Moms got a glue gun

Pretty up your dryer sheets.....

 
 How many hours do we spend doing laundry, taking care of our families clothing looking at boring packaging of our various laundry products?  (I hear a very loud groan in the background)  I say it's time to pretty things up a bit and make laundry more fun and convenient at the same time by adding this little fabric dryer sheet holder.

Can I get a little too excited about these little projects....yes.  Do I think I have plenty of company....yes.  So I put together a little tut for y'all if you want to give this a try.  I am by no means a pro sewer, so feel free to add your own touches here and  there as you like.

These are a few of the items needed to get started with.   I think picking out the fabric is the hardest part for me, there are so many options.  Of course I changed the fabric after the first picture, and changed the ribbon well into the project. 

 

 

 

 
Cut two pieces of fabric 9" x 11 3/4".  One side will be seen inside and can be contrasting or both the same pattern.

At this stage, you can lay out your ribbon before putting right sides together so they can be sewn in.

Also cut 2 pieces of interfacing (or cardboard) 7" x 2" and 2 pieces at 4" x 2".  Then cut one piece 7" x 4 1/4".

 

 
Then find an object that is round such as a lid or plate and use it to make a rounded edge on the fabric pieces at all four edges.  You can use a pencil to mark and make you cut.

Then put both side right sides together and sew a 1/4" seam all around, leaving a 2" or 3" gap on one side.

After turning inside out, lightly press with an iron to give straight edges.  Fold in unfinished edge first.

 

 

Then use the opening to insert your pieces of cardboard or interfacing.  Line them up and push as close as you can to the edges.  If you choose interfacing, you can use an iron to adhere at this step.  After ironing, I made a finishing stitch all around which closed the open  spot left on the side.

Then use a fabric pencil or chalk to drawn where the edges are.  This will be you sewing line.  Take your piece to your machine and sew down those lines.  At this point I realized my ribbons were not at the correct location and snipped them off.  Your ribbon should be sewn where the lines go to the edge of the fabric.

 
Then pull your ribbon and tie in a bow at all four sides.  I decided to attach strips of fabric for my ties with unfinished edges.  I like the look of a fuller bow.

 

 

 

 

 And here is the before and after shot.  I think we all love Bounce and other great dryer sheets out there, but the flimsy packaging...not so much. 

The added benefit is the ease in reaching your dryer sheets and not fussing with the lid of the box, and it adds that fabulous smell to your whole laundry area.  Some of us have rooms, some closets and some a corner of a bathroom.  Well, they will all look more fabulous!

And if your curious, the picture at the top includes my big ball jar of homemade laundry soap.  I have my recipe here.  There are other great recipes out there as well that I've seen.  Its a great way to save money on laundry and something you might want to consider trying as well.

Have fun and please let me know if you like these kind of ideas.  Hugs....

A new purse with a little ruffle....

What do you do when you want a new colorful purse, but can't find what you like?  Why not make one? 

 I thought I would share my new little creation to inspire, and to give me a reason to finish it too, ha ha.  I can sometimes loose track of time and not finish all of my little projects....please tell me I'm not alone with this! The little bloggity blog helps me because if you have an actual picture to prove you have been doing something...your husband doesn't think you have spent all your time on more "research" (aka surfing the net).  Just kidding...

 
And here it is, a little pink, a little yellow a few ruffles....perfect for me.  I did not use a pattern for this one, it's my own design.  I just like to make some things up as I go along and see what I can come up with.  A pattern would have been easier I guess...  The outside is an Amy Butler fabric and the inside is a found fabric with a tiny yellow check pattern.

And, what doesn't look better with a few ruffles? 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
On the inside of the bag, i made some pockets on one side for my cell phone and other little bits.  It's a really easy thing to add and makes a small purse hold a lot.

The reason I started the project was I wanted to learn how to sew in a zipper.  Once I did that I couldn't stop until I had a nice bag finished.  Isn't it funny how projects evolve from one thing to another? 

I had made another bag last fall that did not have a zipper and found sometimes it was a challenge to keep little things from escaping.  Then, I replaced my cell phone with a larger, heavier one and found it liked to take a flying leap from the bag while traveling in the car.  That was just a tragedy in the making, hence the new zipper.

I'm sharing today with Tea Rose Home.  Check out the blog and the link party for some more inspiration.

Mixed media fun....

I have always been fascinated by people with a serious talent for drawing like my brother.  I have always wished I could draw as well as him and some others in my family.  So, I was excited to see the mixed media pieces done by Christy Tomlinson from Scarlet Lime.  She is offering a 3 week e-course starting on Feb 28th that I would love to take, but first I thought I would try a little piece myself to compare the before and after....

 
I was a little scared to throw this out there since it's just my drawing and some rub-ons and such.  But, here it is...I think I like it.  The base paper is a thick linen canvas paper I found at Michael's.  I used gesso, some paint, and colored pencils.  Over top is also some water color paint.  I also used a little piece of cardboard to stamp a little.  I just played and played until I stopped.

 It's safer to work with items that are manufactured...partially done for you.   

I would like to learn how to add my own touches to some of those projects too.  That seems to be the point of scrapbooking and other things we do to keep our memories for ourselves and our families. 

So I guess I'll take the course and see what I can add to my little doodles and dots.  I'm sure this will add a lot to the creative process and just be fun. 

Since I'm not working again, I'd like to spend a lot more time being creative and seeing what new things I can learn...that makes me happy.

ttfn...

It's been too long....

I've have sorely neglected my little bloggity blog during this last month.  It was a whirlwind of Holiday fun and travels and my poor little hands were full of handmade projects for family and just couldn't write.  I thought I would share a little late some of the fun projects I tried and give some inspiration for this new year.

One of the new things I tried was jewelry making.  This is a little necklace that I made for my daughter that turned out pretty well.  I guess I should take a class to learn how to attach beads to those little pieces jump rings...maybe I'll put that on my list for this year.  I was inspired by a picture in a magazine that I had seen and just played around trying to duplicate the general look.  To me, that's the fun of any kind of crafting...just playing around until you get what you like.  I tend to do that first, then look for the instructions.
 
 The other necklace I made started with a cute photo my daughter had taken of her new stuffed Fiffel.  "An American Tail" was one of her favorite movies when she was young, so when she spied a stuffed Fiffel at a yard sale, he promptly ended up in her back seat.  I printed the image on a piece of linen and frayed out the edges.  Then covered over top with a piece of mica.  It seemed to float a little too much so I backed it with a little piece of fabric for stability.  I then packaged in a little bag I had made from a sleeve of an old t-shirt.  I put a little free form stitch design on the front and put a ribbon around for a drawstring.

 I tried to make all of the packaging this year too...another reason for time slipping away.  I'm sure I'll try to start a lot earlier next year...but that's what I said last year. But I had a lot of fun and hope to do a lot more jewelry projects this year. 

I also had a full time job these last few months and that sure made it more challenging to keep up with projects.  Things have changed and I am once again a free agent so I plan on getting back to crafting, blogging and doing what I love best, being creative. 

Hugs