Keeping it Simple

My CRUISE vacation!

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 18:24:00 +0000

This month I was able to go on an awesome cruise with my family! My parents' 50th wedding anniversary is this March, so to celebrate, my siblings and I took them on a cruise. It was AWESOME! This was my first cruise and it was amazing! I so want to go back! My husband wasn't able to make it because of work, so hopefully when we celebrate our 10th anniversary, we can go on one together!

The week was packed full! My family loves to go, go, go! Here are some pictures from the week:

Here is the whole group. 8 of the 9 kids, 4 grandkids and spouses. A total of 22!

Most everyone was on some kind of diet before the cruise and most everyone lost a ton of weight. But we left out diets in the US and ate a ton. The food was amazing. I especially loved the desserts, I ordered 3 to 4 every night!

We went on Celebrity, a very fancy ship. I loved dressing up every night, it was so fun!

The first port we went to was the Grand Cayman Islands. We went snorkeling (and saw a huge eel!).

Then we went to a place callled Sting Ray city, where I got to feed, kiss, and hold sting rays. (This isn't a picture of me)

The next port was Cozumel, Mexico. We rented a van and drove around the island. It was beautiful there!

I was all for holding weird things, so I held three iguanas at the same time :)

The next port was Roaton, Honduras. There we got to hold monkeys!! I loved this, and totally want a pet monkey now!

A group went on a shark dive!! I didn't go, but it looks awesome!!

The last port was Costa Maya, Mexico. We went and saw the Mayan Ruins. They were so awesome. It's amazing to see something so old!

All 5 of the sisters were able to make it, so of course we had to take a picture!

Several evenings on the ship were spent DANCING!!! My brother and me used to dance (mostly swing) in high school. Both of us were spouse-less on the trip, so we got to dance a ton and it was awesome. I miss dancing!

The last day on the ship, we had a big party to celebrate my parents.

We celebrated their "royal wedding" and did so by playing Pinnacle ALL DAY LONG. So much fun! My sister put the party all together and it was amazing!!

I'm so ready to go on another cruise :).

Check out these sites!

Scensty GIVEAWAY!!

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 10:36:00 +0000

Have you heard of Scentsy? If you haven't, you're missing out!

I personally LOVE Scentsy! I especially love their warmers, they are just so awesome! I love the variety of them, most like you were be able to find one that is perfect for your decor!

Here are a few of my favorite warmers:

Plus, they have a huge variety of scents! They are all so good and last so long! It's amazing how long just one cube will last.

Here are a few of my favorite scents:

Did you know that Scentsy has a entire line of college warmers? I was shocked when I saw how many colleges they had. I was super excited when I saw that they had University of Wyoming!!

So of course I had to get the UW warmer! And then I got the Camu Camu scent. Both of them were awesome!!

Isn't the warmer great? I'm excited to have it going and show everyone where I came from!

I put in just one cube and it lasted all day! It made my house smell sooooo good!

Breanne is an independent consultant for Scentsy and she has been nice enough to give away the Valentine's warmer

and the scent Linger

I know that you want to win!!

Here's how to enter:

Mandatory:

1) Go the Scentsy and tell me which warmer and scent are your favorite.

Extra Entries:

2) Like Breanne's facebook page

3) Follow KIS

4) Like KIS on facebook

5) Follow Breanne's blog

Please leave a separate comment for each entry. This giveaway will close on February 3rd at 12:00pm. Good luck!

Check out these sites!

Tot Thursday: Pipe Cleaner Crowns

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 08:33:00 +0000

Every week our local Chick Fil-a has a family night and they are usually themed. Yesterday the theme was princes and princesses and if you dressed up as one, then you got a free ice cream cone. I was all for free ice cream, so our craft this week was making crowns out of pipe cleaners and then glued gems onto them.

Aren't they so cute in their crowns?!

Check out these sites!

New winners

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 03:21:00 +0000

I didn't hear from some of the winners, so the new winners are:

Scrappy Design winners:

RachelJan 11, 2012 04:03 PM

I would so enter, but Maryanne already made me some and they are adorable! I love her creativity!

Fabric bag:

#23

Nancy MarkoskyJan 10, 2012 05:16 PM

And I am a new follower of Cottage Wishes

Bag from Thirty One

#48

JessicaJan 15, 2012 06:29 PM

I Follow KIS

jessicarwarfield at gmail dot com

Please email me with your info at kaysiscrafts@gmail.com

Check out these sites!

Whatever Wednesday: Christmas shirt refashion

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 09:53:00 +0000

I asked what people wanted to see more this year and several said refashions. So here is refashion that I did!

This is how I made it:

1) I got this Christmas shirt for $2 on clearance

2) I cut out the design and hemmed the neck to a scoop/v neck

3) I then made the sleeves 3/4. I hemmed those and gathered about 3 inches on them with elastic thread.

4) With the fabric from the sleeves, I cut out some flowers. I actually used my Epic 6 and nesting blossom die cut to cut the fabric, it worked pretty well.

5) I then sewed all the flowers onto the shirt.

6) I then glued some pearls onto the flower

And that's it! Not too bad for a $2 shirt, right?

Sorry for the dark picture, self portrait....

Here's a close up of the flower

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Tutorial Tuesday: Conversation Hearts Wreath

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 07:08:00 +0000

I'm not a big fan of Valentine's Day. It's just a little too girly for me. Plus I don't like the idea of having to romantic just because of a silly holiday. But.... I do love making things with my kids. So this year I'm trying not to be such a scrooge and decorate a little bit. I loved how my candy corn wreath turned out. It was on my door for at least a month and I only lost about 6 candies, so I decided to make one using conversation hearts.

This is how I made it:

1) I took a straw wreath, conversation hearts and electrical tape.

2) I wrapped the tape all around the wreath

3) Then I used hot glue and glued the hearts onto the wreath

4) I alternated the hearts each row

Here's the whole thing covered. It took three bags (from the dollar store)

5) To protect the candy from the weather, I used a acrylic glaze

6) I sprayed two layers of the glaze onto the hearts.

7) I added some ribbon and hung it on my door

And just like that, I have a fun Valentine's Day wreath!

Here's a close up.... no more "call me" hearts now they say "text me". Ha!

Check out these sites!

Motivate Me Monday #106

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 02:00:00 +0000

Sponsor of the week: Crystal&Co

Your Mommy resource for deals, mommy struggles, meal planning and much more!

Happy day everyone! It's been a week since my cruise and I miss the warm weather, dressing up for dinners, oh those dinners!, and being on vacation. It's taken me the week to get back into the routine of things, but I'm back. Pictures of the cruise will come soon.....

Now time for the party. Valentine's day is really starting to show itself. I love seeing holiday decorations, they are so fun!

Check out these sites!

Pinterest Picks

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 08:13:00 +0000

I don't know where January is going, but it's time to really start thinking about Valentine's Day. So here are a few things that I have found on pinterest.

I dig you by Fry Family

Nuts about you by I love it all

You're the bomb by Make it Do

Super hero by Just Jenn rants

Alligator by Skip to my Lou

Super sucker by The Crafty Crow

Check out these sites!

Tot Thursday: Pipe Cleaner Snowflake

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 09:18:00 +0000

I love making different kinds of snowflakes with my kids. Here is a super simple one. All you need is pipe cleaners and beads!

Check out these sites!

Whatever Wednesday: Tablecloth repurpose

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 08:57:00 +0000

Christmas is over and all the decorations are done and now my house looks so bare!! I've been decorating since Halloween and now there is nothing. I'm still decorating for winter though :). I found this round tablecloth in the Christmas clearance for only $4.50, so I picked it up. (Don't you love my son's foot in the picture.... goofy kid).

I cut up the tablecloth and made two pillows, I love the red and turquoise together :)

And a table runner

For the end I pleated it a little bit.

So for $4.50, I got two pillows and a table runner, not too bad I think :)

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Tutorial Tuesday: Coat refashion

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 10:08:00 +0000

I have three boys and then my baby, a little girl :). Now that it's winter, I had to look for a coat for her. Then I saw that I had a little red jacket from my third boy. He barely used it, so I thought that I could use for her. The problem, whenever I put her in a "boy" color, people call her a boy. So I had to make it look girly and cute for her!!

This is how I made it:

1) I took the little red jacket.

2) Using my new CAMEO, I cut out the flowers out of the heat transfer vinyl. The settings I used were: 1 blade, 8 speed and 14 thickness. I used colors: apple green, silver, white and pink from Expressions Vinyl.

3) I used a flower that had a inner flower and then the outline. So I peeled out the inner flower.

4) The inner flower didn't have plastic with it. So I used the multi-use paper when I ironed it on.

5) I then started to layer the flower, using the multi use paper each time I ironed it.

6) Next I put on the outline of the flowers onto the jacket.

Here is all the flowers on it, so cute, huh?

I felt like it needed some bling, so I added some rhinestones to it. To do that, I used the rhinestone starter kit.

7) I cut out the blue specialty paper with my CAMEO. I set the blade to a 3 and the thickness of 33.

8) Next I peeled off the back and placed it onto the backer board.

9) I then filled it with the rhinestones.

10) I placed the transfer paper onto it and pressed hard to make sure that all of the rhinestones came up.

11) I then ironed the rhinestones onto the jacket. Using the wool setting, I ironed it for 45 seconds.

12) Then I ironed the inside of the jacket, to set the glue.

I made another flower for the other side. I used the same blue paper and transfer tape as the first one.

And now she has a super cute and girly jacket!

Hopefully no one will think that she is a boy in this..... oh maybe someone will because she has been wearing purple and pink and still gets mistaken as a boy.....

I loved how much my daughter's coat turned out, I decided to do the same thing to a jacket I found at Ross for $3 (it had a tiny whole that I covered up with the heat transfer).

I used glitter heat transfer from Craft Vinyl on mine and I love it!! Sometimes it's fun to sparkle :)

Check out these sites!

Motivate Me Monday #105

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 02:00:00 +0000

Sponsor of the week: Breanne and Scentsy

Breanne is an independent consultant for Scentsy! They have the cutest warmers around!!

I'm now back from my week long vacation. I'm glad to be home but I miss the warm weather of the ocean! Thanks to everyone that helped me while I was on vacation!

Now for the party!!!

Check out these sites!

Guest Post: Sweet Song Bird

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 07:51:00 +0000

Hello! My name is Evey and my blog's name is Sweet Song Bird. I am a stay at home mother of three, amongst other things. I own my own business called Evey's Creations, and baking is absolutely one of my favorite things to do, hands down! :) I have been gluten free for over 10 yrs due to an autoimmune disease and my kids are all gluten sensitive, so I have had quite a bit of practice creating recipes and baking for this lifestyle. My goal is to share what I've learned along the way with others who might have similar conditions, so that they too might enjoy the "sweeter things in life"! Since I am a baker by trade, I find myself baking quite often! Last year, my friend Victoria bought me the "Cake Doctor bakes Gluten Free", with the following advice: "It's ok NOT to make everything from scratch once in a while!", which was code for "Girlfriend, please stop stressing yourself and RELAX!" =) She's kind of awesome. I figured it couldn't hurt to try some of the recipes for day to day baking for my family. If anyone is on the fence about this book, go out AND GET IT! The theories and methods behind it are incredible, and the use of a prepackaged cake mix makes life so much easier! (You can make your own mix, too, if you're a puritan like me! haha) Today, I will share with you one of my own doctored up "Cake Mix Doctor" recipes, because I can never just leave things like recipes alone! ;) Today, I will share with you my semi-homemade recipe for GF whoopie pies! ;) It started out with the Cake Doctor's recipe for Snickerdoodle Cookies, and I turned it into this!

Ingredients: For Cookies: 1 Packaged (15oz) chocolate or Devil's Food Cake GF cake mix 1/4c lightly packed light brown sugar 8tbsp butter (1 stick) cut into tablespoons 1 large egg 1tbsp Pure Vanilla Extract 2c 60% Cacao Cocoa Baking Powder (always go for the premium stuff, you will thank me later!) (Optional): 1-2 tsp water or milk (I prefer the latter) Filling: 1 stick of unsalted butter, room temperature 2c of Marshmallow Cream (make sure it's GF) 1 1/2c sifted powdered sugar 1tsp Pure Vanilla extract Method: Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Place the cake mix, brown sugar, and cocoa into the bowl of a food processor (can also be made in a stand up mixer, but will require much more patience!) with a steel blade and pulse to combine. Add the butter, a couple tablespoons at at time, pulsing some more, add the egg and vanilla and continue to pulse until the dough comes together slightly. If it's still not fully together, add 1-2tsp of water or milk to bring it together. Scoop out 1 and 1/2 inch balls of dough and make about 24 balls of dough. Arrange on 2 cookie sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake at 375 degrees for about 15 minutes, 1 or 2 minutes less if you want chewier cookies. When done, remove from cookie sheets and place onto a cooling rack immediately! Allow cookies to completely cool before filling. This recipe makes cakey cookies that will melt in your mouth! Filling: Mix ingredients in a bowl with a stand up or hand mixer and mix until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Check THESE out! :)

A BIG thanks to Kaysi for allowing me to share my GF recipe with you all! Let me know if you enjoy the cookies and I wish all of you a Happy and prosperous New Year!! :) -Evey

Check out these sites!

Guest Post: Stardust

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 10:58:00 +0000

Hello everyone! I feel so excited to be guest blogging at Keeping it Simple and meeting all of you today! So please allow me to introduce myself first. My name is Olga from Stardust - Decor & Style, I'm married to the love of my life and we have two great kiddos. I quit my job in a shipping company two years ago and after a while we bought our current house.

Since then... I'm in continuous search of finding treasures in the blogland! And my blog is all about that as well as DIY, decoration, makeovers and transformations, house tours and everything beautiful!

So, wanna see some Before & Afters shots of my own projects that you can find in my blog? Well, here we go...

My Master Bedroom

BEFORE

AFTER

Total cost of the whole transformation: less than $100.00 (except for the light fixture which was somewhat expensive... but couldn't resist it...you feel me right?)!

The hallway

(sorry, just this photo of one of the walls)

BEFORE

AFTER

See what the power of paint can do? And this project didn't cost anything at all. The paint was leftovers from previous paint jobs which I mixed all together. And there you have it! I loooooove horizontal stripes! Hope you enjoyed the post. If so, please hop on over to my blog for more interesting stuff, such as my balcony update and my Christmas decoration including a Last Minute's Advent Calendar. Hope to see over at my place as soon as you get a chance! Thank you Kaysi for having me here today! It was an honor!

Check out these sites!

GIVEAWAY: Ooh Baby Designs!

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 18:00:00 +0000

Today's giveaway comes from Ooh Baby Designs!

Stephanie has a ton of super cute scarves in her etsy shop. Here are a just a few:

She is going to give to one lucky reader the mustard infinity scarf

So cute!!!

Do you want to win it? Here's how to enter:

Mandatory:

1) Go to her etsy shop and come back and tell me what is your favorite item

Extra Entries:

2) Like Ooh Baby Designs on facebook

3) Follow Ooh Baby Designs on twitter

4) Share this giveaway on blog or facebook

Please leave a separate entry for every each entry. Giveaway closes on Thursday, January 19th at 12:00pm.

Check out these sites!

Guest Post: Ginger Snap Crafts

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 08:00:00 +0000

Hi! I'm Ginger, & I blog over at Ginger Snap Crafts.

It's a fun place where I share my cute & easy craft projects.

Would love to have YOU drop by sometime. :)

Today I'd love to show you how to make you own

canvas prints for much cheaper than ordering them!

For this project all you'll need:

8x10 print of your favorite photo

paint & foam brushes

mod podge (matte)

8X10 canvas

(I bought mine at Hobby Lobby on sale for a couple of dollars.)

To make your canvas:

1. I painted the edges of my canvas first

& then I painted about a 1 inch border on the front of my canvas.

2. After your paint dries, apply a layer of mod podge on your canvas.

3. Then lay down your picture. I used a cloth to rub over the entire picture.

You don't want any bubbles, & for your picture to be nice and flat.

Photo paper is thick, so getting it to lay flat was no problem.

4. Then I went over the top of my picture with another layer of mod podge.

That gave it a brush stroked look. Don't worry...it dries clear. :)

Here are my finished canvas prints! Love them! So easy to do, too! Yay! Here's some more of my fun & easy projects.

You can find all the tutorials over on my blog.

1. Outdoor Chalkboard

2. Laundry Room Sign

3. Coffee Filter Wreath

4. Nativity Block Set

I also have a fun link party on Wednesdays.

Would LOVE to have you drop by!

Hope to see YOU soon! Thank you, Kaysi for having me over! Hope your trip is wonderful!

Check out these sites!

GIVEAWAY: Thirty One

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 18:00:00 +0000

Today's giveaway is from Amy from Thirty One. Amy also has a cute blog,called Mo Momma

Thirty One has a bunch of super cute totes and clinches. Here are a few:

Amy has been nice enough to giveaway to one lucky winner a Lots of Dots Cinch bag, so cute, huh?

Here's how to enter:

Mandatory:

1) Go over to Thirty One and tell me what your favorite item is.

Extra Entries:

2) Follow Amy's blog

3) Follow KIS

Please leave a separate entry for every each entry. Giveaway closes on Tuesday, January 17th at 12:00pm.

Check out these sites!

Guest Post: A Couple of Craft Addicts

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 07:25:00 +0000

Hi I'm Jessica one of the creative minds behind A Couple of Craft Addicts. My craftiness started as a young child. I was always searching for a creative outlet. My craftiness has since evolved from simple childhood paper crafts to sewing, cooking, quilting, and home decor with the occasional DIY project. I love spending my personal time creating something special for someone I love or just myself. Our blog is my platform for sharing those projects. One of my New Years Goals is to sew more projects for myself. So I started this year off with a simple paper bag style skirt. This project is fairly simple and took me about an hour to make. I think even a beginning sewer could start with this project. This is a quick sketch of my idea for this project.

Here is what you need: -1.5-2 yards fabric (I used Sateen Cotton, but you can also use linen, cotton blends, or even taffeta. Something not too thin and that hangs well) -a skirt zipper -matching thread, pins, and a sewing machine. CUTTING OUT YOUR PIECES: 1. Start by taking some measurements. Measure your waist and divide that in half. This will be the top measurement of your skirt from the fold. EXAMPLE: 28 inch waist / 2 = 14 inches from the fold

2. Then measure 24 inches down from the top, this is the length of your skirt. If you are tall you might want to add some more length. (Remember you will take the bottom up about 1/2 an inch for the hem. 3. Finally your last measurement will be the width at the bottom of the skirt. Add 3 inches to the top measurement and make a mark. EXAMPLE: 14 inch waist + 3 inches = 17 inches wide 4. Now you will cut the side of the skirt connecting the top mark and bottom mark creating an a-line shape. This is the front of your skirt. Repeat the same for the back of the skirt this time cutting on the selvage. Here is what you end up with:

You also need to cut 4, 3x4 inch rectangles for the belt loops.

You will also need a long strip for the sash. Mine was 5 inches wide and about 60 inches long. You can piece two pieces together for this but I wouldn't do more than two pieces. ASSEMBLE YOUR SKIRT 1. Start by sewing the front and back pieces of your skirt together at the sides with right sides facing. 2. Starting at the top of your skirt measure down 3 inches and then another 2.5 inches. The first marking is your fold and the second marking is the waist.

3. Fold over the top of your skirt 1/2 inch and press. Then fold over another 2.5 inches (this should be at your fold mark) and press. Baste stitch this fold down to the skirt body.

4. Now you are going to add your zipper to the back. Start by marking where the bottom of your zipper will be by placing your zipper on your skirt with the top of the zipper at the top of the skirt.

Now sew the two back pieces together with right sides facing, using a longer stitch where your zipper starts. Next sew your zipper in place and pick out the loose stitches where your zipper is in place. 5. Now you are going to add your hem. Turn the bottom of your skirt up 1/4 inch and press down. Then turn it another 1/4 inch and press again. Sew this hemline down using a regular stitch.

6. Next you are going to add the pleats. Start with the front center pleat. I usually measure this pleat 2 inches from the center on each side. Then I add another pleat about 1 inch from the center pleat having that pleat point towards the center. I add one more pleat 2 inches from the second pleat again facing the center. Once all your pleats are pinned repeat with the other side and the back. Then sew the pleats down in place going over the top of your basting stitch from before.

**This is not an exact science. Each skirt and person will like different size pleats. The key is keeping both sides equal and your final measurement for the front from side seam to side seam should be half your waist measurement (in this case 14 inches). You may need to play around with it until you get the shape and style you like. 7. Now you will create your sash. With right sides together sew along one end of the sash and down the length of the sash piece.

Now turn the sash right side out, tuck the open end so the raw edges are on the inside and sew the end closed. 8. Finally finish your skirt off by adding the belt loops. Fold the raw edges of your 3x4inch pieces inward and press them down.

Then fold over the ends and press.

Now with the raw side facing down pin your belt loops in place on the skirt. I put two on the back next to the zipper

and two on the front next to the second pleats.

Sew the loops in place at the bottom and top of each loop. Now add your belt and your are DONE!

Check out these sites!

GIVEAWAY: Loopy Loop Creations

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 18:00:00 +0000

Today's giveaway is brought to you by Donna, from Loopy Loop Creations.

She has an adorable etsy shop. Here are a few things from her shop:

Donna has been nice enough to give one lucky reader $15 store credit to her store. She has amazing prices, so this will go a long ways!

Here's how to enter:

Mandatory:

1) Go to Donna's etsy shop and tell me how you would spend the $15

Extra entries

2) Follow Donna's blog

3) Follow KIS

Please leave a separate entry for every each entry. Giveaway closes on Tuesday, January 17th at 12:00pm.

Check out these sites!

Guest Post: All Things Luci Rae

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 07:50:00 +0000

Hello! I am thrilled to be guest posting over here at Keeping it Simple. My name is Traci, from All Things Luci Rae, and I have an addiction to DIYing! Today I would love to share with you all a very simple... in keeping with the theme of this blog... tutorial on how to sew a ruffle and table runner. For Christmas this year I decided I would do all handmade gifts. Ok, maybe not ALL handmade but at least the majority. I wanted to make table runners for all the ladies in my life. When I looked up tutorials on how to make a ruffle I was surprised at how complicated most people made it. I knew there had to be an easier way. I called up my good friend Rachelle and she explained it so well, and so simply, I knew I had to pass it on to the rest of the bloggy world. So here it is: I started by sewing my table runner. All I did was cut out my fabric using an old table runner to measure. Then I just hemmed the edges so it wouldn't fray when washed. Next came the ruffle. Cut your fabric for the ruffle about 4 inches wide and twice the length of the end of your runner. You can do it with less but the ruffle won't be as full.

Next, you can hem all 4 edges of the ruffle if you want a finished look, or you can fray the edges for a shabby look. If you are planning on washing this in a machine I would recommend hemming the edges. Now you are ready to make your ruffle. Set your sewing machine at the longest stitch you have. The higher the number the longer the stitch. Mine is a 4.

Sew a straight line about 1 inch down from the top of your fabric all the way across. Do not back stitch, just sew straight across and leave plenty of thread on either side.

Start on one side and pull the top thread. Scrunch your fabric down on the thread and it will start to ruffle. Don't pull too hard though, it will break your thread and you will have to start all over... and then you will be sad. I speak from experience.

(Excuse the dark pictures, I tend to do my crafts after the little one goes to bed. A 1 year old doesn't understand why she can't play with mommies scissors) When you have scrunched all of your fabric line it up on your runner and spread out the ruffle to your liking. Pin the ruffle in place and sew straight over the line you just sewed, only this time using back stitching.

Repeat this process with your second ruffle on the other side of your runner and you are done. It is so simple and looks so pretty!

Hope you all had a wonderful holiday season. Cheers!

Check out these sites!

Life Style Crafts: Valentine's Dies

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 02:52:00 +0000

Have you been to Life Style Crafts yet? If you haven't, you are missing out! They have so many awesome dies there!

They have come out with their new Valentine's day products and they are so much fun!!

Here is a little Valentine's Day decoration I made with the fun dies.

This is how I made it:

1) I took the Epic 6 and the nesting hearts die and the arrows die

2) I cut out all of the hearts out of card stock. Sometimes I use two dies to make a outline of a heart.

3) I glued all the hearts together, added some letter and glued it onto some ribbon. Super easy!

Look at the detail of the arrow and how well it cuts, so awesome!!

Here is a little note that I made to put with a cake mix to give to a neighbor. I used the baked goods die. I just love the detail of the cupcake!!

Remember that all their dies work with other die cutters, not just the Epic Six. There are a bunch of cute Valentine's Day dies, so go check them out!

Check out these sites!

GIVEAWAY: Cottage Wishes

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 18:00:00 +0000

Today's giveaway comes from Diane from Cottage Wishes. She has a great blog and an etsy shop.

Here are few items from her etsy shop

Diane is giving away to one lucky reader, a awesome tote bag! They are made with vintage fabrics and they are so cute! You can pick from the cherry, flower or checkered.

Here's how to enter:

Mandatory:

1) Go to Diane's etsy shop and come back and tell me what you liked best.

Extra Entries:

2) Follow Diane's blog

3) Follow KIS blog

Please leave a separate entry for every each entry. Giveaway closes on Tuesday, January 17th at 12:00pm.

Check out these sites!

Guest Post: Sugar Bee Crafts

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 07:45:00 +0000

Hi everyone!! I'm Mandy, from over at Sugar Bee Crafts:

Here's the whole gang on vacation this past summer:

I enjoy all things crafty and have lots of DIY and tutorials on my blog. I even have a link party on Tuesdays so I can see your craftiness - then I show off a bunch of you on Wednesdays. So come on by today and link up!!

You might know me from a couple of my posts (click picture to check them out!):

Today I want to share a quick how to make custom kitchen towels. With the new year, we all want to do a little sprucing up. This is an easy way to add a little something to your kitchen.

It's one of those projects that after you do it, you think, "well why did I wait so long to do that!?!" because there was nothing to it.

So a quick run down on how to make custom kitchen towels:

Buy a pack of plain kitchen towels (I found these ones at walmart)
Cut strips of fabric
Iron the edges of the strips under
Pin the strip of fabric down to the towel, then just stitch along the edge.

That's it!! I love how they turned out - I made 6 - 2 of each kind.

I know it looks silly to have 3 towels hanging on the oven, but I like them all and couldn't decide which would get the place of honor (if hanging on that old oven is an honor)...

So go grab some plain towels and jazz them up for yourself - this is one of those projects that you'll love!!

And pop on by Sugar Bee Crafts sometime - - if you love kitchen things, I am on the brink of a big redo - - I still love my wall (see more pics HERE) but I am about to paint all the cabinets - wish me luck!!

Check out these sites!

GIVEAWAY: Scrappy Gifts

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 18:00:00 +0000

Hi Maryanne here from Scrappy Gifts. I'm so happy to be doing a giveaway here on Keeping it Simple! Kaysi's creations using her Silhouette have been getting my brain churning for all the things I want to create with my new Silhouette! First let me introduce myself, and then I'll share my giveaway! My husband and I have been married for 7 years. We have a 3 year old boy and a 8 month old baby girl. I love scrapbooking, blogging, fashion, learning new crafts and recipes. I blog about these other loves over at Crafty Mommy Diva. Check it out. =D

About Scrappy Gifts

Need creative crafty gifts for family, friends, or for yourself? Don't have the time to make a crafty gift or to scrapbook? Let me help you! I specialize in making scrapbooks: everyday scrapbooks, calendar, baby and wedding scrapbooks , guest books, scrapbook layouts, and creative gifts: scrappy canvas, clocks, and boxes. I can make any of these gifts: you choose the colors and what you want. All you have to do is add your pictures cut to size or pay me to add your pictures for you.

I'll be giving away my NEW custom Digital Designs (you will get an e-mail to print out the design and then you can iron it on to a shirt/bag, etc.)

3 Winners will receive a Custom Digital Design (Open to U.S. & International) - see some examples on my Facebook page.

Here's how to enter!

ENTRIES leave a separate comment for each along with your e-mail address

Follow Keeping it Simple publicly through Google Friend Connect
Follow Scrappy Gifts publicly through Google Friend Connect
Blog or Facebook about the giveaway.

Please leave a separate entry for every each entry. Giveaway closes on Tuesday, January 17th at 12:00pm.

Check out these sites!

Guest Post and GIVEAWAY: Helping Little Hands

noreply@blogger.com (Kaysi) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 07:29:00 +0000

Hi, I'm Polly from Helping Little Hands, where I blog about my crafts and activities with my kiddos, and a few tidbits about life in general. If you're not familiar with my Helping Little Hands, then you might want to take a look at my Favorite posts from 2011 to see what types of projects I create.

Today, I'm excited to share how to make a Peas in a Pod Pendant... (and I'll be giving one away at the end of the post.) My oldest two kids (ages 6 and 4) are adopted in open adoptions, so I'm always on the lookout for simple, but meaningful gifts for their birth parents. My daughter's birth mom was married this year and is pregnant with a little girl, so I made her a "Three Peas in a Pod" necklace, which can symbolize herself, my daughter, and her new baby or can symbolize herself, her husband, and new baby.

I made a "Two Peas in a Pod" necklace for my son's birth mom to symbolize the two of them.

A "Four Peas in a Pod" somehow showed up in my own stocking to symbolize my three kids and our baby on the way.

And I made several other necklaces as well...once you've made one, it's super easy to make more. You can make them with any number of beads, but the ones I made with two or three turned out the best. (My first one also didn't turn out nearly as well as the others...so if one doesn't turn out as well as you were hoping...you've really got to try a second.

I saw some Peas in a Pod necklaces floating around Pinterest and went looking for some tutorials. My favorites were this Sweet Pea Pendant from Positively Splendid and this Pea Pod Charm from Heidi's Hubbub. You can also find a lot of different Peas in a Pod necklaces on Etsy for inspiration and other ideas.

Here's what you'll need:

Some craft wire...I used 24 gauge, but any gauge close to that will work.
Some beads...I chose green. They came with about 20+ beads on a string for about 3 dollars. I've seen these made with white or lots of other colors too.
Wire cutters, or old scissors to cut the wire with
Needle nose pliers can be helpful, but are not necessary.
A chain for the necklace, if you don't already have one. I bought mine for $2 each at the craft store.

Here's what you do...

I used the directions from Amy at Positively Splendid for the first half, and then changed the second half a bit, so you might want to refer to her tutorial too, if something doesn't make sense here.

You'll want to start with a LOT of wire...24-36 inches. If you find that's too long for you to be able to work with, though, you can work with shorter segments and just twist the ends into the back and start a new wire.

Start by making a loop with your wire, that's just a little bigger than what you need to go around your beads. Wrap the wire around several times.

Twist your short tail back down around the stem and loop.

With the long wire you have left, fashion a small look that can be used to hang your pendant from your necklace. Twist the wire around the stem a couple more times.

Now we're going to weave the wire in and out through our big loop to make the back of our pod.

Keep weaving the wire, until you've loosely filled in your large loop.

Next, I wrapped the wire around the end, to make a small loop for threading wire through, in the next phase.

Now we're going to string our beads on.

Wrap the wire around your stem a couple times.

Now we're going to make several larger loops by running wire through the small loop at the bottom and twisting it back up around the stem.

You'll want to make 3-5 of these larger loops which will be the basis of the sides of our pea pod.

Wrap the wire around the top stem a couple times. Now we're going to start wrapping those larger loops to bundle them all together with little loops.

Continue wrapping with the little loops until you've gotten all the way around your pea pod.

Pull your wire through the back.

Trim and work the wire back through the pod.

Pull tight and cut the wire close to the pod and make sure the end, isn't sticking out where it could catch on clothing or scratch the wearer.

String it on a necklace, and you're done!

And if you're looking for a cute way to give one of these as a gift, you can see my tutorial here for using the same beads and wire to make bows or ties around your gift.

And finally a little giveaway...I'm giving away one "Two Peas in a Pod Pendant" to one lucky reader. There are two easy ways to enter...you'll need to leave a separate comment for each entry.:

Be a follower of Keeping it Simple and leave a comment saying you are.
Check out my blog (Helping Little Hands) and become a follower (via blogger, Facebook, etc...however you like to follow blogs) and leave a comment.

Please leave a separate entry for every each entry. Giveaway closes on Tuesday, January 17th at 12:00pm.

Check out these sites!