Winner!!!

So I have no excuse.  I am just a slacker.  I realized this morning that I was supposed to tell you who was the winner of our giveaway.  I know, it is almost 3 days later.  SO here is the random number generator.

And that means we have a winner!!  I will be contacting you to get your vinyl to you.

Thanks everyone for playing.  I am glad we had a good event.  I found something else that might be helpful if you are looking for a specific shape or design on the cricut cartridges.  I find that the craftroom features of search are pretty weak.  I know that some of the items are available on the cartridge but when I search for them on that specific cartridge it doesn't show up.  So I found this website that is a pretty good search engine for cartridges shapes.  http://mycutsearch.com/

click here to get to site.

Craft group Cricut Tutorial Day

Today was our craft group all Cricut Tutorial Meeting.  We had a great time learning the basics of cutting with our Cricut Machine, mat care, favorite cartridges and how to use Cricut Craftroom.  I am going to consolidate our meeting and give you some basics that might help you if you were not able to come.  Meagan was a wonderful hostess and she let us make a really fun card that we used our Cricut machine to cut out the words.  Isn't this card so cute?  (Sorry it looks a little blurry - must be my wonderful photography skills.)

 cartridge used doodletype

Amy created a table of cutting helps that she collected from different sources off the Internet.  Of course you have to figure out what works best on your machine.  But here is a general guide for most things you might use.  It is extremely helpful if you use Cricut Craftroom since there is no guide to where to put your settings on.

Click HERE to download a word file or

HERE to download it in a PDF file

Amy and Meagan both have used the Cricut Craftroom and love it.  Amy doesn't even know how to use all the bells and whistles on her new Expressions 2 since she almost always uses the craftroom to make things.  Just as an example of things you can use the craftroom to make I am posting a couple of my latest projects using my Cricut and Craftroom.

For Valentine's Day

Edited to add: Here is a link to the inspiration - she also has a printable if you want. CLICK HERE.

 

For the 4th of July (on the back of the Valentine's on above ) 
Edited to add: Here is the link to my inspiration -- some of it is exactly as she did it but some is my own ideas.  CLICK HERE

And for my Daughter (and also for my son - not finished yet) a board to put in their rooms to remind them about who they are and how important they are.

And because my girls have hundreds of bows that needed a home - I created this cute one.  The ribbons will hold the many bows and ribbons that they have.  It needs a staple gun and you would think we have one - BUT no, not one that won't send the staples all the way through the wood board.  (I have to borrow one and then I can show you this on the wall in the Girl's room, with the bow extravaganza.)

Any way just a couple of notes from the class that I thought might be helpful. 
Meagan's Favorite cartridges -

• Joys of the Season
• Doodletype
• Plantin Schoolbook
• Everyday Paper dolls

Amy's Favorites-

• Lyrical Letters
• Doodlecharms
• George and Basic (for basic shapes)
• Storybook (for fun decorative designs)
• Once Upon a Princess (similar to paper dolls) - Really good for homes with girls.

Cricut Craftroom Helps

First go to Cricut Craftroom and download the appropriate version for your computer, you will also have to open an account.  Just remember what ever computer you are going to use with the Cricut is the one of the computers you want to download it to.  You will also need to update the Firmware on your cricut and that will require you to hook your computer to the Cricut machine.  (You will need a USB cord with an end that will fit into your Cricut - some come with them, others you might be able to buy a printer cable cord.  Check the back of your machine to see what slot it goes in. You might find more information on the website, it has been a couple months since I did this.)  They are really helpful if you need help, look on the website to find a phone number.

Meagan and I find that you need to have patience while you are trying to get all this done.  Although the Craftroom is really cool it is still a bit temperamental - so don't expect to do all of this quickly.  Especially if you are trying to get that project done before tomorrow.  Find a time when you can work with it and it will probably all go smoothly - despite what we say.

Second go to the Main Page - It is really helpful to go through each of the tutorials and figure out how to use craftroom.  It is really worth your time. 

Lastly - play around with it.  I go in there and design things like the 4th of July subway art I made, I just played with different fonts and different things to make it look how I did.  I guess what I am saying is play with it so you can feel comfortable with it and when you are in a crunch and trying to make that project for tomorrow - you will be able to do it without as many problems.

**I noticed today while researching the information that Cricut is now selling the cartridges in a digital form that loads right into your Craftroom account.  I think they are $39.99 each.   Much better then the original price of $90 that they retail for.  I guess that is better.  We will have to see if they come down in price.

Which reminds me that we talked about places to get cartridges from.

To Buy- check out Amazon, Custom crops, or Cricut Machine.com or Meagan suggested just putting in the name at google and finding what comes up.

For Vinyl - I like Expressions Vinyl or if you are in a pinch sometimes JoAnn's will let you use a 40% off coupon if they are not on sale.

Okay if you got this far down then you should win a prize.   I am going to order vinyl in the next couple of days and I will be giving a 12x24 piece of vinyl in either black or white away.  Just leave your name and a way to contact you - an email or if I know you from craftgroup then I probably have your email.  This is open to anyone.  Let me know if you want black or white.  This will close on Saturday February 18th.

Thanks,
Amy

A little vinyl, some paint and wood

I noticed I hadn't posted some things that were made a little while ago, but then I realized we hadn't had much sun lately and I hate taking pictures when I know they aren't getting natural light.  (I am not an expert photographer but I know some times I can make my pictures look better by using natural light.)

So I have been playing around with my vinyl and my new cricut machine.  Liberty and I got together a couple of weeks ago and made these cute signs.  There are reversible  - since that makes it easier for storage.  We made these two.

 And then these two:

( I love the flower and the bling on this spring one.)

Then after a sucessful craft group and making snowmen, I was left with a bunch of smaller sized blocks.  So I decided to use up some of my vinyl and the blocks and to make a couple of words to put up around the house.  I thought I would make it a family affair and the kids and I spent an afternoon making these.

Mine

Kirsten's

Peter's 

(I showed him conversation hearts online and this is what words he wanted.  I also let him decide what colors to make it.)

I think they turned out pretty cute.  Now I have a million ideas running through my head.  Hopefully I will be able to do a couple of them.  I have wood waiting in the garage that I need Dave to teach me how to use his table saw, so I can cut it and other things in the future.  I might even have him teach me how to use the router.  (I'm not afraid of power tools and I like to use them. Except the bandsaw - it isn't my favorite.)

Wood Snowmen family

Here is our next project for the Woodridge Craft and Sewing group:

(I know that I am missing arms, I didn't realize it until began to post these.  I will try and take pictures tomorrow with the "twig" arms.)

These are a great winter transition from Christmas to Valentine's holidays.  I never know what to decorate with in January - seems too soon for Valentine's and I want the Christmas decor gone around New Years.  We found this idea from Today's Fabulous Finds .  She made them a little different but the 3 blocks on top of each other is the same.

Our next Craft Group will be on Wednesday, January 18th at 9 am at the Woodridge Church Building. 

We plan on bringing:

• Wood blocks
• Small piece of wood for hat
• Paint (both Black, Orange and White)
• Bamboo Skewers (to hold them upright)
• Hot Glue
• Sandpaper
• Sanders
• Paintbrushes
• Mod Podge
• Blush/chalk for cheeks

What you will need to bring:

• Anything you want to decorate them with -
• Buttons, Ribbons, Flowers, yarn, jute, fabric, scrapbook paper (click this LINK for other ideas)

Cost:

• $3 for a 3 block tall snowman.  If you would like a small one  (2 blocks) like the hot pink one above then those will only be $2
• We are setting a limit on the number you can make (otherwise Amy will be cutting and sanding for days.)  No more then 5 complete snowman please.

Please respond by comment on this post or by email.  Please indicate the number of snowmen you want.  (I will assume 3 block snowman unless you let me know.)

Last day to order is Saturday, January 14th.

Now I just wanted to show you how cute my kids are.  While I was making these snowmen, I let them create their own snowman.  They both thought it was pretty cool.  We only got a little paint on our clothes (even with aprons.)  But here are their masterpieces.

Peter's

Kirsten's

Ruffly Crocheted Scarf

Wow....three posts in one week...we are on a roll. {make sure you scroll down and see Amy's AWESOME Christmas dresses. My husband and 12 year old son didn't really want ruffly Christmas dresses so I just bought them red ties to match the red shirt I got myself for $4 at Target on clearance.} Amy's are GORGEOUS, don't miss them! 


I did however make some super cute ruffly scarfs for Christmas gifts {one for myself} and the other ones for gifts. I LOVE how they turned out. Super ruffly and soft. I used Lion Brand Homespun Yarn that I got on sale at Joann's Crafts. I used this tutorial that I found on Pinterest, and then made a few adaptions. I used a N/10mm hook {because the yarn is so bulky} and changed the pattern as follows:

Ruffly Scarf 


Chain 113 

Round 1: Work 1 double crochet (dc) in the third chain (ch) from the hook. Dc in each ch to the last ch. 


Work 5 dc in the last ch.


Do not turn. Work along the back of the foundation chain working 1 dc in each ch to the first ch.


Work 4 dc in the first ch for a total of 5 dc and slip stitch (sl st) to the beginning dc to join.


Round 2: Ch 3...


Work 2 dc in the same stitch.


Work 3 dc in the next dc and every dc thereafter... 


...working around the end and all the way around the scarf.


Join with a sl st.  Weave in ends. Wear!

The Christmas Dresses

YES, I AM CRAZY.  If you haven't figured that out yet, then you will when you see these two photos.  This year I decided to make Christmas dresses for the girls and then it snowballed into something for everyone except Dave.  But he really started the whole thing by buying that Burgundy colored shirt.  I was in love (with the shirt) it was beautiful.  {Funny side note: you can barely see it in the pictures.  Trust me it is the most beautiful color.}
So the quest began to make dresses to match the shirt.  Then the snowball began moving and TA-DA - The DRESSES.

Oh, yeah, two matching ones for the girls, one for me, and to make it fun - a vest for Peter.

I saw the idea for the girls dresses on one of my favorite blogs - Make It and Love It.  She is amazing and she made a ruffle dress for her daughter with a t-shirt and ruffle material.  I wanted to step it up a notch and so I made the shirts out of stretch velvet.  I actually found my ruffle material at Hobby Lobby, where I was able to use my 40% of coupon to bring the cost down a little.  You can buy the material at the Ruffle fabric shop but I wasn't sure how much I needed and didn't want to pay the price for it.  I can't say anything about the quality of either compared to each other.  But I liked the ruffle material, but with any of them you are going to have to match ruffles on the sides and that was a pain and I did clip some of the ruffles unintentionally when I was cutting my top out.  It worked out okay.  Anyway, when I bought the material I was a bit generous in my purchase because I had come up with an idea for me.  NO, I was not going to wear ruffles on my butt (it is NOT little and I don't need to accentuate that point.)  I think I bought 2 yards. 

For the girls I used various patterns I have at home and patterned the tops after dresses they already had.  The skirts are just pieces of the material gathered on just like Ashley did in her tutorial.  I also followed her instructions for the sash.

I had found a dress at a swap our church has yearly for clothing.  It was too large for me but I had hopes that I would be able to take it apart and adapt it for me.  When I started thinking about this project, that dress came to my mind.  It was perfect.  I cut off the top and "designed" myself a top.  To be honest, I had some knit fabric that I made a muslin out of to test the sleeves and the neckline.  It turned out okay and so I proceeded.  It took me a couple of days to get the sleeves right.  First try I looked like I was going to be playing in a Mariachi band.  I have to admit I was a bit down and didn't want to try any more.  I thought to myself.  This "designing" thing is for the birds.  But as you can see, it turned out beautiful and I was excited to walk into church as that "MATCHY MATCHY" family for Christmas.

You would not believe how close of a match the material for our sashes and Peter's vest were to Dave's shirt.  Dave even said it looked like they were cut out of the same material.  Peter's vest came together in a little more then and hour.  He was pretty grumpy this morning when we pulled him away from his toys and MADE him where THAT vest.  I promised him chocolate kisses (and mommy kisses) if he wore it and the tie.  I used a pattern I bought a year or so ago.  But you could really use an old vest and make a pattern off it.

Lastly, I am quite proud to say that I had them finished the day before Christmas Eve.  I finished up the final touches around 1 pm and was able to spend the rest of the day playing with my family.  So I made the flowers from instructions form Vanilla Joy for Satin Peony Flowers.  I made two for the girls hair and 3 for our dresses.  For the girls I used a tutorial from Make it or Love it for non-slip hairbows - and Esther's stayed in the whole time at church.

Okay so here is a better picture of the dresses.  I like all our faces (except Peter) in the one above, but this one is actually a better picture (and took less time to photoshop out the table in the background.

This is one of those times I am proud of my sewing skills.  It was crazy for me to make these but it worked.  {Of course the kids didn't get new sewn PJ's for Christmas because it took me longer to make my dress then expected - but they got a TON of things for Christmas anyway and didn't notice.  I guess I'll try and get them done for New Year's instead.:) }

**My jewelry was made by Liberty.  She is so awesome.  Now I have a really beautiful set of jewelry from her.  And for a special treat, I had her make bracelets for the girls.  They loved them.  Esther kept hers on the whole time.  She is really one of those girly girls.  She loves to put on jewelry and carry around purses.

Merry Christmas

What the back of the card said:

This year has been full of many FIRSTS

Kirsten started FIRST grade * Esther had her FIRST birthday * Dave started his FIRST commute on the bus and train to his new job in Chicago * Peter started going to his FIRST preschool * We took Esther (and her siblings) on her FIRST airplane ride and trip to Utah * We lived through our FIRST blizzard in Chicago * Kirsten had her FIRST toothless school picture (missing both top teeth.) * Esther took her FIRST steps around Halloween * Kirsten passed her FIRST spelling test with flying colors * Peter had his FIRST ride on the Metra Train (along with the rest of the family) *

Hopefully we can be the FIRST to wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

EASY Christmas Idea!!

My mother-in-law found this ADORABLE idea. It's super easy and I even made the printable for you so you can just print it and attach it to a roll of paper towels and you have a super easy gift for your neighbors and friends. Get the printable HERE.  Or try HERE.

Family Wood blocks

So I have had these blocks for a long time.  If I had realized I didn't have a before picture then I would have taken one of them.  But think "toll" painting.  Mainly each letter a different color in a blue, brown, burgundy pattern (ABC for those with primary grade kids) and splattered with black and white paint.  Really cute but they didn't match my decor and I was "tired" of the look.  Then while I was in Utah over the summer I saw that my sister-in-law had painted hers all black.  It looked awesome and matched her frames so great.  I decided that I was going to do that when I got home. 

Well almost 5 months after we got home and I finally got around to it.  I decided after making my Be Thankful sign last month that I LOVED the pattern and coloring of the paper.  I ran back to Micheals and bought more so I could mod podge the paper on my family blocks.  I sanded the old paint off and painted the sides black.  Mod podged the paper on and then did a little smudge on the sides of the letters to make it look a little messy.  I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE how they turned out.  It only took me a little bit of time and it looks awesome.  It is even better that I didn't have to touch the heart.  It matched perfectly and give it a nice look.  It also matches my frames - they are black and burgundy.

Sorry about the glare on the pictures, I tried not to but the reflection just happened in all my pictures.  Plus it was finally a nice day with sunshine since this room doesn't get much "good" light for taking pictures.

A nursing cover with a twist

One of my friends called me the other day just before her baby was born and asked me for what she would need for a nursing cover.  As we talked I realized that her baby was going to be born in the next couple of days and that in reality she would probably get it done just before he turned 1.  Okay maybe I would have got it done if I were her by the time my baby was one.  So I offered to make it for her, especially since I hadn't started something for her yet.  I used the tutorial from Sew Much Ado for the instructions on how to make it.  

I bought the fabric at Hobby Lobby and decided since it was a little thin that I might need to make it double thickness.  I really thought it would be fun to bring some of the pattern on to the front and so I decided that I would do that.  I guess I could have just cut strips of fabric and done it that way but I decided that I wanted to try one of those self-binding blanket tutorials on it.  I was a bit nervous since I had never done it before and instead of a square like most blankets this was going to be a rectangle.

Here is the tutorial I found for the Self-binding blanket.  My measurements were:
Main fabric: 25 inches by 35 inches
Coordinating/Back fabric: 35 inches by 45 inches

I pretty much followed the tutorial at Self-binding blanket to the point where you are ready to sew around the "binding".  Before I did that I sewed the boning into the top portion and added the
straps to the top.  I closed it up by sewing around like the tutoral for the blanket says.  It ended up pretty cute.  I had enough fabric left over to make diaper and wipes container holder.  I hope she enjoys it.

Here is a second picture to show you it a little closer.  (I tried to model it but I didn't have a baby to put under and my photographer was only 4 years old.

Mummy Jars

Have you been on Pinterest?

If you need an invite, let me know. {but I'm going to warn you that it's VERY addictive!!!}
If you had been there, you would see that there are 100's of Mummy Jar Ideas. I LOVE them.

 My friend MaryRuth made some and emailed me a picture a few days ago and I HAD to make some before Halloween was here. They are SOOOO easy!!!! {I made two sets of these in less than 30 minutes and for about $2}. I got the LED battery candles. {in the Christmas section at Walmart}

Take old canning jars {or pickle jars, or baby food jars, the possibilities are endless}
get sterile medical gauze that you can buy at walmart (in the pharmacy section)
and then you paint modge podge
all over the bottle
start at the bottom
and start wrapping
you'll need to put
modge podge between the layers of gauze
you only do one layer of gauze
but slightly overlap each layer
and then when its all how you like it
you paint a layer of modge podge on top of the whole thing really quick
and then glue on googly eyes {I like the big ones on the big bottles} with even more modge podged. {or E6000}
that's it.

I stretched and frayed my gauze a little to make it a little more messy. Then add candles. Tea lights or battery LED ones. SOOOOO cute!!! and SO easy to make! Go ahead make 100 of them.

Card Night for Craft Group

Welcome Woodridge 1st Ward Craft Group. We want to have one place online where we can post all of our craft group pictures and projects. We will be posting ALL of our projects here and will give you all the details for each craft group here {so you might want to bookmark it!}.

We are excited to announce our next Craft night will be making homemade cards. It will be FRIDAY NOVEMBER 11th at 7pm at the Woodridge Church building. There will be NO COST for this craft, however you will need to bring your own supplies. We WILL PROVIDE all the stamps, ink and tools. We will also have SOME scrap paper that you can use, but if you want something specific, please bring your own.

You will need to bring:

A TRIMMER {if you have one} will will have a few to share
ADHESIVE {NOT glue, scrapbook adhesive tape, you can get it at Hobby Lobby, Joann's or Michael's}
SCRAP PAPER {we will some}
EMBELLISHMENTS {buttons, brads, ribbon, etc.}
CARD BACKS {you can buy them at the same places and they come in different quantities so you might want to share a pack with someone else who is coming}
ENVELOPES {usually come in the pack with the card backs}

We will mostly be working on Christmas/Holiday cards and Meagan has made some samples for you to "copy" {Thanks Meagan for helping us with this fun night!} If you don't want holiday cards you are welcome to work on ANY cards you want. {thank you, birthday, baby, congrats, etc.}

Come play with us and make some pretty cards. You can make 1 or 100. You can make a "whole set" and tie them up with a pretty bow for a gift to give anybody {mom, grandma, school teachers, bus driver, etc.}. Everyone uses cards and homemade ones make a GREAT gift.

These are cards from the last craft group

If you have any questions, please leave us a comment. ALSO, please comment and let us know if you are planning to come so we can set up enough room for everyone.

Forget Not....

Did you hear President Uchtdorf's talk on Saturday night at the General RS Broadcast? It was AMAZING. I loved everything about it, but most especially I felt like he was talking directly to me. I felt like it was direct from heaven and that I was the most important person there. I am sure anyone who hears it will feel the same. It was SO good. {I can't way enough good about it.} You can watch and/or listen to it HERE. As soon as we came home I started seeing printables of the tiny forget me not flowers and decided that I wanted to make my own. {you can download them at the bottom of this post!}

I had some free canvas and I wanted to try it on the canvas to see how it would look. I LOVE it. It's exactly what I was hoping for. I printed my image 8x10 and then trimmed the sides down just a little bit so it fit on my 8x10 canvas. I then modge podged it onto the canvas. Be careful to not scrape the picture or it will scrape off the processing of the picture. I love how they turned out....no, they are not as cool as canvas...but they probably cost about $10 or less {if you had to buy the canvas}.

After the modge podge was dry, I painted the edges of the canvas a charcoal gray and blended it on the edges of the photo so it would hide the edge of the photo and look like it was inked on the edges.

 I then got carried away and made a 16x20 of the Salt Lake Temple. I did the same thing with this one, it was a little harder to keep the picture glued down on the canvas because my picture was rolled up when I picked it up from the photo place. Make sure you have a flat photo for easier results.

Here is a close up view of the edges.

Here is the download if you want to print your own "Forget Not" sign.

8x10 PRINT SIZE - Click twice to enlarge and then right click and "save as" to get image

4x6 PRINT SIZE - Click twice to enlarge and then right click and "save as" to get image