Upcycle: Striped Shirt to Dress

I recently went through my donate pile and found this Abercrombie and Fitch striped shirt.  It was originally an off the shoulder style shirt that had grown too small for me.  I'd like to think  that the shirt got smaller, not that I got bigger.  :)  I rescued it from my pile because it reminded me of a post that I pinned from Make it  and Love it.

T-Shirt into Dress with Braided Collar by Make it Love it

I unfortunately forgot to take a picture of the before.

• First, I took the shirt, cut off the bottom 2 stripes so that I could use the original hem.  I gathered it to the width I wanted it. 
•  Next, I also took off the sleeves so I could use the original hem from them also.  I changed the width of the sleeves from adult size to kid's size. 
• I then laid out the rest of the shirt and cut it to the size I wanted.  I used a dress that fit her to help me estimate. 
• I sewed the body pieces together.
• Then I attached the sleeves and the ruffle.
• Finally, I then made some darts in the front collar to make it less off the shoulder.

In the end, the only resemblance it had to the Make it and Love it dress was that it was striped.   Once I started, I realized that there was no where enough fabric to make the braided part of the collar, so I decided to make it the way I wanted instead.

I had to resew some of my seams later because I had never really sewed with knits before.  Check out this post to see some tips on knits.

I think the dress came out rather cute.   It's a fun and comfy, little play dress for my baby girl.

Card Series - Post 12: Creativity

There are times when I am looking to say something particular or am wanting a specific picture or pattern but have no supplies which fit my idea. 

For example in the 3rd card in this post, the particular person that I was making the card for really liked the chevron pattern, and I had nothing of the sort in my stash.  I went online and found a free printable: Chevron Free Printables by Mel Stampz (Thanks pinterest!) I printed it out and used it as a background.  I totally loved how it came out and since I printed a whole page of it, I can now use it for other cards. 

Also before I throw out anything, a catalog, a calender, or a gift bag, I look at it and see if there is anything that might be useful. If I find something, I cut it out and throw it in my supply bin for later use.  The rose in the first card is actually from the back of a calender. 

 Basically, if you don't have it, there is probably a way you can get it... you just need a little a little creativity and ingenuity.

Wedding

Boy Birthday

Thank You

Thank You

Thank You

See you here next week!

Zucchini Bread - Take 2

I was recently given more zucchinis and decided that it would be a great time to make more zucchini bread.

 
You can check out the last time I made zucchini bread in this post:  July 22nd- zucchini bread .
As I was trying to decide what recipe to use this time, I asked my  husband what he thought of the recipe I had used previously.  He couldn't remember so he looked it up in the past post... and he found out that he thought it needed to be a little sweeter.  Ha ha... good thing I wrote it down!  He then went searching for a recipe that fit his requirements... more sugar... and this is what he came up with. 

 Food Network's Zucchini Bread Recipe by Paula Deen


So we got to work grating the zucchinis:

And no recipe is complete without a little help from mommy's helper:

We also put in chocolate chips instead of the nuts because everything is better with chocolate!  It turned out quite yummy.  He said it was sweet enough this time.  Ha ha.. it better be with 3 cups of sugar!   The baby girl thought it was delicious too.  She thinks it's dessert so it's a good way for me to trick her into eating her veggies. I would definitely use this recipe again.

Pink and Yellow Butterfly Birthday

Earlier this month my baby girl turned one!!  We had a fun little party for her with the family and a few of her playgroup friends.  It was just a casual affair with BBQ and swimming.   The theme was butterflies with pink and yellow accents. 
I tried to keep it pretty simple because I didn't want to spend a lot of money.  I didn't want to be too stressed out on a day that she wouldn't even remember.  Sure, she'll see pictures, but the party is more for the us then for her. 

I picked butterflies because I went to the Dollar Tree and they had a cute set for cheap.  It had invitations, plates, a banner, party hats, and cups.  I also picked up some coordinating streamers, balloons, tablecloths, and cake plates. 

And then I decided to get crafty.

Tissue Paper Butterflies: I was going to hang those cool looking pom pom balls but when I went to make them them, they didn't quite turn out so I decided to make butterflies.

• I took 20 x 20 size tissue paper and cut them in fours.
• I stacked four pieces of the 10 x 10 squares and folded them like an accordion. 
• I then twisted pipe cleaners around the middle like a body and made atennaes. 
• I pulled the papers apart a bit to give the wings some body. 

I then hung them up all around the yard and deck, so we had a little butterfly wonderland with them all flying in breeze. I'm sure I didn't make this up and you can probably find it somewhere, but I just improvised with what I had.

 I also saw this fun idea on pinterest.  There are a dozen such sites which show these cute little baggies so it was hard to find the original source, but I think this is it.

Butterfly Snack Bags from Family Fun Magazine

I painted the bodies pink and yellow to coordinate with the colors of the party, and then I used hot glue to put on the eyes and atennaes.  I didn't want any little parts coming off when the kids tried to stick the clothespins in their mouths.  I filled them with goldfishes for the kids and M & M's for the adults. 

These cute butterfly bodies make great chip clips afterward, so they have a two in one purpose!

I don't think cake decorating is my specific talent.  I discovered the hard way how difficult it is to decorate when you don't have the right tools or ingredients.  The writing fudge I bought was too runny so I just used it for the bodies... as you can see in the top left corner, I tried to outline the whole butterfly and it just ran, so I nixed that idea.  I also had bought this weird frosting pen that I thought would make it easier, but instead I just was up to my elbows in frosting and all my butterflies came out looking like a five year old drew them.  I finally figured it out when I only had one or two left to do.  See if you can find the 2 good ones in the picture.  :)

If you want to learn from my mistake this is what you do...

Cake decorating the inexpensive way:

• Use the tips from one of those aerosol frosting cans. 
• Mix the colors of frosting you want by combining food coloring and white frosting in different bowls
• Snip end off of one corner of Ziploc baggy
• Put tip in hole in Ziploc bag
• Squeeze frosting toward tip and decorate!

By the time I got to the second batch, I had wasted too much frosting so had to do something a little different.  In the picture below, some of the writing had peeled off, but you can still get the idea.  Again, the fudge being runny was a problem, but I had to make do with what I had.

 I also made her an individual mini cake which I was actually pretty proud of.  I didn't have the right size cake pan and didn't see one at the store that I liked, so I had to get inventive.  I had these pancake molds on hand that were the perfect size and shape.  I put the molds on a cookie sheet, sprayed it with PAM and filled them about a third of the way up with some extra batter. I ended up with 3 thin cakes that I stacked on top each other.  Her cake was actually layered chocolate, yellow, and chocolate.  The mini cakes had a slightly raised top which actually made the perfect shape, like a giant cupcake.  I frosted it with a big butterfly, dusted on pink sprinkles and voila!!

There were a few more little details here and there.  I made lemonade with floating rasberries and slices of lemon, which I forgot to take a picture of.  My little girl wore a frilly party dress and shoes, both with butterflies on them.  For only having planned it in a little over a week, it all came together well.

We had fun celebrating her birthday and I know she had a good time.  She ate lots of watermelon which is her favorite and enjoyed smashing the cake to bits.  I can't believe how time has flown!  Happy Birthday to my baby!

Meatless Dish: Black Bean and Corn Pitas

It's hot here in  sunny California, so I'm always trying to find recipes that take little to no cooking.  The less I have to heat my kitchen, the better!  We unfortunately don't have air conditioning, so we try to do our best to keep our house cool.   This recipe fits the bill and is totally yummy too!  I also love recipes which only take a few minutes to make.  I love whipping up a good meal, but after a long hot day that last thing that I want to do is spend an hour in the kitchen.  The meal takes just minutes.  Chop some veggies, toss them in spices and eat up! 

The other perk to this meal is it is also very low in cholesterol.  Mozzarella cheese is a lower cholesterol cheese, but you could leave it off and it would be just as tasty.  


If you would like to try this recipe, go to Champions for Change under their lunch menu.  It's listed as a lunch but it was filling enough for dinner, especially on a hot summer day. 

Here is the direct link to the recipe:  Black Bean and Corn Pitas