You-Know-Where-It-Goes? A Sticky Announcement and Giveaway

A while back I posted about drawer stickers I made for my girls. We've found them to be really helpful. K and M both do a better job of opening the right drawer (or, you know, opening and closing fewer drawers) to find what they need or help me put things away after every. last. thing. has been dumped on the floor. When Grandma visits, she knows where to find PJs for bedtime. I have to admit, in my sleepier moments, the stickers help me too.

I got a lot of feedback from people about them-- the tutorial is still up, if you're a DIYer. But I heard from a lot of people who liked them but aren't DIYers, and I'm the first to admit, without a digital cutting machine these would be a lot harder to do. Now that there's a crafterhours shop, they're listed.

The vinyl hasn't budged since I placed it. If you have kids that are anything like mine, the secret to that is this: don't apply them when they're around. If K had seen me put the stickers on she'd have most likely tried to take them off. I did it when she wasn't nearby. She's a curious george.

M's are also still firmly in place, but I'm thinking of switching them out with bright pink. 'Cause she's a fan of all things pink. Unnecessary, but one of the perks of having a crafty mom, I think.

I've added PJ's to the girl's set and created a set for boys that includes tiny boy briefs. Those little teeny bits are a pain to weed out but totally worth it. I love those. I had a handful of super helpful mom friends serve as my focus group for what to include in this set, since as you may know, Mikey is my only male child.

There are a whole lot of colors to choose from. As I wrote in the shop description, if you don't see the color you're looking for in the pull-down menu, it's likely we can make it for you. Just send me an e-mail. There are even MORE colors in my supply stash that aren't in this photo.

It's also possible that the ones we'd made have sold out and I just need to jump on making another batch. The first reader that placed an order ordered five sets... and that made me tear up a bit. It's totally scary to be so crazy as to start a shop. And so affirming to have people say "yes, your idea works for me!" Oh, so nice. Thank you for that.

If you'd like to win your own set of drawer stickers-- your choice of boy or girl, any color, enter by commenting on the crafterhours Facebook page status that links to this post. I'll choose three winners randomly on Friday.

Thoughts on Limes and Photos

Today was a busy day in kid world. Taking both kids shopping this morning for groceries and for supplies that needed to go to school with the older kid in the afternoon, getting things put away and the little one off to play while I took the bigger one to school and stayed in the classroom with 17 really enthusiastic 5-ish year olds. And in the middle of all of our to and fro and task completion, time to think.

There are several blog-related things on the horizon that I'm dying to put out there. But... not until I'm sure they're ready. I'd like to avoid responses like "well, it was good up until the part where it completely imploded, Susan." So... in time. And I'm making a conscious effort to tell you what's going on in-between the bigger bloggy moments, because I know I really enjoy hearing what's happening in the minds of the bloggers I follow.

While at the warehouse-club store today I grabbed a bag of limes. There's this Rachael Ray chicken pasta dish that I learned via Adrianna, and I try to keep limes around for it. Somehow I never seem to still have them when I am actually ready to make the dish, so I decided to try freezing the juice. I've never done it before, but it seems that it would taste better that way than out of those little plastic squeezy deal-ies.

And while I was cutting them I thought about how beautiful they were. Which required a photo.

And that reminded me to share a photography thought from Alt. These things will just sort of ooze out over time, I guess. Mike and Alma of Ollibird did a Photoshop session on the last day of the conference. While we were talking about editing, Mike pointed something out that made so. much. sense. and I wish I'd known it sooner.

When I'm editing photos, I often feel like I'm making the same edits to every photo in the batch. Which is, I already knew, why there are programs that deal with "batch actions" for photos. It makes me feel like I must've missed something in the process of taking the photos. But Mike said something interesting about the way cameras work. Have you ever taken a photo that was too bright, with too much contrast? That's a problem. There's no data in those bright areas. They can't really be brought back from that. (Unless you're shooting in RAW, but I'm not ready for that party yet.) So because that's such a problem, camera makers build in a cushion. The light meter and other bits will purposely make your photos a little flatter and a little less bright than you might want it, so that you can avoid the loss of a photo. Some insurance. So, really, every photo we take SHOULD require a boost in exposure and in contrast when we download and edit. I really wasn't doing anything wrong when I was shooting that I had to edit eeeeverything at least a little. (Is this an a-ha for anyone other than me?) And now that I know this, 99% of the photos I see look too flat to me. My eyes were opened.

So now when I'm editing, I've let go of the feeling that I'm doing something wrong. Well, there're likely other things, but that one I've let go of. And now I have juice and zest in a variety of random containers (like this one that originally held frozen garlic from TJ's)  for my next few rounds of that dish. Or strawberry limeade or guacamole or whatever. (Have you frozen lime juice before? It comes out just fine, right?)

Craftier stuff on the horizon...

The Decision to Expand a Family

Family size is so personal. How many kids are right for your family, if you want kids at all? How do you know when you're "done"? What do you do if you want a larger family and can't make it happen by traditional means? And what happens if you decide you want another, have it, and then realize "that was a bad idea?" There are so many parts of family size that people don't often talk about, because they're just so tricky and personal.

I myself think a lot about the decision to have the first one. The idea of pregnancy was so big and scary. And then the whole raising-a-kid thing is so much bigger and breathtaking-- both in joyous and painful ways-- than I could imagine. The decision to add another, an exponential increase. And a third? I just don't know. The process of having the second was nail-biting and scary. Not only did it involve miserable morning (okay, all-day) sickness up until about 18 weeks, M had a "single umbilical artery" that ended up not being a problem, but was one of those things that you don't know for sure won't be a problem until it's all said and done and made more scary to me by the fact that I wasn't in America for most of the pregnancy. I think I'm still not over the worry, even though I know that everything turned out so well.

A and I like to joke about it, and obviously she's made the leap and has no regrets. I'm still on the fence for the foreseeable future. Our family size is perfect for now.

Except.... there's some news at our house.

And it also didn't come without internal debate and lengthy consideration.

The timing was finally right.

Marjorie and Mikey needed a larger family. They were lonely.

These guys-- Sarah, Baxter and and Ali, so named by K the very moment she saw them, have joined us. Our girls are THRILLED.

They've been dressed in all manner of clothing and costume and have been found to be excellent dance and play partners.  They were set up after the girls went to bed one night, and the first thing M said when she saw them, with a big, silly grin was "Hey, wass going on here?!?" K likes to dress one in a pirate costume and another in a princess gown-- and I frequently find the two facing each other, the pirates arms around the princess' shoulders.

They're so well-loved that I'm in no hurry to remove that protective layer of plastic. It's already saved them some scarring.

I definitely didn't just get them for entertainment. Not even my own entertainment at the thought of adding to Marjorie and Mikey's family. I've found my own children to be less and less helpful in fitting projects I'm working on, and these guys are HAPPY to stand still while I fiddle with things.

I'd already had this on my mind for a while when I visited Natasha for a crafty playdate. She has her own set, and seeing them in person helped me make up my mind. She shared her source, and I ran right over to get my own. I haven't adjusted their height properly-- since I know whatever I adjust will then be readjusted by the girls, so here the 5/6/7 is shorter than the 3/4. If the 1/2 had cheeks I'd be pinching them non-stop.

So I thought I'd share the news. These kids sure are quiet and well-behaved! No regrets. My own family expansion? Still up in the air.

What I made for #3: The Nursery (and the end, I promise!)

I'm wrapping up my "What I made for #3" series with some shots from the nursery.  You've seen almost everything in here already, so it might be a big yawn.  I think it's fun to see everything together though (unless you are one of the previously mentioned people whose head may explode with too many conflicting colors and prints.  Then it may be less "fun" and more "seizure inducing".)

Our previously white crib took on a whole new, sunny persona with a fresh coat of yellow paint.  I really love the way it pops against the robin's egg, seafoamy, light teal walls (there have been lots of discussions about the exact nature of this color, and no two pictures of it turn out the same.  Maybe we should call it "elusive blue")

(please don't comment about how my child is going to die because I painted her crib, k?)

I have 3 pieces of art in the room: 

1. A collage of her newborn portraits

2. "Be filled with joy" print (she and I share the middle name Joy, so besides the colors being perfect, I thought it was fitting)

3. The wooden Happy sign.  I saw this painted sign on Autum's blog, Creative Little Daisy.  She said she didn't like the way it turned out, so I asked if I could buy it from her.  In the end, she just mailed it to me FOR FREE.  How nice is that?  I am in love with it, and the yellow and little aqua heart at the bottom match my colors perfectly!  (Check out her blog for all kinds of amazing DIY home projects, especially the pallet wall she just built in her newly renovated attic!)

I got the fun rug here.  Did I ever mention I love rainbows?  (ps: the rug is still on clearance, if you love rainbows too :)

I made a simple coordinating crib skirt, and then just purchased a white minky bumper and white jersey sheets.  I thought all that color needed a little bit of white to balance it out.  The same goes for the room.

Here's the fun colorful side of the room:

And opposite, some calming white:

 

And that's it!  Thanks for taking the tour!  

(I left out the closet and bathroom because they are our storage areas for 2.5 years worth of diapers, wipes, formula, baby paraphernalia, clothes, toys, and my bin of sewing scraps.  You're welcome.)

 

Scissors for My (Not Yet) Three-Year-Old

Scissors? For my daughter who is not yet 3? Yes. Sort of.

I briefly thought my first daughter could handle real scissors at about 3. You know, the kiddie kind. But really, on the inside, I knew better. Why I handed them to her anyway, I don't know. Of course I stood right there with her, showed her how to hold them, what not to touch and that the scissors should always be pointed away from her. Yadda yadda. And then she cut a hole in her previously unhole-y shirt. Later she did the DIY haircut, too. Of course. And just because she's already done it doesn't mean she won't do it again. Scissors are so tempting. I totally get it. And I was as frustrated as she was at 3-- she wanted so badly to do her own "crafty things" more independently but real scissors weren't reasonable yet-- and lots of other crafty supplies were still too much for her to manage.

But there's a scissor-alternative that's a bit safer and a lot easier for a little one to handle. We call them "stick scissors".

My mother-in-law had sent a gift wrap cutter (available via Amazon but probably also at your local drugstore) at some point, and it's the best thing in our craft supply stash for almost 3yo M. It's great for arts and crafts at the table, but we've also taken it on trips. Both kids shred magazine pages and coloring pages and random bits of wrappers and they're highly entertained by the confetti-making. Give 5yo K that and a washable glue stick and she's collaging like crazy. It does leave a bit of mess behind, say, on an airplane, but it's been much much much better than the whining that's likely when she's some combination of bored/tired/hungry/antsy.

If your paper is fairly sturdy (not tissue paper or the really thing magazine paper) it cuts tiny pieces easily.

It actually cuts long, smooth lines a lot more easily than scissors unless you're really, really good at doing that thing with sharp scissors where the scissors are still as you slice them through the paper. Not something little hands can do yet. The ninja-mask-in-progress below did also require the use of big girl scissors for completion.

I had wanted to blog about these when K was 3. But I couldn't get a good image of what the blade looked like-- and that's critical to the story. I realized the other day that one of the new ones we've gotten is made of clear plastic instead of the opaque stuff the first one was made of. Makes it a lot easier to see how it's made. Unlike scissors, I don't have to immediately panic about what could happen. I'm sure it's not totally impossible to hurt yourself with it, but I think it'd be a real effort. I tried to push my pinky finger in there and touch the blade, and I couldn't. The plastic is pretty rigid, and there's enough space between the opening and the blade that touching the blade, even for much tinier fingers than mine, would be hard. Maybe not impossible, but not without concerted effort. And they're less interested in the blade than what they can cut with it. And at least if they're determined to cut their own hair, this would slow 'em down a bit.

So, that's my little Sunday idea. And no, not a sponsored post.

Completely unrelated, I have some questions for sewists. Do you have a moment to answer a few questions? Your input will help me with a project I'm working on, and you'll definitely hear more about it in the near future. I'd love to hear your thoughts. Click here, easy peasy.

What I made for #3: Fabric Wall Letters

Just dropping in with a quick Friday post to show you what I did for baby #3's name decor.  I've enjoyed personalizing each of my babies' nurseries with their names, and I love how each of them were a little different.  (I'm going to show them to you, but you have to keep in mind that the first two were PB (pre-blog) and were not photographed with mass internet consumption in mind.)

Baby #1 had purchased wood letters that I painted and hanged with decorative ribbon:

Baby #2 had a pennant banner thingie with a different letter on each triangle (I just did her nickname):

For baby #3, I cut out each letter on pink knit fabric fused to double stick fusible then ironed them directly onto the wall.  (here's my font boyfriend again!)

There are a lot of tutorials on how to do this, but that previous sentence is about all the tutorial you'll need.  In case you missed it:

1.  Iron one side of double stick fusible to your fabric.
2.  Cut letters out of fabric using scissors or silhouette or what have you.
3.  Peel paper backing away and iron to wall.
That's it.  There are ways to do this using liquid starch too, but why would you?  This way is so less icky.

Can you tell baby #3 was supposed to be a boy named Jude?  We improvised.  We use this nickname most of the time, but her full name was revealed here, if you're interested.

And while I'm on that subject, here's a helpful little flowchart from love all this:

 

The "na" is my favorite :) 

Happy weekend!

What I made for #3: Rainbow Quilt

I don't think it'll come as a surprise to anyone who's been reading this blog for any amount of time that my favorite color is rainbow (minus violet).  So when it came time to make a quilt for baby #3's crazy colorful nursery, the pattern was a no brainer.

I've had this AMH Pastry Line dobby dot for ages.  Or maybe even eons.  But from about the second day I owned them, I've wanted to do a rainbow quilt with all the bright bold colors.  It sure did take me a long time to commit to actually using these fabrics, but I'd say this was worth it.  When the baby's done with it, it'll be a good sized couch throw.  And yeah, I'll totally put those colors in my living room.

I love the way the white binding really pops and brings out the "pastry lines".  For the back, I pieced in a few strips of Square Dance.  I used the yellow colorway, which I love, but the light blue is my favorite for that print.  I have 4 panels that I may never use.  Tacking them to the wall as wallpaper is the only project that comes to mind that would give that print the visibility it deserves without me having to take my scissors anywhere near it.

And while I'm here, can I just say that I am a bit overwhelmed by the reaction to my last post?  I mean, I knew the Crafterhours readership was pretty much the most fabulous group of people around, but I had no idea how many of you were browncoats too!  Long live Firefly!  I had several people mention that they named their kids after characters from the show, or knew someone who did, but one lady even plans to name all of her chickens after the cast!  That's shiny.

(Shiny is a word used a lot in the show Firefly, in case you were wondering.  They use it in place of "nice, cool, awesome, etc."  One commenter reminded me that I've wanted to make "shiny" a thing for awhile now.  Join the movement and spread the word (literally)!  I could use a synonym for "awesome" in my life anyway.)

Have a Geeky Valentines Day!

So, my husband is a pretty big geek (but in the best way possible).  He clued me in to this thing called the internet and makes sure it is constantly available in our house via some kind of invisible floating wire or something.  Without him, I'd be writing this blog post on a typewriter.  He also made it so my iPod can wake me up in the morning and I can chat on skype on my big screen TV and I can watch movies on my computer and make espresso with my toaster oven and shoot lasers from my hand mixer.

Ok, I may have gotten carried away a bit toward the end there.  Truth is, I don't even own a hand mixer.  But the point is, he can make a lot of things do stuff that they normally don't do.

case in point:

He made my serger serge!*

My first serger had only worked intermittently over the past year and a half, and refused to roll hem serge altogether.  The many lectures I gave it regarding work ethic just never sank in and threats were getting me nowhere, so finally I kicked it to the curb.  For Christmas I was fortunate enough to receive this brand new serger!  Which would've been awesome IF IT HAD WORKED.  Yep, it came broken right out of the box.  I have an electromagnetic field that repels all things technological. 

So, to sum up this long winded post: I finally have a working serger!  That I should use!  Someday!  Whilst not breastfeeding, preferably!

And speaking of geeky stuff and Valentines day (was I speaking of Valentines day?  I am now.) check out the crazy rad shirt he got me:

So romantic.  You can sit at the cool kids' table if you know what this shirt is about without googling.  And if you do know what it is, you might also be interested to know that we are such huge fans around here that 2/3 of our children were named after characters from it.  Go ahead, be jealous.

*while he does have an amazing track record with scrounging around the innards of electronic items with nothing but a flashlight and soldering iron and miraculously making them work again, I would like to note, in the interest of full disclosure, that my serger was fixed using only frustration and the business end of a hammer.  note to the less electronically inclined: give it a few good whacks and it'll be good as new!

Going Back to the Source

About two years ago I started reading Obsessively Stitching. Care convinced me to join an I Spy swap and I dove into this quilt.

Which this baby and her sister loved then, and still use daily.

Two swaps of my own later I decided to combine my love for I Spy, Spoonflower and fabric selection into a small venture with the crafterhours shop-- and who better to share the results with than Care?

So jump over and see what she has to say -- you'll find some fun related opportunities. You know, if you like free fabric. 

Yum&my Valentines

Last year's valentine efforts included K filling in the name of her classmates and her own name a corresponding 17 times on the boxed valentines from chain stores. The thought of making them occurred way too late in the game, but really, these looked soooo fun to me. And the teeny tiny space available for writing on the boxed cards were so miserably small for just-learning-to-write K that getting her to finish the task was worse than pulling teeth. You're given you an anesthetic when they pull teeth. I wondered whether her teacher, who'd asked that the kids do it entirely by themselves, would notice if I did the writing upside-down, backwards, with my left hand and after spinning myself dizzy AND chugging an adult beverage. (I thought way too much about that.)

So this year we started earlier and did our own thing. Starting with this photo.

 

A tiny bit of cutting with an X-acto and a piece of tape...

And... ta-da! She's an M&M lover, so she's ecstatic about the treat. Or she was as soon as I assured her she'd get some too.

Pleeeenty of space for her to write. So much easier. The fact that she's a year older might help a bit too.

 Here's just the text portion if you'd like to grab it-- double click to enlarge:

Oh, and a red version. Options.

Easy peasy.

What I made for #3: Reupholstered Glider

In the interest of future, differently chromosomed offspring, everything I bought for baby girl #1 was gender neutral.  But when I found out that our 3rd and final baby was yet again a big old double X, I went girl-print crazy.

You already saw the formerly-green-carseat-turned-floral-liberty-print.  Now let me show you the formerly-blue-gingham-glider-turned-floral-AMH-print.  (florals and I must be having a moment)

This is Anna Maria Horner's "summer totem" in tart from her Loulouthi line, and I heart it big time.  Like, purchased-8-yards-of-it big time (9 if you count the yard of laminated cotton!)  The scale is very large (I think I measured an 18 inch vertical repeat) and lends itself perfectly to upholstery and whole cloth quilts, like this gorgeous one from Anna of Noodlehead.

Once again, I got smart and used a tutorial to help tackle this, namely this tutorial from Ashley of Lil Blue Boo.  And, much like the carseat cover tutorial, Ashley's instructions helped guide me through each step even though my glider wasn't exactly the same.  With a project this big, sometimes you just need to know where to start.  And it helps to see that someone else has done it and lived to tell the tale too. 

 Like most sewing projects though, this one just ended up being time consuming, but not necessarily difficult.  Much like my pregnancies, actually. 

The large quantity of this print in the room might be a bit "much" for some people (if that's you, don't look at my nursery reveal - your head will explode) but I love it.  When it comes to color, I say go big or go home!  Just don't go to my home (again with the head exploding issue).

Bonus: when you're done with this project, you have a pretty place to prop up your feet for a well-deserved rest.

 

And now for your moment of baby zen:

{by Fitzsimmons Photography}