Lowes: my new BFF + paint chip bookmarks

When I first started looking at projects using paint chips, it seemed that everyone talked about how they had to sneak a stash into their purse, or make sure nobody saw them grabbing up a handful of colors.  The first time I was in pursuit of paint chips, I just marched up to the counter at Lowes' and asked if it was okay for me to take a bunch for some craft projects, and they told me it was.  Cool right?  Well, each time I've been in there I still check with them just in case someone has a different opinion.  This last time though, the {let's call him a} paint manager for all of the stores in the area was there.  He said that he re-stocks the paint chips each week and throws out what is left.  So now, instead of putting all those awesome colors to waste, he's gonna start throwing them in a box and saving them for me!  How awesome is that?!?!?!  [I can't wait for that phone call from Lowes telling me they're ready!:) ].

 

Here's the first project I whipped out with some paint chips I already had.  Super easy, and super fun if you ask me!

 

 

Happy Friday!

 

Special Occasion Dog Collar Tutorial







 



Every minute that I spend in my mom's room (the sewing room) working on a project, my doggy is right there beside me. She follows me wherever I go, and she especially loves lying down on whatever fabric I'm working with, denying all attempts to get her to lie down on her cozy pillow. We have TONS of pics of her lying on various fabrics. She just loves sewing!:)

So I decided finally to whip up something for Keiki.  A while back her collar had been rubbing her neck raw, so my mom made a fleece "sleeve" to put around her collar.  This is a "fancified version of that.  And yes, "fancified" is a word:)

Here's the JoJo while I was cuttin out the fabric:)



Supplies

• Fleece
• Lace or other decorative piece

Measure the length and width of the collar, keeping in mind where dog tags and fasteners are.  I just used the sleeve that my mom had made as an example.  It ended up being 3"x10".

Lay lace on top of the fabric, leaving about 1/2" on each end and cut.




Pin the lace on the end that you are not starting on.  Just be careful to not run over the pin when you are sewing.

Sew down one side of the lace.  You seam allowance will just depend on the design of the lace.  I tried to hide my  stitches as well as I could.  Sew down the other side.

Fold the fabric in half, right sides together. Sew one inch away from the edge and turn right side out. Slide onto your dog's collar. And VOILA! Your dog's plain old, beat-up red collar is now fancified!;)

(She loves her "new" collar.  She immediately went around the house showing it off to everyone she could find:)

Paper Airplane Embroidery

Inspiration

A few ladies in our church are pregnant, so I'm scheming up as many cute little projects as possible:)  This one's been on the to-do list for forever, and I was glad to finally have an excuse to make it.  When the time gets closer, I'm thinking about either framing it or making a wall hanging with an embroidery hoop.  Let's just hope that one of them has a boy!:)

Pot holders

Our church was badly in need of some new pot holders, so Lara and I decided to make them on our own instead of buying them.  Here was we came up with!  (she did most of the work, I just helped on a few:)


Inspiration

Guest post

Hey there!  Just wanted to let you know that I'm sharing the Electric Lemonade over at "Days of Chalk and Chocolate."  Go check it out if you like!

A few months back, I mentioned that Uncle Mike would receive a sample of Kelsey's toilet paper art as a salute to an inside joke about giving and receiving toilet paper that has gone on since she was little.

This weekend, I happened to spy it hanging through the window of his sky blue BMW!

Last night we surprised Kelsey with an airline ticket to travel to California this morning. She gets to help Stephanie move into her college dorm over the weekend, a surprise that brought joyful tears.

In the meantime I, Lara, get to do the honors of posting a few times!

Last week, Kelsey and I rose early in the morning and met our friend Noriko and her kids for a blue-berry picking fest! One of the best parts of living in the Oregon/Washington area is the bountiful berries that are ours to pick in the summer months. This particular little farm was a mile and a half from our home. How can you resist berries hand-picked that morning?? We can't.

They make the best snack frozen, too.

In an hour and a half, we picked over 20 pounds!

What's Cookin' : Peanut Butter Pie

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This has become a recent favorite, with 3 batches being produced in the past week! A very simple recipe that ends in rich, creamy peanut butter delight. Grab yourself a big glass of milk and proceed forward!

RECIPE

Your favorite brownie recipe ingredients (mine is top-secret, webby! Sorry!)

2 sticks butter

1 cup peanut butter

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

1.5 boxes powdered sugar

12 ounces semi sweet chocolate

2 tablespoons shortening

Bake your brownies in two 9-inch pie plates or one 12-inch pie plate (like the kind Costco bakes their pies in). The key to a dense, chewy brownie is to remove the pan from the oven the second it no longer has a sheen on top. This often means pulling the brownies out up to 10 minutes before the recipes say. It's worth it to stand at the oven and keep putting the timer on for 2 minutes to make sure you catch them at just the right time!

Let brownies cool.

Meanwhile, mix butter, peanut butter and vanilla until creamy. Add in powder sugar and mix until it is fully incorporated. Spread onto brownies. Put the pan into fridge for at least 30 minutes to chill.

Once chilled, melt chocolate and shortening in a glass bowl in the microwave at half power. I melt it for 30 seconds, stir, put it in again and do over until it is completely melted. Spread over chilled peanut butter brownie and put back into fridge until the chocolate is set.

Use a knife that has been dipped in hot water to cut the pie. This will allow the knife to slice through the chocolate without cracking it.

ENJOY!!

And, yes, there is a big chance that I ate some of it at 6 in the morning this week.....

 

Linking up to:

Fluster Buster



Antique jewelry

I'm in love with antique jewelry.  Who isn't right?  I'm not normally big on jewelry, but when it comes to these beauties, I'll match them with anything I can.  I got this chain from my grandma with this in mind, but decided that I like this particular style as it is.

My grandma also gave me this necklace.  It's a real diamond (not sure about the pearl) on a fragile chain.  Definitely a treasure!

And finally this chunky bracelet:)  My other grandma gave this to me and my sister in a box full of old jewelry.  I think it actually may have been her mom's.  Who knew they had bling way back then!;)

New font: YOUR HANDWRITING!!!!!!!

What do you think of the new design?  Lara created it!:)  I recently got some adorable material for a shirt that I'm gonna make.  It has little antique-looking hangers all over it.  We decided to use that for some inspiration.  Also a rose that I made out of pink rick-rack is on the design:)  And the header?  That's my handwriting!   I discovered a website that changes your handwriting into a font!:)  It's at http://www.myscriptfont.com/, and it's super-duper easy!  You should go check it out:)

(This isn't sponsored or anything, I just want to tell the whole world!:)

Spring party: dessert table

For my sister's graduation, my family hosted a big barbecue at a local park for family and friends.  Lara normally makes a special cake for the party (aka life-sized basketball shoe, waterbottle, trombone in case), but she had a better idea for this one.  Stephanie loves all things vintage and girly, so Lara decided to create an adorable dessert table with many different options.  She made button cookies, confetti, orange, strawberry, and lemon cupcakes, Neopolitan rice crispy treats,  Eiffel tower-shaped almond cookies, chocolate and mint fudge.  She used sewing and picnic baskets, vases, plates on stacks of vintage books, and cake stands to display all the treats.  The table was decorated with flowers in snapple jars (painted white, with the "S" painted in yellow), coffee syrup jars, baby food jars, and whatever else we could find!  Enjoy!:)

Summer Strawberry, Orange Creamsicle, Luscious Lemon

Death by Chocolate