Chair Recovery

It has been a long time coming,

Our dining room chairs have needed some serious TLC 

for quite some time!

(I am so embarrassed to even show them)

BEFORE

Result of two toddlers in 4 years!

 I finally made the time stopped procrastinating 

and found the perfect fabric (on sale too ;)

This was so much easier than I imagined 

and the main reason I dragged my feet on getting it done!

Here is the final result of chair #1

(Using the staple gun was so much fun too!)

AFTER

Being my first attempt at recovering chairs,

I am so happy and kinda look forward to getting to do it again!

But not too soon... 

hopefully I get to enjoy these for a little while 

before they end up like what is underneath!!

(Not sure the Scotch Guard can even protect them from my girls ;)

 One for the desk too!

Here is a list of what I used to get the job done,

* 6 Chairs

* 3 yards of fabric cut into 24 x 23 inch pieces 

*screw driver

*staple gun

*Scotch guard

Then I basically used YouTube to get an idea on how to fold the corners,

since that part can be a little tricky!

Hope you have time to give it a try and spice up your dining table!!

xo,

Erica

Crafty: Toy Trucks

VROOM!!!

A few months back,

I found myself in the dollar section {again ;}

at Target!

And came across these great little wooden trucks :)

At first I thought about letting my daughter paint them,

but then I thought it would be even better

to Mod Podge them with fun paper!

{I plan to use these colors for the next one, to make it extra girly!}

So I just traced the outline of the car on the back of the paper

Cut it out and did extra trimming where it needed!

Since I was planning to use the monkey paper for the sides,

I wanted to make sure it looked like there was

a monkey in the window area :}

Then I just painted the car with Mod Podge 

and attached the paper.

I applied two coats of Mod Podge all over

once all the sides were covered in paper

to give it a good seal!

What do you think?

My daughter LOVES it!

Girls like trucks too,

BigSis LilSis

xo

For the LOVE of Make-up...

What girl doesn't love an adorable make-up bag

{or really any kind of bag, satchel, tote, carry-all, etc.}

I know I do!

When I came across my friend Suzanne's blog A New Creation

and saw her awesome tutorial for a cute "boxy" pouch,

I wanted to make one asap!

{but since she is so sweet, she beat me to it and gave me one as a birthday gift!}

So I decided to try my hand at making one a little bigger

to use as a make-up bag!

Update: Now available in my Etsy Shop

Make-up Happy,

Erica

xo

Fabulous Find: Silhouette

So recently I came across this fantastic machine!

For awhile I have been trying to decide

if I should buy a Cricut machine,

well this little one has changed my mind!

Look at all the fun things it can do...

Vinyl Wall Decals

{so fun right!?}

Paper Crafting

Heat Transfers

Glass Etching

{my favorite!}

Rhinestones

The possibilities are endless :}

This machine has it all and I want one!!

Definitely on my Christmas list

{if not before ;}

xo,

BigSis LilSis

Oh Boy!

After so many baby girls being born, (mine included ;)

I was so excited to finally be able to do a project for a little boy,

one little boy inparticular... Brayden!

One of my good friends had her little boy on July 25th

and I couldn't wait to give her these...

I found a great tutorial at Crap I've Made

and you can find the cutout for the tie applique here!

 

When I saw these I knew I had to pick my colors accordingly,

Mom is an A's fan and Dad is a Seahawks fan!

So I did my best to give him a tie for each :)

 

Congratulations Rick & Elena!

 

Love,

Erica

xo

Dollar Days: "I Like It"

So my new favorite store is Dollar Tree!

They have so many things there

to make fun crafts out of and if you mess up,

who cares, it was only a $1!!

So as I was browsing the other day,

I came across these simple plain swimsuits for toddlers.

Again, thinking this is only $1?!

Since miss Cadee is SOOO into Ice Cream right now

("i like it" is what she calls it)

I thought adding an ice cream applique

would be cute and fun!

All I did was take some scrap fabric I had

and used an ice cream stencil to cut out the shapes.

Sewed it to the swimsuit!

I also added a few ruffles!

TA-DA!

Dollar Days,

BigSis LilSis

New Batch of Bows

Just having fun making bows for my girls!!

(I have done other styles here)

Love,

BigSis LilSis

xoxo

Crafty: Hooded Beach Towel

With Summer around the corner

and my daughter beginning to spend her days outside

in her mini pool,

I thought it was time to pull out the beach towels!

{but not before giving them a little face lift ;}

I LOVE the baby hooded bath towels

and when I came across this tutorial 

on making one for bigger kids

I had to get started on one for Cadee!!

I decided to take her cute Hello Kitty beach towel

{instead of a solid color as used in the tutorial} 

and found a coordinating towel for the hood!

Super quick, easy and cute!

I also love that when she gets out of the pool we can

scoop her up

the way we did after her bath as a baby!!

These would make great gifts

for those kiddos with summer birthdays!

Thow it in a beach bag with some sand toys

and they are good to go ;}

Summer fun,

BigSis LilSis

Crafty: Hospital Gown

A cute hospital gown one of those things on my list

that I had been wanting for my labor & delivery.

The hospital gowns they give you in the hospital are great for delivery,

but afterward it's nice to get comfy in something of your own.

I found a website called B.Y.O.G. with really cute hospital gowns,

unfortunately they were pretty $$$ pricey.

So, my mother-in-law said she would help me make one!

It turned out great and I got so many compliments

from the nurses, staff and visitors.

It made me feel much cuter for pictures too!!

I can't wait to make these as gifts for my Mommies-to-be ;}

Sew cute,

BigSis LilSis

Crafty: Infant Car Seat Canopy

My 1st finished project on my NEW sewing machine!!

WooHoo!!

So I made a list of things  {back in January}

that I wanted to complete before Aria was born.

Now that we are a week away...

this is pretty much all I have finished ;}

This was much easier than I anticipated

and I am already working on a second one

for a friend who just had a baby!

I made this project my first priority on the list

because I knew it would get used immediately.

We were always covering Cadee's infant car seat with a blanket,

but it would constantly fall off,

especially when we would carry it by the handle.

So, when I saw this I knew it would keep our little pumkin covered

and able to sleep undisturbed :}

You can find the pattern I used here on Etsy!

Sew Happy,

BigSis LilSis

Crafty: Baby Shower Favors

I was trying to think of something cute and practical for a

Baby Shower Favor

{So it wouldn't just get tossed when the guest leaves!}

As I was browsing through Target

{no suprise there!}

I came across the travel size hand sanitizers.

I thought, WOW this would be perfect,
{but they just aren't very cute... yet!}

How can I pretty these up? Tie a bow around it?
Put a sticker on it?

If only it didn't have the brand sticker on it...

OH WAIT, it comes off!!

PERFECT!!

{everyone loves to have one of these in their purse, right

and you gotta have clean hands to hold the BABY!}

So my next stop was for stickers and ribbon

I walked into Micheal's

{waddled is probably more accurate!}

To my surprise they had a huge selection of ribbon in the $1 bin

{and in PINK! Of course you can do this in BLUE too ;}

I also found some girly stickers to put on the bottles!

Here is the finished product :}

The guests loved them too!

You can do this with the larger bottles as well

{as long as there is a removable sticker}

They would make great quick gifts for

co-workers, teachers, family 

or anyone that goes out in public! ;}

Have fun,

BigSis LilSis

xoxo

Crafty: Hair Bows

Having a little girl is so much fun,

especially when they like wearing hair bows.

Since these bows can be pricy at times,

I decided to start making my own!

And with two little girls,

it will be double the fun :}

First up...

BEAR EAR BOWS

{click on the picture to see it closer}

I just made bows out of ribbon and then used elastic thread

to attach them to the hair tie.

{I have also used these types of bows to attach to alligator clips wrapped in a coordinating ribbon}

Next up...

KORKER PIGGIES

{I don't think my model was in the mood to pose}

I have seen these little cuties everywhere!

But most or the time they run $2-5 a pair

and now that I know how to make them,

I can make a dozen for that price!!

{Check out the tutorial here so you can make your own!}

I changed mine up a bit,

using hair ties instead of clips and mine have less ribbons.

{I assume you can make them with as many ribbons as you want}

Most of the time I find my ribbon in the $1 section at Target.

{They have some really cute one right now for Spring!}

These would make great gifts or

just have fun adding to your little girls collection!

Be Crafty,

BigSis LilSis

xoxo

Decorating: Fireplace Mantel

We moved into our new place back in August,

I found out I was pregnant in September,

October, November and December flew by!

Now that it is the end of February,

I have finally found the motivation
to get some decorating done! 

I have been seeing a lot of nicely decorated fireplace mantels,

so I thought I would start there :}

Here is what I did!!

As you can see I started with a pretty blank slate!

I found the FAMILY sign at Micheal's for 40% OFF
{plus I never forget my coupons} 

so that was another 40% OFF which came out to about $3!!

I knew I had a couple of pillar candles,

and had seen somewhere {can't remeber where} 

decorative paper wrapped around them
to give them a different look!

Michael's had their 12x12 sheets on SALE
for 25 cents each {score!}

Everything else I had around the house :}

A quick, easy and inexpesive redecorating project!

I LOVE IT!!

* Next up will be to recover our dining table chairs ;} *

Crafty: Baby Shower Gift

This idea all started when I found this tutorial

on a travel wipes case here.

So I decided to make one of my own!

What do you think?

Is it my new clutch or a travel wipes case?! ;}

This was super easy and turned out super cute!!

Plus it's a NO SEW project :}

Then I thought...

HEY, what about a matching burp cloth...

hmmm...

So I used one of the many

plain white burp cloths/cloth diapers

we have from the hospital when we had Cadence.

{I am guilty of taking a few extra, but I think they expect that!}

First, I measured the length and width

of the center section to cut my piece of fabric.

I added an extra 1/2" to each end to be able to wrap around
the top and bottom edge.

I didn't worry about the sides since I would be covering it.

Then, I just pinned my fabric into place

and sewed around the edges.

To finish the side edges I added some 1/4" satin ribbon

{I thought this would be soft enough for a baby's face}

But I wasn't done yet...

I am always seeing this adorable little onesies

with the ruffles on the bottoms

and thought that would be the perfect!

For the ruffles I cut a 14"{length} x 1"{width} strips of fabric,

then sewed right down the middle.

{I just did two ruffles since this is a newborn onesie, but you can always do more!}

Then, I took the top thread only

and started gathering the fabric until it was spaced evenly.

Lastly, I pinned the gathered strips to the onesie

and sewed right down the middle again onto the onesie!

{Or go here for a more detailed tutorial}

I also thought the front could use something,

so I cut out a heart shape and hand stitched it to the front.

{hey, I am still learning to sew in a straight line on the machine!}

This was a fun project and the possiblities are endless!

Happy Birthday Momma!

Wishing a
VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY
to my wonderful
MOM!!!

{I LOVE this picture, it shows your goofy side!}

You are an amazing woman, so strong and beautiful

I LOVE YOU!

{Kisses and Hugs from Adam and Cadee too! xoxo} 

Have a GREAT DAY and here is a sneak peak
of what I made you ;}

My Vintage Machine ;}

I finally pulled out the sewing machine...

{I know it's been like a month since I was supposed to get started!}

It was my Mom's

{her dad bought it for her as a teenager}

It works great for being so vintage! {now that it's fixed}

I completed my very first project on it last night :}

A new baby blanket for Aria

This was pretty easy once I got the hang of the machine speed,

 I think the hardest part for me is keeping a straight line ;}

I love this fleecy fabric ~ so soft

I decided to use a 2" satin ribbon around the edge

{it is easier to fold in half and iron before you pin it to the fabric}

Then I was a sewing machine!!

hehe pun intended ;}

 Stay tuned for more fun projects on my new toy!!

Crafty: Mod Podge Hangers

Since I have been in craft mode
{some might call it nesting?}

I have found some great little projects
that don't cost too much $$!

{with the bad economy and all, we must pinch our pennies}

This particular project came from a fellow blogger

{so, I can't take the credit for the idea}

check out her blog here

MOD PODGE HANGERS:

I was able to find these great hangers at Joann's Fabric

in the discount bins

Then I found some extra fabric I loved

and was hoping to find the perfect use for it!

Voila!

I just followed these simple steps:

*Using a small sponge paint brush,

apply a layer of MOD PODGE

to one side of the hanger

{do this quickly because it will dry quickly}

* Lay you fabric on top

and smooth over the hanger

*Trim the fabric around the edges

*Apply another coat of MOD PODGE

over the fabric to seal

*Let dry and then repeat on the other side

*I added a ribbon to the top

and secured it with hot glue

{get creative and add your own touch!}

*Let them hang to dry

and you have a cute hanger to add to your closet

or give as a gift!

This project probably took me a total of 1 hour

and it was a lot of fun!

I ended up giving them to my Mother-in-law

as a birthday gift and she loved them!

Let me know if you give it a try :}

and send me a pic,

I would love to see the finished product!