Bum Bag

Getting ready to go to Paris in a few days, and I needed a travel purse that would be close to me, leave my hands free, and not stolen from easily.  Fanny packs were the way to go back in the day. (They call them "bum bags" here in the UK.)  I'm not a big fan until I saw a waist purse online. It was really cute with ruffles!  I fell in love, but when it came to $50 with shipping, I held back.  Then my sister came up with an even better idea--keep the ruffles, but lose the waist band, just making loops in the back so your belt can fit through! So I ran down to the craft store and bought a zipper for $1 and looked through my fabric. I settled on this animal print and went to work. 

I started by cutting three lengths all the same size for my ruffles.  Then cut the main part of the bag, plus a liner the same size.  Finally, the loops on the back were cut. I don't have any idea on the dimensions and next time I make one, I will do better because I learned a lot from this one. 

I don't even really know how to explain how I made it, because I just went to work.  I should have put the belt loops and ruffles on before I attatched the liner, but I didn't because I knew I might need to make some cuts before I got it to be the right size.  I might try to make a smaller one next time, but this has plenty of room for passport, wallet, phone, and even lotion, chapstick, and hand sanitizer!

Here you can see my ruffles taking shape on the purse. I'm getting ready to sew the final one on.

The completed purse

I think it looks so chic!

My view from above.

Voila!

Button Wreaths

Another craft from Martha Stewart. Found in the kids section. My two-year-old could even make these!  You just cut some craft wire to about 9 inches and string on buttons.  Add some ribbon, and voila! a cute Christmas wreath ornament!  I have them hanging on my cabinet pulls in my kitchen right now and they look so festive. 

Easy Christmas Trees

We have been finding so many fun crafts on Martha Stewart's website. If you haven't ever perused it, I highly reccommend it!  Apparently these Christmas trees made out of magazines have been around for years, but I have never made them.  They were so easy and turned out really well.  Fun to do while watching tv, too! 
You fold down the corner of each page, fold it in again, then turn up the bottom.  It does take a while because you do every single page.  (There's a video on Martha's website if this is confusing.)

I then spray painted mine silver, added some spray adhesive, then dumped on the glitter.  I did a few in different sizes. I think they turned out really well.

Cloth Balls

So this is so easy.  Just get a styrofoam ball, cut fabric into about 2-3 inch squares, then shove them into the ball with a pencil.  Some people glue them in, but they seem to stick just fine shoved in good.  Then I string a pretty ribbon to it and hang.  I did this one pink and green for my girls room. I hung it in their window and they were so happy.  (Final picture will be posted later. Here are some during the process.)

Here's the final product!

Wall Vinyl

New house equals new palettes!  I put this in my entryway hall.  I think it turned out nicely. And thanks to a neighbor who suggested using the sun at the top to tie in my other circular things (like the starburst mirror below).  I do love making things with my Cricut. It is so fun and easy!

Starburst Mirror

I haven't had time to make anything lately, because we moved!  But with moving, you always have the adventure of figuring out where everything will go.  I had this wall that you see here, and I knew exactly what I wanted to make.  When I saw how to make one of these starburst mirrors (that are oh so popular right now) for about $5, I couldn't resist trying my hand at it.  It only took a few hours to make. I followed directions and received inspiration from here.  I paid $2.99 for the mirror (it's actually a candle holder but works amazingly well) and then a few bucks for the spray paint. The starburst part is made out of a cereal box, if you can believe it! I am still amazed at how quick it was to make, and I think it just fits so well on that wall!!

Breaking out my Cricut again

I haven't used my Cricut all summer, and I must admit that I have missed it!  There is something about creating something and cutting it out, placing it so it looks right, and then admiring the overall effect that brings satisfaction to me. I had made these Twilight tiles a while back and one babysitter that I often use really wanted one.  So, since bookclub was at my house tonight, I hired her to watch my kids and put them to bed in exchange for a Twilight tile.  I was really excited about making this one because it was the first one that I was able to make with the Twilight font!  I had been looking for it for a long time, but wasn't about to pay $20-30 just for a font! I finally found it for free, downloaded it to my computer, and I was all set to go. I have the program Sure Cuts a Lot 2, which you can download at http://www.craftedge.com/. It is an amazing program for your Cricut. You never need to buy any font cartridges again.  So whatever fonts you have on your computer, you can use in this program. And there are SO many free fonts online. 
This was the finished product. I really like it with the Twilight font!

Past Furniture Projects

   A good friend of mine started buying a lot of antiques and fixing them up. I bought this little baby for just a few pounds and gave it a good painting (after treating it for wormwood).  I love it now!  It is a gateleg table so can potentially be used for extra seating at dinner if need be.  It has storage doors in the side so it is now housing extra DVD's that do not fit in my telephone booth. 

   This one I picked up at "the junk lady."  That isn't her name, but it is what we lovingly refer to her as.  She owns a secondhand shop. This is a desk which was a yucky brown wood color (think 1980's). I sanded it down and  painted it black.  I turned it into a crafting center. It has all the mail slots still in the top, so I put all my ribbon up there and then bottom hold fabric, glue gun, etc.  I added the flower by printing out images from my cricut. I used the transfer vinyl and then stenciled it one there.  It was bit too loud for me at first, so I toned it down with a light layer of black on top.  Now I'm liking the flower a bit more. 

Sleeping Beauty

One Halloween costume DONE!  My oldest daughter wanted to be Sleeping Beauty for Halloween this year. (My other daughter is going to be Belle. This is all due to the fact that we went on a Disney Cruise earlier this year.) I have to make costumes well in advance or they will not get done.  I think it turned out pretty well. There is glitter ALL over my house now, though! 

Blanket

I made a quilt today! I've only made a couple before and this one is definitely better than the others. I'm not the greatest sewer, but I have gotten better in the past few years. I went for the "attic window" look on this quilt. I was inspired to make this because my son has a blanket that was made for him when he was born from the Bazoople friends fabric. He LOVES it. It is his blankie. I've washed it so many times, though, it is wearing down. I have fixed many holes on it! We were blog cruising one night and found his fabric in a quilt someone made. He lit up and said, "My blankie!" I knew then that I would be able to replace his with another similar one, so I went online and found the fabric. I made this one bigger than his older one, since he's 2 now and hopefully it will stay on the bed! I'm also going to make a smaller one so he can take it in the car. He loves to twist the yarn around with his fingers as he's falling asleep. So cute!

Picture Frame Fun

A friend wanted to personalize a going-away gift for another lady. She found this awesome picture frame and had me cut out their "slogan." It didn't take long and turned out really cute, I think. The next day I bought the same frame for myself. There are 20 spots for 4 x 6 pictures, so I'm going to put pictures in from both sides of our family and have one big family collage. I don't know what saying to put on mine though. Any suggestions? I'm looking for something to do with family, but unique also.

Craft Fair

Hubby was gone for an extended time and I was on a kick with baby wipes. I found a local craft fair to sign up for and got started. I made a ton of wipes, then did some vinyl lettering on tiles, and my daughter even helped me make some headbands and bows. I loved making them and a good friend spent the day sitting with me at the fair. Unfortunately, it was cold and really rainy so no one came. But it was a blast and I loved meeting a bunch of other crafty ladies. It got my creative juices flowing and I'm ready for more!