Bath Towel

The day before Leif was born I realized that he didn't have a towel yet. For some reason this truly bothered me. So off to Wal-Mart I went to pick out supplies for a towel. I had determined that I was going to make him a fox towel, I was pretty excited about it but when we arrived there were NO orange towels. SO back to the drawing board.

 At this point I decided to start looking for towels on clearance. Then I came across these brown ones. Perfect for a bear! I was totally in love with the texture. I came home and in 15 minutes, we had a towel! I love quick projects like that. 

I used one bath towel, one hand towel, and one off white face cloth. For the eyes I used felt and for the nose I used a piece of leather. I {love} the little nose. 

 At this point I was so in love! I asked Duke if he wanted me to make him one too since we call him Bear but he is pretty attached to his Dinosaur one. 

It's obviously too big for Leif right now, but he'll grow into it. 

What a cute little man!!!!

Self Binding Minky Blanket

Being that this is baby number three and that we already have so many boy things, we don't really need much of anything. But I wanted this little man to feel special all wrapped up in something that Mama made. Plus I have decided that the nursery will be "outdoors" themed with grey and navy. Super simple, and clean! 

So I bought the fabric to make a baby quilt. I never know how much fabric to buy and always end up with WAY too much. So this time around we went with 1/4 yrd per color and It was still too much! I honestly could have gotten two regular sized baby quilts out of this! I also wanted to try self binding the blanket which was fun but I shouldn't have done my first attempt with minky.

Even with pinning literally every 1/2" it still stretched. Such a pain in the bootie!

But in the end I am happy with it. It is warm and snuggly and best of all it's pretty big which is super nice especially at the stage Duke and E are in and their "baby" blankets no longer cover thier toes at night because they are so tall.

I had left over fabric so I decided to make a little lap quilt for the car seat. I was super happy with the grey but then I went to a different Jo-Ann's and found the navy minky and I love it SO. MUCH. MORE! It just adds a richness to the blanket. 

All in all it was a fun and super quick project. It took about 36 hours from start to finish for both quilts. Not to shabby. Can't wait to wrap our little man up in them!

Sock Animals- Monkey, Bunny & Lion

 My latest creations... Sock Animals!!! Let me tell you, these were a hoot to make!!!

 I started off with the monkey and I used this tutorial. I had the hardest time finding socks that weren't $7 a pair. When did socks get so expensive? I also had a hard time picking out a pattern. I loved the grey and yellow sock that the tutorial used but I couldn't find one, bummer. So we went with blue and I really like the colors now. He is totally flawed but I learned a lot while making him like, 1. Do not over stuff. 2. Make the eyes bigger and 3. do not run out of thread when sewing the mouth.

 I made the bunny later that day using this tutorial. I love the pink but the ears need some work. They didn't turn out a big as I had hoped and I used felt since I didn't have a spare sock kicking around that matched.

 This dude is my favorite!! I used this pattern. I love the colors, the mane and how he's proportioned! 

 Duke has never really attached himself to any toy. He loves his puppy, is impartial to Spike but once he saw this monkey there was an instant bond. Monkey went everywhere with him for 4 days. He even insisted that monkey sit in his high chair with him during meals. It was the cutest thing!E went straight for the bunny and that left Leo by his lone some. E felt bad and told the lion that he belonged to Daddy. She's so sweet!

All in all, it was a super fun project and they came together pretty quick. I see myself making more in the near future!

Boys Shirt to Cardigan

 Back in November of 2013 I saw some pins (similar here) on Pinterest of people turning onesies into cardigans. I made one and I fell in love with the idea. It was super simple and SO dang cute!

 A few weeks ago, Target had a few of their long sleeve shirts on clearance, so I picked up a couple. I sliced them up the front and put some ribbing along the raw edge. I also put some ribbing along the cuffs and bottom as well. On the onesie I made I just stitched the buttons to the sweater without making button holes, permanently closing the front. On this one I wanted it to open up so it has fully functional buttons! 

This was a super fun and quick project! I made it a bit big so hopefully it will fit him come the fall! Now just to find some Navy ribbing so I can make his other one!

Love Hand and Footprints

 My home has been in full creativity mode the past month. Between Valentines and Ethnie's birthday I have got several projects on the go. It's a crazy juggling act but I'm loving it. One of my latest creations was this little picture. It's E's hand and Duke's feet and I love it so much it may or may not stay up all year long. If I did it again I would have done a slightly bigger canvas but this works!

It really helps balance my mantle which is still a work in progress.

Onesie Cardigan

 I just love cardigans, bow ties and of course this little man! I have seen the idea of making a onesie into a cardigan all over Pinterest and was itching to try it out. 

 I am so pleased with the final results! I mean seriously, it doesn't get much cuter than that. It was a super simple and amazingly quick project!

 The best part? Those chunky leg rolls. I can't get enough of them. Duke is such a handsome boy and I love him to the moon and back! 

Using Scraps

In a desperate attempt to clear out some of my scrap fabric I decided to make a lap quilt for Missy's daughter, Zada. I made her car seat canopies when Z was born and had matching fabric left over. I mean you can't just throw away Minky material!! This project took me a total of two hours and I was so pleased with the end result. I had to snap a photo in my car before I gave it to her since I forgot to before I left. Here's to using up the scraps!!

Hair Bow Holder

Do you ever get that adrenaline rush after you finish a project? You're giddy, can't stop staring at whatever it is you've made, and can't wait to make something else? Crafting is my addiction and I'm not afraid to admit it.

 E's hair bows have been scattered everywhere for quite some time. I had a ribbon holding some in our closet. Some tule hanging from her wall in her room which was just tacky and then odds and ends in a basket in the dresser. In summation: chaos! So I was perusing Pinterest for some inspiration when I came across this. HELLO ADORABLE!  Only thing is they wanted $29.99 for it. After doing a quick search I came to find that these things range from $25 - $45!!! I knew I could make one myself and I did! SCORE!

 Supplies: Cardboard box, tulle, ribbon, fleece/ batting, lace, cheap satin, hot glue gun. I got my lace, tulle and satin 50% and I had all the other supplies on hand which put this project at a whopping $2.87. Now that's more like it. All you do is cut and glue. Watch your fingers... I burnt myself more times than I care to admit. If you want it to look more finished you could make two and then glue them together. or simply add ribbon to hide the seams. I didn't really care since it was going to be against the wall anyways.

 I had a feeling Peanut would be tugging on those ribbons so instead of just gluing them to the cardboard I punched holes and looped them through. Then to keep it from sliding and ran it through the sewing machine on a wide zig zig.

 Cover with ribbon, add some bows and a few sparkles and TA DA! You're finished and rather proud of yourself for saving a bundle of money!

 I just made all of those mini polka dot bows this week as well, so this dress is looking pretty full. I suppose I'll have to make another one. What color should I do this time. Best part is I can make it whatever color I want! Oh the joys of DIY!!! Happy Crafting.

Salt Dough Ornament

 Hands down this is my favorite ornament on our tree.

It is super quick craft. All you need is to make some salt dough (there are a ton of recipes online), a little persons hand, paint and steady hand.

Thanksgiving Shirt

 Thanksgiving eve I decided Ethnie needed to have a festive little outfit. It was 8:00 p.m. and there was no way I was running out to try and find something. I jumped on Pinterest and happened to find a few pins I had pinned earlier. SCORE! I know, I know, she's super cute!

 I got the idea for the turkey here. I really liked her's but I wanted E's to have more traditional colors. I had all of the supplies on hand so it was free!! I just LOVE how it turned out! Jakob even got involved by suggesting we add feet and the little red gobbler. (What is it called?)

I got the idea for the little turkey headband here. It was free! All made with supplies I already had as well! Super cute!

Cards & Crochet

So it was Jenna's birthday back in AUGUST. I know I'm lame, at least I've come to terms with it. Anyways... Jenna is the owner of Let it Shine and has always done a fabulous job on our photos and NEVER accepts payment. Not that we didn't try she is just stubborn like that. ;) I owed her big time! I totally realize how much time and effort goes into not only shooting a session but then all of the editing afterwards. So I made up a little something for her. It started with a pretty rad card.

Which was followed by a box full of baby props. I'm not saying she's expecting, but she does take a TON of newborn photos and I thought that these would be perfect for her business. 

My favorites, his and hers monkey hats. I've made big ones before but the baby ones are so much cuter!

A little bear with interchangeable bows.

This chick is actually a soft fuzzy yellow but the lighting is way off. Perfect for spring. :)

His and her's elf hats.

The Mickey/ Minnie set with Removable bow, diaper cover, skirt and tail. I loved this one on Ethnie! So precious!

Just in time for Christmas of course we needed to include a Santa hat. It was a lot of fun coming up with new hats. Happy belated Jenna! I hope this year is your best one yet!!!