DIY Woven Felt Coasters

It's March! Time to take down the Valentine's hearts and add some splashes of green around! Coasters are an inexpensive -- yet useful -- way to change up your decor. 

Last month I made some fun little coasters out of ceramic tiles. With the "I love you" written on one, they had a bit of Valentine's Day flair. This last week, I created some new GREEN coasters that would be great for St. Patrick's Day.

Do you remember paper weaving? We used to do it every year in elementary school to make Thanksgiving placemats. I always loved doing it. Last week, I called on those long-unused paper-weaving skills and tried it with felt for my coasters. It was rather enjoyable to do. Stop by DIY Your Way today to learn how to make your own DIY Woven Felt Coasters.  

If you like paper weaving, this woven paper storage box is a fun project too. I just love to re-purpose something and make it pretty. These boxes turned out even better than I thought they would. I would love to make more...I just gotta find the time to do it.

Natural Living & Brown Sugar Hand Scrub Recipe

The last few years, I've become interested in using more natural products. I suppose, it probably started with a trip to the Lush store in Santa Barbara. Lush is a handmade cosmetic company that uses natural ingredients. It's not cheap, but it is a splurge that I enjoy once in awhile. A product from Lush can always bring a smile to my face. Because Lush is not really in the budget, I've been interested in trying to make some of my own natural bath and beauty products.

I'm slowly building a collection of supplies with which to create yummy natural stuff. I really want to get more essential oils and learn how to use them. The different scents always give me a lift. However, it seems as if VA is not as big into "natural living" as CA. Although Williamsburg is a much larger town than Solvang, it doesn't have a natural foods store where you can buy things like essential oils. Or, at least I haven't found one.

So, I do a lot of my research online. I've seen so many ideas that I want to try that I started a Natural Living Pinterest Board to keep them all easily accessible. Maybe this will help keep my thoughts organized and I'll experiment some more.

One product I have made successfully is a Brown Sugar Hand Scrub. We made it at MOPS a couple of years ago. Of course, since it is made of oil, you've got to be careful if you're going to use it in the shower. I keep this above my sink to use after I do the dishes. (Yes, I do the dishes by hand.) After I was it off, I blot my hands with a paper towel to get rid of the slightly greasy feeling. 

If you're interested in "natural living" too, I thought I'd mention a few things that are going on this week:

• "Natural Living" Bundle of the Week: This week's ebook bundle from Bundle of the Week is all about natural living. There are FIVE books packed with recipes and more for just $7.40 (a savings of over 80%). I haven't read any of these, but they do look good.
• Plant Therapy Essential Oil Kit Giveaway: Life Your Way has a giveaway for an Essential Oil Starter Kit from Plant Therapy ($43 value). If you don't win the giveaway, you WILL get a coupon code emailed to you as a thanks for entering. If at least 250 people enter the giveaway, the coupon code will be even better!

Oh, and of course, I'm sharing my recipe for hand scrub!


Brown Sugar Hand Scrub


1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon Vitamin E oil
1/2 cup + 1/3 cup brown sugar

Pour olive oil, vanilla extract and Vitamin E into 8 ounce jar. Mix very well. Then, add sugar and carefully stir until well blended (it will not dissolve). To enjoy, scoop some of the scrub into your hand and massage gently into your skin. For best results, leave on skin for 3 to 4 minutes before rinsing.

Other Scrub Ideas:

• White Sugar Scrub: We made a different version at MOPS last year. I can't remember the exact recipe, but it used white sugar, massage oil, and essential oil of your choice. You can try and experiment to find your own favorite creation!
• Lavender Hand Scrub: Life as MOM posted a recipe for this back in December. Yummy!

DIY Rolled Felt Flower Wreath for Valentine's Day

I really enjoy making crafts, and I enjoy it even more when I can use the supplies that I already have. I mentioned before that I have a TON of felt, even after the many, many felt crafts I've made.

With Valentine's Day right around the corner, I decided to make a dent in my felt stash by making some rolled felt flowers. They're similar to the paper flower arrangement than I made at Christmas -- but even easier. Although you can find heart-shaped wreath frames, I decided to make a frame out of some craft vine wire leftover from my braided vine napkin rings. A little hot glue and ta-da! A cool Valentine's Day wreath.

Want to make your own? Stop by DIY Your Way to see my step-by-step tutorial on how to make this fun Valentine's Day wreath!

DIY Mantel Words Tutorial

It's been quite the week here. We had a string of cold, gloomy days that coincided with one of the girls having a 3-day fever. I don't think I realized how much being cooped up with a sick kid had affected me until Brett took them both out of the house on Friday.

The sunlight was (finally) streaming through our front windows, and I had the house to myself. Oh man, it was lovely and just the break that I needed. It also gave me a chance to do a little crafting.

Inspired by the approaching Valentine's holiday and the book Love Does by Bob Goff, I created these these DIY Mantel Words with free and inexpensive materials. They were simple and cheap to make. It makes me happy to see them sitting up on my mantel.

Stop over at DIY Your Way to check out my tutorial on how to make your very own DIY Mantel Words.

Make-It Monday: Child's Reversible Apron

Since 2010, I've featured "Make It Monday" on my blog during the holiday season. On the Mondays between Thanksgiving and Christmas, I share different ideas and instructions on how to make homemade (or partially homemade) gifts. My life is crazy right now, but I'm going to do my best to keep up the tradition. Stop by each week for a new homemade gift idea!

Today, I'm going to show you how to make an easy reversible apron for a child. I've got quite a dedicated little sous-chef here at my house. She loves using this little apron...and she looks pretty darn cute in it too. This is an inexpensive gift and a great way to use up small amounts of fabric that you might have around the house.

How to Make a Child's Reversible Apron

Supplies:

• measuring tape
• tissue paper to make pattern
• pencil
• two different fabrics (I used one print, one solid)
• scissors
• straight pins
• thread
• sewing machine
• masking tape
• safety pin
• ribbon or double-wide bias tape (stitched closed)

Directions:

Make the Pattern:
To make your pattern, you'll need the child's measurements -- the width across the front of the chest, the length of the top of the apron to the armpit, and the length you want the apron to be, and the width of the apron (usually the width of the front of the child plus a couple of inches).

Cut a rectangle out a piece of tissue paper that is as long as you want the apron to be and as wide as you want the apron to be. My rectangle started out as 18 x 15. Fold in half lengthwise so you get a skinny rectangle (18 x 7.5). Take half of measurement for the top of the apron and mark that along the top of the tissue paper from the fold. On the open side of the tissue paper, mark the measurement for the distance from the top of the apron to the armpit. Draw a line from the mark at the top of the apron to the armpit mark. Cut along the line. Unfold and you should have a shape that looks like this:

Make the Apron:

Trace your pattern onto two different fabrics and cut them out. I chose one printed fabric and one solid covered fabric.

Place the cut-out pieces with the right sides together, and pin along the edges. Mark the places where you'll want to leave an opening for the apron tie -- near the edges of the top of the apron and at the bottom of the arpmit side edge. I used masking tape to mark these places so I wouldn't sew over them.

Leaving an opening at the bottom and where your tape is marked, sew along all of the edges, skipping over the areas where the tape is. It should look something like this:

Remove tape and turn right side out. Iron flat. Place the tape on the same openings along the top and sides of apron. Topstitch along the edges of the apron, closing the bottom of the apron and leaving the tape-marked spots open.

Stitch a seam parallel to the armpit side edges of the apron to create a casing for the apron strings, like this:

Remove tape. Pin a safety pin to one end of whatever you're using for your apron strings -- ribbon will work. (I used double-wide bias tape that I stitched closed.) Use the safety pin to help you thread the apron string through the bottom side opening, through the casing, and out the top. Then, loop the string down through the casing on the other side. The apron string can be adjusted to fit over the child's head. You can add a knot in the string at the bottom of the casing to help prevent the string from pulling all the way into the casing.

Other Sewing Projects that Make Great Gifts

• Flaxseed Heating Wrap
• Reuseable Fabric Coffee Sleeve
• Fabric Journal Cover
• Fleece Scarf with Pockets
• Fast Felt Purse

Decorate for Christmas with DIY Rolled Paper Flowers!

Now that Thanksgiving has passed, I can officially decorate for Christmas!

Have you ever stopped by Christmas Your Way (a channel of Life Your Way)? Oh my, it is a wonderful resource for all things Christmas! Right now, they're about 2/3 of the way through a series called 101 Days of Christmas. There are tons of ideas for Christmas crafts, gifts, traditions, and food. Oh, it is so much fun to browse there!

Earlier this week, I shared a DIY Rolled Paper Flower Arrangement tutorial at Christmas Your Way. I just love how these flowers turned out. They were so cheap to make. I can see myself making different ones year round to suit the season. It would even be fun to make some out of book pages (for the book lover) or sheet music (for the musician). If you like crafts, stop by Christmas Your Way and check it out!

DIY Gingerbread House Tissue Box

I have to say, I'm pretty proud of this holiday craft tutorial that I'm sharing today over at Life as MOM -- a DIY Gingerbread House Tissue Box with downloadable template. It turned out so cute!

I built the structure on my own, but L helped me decorate our Gingerbread House. She loved deciding what should go where. It's a fun way to decorate in a useful way. The house camouflages a tissue box and the tissues come out of the chimney. Stop by Life as MOM today and learn how to make your own!

DIY Braided Vine Napkin Rings

Thanksgiving will be upon us before we know it! My sister-in-law Aimee and I are going to start planning our feast soon. I must say, we prepared a pretty delectable meal last year...and I can't wait for what we create this year.

I know some folks keep things easy with paper plates, but I love having a pretty table for Thanksgiving. Today at DIY Your Way, I've got a fun little tutorial on how to make your own napkin rings with braided "vine" wire. I just love how they turned out -- stop by and learn how to make your own!

DIY Mermaid Costume: Mermaid Tail, Part 1

This year E decided that she would like to be a mermaid for Halloween...and then of course, L followed suit and wants to match her sister...and then their sweet cousin wanted to match them too! After checking out mermaid costumes in the stores and online, I just wasn't really impressed with the choices. So, I thought that I'd try to make something myself. So far, so good.

If you've "liked" Life with L and E on Facebook, you might have heard that I was successful in creating a Mermaid Tail Skirt! I promised a tutorial, but it has taken me a bit longer to get this post together than I would have liked. Sorry! I had a bit of a machine failure so my project got derailed. But, now I've borrowed my sister-in-law's machine and I'm back on track.

This Mermaid Tail consists of a main skirt that comes to a point in the front and the back. Then, a "fin" is added to the bottom. (I'll go over how to make the fin in a separate tutorial.) I'm not giving exact measurements because your costume doesn't need to be the same size as mine. However, I'll do my best to explain how to take your own measurements for your custom skirt. For fabric, I used costume satin that I found on sale at Joann's for $2/yard. Because costume satin has a horrible tendency to fray, I used pinking shears to cut out the fabric and minimize fraying. It makes it a bit easier to work with too.

How to Make Mermaid Tail Skirt:

Supplies:

• measuring tape
• teal glitter costume satin
• pinking shears
• iron & ironing board
• matching thread
• 3/4" wide elastic
• straight pins
• sewing machine

Directions:
Take your measurements.
You'll need to know three measurements -- waist, distance from waist to knee, and the distance from waist to where you want your skirt to end. (I chose right above the feet.)

• E's Measurements: 20" waist, 15" to knee, 25" to feet

Determine the size of your main skirt pieces.
You'll need two identical pieces to form the tail-shaped skirt. The tail is essentially a straight skirt to the knee that then tapers to a point in the front and the back.

• Width of each piece: Take 75% of your waist measurement and then add 1" for the seam allowances. (My skirt: 0.75 x 20 = 15; 15 + 1 = 16 inches wide)
• Length to point: Use the measurement to the feet. Part of this length will be used up by the waistband, but you'll be adding a "fin" that will give the finished tail extra length.

Cut the pieces for your skirt.
Iron the teal fabric. Cut two pieces that are the width and length as described above. (My skirt pieces began as two 16 x 25 inch rectangles.) Stack the two rectangles, and fold them in half lengthwise. Pin to keep them from shifting.

Measure from the top of the fabric down to your knee measurement. Draw a diagonal line from this knee measurement on the cut-side edge, to the bottom of the fabric at the folded edge. While keeping the fabric folded, pin along the line to keep the fabric from shifting. Then, cut along this line to make the point of the tail. Do this to both skirt pieces.

Sew your skirt.
Finish the bottom edges (the pointed tail part) by ironing the edge under by about 1/4 inch and then folding over again. Use straight pins to secure. Use the sewing machine to stitch down. Do this on both skirt pieces.

Place the two skirt pieces with right sides together and pin together along the sides. Stitch up the sides.

Add the waistband.
Baste the flaps from the side seams down so they don't get in your way while you create the waistband. Fold down the top by about 1 1/4 inches. Fold the bottom of that under by about 1/4 inch and pin securely. To create the casing for the elastic, stitch the 1/4 inch fold down almost all the way around  -- leave about a 2-inch opening.

Cut the elastic to your waist measurement. Attach a safety pin to one end of the elastic, and then thread it through the casing using the safety pin to help you pull it through. Pin the two ends of the elastic on and try on the skirt. Adjust the overlap of the elastic to tighten or loosen as necessary. Repin the elastic ends where it should be attached together, and then stitch them together to secure. Slip the elastic ends back into the casing, fold the bottom of the opening under, and stitch closed.

Turn the skirt right-side out. Ta da! The basic form of your mermaid tail is complete.

Go here to find Part 2 of the Mermaid Tail Skirt tutorial.

A Simple Little Gift

This past weekend, we were invited to a new neighbor's house to celebrate their daughter's birthday. L and this sweet little girl have become buddies. It's soooo nice for L to have a friend her own age in the neighborhood!

We're living on a law school budget these days so gifts have to be of the inexpensive variety. Although our neighbor said that we didn't need to bring a gift, we wanted to bring a little something anyway. So, I whipped up a sweet little hairclip for our new friend.

I just love hairclips! Being a momma of two girls, I love that I can just pull their hair back with a little clip, and it can add a bit of fancy to their outfits. Best of all, they are so easy, fun, and inexpensive to make on your own. Although I've made hairclips out of felt flowers, puckered satin, and even felt starfish, my favorite ones are from these satin & rhinestone flowers that I created for DIY Your Way. So far, I think these flowers are still my favorite of all of my DIY Your Way crafts. They just make me smile!

DIY Mermaid Costume Accessories: Starfish Hairclip

I gotta say, I'm having great fun creating mermaid costumes for my girls. Today I made the accessories for their costumes. They were so inexpensive and easy to make, and I think they'll add a nice little touch. I've yet to show the girls though...I'm hoping they like them too!

How to Make A Starfish Hairclip
Who doesn't love a fun hairclip? Originally, I was going to have the girls wear flower hairclips (or with flowers like these), but one of the girls insisted that Ariel only wore flowers when she was on land. My sister-in-law Aimee had mentioned starfish hairclips, so I thought I'd try to make one of those. Easy peasy...and oh so cheap! I think each clip costs less than 25 cents to make since you really don't need much felt at all to make a hairclip. Even if you won't be making a starfish, a felt hairclip is a cheap and fun addition to a girl's Halloween costume!

Supplies:

• sand colored felt (I used Rainbow Classic Felt in Sandstone)
• scissors
• template (I used this starfish graphic to make mine)
• straight pins
• matching thread
• needle
• hairclip
• hot glue gun & glue sticks

Directions:
Fold the felt over so you have a double thickness and use straight pins to secure. Trace your template onto the felt and cut out.

Thread your needle and stitch around the edges to connect the two pieces of felt. Make sure that the knot of your thread is sandwiched between the two layers so that you don't see that part. Cut up bits of excess felt and use them to stuff the points of your seastar as you stitch them together.

Use hot glue to affix your seastar to the hairclip. Ta da!

Come back soon...I'll be sharing a tutorial for another Mermaid Costume accessory and of course the skirt and seashell top!
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For other money-saving ideas, be sure to check out Frugal Friday at Life as MOM.

I'm Keeping Cozy in my Scarf with Pockets!

The heat and humidity has finally left Virginia, and most days we have a lovely chill in the air! It's time for this California girl to bust out the scarves! I am notoriously bad for remembering gloves when I head out into the cold, so I decided to do something about it. I made myself a fleece scarf with pockets!

You can make one too! Head over to DIY Your Way and check out my tutorial on how to make a fleece scarf with pockets!

Decorate for Fall with a DIY Twig Mirror

Have you decorated for Fall? Well, of course, I meant to do so, but I got stymied on my mantle. I know I need something large to go over it, but I'm at a loss for what. I used to have a mirror there, but it really didn't do much for the room since it was frameless. Then my husband built a frame for it, but it didn't seem to go with the rest of the decor in the room. So, we've relocated the mirror, and I've got a blank mantle to work with. Thankfully, Lisa has some great step-by-step tips on how to decorate a mantle. I've got it on my to-do list...I'm just waiting for some inexpensive inspiration.

But just because I didn't get around to decorating my mantle doesn't mean that I haven't done any fall decorating. Just last week I made a fun mirror that is a great way to decorate for fall.  The finished size is about 12-inches in diameter -- just perfect for a Fall accent mirror. Best of all, this DIY Twig Mirror is so incredibly inexpensive to make - the main materials cost a mere $2! Wanna see how I did it? Head on over to DIY Your Way today for my step-by-step tutorial on how to make this sweet little twig mirror!

What inexpensive ideas do you have for Fall decorating?

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For other money-saving ideas, be sure to check out Frugal Friday at Life as MOM.

Dress Up Your Candles with Beads!

When the weather gets cooler and the sun sets earlier, I'm tempted to break out the candles. Recently, I picked up some Fall-scented candles at the Dollar Tree. It got me inspired to dress up some $1 candle holders as well as some jars to make something unique for my Fall Mantel. Come stop by DIY Your Way today for my beaded candle holder tutorial!

Make A Felt Purse for Fall!

A couple of weeks ago, I got curious about what THE popular fashion colors are going to be for Fall 2012. Well,a quick google search brought me to this Woman's Fashion Color Report where I found the answer. Don't be surprised if you see bold colors in the stores, like vibrant pink, tangerine orange, honey gold, chartreuse, ultramarine green, and olympian blue. A few days later while I was browsing the craft store, I came across the section of pre-cut felt. Guess what colors dominated? You guessed it!

So, I couldn't resist grabbing a few pieces for a mere $0.34 each, and took them home to make them into felt purses. Today at DIY Your Way, I give you a tutorial on how to make three versions of these little felt purses -- unlined, lined with costume satin, AND lined with a divider pocket. Come check it out and learn how to make your own! They'd make great inexpensive gifts either on their own or filled with gift cards, stationary, or other little trinkets.

Make Your Own Canvas Wall Art

I am not an artist, but that didn't stop me from giving this project a go. I've seen canvas artwork online for more than I want to pay, so I thought it would be fun to try making my own. It was fun and soooo much more affordable. For under $10, I made this inspirational sign to hang in my home. Wanna learn how to make your own? Stop by DIY Your Way today and get inspired with DIY canvas word art! (Oh, and if you like that vase, you can learn how to make a raffia covered vase there too!)

For other money-saving ideas, check out Frugal Friday at Life as MOM.

DIY: Fun & Festive Cup Identifiers

When I was growing up, my relative Debra always drank out of a plastic cup with a rubber band around it. I totally thought it was weird, but as a young kid, I never asked WHY she did it. Several years ago on a visit to see her in Minnesota, I noticed that she still did it. I finally asked her why.

The answer was simple -- she wanted to be able to identify her drinking glass so she didn't keep using new ones. Genius!

Today over at DIY...Your Way, I'm sharing a simple way to create your own Fun & Festive Cup Identifiers. It's a super-inexpensive way to enforce your party theme or decor in a functional way. Even if you're not having a party, cup identifiers can help you cut down on the number of glasses that your family uses in a given day. Stop by and check it out!

DIY Simple, Yet Spectacular, Satin Flowers

I made a bunch of these sweet little satin flowers this past week as gifts for Ella's teachers, and I was oh so pleased with them! They look so pretty, but are surprisingly affordable. The flowers were only about $0.25 to make but can be used in so many ways. Head over to DIY...Your Way to check out my tutorial for these Simple, Yet Spectactular, Satin Flowers and see how you can use them.

DIY Raffia Vase Tutorial

Aren't these pretty? I think I'm in love with these sweet little vases. Best of all? They are an inexpensive, green and simple craft that you can make at home. Today, I'm sharing just how to do that in my DIY Raffia Vase Tutorial over at DIY...Your Way, a division of Life...Your Way. Come check it out!

Gifts of flowers don't need to be expensive. Skip the pricey bouquet, and fill one of these homemade vases with a few stems of flowers from your garden. It makes a sweet and simple gift for a friend, a teacher or a hostess.

You can make several of these and keep a few on hand for when you need a last minute gift. It's so much easier and cheaper than running out to the store!

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For other money-saving ideas, be sure to stop by Frugal Friday at Life as MOM.