buh bye 2010

im curled up on the couch with my guys. waiting for that magical moment we leap into yet another year.....2011.

im pondering things to do for the new year, and a few come to mind. kind of a crafters resolution list.

--make a few quilts
--use some of my fabric kingdom on other projects
--make myself a few new bags
--buy some used furniture for a redo project (DIY)
--decorate my house


not a bad list. its totally do-able. im geared up for the new year....2011 will be a fun one.

labels

have you all seen these label panels by Riley Blake? I had to laugh, because when i got these at my LQS the girl goes WOOHOO, i won a bet that i would sell the first brown ones. LOL
they also have them in pink...i think....or something girlie and someone else in the shop thought they would NEVER sell the brown ones. crazy huh?

there are 45 of them to each panel. they are around 4x4 ish. so a nice size.

They have such a variety of different labels, they could be used for SO many projects. i had even thought of a simple pin cushion. one that you could write on and personalize. OOO maybe thats an idea for a FNSI giveaway??? (did i say that outloud?)

I tend to steer towards anything Riley Blake. Its odd....but i LOVE "his" fabric lines. I know Riley Blake and other names are just names....and most of the time they are groups of woman....but i like to think some fabulously good looking guy is sitting around designing us all fabric we Oooo and Ahhh over.

From my house to yours....

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas!

Hand / Foot scrub

while surfing my usual blogs today....i saw THIS idea and just HAD to make them. looky how pretty they turned out!

after work i ran around in the rain on a mission. I needed jars....i needed peppermint extract....i needed mineral oil....i needed corn syrup....i needed sugar.....i needed green food coloring. THATS ALL there was to it!!! piece of cake!

I made a total of 12 jars for my coworkers. arent they festive? they smell heavenly because of the peppermint! I need to make myself a LARGE jar of this stuff.

I also made a simple label and used these scrapbooking stick on thingys (dont know what they are called) for just a little added touch.

Seriously, i spent maybe 2 hours tops making these jars.

ps....i found all my supplies needed at walmart. they would be a great gift for a teacher.... of course maybe in a larger jar. these teeny jars were great for the coworker thing when making them for a group of people.

im going to make the brown sugar n honey scrub tomorrow. guess ill be going to buy more jars. thank goodness that darn store is open 24 hours.

old crafts

I paid a friendly visit to my parents this evening and saw this on my moms doorknob. look at the year i made this.....2001.

i remember making these. i cant even remember how many, but it was like over 20. i used cookie cutters for the patterns. this snowman was my favorite. yeah its far from perfect, but its a decoration my mom always puts in her house. it was a small pillow type hanging with a decorative cord on top. i think it was even around 5inches square-ish.

do you ever look at crafts from years past and go hmmm........ive come a long way baby!

Peanut Butter Rice Krispie bars

have you ever made these yummy bars?

are you drooling yet?

easy easy recipe!!!

Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Bars

1 cup of sugar

1 cup of light karo syrup

1 cup of peanut butter

6 cups of rice krispies

1 bag of chocolate chips

1 bag of butterscotch chips

melt over stove top 1cup of sugar and 1 cup of karo syrup. bring to a gentle boil, basically to dissolve sugar. dont cook too long or bars will be hard.

remove from heat and add peanut butter. stir well until all mixed together.

add 6 cups of rice krispies. mix together until blended over rice krispies.

smooth into a 9x13" pan.

melt both bags of chips together and pour over top.

take to your work potluck or a family function and you will make instant friends.

a weekend with my family....

the weekend started off with a christmas shopping extravaganza....just me and my husband. we went to dinner then shopped till we dropped. i was a little sad about missing the FNSI, but we had to finish our xmas shopping.

here is my sons completed gingerbread house. he did it all himself. i was the "go to girl" during the project. he also wore the santa hat the entire weekend.

here is my other son and his girlfriend baking cookies. wonder who is cleaning up the mess? (he usually does the dishes after she bakes--LOL)

i have been trying to come up with more economical ideas this year for xmas. i decided to give my coworkers a christmas card with a favorite recipe inside of it. I found these cute recipe cards on clearance this weekend ..... 49cents for a pack of 20.

during the holidays, i love having a puzzle around that everyone can sit down and work on. this should keep the kiddos busy....its 1000 pieces. we started with a puzzle that was only 300 pieces and it was done in 24hours. so 1000 pieces should last a little longer.

do you have a favorite christmas tradition or something for the month of december?

FNSI winner

click HERE for the FNSI winner. Heidi made some pretty cute stuff for the giveaway.

I have spent the weekend busy with my boys.....so no sewing or crafting got done.

Sorry to cut this short, but we are making a gingerbread house and our "glue" is drying. ill post some pics when it gets done.

twas the night before....

FRIDAY NIGHT SEW-IN #2 !!!!!!!!!!!!!

are you all ready? have you signed up HERE?
dont forget to blog about your projects on saturday to be entered for the giveaway.

im already working on a project. its an xmas surprise for my nephew....ok he is my great nephew but saying that makes me feel old. LOL
he is just a toddler, so the project will get plenty of use. But its a secret project....so this is all you get to see.

Ive been going through a little sadness this week. this is the first time in YEARS i havent had a kiddo bring home something handmade at school. no more elementary schoolers! :(

as i work on my project tonight.....this (pictured below) is on the other end of the couch. my baby.....my little man....who is now growing up SO fast! dont you love how the dog is right at his side?!?!
I miss their excitement when they brought home that special gift for mom and dad. BUT WAIT, i have a plan!!! I am going to send my boys to the mall this weekend on a mission. They are going to buy us something for xmas.....all by themselves. In years past, my mom has taken the boys shopping for us and they did a REALLY GOOD JOB shopping for us!!! But this will be the first time solo....just them...no one to steer them in the right direction. GULP

On christmas day if i get a pack of legos.....or a PS3 game, i will cherish it because they bought it for me. (im actually hoping for a ToyStory lego set). ;)

see you all tomorrow night! lets get those projects finished together. WE CAN DO IT!!!

best pot roast EVER

Do you own this cookbook?
Do you read her blog?
well.....look at this picture below and let me tell you a little bit about my pot roast.

it was DELICIOUS. it had restaurant flavors and was worth the 3 burnt fingers i got cooking it!! (thats no lie) Next time i am adding potatoes to the pot and more carrots. I couldnt stop eating the carrots! those large white things are onions. MMMMM

im still drooling....and i made it yesterday. at the dinner table i even patted myself on the back for a fantastic meal.

this is me tonight. all cozied up on the couch looking for another recipe to make of hers. if you dont own the book, get off my blog and order it from amazon!!! or heck, run down to your local store and buy it!!! you wont be disappointed......trust me.

FNSI winner

I have the pleasure of doing the first giveaway for FNSI in december. As HEIDI and i said before, we are doing 2 friday nights for this month because we are all trying to finish our projects before santa parks his sleigh on 12/25/10. I have this winner and next week she will do the 2nd winner for the month.


Here is what i made: a mug rug (my first one) and a FNSI pincushion!!! All in adorable red/white figgy pudding but it also can be used year-around because i didnt make it too christmasy.

our winner is chosen by random.org....and then we look at the blogs to make sure you participated (just to make it fair)

so....lets get down to it. our winner for this week is:
JUDY #90 at Lazy Dog Quilts. VERY CUTE CLUTCH BAGS you made!!!
if you send me your address, ill get your goodies shipped out to your destination.


here is a better view of the mugrug. as i said before, this was my first attempt and they are addicting!!! Pinwheels are a fav block of mine.....and possibly what im working on for stocking #3.

see you all next friday!!!

still sewing....

stocking #2 done.... its a wonky star. Its always hard to take pictures in the dark.
but right now im working on your giveaway present :)
so back to the machine i go!!

FNSI results

stocking #1....... and I'm going to make 3 more. thank goodness we are having 2 FNSI this month!

i used THIS pattern and THIS tutorial to make it. It had pretty easy instructions.....but the stocking is a lot smaller than i thought it would be. its definitely for "decoration". Santa Clause leaves my family LOTS of goodies in their stockings because we have all been so good all year long.

yep, that's some red corduroy around the top and gives it the added touch it needed.
(you all know how much i love my corduroy!!)

I have spent the morning in my sewing room. I am trying to get a few things done before my husband drags me out of the house for errands. ok, his errand is sitting at DMV changing our addresses. I think i would rather poke a sewing needle in my eye.

don't forget to come back tomorrow because I am doing this weeks winner for our giveaway/drawing!!! I have made up something a little special because of the holidays. HEIDI will be doing next weeks FNSI winner.

still sewing....

heres a peak....
its 10pm and I am still sewing. WOOHOO
im wondering if it was the coffee, coke and ice tea I drank this afternoon??

I wish I was up north along with some of the sewers this weekend. they are about to get hit with a TON of snow and a blizzard. is that a perfect excuse to "sew all day" or what?

does decorating ever end?

when i bought my house......i couldn't wait to do this. banisters just scream to be decorated!

this is a word that means a lot to me during christmas.....JOY. because my family loves to be happy and laugh.

(not a christmas item) my sis bought me this painting as a house warming present. Birch trees always remind me of where i grew up-North Dakota. sitting outside, in front of our apartment, trying to tear off a big enough piece of the bark of the tree. the spiral chunk giving me hours and hours of thrill. ok probably minutes and minutes but when your a kid heck everything seems like hours. LOL

this picture i just HAD to add. see my carpet? no, i don't have a cleaning lady....my husband vacuums like that. its good to be bobbi :)

i just ordered Camille Roskelleys PDF version of her stocking pattern. Im gearing up for Friday Night Sew-In this week. I think me and my guys all need stockings this year made by me. Figgy pudding ones to go with our tree skirt i haven't finished yet. 17 days till christmas....heck i have plenty of time. WINKWINK

its beginning to look a lot like christmas!

we put up our tree tonight and i love this ornament below from my childhood. it just reminds me of simpler times when ornaments were handmade. i even bought some of these wood blocks last weekend at target in the dollar section and want to make a few ornaments for my kids.

this ornament cracks me up every year. my sis gave this to me as a "joke" a few years back. im sure it was true back in the day....LOL

here is my fav xmas decoration. a santa doll my sis made me. he even has a teddy like mine when i was a kid and a quilt/blanky! see my old red sled i bought at an auction in minnesota?

lastly, remember my homemade stocking stand? i blogged about it HERE last year. simple to make....and its almost better than a mantel. (almost) BUT she does still need to be repainted. (put that on my to do list for 2011).

anyone have any ideas for simple quick ornaments to have kids make? i would love to hear about them or see some links :)

Friday Night Sew In x2---12/10 and 12/17

Its double the fun this month ladies and gents.

I know we all have a bunch of projects and are down to the wire. so we have added another date at the request of all of you!

christmas is just 3 short weeks away. i know i have a few projects on the burner, so lets do this together!

click HERE for the sign ups on heidis blog for the first FNSI, 12/10/10. The sign ups for 12/17 will be coming soon.

im in love...

i heart this tree skirt.....

i adore figgy pudding........

i cant wait to put up my tree......

i need to decide on the backing.....

i cant wait to quilt it....

Merry Christmas to me!

my tree needs her skirt!

I have discovered how easy wonky stars are to make! as i said last week, i dug out my figgy pudding stash and layed out a plan for a tree skirt. i better get crackin too because my tree is going up soon. my 4 stars are done--woot woot.

im using bits and pieces of a tutorial that is on Sew Mama Sew's blog. who doesnt LOVE tutorials?

ive never been a "put the tree up after thanksgiving" kind of gal. no clue why....but i can be a bit of a bah-humbug too. (do people admit that openly on blogland?)

while taking these photos, i realized i need to put my husband and his saws to work this weekend. i need a design wall! hanging a chunk of batting up with stickpins just isnt working for me.

well, back to my machine i go!

Aprons are a MUST

Here is a picture of my sister and i cooking on thanksgiving. i am SOOO glad she gave me an apron and brought hers. along with it being very practical, it was kind of fun. those ladies in the 50s had the right idea!

my sisters is adorable! it has lucille ball in a chefs hat. next week im going to hunt around my LQS for some of this fab and make myself one of these. we hope to get some sewing time in tonight. she is going to make her grandson a little mans apron because he loves to cook with his mommy. :)

these 2 have been inseparable all weekend. aint it sweet?!!

Time to go do some shopping. These girls are getting pedicures .......because after cooking for 8 hours on thanksgiving i think we deserve it!!!

gum is banned!!! (call me oprah)

i have a helpful hint for all of us moms and dads out there who have found gum stuck in our dryers. i had bought a brand new shiny washer and dryer.....and day 4 of using these beautiful pieces of machinery, i opened the dryer and found the gum pictured below ALL OVER the inside of my dryer. not just a few specs.....oh heck no.....an entire pack of rasberry flavored AND colored gum on everything. it seemed to cover almost my entire drum. (the clothes only had a few spots--strange i know)

so after a little cussing and crying.......i ran downstairs and googled "gum in dryer". i was desperate. well let me tell you the very first helpful hint i found was this. (see picture below).

i said to myself NO WAY could it be this easy! after a quick late night trip to the store, i tried it and it WORKED.

all you have to do is take a dryer sheet of any brand, get it wet, lay it on the gum for a few minutes and then rub. it came RIGHT OFF! ! there of course were a few spots where a hefty chunk o' gum had glued itself to the inside.....so it took a little elbow grease and a few more sheets (i think i used half the box) but it worked like a charm.

make life owly

i had a few people ask me about the kit i bought at my LQS friday night. here is what it will look like.....this is the one THEY had made up! caught my eye and my wallet :)
the pattern is BITTY OWL by BunnyHill Designs. just think of all the fun ways to make it!

last night i was doing a little blog surfin and came upon a few ideas for tree skirts. SewMamaSew has a link to an idea that i like, but didnt love. i liked 2 diff things on 2 diff skirts. so out came the drawing pad and i think ive come up with something i will love to make.

10pm last night i was rummaging through my fabric (cuz we all have a huge stash of it) and i came across my figgy pudding stash. WOOHOO.....ive got PLENTY for this tree skirt project and heck, maybe even a quilt...... maybe 2 quilts.....maybe a few potholders......

lets just say i have loads of it ;)

and the winners are....

We had sponsors this month for our FNSI giveaway.......thank you again and again and again from Mary and Barb at Me and My Sister Designs for these great gifts!! Due to their generosity, we were even able to pick 4 winners total.....2 here and 2 on HEIDIS blog.
the first winner who gets the above goodies is:
#137---Andrea at Iowastatefairchallenge.blogspot.com
she is making a very cute make life quilt!

the second winner for the above goodies is:
#152 Jen at Thequiltyhome.blospot.com
she is making a very cute quilt also using Bliss.

Please send me your addresses via my email.

HEIDI has the other 2 winners on her blog, so be sure and pop on over to see if you might be a winner! (all winners are chosen using random.org)
you all had some great projects like always!



have a wonderful Thanksgiving week everyone!

FNSI results

heres my pincushion donut. it looks so real ....
i didnt put the beads on because i wasnt sure if i wanted the colors i had bought (in the bag pictured). i might go on the hunt tomorrow for some diff colors of beads.

it isnt very big....LOL.

i also stopped at my LQS while running errands early in the evening and bought this kit. its an owl pincushion from Bunny Hill Designs called Bitty Owl. the quilt store had an adorable one made up and the heart in the center was the make life fabric from sweetwater. (see my kit). i just couldnt resist!

dont forget to check back tomorrow on my and HEIDIS blogs for the winners. Me and My Sister designs sponsored this one as our first sponsors too! a big THANK YOU to both of them!

time for me to run....i have a date with Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte. Am i the only gal who hasnt seen the 2nd Sex and the City movie yet?