long time no blog

i guess you could say i fell off the "blog wagon...
for no other reason than i just didn't have time, or maybe wasn't inspired, or maybe it was the 3 year old wanting my attention.  whatever my reason is i guess doesn't matter.  i'm going to try harder.  no excuses! i believe i'm a better person when i'm crafting, making a mess and having a finished project.

so last fall i was over at my friends house and saw these most adorable velvet pumpkins, found here http://www.plushpumpkin.com they even have a pumpkin stem.  now i'm not sure where i get this from but when i see something like this, something tells me i probably can make this and tweak it a bit.  or sometimes its just an epic fail, i have had those too.

anyways, last week i decided to give it a try and it was super simple....

needs:
get some fabric, i chose a corduroy(from Joann's) and cut out a circle 
some quilting thread and needle
rice
branch 2" long
glue gun

yes i know i forgot to put the glue gun in the picture but you get the idea and for the sake of time i didn't want to re-do it.
back to steps: tie thread in a knot and start to stitch around the outer edge of fabric, i do not know what this type of stitch is maybe straight?? but it's the easiest, front to back and back to front. Sorry i'm not sure.

as you go along keep the thread tight and it will start to pucker like so:

next step is to put in the rice, now the amount all depends on how squishy you want the pumpkin, i believe less is better

continue sewing until you are all finished, tie off the end with another knot, don't worry about the thread showing a bit, your stem will cover it.

now dab a little glue on the end of your stem and push down onto top where the thread is, fluff your pumpkin and your done!

now go make your own pumpkin patch... i can't wait for fall!

(yes my photography still sucks, but i think it looks a bit better with a white piece of paper under my items being photographed...at least that's what someone once told me.)

market for missions

so today I am off to a Market for Missions at Plymouth Covenant Church to support their youth going on a mission trip.  my dear friend abby asked me to join her. so off we were to make things to sell....
this is what the hubs and I came up with:

exciting yet nervous...what if nothing sells?? what if i don't have enough...yikes the list could go on and on!  
have a great weekend people!

instagram picture holder

we've all seen plenty of picture hanging frames...from etsy to pinterest to pottery barn

i chose to make mine out of things i had around the house...everything! i had a 3'x5' wooden frame piece left over from a shipping package from a chalkboard that a friend had me make...

i cut down the frame to 18"x24", used the nail gun to put back together. i stained it in dark walnut.  i did not sand it, it is rough looking but that was ok.

while the stain was drying i cut a piece of square chicken wire, once dry i wrapped it around the wood frame...i found this new app that prints your instagram photos right from your phone, it's called postalpix...for me that's awesome not to have to upload to the computer and then on. i'm lazy or don't make time for that. then i hung on the wall and added my pictures with small clothes pins...easy peasy

Cable reel turned night stand

Going back to a week before our oldest had surgery, she put on heavy how she had a "little girl room" and how she would like to re-do it...i had to agree she kinda did(wink) since she is 9 and shares a room with her 2 year old little sister... 
so i have seen on pinterest these tables that are made out of wooden cable reels and hold books(and i happen to know someone who could get me a reel)...we did not follow any directions(go figure, I know) i have no patience for that...  but here is what we did do (again please have patience with the picture taking, i'm working on it)  i will post more pictures of their room soon, i was so happy with the way it turned out and so was Miss A

i just sanded it down good and put a couple coats of ASCP Provence on it with a coat of clear and dark wax, i'm sorry i'm still a newbie at this blogging thing and forgot to take a lot of pictures.

we also added casters(which by the way was the one of two things i bought for this project, the other being the spindles)

the next part, and i did get help from hubby on this, was figuring out where the spindles go, i did not take pictures of this because there was a lot of dirty looks from the Mr....a lot.

Here it is..in the girls room, so stinking cute!

one more....

and i was told not to ask for another one or promise to make/sell one.....ever!

picture holder

i was sitting around wondering what could i do today to be creative....i can't remember if i dreamt this or saw it somewhere....honestly my mind is blank
so here you go....a picture holder 

i plan on putting it above our headboard and stuffing it full of pictures, but would also think about moving it come christmas to put christmas cards in to display...
and yes i took the easy way out and just uploaded a picture from instagram...lazy

the past month

wow! i can't believe it's July 20th!  this past month was crazy busy...photo shoot...surgery...potty training...totally random!

first up- photo shoot

my friend jordi called and asked me to help with a photo shoot, i think i agreed before she was done with her question of asking me.. Ha! It was a blast!  You can see some of it here: http://jordileephotography.blogspot.com/2012/07/get-marriedstyled-shoot.html

the photo shoot was for Heather at getmarried.com and it is a wonderful site even if you're not getting married!  

for the photo shoot, i helped jordi with a couple fun things, like this sign:

the sign i made was for a photo booth...super easy

start with a piece of pallet or fencing, in this case it was the kids tree fort that had fallen down..love re-using!

then i cut off one end because the other end already kinda looked like an arrow, next up..paint! super easy!


thanks for asking me...so fun!

surgery...yuck! our oldest daughter had surgery on her ear to remove a tumor and repair her hearing.  she had already had this surgery once before at christmas, but they had to wait to put in her "magical" hearing bones for 6 months.. she is doing fine now but can not run, jump or swim for 3 weeks, lets just say we are "bored" around here.  

lastly...potty training!!  big news around here, the youngest at 2 1/2 years is potty trained...it went way easier than i thought considering her type of personality! i say it's a double score for me- no more dirty diapers and that's $20 bucks a week in diaper money that will now be happily spent at occasional sales! 

oh and i forgot we totally re-did the girls room a week before surgery to keep her mind off of it...i will get pictures up soon!

have a great weekend!

Pallet letters

I saw this idea on Pinterest for an "EAT" sign and fell in love....I would really like to make an "S" for Storlie but haven't taken that job on yet...I'm afraid of loosing finger tips...if you haven't figured it out yet, we are in love with pallets.  Why not recycle...

Have a good weekend all!!