Wednesday, July 28, 2010

DIY Wednesday: Baby Legs Two Ways

Hi There,

It's time for another DIY Wednesday. Baby Legs are baby leg warmers. They are a fairly new sensation. They are great for babies because they make changing a diaper extremely easy. Instead of shimmying a pair of pants off your little one, you keep the baby legs on during diaper changes. I think they are super cute under skirts, but they are also really cute for your little one to run around the house with a t-shirt. (And even cuter with a fun cloth diaper.)

For the printable PDF tutorial, click here.

Baby Legs: Two Ways



Supplies:

Long Socks (I found some cute ones at Target for only 2$)

Sewing Machine



Directions:

Baby Legs #1
Step One: Cut Socks



You will be using the foot portion of the sock to create the bottom band. Cut the sock at the ankle. You will then have the foot portion of the sock left. Most of these fancier socks have different colored heels and toes. Cut off the toe. Cut off the heel. The portion between the toe and heel will be left and is what you will fold in half for the bottom band.

Step Two: Sew on Bottom Band





This part was a bit tricky for me. It would seem like common sense, however, I just didn’t get it. You will want to take the main portion of the sock and put it inside the bottom band. All the rough edges should be on the bottom. Look down into the leg, you should see right through. You may want to pin the leg at this point, but after pinning you still need to see through the leg. (So in other words, don’t do what I did initially and pin the leg shut).

To sew the leg, I found the best method is to stretch the entire leg around the sewing machine. Then sew slowly along the bottom. You may want to use a zig zag stitch which is best for elastic materials.

Step Three: Finished Baby Legs!



This is the more traditional baby leg and works for baby girls or baby boys.

Baby Legs #2
Step One: Cut Socks



This baby leg has a ruffled edge on the bottom. Since you won’t be making a bottom band, you don’t need to save the foot portion of the sock. Just cut the sock at the ankle and throw the foot portion away. (or repurpose it as a little duster for your computer or television screen!) This baby leg warmer will inherently be shorter since you aren’t making a bottom band. As you can see, I found some fun socks to try this on..they already had ruffles down the sides!

Step Two: Sew the Ruffle!

To get the ruffled edge along the bottom, you will be sewing along the bottom. It’s fine that the sock will have an unfinished edge. You will want to sew as close to the edge as you can. Use the tightest zig- zag stitch you have. Sew all the way around the bottom edge.

Step Three: Finished Flirty Baby Legs!








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Saturday, July 24, 2010

Idea Thief: Hot Glue Fabric Flower

Hi Everyone,

I love this tutorial on how to make fabric flowers with a hot glue gun. It would be a great project for a headband for you or one of those clips for a little baby hat.

Check Out Cathie Filian for the tutorial!






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Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Idea Thief: Enamel Cart Spruce Up

Hi There,

This project is perfect for those who frequent garage sales or antique shops or junk yards. I have seen dozens of these carts and always thought about sprucing one up, but was never sure how it would look and if it would even be worth the trouble. Thanks to That Looks Like Craft, I now know! She used it as a night stand in a bedroom, but I can think of tons of other uses. Drink cart for your patio? Shelves in a craft room? Make shift kitchen island?

Visit That Looks Like Craft for the tutorial and more pictures!






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Tuesday, July 20, 2010

DIY Wednesday: Mod Podge Tile Coasters

Hi There!

I completed my first post baby craft project! My little baby got her two month shots and as a result has been sleeping non-stop. I have been diligently waking her up to feed and change her but otherwise I can't keep her up. I took advantage of the quiet time to do a project I have been waiting to do. While in at my in-laws' a few weekends ago, my sister-in-laws and I decided to do a project together. My husband's aunt did these coasters for my mother-in-law. They were tiles that she stamped, colored and covered with some sort of epoxy. We decided we'd try covering the tiles with scrapbook paper using Mod Podge. I did a set alone to figure things out and I think I'll eventually do another set with my sister-in-laws as a gift for my parents.

For a PDF printable tutorial, click here.

Mod Podge Coasters



Materials

Tiles (I got my tiles from the Habitat for Humanity Restore for $.30 a piece. I chose to use tiles with rounded edges to prevent injuries from sharp edges)
Scrapbook Paper (One 12 x 12 sheet did the trick for me. I chose to do two different designs for my coasters.)
Paper Cutter
Corner Rounder
Mod Podge & Paint Brush
Sanding Block (Optional! I thought roughing up the tile would help my scrapbook paper adhere better, but I tried both and didn't notice a difference)



Directions:

Step One: Draw Outline

This is easy enough: flip your paper over and trace the tile onto your scrapbook paper.



Step Two: Cut Paper

In order to have nice straight edges, cut your paper with a paper cutter. I tried to do this with scissors, but to be honest, it's much easier to do with a paper cutter. I ended up tossing the paper I cut with scissors. I cut about a 1/4 of an inch from the outside so the the paper square was a little smaller than the tile. That makes it a bit easier to adhere the paper to the tile.



Step Three: Round Edges



Since I had tile with rounded edges, I used a paper puncher to round the edges of the scrapbook paper squares I had cut. If you don't own a paper puncher that rounds edges, you should get one! This is the one puncher I use all the time. I use it to round the corners of photographs to get a more professional look (especially with wallets). I also use it when I make signs for around the house or for cards. Rounded edges just look much more polished.

Step Four: Mod Podge Time!



First, spread a nice even layer of Mod Podge across the tile. Then carefully place the scrapbook paper on the tile and make sure it's center. (I just eyeballed it) Now, you need to put a nice thin layer of Mod Podge over the scrapbook paper. I decided to alternate the direction with each coat to create a nice linen look. First, do all strokes right to left, let the layer dry, then do another coat top to bottom. Continue alternating directions with each coat allowing ample drying time in between.

I overloaded the layers I did because I knew wet substances would come into contact with coaster. (I think I ended up doing around five coats per coaster.) If you have Outdoor Mod Podge, that probably would be an even better option. I also did a quick spray of clear coat spray paint I had sitting around to add even more protection. Before stacking tiles, make sure you let them dry overnight especially if you're in a humid climate.

Step Five: Finished Product!

Enjoy your coasters and make a set for a friend!







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Sunday, July 18, 2010

Gone Junkin': Garage Sale Super Find

Hi There,

In addition to my "DIY Wednesday" posts (tutorials of projects I've done) and "Idea Thief" posts (inspiration from other bloggers), I've decided to add a "Gone Junkin'" section. This was inspired by a recent trip to Missouri and the plethora of antique stores I stopped at. I found so much stuff I would have loved to bring home with me to fix up. This junk find comes from a garage sale my parents went to this weekend. They went to their neighbor's garage sale to look for a walker for my little one and found something soooo much better. :) Our neighbor makes and sells curtains and apparently just got a new machine. She sold my parents her serger. I've been dieing for a serger since I found out they existed. Now I have one, but I have to wait until they can bring it to me (in a few weeks). I'm pretty excited for my new beautiful craft room that awaits for me in our new home. Three weeks! In case you want to know what a serger is, here is a picture of one.




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Monday, July 12, 2010

Idea Thief: Flower Headband

Hi There!

I found this super fun project for hair accessories. I just asked her how to make the flower itself, but she does give a fun tutorial on how to make the headband and how to make the flowers interchangeable with snaps.

Check it out at Aly&Ash.



Update: I found out how to do fun beautiful flowers out of fabric. Check out Project Wedding.


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Wednesday, July 7, 2010

DIY Wednesday: Ribbon Hoop Mobile

Hi There,

As I'm still getting used to this mom multi-tasking, I have a little DIY project. I did this project as a decoration for our graduation party, but I decided to use it as an outdoor decoration after the party.

Ribbon Hoop Mobile





(The wind was blowing a bit so it's a bit off kilter..and there hasn't been time to garden since baby came so ignore my weeds and house wrapping showing!)


Materials:



2 Embroidery Hoops-- one larger than the other
Spray Paint
Ribbon-- All different kinds! Get different colors and different widths of ribbon. I also did both grossgrain and satin. I used approximately three spools of each color.
Hot Glue Gun

Instructions:

Step One: Paint Hoops



I used some outdoor brown spray paint I had sitting around to paint the hoops brown. It takes a couple of coats and different angles to get everything. If you were going to do this project for outside, then you might want to rethink wooden hoops. Maybe try to find some sort of metal hoop? Or treat the wood to prevent weathering? My hoops have weathered, but the ribbon still looks fantastic and hasn't faded yet.

Step Two: Make Mobile



Using your hot glue gun, make a mobile shape by cutting four ribbions the same length. Wrap them around the hoops and secure with a dot of hot glue on each side of the hoop. Mine was a little off because I eyeballed the length instead of measuring...I would measure if I did it again! For the top of the mobile, do two pieces that are measured the same. You can then use a third piece at the crossroads of the two ribbons to make a loop to hang the mobile.

Step Three: Attach Ribbon

This is the part where you can be creative! I chose my colors based off of a fabric I was using at the graduation party. I used approximately three spools of each type of ribbon. I took my inspiration fabric into the store and picked my ribbon based off of that fabric. I chose different widths and material so there would be some variety and texture.

I cut all my ribbon about the same length (once again eyeballing it). You will go in after attaching the ribbon and cut more so it doesn't have to be exact or at an angle yet. Decide what pattern you want to put the ribbon in. I then did a loop type knot to attach the ribbon. I didn't do anything else to attach the ribbon but if I were to do it again, I would do a dab of hot glue to keep the ribbon from moving around.

The final step is to go through and cut each ribbon at an angle to prevent fraying. Then ta da! You have a fun and fantastic mobile to use for a party or as a decoration.






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Saturday, July 3, 2010

Idea Thief: Cheap & Sexy Brickmaker Table

Hi There,

This is a fantastic cheap project if you have a table you can use for it. The table looks fantastic and it only cost the maker 10$.

Visit High-Heeled Foot in the Door for the tutorial and more pictures!

-Krista




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Idea Thief: 4th of July Home Decor

Hi There!

My personal style is somewhere between country and modern. Two seemly opposite ends of the design spectrum. It makes it difficult to find a happy medium. Well, I like this decor idea even though it's more country. Looks like an easy project that requires little material.

Visit How Does She? for the tutorial




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