This made me laugh. . .

This really made me laugh because we are dealing with this very issue every day! Why do the kids always need me when I’m in the basement???

 

I’m Sick

Have you ever had Strep Throat? It is not fun. But it is a good excuse to lay on the couch all day! I’m feeling better but not back to 100 percent yet. Makes me realize that when I am well I’m really pretty good. Like the normal aches and pains aren’t so bad.

Nice Days

We have been having some nice days. . . this is a picture of the two oldest riding off to school.

I made a new bag over the weekend. It has a suede bottom and is lined in bright green. I struggled with the zipper - it works - that's the best I can say. ha ha. I really like rainy days - good sewing days!

OK - this post is for the IFD girls who are interested in making bags! Here are just some of the wonderful patterns available to us. Remember we can add any embellishments you want - we can change the handle length - these can be made to fit you. If you aren't seeing anything you like here check out the Whip Up Uber list of sewing tutorials. There is another awesome list of patterns at The Long Thread. This could be fun! And I also want to say THANK YOU to all of you awesome crafters who share their patterns!!!!

Do you like this one?



How do you like this one?

This one is here, from Made By Rae.

This one is from We Wilsons.

Here is yet another!

Outside

Here are a couple pictures of my backyard. Very closely cropped I might add. I purchased these star tea-light holders at a garage sale a few years ago - for 25 cents a piece! (There are five of them) I never really knew what to do with them but couldn't leave them behind. Seemed like they would be good for the back yard. I didn't want to buy hangers for them. Too spendy and I'm too cheap - so I came up with this. First I bent wire that is about as thick as coat hanger wire into the shape you see in the picture. (I have lots of bits of wire around here because it is just so handy.) Well, that looked a little plain so I got out the seed beads and threaded them onto a much thinner wire and wrapped and wrapped and wrapped. Gotta admit I got a blister. But as always I got into "get it done" mode and had to finish that day. I took the kids to the lake that day and as I watched them I worked on this. Then I just screwed them into the fence posts and voila! I love how they look. At night, around the campfire, it is lovely. Get creative and happy crafting!

Earth Day

OK - yesterday was Earth Day. Since my life is all about reduce, reuse, and recycle anyways I didn't do anything special for Earth Day. But here is one small contribution/idea. My beloved purple fleece coat no longer zipped. When something no longer works around here I always look at it and see if there is anything that can be salvaged. In this case the little ends from all the strings can be reused and the springy clampy things. I'll probably use them on a bag some time in the future.

Then I thought about the fabric itself. The pets always want to lay on our clothing anyways so I thought I'd cut off the hood and put it in the little doggie basket. Well, it was a big hood. It made a new basket liner! No sewing required. I suppose at some point I'll bind the edge but hey! It was free. I do stuff like this for a few reasons. It's practical and saves money. Why go buy something when you already have it? Also, I feel we are stewards of this beautiful earth that God gave us. Whatever your opinion of global warming is, I feel we are to take care of what has been given to us. Do you really think it makes Him happy when we throw away things that can be reused or recycled? I just can't think that He's all that pleased with the piles and piles of trash in the landfills.

Poster

Ha! Just saw this poster via Thimble then to here. It is a play on the poster that has been very popular for a while now that says keep calm and carry on. (Which I have hanging upstairs where the kids can see it!) Anyways, this is a free download from what I understand - you can use it as long as you don't sell anything you use it on. Get it? Very generous! I think this has to be in my house.

Embroidered Curtain Tie-backs

Well, one tie-back done. Well, almost done. I am going to ask my mom for some advice and maybe she'll sew it for me? I want pointy ends and some sort of trim peaking out on the edges. We'll see what she comes up with. This took quite a while and I was a bit sick of it by the end. I'm going to make a matching one but it will be a different pattern - same colors though. My blog posting will be a bit slower in the summer. We have spent a couple days outside doing yard work and my body is sore. Yard work really puts housework back into perspective. (House work is much easier!) Hopefully I'll come up with some good outdoor crafts - cause our yard needs work! I am going to try to introduce some color out there because it is all brown. Brown fence, brown dirt, brown shed, brown house and garage, brown tree trunks. . . The kids are a bit bigger now and can, hopefully?, respect the work that goes into a yard. For those of you that don't know - my boys are hole diggers. Man sized holes. And we let them. They dug holes all over the yard and had a great time doing it. Kept them and their friends busy and happy and why not? I think the hole-digging days are gone. Actually makes me kind of sad.

Anyways, I got this clock at a garage sale over the weekend. (The tall one - it's 25" high - not the one hanging on the wall) Payed a whole $2.00 for it. Anyone know anything about it? If it isn't worth anything I'll be painting it. Gotta paint everything ya know - but then you can change your colors so easily!!

SCORE!

Still major computer frustrations - that's why these are all in one day and short and sweet. I was at a local thrift store and found this (the shiny bread box)! I was so excited. I think we've conquered the counter clutter once and for all. There is a shelf inside and I have all the bits and pieces of paper that normally lay on the counter tucked nicely inside. I want another one. Maybe I'd actually use that one for bread. I'm thinking of painting the red wall shelf a soft green like a couple of the walls in the kitchen. Don't you think that would freshen it up?

Junk Mail Notebook

OK last post about the junk mail notebook. But I was so excited!!! I found the little hinged key rings! At the craft store! I think they are used for knitting or something but they come in pretty colors and everything. Yippee!

Dog Biscuits

I made dog biscuits - and the dogs love them. I got the idea from our vet. She just dries out a can of dog food. So, I opened a can of dog food - mixed in a little wheat flour because it was very juicy - mashed it all up - put it in a sandwich bag - cut off the tip - and squeezed out little coin size biscuits. Little ones because we have little dogs. Then I dried them in the oven for about an hour at 325. Easy peasy!

Arggggg!

Hope everyone had a wonderful Easter - we did. No new postings as I've had computer frustrations!!! Just trying to keep calm. . . wish me luck!

Junk Mail Notebook Update

Here is an updated photo of my junk mail notebook. I've added tabs. By tabbing one notebook I can have every list all in one place and be able to find the correct list easier. I tried using ball chain to "hinge" the notebook and that didn't work very well. One side snapped. I guess I'll lace it again. I am going to look for large key chain rings - the ones with a hinge - our local hardware store doesn't stock them and I think they would work really well. Otherwise I cleaned my craft room a bit last night and am looking forward to some sewing again. Happy crafting!!

Collections?

After writing about my new Easter collection I thought I'd update about my chapstick collection. The one that I didn't even know I had. Isn't it funny how collections start? Your unconscious mind is busy collecting and hoarding and eventually your conscious mind catches up. However, the chapstick collection has come to a halt. No more chapstick. I counted 20 tubes. . . won't have to buy chapstick for a long, long time. Or. . . I can start passing them out to the kids - then I'll have to buy chapstick next month - and remove a lot of stains from the laundry! ha ha!

Collection

What makes a collection? As we were displaying our Easter decorations I noticed we have these wind-up toys. When they are put together they make a nice collection. I just love them and will be looking for more. The big bunny hops around and jelly beans pop out of his rear end. The carrot has a plunger thingy on the end and when you push it back and forth the carrot spins open and reveals a bunny. The little purple bunny and yellow chick just hop around. The chick has actually been over-wound and really doesn't go anywhere without help. They are all displayed on a shelf in the hutch and make me smile.

Junk Mail Notebook

Do you find yourself writing lists on the back of envelopes or junk mail? Well, this is the craft for you. I don't know who to give the credit to for this idea. I know I've seen a version of it some where but I just can't remember where. Anyways, this is how I did it. First I decided on what size I wanted it to be - I thought a forth of a regular sheet of paper made sense. Then I found some pretty paper and covered all sides of the cardboard. Then I started to think of ways to bind it all together. There are several options - you could fasten eyelets like I did for the blue one. Then you have to punch holes in all your scrap paper and "sew" it all together. (Which is no big deal - it took minutes) Or you could use bolts, washers, and wing nuts. Again, you're punching holes - but not sewing (or lacing) anything together. Or, you could use the big clip fasteners you find at an office supply store. No hole punching - easy peasy lemon squeezy. I like all the ways. If you click on the first picture it will get MUCH LARGER and you will see what I mean. Just make sure you use a good dryish stick glue. The glue in the picture (the UHU glue) is wonderful and only .99 a stick last time I checked. It's a good idea to really press the paper down so your glue gets good contact with both the paper and the cardboard. I used a tiny brayer - or I've been known to pull the cuff of my shirt down over my hand and rub that way. ha ha. I've been using the blue notebook and it works great. Here is what it looks like when it is open using the eyelet/lacing method -

I like that the cover opens all the way. I had to hinge the other covers by scoring the cardboard on the inside of the cover so it would fold up. If you're confused I could send you a picture. This is a great way to use all that junk mail - and halved business-size envelopes. The bonus with the envelopes is you then also have a pocket for your coupons.

Oh - I know my crafting area is a disaster - I thought about hiding the mess - but then I'd just have to get it all out again to make more. This is real life baby! This is how crafting happens when you don't have a plan and just wing it. Oh - and SLW your comment on the last posting was funny - what do you mean you don't have that gene? I've seen some pretty amazing scrapbook pages you made! It's all there - you just have to use it!

Papercutting

I just wanted to quickly post this in case any of my fellow papercutters want this pattern. Cindy of Scherenschnitte has generously shared another wonderful pattern. I cut this last night and I just love it. Anyways - have fun crafting this weekend!

Granola and snow

I came across this recipe for granola and since we were out of cereal and I'm tired of making oatmeal we gave it a try. It is a hit!!! I halved the recipe because my oatmeal supply is running low and I don't have wheat germ so I used some whole wheat flour and we added raisins for some more sweetness. I am a little bothered by how much oil is required - instead of a half a cup I used a third. I can understand why you need so much oil but it still goes against the grain. Next time I'm going to substitute some peanut butter for some of the oil. The picture shows how much we have left after snacking on it yesterday, having it for breakfast today, and packing it as a snack at school for today. I think this will be a regular thing around here - instant oatmeal - hmmmm - I wonder how it would taste with some hot milk poured on it on those cold winter mornings? Sorry my food-picture-taking abilities are so bad - hard to make food look appetizing with the camera - but it sure looked good in the cereal bowl.

The other two pictures were taken yesterday morning after a wet and heavy snow fell. Aren't the trees beautiful?

Bagel brats

So my Uber-Hunter left me for three days recently to go ice-fishing way up north. What does the Uber-Crafter do when left alone? . . . She paints the kitchen and turns the house upside down! I mixed four cans of paint together and got a lovely shade of green. I really like it! I also cooked up a storm so he could bring food with him and I could have all the meals already prepared for the kids. It is nice to take a vacation from supper. One of the successes was bagel brats. I used this recipe for Boiled bagels and wrapped the dough around brats. You wrap the dough around the brat right before you boil the dough. They turned out great and it was so nice to have supper done - the kids could just microwave one whenever they were hungry. I may have used too much dough per brat because they were really thick but there were no complaints. I also made a few bagels. I like to substitute the salt in the recipe with garlic salt. They are so yummy. I think I better go make some more now. Happy crafting! Sorry the picture is so dark - I took it at supper time when it is generally just dark around here. And maybe green wasn't the best choice for a background. Oh-well, live and learn.

Branding sleeping bag bags

So we needed bags for our sleeping bags. They get thrown into the trunks of cars or the back of trucks all the time. I really get tired of washing them all the time and think that by washing them all the time they wear out faster. It is much easier to just air them out. My grandma gifted me with a bunch of fabric and this one piece had sat in the sun at one time - so it was streaky. Perfect for this job. I cut my "stamp" out of craft foam and glued it onto a scrap piece of wood. Then put fabric paint on a foam plate - spread it out thinly - and stamped the fabric. I like how it turned out - voila! Sleeping bag bags. If you click on the picture it gets bigger - a lot bigger - any one know how to keep it from getting too big?

PS - Mom can you see the new green walls in my kitchen?