Sick Day & Sewing

This girl woke up sick(er) today.  I got a sub, she took a nap... and then, she found my machine.  

She has been wanting to help me sew, and has to push the pedal when I am sewing.  Today I got brave, and decided to just show her a few basics.  She picked right up on it and was sewing rag edges together for me.  She is my creative little bug... and determined girl.  She had put on EASY SEWING MACHINE on her Christmas list, but I think we can manage to share this one :)  Now I just need to find her some easy projects to sew.

Pinterest... I love you

I've been a Pinterest user for a few weeks now.

ADDICTED!!!!

It's an online bulletin board to put ideas I've found online.  

(or from the 300+ blogs I follow).

I've had a ton of ideas flagged in my email, 

saved on my computer... 

and so many take up space in my browser bookmarks.  

This is SOOO much easier!  

The one big problem... TIME.

Time spent playing on Pinterest instead of actually doing something crafty.

However... Aspen and I have done great the last week.  All the items in the picture are things we have put together this week.  These were all ideas we found on Pinterest.

Yeah... Pinterest is my new friend.

Family Reunion Wager

Before

Our Gardner reunion always has a little raffle/silent auction.  I found a clock on the table with no bids that was screaming spray paint me  I told my sister I had plans on turning it into something way cool.  She scoffed.  Hey... don't laugh at a person holding a can of spray paint.  Sounds like a challenge to me.

If you didn't know this was the same clock, you never would be able to tell.

Take that Kara :)

After

10 in 10 days

I'm taking up a challenge from a blog I follow to complete 10 (unfinished) tasks in 10 days.
I specialize in UN-finished projects/tasks.
I am the MASTER.
Most of mine, however, are tasks that require most of the 10 days to finish.
That was what I thought before I started looking for some over the past couple days.

So here are my 10 things that I am going to finish up before I run off to Vegas on the 3rd:

1. finish cutting coupons

2. finish my window screens

3. paint my outside patio doors (this has been unfinished for the past 2 years)

4. sew a button on Hayden's work pants

5. watch and return a video (this will be a rough job)

6. vacuum behind/in between the couches

7. finish vinyl menu boards

8. mop the bathroom floor

9. go through Aspen's closet/clothes

10. finish one of the 1,235 sewing projects I have started.

I'm on the clock.  

I better get started... 

tomorrow.

UPDATE (June 29):  with 3 days left to finish, I have to say that most of my tasks have been left until the last minute (shocker).  I finished #1 the first day, and today I completed #4, 5, 8, and 10.  I actually finished about 6 projects in my sewing stash... so I should get bonus points for that.  Still dreading painting the patio doors.

I HEART spray paint. VERY MUCH!!!

I've been following blogs that give me some great furniture remodeling ideas.  I've been too afraid to try any until I got tired of my 2 pink chairs, 2 white chairs, and 1 brown chair in my kitchen (along with a hand me down table).  OH BABY... bring on the black spray paint, and suddenly my kitchen set matches.  I still have to finish the top of the table, but at least they look like they go together.

I was sitting in my living room the other day noticing all the different types of wood my furniture has, and decided to do something about it.  First off, trying to decide a color.  My sister said I should have done something like a sea-foam green or a mustard yellow, but I am too chicken, so for me it was deciding between black and white.  White=bright... so it won.

I have done my cedar chest, an end table, a wicker chair, and a parsons bench (although the bench still needs to be recovered on the seat and back).  I must say, they TOTALLY impressed me how they turned out... especially the cedar chest.  Here are my before and after pics:

before:
the edges looked worn and had been bumped numerous times, and one of the sides of the skirt had come loose and had to be screwed back together.

after: I tried spray painting the original handles but failed miserably (apparently spraying it one color and then changing your mind doesn't bode well in spray paint land).  Off to home depot to find handles that matched.  Had to drill new holes for these but you can't even tell.

Other pieces I've been working on:
wicker chair took a few coats (3) until I learned that EXPENSIVE spray paint which costs 4 times that of the cheap stuff, is worth about 7 cans of the cheap stuff (or more).  Seriously.  Spend the extra money... just a tip.

I found a $60 inch-and-a-half wood frame at Big Lots that was on clearance for $2.  CHA-CHING.  It had some little saying on it and was scratched in a place or two, but I had been DYING to own one of these for a long time, so I had to buy it.  Two coats of spray paint later, and some cute vinyl and it is now one of my favorites in my house.  It felt too lonely on the wall, so I put some more vinyl on the wall to give it some flourishes. 

I still have a few things on my list of things to finish.  The table below is now all white, and has been antiqued as well, and it looks great.  I am tempted to paint the big wooden bookshelves I have in my front room but am still too chicken to take that on.  I did however buy a cute little night stand at DI yesterday for $5, and it is definitely on my REDO list next... I'll post more of it when I start it.

sneak peek

I have been extremely inspired by others' creativity lately, and all things in my house are in danger of a MAKE-OVER.  This cedar chest is on the list... I'll post the before and after this week when I finish it.

that's much better

I broke down and bought the pattern for the T-shirt dress.  Since then I have made about 10 of these beauties.  I even stopped by DI and had to pick up more t-shirts.  Did you know they charge MORE for women's t-shirts ($2) than they do for mens ($1)??  Why is that?

Also... I had surgery yesterday morning.  I have never had surgery before, so obviously, I was extremely nervous.  Hayden's mom came and stayed to help.  She did shopping, watched Aspen, and made sure Hayden had food to come home to... not to mention stocking up for Easter.  She bought Aspen a swim suit and towel.  I hope that satisfies her "BEACH" craving for awhile, since she keeps begging for the beach. 

I'm feeling quite sore today, as if someone has punched me in the gut.  But the doctor said I should be back to normal by Monday... so I'm going to hold him to that.

Faking it

There is a difference between a HAVING/FINDING a great idea, and IMPLEMENTING a great idea.  I learn this often... sometimes the hard way.  I've made a few things this past month... and I've thrown in the towel on my most recent attempt.  My first try was a skirt made out of scraps of pieces of fabric.  I had to play with the width of each tier of the skirt, but overall it turned out GREAT!  I had seen the picture here.  

 

My most recent has been making a dress/shirt from old T-shirts.  I had seen incredible pictures of this idea here and here.  My attempt fell horribly short of the desired result.  Not being able to figure it out got the best of me, and I ended up spending $12 on the pattern for the dress.  Now to collect a ton of cool T-shirts from family and friends that would have ended up at D.I. or the trash.  

Other items I "faked" recently turned out much better than the t-shirt dress.  I made a skirt out of 2 tea-towels that I picked up at the dollar store.  It was still missing something, so I took a spare piece of ribbon in my stash, sewed a gather stitch down the edge of it, gathered it, and sewed on the little flower to the side of the skirt.  BOO-YA!  Adorable skirt for a total of $2.

While at the dollar store, I thought I'd buy one of the little blankets in the baby section, and turn it into a pair of pants.  I used another pair of Aspens bottoms as a stencil for the pattern.  There was almost not enough material in the $1 blanket, but these are some of Aspen's favorites... and she always wants to wear them.  Sometimes I have to hide them.

craftiness & a little football

I've been feeling crappy crafty lately.  And when I feel that way, projects tend to get started... and if I'm lucky, even finished. 

I have a HUGE addiction lately to following blogs.  It is a growing problem (takes me 30 minutes a day to go through all the newly posted SWEET creative ideas) and it is getting worse everyday.  Since I have discovered that cool little outfits can be put together without the bother of a pattern... I have been tearing it up in my newly set-up craft room.  I found an adorable shirt at a store in the mall last week and thought "oh my... I could TOTALLY do that for practically nothing!!"  

So I did.

Aspen found a picture of a skirt with hearts on the pockets and demanded that it be hers... so 1 hour later, it was.  To make a top that matched her skirt, I took some tulle strips, gathered it, and pinned it onto a shirt of hers that had stains on it.

Voila'!

The new heart outfit is definitely a huge hit.  So much so, that on the days when she wears it, we don't have to fight her to get dressed in the morning.

 

 After making such great progress with the heart outfit, I pulled a t-shirt out of the "trash" pile, and decided to do a little revamp.  Aspen had spilled fingernail polish down the front of it, and I didn't see any way to save it (even though she had only worn it ONCE!!).  Another NO PATTERN fix and she now has a new outfit in her closet.  This one, however, has not been deemed acceptable by the PRINCESS ASPEN, and so wearing this in the morning still requires a fight.  

Me being the victor... of course.  I have so many more sweet ideas underway, and several projects started.  Hey... when you feel crappy, having projects to look forward to is a MUST!

 

Super bowl Sunday was actually Frank's (my father in law's) birthday, so it was a no-brainer that there was a party to be had.  We went to Kari's new house (Hayden's sister) in Goshen for the event.  Aspen thought all the presents were for her, and had a horrible time resisting the temptation to open them.

Aspen has a Doug aversion.  Doug is Kari's husband and he has a large beard and moustache.  Apparently bearded people in cowboy boots are scary to 2 year olds.  Over the course of the past 2 years, she has managed to let him get remotely close to her... once.  So imagine our surprise when I look over, while watching the game, and she is LYING on Doug's lap.  

No trembling... no back peddling away from him.  

Just chillin'. 

Shocker.  

Our daredevil child now has conquered what had appeared to be her only fear.

Well, other than getting dressed in the morning, that is...

I think that one is a battle that doesn't end with the terrible 2's.