Chevron Yarn Hanging

A few weeks ago I saw this on Tattered & Ink:





















And I wanted to make one, too! I thought, how difficult could it be.

Ha.

Well, it actually wasn't difficult. But it was tedious. So so tedious. It took me a couple days to get it finished, since my little kiddos like having my attention. But I'm super pleased with the outcome! And it looks great in my craft area.





















































The perfect addition to my plain ol' walls!

Exchange Project...DONE

I'm DONE!

My project for my exchange partner is done! And really, it shouldn't have been as difficult as I made it. I made my own pattern and at first it was just way too complicated. So I simplified the pattern, got new (and cuter!) fabric, and I finished it fast. I really love it and I hope my exchange partner does too!

Sorry, no pics allowed yet, but I will tell you it's a Nook Color cover!

Fun Finds Friday

I am always so inspired by other crafts I've seen in Blogland. That's where I get most of my ideas. Here are a few of the fun things I've found that I would love to try to make soon!

Mr. & Mrs. sign above the bed @ A Diamond in the Stuff

















Cinnamon Roll Pancakes (YUM!) @ Chef in Training






















This super cute Bunting Cosmetic Bag @ Just Another Hang Up


















A ruffled cardigan from a shirt? Yes please! @ A Love to Create




















Happy Weekend!!

The BEST Banana Bread. Ever.

This is a recipe I got from my mom and I've been told by BOTH of my hubby's grandma's that it's delicious. Aren't grandmas all-knowing when it comes to food? I know I've always loved this banana bread, so I wanted to share the recipe with you!

3/4 cup butter, softened
1 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cup mashed naners
1/2 tsp vanilla
3 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Cream butter, cream cheese, and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs, beating well after each. Add bananas and vanilla; mix well. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt--add to creamed mixture. Put in two greased bread pans. Bake @ 350 for 1-1 1/4 hours.

YUM! Enjoy!!

Hollister Tank Knock-off

I went to Hollister the other day and saw this super cute tank:



































But I decided to try to make a version myself, so it would be a little cheaper.

I found a gray & white striped tank at Wal-Mart for $3.88. I already had the satin-y fabric for the bows. I just cut two strips from my fabric, sewed under the edges, pinched those in the middle to make a bow shape, and attached it to the tank. I also make a strip to go in the center of the bow for a clean finish.









































And here's my Hollister-style tank! I've already worn it over my bathing suit. It's perfect for that or on top of a white tee.

Problem Solved

Problem: I have a diaper bag (here) that is ALWAYS on the floor & in the way annnnd a purse that is also very lazy. (Or maybe it's me that's being lazy.)

Anyway, it's very annoying to be tripping on these bags all the time, or having the opposite problem--never being able to find them.

Solution: Buy a $2 coat rack-hanger, repaint it, and use THAT for the bags. Why didn't I think of this earlier??

My $2 Goodwill find. Of course, then I saw one at a yard sale for 50 cents. I sanded this puppuy down to get rid of the country painting.


















And I painted it a nice shimmery champagne color.



















I stenciled on an aryle design...



















And then painted that a dark chocolate brown. To finish it off I put one light coat of the champagne color over it. And then utilized it.


















In action.
























































{Linked to http://sewmuchado.blogspot.com/ ; http://www.sugaranddots.com/ }

Craftaholics Anonymous Gift Exchange!

I just signed up to participate in Craftaholic Anonymous' Gift Exchange!

I am soooo super excited! Not only to receive an awesome craft, but to {hopefully} MAKE an awesome craft. I just hope the recipient thinks it's awesome!



Go sign up! Today is LAST day!!

Flower T-shirt Remake

I saw an awesome tutorial for a Flutter Flower shirt at Momma Go Round (tutorial here) and I really wanted to try my hand at it. However, I'm not a frou frou-type girl, so I didn't make mine quite as flutter t-shirt-y.

One thing that I did differently was change up the neckline. On Momma Go Round, her neckline is already cute, but I was working with a straight up t-shirt, so I wanted to make it a little more feminine.

My materials



















This is me fixing the neckline. I just took a shirt with a neckline I loved, stuck that under the T-shirt I was working on, and tracing it as best I could.






















And the finished product. I would recommend sewing down some of the petals onto the shirt so they don't get droopy by the end of the day. I'm going to go back and do that to my shirt. All in all, I think it turned out cute!

P.S. I was wearing it when my husband came home and he said, "Hey Purple Shirt." And I said, "Like it? I made it today." Blank stare. Husband: "Are we so poor you have to redo your shirts to wear them?" He sooo doesn't understand the need to craft. Gotta love him!

Gracie's Little Corner of the World

I finally put together Gracie's bed and she slept in it last night! From 11-5. Not too shabby for an almost 3 month old.

I really love all the elements on the bed but I want to make her little corner super special, since it's pretty much all she's got. Here's how it looks now:








































The first thing I want to make is a mobile. She is so alert and I think she'd love something to look up at. Here are some of the mobiles I like:

Ruffles, Ruffles

I bought some ruffle ribbon that was on sale a while ago at Wal-Mart and I couldn't decide what to do with it.

But now that Gracie is going to start sleeping in her crib, I decided to make her a little pillow with it.

I am OBSESSED with ruffles right now! I seriously want to make my house a ruffle palace. Okay, maybe that's going a bit too far. Are there ruffle projects you have bookmarked that you want to do?

And here is the ruffle pillow: