Free Plastic Canvas - Barbie Doll Chair Pattern

Now that my little granddaughter is growing older and soon she will love to play with Barbie Dolls, I have been busy making furniture, clothing and accessories for her. Today I am sharing how I made a Barbie Doll - 11 1/2" Fashion Doll chair out of plastic canvas and some yarn.

From 14 ct. Plastic Canvas you will need to cut the following pieces:

1 seat - 19 holes by 19 holes
2 seat backs - 19 holes by 22 holes high
4 leg pieces - 19 holes by 18 holes high

You will need to cut your leg pieces into an A shape like what I show in the photo. For my 2 seat back pieces, I angled the top corners to give interest to it but you can leave yours straight.



Stitching: I did a simple tent stitch but I did it over 3 holes at a time going top to bottom to make vertical rows. I used 4-ply Red Heart Yarn. You will first stitch your seat, seat backs and then the legs, leaving all outer edges unfinished. Once done, place the 2 seat backs wrong sides together and stitch them together using a whip stitch but leave the bottom edge unfinished. Stitch 3 of the chair leg sections to the seat. Place the seat back and 4th leg section together and whip stitch to the remaining unfinished edge of the seat. Finish up by stitching around the legs and openings so that your chair has no unfinished edges.

I will be posting the instructions for the side table and rug in a few days or you can find free Barbie Doll Patterns here on my blog.

You can find more free plastic canvas patterns --> HERE



Happy Stitching!
Shelly

10 Ways To Organize Your Sewing Room Beautifully

10 Ways to Organize Your Sewing Room Beautifully by Kim Christopherson

Your sewing or crafting room should reflect the style and comfort you put into your creations. When your space is organized and decorated to your taste, it is an oasis you look forward to, rather than another room that needs care. Keep in mind that organization doesn’t have to be expensive or elaborate. You might even have some items around the house to help you out!

1.Display your favorite colors in your room using paint, simple curtains, artwork, and colorful crafting supplies such as ribbons, thread spools, and fabrics, as your décor.

2.Baskets make great scrap catchers. I keep one large basket next to my cutting table for usable scraps of fabric to go through later. I keep another next to my sewing machine with smaller scraps for test stitching. A third holds my stash finds—fat quarters that I couldn’t pass up, remnants, and bit of lace that I’ve picked up. Dress your basket with a bow made from a scrap of your favorite fabric or ribbon.

3.Use pretty pottery vases for things like craft sticks, marking tools, and tall scissors. Vintage tea cups make darling containers for pins or needles. Great for small appliqués, buttons, snaps, and other small notions, cookie or popcorn tins are always around, so put them to good use!

4.A clean pad of decorative note paper is always useful to jot down notes to yourself as you craft. This allows you to clear your mind to concentrate on the task you’re doing.

5.Use a decorative key hook board to hang your small scissors so you can find them. Hanging also preserves the sharp points on your cutting tools.

6.A clean pad of decorative note paper is always useful to jot down notes to yourself as you craft. This allows you to clear your mind to concentrate on the task you’re doing.

7.Use a decorative key hook board to hang your small scissors so you can find them. Hanging also preserves the sharp points on your cutting tools.

8.Use those slightly worn gift bags (the ones you can’t bear to throw away, but can’t re-give to someone else!) to hold projects-in-progress. Hang them from a hanger on the rod in the closet.

9.Keep a pretty tea tray on your desk for the latest copies of fabric catalogues and quilting magazines. Go through the stack monthly when you pay your bills and file or throw away old copies.

10.Hang a mirror somewhere in your sewing room where you can catch a glimpse of yourself at your craft. Mirrors add light and space, and seeing yourself doing what you love will encourage you to do more of it!

11.Put a soft, comfortable chair in the corner of your craft space alongside a small table or even a hatbox so that you can sit down to read or hand-sew with a cup of tea. This inviting nook will add an element of comfort to your workspace.

Use some simple things around the house to add beautiful organizational elements, and make your craft or sewing space a place you love!

Lorie Fuller is a designer and writer for http://youcanmakethis.com/and the Editor of You Can SEW This, a newsletter written for sewing enthusiasts. Find hundreds of “How To” e-Books, along with three informative newsletters. Sign up for the newsletters to receive valuable e-Book bundles for FREE!

Play Food - How To Make Felt Vegetable Soup - Play Food Pattern

Here is my next installment on faux food - felt food items for your little girls play food & kitchen sets. This is my pattern on how to make a pasta vegetable soup all by using scraps of felt and its completely done by hand sewing all of the ingredients aka pieces together. A great little project to use up all of your scraps!

The container that I used to hold my soup is a plastic clear salad dressing container that I snatched from a local eatery...brought it home, washed it out and its ready to go (it even has a lid).

For The Pasta Bow-Ties: I cut out oblong pieces from vanilla colored felt that measure 1/2" wide by 1 1/4" long. I simply used 3 strands of vanilla colored embroidery floss and wrapped it a few times around the center to give it that bow tie shape.

Carrots: I simply cut small 1/2" squares from my scrap orange felt and folded them in half and stitched around the edges to make it look like square carrots. Use 2 strands of orange embroidery floss for your stitching.

Peas: From olive green felt, I just cut out 1/4" diameter circles and hand sewed 2 of them together around the edges using little whip stitches for my little round green peas.

Corn: Using scraps of yellow felt, I cut out a corn kernel shape that measures about 1/4" in size. I simply took 2 strands of yellow floss and just sewed them together with tiny whip stitches.

Green Beans: From olive green craft felt scraps, I cut out pieces that measure 1/4" by 3/4" in size. You will place 2 of these together and sew around the edges using tiny whip stitches and olive green floss.

As you can see...its basically pretty easy and you can make a variety of vegetables for your pasta vegetable soup and it's a great way to use up all of those felt scraps.

You will want to store your felt soup in a plastic container (see above what I used) with a lid so that all of the ingredients don't get lost.

You can find additional free patterns for felt food ---> HERE

Happy Crafting,
Shelly

Choosing the Right Fabric Colors For Your Quilt by Loretta Oliver

One of the first steps in creating a handmade heirloom quilt is choosing the fabric. This beginning step can make a huge difference in the end product that you create. If the color scheme is wrong you can end up with a quilt that isn't so nice to look at in many cases. The exception there, of course, would be scrappy quilts where you can use any and every piece of fabric you can find.

So, let's talk about color scheming your fabric for a nice color coordinated quilt. The easiest way to figure out your best choice for fabric colors is to grab a color wheel. That simple little tool can save you a lot of headache in fabric selection. For a two color quilt, you just choose two colors that are across from each other and you're all set. Easy as pie!

When you get into three and four color combination designs it gets a little more difficult to stick to the right colors, and you want to be aware of tones and shades as well. The three primary colors, red, yellow and blue, form a triad. When using four colors, look for a tetrad, which is two complementary colors and two colors evenly spaced from one of the complementary colors.

A fun little quilter's side tip: Grab the paint sample strips at the paint store where they have color sets. Those are a great little tool for planning out quilt project colors and they're already prematched, you just have to find fabrics that are similar then start cutting and sewing.

Other things you might want to consider when you're planning out a new quilt project is where the quilt will go. If it's a gift you may wish to choose shades of the recipient's favorite color as the main color in the quilt design. You might decide to match a quilt's colors to the theme of a room that it will be displayed in.

If you're still not sure what colors you want to use for your quilt project you can always pick up a pattern suggestion and follow it specifically. Another fun option is to put together a scrappy quilt, like we mentioned earlier, where you put together a quilt using scraps of many different kinds of fabric and they really aren't even supposed to match.

Whatever you do, have fun and enjoy your quilting project!

Learn more about how to get started quilting at http://www.squidoo.com/beginnerquilting

For some quilting and patchwork project ideas check out the Encyclopedia of Quilting and Patchwork Techniques for fantastic ideas and detailed how to sections on various techniques.

Play Food - Free Felt Potato Chips Pattern

Here is my next installment on how to make faux food - potato chips made out of vanilla colored craft felt. You can make these very easily by hand sewing them or you can make them by machine sewing them...the choice is yours. You can make your chips in a variety of sizes or make them all the same size.

Supplies Needed:

Vanilla colored craft felt
Vanilla colored embroidery floss
Scissors
Sewing Needle

Pattern: I hand drew an oval shape on a piece of paper and used it for my pattern. You can also trace around a real potato chip to get your pattern.

You will first want to cut out your 2 matching oval shapes from vanilla colored craft felt. Using 3 strands of vanilla colored embroidery floss, hand sew vertical lines (stitches) on each oval piece of felt. These lines will represent the ripples in your potato chips. Once you have done that to both ovals, place your 2 ovals together with the wrong sides touching. Using 2 strands of vanilla colored embroidery floss, whip stitch the two ovals together. If you pull your stitches semi-tightly, it will cause your felt chip to curl up a bit...to give you the natural shape of the chip.

If desired, skip the hand sewing and use your sewing machine which saves a lot of time.

You can find additional free patterns for felt food ---> HERE

Happy Crafting,
Shelly

FREE Crochet Plarn Round Coaster Pattern

Today I am sharing with you how I made a round coaster using plarn (yarn made from plastic store bags) and by crocheting using double crochet stitches.

Click Here for a you tube video on how to make plarn.
Click Here for a web site that will teach you how to make plarn.

To make this round coaster, you will need 2 grocery store plastic shopping bags and you will want to cut your strips into 3/4" wide sections. I used a size H crochet hook to make this coaster.

You will want to start off by chain stitching 6 stitches, slant stitch into first stitch to form a ring.

RND 1. Chain 3 and make 15 DC in the ring, join with a slant stitch to the top of the chain 3.

RND 2. Chain 3 (counts as first DC), DC in next 2 stitches, 2 DC in next stitch, DC in next 2 stitches, 2 DC in next stitch (repeat around) then in the last stitch, make 1 DC, slant stitch in the top of chain 3.

RND 3. Chain 3 (counts as first DC), 1 DC in each of the next 2 stitches, 2 DC in next stitch, repeat around and then end by adding 2 DC in the very last stitch. Slant Stitch into the top of the chain 3 stitch and fasten off. Weave in your ends.

You now have a round plarn coaster that will fit under your standard sized drinking glasses and coffee mugs. To clean: just rinse under tap water.


You can find more FREE Plarn crochet patterns here on my web site by clicking --> HERE

Happy Crocheting! I will be adding more plarn patterns so keep checking back or follow my blog using Google Friend Connect.

Crochet Plarn Placemat Pattern - Reusing Plastic Grocery Bags

Here is my Trash to Treasure project for July. You will want to save all of your plastic retail and grocery store shopping bags to make this project. Once you have 35-40 plastic bags saved, you can make some plarn and crochet a placemat.

I made 4 placemats for my brother for them to use in their camping trailer and I made a 5th one for him to use under his dog food dish for his dog. Plarn is made out of plastic shopping bags and once you make your plarn, you can crochet with it. These placemats are super easy to make and all you have to do is rinse them under some tap water to clean them up.

Click Here for a you tube video on how to make plarn.
Click Here for a web site that will teach you how to make plarn.

For these placemats, each one took about 40 plastic bags to make. I used a size J crochet hook and simply made them with single crochet stitches.

To Start the Plarn Placemat:

I simply made 58 chain stitches, I then did a SC in the second chain from my hook and single crochet in each stitch across. Once I got to the end, I chained one, turn and then SC in each stitch across. You will repeat this pattern until your placemat reaches the size that you desire. Mine are 40 rows high for the regular placemats and for the pet dish bowl placemat, I did 36 rows high.

You can make the placemats as wide or as high that you would like to make them.

Scrapbooking - 5 Creative Ways To Scrapbook Sports

5 Creative Ways to Scrapbook Sports by Dawn Stegall

Are you a (insert sport of choice here) mom?

If so, chances are you have tons of pictures of your child(ren) just waiting to be scrapped. Or perhaps you have been faithfully attending games/events for so long that you know longer take your camera. Either way, here are a few ideas to get you scrapping those sports memories.

The first thing we tend to think of when it comes to scrapbooking sports are action shots. You want to capture the swing of the bat that caused the game-winning home run. Or the "shoot-score!" A word of caution for you new moms, the first score/shot/finish/etc. is priceless. You don't want to miss it because you were waiting behind the lens of a camera. You don't know how long you will wait, a game, a season, several seasons.

Chances are once the first one has happened; they will have a new found confidence to spring forth many more to come! Be sure to capture other action shots along the way-dribbling, running, kicking, swimming, whatever it may be. Just capture the "essence" of the sport. There are many things that lead up to the ultimate shot/moment, so be sure to capture those things as well.

Secondly, create a layout based on the determination and practice necessary to get in the game. Oftentimes, more hours are spent in preparation and practice than actually playing the game or doing the sport. Capture these moments-doing drills, doing the same step over and over again. My niece is a cheerleader. One day she was practicing her back handsprings. Over and over with spotting from her mother, until finally she could do it and on her own! Imagine a page capturing the attempts and finally being able to do it. A lesson learned! This is powerful stuff for a child's self-esteem. You can turn back to this layout any time your child needs some reassurance that he/she can do it!

Next, capture the emotion of the sport. There are many emotions involved-happy times, low times, a time of sheer determination, frustration and a myriad of other emotions. Forget the body shot, zoom in on their face and capture their emotion. Ask them afterwards what they were thinking and feeling and include it in your journaling.

Gather inspiration from the sports page in your local newspaper. Or better yet, if their team was featured, cut it out, spray it with archival safe spray and include in your layout. Use newspaper like headlines as titles for your page. "Warriors beat out Panthers, 3-1" or "Hawks soar to new heights." Okay, these are off the top of my head, but hopefully you get the idea.

Finally, ask your child why they play the sport? Their answer might surprise you. Whatever their answer may be, play it up. If they answered, "competitiveness", then find(or take) a photo of them really fighting for the ball.

Or if they said, "style or elegance", capture a beautiful plie. Use these single words as titles and include the definition as an embellishment.

Scrapbooking sports is more than the "official" team photos and posed shots. Get into the game, get creative! Capture some action, dedication, emotion and the whys. What are you going to capture next?

Need answers to more of your scrapbooking questions? Dawn Stegall povides 102 of them at 102 Scrapbooking Ideas - Articles.

Darling Paper Mache Handpainted Christmas Tree Ornaments Pattern

For the past 7 months I have been participating in an online holiday ornament craft exchange with a few friends. One of my friends in that group made all of us these adoreable handpainted paper mache Christmas Tree ornaments! Oh my...I love the ornament and can't wait to make a few of them myself come fall when I get busy making my holiday ornaments and package toppers.

From looking at the ornament she sent to me, it appears to be a paper mache ornament that she handpainted in metallic red and metallic gold paints. She then went down the sides with some gold glitter glue (on the edges). She used some 3-dimensial puffy paint in red and green and drew squiggle lines & dots on the ornaments side panels. She also glued on some flat-backed red & green plastic gems to add even more sparkly effect. I really like what she did to the top of the ornament...looks like snow fell on it! I am now sure if she uses that fake snow paint or if she used white paint & sprinkled glittered on it while it was still wet.

To finish off the ornament, she used green ribbon and tied it into a bow & accented the bow with a red button with a plastic gem glued in the center.

Now how cute is that???? oh...I just love it!!!

Shelly

Cute Knitted Wine Cork Elf Holiday Ornaments

Here is another great handcrafted holiday ornament knitted by my good friend Darlene. I call the wine cork ornament an elf...but I see others call it a person...just reminds me of a cute little elf I guess LOL.

Darlene used a wine cork, wiggle eyes and a few other things to make him...she also knitted his clothing which I can't knit at all. I asked Darlene where she got the pattern and she gave me the web site which is ---> HERE

Now you can head on over there and print out the pattern and make one for yourself. I think they would be cute hanging on a holiday tree or attached to the top of your holiday christmas packages.

Faux Felt Food - Free Sliced Onions Pattern

Here is my next installment on faux food patterns that you make out of craft felt. These are great items to make for all of your little girls kitchen playsets. This faux food pattern is for sliced onions made out of white craft felt. You can make 3 slices of onions in less than 30 minutes and its completely done with hand sewing techniques.

Here is what you will need to make 3 onion slices:

1/3 sheet of white craft felt
white embroidery floss
sewing needle
scissors
paper template - For mine, I drew a 4", 3" and 2" diameter circles for my pattern and then cut the inside out so that I had a 1/4" wide ring.

You will simply place 2 of your white felt rings together and hand sew them together by first going around the inside diameter with small whip stitches using 2 strands of white embridery floss. Then hand sew the outer edges together using small whip stitches. Fasten off and hide your ends in between the 2 pieces.

You will do this for all of your onion ring slices. I decided to make mine in 3 different sizes...after all, you never get the same size twice if cutting a real onion.

You can find additional free patterns for felt food ---> HERE

Happy Crafting,
Shelly

Adorable Crafty Angel Ornament Pattern

A friend of mine made me this adorable angel ornament and I just love to have handcrafted ornaments on my holiday tree and this one is just too cute! I am not sure where she got the idea from, but I think that you can see pretty easily how to make one for yourself.

From my observation, it looks like she painted a wooden craft stick and then glued 3 rounds of lace around the stick for the angel's dress. She then glued on these gold metallic wings on the backside, spanish moss for the hair, gold pipe cleaner for the halo and finally a gold hanging cord.

How cute is that? I think she is adorable!

Happy Crafting!

Shelly

5 Ways To Enhance Your Cross Stitch Project With Different Floss and Fibers

5 Ways to Enhance Your Cross Stitch Project With Different Floss and Fibers by Loretta Oliver

The basic design element of any cross stitch project is the embroidery floss used to create the pattern itself. The DMC and Anchor cotton floss lines provide a beautiful palette of colors to work with, and most designers are, of course, going to use these. But, sometimes you want a little something special in your project, maybe an added touch or two to make your piece different from everyone else's.

That's the great thing about cross stitch as a hobby, it's very adaptable and creative by nature. Yes, you have a pattern in front of you, and instructions, and we all begin with a pile of fabric and thread. However, there are so many ways that you can add a touch of your own pizazz to any project, even if it's from a prepackaged cross stitch kit.

Let's go over a few quick ideas for fiber enhancements.

o Use Kreinik pearl blending filament to go over an area of stitches that you want to stand out with a little extra shine. This is a great technique for accenting things like butterfly wings, it gives flower petals for a dewdrop look, and it can bring new depth to any cotton floss color.

o Swap out a standard floss color for an over dyed floss instead. This gives you a range of depth and detail that helps your project stand out from the crowd. It's also a great technique for jazzing up single color projects like samplers and blackwork projects.

o Swap out a solid color for a Kreinik Metallic, their #4 Very Fine Braid is the right size for this. Stitch with 1 strand of metallic braid instead of 2 strands of cotton floss. This is a fun way to add sparkle to your project and there are a lot of colors available.

o Change the color scheme completely. This one requires a bit more work and creative thinking, but the results can be so worth it. Change a red dragon into a blue dragon, or transform purple flowers into orange ones, use your imagination. Just make sure you use the same tones in a different color and you'll be fine.

o Make it glow in the dark! This is a fairly new option that's available by using the Glow in the Dark thread line from Kreinik threads. There are a few different colors, and of course they all glow in the dark. You can add these blending filaments to just about any project, but they are particularly fun for Halloween cross stitch projects. I've also had some luck adding them to Christmas ornament projects, they stand out on the tree at night even when it's not lit up.

I hope you have some ideas flowing for your next cross stitch project now. Your only limit on what you can do is your imagination. Enjoy your hobby and have fun with it. Just a simple color swap can take a project from nice to amazing.

Loretta Oliver is founder and creator of Stitching the Night Away, and a firm believer that everyone needs a hobby. She is striving to help make cross stitch supplies and information easily accessible to everyone that wants to stitch or find creativity. Stitching the Night Away is also home to a cross stitch forum and various free resources for stitchers since 2001.

Keeping a variety of extra cross stitch supplies on hand, also known in the stitching world as your "stash," is a great idea for any stitcher. With these extras on hand you'll always be ready for that creative spark when the mood strikes to start something new or to make changes to enhance an existing work in progress.

One of the key things for any stitcher to keep in their stash pile is a selection of embroidery floss and cross stitch fibers. Without these elements your fabric will remain a blank canvas, a masterpiece in waiting.

Free Crochet Waffle Stitch Scarf Pattern

I love to sit and crochet, its a great way to unwind in the evenings after a busy day. Last week I took the time to crochet my teenage niece a scarf that she had been wanting for when fall rolls around. I decided to make hers using multi-colored yarn and with the waffle stitch.

To Make the Scarf:

Size G or H Crochet Hook
1 roll (3 1/2 oz. 4-ply acrylic yarn)
Scissors

If you are not familiar with how to do a waffle stitch, here are the instructions:

Crochet Waffle Stitch

You will make a foundation row which contains a multiple of 4 chains plus 1. For my scarf, I chained 21. (4x5 is 20...plus 1)

Row 1: You will want to DC (double crochet) in the 4th chain from your hook and in each chain across. Chain 1 and then turn.

Row 2: Picking up the front loop only of each stitch, SC (single crochet) in first 3 DC, *chain 1, skip next stitch, SC in next 3 DC. Repeat from the * across, ending with chain 1, skip next stitch, SC in last 2 DC and in top of turning chain. A ridge has been made on the right side. Chain 3 and turn.

Row 3: Now you will want to work through both loops of each stitch, skip first SC, DC in next 2 SC, * make a tr (treble stitch) around the bar of the free stitch directly below next chain-1 space; skip the chain-1 space, DC in next 3 SC. Repeat from * across. Chain 1, turn.

You will want to repeat row 2 and row 3 for however long that you would like your scarf to be. Once done, fasten off and weave in your ends.

Finishing: I chose to add some fringe to each short end of my scarf, however, you don't have to add the fringe if you don't want it. One roll of yarn (3 1/2 ounce roll) is enough to make a 4 3/4" wide by 54" long scarf...not including the 4" long fringe.

Here is a better shot of what a waffle stitch looks like on the scarf.



Happy Crocheting!

Ceramic Craft Supplies - The Bisqueware Barn

If you are looking for bisqueware for all of your ceramic crafting needs, I would like to recommend my friend Donna's online store called The Bisqueware Barn.

The Bisqueware Barn carries all kinds of unfinished ceramic items for your crafting & painting needs. You will find bisqueware items for the kitchen, garden, home decor and holiday items.

All of Donna's items are very affordable and well made. I invite you to check out the Bisqueware Barn today!

Trash To Treasure - Reusing Wire Hangers Craft Project

Years ago my great auntie taught me how to re-use those nasty wire hangers into something better to hang my clothing on...you see, I have a thing for nasty wire hangers, I absolutely hate them! Great auntie showed me how to use my scraps of yarn and to crochet around the wire hanger so that its now somewhat padded but the great thing about this is that I can hang my tank tops, nighties, etc. on them and they don't slip off! Why pay money for velvet coated non-slip hangers when you can save a few wire hangers from your local landfill?

Personally, I am a plastic & wooden hanger gal...but our local dry cleaners still use the wire ones so I end up with a lot of wire hangers. I will not throw them into the garbage & junk up our landfills with them so I like to turn them into craft projects...such as this project from my great auntie.

You will need a size H or J crochet hook and some 3 or 4-ply acrylic yarn. I like to use my scrap yarn for these type of projects because it doesn't take a lot of yarn to make one.

I started at the neck of the hanger and attached my yarn firmly with a single crochet. I then worked myself down the neck of the hanger and around it until I reached the neck again. I then fastened off my yarn and weaved in the ends. When I say work around the hanger, you will simply use single crochet stitches the whole way around it. Now you can use solid color yarn or you can use the multi-color yarn like I did...I just think it looks prettier. I did use a tad of tacky glue on the end of the hanger (neck area) just to keep the yarn in place and so it wouldn't unravel.

Like I said earlier, these hangers are now great to hang your tank tops, lingerie, night gowns, etc. on because the yarn has enough traction to it to keep things from slipping off the hanger.

Yeah! You can now keep those nasty wire hangers out of your local landfill.

Quick & Easy Angel Ornament Made With A Craft Stick!

I participate in a fun little craft group online (4 members) where each month we make homemade ornaments and send them to one another. One of the members in our little craft ornament swap group, made me this sweet and cute Angel Ornament out of a wooden craft stick (tongue depressor), acrylic paints, ribbon, etc.

She found the pattern idea online at Thrifty Fun where you can go and print out the pattern/instructions yourself and make a few! I think they are so sweet and would be great on the holiday tree or as package toppers. I am going to try to make a few myself next month which is when I usually start my holiday crafting.

Happy Crafting!

Review - Creativity for Kids - Craft Kits - Enchanted Garden Stones

I recently obtained a Creativity for Kids Craft Kit to make their Enchanted Garden Stones and couldn't wait to try it out so a few days ago my hubby and I finally got busy with the craft kit.

This kit is for kids...but trust me, your kids will need adult help and supervision. The kit comes with everything you will need to make the 4 enchanted garden stones except for the water.

This project can be messy so make sure you lay down old newspaper or a plastic drop cloth onto your table before beginning. You will only want to mix up the mix one at a time to make one stone at a time as it hardens pretty quickly. We decided to add some of our own goodies to them to decorate them besides what came in the kit.

You can make your own designs/shapes or use their templates that come in the kit, the choice is yours. Since we love the beach and decorate our front & back yards in a nautical theme...we chose to make nautical theme'd stones except for the heart one which is for my great auntie who loves heart shapes.

Overall...hubby and I enjoyed making them! The only draw back with this kit is that your garden stones can break easily so I would not put them out in the yard in a busy area...put them in a semi-protected area.



Fun project for both kids and adults!

Shelly

Must Have - Home Sewing Box Essentials Check List

As a work at home mother and grandmother, I often don't have a lot of time to mend clothing when the need arises here in our home. When I did find the time, I often didn't have the supplies on hand that I needed so I would end up delaying the mending of the clothing item(s) that needed to be repaired.

To solve this problem, I sat down one Saturday afternoon and went through my sewing box. I then made a list of everything that I felt I needed to have on hand to handle all of those mending emergencies. On Sunday, I headed out to our local fabric store and picked up everything on my list. Once I got back home, I sorted through everything and organized it.

The very first thing you need is a good sewing box that has organizational features. The one that I own is heavy duty plastic and inside is four lift-out trays. These trays all have removable dividers so I can customize them to suit my own needs.

Here is a list of the basic sewing items you will need to complete your sewing box.

1. Sewing Thread (Basic Colors) - white, black, brown, red, green, yellow, orange, tan
2. Needles - various lengths and tips
3. Straight Pins - one box of pins (I prefer rust-proof pins)
4. Measuring Tape
5. Scissors - I recommend a high quality pair of fabric scissors
6. Buttons - You will want to stay stocked with various colors and sizes of buttons
7. Safety Pins - I recommend various sizes in both silver tone and gold tone metals
8. Seam Ripper - Every good sewing box needs a great seam ripper tool.
9. Needle Threader - Even if you have great eye sight, a needle threader can save you precious time when you are in a hurry.
10. Iron-on Patches - I keep white, black, denim, navy, tan and brown iron-on patches in my sewing box at all times.
11. Fabric Glue - If you are in a hurry and need a quick fix, you can hem a pair of pants or fix a seam with a few dabs of fabric glue.
12. Thimble - Protect your fingertips and invest in a good thimble.

Now, if you are a seamstress, you should also keep on hand various colored zippers, zipper pulls, elastic (various widths and lengths), buckles, etc.

Once you sit down and go through your sewing supplies and organize them, you will find that you will tackle those home mending projects more quickly. Keeping a well stocked sewing box saves time and energy and your family will thank you for keeping their favorite clothing hanging in their closets instead of on your mending pile.

This article was written by Shell Hill, copyright 2010, All Rights Reserved. This article can not be reprinted without my permission. Thanks!

Quick and Easy - July 4th Scrapbooking Layout

When it comes to scrapbooking, often times crafters think that scrapbooking takes a lot of time and money...which is a misconception! You can scrapbook quick, easy and low-cost pages that look nice too! Case in point....this 20 minute page that my mom did last summer which features 2 snap shots of my daughter, grand daughter and mother in law at the July 4th picnic in 2009.

My mother wanted a red, white and blue color scheme but didn't want it to be over-whelming so she used a piece of 12x12 white cardstock for her background. She matted the 2 photos onto navy blue & white printed scrapbooking paper and mounted them to her page. Using my Cricut and some scraps of red & white printed paper, she cut out her title which is simply...July 4th and mounted that at the top of her page. Using a scrap of the navy blue paper, she cut out a star and used that as an accent.

Using scraps of red cardstock, she cut out 3 more stars and 3 small rectangles. She used scraps of navy blue paper and framed those red rectangles so that she could turn them into firecrackers. She mounted them all at the bottom of the page and used her pen to make little wicks on top of the fire crackers. You could add a journaling block or tag if you wanted different or more embellishments. You could scale the rectangles and stars to various sizes using your Cricut!

As you can see, her layout didn't take a lot of time...its fast, easy and best of all, frugal!

Happy Scrapbooking!

How To Make An Easy Homemade Window Topper Curtain

A friend of mine just moved into a new apartment and didn't have a lot of money to run out and get some new window treatments, so she asked me to help her to make some simple window toppers aka curtains for some of her windows.

So, we went out to our local fabric store and she purchased some cotton blend fabrics that were on sale for $1.99 a yard.

Measurements: We measured her windows and added on 10" to the width to allow for seam allowances & trimming. For the length, we added on 12" to allow for seam allowances and the curtain rod pocket. You can make them however long that you want, as you can see from the photo, hers are 1/3 of her window length as she says a lot of sunlight comes in that window and she likes to use her mini blinds.

You will need:

Coordinating Sewing Thread, Scissors, Tape Measure, Sewing Machine, Iron & Ironing Board, Sewing Supplies

We decided to cut our fabric first and allowed 10" extra inches on our width and 12" extra inches on our length (see above). We then ironed back our seams on 2 of the width edges and on the bottom hem edge. We folded the fabric back by 2 1/2" on the width and then folded it again by 2 1/2" so that the raw edge was hidden in the fold. She then used her sewing machine and sewed a straight edge down each of the width sides of the fabric. Using the iron, we ironed under 1" and then 1 1/2" on the bottom edge (raw edge hidden in the ironed fold) and she used a straight stitch to hem them up. You want to do the ironed folds along your seam lines to hide all raw edges which protects from fraying during washing/drying.

She had a simple white metal curtain rod that measured approx. 1 1/4" in depth, so we added on a 1/2" so that the rod would slide smoothly thru the pocket. Your next step is to sew the curtain rod pocket which she did by folding over approximately 5 or 6" of the fabric and using a straight stitch with her sewing machine, she made a curtain rod pocket.

Now, if you want them fuller or more ruffling to them, double the width of your fabric measurement.

As you can see, they are very simple and easy to make. She is going to use them while she is saving up some money to get more elaborate window treatments.

Happy Sewing!

Shelly