Tag Archives: projects

Embracing My Inner Geek – MegaCon 2013

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I admit it…I am a geek.  I have a soft spot for anything Star Wars.  I also kind of have a crush on Spock (although I would NOT consider myself a Trekkie/Trekker), can quote the Lord of the Rings trilogy, and love various other pop culture phenomenons that lean towards the nerdy end of the spectrum.  To top it off, if you have been reading my blog for any length of time, you know I’m a Disney geek, and also a history geek.  And…I married a geek too!  He not only loves all of the things I have already mentioned, but he also has a HUGE video game collection, loves Harry Potter (something I never really got into), and reads comic books.  I’m not sure why, but I have always been drawn to guys who have some kind of geeky streak to them (see above crush on Spock).

We are planning on attending Star Wars Weekends at Disney’s Hollywood Studios this coming May for my birthday, just like we do every year.  I have always felt left out that I didn’t have any Star Wars clothing to wear.  Everyone always dresses so festively, whether it’s an actual character costume (which I would never do…too uncomfy and hot!) or just a Star Wars themed t-shirt and/or hat.  I decided I wanted to participate this year, so I found this shirt from Old Navy with a very sassy Princess Leia on the front:

I wanted something a little extra, and remembered the Star Wars fabric that I had bought awhile back.  I decided to whip up a quick headband for myself (used this tutorial…SO easy, it literally took me about 10 minutes).

I ended up getting to wear my new geek-ensemble sooner than I thought!  Tadd and I ended up going to MegaCon 2013, which is one of the largest sci-fi/comic book/fantasy conventions in the southeastern US.

Now I am all ready for Star Wars Weekends!

What do you geek out about?  Come on, everyone has SOMETIHNG!

Top 5 Projects of 2012

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Can you believe that 2012 is almost over?  It seems like it has flown!  Tadd and I are ready for 2013.  If it’s anything like the past year has been, then we are in for some good stuff.  Can’t wait to find out!

Instead of a typical year in review post, I thought I would share my top 5 most popular project posts of the past year.  I always find it interesting to see what posts people like to read the most.  And it’s always fun to reflect on all I have done in the past year!

5. REUSABLE PRODUCE BAG

This reusable produce bag was one of the first sewing projects I completed at the beginning of this year.  I believe it was the first time I boxed a corner!  And it was one of the first projects that seemed to go really smoothly from start to finish.  Successes like these are what encouraged me to keep going with teaching myself how to sew this past year.  And on top of that, it’s just plain cute!

4. PINK SANGRIA

I love a good sangria recipe.  And although I do love this very popular pink sangria recipe that I made last May, I think my all-time favorite version is the peach sangria I made over 4th of July weekend!  It’s my new go-to summer drink of choice.

3. FALL TABLE RUNNER

If you know me, you know that fall is my favorite season.  When I saw this adorable fall fabric at JoAnn Fabrics, I knew I had to think of a project to make with it.  This lead to this reversible fall table runner, which was my very first ever sewing project where I made something just based on what I wanted, as opposed to following someone else’s tutorial.  It was also the first time I used a decorative stitch.  It obviously wasn’t anything super complicated, but I was still so pleased with how it turned out.

2. CHOCOLATE CHIP CHEESECAKE

My chocolate chip cheesecake post from last spring has REALLY taken off in the past several weeks.  As I mentioned previously, this recipe has been pinned and repinned a TON of times now.  It’s super easy and doesn’t require a lot of ingredients.  I not only made it for Easter 2012 dessert, but made it again last week for our family’s Christmas dinner dessert!  It’s always a big hit.

1. TERRACOTTA POT SAUCER COASTERS

This is, no question, the most popular post EVER on my blog.  It’s the closest thing I have gotten to going viral and it still gets a ton of hits almost every single day.  As a matter of fact, this post has gotten more pageviews than my blog’s regular main page!  Everyone loves these terracotta pot saucer coasters.  I’m glad everyone loved this project as much as I did, although I certainly did not come up with the idea.  I was inspired by this great post from the Joy Is At Home blog, and she was inspired by someone else and so on.

What were your favorite projects that you completed in 2012?  Any goals or ideas for 2013 projects?

Scrappy Patchwork Tree Ornaments!

Posted by sunshineandsometea in Crafts & Decor and tagged with , , , , , , ,

I was recently inspired by this post on noodle-head.com and decided to try my hand at making some scrappy tree ornaments like the ones she made.  I found I could make them quickly with very little materials.  I already had a large amount of brown felt leftover from another project, so I cut them into the appropriate shapes (get the printable template on noodle-head.com).

Then all I needed was a few cute pieces of festive holiday fabric.  You barely need any…just some small scraps will do…  (small print works best)

And a little bit of ribbon….

And you’re ready to sew!

It’s pretty simple.  Sew the tree scraps to one piece of felt first.  Then sew the two pieces of felt together with a ribbon at the top for hanging.  One nifty trick is that you stuff a little bit of batting into the ornament while it’s still on the needle, just before continuing on to sew the third and final side of the felt together.

Viola!  Cute, rustic ornaments that take about 5 minutes to make.  I made mine in a very speedy fashion and they are far from the perfect little trees posted on noodle-head.com, but I kind of like that they look handmade and rustic.

A couple of other ideas I had regarding this project:

I made one without the ribbon loop at the top and gave it to my kitties as a toy.  I would like to make another one for them, but put a little catnip in with the batting.

These would be great with some kind of scented item on the inside.  Maybe some cinnamon?

Linking up!:

shabby creek cottage

Fall Table Runner

Posted by sunshineandsometea in Crafts & Decor and tagged with , , , , , , , ,

I recently found some really cute fall fabric at JoAnn’s and decided I wanted to make a really simple reversible table runner for my kitchen table. I got a yard of each fabric, eyeballed the size that I wanted, sewed them together with some light batting to give it some weight, and then top-stitched with a decorative stitch. Simple, but really cute!

This was my first time using one of the decorative stitches, and I have to say, they are fun! But also take a ton of thread. This entire project took almost my whole spool of beige thread.

And here’s the finished product. Excuse the battered scratching post in the background! Maybe I should have staged a little better…

And here you can see the other side, which is a really pretty orange print.

Linking up to the It’s Fall Y’all link party at The Lettered Cottage and Transformation Thursdays at The Shabby Creek Cottage!

shabby creek cottage

A cute little owl.

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Recently Tadd and I were at Target in the Dollar Spot.  I don’t know about you, but I cannot make a trip to Target without making a stop at Dollar Spot.  I don’t always end up buying something, but I love that you just never know what kinds of things you might find.  I have bought wine stoppers, personal water misting systems (for hot days at the theme parks!), headbands, seasonal stuff, etc.   It’s also a great place to find stocking stuffers during the holidays.

While we were there, Tadd pointed out this one lonely little ceramic owl vase with a chip on his beak, priced at $2.50.  I love owls (Tadd randomly bought me owl pajamas several years ago for Christmas and I have been smitten with them ever since), so I had to take him home, beak chip and all.  Isn’t he cute?

A couple coats of spray primer and white paint, and he is looking pretty on my kitchen windowsill!

Quick, easy, cheap little projects like this make me happy.

Enjoy your weekend!

Linking up:

Home Stories A2Z

Exciting things happening in my kitchen!

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Hope everyone had a great weekend!  Mine was extremely productive.

I started early on Saturday morning by waiting in line at my local Yankee Candle store for the Boney Bunch preview.  I am such a sucker for these things!  I know some might not agree, but I just think they are so cute.  I ended up with three pieces to add to my collection, the kitty, the rowboat, and the light-up submarine!

The kitty is the smallest piece, but I think it’s my favorite.  I also bought the $10 promo candy dish, and several wax tarts.  I love the new fall scent Apple Pumpkin!

The most exciting thing that happened this weekend is our continued work on the kitchen island.  We nailed in the trim, filled holes, caulked, cleaned, sanded, primed, and painted!  What a difference!  Here is a sneak peak of the before and after.

We still have work to do on the doors, drawers, a few touch up spots, and we have to install the new hardware we just purchased at Target!  Thanks to a giftcard, we only had to spend $55 on 12 pulls and 20 knobs.  I thought that was pretty good.  They are in oil-rubbed bronze, to match our light fixtures.  Love them!  Can’t wait to see them on the cabinets.

We are taking our time, but eventually all of the cabinets will be painted this same color (Vintage by allen & roth/Valspar at Lowes in case you were wondering).  We also have plans in store for the countertops (and backsplash…and pantry doors…and so on…).  I have no idea how long it will take us to do everything, but we are not in a hurry, so I will show you our progress as we go.

Some thoughts on the work we have done in the kitchen thus far:

  • Beadboard is really easy to work with.  We bought pre-finished, paint ready, interlocking sheets of beadboard at Lowes.  Love that stuff!  We used 3 packages for this project, at about $18/package.
  • We used window casing in lieu of baseboard because we liked the chunkier look it gave us.  I do not regret this one bit.
  • Love the tip of using a dowel rod on the outside corners of the island.  It really does blend right in with the beads and helps the corners look finished off.
  • We used the following tutorials to help us:  Thrifty Decor Chick: How to install beadboard and At The Picket Fence: My kitchen island transformation

Stay tuned over the next few weeks (or months, maybe?) for more on the kitchen mini-remodel!

Linking up!:

Home Stories A2Z

shabby creek cottage

A plethora of stuff in progress…

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Sorry things have been somewhat quiet around here.  I have been working diligently on a few projects that are not near ready to share yet.  Here are some sneak peeks:

Project #1 (which involves lots of cutting, and lots of sewing small pieces of fabric together):

…and Project #2 (squee!)

Yes, we have started our mini-remodel in the kitchen.  I’m still not entirely sure how far we are going to take this project, because now that the beadboard is up, the countertops offend me even more than usual and they JUST HAVE TO GO.  But if we replace the counters (even if we just start with the counters on the island), then we have to replace the island sink.  Then you have to replace the faucet.  It just begets more and more and more projects.  We will have to see as we go.  I have a feeling the kitchen will be in transition for a long time starting now.  But hopefully it will be fun for people to follow along?

We have also been happily distracted all weekend by this:

In other exciting news…My husband recently signed up for Birchbox for Men.  Can’t wait until his first box arrives (should be any day now), so I can share and tell you his impressions of the products!  Still patiently waiting for my invite for the women’s version…

Red swirly mini zip wallet

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I know I tend to make the same projects over and over again, but I thought I would share the latest mini zip wallet that I made as part of a friend’s birthday gift.  I might have to make the exact same one for myself because I freaking adore that red fabric, and I just really find these tiny wallets incredibly useful.

You can see the other mini zip wallets I have made here.

You can find the original tutorial I used to make the wallet here, at noodle-head.com (which is an excellent resource for easy-to-follow sewing tutorials).

I promise I will try some totally new projects soon.  I am already thinking about fall, and saw a great fabric for a fall table runner.  Also, I found a great tutorial on making a scarf that I would like to try.  So bear with me on the overabundance of project repeats!

shabby creek cottage

Ah, weddings…

Posted by sunshineandsometea in Crafts & Decor, Friends & Family and tagged with , , , , , , ,

I love weddings, don’t you?  Aside from just sharing in the joy of the bride and groom, there are so many ancillary things I love about weddings.

  • I love seeing the personalization that each couple puts into their wedding to make it unique.
  • I love the creativity involved.  I very often find the settings, colors, flowers, and overall look of each wedding to be inspiring.
  • I find the gravity and sincerity of the occasion to be so moving.  It’s amazing to share such a special moment with a couple that I care about.
  • Weddings are just plain fun.  I get to dress up, slow dance with my husband, and have a great time with friends and/or family.
  • It always makes me reminisce about my own wedding, nearly 8 years ago…

I’m sure I could go on.  And it makes me SO happy that tomorrow I get to see my friends Lara and Tom do just that, get married!  I wish them SO much happiness on their special day and for the rest of their lives.  It’s going to be a beautiful day and I am excited!

On a related note, Tadd and I both went out and got new outfits to wear tomorrow.  Well, Tadd got a new shirt and tie that  he will wear with an existing suit.  I, however, got a new dress, cardigan, shoes, and jewelry!  That is another reason weddings are great…they are a great excuse to shop!  I purchased the below dress.  It’s the most lovely shade of yellow (it’s actually slightly deeper in person), and I love it.

I decided to do something I hadn’t done yet since I started sewing.  I decided to make myself something special…A wristlet to go with my new dress!  I used that awesome yellow floral fabric I bought during my birthday shopping spree.  I have to say, I think it came out pretty cute!

I used this same tutorial that I have used for all of my wristlets thus far.  I urge any of you sewers out there to give this one a try.  It’s such an awesome tutorial, easy to follow with great results every time.

A zippy wallet for the birthday girl.

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One of my best friends had a birthday over the weekend.  I decided to take another crack at Noodlehead’s zippy wallet for part of her gift.  Love this tutorial!  It’s easy, cute, and takes a teeny bit of fabric.

I made one for myself awhile back and used it for the first time in my wristlet as a mini-wallet during our ghost-hunting bachelorette party night out on the town.  It easily and securely held my ID and credit card in the front pocket, with paper money and coins in the zip pouch.  It took up almost zero room in my wristlet, but was big enough to very easy to fish out whenever I needed it throughout the evening.

The photo below is before the snap was added to the tab, but you get the idea.

And here’s the one I made for the birthday girl this past weekend:

Cute, huh?  If you are looking for something cute and small to make for a little gift, this tutorial is a great option!  Thanks to Noodlehead for always offering some of the best tutorials for us beginner sewers!

  shabby creek cottage