Halloween crafts

Hi All, Here are a few Halloween crafts that caught my eye out in Blog land...

thought I would share with you. Hope to make a few for myself.

TP Pumpkins from THE SWEET LIFE


Fishnet Pumpkins from THE IDEA ATTIC

Candy Corn Painted Bottles at the SWELL LIFE BLOG

Candy Corn Yarn Cones at THE MOMMY DIARIES


Thanks, Karla

Cacoon Jacket

I picked up this little flyer from JAF for a Cacoon Jacket & thought I would give it a try with some sweatshirt fleece I had hanging around. The directions were pretty easy & only 1 seam + some hemming.

This is what it looked like all cut out.

You add a few gathers (I did pleats).

Note: the pattern called for it to be cut 36", when I tried it on it was way too long for me.

(it hung hung way below my butt)

I altered it, by cutting the center back to be 26" and then slowly tapered

to cut off zero up by the neck.

Ta Da...

Super cozy for the weekends (or casual Friday at work).

Thanks for looking, Karla

2 quick (and cheap) fall crafts

Hi All,
Are you ready for fall? Seriously, I'm not - I want another month of summer, But I have a few decorating ideas to help me get ready for a beautiful MN fall & brace myself for a not-so-beautiful MN Winter.

Candle:

You'll need: Mod Pogde, empty glass pickle jar, colored tissue paper, leaves &

candle (we use an flameless one with the boy running around) Tear up the tissue paper into random size pieces & Mod Podge on to the jar.
I found these cool leaves,I think they were all chewed up by Asian Beetles, But I loved the lacy look of them & thought light flickering thru them would be beautiful.
Mod Podge them on to the jar over the tissue paper - I used a super thick coat.
* word to the wise, store your leaves flat, not is a crumpled ball will make this project easier*
I tied on a little birch branch disc with some raffia, dropped in a candle & Done!

Pumpkin Banner:

I found these felt pumpkins at Dollar Store in WI. I was not sure what I would do with them, but I had to have them. My Mom suggested this project & I turned out super cute!

I punched some holes, ties them together with some raffia (just something about fall makes me want to decorate with raffia... must remind me of hay).

Hang it above the porch french doors with some little Command Hooks
DONE!
Each of these crafts took about 15 minutes & cost virtually nothing.

Plus I was lucky enough to have most of the craft supplies on hand.
Thank you, Karla

Halloween Wreath revisited

Remember my LY Halloween Wreath ???

It is still cute & one of my Fav Projects. But this year I stepped it up a bit.

I added this big guy...

And this glittery little lady spider...
+ a few scary cob webs & I'm all ready for Halloween.

A much more impactful wreath - I'm making another for my sisters classroom because everyone was so generous to keep saving bags for me.

If making wreaths is up your alley, here are 2 blogs that you have to see for ideas...

Tatertotsand&Jello

Nesting Place

Can you guess which one is my Favorite???

Click HERE to see

Thank you, Karla

Peepers Growth Chart

Do you ever have one of those lingering projects? I finally crossed one off my list.
I literally started this Growth Chart last October & just finished it last night... actually it is done, but not even hung up in the house yet.

It's super simple to make & even the steps I did can be simplified if you don't want a weathered board.

You'll need:
house numbers (these were really wimpy & cheap, but work great for this project)
Board (I used a 1 x 6 x 7)
hammer
paint
Sharpie
ruler & tape measure
optional: chain, screw, sand paper, stain & a second color of paint.

Step 1 (optional):Beat up your board... swing the chain on it, hammer the corners good, put in a few nicks with the claw.

Step 2: paint your board. I used a mocha brown for the under color. If you are only doing one color of paint, I recommend 2 coats.
Step 3 (optional): Paint second coat of paint in second color (I used a burnt orange, left over from my last house).

Step 4 (optional): Sand your board to rough it it a bit more & have some of the first
paint color show thru.

Step 5 ( optional): Put a coat of stain on your painted/sanded board giving it a more weathered look. Wipe off excess stain with an old rag. I actually added a few more hammer marks the other night, It just didn't look beat up enough!

Step 6: Add you house numbers:

Step 7: Mark your increments with a Shaprie. I went back over my lines a few times so they were nice & thick.
Step 8: Measure your little one. I went back to his baby book & added all the milestone heights that I had previously recorded only on paper.

Thanks, Karla

Tank Dress

I was inspired by a Green Mossimo Dress from Target to make this tank dress. I used a rib tank I had & knit fabric from my stash - So in my mind if cost nothing.

The inspiration was a simple silhouette, wrap skirt, bust darts, empire waist, lined bodice with pleats etc. Very flattering fit!

So I started with my tank & cut it off about 17" down from the shoulder. I tried it on & marked it where the waist should be - I compared it to the waist position from the green dress, but know it is was from a rib and it it would stretch more, I wanted to allow for that.

Then I cut the skirt length of 24" - for this too I followed the green dress. I wanted it to hit just above the knee. I used a plate to trace the curved corners. I used the full 60" width of the knit for the skirt for a full front wrap.

Double turn & hem along the front of the wrap edges & bottom hem.
Enlist a helper if you must.

Then pin & stitch the skirt on to the tank. This has a full front wrap in that the under wrap extends all the way to the opposite side seam of the front wrap edge. I pinched 3 pleats at the outer wrap (like the green dress).
And added few gathers to the CB of the skirt (I was afraid it would look too blousy in the back).
This skirt portion has NO seams except for the hem. Just literally wrapped around with a few pleats & gathers.

Super Easy!

Thank you, Karla

Blog Redesign

Hi All,
You may have noticed a new look to my blog - I have been wanting to update it for a while, but just have not had the chance. So here I am at Midnight on a Friday Night blogging about it - What a life!

With the help of BGPatterns, I created the background... super simple. Just add this to personalize your blog using this tutorial from Blogger Buzz.

Then last night Peepers & I went to a field close by our house to take a new photo for the header.

Today Made had a tutorial on how to create a blog header today using Photoshop Elements (which is what I use for all my photos/headers). I did not create a collage look like the tutorial, just used some fun photo effects.

I'm really please with how it turned out :)