Feeling Beany: How to Make a Lima Bean Wreath

Christmas wreaths are all over the Internet right now. There are so many different kinds and different ways to make them. When I heard about making a wreath out of lima beans, I was skeptical. However, after I thought about it more it didn't seem like that crazy of an idea. I was in need of a Christmas wreath so I gave it a shot. Here's how it turned out.

It started with a plain, foam wreath that I got 40% off at Hobby Lobby. You only need a glue gun and lima beans after that! I started hot gluing one bean at a time on my wreath. It's a great project to do in front of the TV or with in the midst of a crowd.



They might think you are a little crazy (like my husband did) by attempting to hot glue that many lima beans to a wreath but if you can handle the criticism, it's fun to do around people.



It is a bit monotonous but it really didn't take as long as I thought it would.



After all the beans were glued on, I primed it with my favorite spray paint primer (Kilz) and then gave it another coat of white spray paint.



Add a lovely Christmas ribbon and you're done!

If I could go back and do this again, I would have spray painted the wreath before gluing the beans on. I don't like how I can still see green underneath. I also would have taken more time to pick off the hot glue remnants. Those seemed to show up more when spray painted. From far away it didn't look too bad though.



Overall, I like it... from far away. Just don't look too close. :)

Now if only I could find a place to put it in my house!

 

Make Your Own Baby Wipes

Due to some stubborn diaper rash on Adelyn's bum, I started asking questions about things that could possibly help it go away a little faster. I got a few good suggestions from my expert mommy friends. One told me that her doctor told her to stop using wipes and switch to a wash cloth for a while. Apparently the chemicals in wet wipes can sometimes be a little harsh on the sensitive areas. I did a little poking around online and got some ideas on how to make your own wipes. So, I'm giving it a shot.

Lots of people suggested cutting up flannel receiving blankets and using those. Since I had a pack of 5 that I wasn't using, I figured they could be sacrificed to the cause of healing Adelyns red hiney. I cut them up in squares- probably 8x8 sizes but  I didn't bother measuring since they are simply butt wipes. I read that flannel blankets fray pretty bad so I did a simple zig-zag stitch around the outside of each wipe.

To use them, we just wet it down with a spray bottle, wipe the booty, and toss it in the hamper if we aren't using our cloth diapers. If we are using the Fuzzi Bunz, I just toss the rag in with the diaper and wash them all together. Since her poop isn't too gross yet, it really isn't a big deal nor is it very stinky.

Hopefully this will help out my little gal's tush!

Beanbags by the Number

A new stage of live has begun: Baby Showers. 

Just when I started to become the master of wedding showers, I have to move on to this whole new foreign area. Baby showers are a whole new ball game. On Friday, I went shopping for my cousin, Maddie whose shower was the next day.  As I looked over her registry at Target, I felt like I was reading a foreign language. While trying to find a "Brown and Pink Bobby Slip Cover" or a "Born Free 5 oz Wide Neck Bottle," I realized I was way out of my league. I settled for a set of bottles that she wanted and decided I would make something personal to go along with the gift. 

Here's what I came up with. 

 I must say, I can take no credit for this idea. The only originality in this project were my fabric choices. Everything else came from Sarah at Create Studio.  

If you want to know how they were made, keep reading:

I started by making my own number templates. I'm sure there is a better way to do this but I was wanting to make fast progress.

I then traced the number on the fabric and cut it out.

Flip the number over and do the same thing.

I then sewed the numbers, right sides out. (I was careful to leave an opening so I could pour in the rice later.)

After the numbers were sewn, I went through the tedious task of snipping around the edges. This is to create the frayed look. 

After snipping all the edges, throw those puppies in the washer (I added mine to a load of laundry). Dry them too. When you pull them out, they will be frayed.

Use a funnel to add the rice through the opening you left when sewing. 

Sew up the hole used for that and you're done!

I did make one little mistake in the midst of this project. For a few of the numbers, I chose a fabric that was too loosely woven. So after washing, drying, and pouring the rice in, I realized that rice pieces were slipping out the sides.

(See the holes it left?)

So I had to redo the six and eight bean bags. 

Other than that, I thought they turned out great! 

 DISCLAIMER TO THE MOTHERS TO BE:

If you invite me to your baby shower, you will probably see these again. :)

Fabric Flowers: You Win Some, You Lose Some

Remember the fabulous Easter basket my mother gave us last weekend?

Well, I found a place for it! It's serving a slightly different purpose however.

I wanted to snazz up the basket a little and have also been wanting an excuse to attempt making a fabric flower. So, today was the day.

I followed this tutorial (kinda) to make my little guy.

In my first attempt, I picked some thicker fabric that I got at an estate sale a few weeks back. 

Cut a 45X2 inch strip. Folded it in half (long ways) wrong sides together and ironed it. No pinning necessary-wahoo!

I then set my machine to do a basting stitch (long stitches) and sewed a 1/4 seam along the folded edge.

Make sure to NOT to make a knot at the end by reversing. 

 Next step is to grab one of the threads that you just sewed and pull it. The fabric should scrunch right up to give you a nice little ruffle. 

However, if you are like me and chose a thick fabric, you will quickly learn that it doesn't work on thick fabric. Or if it does, I have no idea how to do it. After pulling and pulling, this is as far as I could get the fabric to ruffle up. I gave up and went hunting for a thinner fabric. Grrr.

I dug out some fabric I found at a garage sale last weekend. And did the same steps as above.

 

This time it worked a little better.

(Sigh of relief)

Next step was to roll the ruffled fabric up cinnamon roll fashion. As you're doing this, you'll hand sew the bottom part to secure your rolls.  Tip: Use a thimble!

Flip that baby over and a flower is born!

If you want, you can add a little raz-ma-taz to the middle. Some use buttons, some are lazy like me and use a sick on jewel.

Hot glued it on a ribbon...

Done and Done.

Sewing Machine Cover 2.0

A while back I made a cover for my sewing machine.  It was one of the first things I ever made. I was so proud of it at the moment. As time has gone on, I have realized that this cover is, well, CRAP. It was hard to slide on, it would always mess up the threading in my machine and so on.

Now that my sewing skills have improved (somewhat), I decided to tackle the project once again. I got 28 of these 5X5 fabric squares from ebay a few weeks ago. The project began by me sewing 12 of them together to make one big piece of fabric.

After a very tedious hour, I had my two pieces fully sewn. 

 At this point I started to get pretty pumped. I was LOVING the way it was shaping up. 

I needed my fabric to be somewhat structured. Something that was stiff enough to simply place on my machine without snuggling it on there. The solution? 

Fusible Interfacing

This stuff is awesome. You just iron it on the back of your fabric and it gives it structure and stiffness. I got mine from Hobby Lobby for $4.00 a yard.

I got all my pieces ironed, measured my machine, cut the pieces down to fit,  and then began the sewing!

Putting the right sides together, I sewed the top of the cover first. 

I then moved to the side pieces. One more to go!

I got the last piece on, and flipped it around to see what it was looking like...

At this point I was surprised that it was actually working (considering I wasn't following any pattern or instructions.)

I wanted to add a hem around the bottom to give it a finished look. So I cut a strip of fabric 46x2 inches and sewed that puppy on there. 

I thought I would get fancy and use a zig-zag stitch on the outside. 

Again, I was surprised at how freaking GOOD this was turning out!

After that, I ironed the edges, added a handle, and stepped back to look at the finished product. 

How cute is that!! It just lifts on and off so easily. 

I think it's safe to say this is one of the cutest things my sewing machine and I have made together. 

Before and After

Feeling Ruffled?

I made a scarf.It's ruffled.

Sophie helped.
(she seriously sat there the whole time I sewed)

Here's how I did it if you care...


I stumbled upon this tutorial but decided to give it my own twist.
http://everycraftyendeavor.blogspot.com/2010/01/how-to-make-ruffle-scarf.html
Get two 1/2 yard pieces of Jersey Knit fabric. Jersey knit doesn't fray and is super comfy.
Fold it in half and fold it again. It should be around 18-19 inches long.

After folded, in half. Apply the steps to both pieces if you haven't figured that out yet.

So now you should have 4 long pieces of fabric.

Sew the ends together to make one long piece of each color. Don't freak out- it's deceivingly long.

You'll need some elastic thread for the next step. Hand wind your bobbin with the elastic (not too tight) and prepare your machine with a thread that will match your fabric. Make sure your setting is on baste stitch.

Next, pin the fabrics together and sew a straight line all the way down the fabric. I stitched mine around an inch and a half in. You'll see the fabric start to gather as it is sewn.
Now do the same thing down the other side of the fabric.

At this point, the scarf it technically done. However, I got nervous relying on one elastic thread to hold my entire scarf together so I went back over my seam with a zig-zag stitch.

Badabing Badaboom. Ruffled scarf.