$1 Vintage Embroidery

Now this embroidery piece I can not take credit for, can you believe I found it at a garage sale for $1! Who would do all this work (it's 11"x13") just to get rid of it for so little.....their loss is my gain, yay for sweet finds! Of course it did not look like the above picture when I bought it, it was displayed like this:


An awful faded yellow plastic matte (which was cut rectanglular when the pattern was oval??) in an old beat up frame. Fortunately I was looking past the frame and at the cute baby with fairies, perfect for T's nursery!


I tried my best at cutting out the oval shape for the matte on white poster board (what can I say I'm cheap!) and it did the trick. I then painted the frame with a coat of white and then green. I then took sand paper to it to add a distressed look.




Much better, right?

Lovin' My Homemade Diaper Bag

I finally finished my diaper bag that I had wanted to make before T arrived (remember that to do list I mentioned?) Well I had actually started it the middle of august and then it sat in a lonely corner of my craft room, being neglected until last week when I decided I just NEED to finish it (otherwise it will never get done). I am so glad I did! I finished my summery diaper bag just in time for fall, non the less I think it rocks!




This bag is amazing, the tutorial lets you decide the amount and size of pockets that you need. I chose 3 large and 4 med pockets for a total of 7 pockets....it's still bigger than you may think let me show you:


May not look like too much but let me empty those pockets out for ya:

1. Hooter Hider aka. Nursing Cover
2. Owl Iphone Case with Iphone 3G inside (see my tutorial HERE)
3. Wallet
4. Boogie Wipes (if you have lil kids with boogie noses, these ROCK!)
5. A sippy cup
6. Two of each diaper size, 2 and 4 (no S is not potty trained yet, don't pressure me!)

7. Wipes
8. 4 Robert Munsch Mini Books ( great when S needs to be entertained )
9. Soother ( working on getting rid of that.... but it's good to have for emergency situations)
10. Fruit snacks (mom's always have snacks with right?)
That's it and can you believe the whole center area isn't even touched! Let's just say that I'm in love with my new diaper bag, regardless of whether it is in season or not!

Want to make your own? I got the idea from Debbie at her cute blog The Craft Project , but you can get the free tutorial HERE at Sew Much Ado.

By the way I used my favorite fabric from the Micheal Miller Meadowsweet 2 collection, Splashy Rose Garden. I just love the yellow and pink flowers with light teal background, so pretty and cheery!

This was my second diaper bag that I've made, and I must say it's my favorite! The other one I made for my sister as a Christmas gift last year you can check it out HERE.

linking to:
I heart naptime
sugar and dots
someday crafts
madamyt
let birds fly

Tutorial: Owl Iphone Case ** Bad News: Read Below

Sorry I have some Bad News ... 

I originally had a tutorial for the Owl Iphone Case here. Which was requested by some readers after seeing this post. Unfortunately the design has a copyright and since I didn't come up with the original I am unable to give the free tutorial any longer.

But there is some Good News...

The designer of this fabulous case is going to be selling a craft book soon, which features the instructions to make one ( It is called Happy Stitch, check it out!).

...sorry for the inconvenience, sometimes stuff happens.

Some Autumn Decor

My husband was bugging me about not having enough 'Autumn/Thanksgiving' Decor last year(.... although I make up for it with Halloween decorations). So I thought I better use this as an opportunity to make some this year.

We had been given some old barn board frames from a friend who moved away, and they have been sitting in our garage unused. I decided to dig one out and make a fabric and felt sign for the mantel. I stitched the letters onto felt, cut them out and then heat n'bonded them to the fabric. Which I wrapped around and taped to some cardboard to fit into the frame (a great use of a diaper box in my opinion). Hot glued some plastic leaves I had in my stash onto the frame and tadaa, a Thanksgiving decor piece!



I also decided to make an autumn insert for this frame, remember back in this post where I made a Halloween and Christmas insert....well I thought I better do one with leaves instead of hearts for fall, here it is:


I used Close to my Hearts 'Many Thanks' Stampset, goldrush, chocolate, and creme brulee inks.

Some quick and easy autumn decor pieces, Happy Fall!

linking to:
tatertots and jello
i heart naptime
sugar and dots
madamyt
someday crafts

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

I don't spend too much of my free time in the kitchen but once in awhile I do enjoy a bake day. I usually try to make my own bread and cookies and sometimes other treats!

Today I thought I would share one of my favorite recipes, Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies. These are a staple in our house. I usually make a big batch and then stick em in the freezer and take out as needed and they still taste awesome!

I changed up a recipe I found in a community cookbook to make these, so here it is:

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients: 1 cup brown sugar

1 cup sugar
1 cup butter/margarine
2 eggs
1 tsp Vanilla
2 cups flour
1.5 cup oatmeal
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
2 cups milk chocolate chips

Cream butter and sugar until fluffy; add eggs and vanilla. Beat well. Mix flour, oatmeal, salt, baking soda and baking powder. Stir into creamed mixture ( I use my Bosch mixer to make these so I just dump in all the dry ingredients without mixing first). Add chocolate chips. Mix until blended. Drop onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes.

Yield: the original recipe said 12 cookies, but with my cookie scoop I can get about 3.5 dozen. So I guess it depends how big you make them!

I usually double the recipe when I make them and I get around 8 dozen to freeze.

Tink stuck around after the party to watch me bake, haha.