Quiet Book Part 1

I've been on a break for the last few weeks...not planned, not because anything big was going on...I just didn't have any projects that I was excited about doing.  And I have to be excited about them.  Browsing Pinterest, I came across inspiration for a quiet book and got really excited about making one for my niece.  I found a lot of page ideas, but none came with complete instructions.  And that is the part of sewing that I like - figuring out how something is going to work - how to create a picture on Pinterest or an idea in my head. 

I think the reason there aren't good instructions about how to make each page - it's too complicated, intricate and time-consuming to document and explain every step.  So, like other bloggers, I'm not going to try - I'm just going to show you what I have done so far.

Gumball Machine

Barn with Farm Animal Finger Puppets

 

Mixing Bowl with Cupcake Ingredients/Oven Cupcakes

(Getting close, but still a work in progress)

 

Rainbow Fish

(Still in early stages - I want to add magnets to the fish, for the background make waves, with pockets where the fish will live, and add a fishing pole with a magnetized worm.)

 

It's been fun having a big project that I'm actually excited about working on, although I've been to Michael's so many times this weekend, the employees are like, "Oh, it's you."

 

And my home is craft-messy. #keepinitreal

 

I have more pages to make and then I have to figure out the world of crop-o-diles and eyelets and grommets, (oh my) and then put it all together.  I'll keep you posted!

 

Bunting on a Cake

I've seen this idea around (like here or here, which turned out amazing) and thought Mother's Day would be the perfect time to try it out myself.  I didn't look up any tutorials before embarking on this project, because it seemed so simple.  It was pretty much a total fail.

I got a triangle punch and colorful paper; and I had straws, washi tape, baker's twine and letter stickers on hand. 

Here's what I learned: 

1. Happy Mother's Day is too many letters to deal with - I think on tiny cake bunting, less is more.  So many letters ended up being too heavy to stay in place, so for the picture, my mom and dad had to hold it. 

2. Washi tape as the top "binding" doesn't work. It's too stiff and doesn't curve, like you want bunting to.  Other tutorials I've seen either punch two holes in each flag and weave the string through the top or punch the flag so it's connected at the top and fold it over the string.  I think both of those methods would have worked better.

3. It's really hard to attach the string to the straw (and three strands are triply difficult).  The heart tutorial above uses mini clothespins at the top of the straw and that seems like a good idea.  Or some people use dowel rods rather than straws and maybe that is easier to tie a string around.

4. Sometimes real life gets in the way of picture perfect blogging.  The cake just came out of the oven, we were supposed to gather everything and get to my sister's house, the cake was still too warm to frost, but I did it anyway, because I wanted to get a picture. 

So...this was a learning experience!  I love the look of bunting, so I'd like to try it again and hopefully next time it'll be better!

Whatever (Philippians 4:8)

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

Philippians 4:8New International Version (NIV)

I have always loved this verse.

Exhibit A:

How funny is this?! I made this "wall art" in college.  And then took the worst picture ever of it. 

Exhibit B: 

Technology has helped my artistic skillz immensely.  I made this word cloud recently, using https://tagul.com/.  There are free sites that let you create word clouds, but they don't give you as many options. 

 

If you love this print as much as I do, I have just listed it for sale ($3.00) as a digital download on my Etsy shop TheBurlapFlower HERE.  You can download it and then send it to  FedEx printing service for $0.93!

Side note - I feel like I'm in good company, because you know who else loves this verse?  One of my very favorite bloggers, Meg Duerksen, who based her blog title on it:  http://www.megduerksen.com/

It is surprisingly hard to find an 8 1/2 x 14 (legal) sized frame, so I ended up ordering one online from http://www.arttoframe.com/ which let me pay through Amazon.

For a chance to win this print, comment below (on the blog, not on Facebook) and I'll randomly choose someone to send it to!

Gold Leaf Clipboard

My theme verse for this year is Romans 12:12: 

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.

While searching for well-designed art with encouraging Bible verses for a project for a friend, I came across this on Pinterest:

Which is a lot better-looking than my current display:

So I printed it and decided to add it to the gallery wall in my office...that I'm planning in my mind.

For this project you'll need:
a clipboard
a gold leafing pen (mine was 18kt. gold by Krylon)
a print

I decided to use a clipboard (with the idea that I'll find a cute printable every year in the future and can change it out easily).  Of course, I wanted to dress it up, so I decided to gold leaf the clip.  I found using a gold leaf paint pen worked great.  Since the clipboard came shrink-wrapped, with the clip left out, it was perfect - no need to tape around it before painting. 

I love how it turned out!

DIY Upcycled Tiered Stand

Ever since I saw this Tiered Tin Stand I wanted to make it.  I found plenty of tins to use at Goodwill.  But I could NOT figure out what to use for the in-between.  I tried various wooden pieces and candleholders until I finally decided on plain 4 inch silver holders.

I tried both hot glue and super glue and found they worked about the same.  Then I just tried to get the holders in the center of each tin.

 

Then I had fun filling it with colorful craft supplies, which freed up some of my enclosed craft storage boxes!

 

Shabby Chic Fabric Rosette Toddler Headband

I wanted to make a headband to match THIS DRESS so I used the leftover fabric and a headband from the dollar store to make one.

For this project you'll need:
headband
fabric strips - approximately 1 inch wide; choose the length based on how large you want your flower
hot glue gun

Step 1: I wrapped a strip of the yellow fabric around the headband, securing it at the ends with hot glue.

Step 2:  Fold your 1 inch strip in half, lengthwise, wrong sides together.  (I think the purpose is to make sure more of the design is seen.)  To make a rosette, tie a knot at the end of the strip of fabric.

Step 3: Twist fabric into a rope, then wind it around the knot, securing with hot glue as you go.

Pastel Chevron Tiered Ruffled Toddler Dress

I went to the fabric store to help my mom pick out fabric - I found pastel chevron and could just picture my niece in it! 

For some reason I eschew using a pattern.  I kind of laid out what I had in mind.

I figured I'd make a variation of the tank top bubble dress I have made her before.  I bought a white tank and decided to cut it, about 3 inches below the arm holes.

I had bought half a yard of each color of fabric and knew I wanted tiers. Rather than make a bubble dress,  I hemmed the bottom of each tier.  I cut the longest layer about 16 in. and then made each layer 3 inches shorter than the one below it.

After hemming the bottom, I folded each tier in half, right sides together and sewed the short end, making a circle.

Then I pinned the top of the three tiers together.  Then I sewed a wide stitch a the top and pulled on the bobbin thread to make ruffles and size the skirt.  Then I sewed the skirt to the tank, right sides together.

My niece Hadley looks CRAZY adorable in it!!

Check out next week's post to see the adorable matching headband!!