Cute as a Button Wall Art {Tutorial & Printable}

The baby nursery is starting to all come together now. Just a few things left to do, YAY! I am so excited to get it done. One piece I made for the wall is this Cute as a Button art. It is really simple and at the bottom of this post is the art in different colors so you can print it yourself.

To make one, you will need:
-Cute as a Button printable printed on cardstock (see bottom of post for these to save)
-Buttons
-Picture Frame
-Glue
-Optional: Coordinating paper for the back ground


1. Save your choice of the print and open it in a Word document (or Powerpoint, etc.).
Format the picture by right clicking and then clicking on Format picture. Change the size and layout for your preferred size. Below is a picture of it formatted to be size 8.5" in width x 11" in height. I made mine smaller because I used a smaller frame. Or you could just make your own. It's just the words with a dashed line around the text box.

2. Cut it to how you would like it.

3. Glue on various buttons. After I did this, I thought it would have looked even cooler if I had sewn them on with embroidery thread. Just a thought ;)

4. Glue it on top of some pretty scrapbook paper if you like and add it to your frame. You will have to leave the glass off unless the frame has some depth to it like a shadow box.

5. Now hang it up or place it on a shelf . A simple cute piece of artwork is all done.

{Did you make one? Add your pic to the Flickr group to share}

Let Freedom Ring Dress Tutorial

It's almost time for the 4th of July!!!!!! We have some fun plans, so I wanted to make a little dress for my daughter. This is a really simple dress to make as you use a tank top you already have and just add three layers of fabric to it.

We whipped the dress up in no time. Then we went and bought some flags to wave around (they are currently in the front decorating flower pots).

And she sports her new headband I made her. She's totally rockin' it out in patriotic fashion all ready for the 4th of July, our Independence Day.

What you will need to make this dress:
-A knit tank top
-Fabric for the 3 tiers
-Any additional embellishments you desire (I added a pom pom trim to the bottom).
-All your sewing things

Notes:
-Always back stitch at the beginning and end of sewing, unless otherwise stated.
-Seam allowances are 1/4" unless otherwise stated.

Directions:
1. Chop off the bottom of the tank top where you like. Keep in mind to leave a little extra length for the seam allowance for sewing on the first tier.

2. Determine the height and width of one piece of the three tiers. You will be cutting two pieces for each.

a. -To determine the height of each layer, decide how much longer you want the dress to come from the bottom of the cut off tank top.
- Then divide that number by 3.
- Add at least .5" for a seam allowance to that number (that would give a .25" seam allowance on the top and on the bottom of the layer). I added 1" for seam allowance just to be on the safe side.

So, I wanted the length of the three tiers to be 16" long. I divided it by 3 and got 5.33". I rounded it up to 5.5" and added 1", making the height of each tier 6.5".

b. To determine the length of each tier, do the following:

-For the very top tier, measure the bottom of the tank top on one side. Then multiply it by 1.3 and add 1" seam allowance.
*Note: If you want yours more twirly, I suggest maybe starting with the first tier being multiplied by 2 or more.

-For the middle tier, take the length of the first tier and multiply it by 1.3 and add 1" seam allowance.
*Note: Again, if you want it more twirly, multiply by 2 and so forth

-For the third tier, take the length of the second tier and multiply it by 1.3" and add 1" seam allowance.
*Note: Again, if you want it more twirly, multiply by 2 and so forth

It will look like this:

The bottom of the tank top I used was 10.5"
1st tier: (10.5" x 1.3) + 1"= 14.65" (I rounded it up to 14.75")
2nd tier: (14.75" x 1.3) + 1"= 19.175" (I rounded it down to 19")
3rd tier: (19" x 1.3) + 1" = 25.7" (I rounded it up to 26")

Cut 2 pieces for each tier.

Example:
Height x Length
1st tier: 6.5" x 14.75"
2nd tier: 6.5" x 19"
3rd tier: 6.5" x 26"

3. Take the two pieces for the 1st tier and place together right sides facing. Sew together down the short sides.

4. Repeat #3 for the 2nd and 3rd tier.

5. Baste (create a long straight stitch, with no back stitching at all) across the top of each layer no further than 1/4" down. I baste one top side first then the other top side to make it easier to gather.

6. Gather (pull the bobbin thread to create a ruffle look) each layer.

7. Place the gathered top of the 3rd tier to the bottom (non gathered edge) of the 2nd tier, right sides facing. Match up the side seams and then even out the gathers so the 3rd tier fits perfectly to the 2nd. Pin in place.

8. Sew together and finish raw edges if you like (go over the edge with a serger or simply use a zig zag stitch that is on a regular sewing machine).

*Tip: I sew a little bit further down from where I gathered so that thread doesn't show on the outside. Then I don't have to try and rip it out so it doesn't show anymore.

9. Repeat steps #7 and #8 to connect the 2nd tier to the 1st tier and then the 1st tier to the tank top.

10. Hem the bottom.
a. Turn the bottom up towards the inside 1/4" and iron.

b. Turn the bottom up inside 1/4" again, iron, and pin in place.

c. Sew around the bottom to create the hem.

11. Add any embellishments you like. I added a trim to the bottom, but you could do so much to make it even more fun :)

Now if you have a little girl and a little extra time you can easily create a fun new dress for the upcoming holiday or just for everyday play. Enjoy and add your own creation using this tutorial to the Flickr group to share your take on it with us.

Jumping into the New Wave {Quilt}

Well, I've gone done and did it. I have entered the quilting world. It was only a matter of time really. I have done a small one from my daughter's baby clothes (like 3 years ago) and have dabbled a bit with quilt squares and all, so it was time for a full size quilt.

I used this pattern from Oh, Fransson! Her quilts are amazing. I've followed her blog for a while hoping to pick up some quilting motivation and it finally worked :) And really, I had to make one for my daughter because I'm almost done with one for the baby too and I wanted each to have one. I found all of the fabrics at JoAnn's and Hobby Lobby.

It was a real easy sew. I even enjoyed using all of my quilting stuff I had received from Fiskars a while back. It was like a fun challenge to get it cut as perfect as possible. Now, I didn't get all of the rows lined up quite perfect, but being pregnant and trying to crawl around on the floor and do all that was a bit difficult so I didn't worry too much about it.

I learned a lot about fabrics during this process as well. I had bought two that were flimsier than the others and it proved to make the process more difficult. They would get out of shape really fast and were my main problem where the unevenness came into play. From now on I will only buy good solid quilt cottons.

I did straight line quilting following the angles like many others who have made this did. I'm not quite ready to try free motion quilting and all of that yet.

I also used a bed sheet from Target for the back and no batting so it's more of a summer quilt. It's just really not cold enough in Florida to make a heavier quilt. We hardly use more than a sheet at night and I didn't want my daughter getting all sweaty.

I used leftovers to make the binding and machine stitched it. Here is a little tutorial from Red Pepper Quilts on that. Mine didn't come out so pretty up close, so I think I'll try hand stitching next time.

And that's it! I'm so happy with it. I'm thinking of making some quilts for Christmas presents this year now. It's always fun to try something and I'm very glad I did.

Fun in the Sun{dress}: Oceanside Lace Dress Tutorial

Today I'm over at iCandy sharing my last guest tutorial for a while: The Oceanside Lace Dress.

They are having a fun series called Fun in the Sun{dress}. It just started this week and will be going on for a few more. They have wonderful guest bloggers lined up. Some with tutorials, some just sharing a pretty sun dress they made. They are also having some giveaways and all that good stuff going on.

I had to make at least one more dress for me before I start focusing on finishing up the nursery and baby things (I plan on trying to make some diapers, burp cloths, bibs, etc....let's see how much I can get done ;)

This dress is an easy design and has been done lots before, but I tried to spice it up with the lace flowers. They were cut out of a lace curtain panel I found at a thrift store.

I like how elegant it came out. I hope it inspires you to make a fun summer sundress for yourself!

Tattoos of the Temporary Kind

It finally happened. I received my very own Silhouette SD!

I was so excited! The first project I got to do was some fun temporary tattoos for my daughter. She loves temporary tattoos, so it was a perfect project.

I started off with some of the special tattoo paper that they offer.

Then I choose some pictures of things I know she likes or is into. Some are ones that you can get in the online shop, others were just pictures I saved and dropped into the program.You mirror the images, print them out on the special paper, add on the adhesive, and then they are ready to go.

The machine can cut them out for you or you can cut them out yourself. I must say that the quality of the tattoo paper is superb. We buy a lot of temp. tattoos to play around with and always get them put on at events where they offer them to kids. None have been as nice as these.

My favorite one is the mascot of my husband's squadron at flight school. We got to go visit him on Father's Day while he was on 12 hour duty.

Our daughter saw all kinds of pictures of their mascot, the doer bird (ps...it's not a real bird, it's a mixture of 2 kinds).

Then we also had to have some fun cartoon ones. These would be great for party favors, school teams, sports mascots, and much more. And the best part is you made them yourself.

There is a special going on right now at Silhouette for Happy Together Readers from today until June 29th, 2011. Use code TOGETHER to get:

* 1 Silhouette SD and 2 packages of Temporary Tattoo Paper for $199 (US ONLY). That's $120 in savings!

and

*25% off all other products in the Silhouette shop (excluding gift cards and download cards)

Making All Kinds of Stuff

We have been up to all kinds of things here lately. Here are a few:

I have been loving all things cake for the past few weeks, so when I saw this recipe I knew we had to make some. Chocolate cupcakes with peanut butter frosting......yummmmmmmmm.

They were a big hit! It even worked out that the day we made them, my husband's study group was all together for dinner and we took them some. That way I wasn't tempted to eat them all ;)

I also got a new KitchenAid attachment!!!!! It allowed me to make this yummy fro yo, which no one around here carries. I do miss my yummy frozen yogurt! This recipe was creamier in consistency than the kind I have bought at a froyo shop, but it tasted the same and hit the spot for sure. Especially with my favorite topping of chocolate chips. It's a super easy recipe and I highly recommend it.

Then, just because I haven't shared it on the blog yet, I have a few new things posted in the shop. A few weeks ago I was having some rough Braxton Hicks and was sitting on the couch a lot. I needed something to keep my hands busy, so I created a few things.

And so much more to come....... see you all tomorrow!