Jungle Love

So I've been following these awesome bloggers @www.simplesimonandcompany.com and @www.mesewcrazy.com and they have my head spinning with awesome ideas not to mention everywhere I go I am constantly thinking "what can I make out of that?!"

That brings me to today's fun.... Jungle Love ! While perusing the aisle at my local dollar store I found this super cute little felt purse with a wildly blingy heart on the front. The poor thing was just screaming "I need to be on a tee!" , so for $1 I couldn't just leave it there. I checked through my daughters clothes for a tee with a spot/stain to cover. Not finding one, I made stop at the re-sale shop in town to see if I could find a deal. Eureka! Found this little diddy for $3!

I started out with my little purse..... Too cute! 

Then I cut the front off the purse. Of course I saved the back and straps for a just in case situation! 

Next I cut the heart out of the felt ( I didn't remove the felt from the back - I cut it out to keep,the thickness) and then traced around it on some heat n bond and ironed to the back of the heart.

While the heart was cooling, I prepared the shirt so I could attach the heart. I always use a piece of card stock in between the layers of my shirts just as a precaution. Then I measured down to see where to place the heart from the top. ( I measured a couple store bought tees and matched their placement) I marked this spot with a pin. Then I measured the width of the shirt to make sure I was centered. I marked this with a small pencil mark. 

Now I placed the heart at my pin and over the pencil mark. Because of the detail on the heart, I covered it with another piece of card stock before pressing it onto the shirt. For this reason, it took a few more seconds of pressing to allow the heat to get through all the layers. 

I allowed the heart to cool for a few minutes while I loaded my sewing machine with the thread that I wanted to sew the heart on with. I chose black to match the detail on the heart.

Next is just a simple straight stitch on the sewing machine around the heart. Clip up the strings and you have an amazing tee that people will LOVE! (Starting with you lil one!) 

I had originally planned to pair this one with black leggings but when we started pulling out pants the animal print just had to be the ones! They are from a certain "Crazy" kids store at the mall. I purchased them at their sale when the entire store was $12.99 or less and then I had a 20% off coupon as well. I'm sure I didn't pay over $5 for them. Lil Miss added her hand me down jazz shoes and Love Love Loves her new outfit! 

Boys Stink!

Not really, but man their clothes do! I had planned to show you a nifty idea for an easy, thrifty Valentine outfit but.... The hubby is home sick and I decided quick and easy was best for today. So, I decided to share a tip I've learned washing my teenage sons clothes. He is very active in sports and it seemed I just couldn't get " that " smell out of his clothes. You know the one I'm talking about! Ugh!

In a discussion at the drive up window at our local cleaners I found my solution. Vinegar! Yep, regular everyday distilled vinegar.

I started using a medicine cup full (like the one below off of a bottle of night time so you can rest medicine) of vinegar mixed with my laundry detergent when I wash his clothes. The first couple of loads took a couple of washes to get it all out but after that it takes it right out the first time.

It even helped pull some of the discoloration from the underarms of a few shirts and he smells sooo much better! Hope this helps a few of you ...... I'll be back next week with some more ideas I hope you enjoy. 

LILO 

Simple Valentine Bling!

Ok, so I decided I wanted something new on the door to celebrate Valentine's Day this year. I started out picking up a nice red flower out of the clearance bin at Michaels, needless to say, it didn't make the cut. I still like it, but its in my craft basket waiting for one of those "oh that would be cool" moments. What I did decide on was something simple and simple to make.




I found this simple heart with a little bling ($2.97)in the Valentine aisle at Wally World. While debating if this was really speaking to me it hit me , just add a little bit of classy bling. So I headed on over to the do it yourself bead/jewelry aisle.

Here I came up with this sweet little jewel ($3.00)!  It's actually a great little pendant with just the right bling for my project.

I removed the little "hook" at the top so that I could run my wire directly through the ring at the top.

Next, I ran a piece of floral wire through the hole and used needle nose to twist.

My original idea was to push the wire up into the wreath. But I decided that hooking the wire to the wire loop already on the wreath would be quicker, easier and not run the risk of splitting the wreath. (Make sure the right side of the pendant is pointing to the front of the wreath)

After tightening the wire, clip the remainder with the needle nose and press back toward the wreath so it doesn't scratch your door or wall.

And there you have it ! Simple, elegant bling!

Old dog, new tricks?

They say you can't teach an old dog new tricks but I'm going to give it my best shot! I have been following a few really cool sewing blogs for the last few months, starting with @ Me Sew Crazy. It has been a great way to watch so e really fun ladies share some really great ideas and I decided I wanted in on all the fun. I hope to be able to share some really cool ideas and even more inspiration. I have some great ideas in my little noggin that with God's help I will be able to pass along to you!

Be sure to check out The Upper Room Seamstress on FB too! You can see some of the dresses that I have made to send on mission trips with a couple of local churches. Pillowcase dresses are great for this. If you have a local group that sends groups on mission trips I encourage to think about using your gifts to make items for them to share with those they meet!

I'll be back soon with my first project post just in time for Valentines Day! Until then, God bless!