Showing posts with label holidays. Show all posts
Showing posts with label holidays. Show all posts

Thursday, January 29, 2015

You Blow Me Away Valentine!


Bubble valentines.  Ok, so I never claimed that all of these valentines would be new and original ideas, just that you could get them at the dollar store. Ha!  Anyway, you've seen these right?  Some of them are so cute it's ridiculous, with their pink bottles and heart shaped wands and stuff...
But, as I said, my main concern is price.  And these babies?  1 dollar for 12.  1 dollar for 12!!!  That's $2 total for a cute little gift for my daughters whole class!  


And I think they've got a ton of potential for cuteness.  Even minus the heart wand.

First, I made the tags in my word processor.  I love free fonts and have a ton that are perfect for Valentine's Day.  
Then I punched them out with my circle punch.  
Easy.
I wrapped each bubble bottle with different washi tape.  I have to admit, I loved it.  In my opinion, this is the perfect use for washi tape!
Then I punched a little hole in the tag and tied them around the top of the bottles with red and white twine.

Done and done!

Another cute idea would be to put a little heart sticker on the very top of the lid, or a print off something cute on some circle sticker labels.

Here are your printables!


 photo bubblevalentine_zpsf79dc9da.jpg


This post is part of a series about Dollar Store Valentines!



*Be sure to check below for all the fun parties I link to!*

Wednesday, January 28, 2015

Dino-Mite Valentines!



Ok.  Has this valentine idea been done to death?  There are literally 100's of adorable dinosaur valentine ideas out there.  Seriously.  So why am I doing it again?

All right.  So the dollar store had BIG plastic dinosaurs - a dollar each.  Which would still get kind of pricey, right - buying 24 of them and all.
But then I saw this pack of little STRETCHY dinosaurs and I thought they were pretty cute and fun.  They came in a pack of 8 - 8!!  So I snatched them up.


I was a little unsure of how to stick them on the cards... they are an odd shape after all.  In the end, I poked two little holes vertically right in the middle (where it's blank).  Then I wrapped twine through from the back, placed the dino on and tied the twine in a knot and bow.  Cute!  Because the dinos are squishy, the twine works really well because you can tie it really tight.


The t-rex was a challenge.  I had to bend his legs all together.  Very uncomfortable.  



Here are the printables!  If you have a die cutter, oval punch or more patience, you could cut them out as ovals, which is what I originally intended but I have the cutting abilities of a 4 year old so that didn't happen.


dino-mite valentines photo dinomite_zpsdd60950b.jpg




This post is part of a series about Dollar Store Valentines!



*Be sure to check below for all the fun parties I link to!*

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Domo Arigato, Mr. Roboto.

(Robot Costume Part 1: the robot body)
(Robot Costume Part 2: the helmet & limbs)
(Robot Costume Part 3: the Feet)
(Robot Costume Part 4: Girl Version)


Today's the day.  The day I finally share THE Halloween costume tutorial.  It's been forever since I left you that teaser (like 2 years???) and for some reason, the tutorials just never got written.  But I'm ready.

You may remember from past posts that I actually kind of love making costumes.  

And I especially like it when our family matches.  Like the Batman themed costumes when the kids were little. 

And the Mario themed costumes from about 3 years ago.  Though the best was probably before bug even turned 2 and I was pregnant with mini.  That kid looked awesome.  

So when bug requested a robot costume I was actually pretty stoked.  I was positive that if I started early enough, frequented the thrift store, brainstormed and took my time I could come up with something crazy awesome.  I even sketched out some designs, patterns and specific ideas.  Now, something I want to warn you about is that these pictures are not stellar.  This was before the awesome camera and it is impossible to take good pictures AS I am sewing since I sew in a dungeon.  (No, literally.  There's chains and shackles and everything...)



I'll be sharing this costume in bits and pieces - we'll tackle the main body, helmet, accessories and then the girl version I made for mini.

Here we go!

First off, for the main body, you'll need:
1 mattress pad (I used a queen and got two robot costumes out of it)
fabric for lining
batting (like for a quilt)
1 long zipper (coat zipper is best)
1 small square of tulle or mesh
12 metal grommets 
1 mini Christmas tree light necklace, tiny battery operated with a small on/off switch
3 small (thick) glow sticks
6 large buttons
3 extra large buttons
felt scraps in multiple colors
embroidery floss
needle and thread

First off, let's talk about the separate pieces you'll need to cut:
Top picture: two large rectangles for the body, two skinny rectangles with a curve cut out of one end for the sides, two small rectangles for shoulder straps.
Middle picture: These pieces are for "robot shoes".  Two rectangles with a small curve for the ankle, 4 skinny rectangles for the sides of the shoes, 4 small rectangles for the fronts and backs.
Bottom picture: Felt "gauges" to embellish the body.  I actually looked up pictures of vintage robots to get an idea about how the gauges used to look.  (I know, I'm ridiculous.) 
For the circle gauge: I placed the white circle on top of the aqua circle and used gray embroidery floss to sew the marks around kind of like a clock face.  That was the only thing holding the two together, but it worked out great.  I placed the tiny green felt circle in the middle, used red embroidery floss to sew it on with an "x" and then sewed a small arrow with a line on the back.  
For the rectangle gauge: I used black embroidery floss to sew the tiny red felt strip to the white felt trapezoidal piece at the edges, using small stitches that chained together, and continued that stitch to the edges of the white piece - making a black box to indicate the number window of the gauge.  I used the same floss to make the small and longer markings all through the window area, and a long arrow coming from the bottom of the white piece to the marks.  I sewed the white trapezoid piece to the yellow rectangle with white embroidery floss, then the aqua circle to the bottom with aqua floss.  In both cases I just hand stitched around the edge.

I'm not sharing a pattern or anything, because you have different sized kids than I do, so I'll share how I measured my kids and you'll be able to customize your robot pieces!

Piece 1. A - from shoulder to shoulder
              B - From shoulder to however long you want it to be... I chose upper thigh.
              Cut two pieces.
Piece 2. C - from the front of the shoulder, around the arm to the back of the shoulder.  
              D - from armpit to however long you want it to be... for me, upper thigh.  (same 
                    length as B above)
              Cut two pieces.
Piece 3. E - from next to the neck to the shoulder
              F - from the end of the collarbone over the top of the shoulder to the back of the
                   shoulder at the top of the shoulder blade.
FOR 4-6 USE A SHOE to measure, NOT A FOOT.  These are made to wear OVER SHOES.
Piece 4. G - from left side of shoe to right side - straight, not curved. Add a half inch.
              H - from heel to toe. Add a half inch.  For the curve - center it and cut enough for
                    ankle to comfortably fit through.
Piece 5. I - from top of shoe to bottom of sole.  Add 1/4 inch - 1/2 inch.
              J - from heel to toe. Add a half inch.
Piece 6. K - from top of heel to bottom of sole.  Add 1/4 inch - 1/2 inch.  (should be the 
                    same as I)
              L - from left side of shoe to right side - as with G above - then Add AN INCH.
Piece 7. M - the aqua circle is about 3.5 - 4 inches in diameter.
              N - White circle is about 3 - 3.5 inches in diameter.
Piece 8. P - Height of rectangle is about 3 - 4 inches.
              O - Length of rectangle is about 5-6 inches.

Phew!  Now that that's done...

Cut a mattress pad piece, a batting piece AND a lining piece for every single part of the robot body and shoe.
I used a thick mattress pad for two reasons.  1, I liked the quilting detail.  I thought it would look like imprinted metal.  2. I needed something thick and able to keep its shape well.  This way the robot would be soft and pliable for kids' movement, but also boxy and stiff looking.  This is also why I added batting to every piece.  3. It was free.  I got it from someone who didn't need it anymore... and free is the best price for fabric!

FRONT.
1. Cut a small square of tulle (or mesh).  This is a pocket for the glow sticks (or fluid/fuel indicators, if you will) so make it tall enough for the glow sticks and wide enough to fit three across.
2. Pin the felt pieces to the front body mattress pad piece.  I lined them up vertically, but you can do it however you want.
3. Pin the tulle rectangle to the same piece of mattress pad.  I pinned it across from the circle gauge horizontally, but it's your choice.  Each glow stick will have it's own little compartment, so place pins to mark where you will sew down the tulle for pockets.
4. Sew around the outer edge of the two felt gauges.
5. Sew from the top left corner, down, across the bottom, up to the right corner.  Then sew straight down in two spots to make the three see-through pockets.

Now your font piece is ready, and we can start construction!
1. Cut out your lining pieces and batting pieces.
2. Place your front mattress pad piece and front lining piece right sides together and sew up one side,
3. Across the TOP, and down the other side.
4. Leave the bottom open.  Turn right side out.  Insert your batting.
5. Sew across the bottom.  (I was careful to use selvaged edges so I didn't need to hem this.

NOW - I didn't take pictures of this entire process, but you need to do that with every single piece.  Just put right sides together, sew, turn right side out.  Insert the batting.  Sew the opening closed.  For EVERY PIECE.

Some notes:
 1.  Cut the back piece in half FIRST, before lining and stuffing it.  Just cut up the back - halving it vertically.  Line and stuff and sew up the two halves.  Then sew on the exposed zipper.  Just pin the zipped up zipper to one half, sew it on, then pin along the other half and sew.
2.  Topstitch anything that won't be sewn directly to another piece for added stability and a more finished look.  So, top stitch the long sides of the shoulders, 
3 and 4. and topstitch the curves of the side pieces, but leave the side edges.

 Here's a closer look at the zipper functionality.  If you are sure to cut the back in half and line, stuff and sew up the halves separately BEFORE adding the zipper, there will be finished edges inside and the zipper won't get caught on any unfinished batting and threads hanging out (see pic. 3)  I love the look of the exposed zipper - more industrial, I guess.  If you have a coat zipper, that is awesome because the whole back will open then.  I didn't have one, so I just added a normal zipper that stops at the bottom.  It opens all the way down to the bottom, which is more than enough space for bug's shoulders and arms to get through.

Once you've sewed your details to the front piece and your zipper to the two halves of the back piece, then lined, stuffed and sewed every single piece, you can put everything together!
1. Pin the shoulder piece to the top corner of the front piece.  Place the short end against the top edge of the front piece and the long edge along the side edge of the front piece with right sides together.  Sew straight across the TOP.
2. Do this with the other shoulder piece on the other top corner of the front.
3. Pin the side piece to the front piece.  Place the long edge of the side piece against the long edge of the front piece with right sides together and sew it down.  Then repeat with the other side piece on the other edge of the front piece.
You should have a front piece with two rectangles flopping off of the top and two long rectangles flopping off the sides.
4. Now connect the side pieces to the back piece.  Just line up the long edges and make sure to sew right sides together.  Do this with both sides.
5. Sew the shoulder straps to the back piece at the corners.
6. The back will look like this when unzipped.

A few detail shots:
1. Once everything is sewn together, the whole body should be able to practically support itself since you used thick mattress pad PLUS batting AND lining for every single piece individually.
2. I sewed a "vent" to the bottom of the front mattress pad piece.  I thought it added detail and it also made the front stiffer and boxier.  I just sewed parallel lines about 3-4 inches long and about 1/2 inch apart.
3. I sewed the points of the side pieces - the pointy parts of the curve for the arms - to the body at the front and back at an angle after sewing up the sides.  This reinforced the connection there which added some stability, but it's not entirely necessary.

Now, let's give it some color!
 Yes, I realize that if I had painted it first and THEN sewed the stuff on the front, I wouldn't have had to tape them off, but I wasn't thrilled about shoving painted fabric through my machine at the time, though now I realize it probably would have been ok.  Ah well.
So, tape off anything you don't want silver - the two felt pieces and the zipper in my case.
Then spray away!  
The bottom picture is after one coat - I did three total.

One last important note.  And I mean super duper duper important.  Use normal, indoor/outdoor spray paint.  Like Krylon.  READ THE LABEL.
Do NOT - NOT NOT NOT NOT NOT - use ENAMEL spray paint.  Right now you're thinking DUH.  Let me tell you a story.

Once upon a time, a mom made a robot costume.  She put a lot of thought, time and effort into it, and because she was only a moderately good sewer, she was very excited for how it came out, despite the amount of time and deep thought that went into every decision and every stitch.  Finally, the day came to make the costume silver.  She had silver spray paint in the garage, ready and waiting, and it was a beautiful, shiny, sparkly silver she had meticulously picked out - not realizing there was a difference between types of spray paint (you see, she may have been a moderate sewer, but was a spray paint novice.)  She sprayed and sprayed that robot costume until it shone and she was very happy.  An hour later, she went to check the costume, which she had finished a week ahead of schedule!  Curiously, it was still wet with paint.  Perplexed, the mom figured spray paint would simply take longer to dry on fabric and left it overnight.  In the morning, she check it again, and it was STILL wet!  Confused, the mom read the spray paint can and in horror realized she had bought ENAMEL spray paint, instead of the normal stuff.  Being completely unsure if the enamel paint would EVER dry on fabric, she nearly collapsed in despair upon realizing that she had ruined her lovingly created costume.  A day later, when it still was not dry, she set to work making a new one - which involved buying a new mattress pad, re-creating the felt gauges and other hand-sewn details, lining, stuffing, sewing, zippering, sewing, detailing, and FINALLY painting the costume once again - this time with NORMAL EVERYDAY SPRAY PAINT in normal silver.

Can I tell you the worst part of that story?  Yes, it's true.  But that's not the worst part.  The worst part is that I decided to sew up both bug's and mini's costumes and THEN spray them all at once.  Which means I ruined not one, but TWO costumes and had to re-create not one, but TWO costumes.  In a week.  AHHHHH!!!

Now, you will understand why the costume looks a little different from here on out... I changed the positions of the details and gauges on the front and was a little more careful with sewing the details - plus I had to use a different lining fabric, since I was all out of that awesome polyester I inherited from my grandma.

On the upside, I think I'm forever an expert on making robot costumes.

Ah, yes, to finish the body, all you have to do is:
Use a scissors, hammer and the grommet tool that comes in the grommet package to place 12 grommets in a grid on the front of the robot suit.  Cut a little hole through ALL LAYERS (easier said than done...), stick the grommet pieces through, use the tool and smack with a hammer.  DONE.
Use the little Christmas Tree Lights necklace to light up the grommet holes.  Place the necklace inside the suit, then make sure to stick lights out of the grommet holes.  There will be more lights than holes, that's ok.  Just makes sure all the holes are filled.  Then hand-sew the necklace into place with embroidery floss.  Secure it to the suit in many places - I sewed the necklace to the suit at each grommet to make sure the lights would stay in the holes - and I only sewed into the back layer - the lining fabric - not all the way through.



A note: I realize the Christmas Tree Lights Necklace may not be so easy to find.  I happened upon mine at Menard's - a local hardware store.  If you can't find one, THIS is the EXACT necklace I used and it's only $5.99 on Amazon.  Also, I was planning on using normal white battery operated Christmas tree lights.  I would have sewn a little pocket to the inside of the suit to accommodate the bulky battery pack.  So that's an option too.

Tomorrow: The helmet!





*Be sure to check below for all the fun parties I link to!*

Thursday, October 16, 2014

About time.

gift it. 2014 button photo 0ffd9711-0261-4e13-9866-83ff36f6739d_zps43748e9a.jpg


Ok, ok.  As promised, I'm done with the DIY gift posts now.  It dragged on and on, but I hope you stuck with it and got some AWESOME ideas for the now approaching all too quickly holiday season.  (yikes)

If you need a quick reference back to all things Gift it. 2014, here's your wrap up!


2. Stud Earring Holder - Young and Crafty Sisters
3. 5 Grandparent Gift Ideas - Hi! It's Jilly!
4. Fat Quarter Doll Quilt Tutorial - Simple Simon and Company
5. Birthday Sack Lunch - A Girl and a Glue Gun
6. 8 Gifts for Gadget Lovers - Melly Sews







10 Must-Make Gifts For Mother's Day, 
10 Fabulous Gifts For Father's Day, 
5 Fantastic Gifts for Grandma, 
5 Super Fun Gifts For Grandpa
25 A+ Gifts for Teacher, 
25 Highschool Graduation Gifts, 
25 Friendly New Neighbor Gifts, 
25 Lovely Housewarming Gifts
10 Valentine's Gifts (for anyone and everyone), 
10 Wedding Gifts (they'll love to use), 
10 Anniversary Gifts (for those you love)

There you have it!  Gift it. 2014!  That's exactly 362 gift ideas for you to make for every kind of occasion you could imagine! Also, don't forget that most of these come with free printable gift tags, etc., just click on the post and scroll to the end. Now get cracking!  We've got gifts to make!

If you don't know what this series was all about, read the explanation here.

Also, you can see even more ideas:




*Be sure to check below for all the fun parties I link to!*

Wednesday, October 8, 2014

It's My Favoritist Round-Up


I know I keep saying I don't want to drag this series out... and then I keep stringing you along.  But you'll be glad I did when you see what I've got in store for you today!

I just couldn't bypass my favorite round up theme - baby gifts!  I don't know why I love gathering ideas for this one - probably because everything is cuter in miniature (I mean, that's a proven fact.)

The first year, I rounded up 101 ideas and last year I did 102.  So it made sense to go for 103 this year - but I just couldn't stop!  Seriously.  So I settled on 113 (still has a 3 in the ones place, see?) and this is being very selective.  There's so many awesome ideas out there!  I've rearranged my pinboards a bit and now have a "baby gifts" board (my "gifts for all occasions board" was getting out of control) where you'll find even more (yes, that's right, EVEN MORE) baby gift ideas to make.  These are just my top picks this year for blankies, clothes, accessories, toys, necessities and more!  PLUS, there're bonus cute packaging ideas down at the bottom! (seriously.  So cute.)

Soooo, just this one more gift post and then I'm done.  I swear.

 photo babygiftstitle_zpsea2f97bf.jpg




1. Basic Baby Quilt - 30 Handmade Days
2. Warm and Cozy Ribbon Blanket - Victoria Brikho
3. Rag Quilt - Poofy Cheeks
4. Baby Sleeping Bag - Burda Style
5. Little Sheep Baby Blanket - Two Sisters Crafting
6. Reversible Flannel Baby Blankets - Stay At Home Artist
7. Boy-Themed Knit Receiving Blankets - Make It and Love It
8. Rainbow Baby Quilt - Stitched By Crystal for So You Think You're Crafty
9. Hand Stamped Swaddle Blanket - Live it. Love it. Blog it.
10. Easy Swaddle Blanket - A Joyful Riot
11. Crocheted Bobble Blanket - All Things Bright and Beautiful
12. DIY Stamped Baby Blanket - Hello Copeland
13. Ric Rac Receiving Blanket - Fort Worth Fabric Studio
14. Easy Car Seat Swaddle Blanket - U Create Crafts for Riley Blake
15. Ombre Baby Blanket - Kaley Ann
16. Easy Baby Blanket - Sew Fearless
17. Football Blanket - Thriving Home
18. US Map Baby Quilt - Sewn Studio
19. Circle Quilt - Jaybird Quilts




20.  DIY Moon and Stars Outfit - Small and Friendly
21. 3D Tie Onesie - A Day in My Life
22. Knit Baby Cardi - True Bias
24. Suspender Shorts - Crafting Zuzzy
25. Homegrown Onesie (and other cute DIY onesie ideas!) - The Thinking Closet
26. Baby Sophisticate - Ravelry
27. Bow Tie and Suspender Onesie - Make It and Love It
28. Sweater Pants - Red and Honey
30. Hand-Stamped Hipster-Style Onesie - And Then We Saved
31. Sweet Baby Sleep Bag - Sew Fishsticks




32. Tiered Jacket - Ravelry
33. Ruffled Onesie Dress - Jedi Craft Girl
34. Rainbow Bias Tape Skirt - Make It and Love It
35. Ruffle Diaper Covers - See Kate Sew
36. Baby Kimono - Habitual
37. Baby Ringer Onesie - Shwin & Shwin
38. Baby Gown - U Create Crafts
39. Beribboned Onesie - Major Hoff Takes a Wife
40. DIY Baby Skirt - Bulldogs and Babies
41. Baby Leggings Free Pattern - Go To Sew
42. Baby Bubble Skirt - Delia Creates
43. Simple Baby Jumper - ikatbag




44. Woodland Animal Hats - Moth and Sparrow
45. Leaf Garland Headband - Casa de Lewis
46. Baby Mary Janes - Varrohaz (I don't know what language this is... sorry)
47. Baby Bow Tie From Men's Tie - Erin Duggin Photography
48. Cloth Baby Shoe - thatssewnina
49. Pom Pom Headband - Kelli Murray
50. Baby Moccasins - tuts +
51. Crocheted Aviator Hat - Repeat Crafter Me
52. Flannel Baby Mittens - Made To Be A Momma
53. Baby Sunbonnet - The Purl Bee
54. Baby Oxfords - Shwin and Shwin
55.  Baby Shoe Tutorial - Yay! I Made It.
56. Tom's Inspired Baby Shoes - Homemade Toast
57. Pleated Headbands - Craftiness Is Not Optional
58. Chubby Bow Tie - A Lemon Squeezy Home
59. Baby Necktie - The DIY Mommy
60. Here Comes The Sunhat - Shwin and Shwin




61. Monogram Taggie Toy - 12 Crafts Til Christmas
62. Wooden Crate Wagon - woonideeen (it's in Dutch, sorry)
63. Stuffed Snail - Cook, Clean, Craft
64. Felt Shapes Book - Plain Vanilla Mom
65. Doll Softie - Seventy Piggies
66. Homemade Softball - Apple Green Cottage
67. Soft Lion Rattle - Things For Boys
68. Goldfish Teether - One Dog Woof
69. Camera Softie - Babybirds (in German)
70. Rainbow Ring Stacker - Rust and Sunshine
71. Little Seahorse Rattle - Hobbycraft
72. Little Hands Photo Book - Haberdashery Fun
73. Hedgehog Taggie - While Wearing Heels
74. Tactile Taggie Rattles - Curious Kangaroos
75. Tactile Taggie Toy Horse - Things We Do
76. Baby Scooter Rocking Toy - Killer B. Designs
77. Waldorf Style Rainbow Babies - Tayastepina (in Russian)
78. Whale Softie - Craftiness is Not Optional for I Heart Naptime
79. Baby Butterfly - Sew Mama Sew
80. Crochet Baby Noisemaker - Next To Nicx
81. Crocheted Hedgehog Taggie Toy - One Dog Woof




82. Rain Cloud Mobile - Black and White and Loved All Over
83. Little Fish Mobile - While Wearing Heels
84. Map Quote Nursery Art - Snappy Casual
85. Ribbon Curtain - Good Housekeeping
86. Faux Animal Head Trophies - Country Chic Cottage
87. Heart Mobile - Sweet Rose Studio
88. Monogram Mobile - Danica G.
89. Constellation Lightbox - Handmade Charlotte
90. Felted Hot Air Balloons - Le Petit Moon
91. Chipboard Nursery Wall Art (and 3D Star Branch) - Casa de Lewis
92. Name Collage - Honey & Fritz




93. Pacifier Clips - Make It and Love It
94. Monster Bibs - Stubbornly Crafty
95. DIY Babynest - Victoria Brikho
96. Monster Hooded Towels - Crazy Little Projects
97. Bandana Bib - How Does She
98. Baby Washcloths - 2 Little Hooligans
99. Baby Hammock - Life On The Roof
100. Snap-On Cup or Bottle Holder - Sew Can Do
101. Changing Pad Carry-All - Craftaholics Anonymous
103. Catch-All Laminated Bib - Make It and Love It
104. Mustache Pacifier - Practically Functional




105. The Pea Pod Hip Carrier - Sew Mama Sew
106. Baby Cleaning Station - Modern Parents Messy Kids
108. Big Siblings Kit - Ducks in a Row
110. Tired Mom Gift - I Rock So What
111. Jersey Baby Wrap - A Load of Craft
112. New Mommy Gift Basket - Healthy Happy Home
113. Sleeping Baby Sign (and free printable) - House Mix




1. Cupcake Onesies - Club Chica Circle
2. Freshly Hatched Socks - Best Baby Clothes Blog
3. Washcloth Lollipops - Create Studio
4. Diaper Babies - Phar Ma


Ok, people.  Have more babies so I can make this stuff!



*Be sure to check below for all the fun parties I link to!*
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...