in half so that you cut both sides of the
dress at the same time.
That way you know they are the same size.
You are going to cut it into a triangle of sorts so that it flares out at the
bottom.
This one was for a 6 month old. The one I made for the 2yr old was 11.5" at the
top,
17" at the bottom, and 17" long.
2) Now you need to sew the long edges. Make sure you have the right sides facing
IN.
Basically, sewing it inside out. I used a triple stitch to make sure it was nice
and strong.
This is the machine I have, if you are in the market for a FABULOUS beginner
machine.
It is a HuskyStar by Husqvarna Viking. It does everything I need it to do at
this stage.
3) Next, cut the straps. I made the one for the 2yr old, 8" long and about an
inch wide.
4) Find where you want to place them. Make sure they are not too close to the
armpit.
5) Sew them on the back of the jumper, while it is still inside out. Make sure
you separate
the front from the back so that you don't sew them together! Sew them on with a
little
rectangle or square. This photo is of the jumper right side out. As you can see,
I am
NOT a perfectionist. HA!
6) Attach your buttons to the straps. Don't sew them too close to the bottom.
7) Finally, cut a little slit for the button holes (easy huh?). Make it about
half the size of the
buttons. They tend to stretch a bit and you don't want them to be too big. ALSO,
make sure they
are at least an inch from the top of the jumper. I made that mistake of making
them too close to
the top and once it was buttoned, it nearly ripped the fabric in half! I had to
stitch around the hole
to secure it.
TADA!!! That's IT! Now, was that easy or what?! Here are a few more final shots.
Don't you just LOVE this fabric?? I bought all that Joann's had left!
I found both the jumper & horse at an awesome blog called Smashed Peas &
Carrots.
Here are the links to the
JUMPER & the
HORSE/GIRAFFE/LAMA.
You really should browse around her site, it is FULL
of really great ideas!
Now, go get started on your own!
February 16, 2010
Valentine's Day & Yummy Donuts!
We had a wonderful Valentine's weekend here! Steve & I enjoyed a night
out on Friday. Am I the only
woman that just LOVES getting all fancied up to go out? I think not.
But we had a great time. The rest
of the weekend we spent with the boys, which was lovely. We picked a small gift
for each of the boys
which Noah was happy with! It was so fun to see his adorable little face when we
handed him the little
box of chocolates.
We are winding down on the month of February already and it seems strange that
so far we have escaped
a major winter storm! With massive snow storms all over the East coast, we sure
have gotten lucky. I
know we aren't anywhere near out of the woods yet though. A girl can hope
though, right?
Oh, and look at this kiddo- pretty stinkin' adorable!
In other news, this morning I surprised Noah with a little homemade donut! Well, semi-homemade.
They are so easy
and a friend of mine requested the how to so I figured I'd post it here.
The mini hearts are the perfect size for the little man. Here's how to make
them!
Ingredients:
-Cinnamon & Sugar
-Canola Oil (approx 1/4 cup)
-A small can of biscuits. The cheap ones, these are .49!
Directions:
1) Heat a small bit of oil in a skillet over medium heat. See? Not too much.
If you need more after making a bunch, just add a bit.
2) While the oil is heating, open the biscuits and use a small cookie cutter
to make the donuts and holes.
3) Doing just a couple at a time, carefully place the "donuts" in the oil.
4) Cook for about 30 seconds each side. Just until golden.
5) Immediately roll in a bowl of cinnamon & sugar.
6) Cool on paper towels.
YUM. An easy (unhealthy) treat for a special day, for under a buck!
And now I leave you with a cute video of the boys on Valentines Day. I'll
return with a new project soon!
February 13, 2010
My Sister Hayli.
This is my beautiful little sister Hayli (17yrs)! She is such a sweet
girl & my boys
really love her.
She is dating this great guy named Tom, who is in the Army, stationed in Alaska!
Hayli
made this REALLY cool stop motion video of their story. I think it is so neat!
February 13, 2010
Noah's Fancy Shirt
Here is a fun shirt for when your little man needs to look his Sunday
best!
It is another pretty easy one, but it does require a
sewing machine. Although, I made a shirt like this before
and I hand stitched around the edges with thick embroidery floss to give it a
cute touch. So, you wouldn't
need a machine if you don't have one. This took me about 30 minutes & again, I
had all the materials.
This is the first one I have made so it is not perfect. But that's ok!
This tie I made with an old shirt I had in the
Goodwill box. The
next one I make will be with a striped
tie, made from one of Steve's old dress shirts.
Here is what you need:
- A plain shirt
- An old shirt to cut for the tie (or any fabric you like)
-
Iron on adhesive (they sell it at Joann's for
pretty cheap)
-Thread (or floss if you do it by hand)
1) Draw the pattern for the tie on a piece of paper. I used a crayon and a page
from Noah's Scooby-Do coloring book.
Hey, you use what you have!
2) Cut a rectangle a little larger than the tie out of the fabric and
adhesive. Follow directions on the package to iron
them together. (2 seconds on low with paper side up)
3) Cut out tie.
4) Iron on tie to shirt (Remove paper, iron 10 seconds).
5) Sew a zig-zag around, or hand sew a straight line around. You can hand sew
stitches either vertically or horizontally.
That's it! Really easy & quick & super cute.
These would be SO adorable on a onesie for a little guy! I'll be making Oliver a
matching one soon.
February 12, 2010
Who plays Scrabble anyways??
Ok. Well, we DO play Scrabble, but I thought this was a much better use
of the game!
Today's project is SO fast and easy, I mean, it took me all of
TEN minutes to make both.
Seriously. Take a peek before we get started:
Cute huh?
Here is what you need to gather. Mind you, all the materials I used I already
had!
-Frame. Any size and type you like. I have had these tin beauties for FOUR
years,
just waiting for something spectacular to do with them.
-A piece of scrapbook paper. Or any other background you like.
-Scrabble tiles
-Some sort of adhesive. I used photo mounting squares but you can use glue, Zots,
etc.
Now all you do is remove the glass, cut the paper to shape, replace glass BEHIND
the paper,
and then artfully arrange the tiles in any way looks best! It would be really
cute to do them in
such a way to make them look like they cross, like words do in the game. But,
these frames had
openings much to small to do that. If it were larger, the L's could have
intersected, or even the O's.
That's it! I like to have a good mix of larger projects and smaller ones, so as
to please all!
Oh and isn't that tree paper just darling? Love it.
February 11, 2010
I took a little hiatus for a couple days. With the boys sick & Charlotte as
well, I have had my hands full.
Here are a couple quick shots of the little guys and another short video of
Oliver.
Also, today is my beloved Aunt Candy's birthday. YAY! HAPPY BIRTHDAY AUNT
CANDY!! We
love you and miss you (she lives in AZ, lucky lucky!). Here is a video for you!
Noah's cheeks are a little red and chapped
since he was playing in the snow today! AA short clip for Aunt Candy!
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