Free Birthday Cards!

I used to be the one in our family who sent everyone a card on their birthday. Now that is not very impressive for most families but on my husbands side there are nine children - and 6 of them are married/with kids. With grandparents/greats, siblings, spouses, neices and nephews that was a LOT of cards! I used to be very organized and divide my card needs into adult male, adult female, juvenile male, juvenile female, and a special card for the first birthday. I handmade cards for each group and put the card in an envelope. I made sure that each family didn't receive exact duplicates in one year of any given card. I added not only birthdays to my calendar, but 4 mailing days prior to the birthday I added a "Mail it" reminder. It doesn't surprise you that I'm a Type A Virgo Math major does it? ;)

After I had my third child this all fell by the wayside. I started missing birthdays and instead of just shrugging it off and continuing with the next birthday I imagined the mess it would be if Susie opened a card and her brother Johnny remembered that 2 months prior he had received no card from me. I felt terrible! So I stopped doing them all together. BUT.... now I think I found a good solution!

I read a post on "How Does She?" and was inspired! Using VistaPrints famous freebies I designed a postcard for our families birthdays! With shipping I received 100 cards, personalized and ready-to-mail for less than $1 out of pocket. The total actually came to $6.xx but I had some PayPal money from surveys that I occasionally receive that I was able to use.

Here are the cards I designed...

And to save even more time I designed a coordinating back side that included a birthday message, our family's names and (on the top right corner that's been cut off in the pic) our return address. Sweet! All that's left is to address them to the individual and maybe add a quick personal note. Oh, and I suppose some postage. Hmmmm - I wonder if they make "Forever" stamps for postcards... somehow I doubt it! ;)

The Rosette Tee

And here it is! I'm finally posting pictures of the T-shirt refashion I talked about! I told you I was waiting for a good hair day to post these and while pig tails may not be a good hair day to you - it certainly is for me! :) (You have to take what you can get when you haven't had a haircut in 8 months).

So without further ado... the shirt!

(Which, in case you're interested is from Chimera Clothing - I saw they had a great sale a while back and I love EVERYTHING that I received!)

 

And here is a close up of the embellishment...

There are 10 rosettes total on my shirt. The original tutorial used V-necks/scoop necks and I think that a V-neck would be more flattering, but I needed to fix up this shirt (when you are tall and nothing fits you you can't let a couple of blue stains get in the way of a shirt that fits!) so I used this one. I chopped up a shirt my daughter had gotten sticky goo all over, as well as stained, and that is why my version has two different colors.

This is such a great technique! I'm thinking it would be fun to do a shirt for Independence Day this year! And I know that rosettes will be a lovely tool in my little girl clothing refashioning arsenal.

Getting ready for spring!

I have toyed around with growing herbs indoors for so many years but have never actually done it. Well - this is the year!

I saw something similar to these clay pots and loved the idea! You use chalkboard paint (did you know you can make your OWN???!!!) and a pot and you are set!

I found a kit at the Dollar Tree that comes with Basil, Dill, Chives, and Parsley seeds as well as a tray and lid to germinate the seeds. And though it doesn't come with soil, you can get that at the Dollar Tree as well!

The package comes with all four seeds mixed together so, of course, I separated them! If you know me, you know it would drive me bonkers to not know what each seedling was and to have them all growing together. It wasn't too bad!

Here's some help for you...

Below are the dill seeds. They have this flat little halo around them so they are easy to distinguish.

And below are the parsley seeds. They look similar to the dill, but are a little more of a crescent shape and don't have that halo.

These next two are the toughest to distinguish - they are both tiny and black!

Below is the Sweet Basil. It is smoother and less angular - like an oval. It's also less deep of a black color.

And the last seed is the Chive. These are an obsidian color and more of a crescent/angular seed.

I plan to divide the herb box into quadrants and then move the seedling later to my pots. So exciting!

Pot Holders

I love these! Of course, I did make them, so there is the whole "I'm so cool" feeling that goes along with homemade items but I really love the design! It really is a nice way to grab those pans and until I saw this tutorial I hadn't ever noticed this style of mitt in stores.

Sewing through the multi-layer thickness of the project was a real pain though. I unpicked a LOT! But the result was worth it I think.

Baby Gift - car seat cover

It is still chilly here and so I think this is such a handy little gadget for the new baby in your life! Here is our little one's car seat cover - perfect for our chilly Colorado winters! I made this over the Christmas holiday and we have loved it!

I used the tutorial here. I used fleece for one side and flannel for the other. This was a slippery thing to sew for some reason and even though I pinned it still came out all wonky. I did the best I could and trimmed the edges before flipping right-side out and top-stitching. I didn't do any of the "quilting" or random stitches to keep the fabric from slipping because I didn't feel it was necessary. And after a couple months of use I still think so! :) It can't hurt though - but you can always add it later if you need it.

One thing I would change would be the length of the ribbon. I used the longest length suggested and they are too short for my liking. At least 6" longer would be needed for me - but that could be my very non-superior bow-tying skills at work!

So Purdy!

Awww - can you feel the love? February is a Love Fest over here in Colorado! We spread the Valentine holiday out and treat each other to fun month of celebrating the love we have as a family. We have special dinners and leave each other notes and gifts all month long in the little mailboxes that sit on our mantel. I love February.

Last night I finished the last few items on my Valentine decorating list while watching the Swiss Family Robinson. And because I share it all - let me tell you something kinda funny. A ways into the movie I felt super smart and had to share my intellectual genius with my hubby! I had noticed the characters mentioning some cities back home - Bern and Interlaken to be exact and had a lightbulb moment! I said to my husband, "Hey Rick! I think the family is from Switzerland!" While waiting for him to compliment me on my knowledge of geography (I didn't even have to google it!) he grinned and paused a moment. Looking at his face and suddenly hearing my thought spoken out loud I realized what a true GENIUS I am. Gee - Erika, how did you figure that out? Could it be perhaps from the movie's TITLE???

Oh well, I am breathing a sigh of relief and I am really happy with how it all came out! These were very inexpensive and as usual the Dollar Tree figured prominently!

Here is the how to...

Framed XOXO - buy some frames at the Dollar Tree or use ones you already have. Mine are all 5x7 size. Paint if desired (I use the $1 black spray paint from Wal-Mart - 2 coats). Cut out a piece of decorative paper and slip in front of the glass. Play with the glass pebbles found in the floral department (again the Dollar Tree - I bought two packages, but used less than one for these four frames) until you find a design you like. Then glue them on - I used E6000. I just lifted up one pebble at a time and glued so I didn't disturb my design. I found the original idea at tatertotsandjello. I'm thinking her frames were bigger or her pebbles smaller - but either way they are lovely!

I'm anxiously waiting for her post on Monday about her Dollar Tree tiered serving platter! I've been wanting one and I'm thrilled to make one myself on the cheap and tailored to my taste!

Burlap Wreath - I took the excess burlap from the curtains in the laundry room and cut 4" strips as long as the fabric piece that I had. I borrowed a wire dry cleaning hanger from a friend and shaped the wire into a circle. I poked the wire through the burlap as described here at WhereTheHeartIs. I ended up using 11 or 12 strips so that mine was as full as I liked. I also was very annoyed at how the weight of the burlap pulled it down so that there was a gap at the top of the wreath and the fabric was WAY more full and bunched at the bottom of the wreath. I solved that by cutting pieces of rubber band and using them to tie knots around the wire between the sections of burlap to keep them from slipping. This helped hold the sections where I wanted and distribute them evenly around the wreath. The rubber band is the same color as the wreath and totally invisible! I am super happy with the fix!

Red Rose Wreath - Well that's what I think it looks like anyway! I found the idea at, very appropriately, The Idea Room. I ended up making this a Dollar Tree version. I bought a white foam circle wreath form and one of their cheap baby blankets (I chose a red fleecy one with an embroidered hippo on it). I think the dimensions on the blanket were 30"x30". I took a cardboard circle template that I used for my T-shirt refashioning (it's done and fabulous, I just need a good hair day to take a pic for you... I know, I'm vain!) that was about 2.5" in diameter. I held it on the blanket and cut around it to make the circles. My version uses far less fabric than the original and doesn't entirely cover the form (found this out AFTER I started) so to make up for the fact that there were no more red blankets (I checked!) I pulled out all the "flowers" and wrapped the form in the rest of the ribbon I used for the burlap wreath to cover the white color and get a nice red base. This was helpful to cover the little gaps that I had between the red flowers. I still think it turned out beautifully! To ensure that I had as few gaps as possible when I redid the wreath I spaced them evenly around the wreath as I went instead of starting at a certain point and working my way around. I was afraid if I did that it would be hard to make sure I ended up with enough circles to fill the wreath evenly.

I really love this idea and think it would make a cute decoration in a nursery as well - they have blankets in pink, blue, yellow (I especially love that color - don't be surprised if one pops up in our nursery) and I'm pretty sure I'll do this again - but buy two blankets!

I wish you a great Love Fest this month!

More Baby Gifts!

Here is another of the cute things my sister and I crafted while she visited over the Christmas holiday. I used the tutorial you can find here. I used flannel and the soft fabric (minky? chenille?) that usually has ball indentations on it (mine has stars) for the ball. I ended up goofing up a little and flipping some of the panels so they aren't placed how I had wanted, but the babies love it! I used some largish (about ping pong ball size) jingle bells in the center for sound. Playing around with the bells, I found that the poly-fill muffles the sound a LOT. I had to take out fill, put in three bells, and smoosh the fill away from the center to allow empty air pockets so the bells could ring and you could hear them.

"Love One Another"

Here is one of the very first crafts I ever attempted! I found the inspiration and directions here and crafted away! I added a clear top coat to protect it (and my furniture!) from paint transfer and minimize dings to the finish.

This is still my favorite decoration for Valentine's Day and I keep it up as long as I can because I love the sentiment!

And for my next trick...

...fixing a T shirt with random blue stains! Where do these things come from? I'll update when I finish. Here is my inspiration! I'm chopping up a sacrifice Tee to cover the stains on mine. Is it bad that I'm sacrificing my daughter's Tee for the greater good? Hope for the best!

In other news... Megan is doing better with her weight now - up to 13lb 13.2oz as of yesterday (9%). She seems a little out of sorts and fussy but they weren't able to find anything the matter so pray she starts to perk up so Mommy and Daddy don't lose it! ;)

And we are having some changes at TheOnesInColorado - hopefully changes for the best! I'll tell you when I can - so no begging! :) We are having a time of reflection and prayer and waiting on some divine guidance...

Also - this weekend we started "decrapifying" downstairs (thanks for all your cute comments on Facebook about it!) but only got so far before Sick Mommy had to retire for the day. I'm glad that I was sickest on the weekend though - not much is harder than being a sick mom alone during the week. I am grateful we were able to have 2 adults to share the burden and hoping I'll be doing better as Monday looms closer!

The best baby gifts!

Let me introduce you to my favorite baby gifts!

The set includes a Burpie, Bummie, and a Diaper Case - and you can make all of them with just a yard of cutesy fabric and some terry cloth!

The Burpies are nice-sized burp cloths and the Bummie is a changing pad. I found them here. Very easy! Just cut out a 10"x18" rectangle of fabric and the same size rectangle of terry for each Burpie you want. Place them right sides together and sew the perimeter - making sure to leave a gap to turn the Burpie right-side out. Tuck in the seams of your gap so they match the sewed sections and then top stitch all the way around.

 

Here's a tip: Did you know you can have different colored thread in your bobbin than what you're using to sew with for your top thread on the machine? This way you can disguise your stitches! For example, you can see above that the thread is brown on the side of the Burpie that has the patterned fabric, but I used white thread in my bobbin so you can't see the stitches on the terry side! Nifty, eh? Of course I didn't think of that on my own - but I use it all the time now! I found out about it here (also where I was introduced to the hem guage - where you'll find another great burp cloth tutorial! I used it to make this set...

OK, back to the Bummies...

Same idea for the Bummie as for the Burpie - but the size is 16"x22" and you sew a piece of ribbon into one of the short sides so you can tie it up. To do this I fold the ribbon in half, place the folded end of the ribbon in between your 2 fabrics 1/4 of the way down a short side. This way when you fold the Bummie in half the long way and then roll it up, the ribbon tie will end up being in the center of your roll.

And finally for the diaper case - I use the pattern and tutorial here. I have a special place in my heart for diaper cases - I just hate how dipes always get smashed up and yucky in the bottom of the diaper bag! And I should add that I make my diaper cases bigger than her pattern yields so I can have more diapers in there!

And be grateful that you are using the updated pattern! The first one I made was all wonky and the second one (Thank Heaven!) my mother-in-law was here for and helped me figure out how to fix. For my third they fixed the pattern and I had no problem whatsoever! :)

So there you are! I will be adding more links to baby gift tutorials soon!

Tired of the Dollar Tree?

Too bad - cuz I'm not quite finished yet!

I needed a larger container to hold my scrapbooking scissors (and the normal ones too) so off to the store I went! I first found a tin at Target for $2.50 in the Dollar Spot that I loved but I felt like it was smidge too big and I had been hoping for something for a dollar. Hmmm. I'm so glad I listened to my gut and decided against it because look what I found at the Dollar Tree!

Same idea, perfect size! And I need to ask - why not leave a good thing alone? Why did they add the ridiculously silly pictures on the side? Oh, well - they are just testing my imagination to see if I can find the potential! This is supposed to be a planter and you should be able to find one for yourself when your store gets it's spring supplies in. One of the stores near me had it and one did not so I think they are just coming out.

Anyhoo....

I pictured it covered with burlap - not quite to the top or to the bottom, just a strip around the middle with tin showing above and below. Then I had thought to add some cute black ribbon around all the way around in the middle of the burlap.

But the tin had other plans! You shall see!

First I cut a strip of burlap wider than the planter's height and longer than it's circumference and hot glued it to the planter.

Then I trimmed it. And I ended up trimming too much! The silly blue butterfly wing went up higher than I thought and the tip of blue showed. :( So I ended up just taking some plain black ribbon and gluing it around the top to hide my mistake. It actually looked very cute with just the burlap trimmed flush with the edges on the top and bottom. But I like this better so I'm glad for a providential scissor mishap!

This one was a quickie and there is much room for embellishment or you can keep it simple! I may add to mine - maybe a label or burlap/scrapbook flower. I'm not sure yet, but I love it for now!

The curtains are done!

These are (again) in the craft/laundry room in our basement. I just love them. And the tan fabric is burlap! You can either glue these together or sew them. I chose to sew - and surprisingly the burlap worked well! I was worried since the weave was so loose, but I didn't have any problems (well, not any problems that didn't involve a brain malfunction on my part - it's a rare project that I don't end up using the seam ripper!). I found my inspiration here and still plan on doing something similar in my living room. I haven't had window treatments in that room in the 6 years we've lived here. I was just waiting for something to strike me and now it has! Yay!

Made it!

Thieves Oil All-Purpose Cleaner. Mmmm - the kids loved the smell and I loved the clean! I found a recipe online and went to town in the kitchen last night - counters, microwave, cupboards, stove knobs, window sills - the works! I have to say that it did at least as well as 409 has for me - likely better. I think it is safe to say that I will be gifting some of my cleaning supplies and making my own.

If you are interested here is the recipe from Earth Day on the Net:

This is a great All Purpose Cleaner for everything from kitchen countertops to bathroom tubs to unidentifiable carpet stains. Gentle enough for young children to use on their own, yet tough enough to remove stubborn stovetop grease.

Note: While this recipe is 100% natural, Borax can cause eye irritation and, if consumed in large quantities, can be poisonous to humans and animals. Exercise caution when handling Borax and store it safely away from children and pets.

1 teaspoon Borax
1/2 teaspoon washing soda
2 teaspoons white vinegar
1/4 teaspoon dishwashing liquid
2 cups hot water
Optional: 15-20 drops of Essential Oil (EO) of your choice

Mix vinegar, Borax, washing soda and 1 cup of hot water in a 16-ounce spray bottle. Swish around gently until the Borax and washing soda has fully dissolved.
Add remaining hot water, dishwashing liquid and optional essential oil. If you can't find washing soda in the laundry section of your grocery store, substitute with 1 full teaspoon of regular baking soda.

From Erika: I added the Thieves Oil I made as the EO and used Dr. Bonner's soap for the dishwashing liquid. And make sure you are using washing soda and not baking soda. Ask around at your grocery store - sometimes they keep things that aren't purchased often in a back room.

Dollar Store Cork Board

So cute and lovely, no? The original Dollar Tree cork board was nice - it just had a medium oak color frame.

First thing I did was to spray paint. On this frame, unlike most I've painted, the back didn't easily come off. So to keep from painting the cork I slipped pages in between the frame and the cork all around the frame. Here's one piece of paper to show what I mean...

The cork on this board is super thin (what do you expect for a buck!) so I am thinking about buying a roll of cork board and cutting out a rectangle of it to glue to the back side of this frame. But that's for another day!

Now on to the pushpins!

I bought a pack of pushpins (again at the dollar store) and pulled off the pin. It's the dark portion in the pics below. It was held on with a dab of glue and was SUPER easy to remove.

I could have hot glued some fabric around the existing cover (pink in the pictures) but I didn't want to have a sticky mess so I bought a pack of 4 button covers at WalMart - I think they cost $1.22.

I took the back of the button and pounded down the sewable metal loop so I could stick the pin on.

Cut a piece of your desired fabric and place it in the rubbery portion of the button maker.

The directions say to cut the fabric at least 2x the diameter of the button. Don't be afraid to cut it too big - you can trim it later! (And it will look very silly and require some craftiness to salvage your button if you trim too much now - ask me how I know!)

 Then place the button cover on top of the fabric.

Use the pusher and push the cover down into the hole.

Tuck in the fabric (here is where you can trim a little bit of the fabric if you like - but not too much!) and place the button back on the top.

Next use the pusher and push the button together.

And out it comes!

Place glue on the button and the tack on the glue.

  

And you're done!

Ribbons and the Dollar Tree

First - ribbon storage! I loved these ideas from kmckaydesigns.com. I bought the Crop-a-dile specifically to make the box with the cute acrylic jars. I followed the instructions here. Basically you punch holes in the acrylic and set extra-large eyelets in the holes.

This cute project turned out to be super cute but much more of a pain than I anticipated. First the Crop-a-dile... I found it to be cheapest online at HSN for the punch and hundreds of eyelets and accessories. I was impatient to be started and didn't think I'd use all the extras so I opted to use my 40% off coupon at Hobby Lobby and get just the punch w/o the extras for $30. (It was $36 with shipping at HSN). Little did I know that I would have to wait anyway!

The eyelets pictured are the only ones I saw that were large enough for the ribbon and to go through the acrylic. And they are nowhere in my local stores. So I ended up ordering them online from craftybetty.com. So after all of this I was finally able to get started with my loverly box. I think it turned out well, but the "hairline" cracks in the acrylic mentioned in the directions were huge! Maybe kmckay used a thinner acrylic. But with the ribbon inside you really can't tell.

I chose to Mod Podge some scrapbook paper, trimmed to fit, on the sides of my box. I painted the edges black and then painted on MP with a sponge brush, smoothed out my paper with a plastic pan scraper (pack of 2 for a buck - and they work great on my dishes) and then applied another coat of MP. I think it looks great, and matches the patterns and colors in my craft area. And I used the method discussed on the tute video to paint and dry my knobs for the boxes - such a good idea!

And the post-it note holder - another dollar store creation. You buy the 5x7 acrylic frame, slip a piece of scrapbook paper in where the photo goes, decorate, and stick the post-its on. I didn't glue - just let the post-it pad's sticky strip hold it up. The pen is made to match by rolling a strip of the paper up and pushing it into the ink compartment of a clear pen. Very cute if I do say so myself. I now look forward to jotting down phone messages!

I also made another ribbon storage box with the Crop-a-dile and eyelets. I took a photo box (mine was from JoAnn's but Hobby Lobby also has them - $3.99, use your 40% off coupons) and punched eyelets around the sides. This time no cracking! :)

Here are some other fun things for the craft room from the dollar store:

2 cheap canvas pictures and a brassy plastic mirror... sorry no befores of the mirror. I promise it was less than beautiful.

Then spray paint the mirror frame and paint the edges of the pictures.

Mod Podge on some pictures or paper to match your decor.

These are on the wall between my cupboards in the laundry/craft room.

Some me time...

I like to craft to get back in touch with myself. Seriously. I love the process of creating and beautifying. So as part of my lovlifying the laundry/craft area I bought an old, stained office chair from a local thrift store and recovered it. Wanna see?

All right - a tutorial for you!

1. Buy a chair with good "bones" - test out all chairs to make sure that you get the one that will adjust to be the tallest. :) Then disassemble it and unscrew/pop off the fabric and padding.

Cut out a piece of fabric that will cover the seat of your chair with a few inches of overhang. If you chose a patterned fabric and you'd like it centered make sure you adjust the piece to your liking before you cut.

Staple all around the edge on the underside of your seat. I used the cheap gray stapler you see - light-duty. I didn't even take off the old fabric.

Isn't it lovely?

Repeat for the back rest and put the pieces back on!

Et Voila! I am so happy with it!

Crayon Rolls

I helped out Santa with some crayon rolls for the kids stockings - cute huh? I just used a fat quarter ($1) from Walmart for the smaller ones that hold the mini Crayola Twistable crayons. I thought they'd be good for Sundays. And I made space-themed rolls for all of the kids that came to Nathan's 5th birthday this year. It was a fantastic goodie bag if I do say so myself!