Small Fry & Co.

Repurposed OJ Bottle for Craft Storage

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Doesn't everyone need more storage containers in their craft room? I am in desperate need. I guess that is why this:

Caught my eye and got me thinking-that would be a prime storage container. The idea was inspired by this tutorial over at Make it and Love it. I basically followed her same technique only on a bigger container and then I added my label to the front. The inside is painted with craft paint. I tried spray painting it but it did not cover well at all. The craft paint went on really nice. I am saving orange juice containers so I can make a couple more to match.

A work out I like and things I don't like about January

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Let's just talk about the month of January for a moment shall we? I know it is the month of the "new you" and new years resolutions and all that jazz but something just erks me about the plastering and advertising of nothing but weight loss, workout, get slim fast products that we are bombarded with during this month. Is that all anyone has to make a resolution about? I mean you walk into these big box stores and the front isles are filled with workout videos, yoga mats, vitamins, slim fast products and workout equipment. I looked at the Walmart add on line a few weeks ago and all it was all 4 pages was weight loss/healthy lifestyle products. I don't have a problem with new goals for a healthier you but all the focus on "looks" and being "buff" and "skinny" make me sick. You don't see the front shelves stocked with childrens books on sale to encourage parents to read more to their kids in the new year, or board games to encourage families to spend more time together. You don't see a major sale on fruits and vegetables to encourage families to set a goal to eat more produce and feed more to their children. You don't see advertisements about discovering new talents, or getting out of debt or getting your house in order. Just weight loss, weight loss, weight loss. I think it is a bit much world. Healthy living is important, but so are a lot of other things.

With that being said, having absolutely nothing to do with the fad of getting slim in the month of January I was looking for a new exercise video. I new it would be a good time to find one because there would be lots on sale with the big focus on "getting slim" in the new year so I decided to browse the selection for something new to use at my house. I had been doing a Jillian Michaels 30 day shred video. I don't know if I shredded anything during the time I did the video. I am pretty sure she assumes you will follow her diet plan as you are working out and that probably really helps with the shredding part. I was pretty sure cookies were not on her plan so I didn't bother to check it out. Here is what I liked about the video: it was 20 minutes and there were 3 levels. I knew it would all be over in 20 minutes and if I was feeling ambitious I did the more advanced option and if I was feeling not so ambitious I did the "less advanced" option. So I had been working out with Jillian for a while but felt like it was not pushing me at all (there wasn't enough sweating happening and I think the basis of working out is that there should be some sweat involved). So during the month of January sales on work out videos I picked up this:

And I LOVE IT!!!!! My body and bed still have a daily battle as to who will win in the morning but when I do get up and do this video I feel so great. Here is what I love about it:
#1. You can make it as long or as short as you want because you choose what you want to do. You can choose between a warm up, level 1 (which is 20 mins), level 2 (10 mins), level 3 (10 mins) and a cool down. You can select any combination of those levels.
#2. The people in the video are real contestants from the Biggest Loser and are therefore not a skinny stick in a sports bra telling you that if you want to have a flat butt like the girl on the video you need to do the exercise a certain way.
#3. The people in the video are at different levels of "fit" and therefore it is not like watching a little army of stick people are marching at exactly the same pace. If I can't get up from the burpees that fast I know I can look up and find one of my workout partners on the video lagging behind as well.
#4. The instructors are encouraging without being annoying.
#5. It makes you sweat-a lot.
#6. And this kind of goes along with #2 but the people are all wearing a full set of clothing. When I used to do the shred my girls would come in and take off all their cloths besides panties because that is what the workout ladies looked like to them.
I am not recommending this video to the skinny minnies out there that are already in good shape. You go ladies and more power to you. I am recommending this video to the women (and men) like me that are not fans of a workout but know we need to do it, who have a slight addiction to cookies and don't have all the time in the world to devote to fitness.
I am super happy with this purchase. It was a great way to spend my $10.00 on fitness for the year.

Homemade can rotating system...the upgraded version

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

After posting this on my blog last week: (a can rotating system made from a soda pop box)

my friend called and asked if it was able to hold two layers of cans? She said she had success with one holding two layers of soup cans but wondered if it could hold two layers of canned beans, corn, tomatoes etc. You know the 15 oz sized cans. I said it could not but it hadn't even dawned on me that there was probably a way to make it so that it could hold more cans then the 7 that could already fit in it. So my mind began racing and during nap time I used a soda pop box, some cardboard and a whole lot of duct tape and created this:

It successfully holds 11 cans and rotates pretty darn slick. I was planning on making my creation into a tutorial as I went but I soon looked at my creation and realized it looked like a 5th grade science project and needed to refine the process and figure out a way to use a lot less duct tape before the tutorial so stay tuned folks. There is hope.

Divided Wire Basket With Labels Getting Organized Part 4

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

This is the last of my getting organized desk or home office set-a divided wire basket with labels.

For this project you need:

1 of these wire baskets (though you could probably accomplish something similar with another kind of basket)

Heavy cardboard

Fabric scraps

Pellon ultra firm stabilizer scraps

Labels printed on fabric (leftover from the previous projects)

Sticky backed Velcro

Start by measuring the width of the basket.

Next measure the height

Cut two pieces of cardboard with those dimensions.

Place the cardboard in the basket like so:

Using one of the side wires of the basket trace the correct angle on the cardboard.

Cut with a sharp knife and fit back into the basket.

On the angled side mark two dots for holes an inch from the top and bottom.

Punch holes with an eyelet tool or a large nail. Spray paint the cardboard pieces to match the basket or your decor.

From the fabric scraps cut 3 3 1/2" squares (or as many as you want labels).

Fold it in half right sides together.

Stitch along one side and the top.

Turn right side out.

Insert a small piece of ultra firm stabilizer (3 x 1 1/2"). Iron to the fabric label.

Tuck under the open edges.

Pin in place as well as pinning a piece of ribbon 4" long (folded in half) on the top.

Sew around all 4 sides catching the ribbon.

Iron on the label printed on fabric.

To attach it to the basket I added two small pieces of sticky Velcro.

And here is the finished product. The cardboard pieces are tied on with pieces of coordinating string. It is a quick and easy upgrade of a plain old basket.

Make Monday: Spaghetti baked in garlic bread

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

I found this recipe for spaghetti baked in garlic bread via Pinterest. It is a combination of all the things my family loves. Super easy to make and a complete meal in one dish. Add a side salad and you are set. My husband says it makes good leftovers too.

Awkward Family Photo of the week

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 10:59:00 +0000

As I said before I am a fan of Awkward Family Photos because I am the subject of so many. This weeks photo comes courtesy of my childhood. I think actually I was a teenager. This is a picture of my brothers and I displaying our Christmas jammies for the year (you know the new jammies on Christmas eve tradition). My mom bought us all long johns. One of those things that sounded like a good idea at the time. I think we quit getting new jammies after this year.

Last Call for the Pellon Prize Pack Winner

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 10:57:00 +0000

Cindi from Minnesota, please leave a comment or send me an e-mail if you would like to claim your prize. I have no way to contact you. You have until Tuesday the 24th at which time I will draw another winner.

And the winner is....

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Cindi from Minnesota. I couldn't find your e-mail so please leave a comment with a way to get ahold of you or send me an e-mail.

Congratulations.

And for everyone that entered and didn't win, stay tuned next month for another giveaway.

Love Birds -No Sew Sweater Penguins

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Before Christmas I got the following comment on one of my snowman posts:

Coffee Fueled MamaNov 25, 2011 12:02 PM

Too cute...maybe penguins next? (I'm slightly obsessed with penguins, as my husband will tell you)

Stephanie
creationsalamode.blogspot.com

At first when I read it I thought, "penguins would be so cute" but I had no idea how I would even make one. Then the other day I was at the thrift store thumbing through the sweater rack (which is laden with tacky sweaters just waiting to be cut up) and I found a black one. I decided, "if I can turn a white sweater into a snowman then why not turn a black one into a penguin." So I did just that and these where the end result:

For this project you will need:

1 black sweater (at least size large). I made these from the body of the sweater because mine had short sleeves. You could easily make these from the sleeve of a long sleeved sweater.

1 t-shirt

white felt

orange felt

2 small black buttons or flat beads for eyes

stuffing

wheat or rice to make a weight in the bottom

glue gun

Begin by laying out your sweater flat. (this is to show you what mine looked like)

In this picture I had cut off the front of the sweater to make my first penguin. So now this is what is left from the back of the sweater (just so you aren't confused). Cut up along the side seams to the armpits, then follow the seam along the sleeve up to almost the neck of the sweater and across the top (precision is not important).

This is how it should look:

With the wrong side facing up, fold one side in towards the middle. Run a bead of glue down the straight edge.

Fold the other side over and press to glue together. On the upper angled part run a bead of glue again along one side and fold the other side over. This part is at an awkward angle and is hard to glue but the "ugliness" will be inside so not to worry.

Lastly run a bead of glue along the bottom and press to hold together.

Turn the whole thing right side out once the glue is all set. To create a weight in the bottom fill a small sandwich bag with wheat, rice, corn or beans.

Place the weight in the tube first and then fill with stuffing. Don't over stuff it. Lumps and bumps makes it look cuter. Fill up to about 2 inches from the top.

Run glue around the inside top and pinch together and hold until firm.

Tie off the penguins head with a piece of yarn. This can be adjusted as you dress your penguin.

To make the "girly" scarf cut a circle from the t-shirt.

Cut it into a spiral like this. Stretch this out into a long strip. Fold in half and cut to make 2 strips. Tie these around the penguins neck. The boy scarf is made from one long straight strip.

To form the hat cut a strip of fabric (7-9 inches) wide by about 12 inches long. Wrap it around the penguins head to see just how big it has to be to fit snug.

With right side up, fold each side in towards the middle and glue where they overlap. Turn right side out when glue is firm.

Place hat on penguins head, and tie off the top with a piece of string or extra t-shirt material.

Here is how she will look so far:

Using the pattern provided (cut face and belly a quarter inch bigger than the pattern prints), cut out the face and tummy pieces from white felt. Glue onto penguin with hot glue.

Cut out beak and glue.

Add on eyes

Now glue down the hat just where you want it by lifting up the edge and running a bead of hot glue underneath.

Tada!! So easy, and so cute. Wouldn't a whole family of these look cute. Perfect for Christmas, or just winter in general.

I decided to add a felt heart to my lady penguin and now they are love birds.

How did I do Coffee Fueled Mama?

Happy no sew crafting.

Valentines Cupcake Treat Holders

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

So as some of you have read I am doing a craft class locally at our Thrift Store. The idea of the class is to give people ideas of crafts they can make with stuff from the thrift store. For my first class I wanted to do something for Valentines day. After playing around with a number of different ideas I came up with these:

They look like cupcakes but the top lifts off to reveal a little treat holder. They make both a cute and functional valentine decoration. Can you imagine a layered cake stand with these on it? How fun. (they would be cute for birthdays or a wedding too)

Okay so here is what you need to make these:

1 old t-shirt (a jersey knit one)

An old book

Cupcake liner papers Glue gun

Spray adhesive

Cupcake wrapper template ( template can be found here I just trimmed off the scalloped top)

Pan, sucker sticks and cupcake toppers are optional

1. Print and cut out the cupcake wrapper template. Rip 2 pages from the book and trace the template on one, but cut through both layers.

2. I use my trash can for this; place one of the wrapper layers in the trash can, spray with adhesive and then stick to the other wrapper piece. (making it with two layers just gives it more stability).

3. Place a piece of double stick tape or a dab of glue on one straight end and adhere the other end to it to create a little cup.

4. Run a bead of glue around the cupcake liner paper and place down in the cupcake wrapper lining up the top edges.

5. From the t-shirt cut two 1 inch strips of fabric.

6. Cut the seams on one side of each strip to make two long strips. Glue two ends together with hot glue making one really long strip.

7. Fold the long strip in half.

8. Holding one end in each hand twist the the strip until it is tight and then fold in half again. The fabric should wind around itself like so: (looks rope like)

9. Beginning at the folded end put a small dab of hot glue and...

fold the end in (kind of making a little ball. this is going to be the center of the cupcake).

10. Continue running glue down the twist and curling the fabric round and round.

11. Try and add some dimension to the "cupcake frosting" by bringing the twisted fabric underneath as you glue making the piece more 3 dimensional instead of just round and flat.

12. The end result looks something like this:

13. Now this part is purely optional but I had just got this fabulous pack of glitter for Christmas so I wanted to try some out.

I put the "frosting" piece in my trash can and sprayed it lightly with adhesive spray and then dusted it with glitter.

Here is one done with pink glitter.

Here is one done with white glitter.

The final step is to make the cupcake toppers if you wish. I printed out the toppers from here and taped them to the top of a sucker stick. I glued the end of the sucker stick into the middle of my "frosting" pieces.

If you want to put them in a cupcake pan it makes them look a little extra cute. Just set your bottoms in and then fill with treats and place you frosting on top. A fun little Valentine's surprise.

Happy thrifty crafting everyone.

These ain't pretty but they are functional - Make Your Own Can Rotating System

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

I have seen these on Pinterest-they are a little more dolled up than mine but the basic idea is the same. SIDE NOTE: when you become a repurposing craftaholic it is hard to let any good garbage go and you end up with a pile of "junk" in the corner of your craft room just waiting until you are inspired to make something. It is kind of a bit of an obsession.

Well we had these boxes left over after Christmas. I decided to give it a try and make a can rotating system. I taped up any distressed areas or weak areas with duct tape. I cut a hole in the back at the top wide enough for a can to fit in. I cut two pieces of cardboard the same width as the box and taped them to the bottom underneath the back (to give it a bit of an angle and make the cans roll). I was going to spray paint the whole thing and decorate it up but then I decided not to waste my time. It is going to be in the basement holding western family tomatoes for heavens sakes. Who needs fancy.

The whole thing holds 7 cans. Now 7 cans is nothing if you are trying to establish food storage but I told my husband that if we just learn to always take the first one in the box and keep adding to it after we take one then at least we can be better about eating the old first and keep our food supply rotating.

Now I feel like raiding peoples porches, trash cans and fridges to get more so I can line my shelves with them. It was super fast to make-about 5 minutes total and very functional. A good thing-as Martha would say (though she would probably shun the whole project for not being appealing to the eye).

Pellon Giveaway -Big Prize Pack NOW CLOSED

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 17:05:00 +0000

CLOSED!!!!

Hey everyone, I am excited to announce another Pellon products giveaway. I have quickly used up a bunch of my prepacked stuff and now I am working on using up these wonderful products as well. This giveaway includes ALL of the following:

Single Sided Fusible Ultra Firm Stabilizer

Decor Bond (Firm Iron on Backing)

Fusible Fleece

Tru-Grid (perfect for making your own patterns)

Shape Flex (fusible woven interfacing). I just used a bunch of this to make a purse and it turned out super cute.

And here is a product you may not know about Odegon-DeOdor Tags. They iron into the armpits of a white shirt and help absorb odors. I put some in a new shirt I got and they feel great. I haven't worn it a lot so I haven't had a chance to notice a bunch of odor absorption but I love the concept. There are 2 sets in this box.

Here are the instructions for the following givewaway:
1. USA only
2. To enter go to the Pellon Projects website and look around then come back and share your favorite idea from the page.
3. For an extra entry write something on the Pellon Facebook page
4. For a third entry LIKE Odegon on Facebook
The giveaway goes until Jan 20th and the winner will be announced Jan 21st. Tell your friends. This is a great prize pack. Good Luck.

Make Monday-Salt and Vinegar Potato Chips

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Welcome to Make Monday-a variation of Make Ahead Monday where the recipe is something that you just need to make and eat right away.

There are only a choice few people that think that salt and vinegar potato chips sound heavenly. SIDENOTE: my husband and I tell each other "I love you like..." at night before we go to bed. We finish the sentence with something like cookies, cupcakes, going for walks etc. etc. Usually 2 times out of 7 I say, "I love you like salt and vinegar potato chips" and then add "but don't go and buy me any" because I am likely to eat the whole bag in one sitting. So when I found this recipe on Pinterest for homemade salt and vinegar potato chips I new I had to try them. You can find the recipe here. These did not disappoint in the slightest. I have no idea what fingerling potatoes are so I just used my regular potatoes. I cut them by hand and made a double batch. I could have eaten 2 pans by myself in a matter of minutes except that I was trying to cook something else for dinner at the same time. I froze mine and they taste fine warmed but are just not as crisp. I am likely to make a huge batch of these monthly. I can feel a bit better eating them instead of the greasy fried ones. My mouth is watering as I type. If you are a fan you must try these.

Awkward Family Photo of the Week

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 10:59:00 +0000

Well, this is a great shot to share with this baby when she gets older-pretty much looks like love at first site-don't you think?

Fabric Covered Notebook or Planner Getting Organized Part 3

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Need an idea for something extra to add to your office set? How about a matching fabric covered notebook or planner? These are quick and easy to make and a cool way to jazz up a boring book.

Materials:

1 notebook or planner (it needs to have a cardboard type cover-not plastic_

1 piece of material at least 1 inch bigger all the way around than the book you are using

1 piece of Wonder Under the same size as the book you are using

Double sided tape

Cardstock the size of the front and back cover (but to be used inside the book).

1. Begin by cutting the fabric bigger than the book. Take into account that it is going over the spine too so see the below picture to see how to include the spine in your measurement.

2. Cut a piece of Wonder Under the exact same size as the book. I laid the book out (open) and traced along the top, the held the book up like so and traced along the top of the other cover then down the side.

3. Cut

4. Iron the Wonder Under to the fabric piece (centering it). Peel off the paper backing.

5. Now place the fabric (adhesive side down) on the book. Watch your placement. Remember the adhesive should be the exact same size as the cover. Press with and iron...yep that is right-you can do that.

6. You know how a book has that little dent where the spine is, I just used the side of my iron to press that part. I held it up to press the spine section and then turned it over to finish the back.

7. Open up the cover to work on the inside. I ran a strip of double stick tape along all 3 sides of the cover and folded the fabric over (I had just barely enough fabric for this project so mine looks very sparse here but if you cut it right you should see more fabric and maybe need more tape to hold it in place.)

8. When it came to the fabric around the spine, I ran a little bead of craft glue right along the spine (in the little space between the page binding and the cover) and then stuck the fabric down in it with a pointy object.

9. Finally I added a bit more double stick tape on the cover flaps and then attached my piece of cardstock to cover the fabric edges.

This is how my almost completed project looked up to this point.

10. Finally I wanted to add a little label to the front. I cut two pieces of cardstock and glued them together. I cut a piece of Wonder Under the same size as the larger cardstock piece and ironed it on to the back.

11. I ironed this whole piece to the front cover of the book.

12. Using one of my labels that I printed on fabric

I traced around the label and then cut it out.

And ironed it to the center of my paper label. Tada-finished.

I think this project would be fun for personalizing journals, recipe books, even some school books. Lots of possibilities.

Penguins Coming Soon

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 05:35:00 +0000

Just made these. I had to share them. The tutorial is coming soon. Totally no sew, made from a black sweater. Super adorable.

I tried it and...I love it but...

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

It is really messy so neat freaks beware. I found this idea via Pinterest to make rainbow colored rice. The process to make the rice was super easy and the colors turned out so beautiful. I found a large tote at our local hardware store and then hit the thrift store to find scoops, measuring cups, funnels, shovels etc to put in the tub. I made the rice box for my little pumpkin for Christmas.

She loved it and so does big sister small fry and even the cousins. It is however messy. Trying to get them to keep all the rice in the box is IMPOSSIBLE. So I have put it on a hard surface so I can sweep each time after playing and it hasn't been so bad. Now just recently I found my two girls throwing the rice out by the handful at the wall and that resulted in time out, loss of playground and the box being taken away for a week. Perhaps my children are just naughtier than most or maybe they are too young for this still. Not sure. It is a great idea and much less messy than sand so I do intend to return said box when the confiscation consequence is over. I guess I will have to keep a closer watch for sure. Oh and the dye does rub off on cloths.

Hanging File Boxes (from cereal boxes) Getting Organized Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

The second part in my getting organized series is a set of hanging file boxes. I previously showed you a tutorial on making these out of soup can cardboard crates. This is the same idea but easier and most people have cereal boxes. NOTE: these are not durable enough to hold a lot of heavy papers/books etc.

Materials:

2 or more cereal boxes (the same width but not necessarily height)

Spray paint (your choice-black covers best of course)

Fabric scraps

paper scraps to match fabric

White fabric 8.5x11" (to make the labels on the front)

1 piece of Wonder Under iron on adhesive 8.5x11"

1. To begin measure up the side of your cereal box (the measurement is really up to you). On these I started with measuring 7 1/2" on one side (meaning the left side in the picture) and 7" on the other (meaning the right side) but then later decided that I wanted it to be 6 1/2 and 6".

Can you see my two marks (look closely by the word LIFE).

2. Whatever your smaller measurement is (in my case 6") meausure and mark that all along the front of the box too.

3. Now in a not at all precise or perfect way place your ruler on the markings and cut your box with an Exacto knife. When you get to the sides cut at an angle from the smaller measurement up to the larger measurement. Continue from this point all the way up to the top of the box. Repeat on the other side.

It should look like this.

4. Now trim off the top of the back.

5. Repeat the process on your other cereal boxes. Notice that the second box I used was much taller at the back.

A simple measurement and trim took care of that. Now take your boxes and spray paint them-focusing on the front, sides and bottom, not so much on the inside part and lightly on the back.

6. After the paint has dried measure the front of the pocket.

7. Cut a piece of fabric that is a half inch smaller in both directions than the front pocket. Attach with spray adhesive.

8. Next I made a label to go on the front. There are lots of different methods you could use. I wanted to try something I had seen recently on Pinteret-printing on fabric with your ink jet printer. This is revolutionary people. I LOVE THIS. To start you will need to cut a piece of fabric and a piece of Wonder Under (or another adhesive if you don't have Wonder Under with a paper backing) the same size as a sheet of paper. I used a piece of cardstock as a pattern. Iron the Wonder Under to the fabric. Now go to your computer and create your document to print (I just used Word). Type it just like you would to print on paper. When you are ready, tape the fabric piece (Wonder Under side down ) onto a piece of cardstock. I used a couple of pieces of double sided tape. Now put in your printer and print as normal.

Here are my labels printed on my fabric. I wanted to use these labels for the other projects I am making in the series and didn't want to waste that sheet of Wonder Under so I printed all my labels on one page.

9. Cut out around the label.

10. Mount the labels to cardstock first. I peeled off the backing paper and ironed them to the cardstock.

Then I attached these to the file pockets with spray adhesive.

11. Lastly you need to punch holes to create a hanger. Measure in from each side 2 1/2" and mark.

12. Punch a hole on each mark with a hand held hole punch.

13. Loop a piece of ribbon through the holes and tie in a knot at the top. Hang on hooks or nails. I hung mine on the side of my fridge with Command Hooks.

Quick, easy, cheap and functional and not to mention stylish. Happy organizing.

Make Ahead Monday- Twice Baked Potatoes

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

Last week I posted about a make ahead inspired by the blog A Turtles Life For Me and this week I wanted to share one more idea that is very much worth your time inspired by the same blog. She showed this picture:

These are twice baked potatoes wrapped in plastic wrap in the freezer. I love twice baked potatoes but usually never have time to make them. Also I don't know about you but I don't have the greatest potato storage conditions and therefore my potatoes don't last as long as I would like. I am always thinking of a way to use them up more effectively. Well I thought this idea was fabulous but would they really taste good? The answer is YES YES YES. They taste just the same as if you had made them fresh. The texture is the same...everything. I whipped up a cookie sheet of these one afternoon. I added sour cream, bacon bits, chives and salt and pepper, oh and of course butter to the potato filling. I topped them with cheese before freezing but discovered it would be better to just add the cheese before baking. Place them stuffed potatoes on a cookie sheet and freeze until firm (so that means you don't bake them the second time yet). When firm wrap each in plastic wrap and put in a baggie. So easy to pull out and warm up for dinner and so fancy too. Love this idea. Go and try it.

Awkward Family Photo of the week

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 10:59:00 +0000

Yep, that's awkward.

Craft class help.

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 21:03:00 +0000

I am going to be starting a craft class at our local Thrift store once or twice a month and am needing a good class name idea. Something that is crafty, thrifty, recycling, repurposing related. Anyone got any brilliant ideas?

For Your Home or Office-Desk Calender Holder Getting Organized Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

This project was inspired by my mom who has the most fabulous counter space one could ever want. The only problem is that said counter space is always covered in piles of stuff. The last time I was home I thought, "this lady needs some organizing/beautifying of this space." Something that could make it more of an official "officey" type space and not so cluttered. I came up with a few ideas of easy things one could make to beautify your office-whether is be an official office or a desk at home.

The first item is a large desk calender holder. I love these big calenders because they give you enough space to make multiple notes and are easy to read from a distance. I found this one at Target for $1.00 (yep-a steal of a deal).

Materials:
1 large desk calender
2 pieces of fabric one inch larger (both height and width) of the calender NOTE: I am not including a specific size because these calenders are made in a wide range of sizes. NOTE #2: I have 3 other parts to this set so if you want them all to coordinate then buy a yard of fabric so that you will have enough for everything.
8 squares of fabric 4 1/2" x 4 1/2"
1 piece of Pellon extra firm stabilizer (the stiff as a board kind) 1/2 an inch smaller than your fabric pieces (again both height and width wise).

1. To begin cut your fabric (2 layers of it) 1 inch bigger than your calender both directions. If you want more of the backing to show on the final product then cut the fabric 2 inches bigger in both directions.

2. Cut your fabric squares. I cut mine through a double thickness of fabric so I was able to get 8 squares by cutting 4 sets. Put the squares together (wrong sides together) to get 4.

3. Press squares corner to corner to make triangles.

4. On only one thickness of the large fabric piece pin the triangle pieces (now on referred to as the corner flaps) to each corner.

5. Sew along the sides of the corner flaps at 1/8" to secure these in place. Sew all for corner flaps this way.

6. Pin both large pieces right sides together.

7. Sew around 3 sides of the large pieces leaving one side open (mine happened to be one of the long sides but it doesn't really matter which).

8. Before turning right side out trim the fabric around the corners to reduce bulk.

9. Turn the entire project right sides out making sure to have the corner flaps all facing the same direction and not folded over the opening (so if this corner flap was folded the other way the opening would be tucked inside and you don't want that). Iron everything flat.

10. Now take your piece of ultra firm stabilizer and slide it in between the two fabric layers. Because you cut it smaller it should slide in with no problem and will not reach right to the edges of the calender holder and that is what you want-if it is too tight it will cause the entire thing to bubble (trust me and my trash bin).

11. Now (and I just barely learned this and am thanking the directions on said ultra firm stabilizer for it) but the best way to iron this to your fabric is to iron on the fabric side directly on top of the stabilizer adhesive side. I had always ironed on the back of the stabilizer (which wouldn't work for this project anyway) instead of on the fabric side (and you are all probably so much smarter than me) but it works brilliantly if you iron on the fabric side instead. So iron on the fabric side that is directly on top of the adhesive side of the stabilizer to attach it to one of the pieces of fabric. (that was way too much explaining in one paragraph-hope I didn't lose anyone).

12. Now using your iron press a 1/4 inch down on the open edge on both sides.

13. Pin it together and then sew around the entire thing with a 1/8" seam. NOTE: the corners are bulky and require a little extra nudge to sew over and it is a bit awkward to sew because it is stiff.

14. Lastly insert your calender and you are set with part one of your desk set.

Wouldn't these make great gifts for any friend or family member who has an office or a business or a house for that matter. Quick and easy and cute too. Stay tuned for a set of hanging file boxes (repurposed cereal boxes), a fabric covered notebook and a basket organizer to complete the set.

Happy organizing. Oh and mom, you don't need to make yourself one. Yours is on it's way.

I tried this and... loved it-Cheaters Quilt

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

"I tried it and...." is a new series I am doing on my blog where I share about ideas that I have found and tried and how I or my family has liked them. There are so many great ideas out there. I am so thankful I don't have to think of everything on my own.

I wanted to make each of my girls a new quilt for Christmas, something that was large enough to snuggle in. I didn't want to have to sew an actual quilt ( not enjoyable for me). So I made them these: (it is the perfect compromise between a handmade quilt without actually having to make a quilt that I could find).

The idea came from a blog called A Little Bit Funky If you haven't ever seen it before ( I hadn't but found it on Pinterest) then you need to check it out, especially the 20 minute crafter segments (LOVE THEM). She made this for her boys:

She bought a down comforter (crib size) and then attached squares of fabric using an iron on adhesive (like you could use Wonder Under) and then she sewed around all the edges. You can check our her blog for the specifics. I thought that the final product was so cute. I wanted to make a couple for my girls. I didn't like the price of down comforters but found these ones on Amazon for $20.00. (I have linked to them below). I also found a bunch of lightly used receiving blankets at our thrift store in town and bought them. I wanted to dye the quilts so that they wouldn't look quite as dirty as fast. I did this with some Rit dye (which is super easy to use only not on polyester...which the quilts happen to be). So I was hoping for a deeper pink but ended up with a pale pink after 2 trys at dying. Still the end result seemed to suit the fabric squares I had.

Blankets purchased from here

The end product looked like this: (I did an A one and a B one for my girls). I will say that it worked best when I covered the entire fabric block with Wonder Under instead of trying to cheat on the cheaters quilt and just putting a little bit. I sewed all my horizontal lines first and then my vertical.

When it is washed the edges will fray. I haven't washed them yet so I don't know how much frayage there will be but I am not concerned about it because I don't mind that look.

Overall the project was not that difficult; a little time consuming but not nearly as bad as sewing an actual quilt. I think these would make cute baby quilts as well. I definitely will try it again. Go and check out A Little Bit Funky; it is fantastic. Thanks for the idea.

Make Ahead Monday-Veggie Packs for the freezer

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 11:00:00 +0000

The inspiration for this make ahead comes from this new blog that I discovered via Pinterest. This lady is a champ at make ahead ideas. I got a bunch of new ideas just from here one post. She showed how she cooked up ground beef with onions, carrots and peppers and then froze it in baggies to pull out and warm up for tacos or nachos or whatever. I love that idea but I am not fond of the taste of rewarmed beef. I do however add onions, carrots and some times peppers to a lot of dishes I make. So instead I decided to make veggie packs to freeze instead.

Since I almost always add chopped onion and garlic to most meat mixtures I for sure wanted to use those. I also add shredded carrots (and I will show you what I mean by shredded below) to anything that it might be disguised in like taco meat, spaghetti sauce, beef stew or chili. So I decided to include that too. And since I add peppers to anything with a Mexican flare or chili I make some packets with those. The idea is that instead of chopping all these things every time I am cooking I could just go to the freezer and grab a bag of all my "extras" and toss them all in at once...saving me a little time.

So I took one afternoon and chopped up a bunch of onions, peppers, and carrots. I chopped/shredded all of these in my food processor. I wanted everything in small fine pieces (in hopes that one or two might just slip down into my kids tummies without them even noticing). I put everything on trays first and then divided it up by 1/2 cup portions (1/2 cup of each veggie per bag).

Here are my peppers and onions

Here are my carrots (I shredded these but also left the chopping blade in my food processor too so they got double chopped in the process).

I wasn't sure about freezing carrots without blanching them so I sauteed my carrots in a little butter just until they were warmed through before I froze them. Peppers and onions I have frozen without any problem.

These are my bags. The Mexican ones have onions, carrots, garlic and peppers. The soup ones have onions, carrots and garlic (but these I have been using so far in spaghetti sauce and taco meat to which I add a can of tomatoes and kidney beans so they help disguise the carrots).

These would be great to make with fresh garden produce. But if you don't have any or it is not the right season I found this 5 lb bag of carrots at Winco foods for $3.98. I thought that was a steal and they are huge. I would have added celery to some too if I had it on hand.

Awkward Family Photo of the week

noreply@blogger.com (Small Fry and Co.) — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 10:59:00 +0000

I have a new guilty pleasure-AwkwardFamilyPhotos.com. Have you ever heard of these or seen these? If you are from the pre-digital camera era then you probably are in a few awkward family photos. I think I love these so much because my family has tons of these. So I am starting the each week off with a good laugh. Here is just one last touch of Christmas cheer.

Photos « AwkwardFamilyPhotos.com