Seriously Jenni!?!

Let it Rain!!! The Elephant Umbrella Tutorial

2010-08-04T15:59:00.000-07:00

I love it when it rains! I don't love it when it borders on a monsoon, but a nice steady cool rain that brings a much needed gust of cooler air is always a welcome occasion. Lately around here it has been either hot, hot, hot with the heat index teetering around 110 degrees or violent severe thunderstorms accompanied by torrential downpours and followed up with city wide flooding. I don't know whether to walk around in a my teeny weeny yellow polka dot bikini all day (which wouldn't be a pretty site) or start building an ark.

Instead, I have decided to let mother nature inspire me to create a unique accessory to help shield me from these treacherous times. *sigh* (Was that dramatic enough for ya?)

Hence...The Elephant Umbrella!

This is such a simple project and there are so many ways to personalize it and make it your own. Add your own images, a favorite saying or a name. Seriously! The possibilities are endless!

So, let's get started...

First things first, get all your supplies together.

You will need:

an umbrella

fabric for your designs

heat bond

an iron

the design you want to create, tracing paper, a marker and scissors

(I am a Dr. Seuss fanatic and I love elephants, so I used the elephant from Dr. Seuss's ABC book)

After you have selected your design, trace it onto tracing paper (I used regular notebook paper and it worked just fine). Then cut the design out. This will be your template for creating the design on your fabric.

Trace the design on the backside of your fabric. Use a pen or marker that won't bleed and leave a mark.

Be sure to trace your design in the reverse image of how you want the final design to look.

Trace as many as you will need (I made 8 elephants since there are 8 sections on my umbrella) and then cut them all out.

Don't worry if your fabric is wrinkled. This will be taken care of in a later step.

Repeat this process on the sheet of heat bond for each piece you have created. Be sure to trace your design on the correct side of the heat bond. Read the instructions carefully so you will now which side attaches to your design and which side attaches to the umbrella.

TIP: You could attach the heat bond to the fabric before tracing and cutting out each design. If you do this step, trace your design a bit larger than you want the final piece to be so you can trace on the front of the fabric and cut inside the lines to ensure no markings are on your design. I chose to do this the hard way, because I tend to get ahead of myself. I should really learn to stop and plan out all my steps first before diving right into a project. But, I digress......

Attach the heat bond to the design following the manufacturers instructions.

Iron each design onto your umbrella. If you are picky about perfection, you may want to mark each spot before you start ironing. I tend to just eyeball things, so I (once again) just jumped right in and started ironing. Make sure all the edges are secure!

Viola! Now you have your very own unique personal umbrella.

Now, go outside and wait for it to start raining!

Top Quote of the Night

2010-07-30T11:03:00.000-07:00

Project Runway Season 8 premiered last night and it was fabulous. One of my favorite parts of the show is the overly descriptive and imaginative insults that Michael Kors throws at the designers on the runway. And last night he did not disappoint.

My Favorite: "She looks like a pole dancer from Dubai." directed at the tragic outfit created by Casanova (#4).

I seriously think Michael Kors needs to teach classes on how to give such creative insults. I would certainly jump at the chance to learn from the master!

Make It Work!...Or Give It Up??

2010-07-29T14:00:00.000-07:00

It's back!

It's here!

The day has finally arrived!

Project Runway returns tonight!

I am so excited, I can hardly wait for this day to be over and the evening to arrive.

I am mostly intrigued to know which designer prompts Tim Gunn to stray from his usual "Make It Work" attitude to "Give It Up".

Also, will it be possible for them to find a designer that will be fiercer than my all time favorite, Christian Siriano?

A Birthday Gift for Molly...Finally!

2010-07-23T15:23:00.000-07:00

I am a little embarrased to share this with you, but Molly's birthday was the end of March. That's right! I said March! And, sadly, I just gave this gift to her a few weeks ago. Anyway, I was inspired by these...but not quite patient enough to make them out of plastic. I tried twice and failed both times. So, I cheated. I made them out of waffle weave muslim. I think they turned out just as cute. In fact, I had a hard time parting with these. I almost kept them for myself, but I didn't.

I will definitely be making myself a set of these very soon.

I love my green bags that I have already made, but these are so cute.

It's time for new ones.

The Streamer Frock Grosgrain Giveaway

2010-06-25T09:56:00.000-07:00

The Streamer Frock Grosgrain Giveaway

Is this not the most adorable dress you have ever seen? I mean, Seriously!!!!

Dear Old Dad...

2010-06-20T09:00:00.000-07:00

Father's Day is here and I thought it might be nice to take a minute and write a little something to the dads in my life...

Dear Daddy,

When I think back on all the memories of growing up, there are so many things I want to say. I just don't even know how to cover it all. So, let's just get right into it...

Remember when I was learning to drive and you noticed a little scratch on the bumper of your Mercedes? I guess it's finally time I come clean....Chris did it. :)

Just kidding, I don't want to rehash all those memories (as I am sure you don't either). Instead I wanted to write you an "I love that you are my daddy because..." letter. So, here goes.

I love that you are my daddy because...

...even after you would yell at my brothers and me and then hand out punishments, you hugged me and said "I love you, kid."

...when I was in high school, you could carry on a 5 minute coherent conversation in your sleep and not remember it the next day.

...you take pride in everything you do.

...you learned to sign your curse words so you could communicate effectively with other drivers on the road.

...you taught me never to end a sentence with a preposition.

...you think you write legibly, even though you really don't.

...your favorite phrase is "Let me explain something to you..." {Slowly a crowd gathers with cocoa and popcorn as we all curl up for a long, LONG, LOOOOONG explanation about how life really works!}

...even though nobody else finds it amusing, you enjoy spelling words in the military alphabet.

...you taught me to check my oil (even though I don't do it as often as I should, it's the thought that counts..right?).

...you have the driest sense of humor of anyone I know. And you always make me laugh.

...despite the fact that you try not to let people see it, you are crazy about your dog.

...while moving me to California, you were courteous enough to wake me up to see every Phillips 66 station from Kansas City to San Francisco. Thanks Dad!! I didn't really need to sleep!!

...while moving me to Reno, you were there by my side as we got ripped off in Winn-a-F-ing-mucca!

...while moving me home from Reno, you were calm and forgiving when I locked the keys in my car while it was running at 3 in the morning.

...when you found out my best friend got a speeding ticket in high school and hid it from her parents, you grounded her at our house to make sure she was punished.

...you taught me that nothing good ever happens after midnight.

...you can't pronounce Ocho, but it is so amusing to watch you try.

...when I was six and Grandma got mad at me for losing the ring she gave me while I was at gymnastics practice, you drove me back to the gym and helped me find it.

...you are a problem solver. When I was in junior high and we couldn't get the carbon monoxide detector to stop beeping (even after removing the batteries), you had the perfect solution! Open the freezer door and throw the detector in as hard as I can. It worked!

...you creatively and lovingly gave all my brothers the nickname of Numb Nuts and me the nickname of No Nuts.

...even though we both know you never got me a pony, a clown and a cotton candy machine for my 6th birthday party, you are convinced that if you just keep telling me it happened then eventually I will believe it to be true.

(This is just a small list of the reasons, but here is the most important one)

...you always made me feel special and loved.

Thanks for being such a great daddy! I love you! Happy Father's Day!

Love, Jenni (a.k.a. No Nuts)

Just one more letter...

Dear Grandpa,

Happy Father's Day! I am so blessed to have had you around when I was growing up. I feel lucky that I get to experience the benefits of knowing you and I feel sorry for all my cousins who didn't live here and don't know you like I do. You are such an amazing man and I just want to thank you for what you have taught me over the years. Thank you for teaching me to be considerate of others. I admire your ability to always consider everyone else above yourself and I try every day to mimic that. Thank you for teaching me faith. I have never known you to question your faith in God, but to always praise him and turn to him. I admire your strength and because of that I strive to strengthen my faith every day. Thank you for sharing knowledge with me. You are the wisest person I know and yet always humble. You have a thirst for knowledge that is never quenched and I am blessed to have inherited a small dose of that from you. There are so many of your qualities that I admire and am thankful I was exposed to, but mostly I appreciate your courage. You have always shown the courage to stand up for your beliefs, to stand up against those who are disrespectful to your friends and family, and to stand up for your country whenever it is necessary. You are such a wonder grandfather and I thank God everyday that you are my grandfather.

Love, Jenni

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there! Seriously!

I believe...

2010-06-16T10:42:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to take a quick minute and say what's on my mind.

I believe...

everything happens for a reason.

in never paying full price for anything.

shoes should always be optional.

the world would be a better place if we all viewed each other like we did when we were four.

it's not the government's place to tell me how much sugar I can eat in a day.

I could win the show Survivor if I had the guts to apply. (I know, I know, you are thinking "Seriously?" and I just want to say that I know that just because I believe it...doesn't make it true. ;)

blue is the most beautiful color.

having brothers is better than having sisters. (this might be a little biased since I have 5 brothers and 0 sisters...and Yes! They always wear suspenders when they go fishing!! Seriously!)

AND MOST IMPORTANTLY...

dessert should always be eaten first!!

Slowly Recovering...

2010-05-25T13:42:00.000-07:00

I had such a jam packed weekend, that I think I am going to need a full week to recover...

Saturday, I headed to my niece's soccer game (an hour away from where I live) to watch her guard the goal. I don't know if I would really call that guarding since it was not an even match up and she spent most of the game watching her team play soccer at the other end of the field. But, despite that, it was fun to go watch her and her team play and to spend a few minutes with her after the game. Then, my mother and I headed to an estate sale (because we can't help ourselves) and discovered the most beautiful dinner table with seven chairs!! It took the rest of that day and half of Sunday to convince ourselves we didn't need to buy it. But, if it would have fit in my car...it would have come home with us. I am still feeling a little remorseful that we didn't just break down and buy it.

Sunday, I helped my mother with a parking lot flea market sale hosted by the antique store where she has a booth. It was soooooo HOT!!! I was already a tiny bit sunburned from the soccer game on Saturday and despite the fact that I was covered in sunscreen, I am now a whole lot sunburned from spending the day outside. Not quite sure it was worth it. A whole day in the sun, burnt to a crisp and we certainly didn't make enough money to justify the whole thing. I don't know how you garage salers do it. What a frustrating thing to deal with. I would rather just give it all to Good Will or the Salvation Army and go shopping instead.

Monday (Ok, I know Monday is not technically a weekend day...but it kind of is for me), my mom, nephew Connor and I headed to the zoo to meet up with my sister-in-law and two more of my nephews, Charlie and George. We got to the zoo around 9:30 in the morning and it was already 85 degrees. By the time we left two hours later, it had to be in the low 90s. That's all I needed to top off my sunburn. Plus, my nephews were a little disappointed that some of the animals were hiding under the shade and we couldn't see them. It was still a pretty successful trip. Lots of fun and all three of them were so well behaved. The only thing that would have made it better is if the concessions had been open. I guess the zoo employees figured if we weren't smart enough to bring our own supply of ice cold drinks, then that was our problem. Seriously?!?

So, now I am exhausted with no time to rest...Seriously (she says as she lets out a sigh and shakes her head in dismay)!

Tutorial: How to do your own screen printing, make your own stencils

2010-05-19T13:41:00.000-07:00

Supplies:

1. Freezer Paper (Do NOT use wax paper! It will melt!!!)

2. A stencil or outline of the design you want to use. (I got mine at http://www.spraypaintstencils.com/)

3. A marker to trace your design onto the freezer paper.

4. An exacto knife to cut out the stencil

5. Fabric paint (I prefer Tulip)

6. Paint applicator

7. A cutting mat

8. An iron

9. The item you want the stencil to go on (I used a T-shirt)

Now that you have gathered all your materials, let's get started!!!!

Step 1: Lay the freezer paper over your design (shiny side down) so you can see it through the paper and use your marker to trace the design onto the freezer paper. These are the lines you will be cutting out to create your stencil, so you can decide how detailed you want it to be during this step.

Step 2: Lay the freezer paper flat on top of your cutting mat and use the exacto knife to cut on the lines you just traced. If your design is very detailed, make sure to be careful on the smaller pieces and the sharp curves. This step can seem frustrating and time consuming, but it will be worth it in the end. So, take your time!!!

Step 3: After removing all the pieces from your design, it should now look like a stencil. Place it on top of your project and determine where you want the design to be. It is easiest to do this step on the ironing board, since you will be determining the exact spot you want the design. You don't want to get it all set up perfectly and then try to move it to the ironing board only to have the stencil shift.

Step 4: Turn your iron on to a setting appropriate for your project. (I used the cotton setting since my project is on a T-shirt.) Iron the stencil to your project (shiny side down). Be careful not to rip any of the smaller pieces during this process. Instead of pushing the iron back and forth over the design, I lifted it to move it to the next area. Once I had ironed each area, I then ironed back and forth over the design to make sure it was sealed on the shirt.

Step 5: Lay your project flat on a hard surface (like a cutting table, kitchen table, coffee table, etc.) and smooth out all wrinkles.

Step 6: Place an old towel or a piece of cardboard in between the layers of your project to avoid any paint soaking through to the back side.

Step 7: Using a paint brush or paint sponge, fill in the open spaces with the color of your choice. Be sure to fill in all the open spaces. Double check it after you are done to make sure you don't have light areas of paint or missed areas near the edges.

Overlap the paint onto the stencil to make sure your entire design is fully covered. Depending on the brand of paint you used, let the paint completely dry. My paint dries in 4 hours. I usually just let it sit over night to make sure it is completely dry. This is important. If you try to remove the stencil while the paint is still wet, the paint could get on the covered areas. You certainly don't want to ruin your project when you have already gotten this far.

Step 8: After the paint is fully dried, it is time to remove the stencil and see how it came out.

Step 9: Remove the stencil by peeling the freezer paper off the shirt. Do this step slowly to make sure you get the entire stencil. If part of it tears apart, make sure to remove those pieces using tweezers or your fingernails.

Step 10: Once you have all the stencil pieces off and you are satisfied with the end result, the only thing left to do is heat set the paint. Follow the instructions on your paint bottle. I use a hair dryer, but you could also use an iron. Make sure to cover the area with another piece of fabric or a towel. Do NOT put the iron directly on the design. It will destroy it!!! Seriously!!! Also, it is a good idea to always wash this project inside out.

Enjoy!! Now you know the secret to creating all your own personally designed clothes, gifts, home decor, etc.

I would love to see the projects you make with this tutorial. Please share some pics!!!

Yoga, Yoga, Yoga...

2010-05-18T09:54:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I took my first yoga class in probably five years. I forgot how simple, yet very hard it can be.

Obviously, I am a master at it...so what was I really worried about in the first place?

Ok, I confess...that's not me. I am not quite there, yet. Or maybe ever. This is more my pace...

Within the first 10 minutes, I was sweating and breathing heavy and feeling very, VERY out of shape. Then we calmed things down and did several different breathing exercises and by the time we finished with those, I was freezing!! Seriously??? I didn't think it was possible to feel so drastically different in such a short amount of time. But, that's yoga for you.

I was relieved to discover that I could still do some of it...not very well, but I could do it none the less. I just can't figure out why I stopped in the first place. Aside from the expected soreness in my muscles, I feel great. Seriously, I felt great when I left the class and I feel great today. Hopefully, I have reopened my eyes and can stick with it this time. Namaste.

Why do the foods I love not love me back?

2010-04-15T10:02:00.000-07:00

Last August my mom and I decided to try a little experiment to figure out what foods are bothering us and making us sick??? So, we went vegan and also gave up wheat. It was tough at first, but after the first few days...I didn't really miss anything except bread. We added wheat back in after a month and eventually we added back eggs, but have not (and will not) added meat or dairy back in. It was going great! We were feeling better than ever. But, we had one slight problem. Bagels and pasta had become a daily staple in our diets. So, when lent rolled around this year, we decided to give up the wheat again as our lenten sacrifice. It was much harder this time around. All I wanted was a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

I was so excited when Easter finally arrived. The anticipation was overwhelming. I had planned to have peanut butter and jelly sandwiches at every meal. And to top it off, we were going to have cupcakes again!!! I can't even descibe the excitement I felt. Then within a week I was starting to feel terrible again. Like I used to feel before the original experiment! Seriously?!? I just kept asking myself, why do I feel like this? I had headaches, felt tired, had achey joints and worst of all I felt like I was swelling from the inside out. Not just bloated, but I felt like I was going to burst!!

So, here we go again. Back off wheat and missing my PB&J sandwiches already. But, not as much as I miss feeling normal. Will this ever end?

Seriously!!!

2010-04-15T09:59:00.000-07:00

Here I go again, starting another blog. I currently write on a few topic specific blogs regarding sewing, home decor and living green. But every now then I just want to blog about my random thoughts. So, I thought it might be fun to have a free-spirited, anything goes, let's see what happens blog and just let the blog take on a life of it's own.

Now, a little about me...
I am a 30-something-year-old that has the most adorable dog in the world named Duchess. Awww!!
I am the only girl in a family of six kids. Seriously!
I became an ovo-vegetarian in August 2009 and am learning a lot about myself in the process.
I am constantly trying to better myself, learn new crafts and skills (my next project is to learn html and xhtml design...so we will see how that goes), and always trying to shed a few pounds (and by a few, I really mean a lot).
I have one niece and four nephews that I am sure will pop up on here from time to time.
I love the outdoors and don't spend nearly enough time there.
I love my family.
I recently discovered a love for blogging.

I hope you enjoy my ramblings and I love comments and feedback, so don't be shy!!!