Valentine Cards for you!

Are you ready for Valentine's Day?  I'm slowly getting there!  I know my 5 year old daughter would be happy with store-bought cards, but hey, what fun is that for me?  Right?  So, I made some and thought I would share with you!  There are two different cards and an envelope.  Please note that these are for your personal use only, not for resale.

I found this cute little vintage clip-art from Free Pretty Things for You.  Sew sweet!  Keren has so many lovely goodies to share with you and she also does custom orders for blog design, banners, and buttons.  Check out what she designed for Renee's blog, Sewn with Grace.  I want that little mannequin - more sweetness.  You'll get plenty side-tracked at Renee's, too!

You can download the cards and envelope below.

Download card here

Download card here

 

Download envelope here

As you can see, you'll get four cards from one sheet.  I cut my cards so that they measured 4" x 4.5".  The envelope, when finished will measure 4.5" x 5".  Since there is a place on the card to put names for the recipient and the giver, an envelope is not necessary.

These little cards could be embellished in lots of ways - cut the edges with fancy scissors, add glitter, a bow to the little girl's hair, etc.  Have fun with them!  Below is a quick review of how I made the envelopes using the Martha Stewart scoring board that I posted about here.

 *Note, I colored the scored lines in with pencil so that they were more visible in the photos.

 

 

 

 

 

An alternate envelope that works just as well is a 5" x 5" card.  Instead of the dimensions used above, score all four sides at 3 3/8".  You can go here for a great video and explanation of how to use the scoring board for envelopes.

I hope you enjoy the cards and envelope. Unfortunately, I sliced the "you-know-what" out of my right index finger on, of all things, my cutting blade before I started making the cards this morning.  Thank goodness for the safety features on the blade, right?  Actually, I was on the phone, in a hurry, and didn't take the time to install the blade properly.  After I bled what seemed like buckets and nearly passed out, I made it to the bathroom for a band-aid and then got back to work!  So, hopefully the instructions make sense.

Be sure to visit Keren at Free Pretty Things for You and let her know you love her clip art!  If you have any questions, please email me!  Happy Valentine's Day!

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Valentine's Day Teacher Gifts

I actually got a head start on Valentine's Day this year and have checked off teacher gifts on my to-do list.  I purchased several boxes of Valentine's candy at Target and then fancied them up a bit at home.  I didn't have to spend a ton of money to come up with sweet, one-of-a-kind gifts.  And, I got my craft on!

From this:

 To this...

 

For each box of candy, I pulled off the plastic wrap and then taped the sides with a few pieces of scotch tape.  I then added grosgrain ribbon to the sides using double-sided tape.  I traced the heart onto card stock, cut it out, and glued it to the top of the heart using a sponge brush and matte Modge Podge.  Then, I embellished it with ribbons, stamps, and stickers.

 

Much better, I think!

Are you working on any Valentine's projects?  I would love to hear about them! Pin It

Dog Toy Tutorial

Since I've already spent too much money on my puppy a puppy can never have too many toys, I decided to make a few for my baby, Mr. Tinkles.  I saw some fleece dog toys at PetsMart made by Martha Stewart (well, not personally, I'm sure), but decided I could make them myself.  

You'll need  fleece, embroidery thread, an embroidery needle, and a pair of scissors.  First, cut two pieces of fleece in a 5" by 12" rectangle.  Use several strands of thread and put a knot in the end of the thread,.  With both pieces of fleece together, make a running stitch from one end of the fleece to the other end.  Don't tie off at this point.

Cut slits about 1/2" apart and about half way from the edge of the fleece to the running stitch, all the way down both sides of the fleece.

Now pull the thread and gather up the material.

Bring both ends together and pull tightly.  Take a few stitches to secure the ends together.

Pull up one piece of fleece to meet the other side and make a stitch.  Continue stitching all the way around until a ball is formed.

 Take a few more stitches and then tie off the tread.  Taah-done - a new doggie toy!

This is Mr. Tinkles trying to shake the living daylights out of his new toy.  On my lap, of course.

I also made him a little bow from a fleece rectangle.  He loves to play tug-of-war with it.

Isn't he the cutest thing?!  Gaw!

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Prettied Up - Old Spool Style

What happens when you reorganize?  Well, sometimes you end up with things that are still useful, but maybe not in their present state.  Maybe they aren't as pretty or don't fit your current style.  This happened to me when I decided to organize my stash of ribbon.  I used old, wooden spools for many of my ribbons and ended up with the empty cardboard/paper spools.  Throw them away?  Nah, just pretty them up!

To pretty up your spool stash, grab these lovelies and get started...

• cardstock or colored paper
• pencil
• scissors or Martha Stewart paper cutter (that I also used here)
• Mod Podge or similar glue
• foam brush (or flat bristle brush)
• exacto knife
• ink pad (optional)
• sponge dauber (optional)

Measure the width of your spool.  Cut out two circles from the paper for each spool.  You can also trace the spool onto the paper with a pencil and cut the circles out with scissors.

Using a sponge or flat bristle brush, apply the glue liberally and evenly to the back of one circle.  Place this on the side of the spool and gently use your fingers and palm to smooth the circle onto the spool.  Take care not to move the circle as the glue sets up quickly and makes it hard to reposition.  Repeat with the remaining circle and the other side of the spool.

Let the circles dry.  If you prefer, you can use an exacto knife to cut out the hole in the side of the spool.  This is great for hanging the spools of ribbon on a dowel rod.  I found the middle of the spool, poked a hole in it with the knife, and while holding it up to the light, cut out the circle.  It was easy to see and cut this way.  I also used a dowel rod to push in the cut area of the spool center.  I then used my finger to gently soften the edges a little more.

If you like the vintage or aged look, you can use a sponge dauber to apply ink to the edges of the circles.  It doesn't take much to add a little color.  I used a sepia brown ink on mine.  If you don't have a sponge dauber, you can wrap a piece of paper towel around your finger, pat the stamp a little to receive the ink, and then lightly apply the ink to the edges.

And there you go!  I like these much better now.  Stickers with SKU numbers and ribbon widths and lengths just weren't my style!

I think I'm going to purchase a long dowel rod that I can insert between the brackets of the shelf that sits above my chalkboard.  It will free up some counter space and, you guessed it... pretty it up!

 

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Upcycling for Jessica

My daughter had several t-shirts from Target that she never wore.  Now they are out of season and will be too small to wear next summer.  I decided though, to upcycle them for her doll, Jessica.  I kept a few other t-shirts that were well worn also just in case I needed a little bit of knit fabric for embellishments.

 

These are some of the t-shirts I had to choose from.  One great thing about using children's t-shirts is that you already have several finished hems and seams to use.  Less work = more time = more goodies!

Below you can see that I was able to make a full short-sleeved t-shirt and a skirt from just one 5-T top.  The pattern I used is from the Scientific Seamstress and you can find it here.  She has other great patterns that I can't wait to try out.

As you can see, her pattern uses finished hems, which she shows you how to quickly make if you are using regular, unsewn knit fabric.  However, I just made use of what I had.  I deconstructed the top, and kept the ruffled pieces for later.  Since the top only has one hem to utilize, I chose to use it for the doll skirt and sleeves.  I just added length to the bottom of the doll top pieces and hemmed them separately. 

I loved the little flower on the 5-T top, so I cut it out and sewed it on to the doll skirt I made from the same top.  The lime-green stitching at the bottom along with the flower is so cute!  I don't think it shows up too much in the photo, but this little top was worn often by my daughter!  But, it has a new home and use and she loves it just the same.  So, don't overlook the gently used clothing you may already have to work with.

I added some trim to this little pink skirt and this little outfit actually went to my daughter's best friend for Christmas.

Another little skirt for Jessica...

The pink t-shirt had the sweetest little sleeves so I cut those out carefully and used them for doll sleeves.

Out of three t-shirts, I was able to make three skirts and two tops in just a few hours.  Hopefully soon, I will have time to use the yellow and green t-shirts to whip up a few more outfits.  

 

I hope you enjoyed visiting today.  Maybe this post has inspired you to upcycle some of your clothing into "new" fun things!  I'll be back soon to show you a quick method to make a doll skirt.

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