Dry Erase Marker Board

The hardest part about this project was deciding which print to use for the background. I used scrap booking paper, but you can use fabric like www.makeit-loveit.com or even wrapping paper. Whatever print you like, use it! (but make sure the background isn't too dark so you can see what you write :)

I bought a 20" x 16" wooden picture frame for $4 from a thrift store (it displayed an ugly picture, but I liked the size of the frame). Took it home, spray painted it with espresso colored spray paint. Once it dried, I used an old sponge to dab on some black paint around the edges giving it more of a dimensional look instead of just flat paint.

I used a 12x12 scrapbook page for the center, then cut down a couple other coordinating pages to fit around it, giving it a border. Once I got it all lined up, I glued it straight to the original ugly picture it came with. Then I cut out one of the figures from another page (butterfly), took some scizzors and snagged around the edges giving it a rugged look. I took my sponge with a little bit of black residue and ran it around the edges, ever so slightly. I glued it on along with a little saying from a book of vellum quotes I had laying around.

Using small circles of self-sticking velcrow, (ya know, the kind that are pre-cut with adhesive on the back?) I put the soft side on a dry erase marker and the rough side on the frame. Since I'll be using this often to leave my husband his 'Honey-Do' list, I thought it'd only be appropriate to make a coordinating eraser. I folded up a cloth napkin, strapped on a rubberband, and tied some ribbon around it. I put the soft side of another velcrow circle to the back side of the ribbon, and the rough side to the top of the frame. [These velcrow thingys might need reinforcing with hot glue] This way, I can take off the ribbon and rubberband to wash the cloth napkin.
Works like a charm and SO easy to make!
Try one!

Super Easy Memo Board

I would have taken pictures of this in the making, but my camera was dead at the time, so I only have pics of the outcome. I'll most likely be making more of these in the future so I'll post a better tutorial later.

MATERIALS:
*A wooden board. I used plywood about 1/4" thick and 12" X 15", but you can always improvise.
*1/2 yard of Batting (it's that flat stuffing used in the middle of blankets. Gives it some cushion for the pushin')
*1/2 yard of fabric
*Ribbon
*Buttons
*Sass (I used a flower)
*Frame or Ruffle of some sort (I sewed a ruffle with some extra fabric scraps I had laying around.)
*Staple gun & staples

Lay your fabric face-down and place the batting over it. Lay down your wood piece on top, then using a staple gun, staple the fabric around the edges of the back side. Don't forget to tuck in the edge of fabric so it doesn't fray later on AND pull the fabric very snug. Then place where you want your pieces of ribbon to lay and cut accordingly. Staple them around the backside. PULL TIGHT. You can put a frame around it if you have a perfect sized one, but I prefer a ruffle. (I made my own with some extra material. Scrunch and sew, scrunch and sew method :) Then attach your ruffle around the backside with the staple gun. I LOVE me a STAPLE GUN! Then hot glue on your buttons and sass it up with a flower, glitter, or whatever little trinkets you've been wanting to use for something special. (Here's your big chance!) Hammer on one of those snaggle-tooth things to the back and hang up on the wall. TaDa! Super easy memo/picture board!



CUTE IDEA! ...make a Christmas themed one and use it to display all the holiday greeting cards you get in the mail.

Button Pillow Tutorial

Inspired by "Make it & Love it" (Blog link under My Faves), I made this button pillow. It was easy and sewing on all the buttons didn't take too long since they're all connected on the back. It gives some texture to the fabric and was fun to create a not-your-average pillow :)

The fabric I bought to use for a throw pillow is kinda busy and it did not show off the buttons very well. "Make it & Love it" used all the same buttons, but since I like to mix things up, I used different sized and colored buttons. I cut out a square from an over-sized blouse (which I bought only because I liked the fabric and knew I wanted to use it for something someday. That was 2 years ago.) and hand sewed the buttons one by one with thick crafting string.
This is what the backside should look like...
I then cut out 2 squares (front & back side of the pillow) from the (busy) fabric I originally planned on using. I folded the square diagonally and cut across the fold, then folded it again diagonally, and cut across that fold. This creates 4 triangles.


Then I sewed the top and bottom pieces to the middle button piece, and repeated with the side pieces. Then I connected all 4 pieces by sewing down the diagonal line on all 4 corners. Does that make sense?

This is what the backside looks like once the 4 triangles are all connected to the middle button piece.

Once you've finished the front piece, sew onto the back square piece by placing the two pieces facing each other and sewing around the edges, but leave a hole big enough to turn it rightside out. Double stitch just to be safe.

Turn rightside out, push out the corners, and it's ready for stuffing. Hand stitch up the opening and VWALLA!...a perfect button pillow.
Love adding a splash of color to my boring brown living room.

Hand Scrub Table

TaDa! Sassy, Classy, and Pink! I put on this display at my sister-in-law's baby shower. It was a total hit! Really didn't take too much time or money to put on.

I got the recipes online (I chose 2 to keep it simple), but to my surprise, I had to mod them quite a bit. Whatever recipes you choose, make sure you try them ahead of time! I used baby oil instead of olive oil because, well, it just smells better. (and if you're doing this for a baby shower, what could be more appropriate?) I tried my recipes with olive oil and not only was it expensive, it STUNK! Even after I added my essential oil, it still had that lingering, bitter smell. So stick with baby oil, and I promise you'll be pleased. Once I got the recipes just right, I printed them out, cut the edges with fancy scissors, and glued to some scrapbook & construction paper. Don't forget to add sass! I also added a piece of cardboard to the back to keep em' sturdy since I displayed them on plate stands.


*I used whatever glass dishes I had laying around and borrowed the rest.
*Tied coordinating ribbons wherever I possibly could (Can you tell I love ribbon?? What crafty person doesn't?)
*Made labels for each ingredient. (I taped them on last)
*provided about 60+, 4 oz plastic GLAD containers with lids. You can buy a pack of 8 at Walmart for $3 and some change. Don't forget spoons for mixing!

*Included white sticky labels and black permanent markers so everyone could mark their own.
*Each glass had it's own proper measuring spoon according to the recipe. I.e., Tablespoon in Oatmeal, 1/2 teaspoon in cinnamon.
*Note the solid light pink, plastic tablecloth in top picture under the polka dotted, fabric one. SO easy for cleanup! Wadd and dump.
*Not in the picture: I hung a sign on the wall that said, "One per person please" just to make there are enough for all who wants one. In past experience, let's just say, people can get hand-scrub-happy.

Enjoy!

P.S. Here are the recipes I came up with...
(These are small-portion recipes for parties. Neither should be used on your face)
VANILLA CINNAMON SUGAR SCRUB:
2 Tbs Sea Salt
2 Tbs Brown Sugar
1-2 Tbs Baby Oil
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract

TANGERINE BODY BREAKFAST:
2 Tbs Brown Sugar
2 Tbs Oatmeal (ground up in food processor)
1-2 Tbs Baby Oil
3 drops Tangerine essential oil

SASSY, yet SAVVY wedding decor ideas

These pics are from my sister, Chandelle's wedding last month. My other sister, Chalice, gathered ideas and got all the stuff to make it happen...with the help of 2 more sisters, Chelsea and Lacey, they all made it look fabulous!(I just helped decorate and put it together - the best part :) Great ideas girls!

Her colors were black, red, and white- so anything and everything over the course of a few months, she picked up and collected. This is a simple $20 Ramada we spruced up with some sheer fabric from SAS. The inside is lined with white outdoor lights (you can't tell) and the little red tables she got at IKEA for $6 (i think). She made all the throw pillows, and other furniture items she brought from her house. Pictures of the bride & groom with other odds and ends helped to make it feel like a cozy nook. The pictures really don't do justice.


A table she brought from home, red table runner cloth, small water fountain, digital picture frame, long rectangle candle with multiple wicks, and of course, a black & red tissue box (she thinks of everything). The wedding was at night, so these things really stood out beautifully.

She bought this chair at a yard sale and refinished it with black satin fabric. She made a sexy lookin' pillow with rhinestones to sass it off. Looks fab!

I love this idea. She brought her over-sized brown leather ottoman from home, sewed a simple, but beautiful two piece fabric cover and threw it over the top. Then added some more throw pillows and there you have it! A romantic seating area. This was under another ramada decorated with the same sheer fabric and white lights. It looked stunning lit up in the dark. (I would have taken a picture, but my suck-at-life camera takes terrible pics at night.)

The bride lucked out: her sister-in-law to be is a pastry chef, so she made her cake (for free i think). Surrounding the cake, there are over-sized wine glasses and assorted glass dishes filled with various red, black, and white candy. She borrowed glass dishes and vases from family and friends, as well as bought some super cheap at Savers. Included are small, clear candy bags and little silver scoopers to make your own candy bag- just like the candy store at the mall! (only better :) What a fun and classy way to display a dessert table.

It's not impossible to plan a beautiful, inexpensive wedding.

First Official Photo Shoot

Okay, it's not really official, but I can pretend :) I love photography. Always have. Always will. Oh the things I would do if I just had a good camera! In the meantime, my little Kodak somethin' will have to suffice. I thought it'd be fun to snap some pics of the baby who is unfairly, growing too fast. Actually, my real motivation was to try and win the Kodak baby contest, but when I went to submit, they closed the contest early. RATS! Oh well, I'm sure I wouldn't have won, but it was fun and I got some cute pictures out of it anyway...

Diaper Cake!

I'm putting on a baby shower for my sister-in-law this Friday and made this wonderful creation. I live with 4 boys, so I'm always surrounded with blues and browns, and other neutral earthy colors. I rarely see anything pink. Let me just say I had a blast creating with different shades of pink and girly fabrics. My fave is hot pink! So I used it as much as possible :) without dismissing her nursery themed colors.

Inside the bottom and middle layers is a large bottle of baby lotion and inside the top layer is a 5 oz baby bottle. It took about 60 diapers with a rubberband around each one, lots of ribbon, various baby items (I chose a pacifier, pacifier clip, teething ring, baby rattle, and rubber duck) and fake flowers to add extra sass. I also made a matching baby blanket, but was too big to attach to the cake, so I'll just present it next to it. I forgot to snap a pic of that, so I'll post later. I covered a large plate with some fabric and violla! It's an adorable diaper cake!

I followed these easy directions if you want to make one:
http://www.plan-the-perfect-baby-shower.com/diaper-cake.html
(Sorry, the link insert wouldn't work)