Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

Here is some more of my Christmas decor.....

Here is my mantel more prettified....

 

Wreath...

 

Another wreath...

 

Here is a dress I made for my daughter with target hand towels and an old sheet and ribbon.  I have the tutorial linked onmy laptop, will post when I get access.

Have a great Holidays!

PS- my Bday is tomorrow.  (I'm 29 for the 8th time : )

Linking to:

Warm Winter Gear

Winter is upon us here in KC.  It has been in the single digits with wind chill this last week.  Thankfully, we have not had the snow/ice like last year (yet!)

My 5yo needed some warm weather gear for standing out at the bus stop.  The schools here are wimpy- no playing outside for temps under 32 degrees!

But my daughter is the adventurous one.  She will play outside for hours if it has to do with snow.  My 2yo will only stay out for minutes!

Last week my daughter was playing outside with the dog.  He was pulling her down the hill in her sled, with the rope in his mouth!  Too funny!  Our dog Shasta is an Aussie.  My daughter named him after the dog in the movie Snow Buddies (for those of you who have kids.)

So I found some fleece on sale at JoAnn's and made the following:

Fleece hat and scarf

Fleece hat.

I used this tutorial for the hat from the wonderful site From an Igloo.

Easy fleece scarf.

I used this tutorial.

Just take three layers of fleece approx 6 inches by 48-60 inches.  Sew down the middle, then cut strips one inch apart.  Too cute.  I made four of these scarfs, for DD and friends.

I also am going to make these as gifts for adults.

Cheap and easy alert:  I bought a 2-pack of fleece blankets at Walmart for $6.  They are both 48x60 inches.  Much cheeper than buying the fabric, and the blanfets are in coordinating colors.  I plan on making matching headband/earwarmers with this.  There alre lots of cute tutorials out for this.

Cute dino hat for DS.  I also used the From an Igloo tutorial.  I have to make another one though, as it is now lost.  Somehow this happens to all our winter gear!

I also plan on making matching mittens.

Two great tutorials:

From an Igloo

and

A Lemony Squeezy Home

Stay Warm!

Linking to:

http://www.decormamma.blogspot.com/

 

Naughty or Nice

I attempted to take the kids pics for our Christmas Cards this year.  My MIL had already taken the kids and the dog, and secretly taken their pics in dress-up clothes for her own Christmas pics. 

So I had to come up with something different on my own.

I decided to do Naughty or Nice shirts using freezer paper and fabric paint.

It is really easy to use freezer paper stencils.  My freezer paper even had directions on the box.  But their are many tutorials out there in blogland.  I like the video tutorial over at I am mama, hear me roar.  Unless you have a Cricut or the like, it is a bit time consuming.  Use an exacto knife (or I had a scalpel I got from work.)

I used 3 coats of tulip fabric paint.

I also love how Cheri of I am mamma hear me roar, often uses a reverse image from her transfer paper words.  So save those little letters you cut out.  I did that on the backs of the shirt, using the opposite word from the front.  (My daughter really wanted hers to say nice.)  I think I like the reverse effect better, and wish I did that on the front.  You can't really make out the words in the picture, but trust me, it's cute!

I got the 50 free Christmas Cards when you blog about Shutterfly deal.  Then when you post your finished Christmas Card, you get another offer for $25 in Shutterfly products.  Sorry, that's posted on a family blog, not for all the internets.  AND, when I logged in to my Shutterfly account, I got an offer for 50 free prints.  Yay!  That is open to everyone, use the word PRINTS in the offer box.

Linking to these great parties:

I've been Featured!

I know this is no big deal to many of you, but I've been featured for my NOEL sign on a few blogs.

So a big thanks, and shout-out to:

Rustoleum, who featured my sign as project of the day on their Facebook Page, Paint Ideas.  I didn't know they had a page, but check it out.  So cool, and an inspiration for many projects.  I like them know : )  Thanks Scott!

MaryAnn @ Domestically Speaking featured the project after I entered it in her Power of Paint Party.  What a great blog.  I love her Christmas mantle, check out that ruffle mirror.  Love her decorating.  I am planning to copy her board and batten technique soon.

 

Also, a big thanks to Sassy Sanctuary and ladybug blessings.  I was featured after linking up to their parties.  Both great blogs that have fun weekly link parties.  I get so many ideas from checking out others' projects in link parties.  I really have no original ideas of my own- I just copy other people : )  But family thinks I am soooo creative!  So thanks internets for beautifying my home : )

 

Also, enter the giveaways!  It helps other bloggers to get followers (and sponsors!), and you may win something.  I did.  Some Scotch Tape- perfect timing, thanks to A Little Tipsy.  Love that blog, I get the RSS feed on my Yahoo browser daily.  SO I didn't win the Sillhouette machine, but those givaways aren't fake.  Maybe someday I'll be able to give away stuff too (pipe dreams!)

Christmas Magnets

I decided to make me some magnets.  You know, the type everyone is doing.  You see, my fridge has seen better days.  We have the Leapfrog animal and letter magnets.  We have lost some, some have lots their magnets.  Half are probably under the fridge.  We also have the various mailer magnets.  The paper has gotten torn off by the kids.  And I have a few cute photo magnets I got free from CVS.  But the fridge is where we hold our STUFF.  Capitalized for importance.  Our schedules, school flyers. Birthday invites.  Permission slips.  Cherished, beloved family photos.  Sure, sometime I will find an organization system to use, and maybe a few frames.

Until then, behold, the making of:



 Cute New Seasonal Magnets

Take a few pagers of seasonal scrapbook paper.

(Cut in cute rectangles and squares for another project not yet finished.

  Note to self: Please finish Coutdown to Christmas blocks before Christmas.)

Buy decorative glass marbles from craft store and magnets.

Trace circles around the glass marbles to fit size, then modge podge onto flat side of marble, pretty side of paper sticking to the glass.  Don't worry, it will look white until the glue dries.  It will dry clear!  The photos were proofs from my daughter's school pictures.  They were the perfect size to fit the marbles.

So Pretty!

Hot glue the magnets on back.  Make sure the glue is on the HOT setting, or it will peel off easily.  Or the magnet will break off if a kid throws it on the ground!

Place on the fridge.  Merry Christmas!

Linking to these great parties: