A doll bed for Christmas

Using the plans from Ana-White.com, Cliff and I made Julia a new bed for her dolls. I cut all the pieces and then Cliff assembled them together for me. A fresh coat of paint and it was ready to go for Christmas.

But the bed also needed a mattress. I picked up foam from JoAnn's and cut it down to size.

Then dug through my fabric stash and found this quilted cream cotton. I thought it would make the mattress look a little more like a real mattress.

She loved it! The best part was that it only cost about 12 bucks to make!

Small Bathroom Update

Besides not being fond of the honey oak throughout our house, these mirrors have been a thorn in my side.

At the Depot one day I ran across I deal I could not pass up. Mirrors for only 29 bucks each!

They were on clearance so I snatched up two. There was the chance that they would be too big. I think they are perfect.

Just look at the difference. We can actually see ourselves and not just our noses in these new mirrors.

And I think I did a mighty fine job of hanging them level and at the same exact height. (pat on back)

I'll still need to paint. I have the paint. I just haven't carved out the time to paint.

On a side note, I figured out that I can fit two gallons of milk and the Costco size Hershey's syrup in my fridge door. Chocolate milk heaven!

Scrap: Gift Card Holder

I had some scrap fabric laying around and have had a gift card holder in the "someday pile" for years now. I want to give Julia's kindergarten teachers and her bus driver a small thank you before Thanksgiving break and thought this was the perfect opportunity to get ride of scrap and be creative at the same time.

My finished product

My inspiration

I think this might have been purchased at a Starbucks many years ago.

It held a gift card from one of my former students.

Step 1: Gather supplies

(2) pieces of coordinating fabric 6 1/4" x 2 3/4"

(2) pieces of coordinating fabric 2 1/2" x 2 3/4"

(2) buttons

Cotton thread

I used pinking shears around the edges of the fabric just like the inspiration piece.

Step 2: Sew your buttons to one large piece and 1 small piece of the same fabric.

Notice the placement of the buttons. You want them fairly close to the 2 3/4" wide edge of fabric. Your sewing machine foot will need to be able to get around the buttons so be careful to not put them too close to the edge. Leave a long tail after sewing on the button to the large piece. This will be your fastener. I I tied this thread around the button after sewing it on to secure the string.

The difference between sewing your buttons on first or after. If you sew them after you will see your thread. Not a big deal but it looks a little nice hidden.

Step 3: Sew your small pieces together, wrong sides together, along the 2 3/4" wide edge opposite of your button. I hope that makes sense.

Again, if you sew your button on before hand you threads will be hidden.

Step 4: Place wrong sides together of large fabric pieces. I used a pin to secure my long tail so I did not accidentally sew it to an edge.

Step 5: Pin small fabric to large fabric.

Step 6: Double check correct placement of small fabric piece on the large fabric piece by folding over the top of the large piece. Unfold before sewing small piece to large piece.

Step 7: Sew small piece to large piece fairly close around the edges.

You will sew the entire large rectangle.

Step 8: Insert gift card of your choice and then fasten in a "figure-8" fashion.

Cut off any excess string.

The inspiration piece had a loop attached for hanging in a Christmas tree. This can easily be added by using grosgrain ribbon. The fabric I chose for this project was in a fall palette. I can't wait to go through my scrap pile and look for cute combos for birthdays, showers, or other gifts. I might even try to add a little embroidery to the front like the inspiration piece.

Julia's First Blanket

My daughter is usually creating up some sort of mess in the craft room while I'm creating my own mess. While browsing Jo-Ann's together we spotted some cute bone and paw print fabric that would be perfect for a blanket for our new puppy.

I cut the fabric out for her and then set her on my lap. My machine, a Babylock Sophia, has a speed control and a start/stop button. You do not always have to use the foot pedal. This is perfect for teaching my 5 year old the basics of sewing a straight line.

Of course, part way through she starts saying "This is taking hours!" Well, it seems like it when you have your speed on the lowest setting. She already wants to speed through things just like her mama did. I know I drove my mother crazy with wanting to cut corners.

Her blanket is cotton on one side and fleece on the other.

Charlie seems to like his new blanket.

Little Man Hobo

I found my little man's costume while browsing Pinterest. The original can be found at Coolest Homemade Costumes and was posted by Courtney K.

This costume cost me all of 3 bucks for the face paint. I sewed a few patches on his jeans, the hubby made the sign out of a diaper box, and my mom made the cap.

Medieval/Renaissance Maiden

It all started with sale at JoAnn Fabrics. 99 cent patterns. I bought 5 different period costume patterns. Then I headed to Solvang to my favorite $1/yard fabric store and took my 5 patterns along with me. I almost gave up finding the perfect fabric when my friend found a navy blue trim. I remembered seeing a navy blue satin and I was suddenly inspired.

The pattern chosen for the navy blue satin and trim:

I chose view B

I had a few yards of muslin in my stash of fabric. Loved that I didn't have to buy more for the under dress.

I added a small blue bow so that I could tell the front from the back.

Scrapbooking eyelets and white/gold cording were used for the sleeves.

Again the scrapbooking eyelets and gold cording were used for the sides of the tunic. I found the gold trim and tassels in the home decor trim area of JoAnn.

The navy trim that got me going on this project. I have more but ran out of time. I had planned to go all the way around the neck and also sew some on the train. But I was hand sewing the navy trim and that is as far as I got.

The fog started to roll in as I was taking these pictures.

Did I mention yet that I got the satin fabric for only $1/yard? My husband said, "I could have bought you that costume for $50." I had to explain to him that he actually couldn't because of the quality of the fabric and trim. Then he added in that I wasn't considering my labor cost. Who considers their labor cost when it is FUN TO SEW?

She isn't complete without her belt, hat and veil.

Please ignore the wrinkles on the veil. I took these pictures after I wore the costume and then tossed it on my couch in a crumpled mess. "DeeDee" looks pretty short in these pictures.

Oh, wait, that's because I'm short too!

Wearing the costume at our church's Trunk-or-Treat.

Add a wig and some gold jewelry and this Medieval/Renaissance maiden is ready.

I think I could have made this costume even less expensive if I had paid more attention to coupons. Luckily, the veil (chiffon) and belt (brocade) fabrics were 50% off. The most expensive part of this costume was the gold trim around the collar and sides. No coupon. Boo.

It's the little things

Small changes make me happy. I recently decided to paint my bathroom cabinets, which were honey oak, to white. Then I didn't like the wall paint color anymore. Quick trip to Home Depot and I'm now happy with the wall color.

But in the corner something was bothering me. Do you see it?

A wicker trash can given to us, as was most of our furniture in the house, by my husband's grandparents.

I am partial to the darker baskets like the one on top of the toilet.

A quick couple of coats of spray paint and I am much happier.

Small Bathroom Update

Right before I had family visit I decided to update the guest bathroom. It isn't a huge bathroom but does have a shower hiding behind the door and a pretty large cabinet.

Before: Just a normal bathroom with frameless mirror.

I even painted the baseboards. They were looking pretty worn.

The large cabinet without doors. I did not paint the insides of the cabinet.

After: I spray painted the hardware black. I did buy new handles.

My sweet hubby took the mirror down for me after he found out I got quotes for $100 bucks to take it down. I play the flute and my fingers are precious. I did not want to risk losing one. I spackled the walls a bit but didn't worry too much since I would simply be putting another mirror up.

New mirror from Home Depot. A Martha Stewart mirror.

It was a fairly quick project. There are still a few things I would like to change like the lighting situation in the bathroom. But all in all, it is nice to just have a fresh coat of paint up on the walls and cabinets. Now it needs some artwork on the walls. Sandy? Where are you when I need you?

Machine Embroidery: Lesson Learned

A sweet friend of mine is about to send her 2nd son on a Mission. She asked me if I could embroider initials on his pants, shirts, sheets, pillowcases, washcloths, and towels. I said no problem. I had just embroidered Tyler's mat the day before so I felt pretty confident.

Wouldn't you know it, when I have two or more people staring at me, my machine decides to not cooperate. In actuality, I was not doing it properly. I thought you only needed stabilizer if you had a thin fabric. I tried embroidering the towels without it and ended up with a hot mess around my bobbin and on the towel.

Not to be defeated, I tried stabilizer only on the bottom. Still not working because the towel was bunching up around my machine foot.

Again, I am not one to back down. I like to figure things out. I tried stabilizer on both top and bottom with the towel sandwiched in between. FINALLY! It worked. The stabilizer I used for this project is a tear-away, wash-away stabilizer. Very easy to use and you won't see it after it has been washed.

The underside

The top

Tear away

And you are done!

Happy Mission Brother Espinosa! At least you will know what is yours hanging out to dry on the line.