for the babies

 So for D & R's and J & J's new little kids, I decided to try something semi new and... make teddy bears! Okay, that's not really new. I made one before for NJ's birthday...

  ...but these are different. They're, uh... funnier looking.

 But they're striped and have sweet ribbon bow ties!

 Before I decided on the bears, I made this skirt for D&R's. However, it ended up with a few minor problems, plus I didn't know how long it would fit her anyway...

So I'll probably give it to my niece K on her birthday instead. as a doll skirt.

That's it. :)

Linking up here

woven rug

I loved this project. I'll probably have early onset arthritis because of it, but I love how it turned out, so I don't mind.
Stop looking at my weird toes.

All the fabric I used was given to me for free, so that was a plus. It took a LOT more fabric then I expected. Quite a few yards, in the end. About 100 two-inch x 5 foot strips of fabric. YIKESA.

After braiding all the fabric together after tearing it into strips (4 hours?) I glued it onto a thicker lime green material (1 hour?) and then I handstitched the braids to the lime-green-material so the braids wouldn't unravel. THAT took 2-3 hours and very sore fingertips.

But now it's done! And I'm so happy with it. :) It was worth it. I carry it around like a little baby, even though it's sturdier.

Linking up to this post. So excited to have a "link-party" for sewing!

memories on wood

Just one picture this time, but don't really need more then that. This is my birthday gift for Dad- graduation picture of me getting my diploma. :) One of my fave pics of Dad and I. 

I followed this straightforward pinterest picture tutorial, and it really worked *super* I wonder how it would work with a colored picture; our printer only prints in b&w, so I probably won't have the chance to find out. The gel-medium was more expensive then I would have liked, but there's plenty left for a lot more of these. :)

The wood plaque was from Hobby Lobby (favorite craft store, guys. ever.) and if I remember right it was only around $3.

Aaaaaanyway. Not much interesting to say about this really. I LOVE IT though, and show it to everyone who's name isn't Dad. :)

hobby horse

Pretty self-explanatory. Made this for K's birthday. Might switch out the blue rubber band for some yarn... If I made another one I would change the nose and add something to the ear to make it stiffer. 

Otherwise, I'm very happy with it. :) 

( Should've thought to do a "front view" picture instead of 3 identical side pictures. :-/ )

Linking up here

Kitty!

 DIY Kitten Pillow :)

I drew out a head and pinned it onto my fabric; I ended up using the suede skirt from this post. (Click. Last pictures there.) I really liked how it turned out with the suede being so soft. :)

I have a tendency to cut out a lot of my things on a bed... It's just a comfy place to sit. :) BUT I have cut into sheets before doing that. And I've cut into my own clothes when I have the fabric in my lap. Not the smartest thing ever.

I used Leftover brown felt for the forehead/stripe and whiskers/mouth...

And buttons for the eyes and nose! I also sewed some blue tshirt scraps behind the eyes as a little addition. :)

Got the idea from this other blog's post. (<Link) I think I like the softness/roundness of mine better, but I love the polka dots and textures in theirs.

I wonder if my artistic abilities would stretch far enough to make a dog... Or a monkey! That could be fun. :D

Flower Hair Pins

     Again, I don't think Christa reads my blog, so this should be safe. CHRISTA, DON'T READ THIS POST. 

     Christmas Gift #2 is... Hair Flowers! I have a couple different ones here:

     Hobby Lobby. Sorry.

     Lace, with a button glued in the middle. The hot glue gun is my new favorite thing!

     Ric Rac flower- this one's my favorite.

      Burnt edge flower, button sewn in the middle. Probably the one I like least, but I'll let Christa decide if she likes it or not.

     And another burnt edge one- pearls sewn in the middle.

     That's all - Which one do you like best? Ever made hair flowers before?

Book of Notes - Christmas Gifts #1

     I don't think Sha'rel reads my blog, so this should be fairly safe. SHA'REL, DON'T READ THIS POST. There.

     So here we dive in- Christmas gifts! I have a couple finished ones that I might share over the course of December. :)

     Gift Number One: to Sha'rel, my friend of Whole-Life.

     Book of Notes.

     As of now I am using a hairtie to keep the thing shut, but it'll turn into a ribbon or so later on.

     Stuffed.

     I must have confused blogger; it uploaded half these horizontals as verticals. Here's a little peek of what's inside. :) Left page: memory. Right page: Valentine her siblings gave me.

     Left page: memory. Right page: Coloring page she gave me.

     Making this book for someone would be pretty hard to do most of the time; I didn't want to use any letters really, but I didn't have a billion pictures to fill the pages with... so I used a lot of different pictures we drew and little notes or stories we had written.  This page: Old pictures of us & our "old sayings".

     Throw in a little bit of random, some colorful markers, a couple of in-jokes, some new notes/letters from me, and there you go... A scrapbook/book of notes as a Christmas gift!