handmade ornaments.

I have been inspired to have a handmade/repurposed Christmas this year. I'm really trying to make things instead of buying them and I'm finding that there is a great deal of satisfaction in doing so. I've been crafting and making gifts late into the night with a dear friend, the enjoyment of crafting made even better by good company, meaningful conversation, and hot tea.

In keeping with the handmade theme of this Christmas I have been making some handmade ornaments most of which have been inspired by this post. This is my simplified version of her Book Page Bird Ornament. I simplified it because I didn't have some of the supplies she used. I also don't have a lot of patience...

My first step was to pester Mr. Gardner about letting me cut up one of his old books {this is tantamount to asking him if I could cut up one of his children}. After some deliberation, he said I could have this book that he had only bought because it was old (circa 1936) which he said he would never read. As you can see the pages are beautifully aged.

Using the bird template from the previously mentioned blog post, I began tracing and cutting. I did have to make my own wing template because there was not one provided. Fortunately, they turned out looking fairly anatomically correct.

Then I distressed the edges with an ink pad and glued the wing to the bird with my son's glue stick :)
Next, I flipped the whole bird over and stuck a cheap ornament hook through the paper. I had to experiment a little with placement so that the bird was not bottom heavy...that wouldn't fly {pun intended}...
Once I had the placement right, I used another wing template and glued it onto that side, matching it up with the wing on the other side.

Done!

I'm afraid we don't have a Christmas tree to model it on....I'll post a picture of our tree when it's up.
Aren't they sweet? They won't last long in this house...

advent tree

I love the idea of having an advent calendar. I have some fond childhood memories of opening the little doors as the anticipation of Christmas Day grew through the month. We haven't ever done one in our home, mostly because it would require planning on my part, but I've been wanting to start some traditions as the boys get older.

So...when I saw this advent calendar tutorial over at maya made that she crafted out of toilet paper tubes I was smitten. Two days after I posted a link on facebook and lamented about how I didn't have enough tubes, I had two bags full of toilet paper tubes donated to the cause (Thanks Pam!)

So I got to work on them. I followed the directions precisely, except that I didn't paint the tubes 1. because I like the brown cardboard and 2. because I didn't have any paint. I also added squares of wintery scrapbook paper I had on hand to the doors. They turned out darling, and I've hidden little tickets with special things to do with my boys behind each door. So far we've had hot chocolate with "mushrooms" (marshmallows), and "helped" mama make some cookies.

The wonderful thing about this calendar is that it gives the gift of time to my little ones. Each day I'm reminded to do something special with them...

What better gift could I give them?

adventures in thrifting.

I've found some great new blogs lately...most of them I have found through these two sites dedicated to repurposing and DIY home decorating.

So, freshly inspired, I went thrifting last week and came back with these little treasures:

Two sage green linen Pier One curtains that I put in my living room....Ohhh, the lovely filtered light. Total cost: $2

A very vintage looking mirror which is now in my dining room. I haven't cleaned it because I kind of like the streaks...they add character. Total cost $6

I bought some assorted vintage sheets and pillowcases, with the intention of using some of the fabric as wall art in old picture frames, and using several of the pillowcases for a redecorating makeover for our Master Bedroom. Total cost: $10

I used some fabric from my vintage sheet to put in my mirror/key hook near my front door (which was also thrifted last winter for $9...it was missing one of the glass frame pieces, which I just replaced with glass from another thrifted 4x6 frame). I had photographs in the frames, but they just didn't do much for me. This looks much better, I think. Total cost: just a fraction of the cost of the sheet.

I found this cute little white frame, and was able to overlook its contents...unlike Mr. Gardner, whose only comment was "Two ducks...really?" (I think they're geese, Love...)

(Sorry about the bad lighting in the photo above BTW...)

So, the next morning, I cut out some of the vintage sheet fabric and put it in the picture frame...and it looked much better without the ducks...er, geese. Total cost: $2I bought another frame and....you guessed it, put some vintage sheet fabric in it...what can I say? I really liked this sheet! This wall art is hanging in a previously very bare spot between the kitchen and dining room. Total cost $3

These last two things, I picked up for Mr. Gardner's study.
I don't know what this is called, but it has lots of gauges on it, and looks like it belongs in a man-cave. Total cost: $3
I found these three boxes of vintage bookplates...150 total. A totally sweet deal for my bibliophile husband. I was totally excited to find these for him because I'd been looking for bookplates some and they were pretty pricey. Total cost: $0.99

Have I mentioned that I love thrifting?

More to come on the Master Bedroom makeover...I'll have to make the bed first.

yogurt update.

Well, I made my first two quarts of homemade vanilla yogurt yesterday, and they turned out fairly well. Actually, judging from how fast the first quart disappeared, they turned out very well! The yogurt didn't turn out thick enough for me, but Mr. Gardner and the boys enjoyed drinking theirs (this first batch would be perfect for smoothies!) When we lived overseas, we actually bought yogurt with exactly the same consistency, it was sold in a cup and you drank it...so Mr. Gardner and I were having flashbacks!

Anyway, next time I make it, I will let the yogurt sit longer in the cooler and see if that helps the jars set up better. I think I'll try another batch soon (first I need to get a bigger stockpot to boil my canning jars), and post some pictures when I finally get it the way I want it...if there's any left!

homemade yogurt.

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I'm thinking about trying this recipe for homemade yogurt from fellow blogger-&-frugal-girl-extrodinaire-Kristen. I'll bet it's really yummy, and quite a lot cheaper than buying yogurt at the store. Plus, you KNOW there are live, active cultures in this stuff if you grew it yourself...

*wink*

what i did today...

Last night, as I was going to bed, I looked over at the lone dresser in our bedroom, which was buried under piles of magazines, diapers, and articles of clothing, and resolved that today, if I did nothing else, I would clean it off. Oh, and I would finish the load of laundry that has been "soaking" in the washer....

So after the boys ate breakfast, and I did the dishes, and tidied the kitchen, and took out the trash, and changed a couple poopy diapers, and fed the dog, and got everyone dressed, I stood in front of the dresser and began the daunting task of removing and sorting the accumulated junk.

AsI did, I found a pair of my favorite earrings...which reminded me that I've really been wanting to make an earring frame for all my earrings (I got the idea from a dear friend, who got it from apartment therapy, I think...) I bought a frame at the thrift store about a month ago and just needed some screen to hang in it. So, I left the mess, and proceeded to go outside to cut a ruined screen out of one of our windows. Fifteen minutes later, I had this little project finished...

But still had a mess on my dresser.

Which I took care of.

But the clothes are still in washer...tomorrow, perhaps?

reversible baby booties.

Ok, these are the most darling little booties...EVER.

I have wanted to make them for a long, long time, and I finally made them for a friend with a brand new little boy. I am so excited about them that I'm posting the pictures of them before I give them to her (I don't think she knows I blog...yet). I must say that the tutorial I followed from crafting blog maked out of Canada was really, REALLY good. So good, in fact, that I was actually able to figure out how to make them...that's saying something! And I figured out how to make them in an evening, with "help" from my three children. The house is an absolute disaster as a result...but these darling little booties sitting on my kitchen table make everything worth it.

A couple of notes:

I used a light quilting cotton pattern for one side, and a rich brown flannel for the other. While I was looking around for fabric ideas, I saw some made out of old embroidered tea towels that were, well...amazing (I'll have to keep an eye out for old tea towels when thrifting). I also saw some with corduroy for the bottoms, which would be great if you were making them for an older child who actually used their feet...

Which brings me to the next thing; these are incredibly tiny. Way smaller than I thought. They are definitely newborn size. I took some pictures of them in my hand, to show just how small they are. So tiny...so darling!

Here they are with the brown flannel side out...

make you own...

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With three sons, I've been going through baby wipes like there's no tomorrow, and they're not cheap. Lately, several of my friends have been making their own (and raving about how great they are), so I thought I'd find a recipe and try them out soon. I need to run to the natural food store to get some of the ingredients (I think I might try some organic baby wash and essential oil in mine...either lavender or tea tree oil). And here's a link to a tutorial on how to make the lovely wipe case cover shown above...to put your homemade wipes in...

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I also ran across this recipe for home-made deodorant on a great little blog I just discovered. I've (unsuccessfully) tried several all-natural deodorants before because I've heard the aluminum that is in EVERY anti-perspirant is not good for you. So I think I will whip this up and see if it works. It's made with coconut oil, so it has to smell pretty good...

make your own grocery totes...

I have decided to start posting links to blogs, etc. that I am enjoying every now and then to my page. I rarely actually get to do projects, or even update my blog, and it seems to me that one of the greatest things about blogging is sharing the wealth of amazingly creative ideas that are out there. So here is a link to a tutorial from this blog for these sweet recycled grocery totes. I would just love to make these...sometime...

felted sweater hat and mittens

I've been fascinated lately with all the amazing things people make out of felted sweaters. I had no idea people actually shrunk wool sweaters on purpose to make things out of them. I've been itching to try some of the projects I've found online and scouring local thrift stores looking for felting candidates (the sweater needs to be 80% wool or higher in order to felt well). I found a few the other day, one of which was 100% new wool and hand knit in Ireland...just lovely. I felt a twinge of remorse as I threw it in the washer on hot and then in the dryer. Sure enough, it came out about one third of it's original size and REALLY thick (my thumb started going numb from trying to cut through it with my little scissors)













Next, I got to work finding patterns online. I decided on this one. I must offer this caveat, though: I never, ever follow patterns or recipes...even if I want to. I did all the measuring and made a template and cut all the pieces and sewed a few together, only to find that the hat was hanging down to my nose and would have been WAY to big for my head, if I had used all the pieces. So, I only used four of the five pieces I cut, and then turned the cuff of the hat under and hemmed it so it didn't cover my eyes.

For the mittens, I found a lot of patterns, but thought the simplest way to make them would be to use the cuff of the sleeves of the sweater for the cuff of my mittens. So I put my hands in the sleeves the wrong way and then traced the outline of the mitten where my fingers were. The sleeves had shrunk so much they almost weren't long enough for my hands. Then I turned them inside out and stitched a very small seam around the raw edges (which was not easy because the felt was THICK...my poor sewing machine had a rough time...but we made it through).

I really like the finished products, especially the mittens. The seams are a little annoying because they are so thick, but they are very WARM and look oh, so nice. Wish I had enough for a scarf...

quilt

Finally finished this blanket for one of my dearest friends who had her third child about a month ago. The sex of her baby was a surprise, so I waited till she delivered to start (that's how I justify it taking so long...) Technically it's not really a quilt, because there's no batting in between the layers...it's more like a glorified receiving blanket. But it's patchwork and it looks like a quilt so that's what I've been calling it...

I thought it turned out well, for a first attempt. The squares of the various fabrics were already cut and came pre-packaged, for which I was grateful. It's not always easy for me to pick out complementary fabrics for this sort of thing, although I think I'm getting better at it.

I didn't have the time or dedication to hand quilt it, so I machine- sewed down the the middle section of squares in one direction to keep the layers together. The backing is just a chocolate colored twin sized sheet I found on clearance, cut to size and used to bind the edges.

One final note: I finally bought a rotary cutter and mat for this project, and can now say, with conviction, that they are most definitely necessary tools for any sort of quilting.

chairs

I've been wanting to re-upholster this pair of chairs I bought at a yard sale several years ago. I had a few fabric options, but couldn't commit to them for some reason.

I found some fabric that I really liked this week and it really seemed to fit the chairs. So here are my "new" old chairs...love them!