the DIY Dish inspires me!

Have you seen this?
the DIY Dish?

quirky, fun.
Love the Kris and Kim team effort!

After watching this video...

go ahead and click on it....
I'll wait--it's a good one :)


wasn't it good?
I was inspired around the 14:40 mark, especially.
I needed an embellishment for a gift I'd wrapped for a bridal shower.

I had to leave at 7:25pm.

It was 5:30pm.
Hubby would be home in 15 mins

and then dinner, kids baths, bedtime and out the door.

I had to think quick.

there was no time for lollygagging

(my Nana used to say that!)

the part about the flowers in the 2 minute countdown of the DIY Dish segment popped into my head.
and in 5 minutes....
I had this!

Even with children hanging off my limbs!

Fabulous!
Fun!
Easy and QUICK!

and a bit of a show stopper!

Thanks Kris and Kim :)

I entered the Ruffle Your Stuff contest!

yep I entered!have you been on any ruffle-y crafty adventures lately?If not, get to it!the prizes are AMAZING!!!Remember these aprons?yep. Ruffles.Enter HERE for your chance to win!

christmas ball placecard holder

Aren't these fabulous??!!!!

I totally love them...

however I don't love the price tag

$$$$$

----------------------------------------------------

so I got to thinking....

and came up with a pretty comparable idea

First gather your supplies:

tape

rice/sand

christmas ornament

funnel

name tag (I used old paint swatches)

Carefully take the top off your ornament

seriously. be. careful.

I almost lost a finger.

well... not really...

but I did cut myself!

(I'll spare you the photo of that)

fill half full with rice
or sand from your kids sand box.

I actually felt the sand worked better--

but the rice is fine

and you don't have to put your shoes on to go outside to get it

That is, as long as you keep your rice indoors--I do.

replace the top and cut up a swatch card as your name tag.

I chose the one that was called Rosemary Green

because it reminds me of Rosemary Clooney

which reminds me of the movie White Christmas

(Songstress Rosemary Clooney with Bing Crosby and Danny Kay)
Tell me you've seen it!

if you haven't you need to!

okay so where were we?

oh yeah.

put a piece of tape across the back of the card to adhere it to the ball...

unless of course you're lucky enough to have a ball that has a double ring hanger

that you can slip the card between...

To make them stand at the position you want just tap it gently
or rub it on the table to even out the sand/rice inside.


TA DA!
----------------------------------------------------
now I came up with some ideas to mimick the inspiration ball

I just need to get the supplies...
a clear ball ornament

some of that awesome sparkly white decorator's sand

and some white acrylic paint to make the snowflakesI can see it now!

I'm dreaming of a White Christmas!

BLING

Eat your heart out, Paris!

(Bead ring made by pumpkin,

Groovy Girls tattoo found in the bottom of the junk drawer)

Plain??

My 4 1/2 year old is complaining about her wardrobe...

again....

She is not generally a complainer.

But if you consider that she wants to look her best,

stand out from the crowd just a little,

and have a feminine aire--

I mean, really,

she's just a pint-sized teenage girl!!

Or woman for that matter!!

She just wants to be girly, really.

this I understand.

so thanks to this tutorial,

and a whole 8 minutes to make

she went to school yesterday looking chic!

She was REALLY happy!

I think I have Back to School A.D.D.

This is not an actual diagnosis by a trained professional
however I am aware of Crafting A.D.D.
which runs in my family

and I think the gene runs strong....

Remember my "project" ?

Well I've still got that to finish before Pumpkin heads off to school
um... yeah...
5 days and counting

But I had to interrupt myself to do this project--

ALSO for Pumpkin's Back to School extravaganza
and wardrobe re-fashion
(read, there's a hole in her jeans and I don't want to buy new ones)

oh,
and the lunch bag I plan on making

and the hair accessories....

yes.

A.D.D.

If I could just finish ONE of them!

These are almost done and they were quick and fun!

I used this tutorial because it was really easy to follow.

minus the Pellon's, of course.

I'll feel better about sending my sweet Pumpkin

out into the big bad world of school

if I send her with some handmade goodness

*grin*

BEFORE and AFTER

BEFORE

iron candle holder

thinking of putting a flower in it

AFTER

1 candle holder -$2

1 can white spray paint -$3

1 hour of my time -$0
_____________________

The look on Pumpkin's face when I said it was for her -

priceless

Art Therapy

My hubby and I attended a benefit concert last night.

A very brave boy named Micah, (from our church circles),

has recently survived a bout with cancer.

He is 8.

And sweet as ever.

And he credits God for his recovery.

(as do we all.)

The concert was a band made up of a mish mash

of talent and style.

It was really well done.

All proceeds were for the Children's Hospital near us.

One thing that really hit home

was the discussion surrounding Art Therapy.

have you heard of it?

I hadn't it.

It is best described in this way:

Art therapy provides an important outlet for our patients to

channel their emotions and feelings through art,

which I feel plays an important part in their healing process.

~ Dr. Shayna Zelcer,

Paediatric Hematologist/Oncologist,

Children's Hospital

The concept fascinated me.

Probably because I recognized it.

I have been utilizing Art Therapy

since my dad has passed away.

I just didn't know that that was what I should call it.

But I've been on a crafting craze.

And it has truly helped me deal with things around me.

And express myself in a way no words could.

so....

my theory?

All of us crafters,

sewers, quilters and knitters

have known that this works

long before they called it Art Therapy.

See?

Crafts are good for the soul.

*grin*

What is your favourite kind of Art Therapy?

And NOW...Back to our regularly scheduled Program!

I know, I know.

Where have I been?!

Well I'd love to tell you I just got back from a weekend in Fiji...

(yeah right)

but no,

I've just been lazy.

To be honest...

Father's Day just kicked me flat on my butt.

It was a rough week.....

but on a pleasant note

dun da da DUN!

Hubby LOVED his photo cubes!!

And I'd show them to you

but alas,

they are indeed PHOTO cubes

ie: photos of kiddos no internet-o in our house-o

comprendo?

sorry.

Just trust me I was VERY happy with the results.

AND...

he loved his "dad" beer mug

and his "dad" tea mug

and his beer glasses

and his cards

and his wheelbarrow.

Spoiled.

I know.

But he deserves it.

So....

much to say.

I've been spoiled myself by the Sew Mama Sew Giveaways.

My second prize arrived today.
A great bag from

The Green Bag Lady

Pumpkin was so excited!

She ripped it open in the middle of the Post Office

and put all our mail into it!

That's my girl!

My first prize to arrive came from the super talented

Mandy at

MaKC Creations

I'll tell you honestly

when I found out that I won

I started yelling and jumping up and down!

It was soooo exciting!

There was something for everyone!

Bubby got a super cool

Grey Monster

(he's the one on the left)

(I borrowed this pic from Mandy
as I haven't been able to get a good photo of this guy as he's always on the move)

Bubby has named him "baby"

And I got this beautiful carseat cover

(also borrowed this pic as I don't have my carseat hanging it out right now....but...someday...maybe)

I LOVE IT!
The colours are amazing!

and lastly for Pumpkin and Hubby

to take in their lunches...

snack bags!

Mandy sent 6.

3 flowery girly bags

and 3 manly snack sized bags

in very manly funky colours

Thank you Mandy!

as you can see from the pic they're already in use
*big smile*

If you've never visited MaKC Creations

you really should.

She just recently put up a super cool tutorial

for a doodle purse/satchel!

I'm SO going to try it!

As well her Etsy shop is crammed FULL of goodness

and take it from me

her work is beautiful!

And so creative!

I feel so blessed to have won both these prizes!

Happy days are here again!

*singing off key*

A little fabric can go a long way...

Our poor bathroom needed something.

ANYTHING!

The right something,

the wrong something...

it just was...lacking...

so I had a frame.

This frame.

Albeit lovely...

it was on the empty side of life

"But LOOK!

it's not empty" you say.

And you are so right.

But I didn't fill it with pictures.

That would have been boring.

No.

I filled it with lovely fabrics from

one of my favourite Etsy fabric shops

Fabric Closet

She has this great listing called

a Designer Fabric Sample Pack

It basically allows you to pick 6 fabrics

and she sends you a 9 x 11" cut of each.

Just the perfect size for me to fill my frame

and try out some other really cool fabrics!

Ahhhhhh.....

much better :)

This little light of mine

Don't know if you're feeling crafty

but I'm really into the

Re-use

Re-purpose

Re-do

thing these days.

In our last home Pumpkin's room was bright pink on 2 walls and
a petal soft purple on the other 2 walls and ceiling.

The wood trim in our new home wasn't going to be painted

and the designer felt this bright pink wasn't the best choice with the wood.

So it was time to tone it down a bit and give her some glitz instead.

We realized she wanted

girly.

Sweet.

Romantic.

"Hey, Shabby Chic!"
I love white and sparkle and mismatched so this is perfect.

I will show you bits and pieces of her room as time goes on,

but today--her lamp.

It is from the IKEA As-Is dept.

And my mom had found a purple shade at one point for it.

When I saw the STEVEN AND CHRIS design show,

I knew what I wanted to do.

Daisies!!

Like I said, the shade was purple so now when the light is on

it gives such a nice warm glow of pink to the room.

It was really easy and only cost $8!

(I got the daisies at the Dollar store)

Pumpkin loves it!

And so do I!

click HERE to see how I did it

and get more ideas and a video on re-purposing lamp shades

Happy Crafting :)

How do I begin?

This blog thing is not new to me. I've been addicted to reading other people's blogs and life tidbits since October of this year.
Yes.
ADDICTED.
My family can attest.
But it's not because I lack a life. My life is full--everyday jam packed, to the brim--spilling over.
With kids.
Whom I love and enjoy. I do. I love being at home. I am fortunate that my hubby likes it that way too.
But anyone who knows me, knows I am social. The blog world is like a party that I've been invited to and it doesn't matter what I wear, what time I show up or if I have spit up on my shirt. No one cares. It's just life. In blog land. YAY!

Why did I want to start a blog? Good question.
Maybe for therapy purposes.
Or is it to have my voice heard?--I highly doubt that. Nothing that I have to say is going to be profound. Just the opposite in fact.
I guess...just...cause.
I know, I know. I always tell my dear daughter that that's not an answer but it will have to tide you over 'til I can think of a good one. :)

So what to expect from this little bloggy of mine?
Well. Probably some mushy emotions about my dad and how wonderful he was.
Definately some updates on the dramas in my dear daughter's life, as being 4 and female lends itself to drama--heck! being 30 and female lends itself to drama!! At least it does for THIS girl! LOL!

And lastly--I hope to post about my crafty creations.
You see. I say hope because I am a woman of good intentions. And am inspired by so many things and talented people around me. And I have a stash--oh do I ever--0f crafty stuff.
So I'm hoping that being accountable to you my faithful bloggy followers, will persuade me to start finishing my humble beginnings in many millions of projects.
hmmm....I hope.

Anyway I bid you farewell and promise to be back soon.
Goodnight blog land.