Bubble Skirt: Take Two

Remember back to this post?  Utter fail, right?  It only took me about eight months to try again, but I DID IT!

My sister-in-law sent me some clothes awhile back to re-purpose.  One of the items was this super cute DownEast skirt.  The only issue was that it had some black paint on one complete side.  I knew I could turn it into something for Tana, so I started scouting out my options.

I followed these directions again, but payed better attention this time around.  So if you have an old skirt laying around that you were going to give away, turn it into something cute for a little princess in your life.

The Man Mug

My husband likes his milk.  He REALLY likes his milk.  We are always on the look out for really big cups.  We have a few from Ikea, but I was looking for bigger.

I happened upon these huge glass mugs from Dollar Tree.  For a buck each they were worth a try.  And it was a good thing they were only a dollar because I totally messed up one of them.

I bought a tiny bottle of Armour Etch (which is ridiculously expensive btw) and went to work.  A little tidbit of information, do not follow the instructions on the back of the bottle.  I did not leave it on long enough the first time, so I had to try again.  Sad day.

I labeled one "The Man Mug" and the other "The Chuck Norris".  My husband and I have a little joke about Chuck Norris, so I decided to squeeze that in.

I paired the mugs with cases of his favorite soda.  It was a big hit.  Not to mention easy and cheap.  My kind of gift!

The Quilt of Doom

I cannot seem to locate my memory card... thus the all impressive camera phone pic.

This quilt was almost the death of me.  Not that is was hard, just monotonous.  In the end I decided to skip the traditional bias tape binding.  Instead I cut the flannel piece bigger and folded it over the top.  A lot easier and a lot of time saved.

All I know is that he better love it!

Oh Christmas Tree

I might suffer from a slight case of OCD.  Maybe.  Probably.  And every year when it is time to decorate the tree my OCD comes out in full force.  My kids always want to help decorate and so I appease them until they are out of the room and then hurry and move the ornament to its correct location.  The joys of being crazy!

I have been collecting ornaments and pieces for my rustic tree for a couple years now.  Adding things here and there, usually after Christmas when they are super cheap. 

I struggled for a little this year when it came to the wrapping paper.  I wanted it to flow.  While grocery shopping at the commissary one day, I came across large rolls of shipping paper for only $0.77!  I love how it looks old school and blends in so well.  I also love that I could just write on the paper without using a label.  Fun and cheap!

Here is a close up of a couple of my ornaments.  I found the banner a few years ago at Tai Pan.  I had seen something similar in the Pottery Barn catalog, but the price was much, much, much higher.  The strand of berries and the felt snowflakes are from Target's after Christmas clearance.  The red stars are from Cracker Barrel of all places.  The yellow stars and the suede bells are from the Christmas Store at Gardner Village.  They are always doing sales.  And the large, wooden snowflakes are from Roberts after Christmas clearance.

There are truly so many options with decorating your tree and really inexpensive ways to do it.  You could also mix it up every year with a new theme.

Christmas Mantle

I love Christmas almost as much as I love Halloween.  Everything about Christmas makes me so happy.  My Glee Christmas CD blaring in the car, the fun holiday movies, and ALL the candies and treats.

It was a sad day when I opened all of my Christmas decor to find it a little lacking this year.  And even sadder when I realized that there was no Tai Pan, Roberts, or Quilted Bear that I could run to.  Not a whole lot to work with here in Wyoming.  Also not a whole lot to work with, with that darn hole above my fireplace.  Curse you wasted space!

I like to keep my decorating simple and themed.  My Christmas decor is definitely vintage rustic.  I love the muted colors.

The garland is from Roberts.  I bought it for super cheap after Christmas.  Best time to shop for next year.  The big sign is also from Roberts.  So sad that they are going out of business.  The fun stars are from this nursery in Prosser.  I bought them after Christmas for about $2 a piece.  My mom bought me the cute tin tree and the nativity plaque.

The bird cage is from Tai Pan and was only $18 full price.  I use it all year.  The little frame is also from Tai Pan.  They have a variety of them for every holiday.  They cost about $3 each.  The sled is from the Christmas store at Garner Village.  It was one of those items that was coming home with me no matter the cost.  Thankfully it was only $10.

My most recent find is something I have been looking for.  I only wish it was bigger.  I just bought it at HL the other day for only $3.  I threw in some pine branches and red berries, also from HL.

Once I find some giant piece to hide the ridiculous hole I will be 100% satisfied with mantle.  Until then.

Tohoku Tote

Remember back to this giveaway?  Well, my little sister just happen to win that one and was so excited for me to make her a bag that she could use at Disneyland.  This giveaway was way back in July and we didn't go to Disneyland until November.  So great because it gave me months to work on it.  Or months to procrastinate and then make it the weekend before...

She requested something deeper and with longer straps.  I began my search and found this bag on I Am Momma Hear Me Roar.  Love, love, love it!

I knew I wanted to mix a nice simple print with a solid.  Joann Fabric has a great selection of fabric called Quilter's Corner.  The full retail price will knock you on your bum!  Like really!  It is only $4.99 and is on sale all the time.  They have a ton of coordinating fabric that is exceptionally cute.  I picked up some of the gray houndstooth and a basic teal and went to work.  My sis decided to nix the bow, not really her thing.

The pattern was pretty simple.  The only issue I ran into was the pattern pieces really lining up properly.  It could totally just be me though.  I think that is why my bag became a little more narrow at the top.

 

I also added a couple pockets inside for her phone and other things.  And I FINALLY remembered to add my tag to a project.  You can find more about those here.

Error

This is what happens when you serge like you are on crack!  Bad day.  Not only did I have to pay $25 for a new knife, but the worst part?  I have to wait to use my serger until the part comes in the mail.  Gah!  We will return to our regularly scheduled program soon.  I hope!