An Advent Wreath Made by Kids for Kids

I was looking for an Advent Wreath that was super simple for our kiddo's to make.

 One they could create themselves that would be all their own.  

One they could set on their dresser or their desk.

Something to remind them of all of our hopeful waiting! 

So I started digging in my craft closet.

I just knew there had to be something I could do with the pipe cleaners and buttons! 

So simple!

All you're gonna need:

Scissors

3 green pipe cleaners

2 purple pipe cleaners

1 pink pipe cleaner

4 yellow buttons

Step 1:

Connect (by twisting) three green pipe cleaners end to end to make one long stick.

Step 2: 

Wrap the stick around a pencil or pen tightly and remove it gently. 

Bring the ends together to make a circle and twist closed.

Step 3:

To make the candles, cut the purple and pink pipe cleaners in half. 

Thread the button on.

Holding the button at the center, fold the piper cleaner in half, and twist it.

Step 4:

Connect the candles, by curling their bottoms around one of the coils in the wreath,

 and then twisting it around itself to hold it in place. Get it real snug so they don't fall over. 

Ps. Check out Catholic Icing's

 The edible Advent Wreath  

We will so be spending a Saturday morning with this one!

Cool Kids' Patches for Jeans

In case there are others out there with children who apparently having been crawling everywhere, 

 I'm gonna share the resources and directions I used for creating these fun patches!

 Start with the post from C.R.A.F.T. that encouraged me to rip the inseam out of my jeans and so I could get at that patch with my sewing machine. 

So worth it! 

And I loved her zigzag stitch idea! 

I used it on my camo patch.

Turned out really cute.

*Tip: Purchase specific thread for stitching denim and a denim needle from your local fabric store. You'll need the tough stuff!

The idea for cutting out shapes came from this post by Koala Brains.

She has you trace your shape in washable marker, stitch the outline and patch, and then cut.

*Tips: BE CAREFUL not to stitch the other side of the pant leg while rotating your denim. I did it a sad total of three times! It is not fun to correct!

I used cute cotton fabric but doubled up with a second back layer for durability. 

You could even triple. 

Wouldn't hurt! 

Check your machine for a tight zigzag stitch like the yellow one in my picture, it will make your thread more bold against the denim.

Good luck! 

And happy patching, friends!

Family Room Gets Some Repurposed Color

Giving your family room a fresh splash of color may be cheaper than you'd think.

For just under $15 

I was able to repurpose some great thrift store finds. 

One fabulous table cloth which inspired it all, three coordinating sweaters, six clean pillows 

and I had what I needed for a nice fresh look!

Here's to hoping my thrift adventure will encourage someone else to be adventurous!

To get started, if you've never been thrifting, here are some pointers:

Know your local thrift stores. They are not all created equally and different ones will have different strengths (furniture, clothing, housewares, linens). Some are just down right gross. Can't go wrong with a good DAV or Goodwill, but I also love locals like Hillcrest Ministries. 

So clean and they get the best donations!

Start checking in with your favorites every couple of weeks. This is a bit like a good hunt! And you'll begin to become familiar with fair prices and what you can find where.

When buying anything with fabric like pillows, clothing, furniture, linens, lampshades, stick your nose in it and really give it a good sniff! What does it smell like? That can tell you a lot about where it came from! And I always check for pet hair. Does it have pet hair? You may want to pass! 

Now down to business!

I started by checking inside each pillow to see if they have a second case under the decorative ones. 

Some did.

And some didn't.

Once I knew what I was working with, 

 I went to work using my seam riper and tore the decorative cases open.

I didn't damage them, because I would need them as a pattern for the new pillows.

And I didn't completely dismantle the pillows without a second case inside. 

I just opened one wide enough to pull the stuffing out, turn it inside out, and then used it as my pattern. 

(When I was done making the pattern, I put it all back together.
I needed the decorative casing for under my slip cover. Read below.)

Now for making slip covers.

These pillows are for our family room where LIFE happens!

My boys watch cartoons, wrestle, play wii, drive cars, play ninjas, eat snacks, sneak snacks
all in this room!

 So I decided I wanted slip covers 

which can be easily removed and cleaned.

And FREQUENTLY!

And they're pretty easy.
No zippers.

For the front, just lay your old pillow case over the fabric, pin, and cut.

But the back piece will be made of TWO pieces that overlap over the old pillow case pattern. 

I chose to overlap a little more than 1/3. That worked reallywell.

Don't forget to hem the exposed edges before you sew the whole case together.

Here's a great tutorial if you need more help!

Working with sweaters

The table cloth was easy to cut up.

Just one big 'ole piece of fabric!

But the sweater cases took a bit more thought.

I started by cutting the bottom off the sweater to form the front piece and one of the overlapping pieces of the back. This allowed me to use one of the sweater seams to my advantage! 

Always looking for those short cuts!

(Note: For some reason my overlap was way more than 1/3 in this picture. Not sure why.)

The back of the sweater had a lot more left over fabric to work with because of the high neckline.
So I cut my last piece out of the back.

Note: I'm not sure I could have made slip covers from the sweaters if my pillows hadn't been so skinny.
You may have to make a plain pillow if the pillows are larger.

You might also check out these sweater pillows for some inspiration. 

They inspired me!

Embellishments!

Once I had my cases sewn, I began playing with embellishments.

I ended up making lots of yo-yos.
I found this great tutorial for making them.

The ruffly navy flower is my own invention. 

If you'd like to add those, you'll need to use sweaters or t-shirts 

because the edges of those fabrics won't unravel on you.

Cut a circle and fold it in half.

Then fold it like you would a fan.

Pinching the bottom to hold it the folds in place, put a few stitches through about 1/3rd up.

 Be sure to go through all the folds. You don't want any falling out. 

You can then cut the bottom off.

To make it fluff, pull the folds apart a bit.

When you attach it to the pillow, stitch it down in several places to open it up a bit.

And there you go!

Coordinated color!

From bare...

... to fresh cleanable color

 And CHEAP!

Perfect for a family room where life happens!

Hoping you find easy ways to brighten your family space and make it welcoming, too.

Happy thrifting friends, BE ADVENTUROUS!

A Mobile Dripping with Hearts: A Valentine for K's Teacher

What started as a simple strand of heart garland...

Turned into a full blown mobile valentine for K's teacher. 

I know! 

Who doesn't love a good mobile!? :D

The large heart at the top provides a place for K to write a message to Mrs. Waters. I hot glued it to the fishing line that the whole mobile hangs from and then hid the glue with a matching heart hot glued to the back.

I used jewelry wire to create the mobile structure and the fun cork screws all the hearts hang from.

And the hearts themselves are strips of scrapbook paper that were hot glued together with a tab at the top for hanging. I also gave them a little shape by gently forming them with my hands. And to get the cute curly-cues, I just wrapped the ends around a thin crochet hook and loosened them a little with my hands.

It was super fun! And I'm super excited to share it with K's teacher!

Here's to being adventurous with what you've got friends! 

Happy creating!

Jazzing Up the Boys' Valentines! Free Printable

My son, Kincaid and I both liked the idea of passing out glow sticks for Valentines
when we saw this on Family Fun!

 But I decided the hearts needed to be snappier, so we created something with more "pop!"

 If you like the idea, please feel free to print or share these! 

We also decided to thread them through glow necklaces the kids can wear!

Super fun!

ps. I used two free fonts, Pointy and Comic Book, from dafont.com.

Very helpful!

When Homework Becomes a Four Letter Word

I could tell you how I lost it last night over K's reading homework, and how I screamed at him.

"Kincaid! Just read the word!... Yes, you can! You just don't want to!... Oh my gosh! You're KILLING me! KILL-ING-ME!  Just read it!"

I could focus on that, but just thinking about retelling the whole awful sordid affair... it gets my heart rate going all fast *gulp*... and my blood pressure rises *gasp*... , and there's this pain in my chest *double gasp gasp* ... and... I can't.... I can't... breathe *GASP*.  

Nope, can't go there.

I got a better idea. 

The Story of a Boy and His 100 Fluffy Balls

100 fluffy balls! The boys laugh when I say it. 100 fluffy balls! It makes me laugh when they laugh when I say it. 100 fluffy balls. 

*smile* 

But the point!

We're using our 100 fluffy and funny balls to make a mobile of fluffy ball bliss. It's for the kindergarten's 100 days of school museum. Sculptures. Models. Pictures. Anything! As long as it is made of one hundred pieces. A parent's dream, right?! No, it's really not bad. In fact, Kincaid and I are having lots of fun. 

Trying Something I Didn't Think I Could Do

When I first saw this tutorial, I totally wanted to do it, but totally thought I couldn't do it. In the end, the excitement won out over the fear, and I ended up being very glad I tried.  Searching the thrift store for the perfect old book and making my own paper notebooks, trying something challenging, it was all very exciting. And on top of that, it was really fun to give something special to a friend!

Here's the tutorial and pictures of my finished notebook.

http://www.maryjanesandgaloshes.com/2010/08/repurposed-hardcover-book-to-notebook.html

Hoping my excitement will encourage you to try something new, too. Happy adventures in glue and paper, friends!