More Monograms

I recently embroidered a few items for a friend at church. She wanted a personalized burp cloth to give as a gift and her daughter's initial monogrammed on a dress.

There's not too much to it, but I wanted to post them here as I often forget to post pictures of things others request.

p.s. The dress is from Walmart! What a find!

Craft Favorites Friday

It's time for the last February installment of Craft Favorites Friday! :) I hope you find something you'd like to try (I know I have!).

1. Watercolor Resist Trees

This project stood out to me because my niece LOVES Scotch tape. I hear about it because it's not one of those things parents are going to let you use for no reason, but when she's at my parents' house my mom (her G-Ma) will let her tape and create to her heart's content. So naturally I thought C might enjoy this craft. :) I love The Crafty Crow for creative and unusual ideas like this.

2. Paper Bag Books

This project makes me wish I was still teaching in the classroom. Oh how my students would have LOVED this. Awesome book report project or science chapter wrap up... even for math vocabulary or story publishing. Seriously. I will definitely be filing this away for when Asa gets a bit older. In the meantime, maybe Asa can "help" me use Rosy~Posy's tutorial to create a little special something for his grandparents or cuzzies. :)

3. Owl Softie

M.U.S.T. M.A.K.E. In case you don't know, Asa's nursery is decorated in a woodland forest animal theme... with lots of birds... and he sleeps with a little owl. The Rubber Punkin's tutorial looks very easy to follow. Now to choose the fabric for Asa's little hoot. :)

4. Bit of Whimsy Doll patterns

My brain about explodes from going into overdrive when I see these patterns. If only there were more hours in a day. :) Be sure to check out Bit of Whimsy's Boo Bear Pay it Forward deal also (free pattern in exchange for making 2 bears)!

5. Something Yummy

I have less than a month until I try dairy again (I've been dairy free for Asa's benefit.... and ours because we get more sleep and have a much happier baby without it). I tried at 3 months and 6 months, and I'm trying one last time at 9 months. If Asa is still too sensitive, then I'm staying dairy free until he's weaned. All that to say, Matt and I joke at times about an imaginary list of things I have not had that I am really looking forward to indulging in when I can have dairy again. I've never eaten these before, but I sure think I will give them a try! They look delicious! Making the World Cuter's cupcakey-oreo-caramel-brownie-goodness, I hope I can eat you soon!

Personalized and Holiday Onesie

When Valentine's Day was approaching I wanted to make a special Valentine's outfit for Asa. His G-Pa and G-Ma sent us an outfit for the actual day, but I wanted something for Saturday as well. And I hadn't made him any clothes in awhile.

I decided to make him an "A" shirt that would work for Valentine's Day and still be wearable at other times. I had the idea to cut an A out of red fabric and cut a heart out of the top for the "hole."

I sorted through several red fabrics and settled on red with white polka dots. I ironed steam a seam to my little swatch of fabric, drew my A on the back (hooray for mirror-image letters!), and cut it out. Finishing the onesie was as simple as placing the A on my onesie and ironing it in place. I plan to go back and sew the edges of the applique to help it last as long as possible, but it's just fine without any sewing as well.

I wanted to share because this is such a simple, easy way to make something special, themed, or personalized, and you do not even have to sew to do it! I had not used steam a seam until recently, and now I am finding SO many uses for it! I am a fan!

Craft Favorites Friday

I am back with 3 more sweet and simple ideas that are perfect for the little ones in your life. :)

1. Felt Brown Bag Lunch

I am huge fan of crafting with felt (as I've mentioned a few times). ;) It is just such a fun medium to create with and so versatile. Can you believe how amazing that lunch looks? You really need to visit Skip to My Lou to see for yourself how the sandwich pieces--complete with "plastic" sandwich baggie, brown bag, chips, and dessert all come together (super easy)! HOW FUN!

2. Counting Book

Personalized activities set in your child's own environment and context--what a way to make connections! Here is a quick way to connect numbers and counting to things your child sees (and loves!) every day! I love the different things Lu Bird Baby thought to photograph. :)

3. Texture Book

In the same vein, here is a texture book made with easy-to-find materials. Asa is at an age where he loves to touch everything... from the carpet to the curtains by his changing table to toys, stuffed animals, and even his clothes (when I change him out of his pjs every morning, one of the first things he does is feel the texture of the clothes I have put on him for the day)! This book from Bloesem Kids and New House Project is another great idea. :)

Craft Favorites Friday RETURNS!

I know it has been several weeks since my last CFF round up. Between Christmas travels, settling in back home, teething, etc. I've been storing ideas but not posting them. I have 3 new projects for today though!

1. Dollar Store Wash Mitt Hedgehog

I read this week that the dollar store wash mitts are back. I have seen a couple different projects made with these, but the hedgehog is my favorite. I hope to scope out some dollar stores this weekend--I'll let you know if I hit the jackpot! You can find complete instructions by clicking the link above and going over to Darling Petunia.

2. Valentine's Heart Garland

Over at Little Birdie Secrets, you can find an idea for a sweet, simple felt Valentine's garland. We finally got our Christmas decor packed away (we usually try to enjoy it for an extra week or two once we return from our Christmas travels) and I decided to go ahead and put our Valentine's decorations up so we can enjoy them as long as possible. I have some other projects that require felt, so I just might try one of these while I'm at it. :)

3. Way Cool Geometric Floor Puzzle Pieces

I think this is soooo cool, and I really want to make some for Asa when he's bigger. I LOOOVE pattern blocks and used to have a giant bucket of them. I think they are so great for open-ended play and exploration. This is such a wonderful and inexpensive way to encourage some amazing creativity. :) Go visit Mer Mag--it could not be easier!

Christmas Presents

I only made one set of crafty presents this year, but I am BEYOND thrilled with how they turned out!

I had seen some scripture dolls online, and I thought they were something I could make--and would enjoy doing so.

First I tried drawing my own pattern. I posted about that attempt. It wasn't awful, but it wasn't exactly pretty either. ;)

I ended up using The Black Apple doll pattern, and it worked beautifully! Without further ado, here are the dolls I made for my niece and nephew--the scriptures were chosen by their mom. :)

I can't wait to make more! I already have the materials to make one for Asa, so stay tuned! :)

Craft Favorites Friday

Welcome back to Craft Favorites Friday!

To start us off this week, we have something for the little ladies. :)

Little Girls' Fleece Jumper



This is another tutorial from Smashed Peas and Carrots. I love the silhouette of the jumper, the over-a-shirt-and-pants look, and I have to admit, I love that it has buttons. I have been eyeing buttons lately and trying to think of projects I can make for Asa that have buttons. So far I have come up with... overalls. :) But here's a toasty and cute jumper for the little girl in your life. :)

Next are some Coasters



Check out the tutorial for these coasters from Beneath My Heart. It would be so easy to coordinate this with decor in a particular room, a holiday, or personalize with a monogram. With just a few supplies, a couple steps, and a little time you have a GREAT gift as well!

Corner Bookmark



I thought this simple and sweet bookmark was definitely worth passing along. I like the "x marks the spot" embroidery, but you could also embroider with a monogram or other little design. The tutorial at Kootoyoo uses a magnet to keep the bookmark on your page. This would be a sweet addition if you plan to give a book as a gift! :)

New Friday Feature

So you know how I said I am finding LOADS of amazing crafting ideas on the internet? I thought I should pass along some of those ideas and some of that inspiration to you! So, I decided to try a new Friday post--Craft Favorites Friday. Now, with my little man at home with me I cannot promise I will never miss a Friday. But these ideas are just too good not to let you know about them!

Without further ado, here's my first Craft Favorites Friday!

The Stuffed Animal Child Harness!

We have all seen those child harnesses meant to keep a "runner" close to Mom and Dad. While we all want to have perfect, obedient children who would never dart away from us, reality does not always live up to that! This tutorial from Cupkateer shows you how to take a stuffed animal and turn it into a harness to help you keep your little one out of harms way. TOO cute. I love that it's so customizable in that you can use any stuffed animal. I love her tip for where to find backpack-like strap adjusters (let me know if you know a better source). And I love how simple it looks. I haven't tried it myself yet as Asa can only roll away from me. I can still keep up with him at the moment. ;) But I will definitely be storing this idea for when our little guy gets a bit older!

Toilet Paper Pumpkins (sew-less!)



I thought these no-sew pumpkins were super sweet. They would be easy to place throughout the house, showing off some of your favorite fabrics from your stash. But after fall has passed, you can add the fabric back to your stash and make something else with it! I love the re-use factor. :) These look really simple and would even be easy to make into an apple earlier in the fall with reddish fabrics. :) Check out the tutorial at Smashed Peas and Carrots.

And lastly, the Outlet Cover Makeover



What a simple and clever idea from Little Birdie Secrets! Again, this would be easy to personalize to coordinate with decor or a favorite character, etc. You could even let your child paint something and then glue it on the outlet cover. You'll want to make sure the decoration doesn't make it so your child can pull out the outlet cover or make the outlet too enticing. But if you can jump both those hurdles, you can have some adorable little outlets at your house. :)

So there you have it, the first installment of Craft Favorites Friday! I hope you find something that inspires the crafter in you!