more fort kits & a great tip!

I had a lot of fun assembling these FORT KITS for a wonderful preschool teacher we know.  She is giving them to her niece and nephew for their birthdays, and when I explained this to my three year old I thought that that explanation would suffice... boy was I wrong! I had no idea that I was opening such a big can of worms. He had a really hard time wrapping his brain around the meaning of "neeph" and nephew, and insisted on discussing it for the ENTIRE day! Kids are so funny. 

GEOMETRIC fort kit:

RAINBOW fort kit:

The bags for both kits were made from thrifted material. I am sorry that I don't have pictures of the contents of each of those bags, but this photo shoot took place during the spare 3 minutes and 27 seconds I had before we had to leave for school (literally). I can't believe I actually got two that were decent enough to show you.



Here is a great tip from a reader: Littel Holts suggested that instead of (or in addition to) sewing ties on the sheets, create casings for the rope. Fold down each corner, and half way between each corner, about an inch, and sew.  This is a simple, but sturdy, way to thread the ropes through.

we make a great pair - update

Because this is one of my favorite Valentine's Day gifts, I thought it would be fun to update the tags using this tutorial. (I am completely addicted to making printables with Picnik- I may need to seek help, soon!)

I have been doing a little Valentine's Day sewing, that I would love to share with you, but my photo opportunities have been few and far between lately... fingers crossed for a little sunshine this week!

inside play

what do you do when school is canceled because of snow slush?

...build forts & make Valentine's Day decorations! (thanks for the sheets Grandma Shelley!)

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fort kit update

I made a few tweaks to the fort kit after my boys did some product testing this weekend.

1. added loops to the ties -  making it easier to attach the ties to hooks on the suction cups.
2. added a loop & tie to the center of the sheet - to reduce the sag in the middle (we ran a rope through the loop) - this is especially useful on larger sheets. (see illustration below)

Here is a mini-tutorial for making the tie-loop combo:

I have added these changes to the original post.

bread making kit

My best friend Kelly and her husband have been the guinea pigs for my bread making adventure over the past year.  They have always given kind feedback, and flattered me by returning their bread bag and asking for more. If they ever tasted a bad loaf, they never said so.

For her belated Christmas gift, I put together a bread making kit which includes this book, a baking stone, yeast, handmade bread bags, and container for storing the dough.

These bread bags are a little different from the ones I made in the past.  Using flour sack kitchen towels I was able to make 12 bags for under $4 ($0.33/each)!

I love how they turned out. The material is very lightweight, and the wrinkles give the bags such a nice texture. 

I embroidered "fresh" on the bottom of one of the bags, just for fun!

Happy Baking Kel, I can't wait to try a loaf!

last minute wrap skirt

from this:

to this: 

Leave it to me to start a sewing project on the eve of Christmas vacation (when I should have been packing). But I am sure glad I followed my last minute inspiration, because the skirt got worn it A LOT!

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gifts for little friends

I love books.

Growing up, books filled our house. They were on every shelf, stacked next to every bed, and at the bottom of every beach bag. (My mom would have gladly taken her teacher salary in payments of books instead of money.) And things haven't changed much now that I am an adult.

When it comes to giving gifts, books top the list. The ones above are some that the boys picked out for their little friends who are having birthdays this week. 

I wanted to include something handmade with their books, so I decided to try my hand at making hair clips. Have you tried these?! Not having girls of my own, I am probably behind the times in this department, but WOW! they are fun to make. For those of you, like me, who don't have the time or the patients for tedious projects, I highly recommenced giving these a try.  They are easy to make and can be done in a short amount of time, with minimal cost.

To package them up, I made drawstring gift bags, and attached the hair clips to the gift tags.

stepping into the new year

"We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths. "
- Walt Disney 

I am truly grateful to all of you who followed your curiosity over here - thank you for your support. May your year be full of creativity, laughter, and joy. 

Happy New Year!