I'll be gnome for Christmas...

I love mail.  Going to the mailbox is like a mini-Christmas everyday.  I especially love it when I get catalogs, it's the laziest form of window shopping there is.

Flipping through the most recent "West Elm" catalog, I came across this:

West Elm Gnome Ornament $7



   I thought it was adorable, but it only came in red.  I figured I'd make my own.

Things you'll need:

Felt (2 colors)

Embroidery Thread (I used white, green, and black.  I think on the next one I would just use the white around the borders, though, more closely matching the West Elm version.)

Scrap of yarn

Needle

Scissors

Pins

Scrap paper

Step 1- Cut out the general shape of the gnome using a piece of paper and pin it to a folded piece of felt.  Cut around the template so you have both a front and a back piece.

Front and back piece cut out with template still attached.

Step 2- Cut beard and eyeball oval out of white felt.  You can cut a template out of paper first if you'd like (I did) to get the size right so you're not accidentally wasting felt.

Step 3- Sew beard and eyeball oval to front piece of felt using two strands of embroidery thread.

Step 4- Embroider eyes and mouth using black embroidery thread.  I did two French knots for the eyes, wrapping the thread around 4 times for a larger knot.  The mouth was stitched straight across and secured in the middle to kind of give him a "happy" look. 

French knot eyeballs.

Step 5-  Tie your scrap of yarn so you have a loop the length you'd like the ornament to hang.  Optional: Then, embroider the back piece of felt with your initials in whatever color you'd like.  I embroidered my initials in black on the foot.

Step 6- Start sewing the front and back together, securing the loop of yarn at the top of the hat in-between the stitches.  I used a whip stitch on this one, but might try a running stitch next time.  Good thing about the gnome is it's super easy and any mistakes just make it more whimsical.  ;)

    When you get about an inch away from closing up the gnome, stuff it with a little bit of polyfill.  Finish closing.

Finished!

  I plan on making two more.  A red one for Cam, and a pink one for Scarlett. 

  Coming soon... polymer clay Christmas piggies.

Trick or Treat!- Mime Costume Complete

Okay, so I didn't mean to rhyme the title, but once it was up I just decided to leave it.

I have very few personal titles, but one that has held true through the years is "World's Worst Procrastinator".  I am horrible about it.  That's why my going to school online is like a circus at the end of the semester (rushing to cram everything in), and why Halloween costumes sometimes aren't finished until Halloween.

This year, Kai wanted to be a Mexican Wrestler after seeing the cover of "Nacho Libre".  No problem.... done.  Cam wanted to come up with his own Harry Potter costume... got it.  Scarlett, however, was going to be a mime.

Do you know how hard it is to find a black and white striped shirt for a little girl?  One that is plain without Minnie Mouse, some kind of heart, or cutesy saying?  Impossible.  Impossible unless you are willing to pay designer prices and special order something that you've never even seen.  Call me thrifty, call me cheap, I just decided that rather than deal with that funk... I'd just make it myself.

Ordered the knit striped fabric from Etsy, got some sparkly red sequined elastic trim from Joann's, and pulled out some tulle from my stash.

The end result?

I can't believe I didn't take more pictures, but I do have some videos (if I can figure out how to post one, I will). 

The shirt was completely my own pattern.  I LOVE how it came out.  I don't know how to describe it other than a semi-cowlneck/mock turtleneck.  I plan on buying more knit fabric and recreating it for a tutorial. 

The tutu was made out of 3/4" elastic that was 1" shorter than her waist measurement and the ends sewn together.  After that, I made the tutu the same way that I did on my "Ribbon Tutu-rial".  (See Tutorial section above for link.)  Alternated the colors for a cute stripe-like effect.

The suspenders were the trim material that I talked about above.  I got grumpy about not being able to locate clips that were affordable, until I came across some ironing board cover clips.  PERFECT!  I got a package of 6 for the same cost as a pack of 2 at Joann's.  (Both are at Joann's.)  Cut the elastic off the ironing board clips and sewed the elastic trim on.  Used an "o" keyring at the "y" joint in the suspenders.  Thank goodness that elastic suspenders are super forgiving.  I only had to measure and sew once.  Yay!

The black leggings were purchased at Old Navy.  And her gloves were a set of $1 cheap-o winter gloves.  So funny trying to watch her put candy into her bag.  Poor girl needed help every time.

Oh, and the hairbows were made out of felt.  I used this tutorial from "C.I.N.O."

Hope you all had a happy and safe Halloween!

Gearing up for Halloween- Mexican Wrestling Costume

Kai came up to me a few months ago and handed me the cover to "Nacho Libre", saying, "I love this guy, he's a superhero."  So I decided to make him a Mexican Wrestler for Halloween. 

I have to admit, it is definitely one of the more interesting things I've sewn!

Here is the completed outfit.  I didn't photograph him with the forearm bands, but they're red with yellow lightning bolts to match his lightning bolt cape:

And here's one of the first pictures I took before I had added the velcro the the mask and started on the bodysuit (I've fixed the point above the nose on the mask):

Also been working on a few couponing trips.  I went out and did a few separate trips.  It was a high OOP (out of pocket), but I think the overall savings were awesome!

Target and Publix- $72.96

CVS, Walgreens, Rite Aid- $77.07

CVS- $42.38

We are stocked up on laundry detergent for the foreseeable future, as well as ready to battle colds and change poopy butts.  I'm kind of liking the coupon thing.  It's almost like playing some kind of game.  Staring to build up a little teeny stockpile.  It's not much, but it's something. 

Chobani vs. Fage

A friend on my sewing forum (looking at you, Carole *wink*) had told me about Chobani and said that I needed to give it a shot.  I was pretty happy with my original yogurt, Fage, but I'm always up to try something new and potentially tasty.

In what might be remembered as the "Fight of the Century", Greek yogurt champions Chobani and Fage finally met today on Fage's home turf.
As they glared at each other, prepped for a fight... the lids literally came off.
Round 1- Yogurt
Chobani- Thick, creamy, smooth.  Delicious.
Fage- Thicker than it's opponent, smooth, more acidity.  Delicious as well.
Winner- Chobani.  It wasn't as thick, but the creamy smoothness beat out the competition.
Round 2- Fruit Puree
Chobani-  Thick chunks of fruit, located underneath the yogurt, sweet, yummy.
Fage- Smaller chunks of fruit, smoother puree, in it's own container so you can add as much as you'd like.
Winner- Fage.
Round 3- Overall Experience
Chobani- Super yummy yogurt.  The fruit was okay, but I dislike large chunks (makes me think of squishy eyeballs, never been able to eat big chunks without being grossed out).  Would definitely eat it again.
Fage- Good yogurt, fantastic fruit puree (smoother, less chunks).  I like how it is separated so you can add a little or a lot.
Winner- Fage!  Chobani is pretty awesome, though and I want to try the other flavors.  If Fage was gone, Chobani would easily take it's place.
The winner will take home a kiss from the judges...

As well as an all-expense-paid vacation to tummy resort for the next 24 hours.  (We'll just leave it at that.)

BTW, to get the good "lipstick" picture, I had to kiss all of the darned Fage yogurts I had bought.  I wanted a picture of an unopened one so I wasn't photographing "used" food.  Lol!  :)

Couponing Crazy

I'm sure many of you have seen that show, "Extreme Couponing" on TLC.  Well, a few weeks ago, I watched it and I got motivated.  I consider myself a relatively intelligent person (unless you are asking me a history question, in which case my eyes tend to glaze over and I may or may not pretend that a bug bit me in order to change the subject), and came to the conclusion that I'm sure many other have while watching the show.... I can do that.

I am not a toe-dipper when it comes to a new hobby.  Instead, I tend to just cannon-ball my way smack into the middle.  In this case, I didn't say that I'd like to start off by clipping a few coupons.  Oh no.  I immediately started blazing through coupon websites, then hopped on Amazon and ordered a binder, baseball card protectors (a.k.a. "coupon pockets"), detailed tab dividers, you-name-it.  When Sunday rolled around, I didn't just buy a single paper.... I bought seven.

I felt like a crazy mad scientist or some kind of villian plotting a robbery while I scoured the coupon websites and came up with my list and plan for my maiden coupon voyage.  I finally had a plan and hit the stores.

Goodies from my first trip out last Wednesday. 

First trip was Rite Aid.  Broke it up into 3 transactions.  (It was going to be 2, but then I forgot the diapers and had to go back.  Oops!)

Trans 1-
8 CG items (7 blush, 1 bronzer). Buy one get one 50% off sale.  Coupled with 4 $8/2 MQ.
Scope Icy Mint Blast mouthwash. $4.  Used 1 $1.50/1 MQ.  Got $2.50 reward.
Dove Shampoo and Conditioner.  On sale 2/$7.  Used BOGO MQ and then $2/1 store coupon.
Oral B Toothbrush. $5.99.  Used $3.00 MQ. Get $2.99 rebate.
Crest Toothpaste. $2.59.  Used $1 MQ.  Get $1.60 rebate.
Paid $5.11 OOP.  Submitting for $4.59 rebate and got $2.50 reward.

Trans 2-
6 CG items.  BOGO 50% off sale.  Used 3 $8/2 MQ.  Earned $10 rewards (Pay $30, get $10 promo.)
3 Gatorades. $1.89  No coupon.  (Covergirl coupon overage.)
1 Energy Drink.  $1.99.  No coupon.  (CG coupon overage.)
Paid $2.51 OOP. (Used my $2.50 reward somewhere on those drinks.)  Earned $10 rewards.

Trans 3-
Pampers Easy ups.  On sale for $10.49.  Used $10 rewards from CG.  Paid $1.22 OOP, earned $2 rewards for Pampers purchase.

At this point, I was freaking out.  The cashier was laughing through the whole thing and whooping like you wouldn't believe.  There were no other customers so the two cashiers were both cheering as the total came down.  Think that I shocked my husband to the core.

Went to Target and did two transactions.
Trans 1 & 2.  (Identical transactions)
Transformer toy.  $9.99.  Used $5.00 MQ and $5.00 Target mobile coupon.
Olay- $5.99.  Used $3 MQ and $3 Target mobile coupon.
Colgate- $0.98.  Used $1 MQ.

All in all, the stuff was free, AND I got rebates on top of it, so I ended up getting paid in the end.  I just about had a heart attack during the process, but it was a lot of fun.

Since then, I've gone out and picked up a few more things with coupons.  Got five big bottles of Dr. Pepper at Wal-Mart for free (holding onto them for company or social functions, we don't drink soda), deodorant, gum, pantiliners, cold/flu stuff, and 5 bottles of laundry detergent.  I had to pay for the detergent, but it was only $1.97 a bottle for the super-concentrated stuff so I was happy.

Another random trip.  Gotta love free stuff!

My coupon binder is already exploding and I think I'm going to have to upgrade to something more capable of handling my coupon stash.  This is a little more fun than I thought it would be.  It is possible that I may be hooked, or it could be like many of my other hobbies and fall by the wayside after a few months.  We shall see.

In the meantime, I'm working on my kids' Halloween costumes.  Anyone else ready for Halloween?  What are your kiddos going as?

"Ol' Red" Silhouette Shirt

I've had this project in mind for a few weeks now.  I've always loved the song, "Ol' Red" by Blake Shelton and wanted to create a project inspired by it. 

I finally came up with this:

Front

Back

Close-up of "tracking party"

Close-up of "puppy love"

   To make this shirt, I used Simplicity Pattern P2027 (Size A), which I found at Wal-Mart for $0.99.  All of my fabric was pre-washed  and then ironed before doing anything.

I modified the bottom of it by adding a 1 1/2" border of green to simulate grass.  To make the border, I cut a 4 x 20" strip (The size I made the pattern in was a size 2, so adjust the length and width of your strip accordingly... it should be the same length as the bottom of the pattern piece, though).  I folded this strip in half and pressed it.  Then, I folded each long raw edge down 1/2" towards the wrong side and pressed again... like a huge piece of bias tape.  Once your pattern pieces are all cut and before you sew anything, first sew the border onto the bottom of the main front and back pieces, right sides together, down the 1/2" crease you had pressed.  Then, just treat the piece as if it were a whole piece of the original main part and continue with the pattern.
  
     Follow the pattern and finish the main part of the shirt.  Then, you'll start embellishing.

Shirt ready to be embellished.

     To get the silhouettes, I did a lot of image Googling.  The extent of my drawing ability is limited to stick people, so if the person wasn't in the right position, I didn't even attempt to alter it.  I searched high and low for law enforcement photos, running people, etc.  Some were pictures of actual people, others were free vector images.  Once I found the images I wanted, I scaled them to size and printed them off.  It may take a few tries.  You should see the number of "wardens" that I had to print.  It was ridiculous.  Also, the only law enforcement guy I found in the "holding the leash" position was insanely large so I had to give him an Xacto tummy tuck or you wouldn't have seen his hand.

    Once you've got your silhouette images, cut them out using a Fiskars swivel knife.  For some reason, the PX didn't have a regular Xacto knife, but this is like a miniature version and it worked okay on the paper.  I cut out the silhouettes, making slight modifications as needed.

Paper silhouettes

Now it was time for the Steam-a-Seam (S.A.S.).  I used the sticky-back stuff to keep the fabric in place while I cut it.

I cut a strip of the S.A.S., then pulled off the paper, leaving the sticky side up on the ironing board.  Very carefully, I placed the black fabric on top and smoothed it out.  Then, one by one, I pinned the silhouettes to the fabric and cut them out.  I tried using the Fiskars knife on the fabric, but it just pulled it and made it all crazy.  Instead, I had to use my small fabric scissors to cut them out very carefully.  In the end, I had my silhouettes all cut out.  One of each, except for the standing dog, which I cut two of... one a mirror image.  (Just flip the paper silhouette over.)

    Then, I used more S.A.S. and put a scrap of green fabric on, the same way that I did with the black fabric.  I freehand cut some grass and set those aside as well.

    Now comes the fun part.  Laying it all out on your shirt and moving the pieces around.  Find positions that you like and then seal it in place by ironing it.  Read the back of your S.A.S for specific instructions.  I pressed the front about 15 seconds, let it cool a tad, and then pressed through the back.  Those suckers are STUCK.

     Once you've got your silhouettes in place, you can add buttons and do your hand embroidery.  I hand embroidered the collar and leash (adding a metal bead on each of "Ol' Red's" collars to look like a tag), and the bow collar on the female dog.  Buttons were hand sewn and the rose on the front of the shirt was attached.

Felt Baby Rattle Ball and Owl Faux-chenille Blanket

Needed a project to keep my hands busy while my kids had a Harry Potter marathon, so I decided to follow a tutorial that I had seen on Pinterest for a felt baby ball from Wee Folk Art.  It was super easy to do.  The longest part was doing the hand-stitching embellishment.

I wanted the ball to be okay for a boy or a girl, so rather than the flowers, I just changed the pattern (not much at all) to just have circles and stuffed it with a rattle. 

     This was originally going to be for our baby, however, I ended up miscarrying this past Friday so I'm going to keep it on hand for when another baby gift is needed.  That's the great thing about being in a military town, always an excuse to whip up something baby related.  We are doing okay after the miscarriage.  Health-wise, things are going as they should.  We have also received a lot of support and well-wishes.  Perhaps we'll try again in a few months, but we'll see.

     I also went ahead and tried my hand at another faux chenille blanket.  Thankfully, this one did not bleed one little bit.  Yippeeee!  Now I've got two baby gifts stockpiled.  I'm loving this owl fabric.  There's something about owls and matryoshkas that just works for me.  I love anything and everything owl, matryoshka, or vintage.  I'm easy to please.

The fabric is by Robert Kaufman.  The blanket needs a few more washes before it fully fluffs up... but I'm happy with the result, thusfar. 
    
    A link for making a faux-chenille blanket can be found at Made.