Bracelets, flower pins, and bath salts, oh my!!

Well above is some of the fun bracelets I have been making the past few days. The 3 fun zipper flower bracelet were fun to make and very easy - just a little time consuming. I used one large zipper and unzipped it all the way down, then cut the bottom part off that held the 2 sides together. One side made 2 smaller roses, and I used the other side to make one large rose - the center flower on the bracelets.

I found several different directions on the blogosphere on how to make these flowers out of zipper. One of them stated that they used hot glue to make them - in my personal experience this did not work out well. I could not get the bottom of the flowers to gather up close enough with out burning my fingers and then the flower base was lumpy once the hot glue was dry. I found the best most reliable method was using a needle and thread and gathering the bottom of the flower together as I rolled the zipper up. The underneath of the flower does look messy with all those little stitches but that is ok no one will ever see them. In making the bracelet just measure out a length of ribbon that fits around your own wrist. Fold ends of ribbon under and stitch close. Then add Velcro to opposite sides of the ribbon (one on the top end, and the other one -on the other end and on the underneath side, I put the softer side of the Velcro on the bottom side of the ribbon, just because I thought it would be more comfortable against the skin if adjustment was needed).
Above is a picture of one of the flowers I made but instead of turning it into a pin, I hot glued this one to a clutch. I guess I am excited about "Sex in the City 2". I love the Zebra print flower but I also loved the denim flower pin that I made that I singed the ends of the flower to give it a great look! The singe smell does last for a few days so do not try this craft if you are wanting to wear that flower immediately. I suggest using a decorator weight fabric, or a thick weave that will fray.



I took some pictures as I made this pin. In honor of Earth Day yesterday - I used a pair of jeans that my daughter had outgrown, and cut circles about the size of my palm. I then folded one circle in half and threaded it onto a long piece of thread.


Ta da! Once you get the first circle threaded onto the thread, roll it into a cone shape.

Once you have rolled it into a cone shape run your needle through the base to hold it into place. Then add half circle at a time folding it around the cone building the flower petal by petal. Once again the bottom of the flower will look messy because of all the small stitches you have to make. Once done you can hand stitch on a pin base. (but watch out!! They are inexpensive but come in quantities of 75 - 100) But hey, if you are wanting to make one for you and your girlfriends this is a great inexpensive and fun craft to make!!


Well as the end of the year approaches so does Teacher Appreciation week. I try to do something every day. Some days are small little things, others a little bigger. I make gift bags out of leftover fabric - some small, some medium, some large, and some skinny and tall for a wine bottle. (That idea was a Martha Stewart "good thing") The bags above I used to fill with vanilla scented bath salts. I filled each bag half way up, then hand stitched the bag closed with a contrasting color button. (this ensures that my children will not open the bags and spill them on the way to school!) I plan to tie a cute little note card around the button.

Well those are some of the projects I have been working on this week. I am trying to reduce the amount of craft supplies I have in the closet - and the focus on recycle and reuse got me focusing on using what I have. So we shall see what other projects I come up with this weekend!

endless possibilities...

Well I woke up today feeling a lot like Bridgette Jones feeling like today was filled with endless possibilities!! So I went by Sonic for my large Vanilla Diet Dr. Pepper and returned home feeling like I was channeling Martha Stewart, Anthea Turner, and Bridgette Jones - ready to kick my house into Spring cleaning mode, and with my mind of Earth day approaching seeing what I could do with all the stacks of fabric and craft supplies I have hidden in the recesses of my house!

Above are some of the flower pins I am making I think I may turn these into some invites for our moms group for a night out on the town -...humm.. or I may save them for my girlfriends because in May, "Sex in the City 2" is coming out - how fun would that be for a group of girls to hit the town with their own pins! I am doing laundry folding by the stack loads - waiting for my children to return from school to scurry around the house and put them up. My house is being systematically cleaned room by room, and I dug out some old shirts to see if I can refashion them.
Well I hope tomorrow I have some very cute pictures of some projects I have done today to show off, or I may end up like Bridgette Jones when she tried to cook for a dinner party with blue soup (my family will be relieved to know that I have a frozen lasagna for dinner tonight!) Hope you all have a good productive day!

Where were you on April 19, 1995?

On this day at 9:02am the Murrah Building in Oklahoma City exploded as a result of terrorism. The bomb killed 168 people, including 19 children. More than 680 people were injured. I was at work, at MetLife doing my job as a customer service representative who handled death claims on life insurance claims as well as answered questions regarding investment policies. The lady I was on the phone with asked me to hold on a minute that something had happened they were breaking into regular programing. I remember that the Lady I was on the phone with said "oh my God! here let me turn up the TV you will want to hear this! There has been an attack in Oklahoma" which of course since our call center was in Oklahoma I was very interested! and wanted to know where in Oklahoma! I remember staying on the line with this lady for about 20 mins just listening to the news reporter telling the public about this devastating attack. For the rest of the day -there were hardly any calls as America stayed glued to their TV sets learning about the events that had unfolded that day in Oklahoma City, OK.
When I got off that call I called my husband to check on our sister in-law Jennifer who doing an internship in down town OKC at the time. Brent had called and found out that this was not one of the days she was supposed to be downtown, so she was safe and sound. We were so relieved! However as the day turned into evening and the death toll started to rise, we heard fellow co-workers, neighbors, who had known someone who had died or been injured or had been impacted by this horrible event in some manner! It was such an odd feeling inside to feel so vulnerable and exposed to the dangers that can happen to any of us on any given day. Remember this was before 9/11 happened and we were all so shocked and outraged! At this time this was the biggest terrorist attack our country had experienced.
It was amazing the out pour of support from across America that Oklahomans received! Do you remember where you were on that day? or how you learned about the bombing?

Year book time again

Well the air is getting warmer outside, the day is stretching into the evening later each night, and we have started to count down the days until school ends and summer begins (35 days if you are curious)! So we are approaching the end of school and all the lovely rituals that brings with it. Field trips, field days, yearbook signing-ahh a family could go broke on that last one! 2 of my 3 kids are in the same elementary school - a yearbook cost $25.00 and of course they both wanted their own. My other child attends middle school where they charge $40.00 for a yearbook. That adds up to a grand total $90.00 just for each of my children to be able to have their own book to take to school to have friends sign all over it. So what is a mom to do? What can a mom do? Well I have to state I really think this is one of my best ideas ever!!!

I went to Hotprints it is a free application on facebook that allows you to transfer one of the digital albums you have to a printed scrapbook (it does have a softcover) but you can receive one free a month, and any additional copies are $3.00!! So I went to school and ate lunch with each elementary school kid and snapped tons of pictures on the playground and in the classroom as the filed back into the room. I went home and made a digital album that included all those pictures along with the ones from through out the year that I took at each kids activities, parties etc... . The middle school kid I did break down and send the camera with her to school to take pics of her friends. We then ordered a book for each girl which we have dubbed a "your"book which each girl has their own custom book, where they are on almost every page with the kids from their class, their best friends, and their activities really get highlighted!!! ( above is a picture of the cover of one of the books we made my youngest daughter -below is a closer look "inside" of a hotprint book I made for myself after a Halloween party)

and me well I am treating myself to a Starbucks coffee with the extra $90.00 I saved in our budget! To quote a popular commercial "What could you do with this in your wallet?"

We are Family!!

Ok, my family is filled with democrats, republicans, conservatives, liberals, Christians, undecided, longhair, short hair, overweight, skinny fitness buffs, working moms, stay at home moms, the well to do, the not so well off, great cooks, can not even boil water!, the hairy, the bald, the freckles, the organized neat ones, the sloppy maybe I can find it in a week or two people, the young full of energy, obnoxious teenagers (please insert eye roll here!), the youth just out of college trying to find their way, the middle age, the upper middle age, and the senior citizens, the meat lovers, and the vegetarians. My family is filled with pretty much any type of person you can name. Where am I going with this you are wondering (stick around I promise I have a point!)
Family is precious - you might not always get along, in fact the better you trust your bond of love the more you will feel to speak up when you disagree!! You learn to listen to other points of views, you learn to see the world through someone else view, you might be lucky enough to inherit some tried and true recipes that have been handed down through the generations! IF, and I do emphasis the "IF" you may be real lucky to have a hot line to call to ask all those cooking questions to if you are trying a recipe for the first time, if grandparents are still alive!!
It's where you learn to accept others that are different from you, or who think different from you!!! Your family allows you to never be truly alone!! You will never have to wait in the waiting room at the emergency room alone, if you loose your job, somebody always has room or extra to give! If your heart is broken someone is there to help you glue back the pieces and help it heal again! Family fills in when someone decides to bow out from not being there (my hubby's grandfather taught him to shave, and how to put on a cup!) The good, the bad, and the ugly occurs in family situations we are not always at our best but we hopeful learn and get to see love triumph over all! We learn the act of forgiveness! We learn how to give and share! We also learn how love seems to multiple to be given to a lot of people!!
I think that is what has bothered me most about the story of the lady who adopted an orphan from Russia - where was the love? where was the forgiveness? where was the acceptance? I have yet to hear any of that -regarding her, or her family and what they did to try to make possible (I will give the benefit of the doubt here) a difficult situation better?? It also has hurt the chances of other good individuals who would love to be parents who are currently trying to adopt a Russian orphan, as well as crushed the dreams of some orphans to have a family of their own! Family is such a blessing, a gift you give yourself - my heart is full of sadness when learning of this story -However I believe this story plays itself out here in America every day. My heart also hurts when I hear stories of unforgiveness that have broken and splintered families apart, or unacceptance that have shattered the bonds of love. When a spouse chooses to not honor the vows the made to their spouse. I pray that we would recognize today the value of our family and remember that things usually happen so slowly that we do not recognize the ripple effect it has!!! There is a song at right now (please forgive me I do not know who the singer is) where one of the lines says "families do not crumble in a day" so true - guard yours well, respect the individuals, forgive them when they mess up, and hopefully the will forgive you as well!! Sorry for my rambling this has been on my heart!!!

Where am I from?

Well that is a good question, but not one that gives you an understanding as to who I am. I am from Tulsa, Oklahoma. Tulsa is not as large as some Big cities however it is Large enough to have not only different schools, but also different school districts cutting into the town. Which was my situation. I went to Union Public Schools that drew its students from parts of Tulsa, Broken Arrow, Bixby, and Jenks town. Due to this we did not have hometown parades for Homecoming, nor did we have the elementary honor roll in the town paper. My parents only knew my friends parents - not everyone in town so I could get away with quite a bit. The worse thing I feared growing up was doing something to disappoint my parents and they would tell my grandparents about it!! So knowing where I am from does not let you learn alot about me.
Now if you asked the southern question "Who are your people?" that would tell you alot about me!!!! I was raised by parents who were raised by depression babies, World War 2 vets, people who believed that your word meant something. You took care of what you had. You did not waste money, you prepared for the future because you never knew what might happen. One set of grandparents were God fearing people, the other set a moral ethical people who loved each other very much and both lived long enough to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary's. So that tells you what fabric my parents were cut from, and what values I was raised with.
Does that mean I embraced all their values from day one-nope! Does that mean I did not mess up -nope! However I have learned each year the values that I saw my grandparents, and parents live out. It means so much to me - I hope I am real, and I mean "real" in living those values out for my children to learn from!! And the things I have not mastered yet, that my kids will learn from my mistake. (just a small note -I now live in a smaller community right outside of Tulsa, that does allow my kids to have the parades, newspaper articles, and the threat of "everybody" will know!-love it!!! and hopeful the double threat that their grandparents might find out if they act up!)

Refashion trend or addiction???

Have you found MadebyLex ??? This is the very neatest blog if you love clothes!! Lex is a very talented seamstress who sews and has her own clothes line! Lex also has refashioning tutorials online for people like me who like to pretend they sew, (well at least pretend they know how!)

Above is a picture of the tank top I made, trying my very best to follow Lex's instructions -any lack of perfection is so on me, because her pictures and directions are so wonderful!!! Well this is my attempt to refashion a tank top that I bought on clearance for $1.50!!! I used two knit tops that my youngest had out grown a pink, and a grey shirt to cut strips out of it. I then sewed the strips together and ruffled them. (I sewed a bias seam down the middle then pulled the bottom thread to gather or ruffle the fabric) once I had the fabric ruffled, I arranged it the way I wanted it to look on the tank top, and sewed them on. I love that the fabric of the ruffles are unfinished. I love the frayed look!!!

I have to admit this may be an addiction it was so much fun to make something so cute for $1.50!!!!! I may have to hunt through my closet to see what else I can refashion! If you are looking for inspiration head over to her blog!!