Felt Rings for Vintage Canning Jars

I found some great jars at the thrift store- vintage, French, Triomphe jars.  I can't even find them online, so I'm not certain how common these sizes are, but they're perfect for storing things in the kitchen.

The rubber gasket rings were old and crackly (and....eww...second-hand, old, rubber rings?)  I used one as a template and made some quick felt rings for my jars- a double thickness of these works a treat.

How do you store things in your kitchen?  I end up with a hodge podge of mason jars, plastic bins, 25 gallon buckets, and old sour cream containers marked with Sharpie.  Definitely not stream lined, haha!

2012 Creative To-Do List

Sewing:  I really enjoyed making my big mama doll over the holidays, I definitely want to get back into sewing this year.  My to-do list from Growing Up Sew Liberated:

• envelope tees for Cocoa
• bubble pants for Cocoa
• cross over tees for the girls
• play capes for EVERYONE!  (Say that in a bravado voice, please.)
• play tent (this would make a serious dent in my too-big stash of solid, neutral, fabrics!)

From Bend the Rules Sewing:

• Woodland Elf hat for Cocoa (soon!)
• Mixy-Matchy napkins (it's time.  Ours are TRASHED.  And, again, need to deflate my fabric stash!)  

Blogging:  I really feel like it helps me focus my thoughts, and find the positive in our lives.  No, not everything in our life is always positive (see: dirty laundry, messy rooms, and other stuff that comes from active, growing, learning kids) but I can't stand focusing on the negatives when I write!  I'll try and be in my various spaces more often this year, to keep a record of what we're doing.  I keep wondering if I should bring everything together- I have the cooking blog, the homesteading blog, and this creative musings blog with lots of kid stuff thrown in...what do you think?  

Etsy/Selling:  I don't know.  I really don't.  I LOVE making jewelry.  I love giving it as gifts, which is why I re-opened my shop last year.  I knew that if I got busy in the summer and fall stocking that little shop, I'd be high on the hog when it came time to send out Christmas gifts...I'd be done!  And yeah, it worked a treat.  Everyone got beautiful gifts, and my shop is empty again :)  I'd like to keep creating this year, and who knows- if I have extras lying around, I'll list them.  I set a goal last year of doing a craft show in 2012, or a week or two at the Farmers Market.  It could be an expensive experiment if my wares don't sell, tables don't come cheap around here!  I'd only need to sell 4 or 5 to break even on a Farmers Market table for a week, but add to that the seed cost of the supplies....but I have enough on hand to get going...I really, really, really want to though.  We'll see!

(I should throw something in here...have I mentioned that I love bartering?  Really??  Let's not be shy about possible bartering opportunities, mkay?  Like, if you want necklaces for all your sisters....and make a really neat dooohickey.... chat me up!)

Mama and Baby Doll (Birth Doll)

I have a friend who teaches sibling classes at the local hospital- just a little course to prepare kids for the new babies who will soon be coming.  A new clinic opened up, and a new teacher aid was needed!

I had so much fun making her- I call her Mireya.  Kids don't all come in one color, and I tried to choose a color scheme for this little mama and baby that many children could identify with as they learn about birth.  She's gone to the clinic now, and dressed in a hospital-issue gown.

The hair is Lion's Brand fisherman wool yarn- it's soft and warm and squishy.  The body is a sturdy cotton twill, with a stretchy lycra womb (a kangaroo-style pouch on her stomach.)  I stitched the face by hand, with two-tone eyes (caramel and chocolate floss.)



The baby has a snap belly button, to attach to the umbilical cord/placenta.  (Funny little aside, Ernie stuffed the placenta for me, and spent the rest of the day rolling that word around in her mouth.  Placennnnnta.  Placennnnta.  Is it "La placenta?"  It sounds Spanish.  I don't think I'd call MY baby Placenta.")



He has blue eyes, and a fuzzy head full of newborn hair.  I love newborn hair!  Mine never have any :)

(I added a mouth after this picture- just a little blip of pink lips.)






Mama and baby.


I had so much fun making these- it was nice to get back into doll work after a  year or two hiatus.  I'd still like to open my doll shop one day.  Some day :)

(Scroll down for a full shot of the dolls, if you'd like.)

How to Organize Necklaces

I have a LOT of jewelry.  It's kind of fun, but I don't wear it near as much as I should.  It's been stuck away in boxes and bags for as long as I can remember!  Even when I use a pretty jewelry box, and stick it right on the dresser, it's so hard to remember to pull out a necklace, or take the time to open every individual jewelers box inside to find a particular ring or bracelet.



OCD much?  I organized every necklace- reds, pearls, silver colored, beaded, silver chains with pendants, multi-colored, copper-colored, blue, and plain gold chains.  I'm looking at these...and with the exception of one necklace I made, one I purchased in Majorica (an island off the coast of Spain, go ahead and hate me) 98% of what I see either belonged to my mother or a grandmother!  I just love looking at these, there are so many memories mixed up in these pieces.

The red beaded necklace on the far left was my grandmother's.  It was a gift to her from her school teacher- she and her teacher both left rural Alabama together, to find jobs in Virginia.  They weren't so very far apart in age!  I can't imagine what it was like for Grandma to leave- nobody ever had, far as I know.  Another sister later moved away to California, but she's back down there now.  Grandma Mary and her teacher stayed friends- her teacher picked this up for Grandma during a trip to the Grand Canyon.

The blue necklace on the right was also Grandma's.  My mom told me, when I got this for Christmas one year, that she used to sneak into her mother's room and hold this up against her forehead and pretend she was a princess.  (And my mom is totally reading this, so I hope I got that story right!!)

I used a belt hanger to organize everything- it hangs nicely from a hook in my closet.  I love it!  I love seeing everything, and I love that they never get tangled any more.

How do you organize your jewelry?

I Made This: Modpodged Shoes

I saw a few mentions in the past year of people Modpodging their shoes. Hmm....they all used fabric, but I thought I'd give it a go with tissue paper!

These are Ernie's church shoes. They looked a little worse for wear in the toes, and the ribbons were frayed, but they still had a bit of room so I wanted to revamp them just enough to buy us some time before she outgrew them.

I started by snipping away all the ribbons and froo-fra, then starting at one spot and painting a good thick coat of Modpodge, and sticking on chunky pieces of tissue paper, letting them be a bit rumpled and wrinkly, especially in the spots that needed more coverage. (This is a great reason to save tissue paper from gift bags, even if it's torn and wrinkled, if it has a FABULOUS print.)

She hasn't worn them yet (typical- I spend all this time re-doing her FAVORITE church shoes, and she decides to wear her glittery red shoes...the ones that are next on my list to be re-vamped because they're worn in the toes too!) but they are still flexible and look like they'll stand up to another few months of church.

*Story: My niece is very hard to impress. I made these shoes at her house after she went to sleep, and when she came down in the morning she stopped, turned to her mother, and said "I. Want. Shoes. Like. THAT." I promised her she could have these when Ernie outgrew them, if her mother couldn't find anything else we could gussy up for her!*

I've linked this up to the weekly Mad in Crafts linky festival- go check out the other fabulous projects!

A Little Diaper Bag

005, originally uploaded by MyrniePhotos.

This has been wrapped, delivered, AND opened, so it's safe to blog about now! My friend is 5 weeks away from adding a baby GIRL to her houseful of 3 boys- an occasion like this surely called for a baby shower, and I was glad to be invited :) I know that Maggie is not a "girly girl." If there's any pink in her house, it's probably an old tube of Maybelline mascara that she forgets to wear. (Love you Maggie! I'll bet my tube is older!!) She spent her teen years with a softball bat in her hand, far as I can tell.

Anywhoo, I thought brown and blue might be a good color choice for her family- I was glad she agreed with me :)

I made this different than I normally do- rather than making the back of the bag longer, so it could fold over the top, I used my machine's automatic button-sewer feature to put a button on the front, then used the same stitch and foot to sew an elastic loop on the back. This will hold a packet of wipes and a few diapers- perfect for throwing in the bottom of her bag, so she can fish it out with one hand while the other is holding the baby! Also perfect to send with Dad when it's HIS turn to change th diaper- yay!! :)

Kids Made This: Fingerprint Pendants

I found a neat-o tutorial on Crafty Crow, just in time for Mother's Day last week- little balls of sculpting clay are rolled flat then imprinted with your darlings' fingerprints. Poke holes in the top, bake, and there you have it! She strung hers on bits of fancy silk cord, but I tried my hand at the popular "dog tags with a pretty bead" style that's making the rounds right now. (See Vintage Pearl for some great examples.)

I couldn't remember what the instructions said when I was at the craft store, so I got Fimo clay- it's a little stiffer, but has nicer colors.  Sculpey would have been easier on the kids' fingers, because it's a tad softer.  The prints themselves might have shown up a bit better, too.  I still like these a lot, though...and maybe it's safer to not send exact replicas of my kids' fingerprints out into the world?  Can't help it- I'm paranoid, it's true.

I kept the orange one for myself- the gold bead set went to Nana, the red bead (the last one above) went to Grandma S (my mom.)  Happily, they were well received- my mom put hers on straight away and said it was like continuing the legacy!  For as long I can remember, she's worn a bracelet set and a necklace that Aunt LoLo and I made in school about 20 years ago now.  Hmm...I didn't see them yesterday, perhaps she's decided we're finally old enough that she can stop wearing our grade school art?  Or maybe they simply composted away in her jewelry box, they were made of white bread and glue smashed together into clay, with tempura paint for color...oh well, she has a shiny new Mother's Day necklace now, and a little birdy told me that Aunt LoLo sent a pretty spiffy gift too!  Mwahaha- our mother will be wearing our handmade creations every Mother's Day for the rest of her life.  And I think she likes it that way *grin*   You have to know this about my mom- she ADORES children's art.  She still has projects, like dolls and weavings, on the wall that my college-graduate brother made in grade school.  She'll keep a drawing on the fridge until the color has completely faded away.

Now, the only problem with this gift is that Ernie is convinced that SHE made it, and wants to know what I gave my mom for Mother's Day?

Hope everyone had a great Mother's Day!

Questions to Think About, Azaleas, and Waiting

I love these azaleas in our yard- they're always the first of their friends to bloom, and they smell like lilies if you get in nice and close.

You all have been so kind about me getting back into singing regularly, and I want to tell you:  I've tried.  I really have!  I auditioned two weeks ago for a church show- I have no idea how it went.  During my 3 minutes and 30 seconds of singing (I timed it at home) Ernie poked her head in twice to try and get me to come see her chalk drawing in the next room, Mimi played a nice little piece on the piano before I scooped her up into my arms, and I started my piece 4 whole tones higher than I'd practiced it at home.  Because that's where it was written, that's why!  Did you know that singing a song 4 steps higher than you practiced, while holding a 22 pound toddler, makes for difficult singing?  The ladies were nice and had big smiles afterwards "What's your background?  Were you a music major?"  No, I was a music minor...and I'm trying to sing more often than I have been for the past few years.  And the moral of this story?  Momma shouldn't go to auditions during Tax Season, when Daddy is busy!  It's been two weeks and I haven't heard anything- the show is March 20th.

I wrote to my old high school choir director- I ran into him at a high school vocal competition last year that I was accompanying at.  He invited me to join his adult jazz group, and I took a rain check until the kids could both go to bed without me.  I wrote a few days ago, and haven't heard from him either....

but I'll keep trying!  Have I sung "Amazing Grace" for you guys yet?  I should record that one- it's such a pretty piece.

My friend came to visit last night, and we sat for hours just chatting and doodling with thread.  OK, I chatted more than I doodled, but here's what I made.





I found another towel in my embroidery box too.





I think it was supposed to be an apple :)

I'm so excited at the response to yesterday's post!  We have 3, possibly 4, lovely people putting their thinking caps on about what they want to say so far.  It is, admittably, a GINORMOUS topic to cover, and a daunting task trying to distill your entire religion into one written piece.

I thought I'd make it easier- I'll list some questions you could send in answers for, or just use them as jumping off points for what you want to say.

• Name of religion
• Current religious leader 
• Structure- do you attend a local congregation?  What is it called, and who leads it?  Who does that person "report" to? And that person? etc.  
• Unique terms- what do you call your leaders, your congregation, your services, the components of your service?  Can you define them and describe them?
• What are the main beliefs of your church?  (Please don't say "Unlike _____, we believe ____.)  Where do you think we were before Earth?  Where will we go after earth?  What are the things your religion encourages you to do?  What should we accomplish while on this earth, and why are we here?
• What is the "authority" behind your religion?  Is it ancient?  Is it inspired?  Is it based on the teachings of one person, whose works you try and emulate?
• Does your religion believe in change?  If your religion were to change its official stance on an issue, who would decide that and how would it be decided?
• What written works do you believe to be scripture and true?
• Who do you worship?  Do you worship any one deity? Or multiple?
• If you'd like to talk about it, why do you attend this church?

Chime in in the comments if you have any others you'd like to see answered, or if you want to participate!

--Myrnie

Oilcloth Table Cloth

The sunny day came, and I got pictures of the fabric that I promised: I've finally been re-introduced to oilcloth, and I LOVE it. I love the durability, the wipe-ability, and the bright colors! This fabric was purchased from Vogue Fabrics online, but there are tons of retailers out there.

The fabric was a gift from my mom- she offered to purchase enough oil cloth for the both of our tables if I would make her a table cloth. Oilcloth doesn't fray, so I chose to just leave mine unfinished, but she's excited about having a scarlet-red serged edge- I'll have to take pictures when I'm done, you're going to love it. Her fabric is yellow, with big red hibiscus.

I actually think I'm going to go ahead and staple my oilcloth to the underside of the table- I love it that much! I think this gray weather is getting to me- I have purple, yellow, and green walls...and now I have an aqua and red and green tablecloth. All my mom and sister could say was "Wow, Myrnie....it matches the rest of your house."

The basket you see above it one of my favorite thrift finds- a vintage egg-gathering basket. Right now it holds our collection of cloth napkins.

For people who have admired my chairs, Fred Meyer is carrying them again, in a slightly different style, but four different colors (red, blue, black, natural.)

Napkins in the Mail

More napkins- I love this print! These are just a simple quilting cotton, with a rolled hem edge- they're off to my sweet sister-in-law and her kitchen. Happy Birthday, Jamie!


Oh, and these little beauties made their way into the package, too...because they managed to jump ship and were NOT in the Christmas package. Phooey. J, I hope you can find a lovely place to wear these!

A Circle of Friends

We had way too much fun making Christmas dolls this year- they're positively addicting.

I free-handed the pattern, but based it on the general shape of the famous Black Apple dolls at Martha Stewart. The hair was my own design for each doll, to match the little girl who would receive it. I tried to match skin color too, but had a limited selection here. My own daughters fairly glow in the dark, which is pretty true to life though, now that I think about it.

The general pattern for these beauties can be found here.

If you're going to make some, the best tip I can give you: Draw or print your pattern piece, and trace exactly as it is onto the backside of your fabric with disappearing ink.  Cut roughly around your shape, and stitch on the line.  Even up the seam allowance after you've sewn.  There!  Now you have dolls and not blobs (or am I the only one who is rotten at tracing a pattern and sewing a 1/4 inch away???)

When designing your hair, the hair piece of felt should be the same size as the face piece of cloth.  Start out by tracing the face piece onto your pattern paper, then change the shape to be the hairstyle you want.  Sew the felt onto the face cloth, and then carefully snip away the excess at the hairline before you attach the front of the face to the front of the body.  Obviously, if you make the hair bigger than the original head, cut the the head pieces larger to accommodate the extra hair bits, then trim it up after you sew.  Unless you're a whiz on that sewing machine, the hair will be mostly free-form when you sew so don't even try to shape the head pieces before you sew the hair on!

I used similar-colored cloth for the back of the head- it seemed sturdier than the craft felt I was using for the hair.

The faces are painted on, and heat set with an iron.


Here we have Ernie and Mimi.

Halligator and MP.

The the unstoppable BBJ.

Traditions Swap

You are all the kindest, sweetest, most supportive bloggy friends anyone ever had.  Seriously. Best Christmas present ever!  Thank you.  Singing is something I've always done.  My first public performance was a duet with my sister at a baptism.  It was a large audience, and we were probably 8 or 9.  We've sung together and apart ever since.  (If you know what CES broadcasts are, I was a soloist in May 2001, when Elder Eyring spoke at the University of Idaho.)  But something happened when we got older.  The funny thing about being a twin is that people are wild to find some difference between you too.  It became "Ohhh....Lolo sings and you play, right?"  Over the years, that's exactly what would happen, and I've become the go-to accompanist for most music events I've involved in.  It's probably partially on my own head, since I never ask for a chance to sing.  I want to change that, and use the talents the Lord has given me.  I hope you'll come along for the journey this coming year!

***Random music rant: I took FOUR YEARS of piano lessons from my mother, ages 8-12.  After that I just picked up whatever music I could find to play, and kept being asked to accompany choirs and soloists.  I had to improve in a hurry.  However, I shouldn't be the go-to accompanist!  Where is everybody else?  All those millions of kids who took piano lessons?  We need you!  End of rant.  :)  ****

OK, on to crafty stuff!

I sent off this little package for a "traditions swap" through Meg McElwee at Sew Liberated. I was excited that I got my name in on time- it's a popular swap, and limited slots. I was paired with Jenny from Little Jenny Wren. I felt OK about everything until I visited her blog- sakes alive, the woman is a doll-making genius. Genius, I say. Makes you want to cry with joy just to look at the little waldorf-style girls and boys that come out of her busy little work shop.

I sent Jenny a stuffed and embroidered door-hanger, a letter detailing some of our favorite family traditions and how to do them, and a few of my favorite recipes. The requirements said holiday recipes...but my sister agreed with me, we don't really have any holiday recipes. We always have hot cider in the crock pot, with a few cinnamon sticks and maybe a clove-studded orange bobbing in there. There's always red Jell-O for Uncle K. Other than that, it's all up for grabs. One year we had beef wellington. Lots of years we have ham with scalloped potatoes. Often those scalloped potatoes came from a box. It's not that my family doesn't cook, it's just that at holiday time there are so many other things to do...fancy recipes seem a little onerous. Heck, ANY recipe seems onerous! So we have the years where everyone spends days preparing a single dish to share, and we have years with boxed scalloped potatoes and an oven-warmed Costco ham. The tradition is that we share the meal. We share our time. I think that's a pretty good tradition, don't you?

(This year was ham, but I hosted so I made the scalloped potatoes, macaroni and cheese, quinoa salad, and french bread.  And of course, dessert was Grandma's Miracle Cobbler, with blackberries I gathered in the summer and stashed away for Christmas.)

Beaded Pom Pom Ring

I've had this ring in my mind for a long time now, and finally had all the supplies on hand to make it!

I desperately need a hand model. (Dad, you don't remember this but when I was TEN you exclaimed "You have the hands of a 70-year-old woman!" It's so totally true.)

I think it's such a rad piece of hand bling- I love the weight, the sparkle, the movement. There are 32 head pins full of beads and attached to the ring form. I wish I could have fit more on there, but it was FULL!

The Madwoman of Chaillot

My three youngest siblings attended a small private school- it's a wonderful school, with a very nurturing outlook and great arts program.  All three have participated in fencing, art, and especially drama.  It's a tradition that the seniors always get the leads in the school play- since Bert is THE ENTIRE graduating class, she was transformed into the Madwoman of Chaillot.  

The kids did a phenomenal job.  Bert, as the Madwoman, was phenomenal.  (But perhaps I'm biased?  Noooo.)

Since this IS a crafty blog (sometimes!), here are the earrings I made as a graduation present.  (Umm..yes, Nana.  They look very familiar- I had to shorten the beautiful necklace you made for me, and the beads and chain were just too fun to NOT make into wacky earrings!)

The graduating class!  The ceremony was held directly after the play, so her hair is still sprayed.

Closing bows.  You know, with that gorgeous salt-and-pepper hair...she looks like our mom!  

Everyone did a phenomenal job, but these girls really stood out.

Clapping during individual bows.


And because I was trying to be kind and not use my flash, those are all the pictures that turned out!  (Uncle R, I hope you put the big snazzy camera of yours to good use last night, because my little "mom camera" didn't quite cut the mustard :)  

Beautiful Bedding

I remembered the other day I'd never showed you guys a few things. They're in Ernie's room, so it's a rare day that favorable picture conditions (sunny, kids are awake, her room is clean, and I have a few minutes to sneak away and snap photos) happen.



My exceptionally talented mother-in-law (Nana) made a gorgeous bedding set for Ernie when the baby was born. She found the pattern in a picture online, and then free handed it from there. What an amazing act of love! Ernie loves her pillowcase and blanket, and the wall hanging with her name on it.

Ernie also needed new sheets, so I picked up an inexpensive white set at Ikea before Christmas, and gussied them up a bit. (Are these upside down? I wanted her to be able to see them when she laid down...but they look a bit odd. What do you think?)

I fell in love with Sublime Stitching patterns last year, and was thrilled when I got an entire book of iron-on transfers for my birthday last Fall. I simply trace them, though- it's easy enough on white fabric, and makes them last longer. (I also appreciate disappearing ink when my stitches aren't so straight as they ought to be!)


I thought it would be funny to put sweets on her sheets...you know, "sweet dreams"?


She didn't get quite as big a kick out of them as I did, but I really enjoyed stitching these up. So yummy!