Out Of Chaos...

Together, Stick Family

2010-05-08T08:00:00.000-07:00

This cute little picture was an idea from one of my sister's stamping classes. When I saw the picture that she had created for her sample, I knew that I wanted one. This makes me smile every time I see it. My kids love seeing their stick figure alter ego.

Linking up to:

Love at Home Vinyl

2010-05-07T13:27:00.000-07:00

I am noticing hints of this pretty patina blue creeping into my home. I love this color, and I love the freshness that it adds to my red, green, brown home.

This vinyl design is one that I put together for my friend's cub scout group. They are planning to put it on small wooden plaques for Mother's Day. I had just one left, so I grabbed a black frame, spray painted it and added the paper behind. The vinyl is on the glass. I like the shadowbox effect. Once I had it finished, I had to tone the blue down just a bit with a little brown ink and a sponge.

You are my inspiration Mom

2010-05-06T11:00:00.000-07:00

Just a quick peek at what I am working on for Mother's Day.

I got the idea from Punkin Seed Productions. She has beautiful, hand painted blocks. Hand painting is not my forte' so I used vinyl.

Check out the background for my picture, I thought it looked kinda cool. It is the waxed paper that I paint on. After years of using paper to protect my table, my friend mentioned that she uses waxed paper. It is awesome! I don't have to deal with paper sticking to my projects! and nothing soaks through. It works great for stain, mod podge, paint...

Linking up to:

Countdown to Summer

2010-05-05T20:57:00.000-07:00

Are your kids counting the days until school is out? Mine are. My little ones can't wait to have their brothers and sister home for the summer and my big kids can't wait to sleep in (like that will happen...).

I put these blocks together for my wonderful husband to put in his classroom and one set for my kids to take to their teacher this week for teacher appreciation week.

These are also in my etsy shop.

I am linking up to:

house of hepworths linky party

Just One More Winter Meal (hopefully)

2010-04-28T21:54:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite meals in the winter is chili and cornbread. It doesn't take a terribly long time to make and I love the way it simmers on the stove and smells so good. Even though the last couple of days have been nice and warm --I even mowed the lawn for 4 1/2 hours yesterday-- today it has snowed and rained for the majority of the day. I figured that I could make this meal one more time before spring (wishful thinking really, I am ready for spring!)

When we were married my husband informed me that he didn't like cornbread!?! I couldn't believe it, who doesn't like cornbread? Just kidding, but I was on a quest to find a recipe that we both like. I love to try new recipes and move on, but this one is a keeper! I have used this same recipe for the past several years. It is the BEST!!! (no offense to anyone else who also makes the BEST cornbread).

It is a sweet cornbread which I think balances out the spice of the chili very nicely. Try it, and let me know what you think.

The BEST Cornbread

1/2 cup butter, melted (no substitutions, really why would you want to?)

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 cup cornmeal

1 1/2 cup flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cup milk

Mix butter, sugar and eggs. In a separate bowl combine flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt. Add to the butter mixture, mix just until combined. Add the milk 1/2 cup at a time. The mixture will be quite runny. Pour into a greased 9" pan. Bake at 375 for 40 minutes or until golden brown on top.

We make two pans at a time at our house, and eat it all!

Please excuse my food photography, I am definitely not an accomplished food photographer.

My version of Subway Art

2010-04-25T06:00:00.000-07:00

I love the subway art I have seen around blogland. I thought that something about family and love would be fun. But I knew that as much as I really, truly do enjoy painting, I am not the steadiest with black and white. So this is my version, using vinyl lettering, created for a sister's crafting weekend.

Family, Home, Blessing

2010-04-24T06:00:00.000-07:00

Another Plate, Another Great Thought

This plate and vinyl are available in my etsy shop.

Another Party? Another Magnet Board

2010-04-23T06:00:00.000-07:00

It really wasn't a conscious decision to give magnet boards for all the birthday parties. But it is something that we really like around here and I would rather give something that will last longer than the cheap toys that I can afford to send.

When Collin was invited to a friends party this week, I was excited to be able to sew something for her. But Collin had other plans, he has been watching all of the older kids take magnet boards and he was determined that he would do the same.

He was excited to decorate the gift wrap for this one, and I was so happy to see how well he did. This is a picture of the birthday girl as a princess. I wanted to unwrap the present and keep the picture.

I am linking up to:

Recycled Notebooks

2010-04-22T10:17:00.000-07:00

What to do for preschool today?

Collin, Addy and I made recycled notebooks. We just cut the covers out of recycled cereal and mac'n'cheese boxes. I had a ream of legal size recycled paper that we used for the pages.

Seven sheets of paper was about perfect for my sewing machine. Collin loved sewing them together. He sat in front of me and guided the books side to side.

What fun!

I now have a gallon size ziploc bag full of notebooks and colored pencils in the car now. It has been great. I can't believe how often I pull them out.

Hooked on Building

2010-04-21T10:15:00.000-07:00

This is a blast! If there is anyone out there that still hasn't checked out Ana's site,

do yourself a favor and spend some time there. I have a list of projects that I am itching to start. The first one that called to me was the bankable bookcase and I did it!

My husband helped me out with the cuts on the table saw. Those sheets of wood are Heavy! But other than that, it is my project. I know that he was more than happy to help me out; he is the greatest. But I really wanted to do it by myself.

(wow, that really sounds like Addy, my 2 yr. old.)

Here it is, primed and ready to paint.

Check out my cute shop assistant.

I should have asked for help measuring, I measured where I wanted it about 10 times. I was so worried that it wouldn't fit. Our house is very small, and everything has to fit just right

(like a puzzle).

Guess what? it doesn't fit !?!???

I didn't think to measure the doorway, I wanted to cry. After all that work, I couldn't put it in the closet the right direction. So instead of seeing my cute bookshelf with toys and boys all nicely organized (at least for the picture) I can only see the end. Because of the width of the doorway and the light fixture, I can't turn it. The walls are all dinged up now, too, from my trying.

I thought about moving it to Cort and Chan's bedroom, but after all of Collin's work on it, I couldn't just give his bookshelf away. Maybe after I finish one for each of them, I will have them trade. But for now, we get to enjoy it from the end.

I love this color, it looks great in Collin's room. I wish that I had a better picture

of the finished project, but I didn't bother to take one in my workshop (kitchen)

because I was going to get it once it was in the closet,

oh well... I will do better next time--you better believe there will be a next time.

This is so fun!

Thankful for Dirty Dishes?

2010-03-27T11:29:00.000-07:00

I saw this thought for a kitchen around Thanksgiving time and it really stuck with me, I love that it makes me grateful for the little things that I have--even the chores that I am not grateful for--

I bought a couple of these plates, and think they are so pretty with vinyl on them.

If you would like one, they are in my etsy shop.

I am linking to:

Aaargh! NO THROWING BALLS IN THE HOUSE!

2010-03-26T11:27:00.000-07:00

Yes, I was yelling! Chandler was tossing a racket ball around the living room

(I really don't know why--I guess because he is 11 and a boy).

I was in the kitchen very calmly reminding... "do you really think that is a good idea?"... when the ball bounced off my window, my favorite window, the HOME window. I watched in horror as everything fell in slow motion. the window slid down the wall, toppled over the entertainment center, knocked the decorations over, bounced off Chandler's head (I had a hard time not telling him that it served him right), and tumbled to the floor- followed by all my decorations.

Would you believe that NOTHING broke? not even Chandler's head?

Now the window is propped against the wall waiting to be re-hung. I have got to find some stronger hardware, any suggestions?

(I must get it hung up quickly,

Addyson has already tried to climb it like a ladder!)

Playing with my new toy.

2010-03-25T19:58:00.000-07:00

I just got a band saw, what a fun toy that I never thought that I would need/want. I remember when I dragged my feet when my husband wanted to buy his chop saw. I am not sure, but I think that I may have used it almost as much as he has. Now I have collected more fun "toys" than he has!

My first project that I cut is these Easter Eggs. Inspiration via Lyndsey.

She has great ideas. You ought to check out her blog.

Linking up to:

A Few of my Favorite Things...

2010-02-17T23:09:00.000-08:00

Have you seen these? I love the idea and when I sat down to make some for a friend; I decided that I wanted a set for myself.

I planned to add the photo holder wires, in fact they are cut and shaped already. But I couldn't find the proper drill bit. I tied a large grosgrain ribbon around the blocks, and decided that I liked it just like that.

I will probably add the wires at some point but right now, they are fine. I think that I like the more subtle designs better with the pictures, my papers are so busy...I love the designs but I think that is why I like them better without photos...

Do you want a set for yourself or possibly a gift? I would be happy to cut the vinyl for you for a minimal cost. Just send me an e-mail.

New/Old Window

2010-02-16T22:51:00.000-08:00

Do you remember this window? I love it! Of course I can't keep the Christmas wreaths up there. So it was time (a little while ago) for a change. I just hadn't taken a picture yet.

What do you think?

I love being able to cut vinyl whenever the impulse hits me.

I do think I may be getting carried away, but I just can't seem to stop.

I love this font, especially when there is a shadow behind it from the sun. It is just what I imagined.

Shiny Brass to a Little More Class

2010-02-03T08:14:00.000-08:00

Our goings on lately have included completely re-doing our master bedroom. I mean ripping the yucky drywall with a ton of holes out, pulling out the lathe and plaster, adding insulation and new windows and brand-new walls. We are doing this on a shoe-string budget, so the decorating part has a

budget of close to $0.

We originally purchased this ceiling fan about 14 years ago when we were first married and it has traveled with us from apartment to townhouse to this house, it was a huge purchase for us then; and I remember lying in my bed admiring how pretty it was with the sparkling, shiny brass.

Well... styles and my tastes have changed since then. I would love to throw the whole thing out and start over, but since our budget doesn't include a new fixture and I don't want a hole in my ceiling; I decided to try to transform it a bit.

I used two different spray paints, Hammered Bronze for the metal, and Caramel Latte for the blades. Since it is so very cold outside, my spray painting takes creativity. I put the metal pieces in two large cardboard boxes, shook the paint really well and took one box at a time outside to spray the pieces and raced back inside with the box, it took some juggling.

Even moving as fast as I could, it was still too cold. I think the bubbles that form the textured finish were small and didn't spread as well as they should have. The brass still peeks out a little, but I think it gives the color some depth.

More pictures of the transformation to come later.

I am linking to:

A Sad Day and a Plea for Advice

2010-02-02T21:53:00.000-08:00

Today has been a rough day for one of my 11 yr-olds, Chandler. A close friend of his passed away last night and he is really struggling. I am at a loss, I don't really know what to say to him. I just want to make it all better, but I know I can't.

He knows that it is all part of God's plan, and that she is no longer hampered by her crippled body; and he is happy for her. But he is really having a hard time with the fact that he didn't even get to say good-bye.

How do you handle situations like this with your kids?

Milk Can House Numbers

2010-02-02T20:57:00.000-08:00

My brother-in-law stopped by with this milk can a couple of weeks ago, asked if I wanted it, and said that he would like to see what I came up with. I hope he approves.

I chose to paint our house numbers on it. I used my Silhouette to create a stencil out of vinyl, I had planned to use contact paper; but I guess I ran out. For anyone considering a digital craft cutter for vinyl, paper and cardstock; I would suggest checking out the Silhouette. It hooks up to my computer and can cut any font that I can download along with tons of designs. I LOVE MY SILHOUETTE!

I scrubbed the milk can a bit, no need to rough it up with sandpaper; it was rough enough already. I chose to paint it Satin Black, so it would stand out against our house.

This is the kind of weeding I like, I have always planned to get the fun tools to do this;

but a sharp paring knife works so of course, I haven't.

I masked the can off, so the paint wouldn't overspray. Then I used my fun spray outside and run back in with the project technique. I am sure that anyone driving by would wonder what in the world I am doing running in and out of my house and 10:30 at night. This time I went fast enough and didn't end

up with any wrinkles from the cold in my paint.

I left it inside for a couple of days to make sure that it was really dry, and then took it outside where it will likely stay. I don't love taking pictures of my house in the winter, but this summer it will look great with flowers all around. The milk can has already made it through a couple of snowstorms and still looks great.

I am linking to:

Birthday Gifts-fun take on Magnet Boards

2010-02-02T20:13:00.000-08:00

I hope you are not tired of Magnet Boards. I find a use for them all over my house. We have such a tiny little space, everything has to have a purpose; looking cute is just not enough. These are the latest that I created, although they don't get to stay at our house. (Chan paid the ultimate kid-compliment, he is DYING to have one in his room...but with a "C" he was careful to request).

These are some boards that we made for a birthday party that Cort and Chan were invited to. (These are not the best pictures ever, we were late, of course, and were racing to the party.) They are great friends with the birthday boy as well as being second cousins. I love it when you can call and talk to the mom a little about the gift first. Since she is one of my best friends, I knew that she was in the process of re-doing her boys' room.

Cort and Chan requested a magnet board as a gift, so I called to find out colors, and whether she wanted 3 small boards or 1 large. I love the way these turned out, even though the boys ended up carrying them like pizzas on the way to the party because the sealer that I used still wasn't dry.

Chandler specifically requested matching magnets. Technically, only two of them are birthday gifts, the J is for his brother (since they share a room, we didn't want to leave him out).

The frames were really simple, although we realized that we should have cut the dado a little deeper; there were little gaps; but at that point we were LATE! so it didn't get adjusted.

I am linking to:

What was I thinking?!!

2010-01-26T07:19:00.000-08:00

I am sorry for the delay in posting the winner of the Wha-Cha-Ma-Call-Ums give away. I don't know what I was thinking! When I told my sweet husband about the give away/contest I was hosting he laughed at me. I can't make a decision to save my neck. He always has to help me decide...

So now I get about 38 fantastic suggestions and I have to choose just one. I finally chose my 5 favorite and then used the random number generator to choose for me.

The winner is Love Signs by Maridith at Strictly Homemade. She has a great blog, with fun ideas, check it out. E-mail me with your address Maridith, and I will get your kit on your way.

(Please confirm your word and color choice.

For everyone else, I will post a tutorial soon so you can make your own Love Signs.

Have a great day!

Try, Try Again- XOXO Framed Glass

2010-01-23T06:00:00.000-08:00

I really struggle to visualize what something is going to look like before I make it. I generally go through several steps to finally get it to the point that I am ready to share it with others.

This simple little framed glass is one example of that.

I have to say right off, that I am sorry I don't have more pictures of the process here. I accidentally deleted all 1100 or so pictures from my camera a couple of days ago aargh! and these were some that I hadn't yet downloaded.

Anyway, I loved the XOXO in red vinyl right off. I cut it out, and mounted it on the glass, framed it and tied some ribbon on and hung it on my wall. Quick and easy, just my kind of craft,

I was planning to make several for gifts and for my etsy shop.

I looked at it a few times in passing and decided to add some little half-back pearls as accents. Cute, but they didn't stand out enough. I figured that if I added some more white to the design it would tie in better.

I added a white vinyl layer to the first O and it lasted like that for about an hour.

It looked way too bullseye target-ish.

I tried adding more ribbon, but it just wasn't working for me.

Then I added a cute white scalloped background, it was a nice background for the XOXO but I lost the fun transparency of the glass, so off it came.

I finally stumbled upon the idea of matting the entire design with white, and I love it.

I would love to be talented like a lot of you are and able to visualize the end result without actually putting it together. It would be nice not to waste all that vinyl. ;)

Have a great day! I hope all your projects turn out just like you imagine, or maybe even better!

BTW if you are interested, I would be happy to cut some of this vinyl for you for a reasonable price, just contact me at swells154@gmail.com.

Linking to:
Craftaholics Annonymous Valentines Party

Thank you for the blog award!

2010-01-22T23:08:00.000-08:00

A great big thank you to Michelle at My Craft Happiness for sending this award my way.

Instructions:

To accept you must post it on your blog along with the name of the person who granted you the award and link back to them.
Pass the award on to approximately 15 other bloggers that you have recently discovered and think are great.
Contact the bloggers and let them know that they have been chosen for the award.
List 3 things that you would like to learn how to do.

I would like to learn to:

take really good pictures
paint
use photo editing software

I am passing this award on to:

Thank you Michelle.

I'm Finished! My Girls Names

2010-01-22T06:00:00.000-08:00

Don't forget to enter the Wha-Cha-Ma-Call-Ems give away!

Do you ever have those projects that are supposed to be so simple, but go on and on and on.......?

This is one of those, I started making these with my friend, Carrie, last spring. I had just finished my very first set of blocks and I had blocks on the brain. They were supposed to be a two afternoon project. Cut, sand, stain wood one day and then mod podge and embellish the second.

About 9 months later, we both finally have ours done. The funny thing is, in the meantime, my girls were given bedding that they love and it actually coordinates better than they did before!

My favorite part is the flowers, I mod podged regular silk flowers. I only put a light coat on so they would keep their shape. Alexis thinks that hers looks like it is made out of wax. The flowers are so pretty.

We realized as we worked on these, that in order to not have screws showing; we would need to modpodge the bottom layer of paper on and then screw the blocks together and then embellish the tops to cover the screws...as I write this I realize that we could have just screwed them together from the back, duh! Oh well, I rarely do things the easiest way first.

I am planning to put some shelves in their room after it is repainted, but for now, these will hang on the wall. Happy Finishing Day!

I am linking to:

Cargo Purse-sewing with Lexi

2010-01-21T10:00:00.000-08:00

Don't forget to enter the Wha-Cha-Ma-Call-Ems give-away (ends Saturday)

I love doing crafty projects with my daughter. This is the purse/bag that Alexis made, she and I worked on ours at the same time. If you missed mine you will find it here.I was surprised that she didn't go a little more "girlie" that is her usual style, but she loved the camo paired with the khaki.

She did a great job on her sewing. She even added an inside pocket. She wants to add a zipper flower on the front, I think it will look great.

Cargo Pocket Bag

2010-01-20T08:00:00.000-08:00

Don't forget to enter the Wha-Cha-Ma-Call-Ems Give Away

My daughter, Alexis and I saw this great tutorial here on noodleheads and I loved the idea. Since we have 3 boys who love cargo pants, we had plenty of supplies.

We tried it this weekend, without looking back at the tutorial. Our bags didn't turn out quite like hers, but we like them a lot. This bag will be a birthday gift for one of Lexi's friends. I will post Lexi's bag tomorrow.

Since we didn't bother to look back at the tutorial, we kind of made ours up as we went along, they really weren't difficult. Lexi (age 11) did most of her own sewing.

You will need to get your pants ready by cutting them open on the inseam. This will open up the legs so you can decide where it will be best to cut the pieces for your bag.

I cut the piece for the messenger bag "flap" with the cargo pocket first. I just cut it out in as large of a rectangle as possible, I figured that I would cut it out completely once I knew how big of a bag I could make.

Next, I cut out rectangles for the front and back of my bag. After I had the rough shapes cut out, I pressed them as well as I could before cutting the pieces. You will want the front and back pieces of your bag to match. Since I was using kids' pants my bag isn't as big as I would like. If only my husband liked cargo pants...then I could have a large bag.

I didn't cut out the front pocket section until after I sewed the basic bag together.

The next step is to sew the basic bag together. I used 1/4" seam allowances. With the right sides of your pieces together, sew down one side, across the bottom, and up the other side.

You will need to "box the corners" of your bag. I don't know if that is actually a sewing term or not, I have just always said it. This is hard to explain, but hopefully you can figure it out. Match the bottom seam together with the side seam, it will form a triangle, and then sew across it.

This step allows you to have a bottom for your bag. If you skip it, you will have more of a pouch, which would work, but is not as finished looking. Do this to both sides of the bottom.

Turn your bag right side out.

Press all seams open, and press the corners and edges of the bottom of the bag.

Now we get to do the "fun" stuff. Using the size of your bag as a guide, you need to cut out a flap with the cargo pocket centered on it. I rounded the corners and cut it out with the pocket at the bottom of the flap. Since the flap will actually be sewn onto the back of the bag and go up and over the bag, I knew that I didn't want my pocket to end up on the top of my bag.

Cut a piece of cute fabric the same shape as the "flap". This will line your pocket flap. You will need some type of bias tape to sew these pieces together.

Purchased bias tape would give you a nice edge, but there aren't as many options as making your own. I chose to use 1" wide grosgrain ribbon to coordinate with the strap on my bag. The corners don't look as good as if I had used bias tape, but I do like the texture of the ribbon.

With wrong sides together, sew the bias tape around the side, bottom and side edges of the pocket flap.

This is what the inside of the flap looks like with the lining fabric sewn in. Press your flap well.

The next step is to sew the flap onto the back section of the bag. Just put right sides together and sew straight.

Our bag was starting to take shape. You could skip this next step if you don't want to line your bag, but I like the way it finishes everything off.

You will make another bag to go inside. This one will be "inside out" so the finished edge is showing. Cut a large rectangle approximately double the size of your bag. You could cut two and sew them together just like the khaki fabric, but I chose to just cut it twice as long and fold it up. It saved a step.

Then sew up both sides of the lining bag.

Box your corners just like before.

Don't turn your lining right side out. Just slip it inside your khaki bag.

Once the lining is inside, you will need to attach your strap. I forgot to take pictures of this part. I made a tube of fabric to match my lining, and sewed the same grosgrain ribbon down the middle of it for my strap.

Pin ends of the strap on both sides of the bag, slip them between the bag and the lining.

Fold the edges of the bag and the lining in 1/4" inch and sew around the top edge of the bag. I sewed all around the bag with my machine, but missed a little section of the lining on the back, so I went back and sewed the section where the flap meets the bag by hand. I think it worked better.

Your bag should be finished. Enjoy.

I would love to see any bag that you might decide to make.

I am linking to:

I "heart" u stacking cubes

2010-01-19T08:00:00.000-08:00

don't forget to enter the wha-cha-ma-call-ums give away

I "heart" stacking blocks. These are simply 4x4 posts cut into blocks, sanded, stained and decopauged with cute valentine paper and embellished with vinyl. They really should not have caused stress...unfortunately my stress level right now is really high so it doesn't take much to send me over the edge.

I did finally finish these, and I really like them. They are also for our Relief Society craft mini class.

I would love suggestions that any of you have for preventing bubbles from forming under the paper. I generally don't have a problem with this, but it was harder with this project than others I have made. I did finally come out with a nice result, but I am sure there must be a better (easier) way.

Wha-cha-ma-call-ums? give-away

2010-01-18T19:58:00.000-08:00

What would you call these? I am open to suggestions. I really like this creation. Would you like a kit to make your own? This was a collaboration between me and my friend, Rachelle. Most of the credit belongs to her. I just did the decorating part.

They are one of the projects available for our craft mini class for Relief Society in February. The ladies that sign up get to choose their paper, word and the color (black or cream). I am really happy with the end result, I just need a name...framed word thingy just doesn't sound quite right.

Post your name suggestions, my favorite one will win a kit to make their own. (You provide your favorite paper and ribbon) I will send you the frame, plaque and vinyl.

How to enter: Leave a comment with your name suggestion, the vinyl word you would like, and the color of vinyl (cream or black). The give-away will be open until Saturday morning-since I need to get my sign-up sheet ready for church on Sunday.

I am linking to:

DIY Custom Storage Cubes

2010-01-06T17:57:00.000-08:00

When we moved into our house it didn't have any closets, not one! We have gradually added closets and cupboards as we have remodeled but there is still a serious storage issue in our house. I love the storage cubes that can double as ottomans and be set together for a type of coffee table; but I haven't ever seen any that I like for my house, and are affordable.

What's a girl to do? Make my own, of course. I used the same fabric and milk crates from this post and they look suspiciously similar. I originally took pictures to put a tutorial together, but with all my picture re-organization this last month, these are the only two that survived.

I started with this:

I wrapped the crate with thin batting, it is just hot glued onto the basket. After the batting was on the crate, I set it in the middle of the upholstery fabric and wrapped the basket like a present. I didn't worry too much about the edges on the inside, because I planned to line the basket. Unfortunately, I made the mistake of starting to use them right away because I had run out of fabric; and now I have never gotten around to lining them.

After the outside was covered and the corners were folded in nicely (just like making a bed), I cut a piece of 3/4" plywood just a bit larger than the top of the crate for the lid. Using a piece of 1"seat cushion foam, and more fabric I covered the top of the plywood lid just like you would cover a seat cushion for a chair.

I used two hinges screwed directly into the plywood and the top edge of the crate to attach the lid. I was nervous that the screws would work out of the crate since it is just plastic but I couldn't think of another way to attach them.

After the lid was on, I folded the edges under on and lined the lid with another piece of fabric, this edge does show a lot so it was important to make sure it was lined well.

We have enjoyed these boxes, they are used for extra seating, particularly for playing video games, I store magazines and toys in them. And amazingly enough, they have held up to my crazy crew. Now that we have lived with them for a while, the only thing that I will change when I make some for my kids' rooms is to add small wooden feet. I lift and carry them, but of course, my kids scoot them across the floor, and the fabric on the bottom is beginning to wear.

What do you think? I would love to see any ideas you have for storage issues, especially in small spaces.

I am linking to:

My life is "sort of" mine again.

2010-01-04T21:11:00.000-08:00

My kids and husband went back to school today. Back to our regular schedule. I loved having my husband home for the Christmas break, I loved the time with my kids and I was very sad to see them all go back this morning. My little ones were lost without the "big kids".

I want to share a couple of projects that I put together during the break (but didn't have time to share).

First off, after about 5 million ideas, this is what we finally put together for neighbor gifts. Monogram Plaques. I love them. Simple and pretty classic. Black and cream is one of my favorite color combinations. Now I need to make one for myself. I am also planning to make some for upcoming weddings. I think they would be great in the center of a family picture collage or in an easel.

(As a note, you can remove sharpie marker from the vinyl with a tiny bit of nail polish remover, Thank you Addy! our little marker girl for initiating this little experiment.)

Linking to:

Second project, have you seen these snowflakes? Who knew that paper snowflakes could be so cool? Check out this tutorial. We made some for my sister's 20 something foot tree, I love them with glitter and double sided scrapbook paper. My sister-in-law, Keli suggests cutting the strips very narrow, they are gorgeous.

Just a note, use scotch tape instead of staples, it works so much better for the center section and is prettier over all.

Third project, chargers. This is what I made for the favors for my husband's family Christmas party. It is just vinyl on the plate, and I love it. Inexpensive with just a little glitz. Try a piece of metal glued on the back and it becomes mini magnet board.

What do you think? What was your favorite project this Christmas break?

The monogram plaques and vinyl only options are in my etsy shop.

Domino Necklaces

2009-12-17T22:48:00.001-08:00

I love to craft with my daughter, Alexis. She is growing up so fast, and it amazes me how well she puts things together. I think she is very creative. She chose to make domino necklaces for her friends this year, I think they turned out very cute.

She chose her papers first and traced them to fit on both sides of her dominoes. Then she sweet-talked her dad into drilling holes at the top of each domino.

She used mod podge to attach the paper onto the front and back of the dominoes and then coated each with diamond glaze. We were both very disapointed to see how yellow our "non-yellowing" glaze turned out; but the dominoes are very pretty.

We suspended each domino on a toothpick across a little Dixie cup to dry. They take about 24 hours to dry completely.

Tonight Alexis strung the dominoes into necklaces and tomorrow she will give them all away.

Teacher Gifts Courtesy of Blogland

2009-12-17T22:11:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow is the last day of school before Christmas. I am excited to have my children and husband home with me. I have seen some great ideas all over blogland for teacher gifts. This is what I chose to do.
Obviously, the "M" jar holds pencils (this will be given along with a bag of cookies to my older kids' teacher), the "H" jar is filled with cookies (this is for our principal), and the "W" is filled with lifesavers for my husband. Since high-school teachers rarely receive gifts from their students, I figured that I would take care of that.

The jar ideas are courtesy of My Mix of Six (her pictures are MUCH better than mine).

I can't remember where I saw the recipe for these cookies...if you recognize it, let me know. I would love to link to it and give her credit; she has a great tutorial with pictures.

I only have the recipe and a couple of notes, bear with me it is long but not actually difficult:

Perfect Chocolate Mint Cookies

3/4 cup butter
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
2 T water
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 eggs
2 1/2 cups flour
1 1/4 tsp. salt
36 Andes Mints

Melt butter, brown sugar, water over low heat, add chocolate chips and stir. When partially melted, remove pan from heat and continue to stir until the mixture is smooth. Let cool for 10 minutes (15 for a double batch). Pour into a mixing bowl and mix in eggs, and then dry ingredients.

Refrigerate cookie dough for 1 hour (the original poster said that she doesn't refrigerate hers, mine was a little soft to roll into balls; I think that it would work well to refrigerate it for about 20 minutes.) Roll the cookie dough into balls (I used my cookie scoop from Pampered Chef). Place on un-greased cookie sheet (I used my stoneware pan) about 2 inches apart. Bake 8-10 minutes at 350.

While the cookies are baking, unwrap your mints and cut them in half. (I couldn't find the mints so I tried the Andes mint chips, although they taste great, I wouldn't recommend them. It was a hassle!!) Place one mint on each cookie immediately after removing them from the oven, let sit for 5 minutes and then gently spread the mint/chocolate mixture to form an "icing".

Yum, Yum, Yummy!

Crafting with my sister.

2009-12-15T22:50:00.000-08:00

One of my very favorite things to do is, to hang out with my sister, Bekki. She was here visiting just before Thanksgiving and generously helped me out preparing for my craft fair. It was so fun to be creative together. We decided that we would really like to have a whirlwind craft marathon again (this time we want to keep the projects, not sell them).

This Christmas Countdown Calendar was one of our favorite creations that week. They all sold really well at the craft fair, so I made some more.

You can find these in my etsy shop, or have fun making some of your own. I love my set.

Have you wrapped your presents yet?

2009-12-14T21:27:00.000-08:00

I have barely started...
How does she.com is offering free download-able gift tags, you can print most of them in color or black & white (maybe you could let your kids color them). Print them on glossy card stock or photo paper for the best results.

I hope you like them as much as I do.

Baby, It's cold outside!

2009-12-10T16:19:00.000-08:00

Brrrrr!
We are freezing over here. It always gets cold here in the winter, but the extreme cold usually waits until later in the winter. We have been hitting the negative digits every day. Our water pipes have frozen twice and now we have a big ugly haystack on our pumphouse in an attempt to insulate it so that we will have water, my husband's ignition was frozen so his car wouldn't start, and my kids haven't been able to play outside at recess. They are bouncing off the walls!!!

These blocks seem appropriate right now.

Vintage Window...Of course I want it.

2009-12-09T23:38:00.000-08:00

My friend offered this window to me. I love the shape and so, of course, I said "yes". Unfortunately, I have very little wall space in my house, so I really wasn't sure what I was going to do with it. It has been sitting for a couple of weeks. But today I decided that I was just going to hang it up before it gets broken. I figured that I was unlikely to love the placement; but I can always change my mind.

I decided not to paint it yet, I really do like this color anyway; but I am also a little lazy...I knew that I wouldn't want to paint it again. So, I am waiting to decide for sure what I want to do with it after Christmas is over.

The only supplies that I spent money on (and I really should not have) are the wreaths. They are just dollar store specials. The rest of the supplies are from my "stash". I have had the pip berries for a couple of years, I am determined to use them this Christmas before any more explode --why do they do that?

The hardest decision for me was what color of ribbon to use; I really wasn't loving any of these, but I was NOT going to spend any more money. Which do you like? I finally settled on layering the first two ribbons.

Here it is with lights, ribbons, wreaths and berries. I would still like to hide the rest of the lights; but I do like it. I like that this part of my nativity set collection has a backdrop now.

I apologize for the picture quality, I couldn't wait to take pictures...I really wanted to finish it tonight.

Give-Away Winner

2009-12-09T23:35:00.001-08:00

Congratulations Robin, the winner of my magnetic recipe holder. The random number generator picked your comment. Please contact me at steffanyw@excite.com with your address so I can get it to you.

Thanks to all who entered.

What do you think, Jamie?

2009-12-04T22:49:00.000-08:00

I couldn't resist posting a picture of a fun neighbor gift that my friend, Jamie and I collaborated on the phone about. I am cutting the vinyl for her and she is putting the boards together. I couldn't stand to just put it in the computer without seeing the finished product; and I love it.

1st Ever Give-Away

2009-12-03T22:38:00.000-08:00

If you read my blog at all, you know that I am hooked on magnet boards. This is another variation on the same theme. One of my friends and I made a few of these over the Thanksgiving weekend, and I love the way they turned out. I am putting a couple in my etsy shop but I would like to give one away to you!

You have 4 chances to win:

Leave a comment
Follow my blog
Blog about this give-away
Visit my shop and leave me a comment here...what you like, suggestions, a funny story about your day...whatever.

Leave a separate comment for each entry. I will draw for the winner Tuesday evening.

Good Luck!

Christmas in the Country

2009-11-30T18:18:00.000-08:00

I have been working (with a lot of help from my wonderful husband, sister, Bekki and my older kids) on preparing for a craft fair. It is in a little, tiny town; but they generally get a good turnout. I am nervous and excited because I have never done anything quite like this. I get a section about 3x4 ft. It is amazing how much you can fit in such a small space.

I heard back after the first weekend, it seems that the sales went really well. I am thrilled!

Most of these items are still available for special order (I can make more!) Contact me if you are interested.

I

Quick and Easy Neighbor Gift

2009-11-24T10:45:00.000-08:00

The credit for this idea has to go to my friend, Karla. I made the tags; she thought of dressing them up in a frame to make a quick and easy gift for neighbors, teachers or friends.

I stamped the ornaments on cardstock and mounted them on thin chipboard (for stability), backed them with cute scrapbook paper and framed them in a rustic pine frame. Of course, they need a cute ribbon. I think they will be lots of fun to give.

I also love the idea of framing a handmade card.

Quick, easy and cheap. My idea of a perfect gift to give.

If you don't have time to make one (or several) on your own. This design is available in my etsy shop.

My new favorite addiction.

2009-11-17T13:21:00.000-08:00

I received a Silhouette Craft Cutter for Mother's Day this year, I was super excited to get it; but then it sat for a couple of weeks. Now that I have really learned to use it, I can't imagine a week without using it. ;)

I used it to create freezer paper stencils for these blocks. I am having a blast with stenciling. I think these blocks would make great neighbor gifts...very quick and inexpensive. Just combine some duck cloth, acrylic paint, upholstery tacks, scrap 2x4's, freezer paper and whatever ribbon you have laying around. Have fun with this.

(these are also available in my etsy shop)

I am jumping on the burlap bandwagon.

2009-11-16T11:07:00.000-08:00

I really love all of the burlap projects out there, lately I have been creating some of my own. The only thing that I don't like about sewing with burlap is the fibers. My nose gets so itchy as I play with it. I have started wearing an apron and throwing it in the washer as soon as I finish and this seems to help a little.

My latest favorite project is burlap magnet boards. I love the texture of the burlap, with the convenience of the magnet board.

I created this one with its coordinating magnets after seeing some on blogs, (sorry I don't remember whose) I really wanted cute buttons to embellish the magnets, but I needed to use what I already had. In came the embossing powder and stamps. I love the way it turned out.

(If you would like one, but don't have the time to make it yourself, I have listed some for same in my etsy shop-- warmandwelcoming.etsy.com)

Merry Christmas, already?

2009-11-15T18:59:00.000-08:00

Even though it happens every year, I am still surprised at the number of Christmas decorations out in stores already. But rather than be frustrated about skipping Thanksgiving, I am going to jump on the bandwagon ;)

This is a craft that I created for our recent Christmas in the Kitchen activity for Relief Society. Just modpodged cute fabric on wood blocks with ribbon and cardstock accents. I used stamps for the tiny tag and the ornament embellishments and my Silhouette to cut the letters. I love the ribbon, believe it or not, this color was really tough to find. It has a tiny bit of shimmer to it. This really was a fun activity and I am excited to display it in my home this Christmas. I hope you enjoy creating your own.

(If you don't have time to make your own, I have some for sale in my etsy shop.

Storage Cubes?

2009-02-15T22:17:00.000-08:00

I have been trying to convert our back hallway into a makeshift mud room since we don't have any room for a proper one. I purchased a very inexpensive bookshelf to store our mittens and hats in the winter and baseball gloves, shinguards, and balls in the summertime.

I have been using dairy baskets (I think that's what they are called) --they are the baskets that gallons of milk are delivered to the stores in-- to store the equipment up until now. The upside is that they are very durable and stack well; the downside is that they are really ugly.

I have been looking for cute baskets to replace them but I haven't been able to find anything durable enough that is also inexpensive. After I saw some recovered storage cubes on a blog that I am sorry I can't find-I'll keep looking and give credit when I find it- I thought that I could just recover these to make them cute.

I purchased some coordinating upholstery fabric and pulled out my handy-dandy glue gun. I wrapped the outside of the baskets in thin batting so the texture of the basket wasn't so obvious and then started cutting and glueing to fit. I didn't use any sort of a pattern but I did line them with the opposite fabric on the inside of the basket. I am still looking for a cute ribbon that will look good on the striped basket.

This fabric coordinates so well with my living room that I was tempted to put them in there instead but I think I will cover some more, and make lids for them to store our scriptures and a few small toys for Addyson.

ADD Relief

2009-02-15T21:06:00.000-08:00

My son, Chandler has been diagnosed with Passive ADD. This is different from the more common ADHD because it doesn't have the hyperactivity issues associated with it. Chandler is a super mellow kid that rarely acts out at home or at school. He is generally content to daydream his way through the entire day.

Chandler has struggled a lot lately because we had to take him off Strattera. The medication had been working but he was suffering from a lot of side effects. After we took him off the medicine, he rarely finished any work at school and so this made homework really rotten. He had trouble focusing enough to get his chores done and even had a hard time when he was playing sports because he couldn't concentrate on what the coaches were trying to teach.

I was especially concerned since he was constantly comparing his progress to that of Cortland and Alexis. I know this is a real issue with multiples; but I hated to see him labeling himself as slow or not as smart as them.

I have been searching for a solution that would help him and I think we have finally found it. Chandler has been taking "Centering/Focus" by Deva Flower Remedies as well as an Omega 3 supplement. It seems to be helping. His grades have been steadily climbing over the past few weeks and he has been finishing the majority of his work in class. What a relief to see him being successful again.

I know a lot of other parents are looking for help with ADD and are hesitant to turn to all of the medications that are out there. I hope this post will be helpful to someone; I know I am very grateful to the lady that shared this information with us.

Happy Valentines Day

2009-02-14T11:04:00.000-08:00

Isn't this cute? My friend, Michelle gave it to me. I love simple holiday decorations. I think this one would be easy to make; I love that the letters have little red hinges between them so I don't have to keep rearranging them.

We didn't have school on Friday so our Valentine's Day party was on Thursday. Somehow it caught me off guard. I knew it was coming, but I was scrambling at the last minute to put it together. (I am the party coordinator for Cortland and Chandler's class.) Our main activity was "Don't Break My Heart", the old tie the balloon on your ankle and hop around trying to pop the rest of the balloons game. The kids really got into it and had a great time.

We also planned to play Super Twister but we ran out of time. I usually spend lots of time coming up with cute goodie bags, and creative games but this time it was so simple. I guess it just goes to show me that kids just want to relax and be kids.

Bow Give-Away

2009-02-13T11:13:00.000-08:00

I just discovered a darling blog http://allthingsribbon.blogspot.com/. She has the most beautiful bows and dresses and her prices are very reasonable. She is hosting a Valentine's Day giveaway. Visit her blog and enter to win this:

Boys in the Girls Bathroom?

2009-02-12T18:00:00.000-08:00

A couple of days ago, I walked around the corner to find Collin very carefully drawing on the bathroom door. He was surprised when I asked him what was going on. It turns out that he was making a sign so that we would all know that boys and girls could use this bathroom. (Never mind the fact that we only have one bathroom right now.)

I explained that we don't draw on our doors, walls, furniture, etc. and we came up with a solution that we could both live with-for a while.

What a relief, now I won't be confused!

I "heart" magnet boards!

2009-02-11T11:32:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite new organizational projects is a magnet board inside my bathroom cupboard. My cute girly girls love hair bows, flowers and clippies and our drawer had been overrun with them. Searching for the right accessory sometimes took longer than the hairstyle and when I am trying to balance a 10 month old on the counter at the same time...it can be precarious.

My fantastic husband had this one up for me very quickly with only a minimum of eye rolling (he couldn't believe that this was all for hair stuff!). I used leftover babyfood containers -I love those! for the tiny little elastics and clippies and some cute ribbon from Michaels dollar bins for the long bow holders. E6000 adhesive is my favorite for attaching plastics or glass and it worked like a charm for the magnets on the containers and the ribbons.

KC used contact cement to put the flashing right on the cupboard door and then trimmed it out with molding--it still needs to be caulked and painted, but that is for another day.

Each of my older kids also have magnet boards in their room. This isn't a great picture of the one in Cort and Chan's room but you can get the general idea. I love that they can display all of their artwork on it; they can also use dry erase markers on it but I haven't told them about that possibility. I don't need dry erase marker all over everything else. My boys love BYU so I used vinyl lettering to decorate the board.

I have seen this flashing used for backsplashes in kitchens. I love the idea of being able to stick my recipe right to the backsplash up above my workspace...hmmm maybe that will be a project for another day.

Running on Adreneline

2009-02-09T16:10:00.000-08:00

Although my days are fairly routine, from 4-8:30 pm is a race. Keeping all 5 kids going and accomplishing everything they need to, and still making it to bed by 8:30 requires me to have a split personality. I am a combination drill sergeant, referee, cook, housekeeper and taxi driver.

Mondays are especially wild. There is usually more homework and we are trying extra hard to save time for family night. By the time that we are ready to start our family night, I have been racing and pushing for so long that I am really not prepared for a nice calm evening; so our family nights tend to be crazy. But we keep trying.

I found a great resource for FHE lessons. This book is awesome! We especially loved throwing marshmallows at Samuel the Lamanite (KC). I picked this one up at the grocery store of all places.

During the middle of our not-so-calm Family Night, Addy was having a fantastic time.