Fabric Flower Corsage

So this is the last thing that I have for the wedding right now. The mothers and grandmothers will be wearing these instead of real flowers. The nice thing about this is that they are easily transferable to the next reception a week later - and at no extra charge for purchasing them again {unlike real flowers}. There will be some real flowers at the wedding, but these you don't have to worry about dying or sticking yourself with a pin.

I think they are so much fun because of their versatility. They will look nice with the wedding party and then later to wear around town, on your bag, on a belt, on your wrist, you name it. I found the great tutorial from Vanessa's blog V and Co. I recommend you make lots of these!

{I really was talking on the phone, but I wanted to take a picture right then...so there you have it. A picture of me on the phone with my Mom. Aren't moms great!}

Reception Aprons

They are finished! I'm so excited to have done these and to have them done. I think they turned out very uniform, yet classy and individual. The bottom hem is matching and the flower pin is different fabric but the same pattern. My mom-in-law bought the black base aprons. {I'm grateful I didn't have to make all of those}. They came in a 3-pack for under $10. This is a great way to spruce it up. I'm heading to her house tomorrow and can't wait to see what she thinks.
The flowers are so so so cute. They were a bit time-consuming, but that's what happens when you make 10 of them. I found the tutorial for the flowers here - thanks Dawn!


Linked to:

Meet the Zipper Flowers


Here they are! I originally was going to make all the flowers the exact same. However, I found another good idea and had to try it. Then I thought of another one, then another, and then I couldn't stop there. I knew every one must be different. My husband {shh, don't let him know that you know} even thought of a couple of the designs. He has no other choice but get sucked in when I have things spread all over the living room. :)

I had planned on using these flowers on the aprons, but I don't think they flow very good. I'm sure we'll make them useful on headbands or something. They are just too cute to not put to good use.

I hope these give you some good inspiration to make some zipper flowers. I love how unique and personal they can be. Go make yourself one! Rip a zipper off some old jeans if you have to!

*Sorry I don't have any other tutorials for the ones I made. Hopefully you can just look at them and follow the pattern and come up with your own designs. Thank you hot glue. If there is really one you want to know about, let me know.

Linking here:

Me in the Raw

So I haven't gone to bed yet, so it's still Saturday for me. I wanted to share this picture with you that my sweet 4-year-old took. I let him experiment with the camera and ended up with lots of pictures of my foot on the peddle, his puppy dog, his sleeping sister on the floor, and this one of me working on the reception aprons. I actually really like it.
I finished the aprons tonight and have lots of things to show you tomorrow {technically today, since it's after midnight...but is anyone counting? ;)}. They turned out so so cute and perfectly feminine and professional. You could make a business out of jazzing up aprons for things like receptions.

Anyway, about the picture. This is my work space. This is where I sew, I cook, I teach, I listen, I learn, I feed, I create, I dance, I kiss, I cry, I am me. It's a small space {we live in student housing as my husband finishes his PhD}, but it's my space and I love it. I think one of the things I'm most grateful for is that I really sincerely love the time I'm in NOW. I think it takes a lot of practice and giving in and compromise, but it's possible and it makes it more meaningful in the NOW to live that way. We moved here knowing we'd move away, but we lived here like we'd be here forever. It's made all the difference. I love it here. I've made amazing friends that will be my kindred life friends. Connections with other women lift you in a unique and important way - a way I've only discovered while living here. Because I love it here, I will love it anywhere. It will be good no matter where we go because we will make it that way. I really believe that. My kitchen will change, I will probably change, but for the better. Here, we are going forward and loving it. Bring on Portland! I'm so excited.

Reception Apron Sneak Peek

So I'm really trying to push through on the aprons. This is a little peek into my night tonight:
Hopefully I'll be able to show you a finished product tomorrow night. We'll see what the children let me get done tomorrow.

So, I have another random thing for you. When is the last time you cleaned out your measuring spoon drawer? Yah, I did today. I had 6 sets, YES 6 sets, of measuring spoons in there! When did that happen? How did I get so many and from where? Well, I got rid of the plastic ones and have kept the rest. Sure I don't really need 4 sets, but I really like metal measuring spoons and it's so handy if you don't have time to do dishes in between baking different things. How many sets do you have in your drawer?


monogramP.S. Over at Creation Corner Tasha has posted about the Dehlia Felt Brooch. Check out her blog! So many good ideas. (I love the superhero party cape idea...seriously...go look).

PhotobucketP.P.S. Someday Crafts has ALSO posted about the Dehlia Felt Brooch. Today she is doing a linky flower party. Who doesn't love fabric flowers!!!? Go look. :)

Ice Cream Cone Cakes

This is the creation from last night. I have a group of friends that get together before upcoming holidays. We share our own traditions to glean good ideas from each other. We bring food that we like to eat for that holiday and craft ideas {with a sample project}. Last night we talked about birthdays, Memorial Day, and Father's Day.


Poof Ball Flower

I really think this is a cute flower. I played around with this one for the mothers and grandmothers to wear for the upcoming wedding. But have decided to go with a different style. This was so cute and it worked perfect as a little gift to our upstairs neighbors when they just moved out. {Gotta love apartment living.} Follow this tutorial on Tea Rose Home for the directions.

File Folder Activities

I have had this project for a while and decided to bite the bullet and finish it today. I really like how they turned out. These are file folder activities/games that teach your child something as they play. I got most of these ideas from File Folder Fun for FREE. Some of the ones I made my kids can do alone and others I will have to read them or help them play. This just means that they will grow with us. I made 11 total and I'm feeling very proud of them right now. It took quite a bit of time putting them together. The kids love them already. The ones I printed involve: numbers, letters, rhyming, patterns, colors, counting, line drawing precision, manners, shapes, senses, and matching. Love it!! Let me know if you find any other good free file folders. There are so many possibilities.

P.S. It's actually felt rejuvenating to take a day off from the wedding flowers. Tomorrow, here I come.

Bow Ties

The wedding preparations press on. I was given the chance to make ties for my son and his cousin. I was going to go with the customary straight tie using this tutorial, but then decided upon a simple bow tie. The colors are black, white, and blue {like the ribbon flower color}. I love {love} love these! They are super simple to make and I plan on making many more. I used a silky fabric to make them look dressy, but they will be even easier with cotton {less sliding of fabric}. I can just imagine one for all seasons in his drawer. I think he might rebel. :)
Materials needed:
Fabric of choice (no more than a fat quarter will do perfectly, or cut about 1/4 yard)
16" of 5/8 wide Ribbon color of choice
Needle and thread
10" Soft non-sticky velcro

Felt Dahlia Flower Brooch

I found this amazing flower with tutorial {thank you Jen} and decided to make it in honor of Mother's day. Glad I did. This is from Holidash - a blog about holidays and making them beautiful. Very fun.

I called a friend and we had a girl crafty party after the kids went to bed. We ate artichokes {they are such good conversation food} and made felt flowers. An evening can't get much better.
I just love these flowers. Who knew felt could look so good! The orange flower has netting on the top underside and a button for the center. The cream flower has a small twisty flower {see head band tutorial} in its center. I even thought that it would be so cute to make a variety of centers with velcro sewn onto the back that could be changed out to match different outfits.

Oakcrest Hello Dollies

It has been a while since I posted a recipe. So here's one for you that is scrumptious and doesn't cut any calories. I just made these for a dinner party and they were gone instantly.

I first had this dessert when I worked at Oakcrest, and LDS girl's camp for 12 to 13-year-old girls. I was just watching videos from the Oakcrest website and got very nostalgic. I worked there as a counselor in 2003 and an assistant director in 2004. My camp name is Rain. Are there any Oakcrest fans out there?

An adorable find

We were driving home and saw a sign for an estate sale! Wahoo. There are always treasures just waiting to be found. There was quite a bit of stuff in there. The woman had been a book, tea cup, clothing, and jewelry collector. It's the kind of place if you look and have a open eye, you can find some good stuff. This is what I came away with.

I love the loopiness of the metal and simplicity of the piece. I'm going to take off the seat, pad it, and recover to make a comfier little chair. I haven't decided yet if I should leave the metal or make it black. I don't think I'll do it until after we move, so you'll have to wait to see the finished product in a little while. I'm excited!

Zipper Flower

I love flowers! Next up, the zipper flower. I have seen lots of people using this to accessorize and decided to get in on the fun. I will be making 9 of these for the aprons at my sis-in-law's wedding. {I can't wait to see the final product! It's going to look so good!} Here's a tutorial for you to follow! These could be shirt pins, put on hair stretchy bands or head bands, glued on a plastic bracelet, and bag clips. And for those who fly often, wouldn't sewing one of these onto your fabric bag {you know the black ones that EVERYONE has that look all the same} make it so much easier to spot when the baggage carousel displays everyone's luggage?! I'm liking this idea.

Materials Needed:
24 in. metal separating zipper
hot glue and gun
scissors
sparkly for the middle

Ribbon Flowers


I have gone to the grave and back. Well, at least it felt like it. This past week has been filled with lots of vomiting sickness in my house. A couple of days I was lucky enough {I wouldn't wish it on anyone} to also catch the bug. Down and out. Thankfully I'm up and kicking again...just in time to throw myself into flowers.

I've seen these types of flowers all over the place: headbands, belts, earrings, etc. {Thanks you sWeeT cHarLi and Craftaholics Anonymous for the links} They are so so easy to make and require no sewing. Glue guns really are a good thing.

I'm making these for my sister-in-law's wedding {shout out to Katelyn!} and love how they turned out. I am making several things for the wedding: ribbon flowers for bridesmaid's hair {a small tuck of just the right color}, ribbon flowers and fabric flowers PLUS other embellishments on 9 black aprons {they have to look cuter than just plain black}, 2 little boy's bow ties {black with white polka dots}, and 2 little girl dresses with a bubble bottom {love them}. So I'm going to have my work cut out for me. With a move 2 1/2 months away, I've got to get crackin'. I will be making tutorials as I go along making these projects, just in case you want to volunteer for lots of things for the next wedding in your future. ;)

So here's the tute on the flowers. Seriously, so easy and so fast.
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