DIY Coaster

I told my sister about this craft and that I thought it would make a cute little gift. She laughed and said, who wants coasters as a gift? Note to self, never give B coasters! Anyway, I love to keep small gifts on hand and may whip up a few of these for backup despite her advice.

 

 All you need for this is:

• some tiles from the hardware store
• mod podge
• scrapbook paper 
• some sort of felt for the back as grippers
• clear coat spray paint

I had everything on hand except for the tile, which cost me a whopping 52 cents!

 Cut squares out of the scrapbook paper, just a little bit smaller than the tile. 

 Use the mod podge to glue and coat the paper to the tile. Let dry then spray with clear coat! Finally, stick four felt stickers to the back corners of each tile.

All done. Quick, easy but most of all inexpensive!

Fabric Flower Bouquet Finished!

I finally finished the fabric flower wedding bouquet I've been working on for a friend! Yes, it was the one I posted about back in February. I won't go into detail about the process because it was a lot of trial and error (if you want to know, just ask). But I wanted to reveal the final product!

 

(Bride-to-be took these photos for me, isn't she wonderful?)

DIY Rice Bag

A dear friend of mine is a nurse and was recently describing the DIY heating pad they use at the hospital. I'll spare you the disgusting details. Obviously I told her, "let me just make you a rice bag." a.k.a heating pad. It truly is just as simple as it sounds.

I grabbed a sample square of fabric and a 16oz. bag of long grain rice from the grocery. Making this a whopping $2 project! In the process of making these, Seth said he'd like one too. So I salvaged the only semi-masculine fabric in the house and whipped up two.

I first made the rice bag then a pillowcase of sorts for the bag that can be washed if necessary. The rice bag is 14"x4". The case is just a half inch longer/wider on each side. I made the bag just like my outdoor pillows then funneled the rice inside and sewed it up. The case is probably not necessary for all purposes BUT in case you were wondering - for the case, I cut one rectangle at 15"x5" and two smaller ones at 8"x5". I pinned the two smaller ones to the larger rectangle while overlapping at the center. After sewing the outermost edges, flip the case inside out and stuff in the rice bag.

All done! Heat it for 1-2 minutes. Almost instant comfort! Next time I think I'll try to add some fragrance to the rice, like lavender. But they are fine for now!

Memorial Day Cookout

I love holidays, all of them. Any excuse to decorate really! So for Memorial Day we did a small little cookout and I got to try out some new recipes. They were delicious so I thought I'd share!

 Out table spread, just waiting for the burgers off the grill and the fried pickles...

Which were delicious and so easy. I used a slight variation of this Fried Dill Pickles recipe. Definitely best when they are fresh from the fryer! The sauce really tops them off!

 

This was AMAZING - Paula Deen's Strawberry Shortcake recipe. After stuffing our faces, this was the perfect dessert. It is very light and has fruit in it so it's healthy, right?

I will definitely be making both of these again! Hope everyone enjoyed Memorial Day! Thanks to those that serve our country!

Baby Blanket

A friend and former co-worker of mine is expecting! The office threw her a baby shower recently. There is so much precious baby stuff out there but I knew I wanted to make something for her, too. So I opted for a baby blanket. So easy, affordable and adorable if I do say so myself.

 I simply picked a yard of two coordinating fabrics - one flannel print and one flannel and fuzzy patched fabric, which I bet baby Ava is going to LOVE! Then sew them together just like the pillow from the last post, just without the pillow to insert.

 

Her's a picture with momma after she opened the blanket. Jackson was her helper and isn't he just precious! Made with love!