Freshly Completed

February 10, 2015

Simple Fish Valentines

I've been having an inner struggle with Valentines this year.

As per usual, I wanna hang up the towel and just go to the store and buy valentines like a normal person.

And as per usual, I also really want to just make them.

I even stood there in the aisle yesterday and gave them all the once over and came home empty handed.

The problem?

They're valentines. They're going to be looked at, trashed, rummaged through while searching for candy-- their only redeemable quality (<-- in the eyes of a school-aged kid).

But then again...I kinda gotta make them, too.

So the DIY-er in me wins again. At least for the preschooler, who only needs 7 cards.

I was looking around this morning, looking for just something simple that I could just print out for free and be done.

Then I came across this Tutorial by Keeping it Simple-- and before I was knew what I was doing, I was turning off the printer and getting out my craft supplies.

This simple valentine was perfect. My daughter and I worked together side by side while listening to Disney songs. It probably took an hour to do start to finish.

Here's how we did it!

MATERIALS

1. Sturdy construction paper

2. Bowls for tracing (large and small)

3. Pencil + Sharpie

4. Swedish fish

5. Ziploc Bags

6. Hot Glue Gun

STEP ONE: Trace out two large circles on sturdy construction paper.

Trace a small circle in the middle of one of the large circles.

STEP TWO: Outline that with a Sharpie. Write out your sayings around the small rim. We used, "You are O "Fish" ally my Favorite" and "Valentine, you're a great catch!" I wrote it in pencil, and had my daughter trace it with the sharpie.

STEP THREE: Hot glue the large circle onto the front of the Ziploc bag.

STEP FOUR: Open the bag and add the Swedish fish. Hot glue the top circle piece on and cut the Ziploc bag off. Hot Glue in between layers so all the fishies stay inside.

After I was all done it occurred to me that it would have been really fun (and probably cuter) to sew around everything, instead of using hot glue. Ah, well, there's always next year, right?

All Done!

This cute preschooler told me she was excited to pass these out tomorrow and ask each kid which color they would like.

Happy Valentines Day!!

December 22, 2014

Fairy Tale Dress

This little sweetheart had a second birthday last week. And being that she's a holiday baby, I really wanted to sew her a Christmas dress. I knew just the pattern I wanted to try out: The Fairy Tale Dress by Oliver + S.

It is such a darling, classic dress. The Peter Pan collar and tulip cap sleeves really make the dress so special.

Here's the pix I snapped real quick before church. I had excess fabric left over so I made my other daughter a matching skirt, with a self drafted skirt.

The kids are really too darling. Having them all matchy-matchy, I can barely stand the cuteness overload!

We set up the camera on a chair and got some nice, up-the-nose shots. That's okay, dressing for Christmas is kind of my favorite!

Merry Christmas to you all!

December 10, 2014

3 Little Christmas Things

I love this time of year. It's been busy, for sure, but also joyous and happy.

I just wanted to share with you three little things that I've put together.

Up first: Our Christmas Card!

Remember how I teased you with all the lovely Minted card options?

Well, here's the one we chose. My friend had taken a lot of fun pictures of the family and this card was an excellent way to showcase them all.

I LOVE the print quality and design of Minted cards. They are like no others!

And the self addressing aspect can't be beat!

Up Second: Remember my easily changeable burlap wreath?

Well, I spent about $2.00 and changed it from fall to Christmas themed. It probably took five minutes tops. I secured the backs with twist ties.

I love the simple change.

Up Last: You know how I'm always changing up my chalkboard. I love finding new ideas that match the season.

This simple design was inspired by Creative Kismet.

Happy Holidays!

What fun things are you working on?

December 2, 2014

How to Sew 15 minute Infinity Scarfs

At my Church I work with young girls 12-18 years old. Each year we try to put together some nice gift for them for Christmas. Last year we sewed them bows and little hair do-dads.

This year we brainstormed ideas and landed on Knit Infinity Scarfs. We noticed the girls love them and thought this would be a really fun, simple gift to make for them.

We headed to Jo-Anns one night and ran around picking out knits which were all 50% off. We had a lot of fun talking about each girl and deciding which would best fit her style. Then one night we got together again and sewed them all up. They were really simple and the result is so darling!

MATERIALS NEEDED:

1. One yard (or half a yard) knit jersey fabric

2. Complementary thread

3. Serger or ball point needle or a long wide straight stitch

STEP ONE: We made each scarf out of one yard of fabric. Some of them were more thick as a result.

If you want a thinner scarf, use a half a yard (cutting the fabric down the middle through the shorter ends).

STEP TWO:

STEP THREE: We used a serger here. But you could use a ball point needle or a long wide stitch on a normal sewing machine.

STEP FOUR:

STEP FIVE:

STEP SIX:

All done!

Here they are all lined up! We passed them out last week and the girls loved them.

December 1, 2014

10 AWESOME Gift Ideas for Guys

Is it just me or is buying gifts for men really hard? I'm under the personal opinion that I'm really easy to buy for: fabric + art + something new to wear and I'm as happy as a clam.

So If you're like me and need a little help, check out these ideas.

(These are not affiliated or sponsored ideas).

What guy wouldn't love the "world's BEST hammock"? Makes you wonder what qualifies it as such, huh?