Valentine's Applique Project

Hey Everyone!!

It's almost Valentine's Day and with that, I'm sure that the web is going to be flooded, literally with cute, adorable, give-everyone-you-know-something Tutorials...

That said; here's another one! :-)

Today, I'm going to show y’all how to make an Appliqued Shirt. A pretty simple tutorial really... but also can be a little overwhelming if you've never done appliqueing before. It shouldn't be overwhelming... it's so simple and makes something store bought look handmade with love quickly. Let's get started!

For this, you will need:

1 t-shirt/shirt/item to add the applique to

fabric for the applique

Template of the shape you'd like

Pen of some sort

Heat n Bond Lite

Scissors

Iron

Sewing Machine

Thread

Isn't this just the most adorable, versatile fabric? I LOVE it!

So, we need to iron the loose fabric to one side of the Heat n Bond. Using the iron setting that matches your fabric type (make sure it's hot enough for the Heat n Bond), place it paper side UP to the wrong-side of the fabric you are using. Iron it on, using the directions on the Heat n Bond.

Once you've attached it to the fabric, you'll use whatever template you have to draw your lines to the paper. From there, cut it out. Peel the paper off the fabric, there should be a clear sheen to the back of the fabric, this is the adhesive.

Place it wherever you'd like it to lay on the shirt and using the same iron setting, adhere it to the shirt. Once its completely adhered onto your item, we're going to sew around it, to add a zigzag to hold down the edges and permanently adhere it to the item.

I use my Sewing Machine with a quilting thread at a medium tension, the highest width setting, a towards the lower end length with the zig-zag stitch.

Being careful not to sew in the back of the shirt/arms as they wiggle or any other part of the shirt carefully go around it sewing the edges about half on half off the applique.

Adorable, Quick... and Easy Peasy, right?

I whipped up two today, in under 1/2 hour; one for my little girl and one for her best friend!

Enjoy!!

Dawn

Aprons

I've been on a sewing kick lately; and when I saw this tutorial for a toolbelt/apron through a friend on Facebook, I couldn't help but think of all the small pieces of fabric I had at home I could use.

So... I sewed up three of them. One for each of her toddlers, and one for mine!

On for her son (complete with the hammer loop). What little boy doesn't love little cars?

I know that they have cats, and I would assume because of this her daughter likes cats. Could I be wrong? Very possibly but I'm not a cat person. at all. But, because these are pink, teal & green cats I'm in. No hammer loop on this one, but an extra mini pocketon the front! I think they turned out adorable! Zoe's is a horse print, and somehow I managed to not get a photo of hers. Shocking, I know since it hasn't stopped moving since I gave it to her (and I was obligated to make hers first!)

Enjoy!

Dawn

Winter is Here!!!

Winter is here, and along with that goes dry skin and chapped lips.

I made some Lemon Sugar Scrub, for myself and to give as little gifts. It was really simple, I adjusted the recipe some for my liking; and may try and find a substitute for the olive oil, and not because of any reason other than I think it clings a little too well to skin.

Yesterday, Zoe and I spent time in the backyard. She wanted to make a snowman, I thought it may be an issue that our backyard is mostly trees, so we missed A LOT of the snow that would normally hit the ground. We managed to make it work, and although he's a little homely looking we did get a snowman.

Somehow, his nose is missing today. She isn't real thrilled about that.



In the evening, I whipped up a card using some of the new things I got for christmas. Since we just moved, I haven't had the time (or the patience to sort through and find things!) to make anything. I got a Fiskars Continuous Stamp Wheel from my hubbs and I love it! Look how pretty the card turned out? I like the subtle stamped image. I couldn't figure out how to make it a better impression, or darker for the sake of explaining, but it worked well. He also bought me gobs and gobs of clear stamps, so that flower stamp came from one of the sets. I used Zoe's Markers (because they were close. Lazy? Me, nooo.... okay, maybe a little!)

Inside:

Cheers and have a great day!

Homemade Hot Cocoa

Looking out at the snow in our yard, as I was sipping my coffee this morning my daughter was in the back, playing with our dog. When she came in, she was shivering (shocking, I know) and begging for hot cocoa.

Bad mom moment because instantly I knew we didn't have any. My mommy brain also told me that the basics in the packets were powdered milk, chocolate of some sort and sugar. I can McGuiver this one... it should be easy enough, right?

Here is a simple, and delicious Hot Cocoa Recipe I whipped up in my kitchen this morning!

You will need (for a kids size cup!)

4oz. hot milk (I microwaved it...)
2oz cold milk
1tsp cocoa powder (I used Dutch Baking Cocoa that I got in bulk, from winco for some insanely cheap price for how good it is)
2tsp sugar (I used C&H quick dissolving sugar because we had it)

Pretty much the easiest directions ever:

Put hot milk in mug. Add cocoa powder and sugar, stir until dissolved. Add cold milk (to make it safe temp for a kiddo).

Drink.

Yum.

This would make a great (and simple) holiday gift in a little tin (the powder that is) with directions on how to make it.

Quick Homemade Gift Idea

I have a few friends who are pregnant and due in 2012. We know one is a girl and the other we won't know the gender until we meet him/her. The baby girl has an older sister, so I know that her mom probaby doesn't want a bunch more baby girl clothes and would rather have more practical gifts. The unknown baby will be #3 for the family, so practical is always better after baby #1!

I am making my Goal for 2012 to make more of the gifts we give people, so for baby presents; I want to make burp rags, recieving type blankets and bibs; to include with a package of diapers for the new mom. I whipped up three burp clothes this morning; before my sewing in the kitchen irritated the other family member in the living room. :-) Either way, it wasn't something that had to get done today, so I'm okay with three! I'll probably make some fabric gift bags also at some point (not today!)

Here are some photos:

I love this pattern, it's so mellow and pretty. I backed this one with a solid tan flannel that matches the color on the front.

Here are the two matching burp clothes. I really adore this busy pink paisley pattern also. It has some blues, greens and various shades of pink in it. Very happy looking!

Due to a lack of pink flannel (and with all the snow here, I'm not leaving the house today to get some!) I just used a solid cotton twill type fabric. I really like the tight, zig zag stitching; I know they don't really have to be very tough but I think they look more complete with a nicer stitch.

The best part? They were basically FREE to make, other than my time; since these were all various scraps I had left from other projects.

I'm thinking I'll whip up some more for the friend whose having a girl, and shop for some gender neutral fabrics (on clearance, maybe?) for the other.

Eco Friendly Present Wrapping

Zoe's best friend, Riley's birthday party is Saturday. her birthday was yesterday, so we gave her the present she wanted (Scooby Doo Leapster Game) and I forgot to wrap it until yesterday morning.

That admitted, I also am fairly proud of myself for wrapping it so quickly. I think it turned out decent and knowing that her mom is also pretty crafty, I'm sure I'll see it made into something at some point in the future.

Ruffled Apron w/ link to tutorial

Hi! I know it's been a while, things have been crazy around our house these last few months. We've moved, and all during the holiday season.


I did some thinking (shocking, I know) and decided that if I start now, I could handmade a christmas gift for everyone on my list and save myself the money that we normally would spend on everyones gifts.



My little one is still asleep (gasp; it's 9:10!) because she got to stay up late playing RC Cars with her daddy while I sewed.... so here is a post, since I'm sipping my coffee in peace!



I was searching Pinterest (of course!) yesterday during some down time and stumbled upon a really cute, ruffled apron that didn't take all that much fabric (thus keeping the cost low).






HERE is the link to the tutorial, Morgan did an amazing job of keeping it simple. I plan to make a few more of these in various colors. I think total, I bought (and had extra) 1/4 yard of 4 fabrics and 1/2 yard of another. Again, didn't need it all, but it worked well.


I'm hoping to get back to blogging a little more often... and doing more homemade type posts. :-)



Wishing you all a happy and healthy new year!



Dawn