Another Dining Room Chair Job

I had inherited a dining set from my parents, who inherited it from a great-grandparent, when they left me and moved away.

It has served us great for the first 4 years of our marriage but it's time to say goodbye. We want to sell the set but it needs a little attention after surviving two little boys learning to eat by themselves.

No tricks to this project - we just removed the current covers and used them as a pattern on our new fabric. Then, we just stapled them back on until our staple gun stopped working. We figured out if you hit the trigger in just the right way, you could still get it to staple. (We keeps things safe here in our house.) Here's the end result:

All in all, a great first project for my debut on this blog. (and no stapled legs either)

Pre-Prom Date Shirts

Josh has a fun day planned for his prom date, which includes a fun adventure in the morning, before prom. It's a surprise so I can't say more, but they designed and made shirts to wear on their pre-prom date. I had a friend cut them out for me on her Silhouette so I didn't have to do it with an X-Acto knife this time. Hooray! 

I ironed the freezer paper cutout onto the shirts and then showed them how to paint them.  We did three layers of Tulip Soft Fabric Paint, drying it really well with a hair drier in between layers.  Then carefully peeled off the freezer paper.

They turned out AWESOME!  Josh and Brittany were super happy with the shirts.

I think that it was a really cute idea and that they will look great while they are out having fun.

Learning your Family History with Games for Kids

So....

I've been really focused on family history lately.  It's so fun!!  I also wanted my kids to be involved and to learn about and have a relationship with their ancestors, some of which are alive and others passed on.  I decided to make a matching game (idea from Stephanie) with pictures on one card and names, dates, and/or facts on the other card.  Some of the people were repeated, but at a different age or with spouse.

Well, we played it as a family last night and it was a hit.   They are beginning to learn their names and faces and some stories.

(This is just one family line...4 generations in the pics. Once this one is mastered, we'll move on to another line.)

So today, with all my still over flowing enthusiasm and excitement from last night, I made a "Don't Eat Pete" game board with 6 generations, including my kids.  As they guessed which picture was chosen, they had to say who the people in the pictures were, until they found "Pete."  We play with M&Ms.  They didn't want to stop because of the candy, probably, and I didn't want to stop because they were learning the names and faces of their family tree.   Too awesome!  I'm going to get both laminated, so they will last longer.

Mantles- I love them!

I currently have a mantle and I LOVE decorating it!  Yes, it's always basically the same with the fabulous FREE subway art from Eighteen 25 and a few random do-dads here and there, but it's still fun!  I love the color-your-own-vase idea I got from here. I've done it several times now! It's so great cause you can just choose any color you want and color an old vase you have sitting under your sink or a $0.70 second-hand one.

ST. PATTY'S DAY

 

 

EASTER/SPRING

BIRTHDAY'S

This is the first pennant banner I've made and, man alive, it was easy!

Tutorial for how I made this one here. I was using scrap materials that I had on hand, so mine were about 4 in across the top and 5 1/4 in long.  It really was fast, easy, and fun!

 

As for the mantle, we're moving to a home that doesn't have one.  So, I'm planning on making one similar to my friend Nikki's over here.

Temple Pictures

It's important to my husband and I to have a picture of one of our Church's Temples hanging somewhere in our home. (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints)  I wanted it to be important to my children as well, so we let them each choose a different temple and purchased it for them and framed them. 

Then, I wasn't sure where to hang it.  I thought about their room and the hall, but I really wanted it to be a place they would see everyday.  Then it dawned on me.  Across from the toilet in the bathroom.  My mother always would put motivational quotes in our bathroom growing up and I read them all the time, over and over.  (I think she brainwashed us) lol 

But I realized, "I have boys! They don't sit down all that much, they stand and face the toilet." So, I placed them above my toilet, where they HAD to see them everyday.  (I think brainwashing is GREAT) lol

I am please with the final result.  Nothing too crafty, but I thought I'd share it anyway.

They decided on the London Temple (his cousin lives near that one), Hong Kong (just because) and Mesa, AZ cause it's our nearest one, currently.



Car Seat Make Over: Girly to Sweet Baby Boy

Dandi is about to have a boy and I have been hustling to get her car seat transformed from this girly one I had made for her daughter to something more baby boy appropriate.

I finished it last night and handed off to her so she can finally relax and go into labor.  I am sure that waiting on her car seat was the only stressful thing on her mind, NOT.

It turned out super cute!

 I really do LOVE polka dots!

Love you Dandi!

Sewing with my girls

My girls along with one of their friends have been wanting aprons.  I told them that they could choose the fabrics and design their aprons and that I would help them construct them.  We spent the last couple of days putting them together.  They are super proud of how they turned out.  I know they will get used a lot, they love to bake.  And now I don't have to worry about my aprons disappearing!

Sara's friend had to leave before we finished, but this is Sara modeling her apron for us. Cute!

 Laney did a nice job, especially for a 6 yr old, with matching her fabrics.  She really wanted a ruffle on the bottom and was happy that it turned out looking kind of like a dress.

I love Sara's apron!  I am a sucker for polka dots.  It turned out so cute!

Jell-O Sugar Cookies

I got the idea from Just Helen off of Pintrest.  I am terrible about reading and following recipes, so I just replaced half of the sugar in my favorite sugar cookie recipe with raspberry Jell-O.  They smelled super delish and tasted great.  They were sweet and tangy.  We plopped some vanilla ice cream in between two cookies and had ice cream sandwiches.  YUM!

Tim actually executed the whole thing, I just found the idea.  He is pretty awesome in the kitchen!

Family History Game

I LOVE genealogy!  There aren't too many things as fun as playing detective and tracking down my ancestors.  I love learning about their lives and families.  It is amazing the bond you can feel with your heritage.  

I talk about our ancestry frequently with my children.  Some things they remember and some things they don't.  So in an effort to help them understand who's who I created a matching game that included 4 generations, beginning with all of my kids back to my and my hubby's grandparents.  So 23 people in all.  I made two cards for each person, one with just their name and the other with a photo, birth and death (if they have passed away) and a fun fact about them, printed them on card stock and cut them out. 

 The kids loved it.  We had a few moments of competitiveness, but mostly it was a lot of fun.  They enjoyed seeing old pictures of themselves, as well as reading what fun facts I had put down for them.  I tried to pick pictures that they hadn't seen of their parents and grandparents so it wouldn't be too easy. 

When we were finished matching them all, we put it all together in a family tree.  I think I will keep adding generations until I run out of photos.  After we had finished, the older kids continued to ask me questions about them.  It was a wonderful evening.  It was great to find a new way to share my love of family history with the kids.

We may make one of all their cousins too.  They have 52 cousins, including both the Alger and Ely sides, and few with spouses and children of their own.  It is amazing how fast a family can grow and how easy it is to lose track of family members.  

Kiddie Chair Recovered

While my friend was out of town this summer, her hubby asked me to reupholster a children's rocking chair as a surprise.  It was one they had had for a  long time that needed a little refreshing.

Before

When tackling a project like this, I always take tons of pictures while taking it a part.  That way, later, when I am not sure what piece was stapled where, I can go back to the photos and figure it out. 

Deconstructing furniture is my least favorite part.  It also takes the longest.

Once it is all taken a part and labeled,  I use the old pieces as a pattern for the new.  Then the reconstruction... some sewing, lots of stapling, a bit of hammering and ....

It is pretty again! 

interesting?

I thought it would be fun to occasional test, try, and show our attempts to duplicate ideas, tips, and crafts we have fallen in love with on pinterest. There are so many grand ideas and beautiful photos, but I sit there wondering if any of the thousand people repinning have ever actually attempted that fabulous craft- is it as easy as it says? or magical cleaning solution- does it really work? So, I decided that I was going to have a little follow through (new ground for me) and actually do some of these things that I was “pinterested” in. I’ve decided to call any of these posts that we do “pintertesting”. It would be fun if anyone else had any photos to share of things they attempted to duplicate from pinterest- whether they be pass or fail!

Here is my first pinterTEST!

idea:

 

I thought this looked like a fun craft that would be fun with the girls, and cheap! We had fun picking out all the different papers we wanted to use together at Hobby Lobby. The only “problem” I had was that it wasn’t as kid friendly as I had hoped. Folding the papers to be decently even was a little tricky and monotonous for Heidi and Gwen.Lilli enjoyed doing them, but it was frustrating for her when the folds weren’t quite perfect and the paper would end up all wonky. They did have fun hot gluing the papers together though.

creation:

    The paper proportions the blogger gave for the medallions were a lot bigger than I think she actually used. The first ones I made were HUMUNGOUS, so I started cutting them in half and other various (smaller) lengths.

 When I started laying them out on my dollar store wreath that I’ve been holding onto for over a year (waiting for the right craft), I decided I didn’t want it to go around the whole wreath. I think the different sizes of medallions that I had made, just didn’t quite work, but I’m still very pleased with the turn out. I hot glued random bottoms on from my ridiculously large stash of buttons. And I dare say that waiting until July 6th (at 2am) before completing and hanging this creation made it all the more glorious and appreciated.

That morning, when I asked my hubby what he thought? “It’s not really my thing, but good job, babe!”

Freezer Paper is Great!

My daughter, Sara, wanted to make a baby gift too.  She found an idea she liked and designed her own version of it.  She wanted to hand sew felt letters of the baby's name.  She searched through fonts until she found the one she wanted, and printed it out.  She traced it onto freezer paper.

She cut out the letters,

ironed them onto the felt and cut them out (double thickness, for a front and back of each letter).

 

Using embroidery floss she stitched the fronts and backs together, stuffing them as she sewed.  

It came out super cute!  She learned a lot and had a great time.  I was really proud of her hard work and efforts planning and executing her gift idea.  Great Job Sara!

Harry Potter in Fabric Paint

My baby brother and his wife are expecting later this summer.  He is a huge Harry Potter fan, (who isn't?) so I thought it would be fun mix baby clothes with H.P.  I had never used freezer paper before, but had seen it used with fabric paint lots of times online.  I decided to give it a whirl!  I got a H.P. font and printed out a couple of  fun phrases to use.  I traced it onto the freezer paper and then carefully cut out the letters with a  craft knife.  It took a while to do, but wasn't very hard.  It would have been easier with a simpler font, but I really wanted this one.

   

After it was cut out I carefully ironed it onto the shirt, making sure to get it centered.  

Using a sponge brush and fabric paint, I gently dabbed the paint on. Do not brush the paint on, this helps keep it from getting under the freezer paper.  I used  a hair drier to speed up the drying process so I could put on a second coat of paint, and dried it again. 

Then I slowly peeled off the freezer paper.  It was scary to peel off.  I was so worried that the paint had leaked under it or that the letters would peel off, but it came out beautifully!  

I will definitely do this again.  It was fun and really very easy.

Hangin' in there bookmark

My kids and I saw an idea on Pintrest and thought it would be fun to give their teachers.  The kids had a lot of fun making these bookmarks and playing with their mini-me's.  

We took some fun pictures of them reaching out pretending to hold on to a rope.  I had them printed as 5x7's.  We cut them out and they wrote a note to their teachers on the back.  Then I laminated them and made a small slit by their hands to run the ribbon through.

 Sara drew on an extra one of herself and made a super hero version of herself.  I love the rocket fire coming out of her feet!  She is so creative.

Like I said it was a lot of fun and we were all happy with how they turned out.  They are already planning to make more as puppets to use to make summer videos.   If they do, I will post it.

Baby Russell

One of my besties, Laura, just had baby #4. Here is sweet little Russell. Thanks for letting me take pictures of your precious bundle. I had fun and any excuse to hang out for the afternoon- I’ll take it!

P.S. I’m going to miss picnik.com