Little Peanuts

I have kind of taken a little break from blogging lately to focus on my family, take care of some health things, and just rest. I have actually really struggled with a constant fatigue for the past few months, so it has really affected my productivity. Since I have a hard time getting a lot done like usual, I decided to give my time and energy to my family. I am hoping that soon we will find out what is causing this (I'm not pregnant ;), and tackle it. It's also been a little more busy with this being the last month of school. I of course couldn't pass up an opportunity to help out, so I recently whipped up some peanut costumes for miss J's class performance coming up.

It was a simple enough project. I just cut the shape out of felt and then made a stencil on a piece of posterboard for the peanut "dents". I used the Mr. Peanut character as inspiration.

I can't wait to see her on stage. They are reciting a speech about George Washington Carver. I'm very impressed with her ability to retain information. She has said it for me twice and I am always floored by how well she remembers the whole thing.

Hopefully I'll be back a little bit more now. I am sharing pics on Instagram almost daily, which I find so much fun. It's quickly become my favorite social media. Have a good week!
-Jess

Custom Vinyl Balloons DIY

Silhouette is having a sale right now that I'm a little late sharing. Sorry! (go here today to get a HUGE discount on the Cameo and Portrait Vinyl Combo....but make sure to use code HAPPY when checking out for the discount to show up). So they sent me some strawberry vinyl to play around with.  I had the idea of putting some vinyl on balloons before so I put it to the test. I'm pleased to say that this is something that works, but there are some things to be aware of.

First of all, I used my Silhouette machine to cut out two things: a phrase and a heart. I got both graphics from the online shop. Then miss E and I went to a party store and got some plain balloons. I stuck the vinyl on them in the car because I had originally planned to go stick them on my hubby's car. But it was too windy to try and do pics of them, so they came home with me. I do not recommend trying to put them on the balloons in a car! It was a bit difficult trying to hold it down and get it on without much room :) But, it worked. And if you don't push the vinyl down when putting it on, you can take it off if it gets messed up. Just be careful. They didn't pop on me, but I think if you pulled it off fast it might make the balloon pop.

My daughter says these are for Valentines Day, and well I do suppose they look very Valentinesy. But remember my original plan? Yes. For love. I think this would be cute for a photo prop for doing the first 12 months of an infants life, engagement pics, birthday balloons, etc. Here is the problem though. These kind of balloons loose air pretty fast. They shrink, but the vinyl does not. See pic below.

This is what it looked like after 7 hours. So if you want to do this, Don't put the vinyl on until close to the time you need it. And take your time putting it on. Maybe even enlist some help (you know, someone hold it still while you put it on). I think I will make some number ones for my girls birthdays. If you were to do this, what event would you make them for?
-Jess

Project Run and Play All Stars Week 4: My Southern Belle

It's the last week of Project Run and Play All Stars. This week's theme is Spring Formal Wear. I'm not feeling very well (me and the little ones have been hit with an icky cold this week), so I will be brief because I just want to go lay down on the couch. *a day I wish I had a laptop* Voting is up here, so don't forget to vote for your favorite. I loved everyone's design. Truly amazing and inspirational.

The skirt is a gathered one made with this silky stretchy fabric. I added the mustard yellow shirred almost-circles to the bottom of it. I basically cut a circle out then cut the bottom of it all. I shirred two lines near the edge that switched from a zig-zag stitch to a straight stitch and did a whole line of zig zag on the inner circle.

      

The top is made from a lace I got at Joann's a long time ago. Yay for stash busting! I drafted this pattern myself and added a pleat in the back and a faux button down with ruffles in the front. I also made a little camisole for miss J to wear underneath. I made the belt as well and her hair flowers came from Forever 21 a while back.

Being sick this week, I was really behind, so wouldn't you know it the last day I could do photos was an overcast and rainy day again? lol Miss J explored while I snapped pictures and we tried to avoid all the fire ants and prickly plants that were everywhere. I will not miss fire ants when our time is up in Louisiana. No I won't. I love the ones further down of her with the sticks. SO her. I'm going to go rest now. Hope you all have a great weekend and can see the good things in this world with so many bad things going on.
-Jess

 

 

 

DIY Photo Canvas Kit

I recently received a Photo Canvas Kit c/o Cosco. I was very excited about this product because I really like photo canvases. I was also a bit nervous, because I wasn't so sure how great it would be. I'm happy to report that I'm actually pretty pleased with it. Especially for the price!

This kit contains 3 photo canvases that 9.5" x 7" when finished. It is $29.99 (coming out to $10 a canvas) and you can find it at Office Max stores and online.



I picked three pictures to print out. They sent me that city skyline one as an example so you can see mine compared to that one. I will say that the better your printer, the better these will turn out. We have a cheapy printer, an HP Deskjet F4280, so I made sure to check the print quality as high as possibly. I also learned that the more faded pictures, like the one of miss J and the balloons, don't print out as well on my printer. It still is okay. I wish they put in one more piece of canvas paper to use in case of an oops. They do say to print it on regular paper first to make sure it is set up right and will print good, but I didn't want to use that much ink up.

The above pics are of the packaging and to show you what comes it in. You receive three canvas papers, 3 plastic frames to put it on, double sided tape, and even stands if you want to put them out on a table. So if you are wanting to make some canvases yourself and have a printer you trust, I do recommend this kit. Just remember to follow all of the printing instructions carefully (like putting it on a high quality print setting and making sure it's going to print borderless) and you will get a nice canvas. Here is a quick demo video as well if you want to see more details.
-Jess

Project Run and Play All Stars Week 3: Summer Lovin'

Week 3 is up over on Project Run and Play, so make sure you go and vote for your favorite this week! The theme was "All in the Details", and wow, will you see a lot of awesome details on everyone's design. Truly amazing these ladies. For this look, I created a maxi skirt and a top.

    

I put some fun details in the top that I have that I made for miss J. I wanted the front to continue a little bit to the back, so I made the piece wider in the front to do this. The blue polka dot piece (from Hancock Fabrics) is a rectangle piece that I ruffled at the top. The red and strawberry print overlap on top of that piece. They are held in place with the buttons and I also tacked them onto the polka piece in a few spots.

The back is a ribbed knit fabric to add to the comfyness of the top. I used leather for part of the straps and it is tied in the back through a loop of leather. I shirred a bit in the back as well to help give it a little more shape.

The skirt is made from a knit fabric I had scored last year. I made a simple a-line maxi skirt. Then I cut from the bottom to a few inches below the waist down the middle on the front and back. I then pieced together fabric to create a triangle piece and sewed one in the front and in the back.

     

It adds to the fullness of the skirt and adds some extra fun too.

The hat we used is from Old Navy two years ago. I wrapped around some fabric I used from the skirt to make it match.

I love this little summer outfit on my girl. I can see her wearing this a lot.

Yet again, we had rainy days on the days I wanted to take pics. So I opted to do these in our back yard. We strung up some lights and made flower chains to add as well.

Now we have one week left! I'm pretty sure I know what I'm going to make. In fact, I think I'll go to the fabric store today :) Some of the participants are already done, but I just keep changing my mind on what I want to do! lol Hopefully I can get it done this weekend though. Don't forget to vote and have a great weekend!
-Jess

*My Faves*

lil adventurer pack/ sun n' fun swimsuit and leotard/ perfect peasant dress/ the jackie/ all star booties/ annabelle jacket/ olivia and oliver pea coat/ hangout hoodie

There are some fabulous sponsors to feature this month. First up is Peek-a-boo Patterns. Can I just say, I see sooooo many patterns I want to try out! There is such a variety. You can find clothing for girls and boys and tons of accessories. There are even bathing suit patterns! Amy is behind this shop and offers her patterns in pdf format that are ready to print (no resizing needed). She also blogs over at Nap Time Crafters. You can check out creations that others have made with her patterns here as well. Oh, and she's down with you selling products you make using her patterns (my kind of pattern maker ;). Use code "happytogether10" to receive 10% your purchase until the 13th.

girl/ both/ boy

eDiaper Cakes is back again this month, yay! They offer such amazing diaper cakes. They have a large variety that are for girls, boys, or both. Along with ones already made, they have an excellent kit you can purchase so you can make your own. Find out more about them here.

Us

Just wanted to share a few pics from Instagram that I have taken the past few weeks. We have been settling down a bit now that spring break is over. We had a great Easter and I really need to get those pictures off of my camera. But i had this one of them above on my phone. Miss E just kept wanting to sit in that corner for some reason. Little ones can be peculiar at times, can't they?

 I don't usually get in too many pics with my girls, but I made sure to get one while we visited the Houston zoo. That was an interesting and fun adventure.

 My mom had a birthday in March and I finally got her present to her! I made this banner to go with her "beachy" decor.

Miss J recently went fishing for the very first time and look what she caught! It was the biggest out of all the others that were with her.

 We have been taking advantage of the pretty weather and meeting up with friends whenever we can. I miss living by a beach so much! But at least we have a lake.

 I have had a few custom orders I did recently too. I made the onesies for a friend's sister. And I saw that the babies were just born the other day! Soon they will be able to wear these :)

I also made matching dad/son ties for my cousin. It's a blessing to have family that supports me.

Here is a little dress, well it was more like a top, that I made miss J. She participated in a talent show at school and she picked out this fabric for me to make her an outfit. Sadly, at the last minute she decided not to wear it. But she did wear it to church the next Sunday. She's getting pickier in what she wears in her old age.

I got around to updating our front door with a spring wreath too. I wrapped a straw wreath in burlap and then added these pretty flowers (from Micheal's)  and some vintage lace. It makes me happy.

Miss E has been getting some more handmade clothes lately. I made her these ruffle pants and just finshed a dress and some lace leggings the other night. I love it. I'm hoping to get a lot more made for them these next few months.

I'm still pretty preoccupied with Project Run and Play at the moment. I can't wait to share my creation for this week. It's been fun being creatively challenged, although I don't think I'll ever do a competition again. It's a lot of work. Hope you all have a wonderful week!
-Jess