School Tags

Every couple of years I make my kids personalized luggage tags for their backpack and gear. I decided my daughter needed one for her lunchbox. 

She picked this picture of her and her baby brother that was taken when we took family pictures this summer.

Then we took a picture that matched for backpack. She specifically asked for this hairstyle. At the last minute the picture got scratched when I was almost done making it. I didn't want to start over. Lame mom award.

In the past year she lost all her baby pudge. She's now a lanky grader schooler.

I tell her how beautiful she is about once a day. She finds it a bother. Don't worry all you feminists out there I also tell her how smart she is, that she is a hard worker when she accomplishes tricky things, and how proud I am of her athletic achievements. She hears it all.

Thanksgiving Heart

I needed a different thanksgiving wreath for my wine rack this year. I had no interest in recreating last year's. 

I decided to use my heart shape foam wreath. I covered it in burlap and tulle like last year. I made my sign from copying an old pin on pinterest. I'm so unoriginal, I'm pretty sure that is what pinterest is all about copying other people's crafts.
I took some leaves off this wreath. Three years ago when I made that wreath I was so obsessed, but now its on my front door and I'm so done with it. I'm considering making a new wreath and throwing away that one. There is only 16 days until thanksgiving I'm not sure its worth it to make a new one.

More Cowns

I think crown posts will soon come to an end. I might make another crown or two for my baby boys as they are preschoolers, but I'm pretty sure my daughter isn't going to want to give crowns out at birthday parties for very much longer. In the beginning of the summer a friend turned 6 and we gave her a crown. After walking around our box store in vain, I suggested shopping on Amazon. Instead Nat asked me to make a crown, she designed it all herself, and told me how to make it. She wanted it to say queen not princess. She wanted a very long veil just like Rapunzel, she picked out the fabric and the jewels.

Winter Wreath

Well Christmas is over, and so now its time to get ready for the next celebration, my anniversary.  Ok, its not much of a celebration for my husband and I.  But I do switch from my christmas wreath to a winter wreath. (Next year I think my christmas wreath needs a update, after three years its looking sad.) Snowflakes was a theme of our wedding, so last year I made this wreath, to carry us in-between Christmas to valentines. But the wreath was all wrong. Its for a place covered in snow, and the snow here when it does come melts quickly, because its so sunny and dry.  I saw this wreath and this wreath on pinterest and came up with this new wreath by taking apart two wreaths.  So it was FREE!

I really like the the rosettes on the snowflakes. (Which was not my idea but came from one of the pinterest wreaths.)

 Since I had a white bouquet of roses for my wedding, and then the snowflake theme.

Grammy's Wreath

I saw this wreath on pinterest, and decided I was in love with it, so I made my own version for my mom.  It a foam wreath covered in batting and then in ivory tulle. I love how it turned out it has that trendy vintage feel to me.  I cut out the pictures to look like old time pictures.  Or at least tried. I used this printable for the bunting letters.

Chocolate Bunny Easter Wreath

I finished my Easter wreath last night. I love it in fact so much more than my shamrock argyle wreath. I was going to wait until after St. Paddy's day, but I loved it too much. Don't forget to notice the chocolate bunny figurine inside. The wreath form is wrapped in gray yarn then green tulle.

I used these tutorials for the flowers

For the felt flowers

The Tulle puff

The calico flowers

The lace rosettes

Green Ruffle

I decided the window needed a ruffle in the girl's room, since I recently took down the curtains. They were too hard for a four year to wielded. (Come summer when the Colorado sun come up at 5:30, we might go back to heavy curtains.)

This tulle ruffle was about the easiest thing to ever make. I bought a roll of tulle and measured 5x the window, the cut two pieces that size. Sewed two straight lines. I didn't even gather, because it bunched on the rod.

In case you couldn't tell the room is pink and green. (The quilt my mom made.)

Here are some other pink and green diy-s for her room.

Lace Ruffle Lampshade

Temple Frame

Clippie Holder

Girly Clock

Thankfully we repainted the room from that awful hot pint.

Tutus in hair

I am so trilled, my daughter wears headbands! Which means as long as I attached bows to a headband, she'll wear a bow!! (She never in her life has worn hairpieces in her life. She has sensory problems.) The other day, I saw a tulle clippy, so I asked Pinterest and it delivered.
Sadly, this is the best picture my daughter would allow. What a stinker.

Anniversary Wreath

I love Christmas decorations, but usually my husband and are ready for them to go December 26th.  Yes, we put them away the day after.  There was a few years I put everything away the day we left town before Christmas.  Anyway, so its nice to have a clean clutter free house after Christmas, but it is also a little lonely, especially on my door. But I can't bear to stare at Valentine's stuff for a month and half so everything looks bare for two or three weeks.  Last year I really wanted to make an anniversary wreath/January wreath, but that just wasn't going to happen after the exhaustion of the holidays. 

 So that is what I did last week!  I made an anniversary wreath! 

 Our anniversary is December 30th, and we had blue and white snowflake theme.  I made the wreath with tulle, it will be great for the last week of December and the beginning of January.  (If you want to know how to make a tulle wreath go here, but pretty much its a tutu on a wreath.  I used a white wreath form since I used white tulle. I bought two and half yards of tulle I think )

It led to exciting developments, my friend saw my wreath, and she said learned from her mother in law to leave the snowman decorations up in January, so things don't look too bare.  How exciting to have January deco... I can't wait.  I'll have to make a snowman craft after I finish Halloween costumes, because I don't craft in January.

Reject Costume

The second to last texas craft, is a white tutu that I made for my almost two year old. I was going to go with a tutu ghost. She was going to be themed with her brother. She loved the tutu until she got close, then would scream. It looks so pretty though. I changed, in my hearts of hearts, if I had only one costume to dress a daughter up in, I would pick a red cape for little red riding hood. Who knows I might never have an almost two year old daughter again, and almost three year old kids, are opinionated. (Well so are two year olds, they just don't have the communication skills, required to get out of little red riding hood.)

Although I knew how to make a tutu, my mom likes directions, so I googled it. I found this video extremely helpful.  I liked how she said to roll up the tulle before cutting, such a great idea. She said roll up a yard of tulle and cut each inch.

Sleeping Ballarinas

My daughter's tutu dust ruffle for her crib looks much better with the crib on the lowest setting. Now I wish I had antique dresser the same wood color, raised about a foot off the ground, so I could add a matching tutu dresser for the crib. Right now she doesn't have a dresser, her clothes are keep in a sweater organizer that hangs in the closet. Although if I had a dresser, where would we set up the play rug with the trains?

Baby Ballerina

For some strange reason I decided to make my daughter a tutu dust ruffle for her bed. It was quite the project, I ignored it for months. Four and half yards of tulle can be a little unruly.



It will look better once her crib is on a lower level. I also probably needed twice as much tulle, but I only knew that after the fact.

Homemade Presents

I always have dreams about taking the hand made only Christmas pledge, so I start early and plan ahead, but I never make it. This my attempt for the gift exchange family, on my husband's side.

I ended up really loving this apron by the end, and wasn't sure she would like it. I made it back in November or October, but then by December she kept mentioning that I had never made her one, so I ended up making the perfect present.

Best part, I sewed so straight! and the pocket magically lined up with the other material.

Her daughter got a flower tutu. I had no idea what I was doing when I started out, I just had a picture in my mind. I was happy with the results.

P.S. The Pledge doesn't quite work for me anyway, because I'm a cheapskate so I don't buy handmade, I only make handmade, and the site is buy not make.

Snowwoman Ballet

I few weeks ago in a craft store ad I saw a skinny snowwoman, and I thought that is the snowman for my house. I went to the store planning to spend about $10, it was $25, I decided no. It wasn't as cute in real life less ballerina like and more gaudy woman like. So I decided to make my own. The two look nothing a like, I love mine, especially way more than the one in the store. The tutu is huge, for the size of the snowman.

Here is what she looks like on our key spot. I have a thing for gaudy christmas tree cones.

Plus it only took one nap time to make.