Sweet Practically Free Art

Cell phone Pollaroid action ;)

This weekend I cleaned and purged my sweet little ladies room after an awe inspiring visit to another equally as sweet(type1) friends house. Said friends room was so organized the toys were out of sight and just seemed so much more serene then Ava's toy isle style bedroom (More pics of her new sweeter more serene bedroom soon). Upon cleaning up and purging I realized she has NO art! She did have fun tissue poms but one naughty monkey(the little lady herself) jumping on the bed decided it would be fun to rip them down and jump on them :O ugh terrible 2's! So again why buy when you can DIY and completely personalize ;)

DIY Embroidery Hoop Art: 
Embroidery Hoop ( I got mine at good will for .99cents!)
Fabric(enough to over lap about an inch) my fabric is a vintage sheet I have been holding onto ;)
Other textiles - Ribbon, felt, canvas, buttons, lace, ric rac - here you can go crazy!

For my specific hoop I printed the letter a onto heat and bond. Ironed it onto a small piece of canvas, heat and bonded the back of that and ironed it onto felt then went crazy with my FUN stitches on my machine. a couple of rolled felt flowers and bow and some buttons and it's PERFECT! Lay fabric over inner hoop, lay outer hoop over top and tighten the screw as you pull fabric taught(takes a little finesse mine ended up not being taught as I like), fold over excess fabric and glue down so it will lay flat on the wall.  She loves it too!

Matilda Who ;)

Matilda Jane's Knit Pants

My Version :D

I am super excited about today's outfit/ DIY!!!! I was recently invited to a Matilda Jane trunk show....while I was perusing their website and making a wish list I came across these adorable Strawberry Lemonade pants only exclusively available(whatever that means) and I remembered the pink stripe knit fabric I have been holding onto since I scored about a yard of it at an estate sale this summer for 50cents! I have not made an actual garment from knit fabric but for 50 cents how can you go wrong?! I am however fortunate enough to be the owner of a killer craigs list deal serger(not to be confused with craigs list killer;) so really why wasn't I sewing knits long before today!!!

Label- says made for a special princess :)

SO I set out with my basic pant pattern my .50 cent knit fabric and my handy serger and I did it!! Complete with funky little brown label! Matilda Janes website is a never ending inspirational site. I still plan to attend said party and maybe purchase some adorable pricy things for the little lady ;) other wise I will be making my own version of their ruffled pants!

So once again before you buy why not DIY!

DIY your own Matilda Jane Knock off Pants: all you need is knit fabric and a pants pattern and a little courage OH and some inspiration www.matildajaneclothing.com


Tips for sewing knits use a serger!! If not pin like crazy twice what you would normally pin. I had no issues with the fabric what so ever :O shocked still!

DIY Pretend Salt & Pepper

Pardon the cruddy pic, it's early AM :)

I went a little over board on the kids play kitchen accessories. All of it was quick and easy because I had a big list to tackle in order to get it all done by Christmas. Some of the accessories include: Apron's, Chef Hats, Felt Cupcakes, Plastic Eggs, utensils, dishes, cook book, etc,etc....the list goes on and on, a lot of it I made or purchased very inexpensively. My kids especially love the Salt and Pepper (they also love to put salt on their food at the table, the play ones have actually curbed the novelty of real salt shakers;). I thought about making them in felt but wanted them to have sound like real ones, that's when the light went OFF! Dur! Paper! So here's a quick little super satifying fun to play with DIY - you'll be thinking to your self why didn't I think of that!

DIY Pretend Salt and Pepper

Supplies:

Salt and Pepper shakers (dollar store or .97 @ walmart - for the pair)

1 piece ea black and white paper plus a piece of paper to catch punched holes (I used computer paper and kids construction paper)

Hole Punch

Step 1 put your husband to work while he watches sports(he'll love you for this)

Step 2 Have him fold the paper in half and in half again (4x the work in half the time) :D

Step 3 hole punch like crazy onto extra piece of paper (it takes forever this is why you have the hubs do it, you don't want the hand cramp TRUST ME!)

Step 4 use paper as a funnel to pour your salt and pepper in your shakers

Step 5 twist lids on very tightly or if your worried about the little monsters taking them off rub glue around the threads before doing so ;)

You did it!!! They will LOVE it!
The best part?! This whole craft cost me .97cents! What's stopping you now?!
The important stuff! Please do not re-use this tutorial as your own idea - you may however share it all you want and are more then WELCOME to sell any finished products you make using this tutorial(if you have the time and patience to do so!)

5 dollar, 5 step Mod Skirt - Tutorial! 18 mo. to 5T

Color block skirts are back and oh so modern! I have seen a couple of tut's on how to make one but I didn't want to get down with the fussy time consuming waste bands, love the results of the more time consuming ones, but a lot of people aren't brave enough to attack all that (ruffling especially, which is one of my favorite things!). So this is my Easy, Cheap and Fast version which is just the way I like it ;) Enjoy! 

Supplies: 2/3 yard Solid Fabric for skirt body(pictured in peach), 1/2 yard contrasting fabric for hem(pictured in lavender), 1 1/2 inch wide elastic(gives it a more waste band feel, helping it lay flatter), thread, safety pin,pins, sewing machine, rotary mat and ruler.

Cost break down 2/3 yd.  fabric 1.97, 1/2yd. fabric 1.50, 1 1/2" elastic 1.37@ Wal-mart.

Sizing:
18/24 Skirt: 9x18 Skirt Hem: 7x18 Elastic: 17
2T     Skirt: 10x19 Skirt Hem: 7x19 Elastic: 18
3T     Skirt: 11x20  Skirt Hem: 8x20 Elastic: 19(the size I made for the tutorial)
4T      Skirt: 12x21 Skirt Hem: 8x21 Elastic: 20
5T      Skirt 13x22  Skirt Hem: 8x22 Elastic 21

**These measurements have not all been tested they are based of US sizing charts(and tons of trial and error sewing skirts for my little one). For best results measure your little one for elastic(minus 2" from waist measurement for proper elastic fit) and length, ie: skirt+hem- seem allowances of approx 2" will give you an idea how long the final product will be. If you have questions as always feel free to email me :)

1: Cut Fabric according to above sizing with a rotary cutter, ruler and self healing mat - strip cutting works best with a rotary.

2 pieces 11x20 for skirt body & 2 pieces 8x20 for hem (3T)

2: Sew short ends of skirt together set aside, sew short ends of hem together. Press all 4 seems open with an iron. Fold hem wrong sides together length wise and press (a-lot!)

Wrong sides folded together to create a 4x40 hem band

3: Pin hem to skirt right sides together(either side of the hem is technically the right side) make sure your matching up raw edges when pinning, and lining up seems. Pin every couple of inches to keep the layers of fabric from shifting while you sew. Flip hem down press raw edge up towards waist and top stitch.

Top stitched

4: Fold top down about a 1/4" while pressing with an iron, fold down another 1 3/4"' press with iron. Stitch closed about an 1/8 inch from edge leaving a 2 inch opening for the elastic.

Elastic casing and opening

5: Feed elastic through the opening with a large safety pin(I like to use a straight pin to hold the other end of my elastic to the fabric so I don't lose it while I am pulling the other end through) sew elastic together with a zig-zag stitch reversing to secure at the beginning and end, even out fabric around the elastic and sew opening closed!!!!!! Your DONE 5 Bucks and 5 steps to a great MOD skirt!

I think she lurv's it!
The important stuff! Please do not re-use this tutorial as your own idea - you may however share it all you want and are more then WELCOME to sell any finished products you make using this tutorial(if you have the time and patience to do so!)

This to That! Nasty old cabinet makeover to play kitchen

DIY Play Kitchen

 We had a tiny plastic play kitchen that Ava got a couple years ago which was great but they were quickly out growing it and as much as they play with it I thought about purchasing a good quality wood one but that just wasn't in the budget - so of course we set out to make our own(DIY)! I'll give you a quick break down to hopefully inspire you to do the same and keep the cost down :D
The nasty and I mean NASTY old cabinets are from Re-Store I paid $25 bucks for the pair. I picked the wider one for it's height which we took the kick plate off of so it wouldn't be too tall(we had to add a top and back to it with scrap ply-wood) and I picked the narrower one for the fridge and because it's front some what matched the other(I had my husband add a bottom to it to make it taller and cut half circles out of the front for a retro flair) I am fairly certain these are from the 70's!
Sink aka stainless bowl $7 - Cash and Carry restaurant supply store you'll pay about 30% less then retail.
Paint is country white color place satin - Walmart $16.97 for the gallon and we still have lot's to spare!
Pulls for "oven" and "fridge" Lowes $4.27 ea
Faucet also from restore $5 bucks(we had to check back several times to find one we wanted, so be patient!)
Oven burners are soccer ball wood things from Joann's $1.27 each flipped upside down and spray painted with black spray paint then nailed on with the nail gun.
Oven Light - Tap light from dollar store
Most everything else we had! So if your looking for something that I didn't mention please feel free to ask. Just takes a little creativity and man power to create your own custom Kitchen! And my kids LOVE this thing. The WHOLE neighbor hood loves it! 

So cost break down -

25
7
16.97
4.27x2
1.27x4
________
about 60 bucks!

In all fairness I did go a little crazy since it was a Christmas gift and purchased a few new things for them to enjoy! Like the tiny colander(TJ maxx 5 bucks) and kids cook book(goodwill) and I made them matching chef hats and easy Velcro aprons from fabric I owned. The pans are from dollar store and the felt cupcakes I mad too ;) tutorial for that soon! Again, see something I didn't mention just ask ;)


Special Thanks to Papa for coming down here to paint it - aka my professional painter! I don't think we would have finished on time with out him!

Valentine Felt Flower Headband Tutorial

Will you be mine?

Supplies:

Supplies(minus glue gun)

Felt scraps of pink, red, white and moss green(optional)
1/4 in Elastic(size chart below)
Hot glue gun
Sizzix (big kick)
3-D Bigz die flowers ( for this tutorial I used just the smaller flower)
Scissors

I rarely use my Sizzix for paper, usually just felt occasionally fabric. I use polyester felt a lot because wool felt is a little harder to come across in this small town(at least in any good colors). But it does work better on wool felt, with that said it still works great for any felt!

Size chart (this is the length of elastic you'll need to cut based on age)
Preemie: 12 inches
Newborn: 13 inches
Baby: 14-15 inches
Toddler: 16-17 inches
Child/Tween 18 inches

1 cut small squares of felt in pink, white and red just a little bigger then the flower on the die run all 3 pieces layered up through the Sizzix.

3 layers of felt sandwiched between to cutting boards and die

(don't mind my colors just what I had left in scraps)

2 Roll the flower holding it some what flat and starting with the little narrow part towards the outside of the 

spiral

begin rolling here

hold rose flat as you roll

3 Roll flower almost all of the way up leaving the rounded center to cover the bottom of your rose. Cover the bottom whith glue and press the center part over the glue Wa-La one rose done repeat for other two!

glue and cover with what was the center

flip down any loose parts and gently glue and press back together

4 Cut a small triangle and elastic according to size chart put a line of glue down the middle of the triangle and line up the ends of you elastic not overlapping(it will be too bulky and cause red spots or dents if you over lap) the triangle shape is KEY for the out come ;)

 

5 Glue roses to each corner making sure they are tight on the front and touching(if they are too close it might bow out but will lay flat when on :) just make sure you cant see the triangle from the front. And your DONE!  You can also attach small green leaf shaped felt if you desire or leave it the way it is. I added leaves for an example :D I hope you enjoyed! 

The important stuff! Please do not re-use this tutorial as your own idea - you may however share it all you want and are more then WELCOME to sell any finished products you make using this tutorial(if you have the time and patience to do so!) 

Tip - You can go crazy with color's or cordinating these with out fits for you little one - not crafty?! feel free to contact me or check out www.fortheloveboutique.etsy.com you can see in the "supplies" picture I cut out a ton! Which means many are being listed soon!

Thanks A Bunch! Happy Valentines Day! 

~Mrs.M

Ugly desk re-hab!

Stenciled Desk

First off let me say that I CANNOT believe my husband actually made this craigs-list deal for me. (I hate dealing with craigs-listers as a buyer or a seller I have been flaked out or had an all out bidding war on my computer over a paper bag of baby pajamas!) I was sure he would take one look at it and run the other way but he made the deal and brought it home for I think 20 bucks(we have had it since the spring!) I re-painted it in an antique white paint which I bought for....wait for it......35 CENTS!!!!! Yep that's 35 cent quart of Dutch Boy  paint. It was marked down as a return at Walmart for 2bucks which I was more then OK with paying and it rang up at 35 cents! DEAL I'll take it!

DIY:

1- Find the uggliest wood piece of furniture possible

2- Strip it down with a nasty chemical. Don't by the spray can kind either it's a waste of money and won't strip more then a 2x3 area regardless of what they say. This thing had years and layers of paint! 

3- Sand it, a lot!

4- Paint it, a lot!

5- add new knobs

6- Admire - unless your me! Move on to step 7 ;)

7- Get out your stencil, I found this one at Micheal's its a Martha Stewart stencil(don't forget your coupon! this one is 16 regular price)

8. Gather a stencil brush, baby wipes, tape and paint I used a basic acrylic that was on sale at michaels.

9- Go to town( I mean follow the instructions for you stencil)! It took me a while and I now admire people who can do a whole wall!!!! But the out come is way better and hides the flaws of the old UGLY desk ;)

10- Wait a few more moths to decide if you want to clear coat it ;)

That's it!  A one of a kind inexpensive piece of furniture to fit your decor!