GreenChicken31

Scrapbooking, B is for...

2013-05-16T22:21:00.002-07:00

I had these cute summer photos of Moose that I had been waiting to scrapbook. I just love all the bright colored paper and embellishments. Well, I found this neat scrapbooking Tic-Tac-Toe challenge on SWAT. I went for the diagonal and stamped on it, used ribbon, and used 3 different manufacturers (Papers from the take note from doodle bug, playground from echo park, and Sketchbook Bailey's Brush from Amy Tangerine). Of course I needed a sketch to help bring it all together so I found one over at Scrap Friends. The only thing was that it was a one photo layout. So, I turned it into a little mini book to get all the photos I wanted on it.

The photo of my daughter looking at her bellybutton inspired the title and all the rest of the b words.

I used lots of different embellishment that I had and a bunch that I made. The yellow heart was actually my first attempt at a shaker box that didn't come out too well, but hidden behind a bunch of other embellishments it looks a whole lot less weird then it first did.

Scrapbooking, Sprinkler

2013-05-12T20:15:00.000-07:00

We have had some nice warm weather out and I was in the mood to scrapbook some summer photos. I found this fun color pallet challenge over on scrapfriends. I was drawn to the yellows and the hint of blue. Of course I did this page at night and didn't realize that my blue mist I used was very turquoise. In the morning while going through my embellishment and papers I realized that I have almost nothing that shade. I'm going to have to be on the lookout for more turquoise things. It really is such a beautiful color. To make up for the lack of turquoise, I had to bring in a lot more orange then I was planning.

I had fun adding some stamping to the background. I also made a shaky thing that I always wanted to try and add onto a page. It took a few tries to make it work because I was being impatient, but in the end it added a cute fun element to my page.

Scrapbooking, Sew Fun and Mini Sew Fun

2013-05-09T21:09:00.000-07:00

I made this page for the doodle challenge at the paper girls. It was a great challenge because I love to add doodles to many of my pages. I made a few big doodles around the pictures, but you have to look closely for all of my little doodles. I also really enjoyed the fact that I got to scrapbook a page of Moose getting her craft on.

My favorite part of the entire page is my journal card. I took one of my floss holders and made a really big one! It came out so cute!

I had a few left over photos so I let Moose make her very own scrapbook page. This is actually the second page she has ever made. I just love all the glue she used on the page to put down a few paper stars. It was a very messy project, but it was so worth it.

Scrapbooking, Yummy Bunny

2013-05-05T22:53:00.001-07:00

This is another page that I made for a challenge on scrapbook day. I actually started off with a sketch challenge, but the layout just wasn't working for me. The layout had too many restrictions and was too symmetrical for my taste. So, I ditched some of my photos and moved on to another challenge that only required the use of a homemade pinwheel.

This page turned out way better then what it started out as. I was happy with how my little yellow pinwheel turned out. I attached the pinwheel to a toothpick that I colored blue. Then, I added some sparkle to my page and stamped some clouds. I also got a chance to use a color magic frame from Heidi Swapp that I had been dying to try out. Some of my ink did stick onto the gray part of the frame a little bit and I'm not sure why, but it still was fun to ink it up. I'm not sure if it was enough to sell me on to her color magic papers though. I also tried out my sew ribbon shoelace tool for the first time. It didn't come out as smoothly looking as when I have used my scalloped one.

Scrapbooking, You Crack Me Up

2013-05-04T23:10:00.000-07:00

I made this page for a competition at scrapbook.com for international scrapbook day. You had to use at least one party supply on your page. I used some tissue paper and some confetti on it. The confetti was easier to work with then I thought. It just took some time to glue it all down. I'm really happy with how this page turned out. It is so bright and happy.

My favorite part is the little peep bunny sticking out behind the feathers. I also like the bunny butt charm that I made and attached onto my journal card. I do have a thing for bunnies!

Felt Dolly Number Two Part Two

2013-05-02T07:19:00.000-07:00

Well, she is all finished! Didn't take too long make and that was with a wiggly toddler on my lap most of the time. I think they are super cute together!

Felt Dolly Number Two

2013-05-01T07:10:00.000-07:00

A few years ago I made a felt doll for Moose from a cute kit I had found. I had bought a second kit and it sat around for a long time and then got hidden in our move. Well, I found the dolly again and thought it was time she gets finished. I have way too many half finished projects and I need to get around to finishing them!

Scrapbooking, On The Hunt

2013-04-29T22:37:00.000-07:00

I made this page using a layout 340 from Scrapbook Challenges to help me get motivated with making this page. I don't think I ever used a sketch from them before and they have so many that I'm positive I will end up using more in the future.

One of my favorite things on the page is the little purple feather I made out of duct tape. I also used up old scraps from papers that I found laying around. I also gave Moose some of my extra scraps for her to play with. She loves to glue them all together. It makes a huge mess, but she has so much fun.

Stop and Smell the Flowers

2013-04-28T06:59:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to take a moment to share just a few photos from our little trip up to Mount Vernon, WA this year to see the tulips. We have gone ever year since we moved to Washington.

And if it isn't obvious, that is a very large baby bump I'm sporting. Little dude isn't expected until late JULY! He is right on track to being a huge baby just like his sister was. I'm not so thrilled about that. If he can come in under 9 lbs I will be thrilled!

Wedding Card

2013-04-15T13:17:00.001-07:00

I was talking to my mom the other day and she reminded me that my cousin in Holland was going to be getting married in a week and that I needed to send a card. They are getting married in Alkmaar which is known for their outdoor cheese market. Love that place! Anyways, I didn't have any wedding cards on hand and it can take so long for anything to get mailed over there. I didn't want to wait a day and go to the store and pick up a card, so I thought I would go and make one with some of the stuff I had on hand. I remembered that there was a card challenge on the paper lovers blog, so I thought I would use that as a layout. I used my favorite wedding stamp that I used on this card I made a few years ago and once again replaced the bouquet with a heart brad. This photo makes the colors look way more crazy then they are in person, but I had to get this in the mail fast, so this is the only photo I have.

Scrapbooking, Tulip Love

2013-04-05T21:47:00.001-07:00

Once again I was inspired by a challenge blog, but this time it was the paper girls challenge. The challenge was April showers brings May flowers so you can use raindrops, umbrellas, or flowers. Now rainy season is finally starting to come to and end so I decided to focus on flowers. Of course, the photos I used was from the tulip festival that happens every year in Mount Vernon, WA in April. Out here in the NW it is more like rain October-March brings flowers in April and May. Though, I might have jinxed myself because it rained this evening. Maybe I should have done a page on Moose's rain boots.....or I can save that for a sunny day.

I had a lot of fun stitching on this page. I stitched a cute heart on the orange paper and then cut the paper and stitched it to "fix" it back together. I also used a ribbon and weaved it through the yellow paper. The ribbon I used was a little on the big size, but I really liked the rich purple color on the yellow. My journaling is hidden in the little pocket. I figured I had enough going on with this page.

Scrapbooking Spring has Sprong

2013-04-04T23:17:00.000-07:00

It seems like it has been forever since I've scrapbooked. It has been hard to find the energy and that is mostly because there is a little being growing in my belly. That's right, Moose is having a little brother come July!

So I had a little bit of energy and came across a new scrapbooking challenge blog and decided to give it a go. They had a layout challenge and I'm looking for new layouts to try. Of course, I wandered a little bit away from the layout, but mostly because I only had two photos instead of the three the layout called for.

I have had the daffodil stickers for years and was glad I could finally get to use them. I also cut out some felt letters and used them for my title along with some stickers. The best part was I was able to make this page fairly quickly, as in one day. Usually it takes a few days, but Moose took a rare long nap today, so I was actually able to get it all done.

Bear Mobile

2013-03-11T22:41:00.000-07:00

So right before Christmas I started to work on this bear mobile for my niece's baby shower. I wanted to make something handmade and extra special. When her sister was pregnant I made a rug (I hope to put up a post about it sometime), but I wasn't up for having to drag a big rug across country again, so I told her I would make something a bit smaller and still super special.

My niece showed me this bear bedding she wanted to get. It had the most ugly mobile I have ever seen. It was just four boring bear mini stuff animals and they had nothing extra special about them, so I knew I had to make some cuter bears and something else to go with them, bees.

I made the mobile just like I did with my bunny one I made for Moose a few years back. I couldn't make a tutorial this time around because I half made it while we were traveling to NY and finished it at my parents house.

I made three bears for this mobile. One I had hold a honey pot, another a heart, and the last a little teddy bear. I'm so happy with how they came out. They came out cuter then I expected.

My niece loved it and it looks so cute above her little guys crib. It's really light so it will happily spin in a light breeze.

Toddler Valentines

2013-02-12T16:05:00.002-08:00

I never liked Valentines Day. Well, that isn't completely true. I liked it as a kid until I hit middle school. I loved getting some cute little heart shaped goodies in my lunch box from my mom. Now that I'm a mommy, I'm liking Valentines Day again. I think it should be a day just for kids.

I wanted to share some of the Valentines Day projects and things Moose and I have been doing. Moose had a bunch of her friends over and they made these butterflies. Well, technically one is a caterpillar because her one friend did not want the wings on. Toddlers are so funny.

I took paper rolls and painted them ahead of time. I also punched holes for the antenna. I have found that toddlers do best with crafts that can be done in five minutes and kept really simple. The kids were able to put in their pipe cleaner antenna, affix the sparkly eyes, and decorate the foam heart wings themselves. The best part was I already had everything for them. The hearts were left over from last year, we always have pipe cleaners around, the jewel eyes were from my scrapbook stash, and the rest was from Moose's random crafty box.

Moose still wanted to do some more crafting, so she got some of the left over hearts and started gluing lots of pompoms. The girl used lots and lots and lots and lots of glue. It was a mess, but she had so much fun so it was worth it.

I wanted to share some of the snacks I made for Moose's friends. I tried to keep them fairly healthy, but all the really cute ideas seem to be candy related. My favorites were the arrows made from pretzels and little heart gummies that I found. A lot of the hearts got eaten, but the sticks were often left behind. I also made little heart shape sandwiches.

Have a happy Valentines day!

The after Christmas Blur..what I made for Christmas

2013-01-10T16:38:00.001-08:00

So I made a bunch more crayon rolls, well actually they were marker rolls for my nieces. They loved them. What five year old wouldn't like a cute way to keep their markers all neat and organized?

I made these for the Crayola Washable Pip-Squeaks Markers and since they are almost the same size as crayons I didn't have to alter my pattern. While I was making them, I discovered that the marker colors are very different from the crayon colors. I knew there wasn't going to be a white marker, but I was surprised black wasn't include. Instead of black I had two brown markers to match fabric with. Luckily, I had some solid brown that I was able to use. They also took out a red-orange color and put in blue in its place. So, I had a bunch of blue markers that needed fabric, but I tend to have a bunch of blue scraps.

The Doll House

2012-12-03T09:07:00.000-08:00

So I recently came across a new blogging block...I ran out of room to upload photos. Well, I finally came up with a solution and I'm up and running again.

Moose received this awesome handmade dollhouse for her 2nd birthday back in August, but grandpa and grandma finally got them to the west coast a few weeks ago. Boy did I forget how big they are! They take up most of the space in her room. She can barely see the top floor!

I've been slowly trying to make some furniture for this doll house. I did some looking online and found a surprising lack of Barbie size furniture tutorials. So I just kind of winged it. I made a blue sink out of a chunk of wood. I carved out a very shallow sink. I also make a stove and that I used a bit more creativity. I found the smallest hinge at the craft store I could find and made it so it could open. Then I glued magnet sheet that I had onto both sides and then colored a turkey and a pie and glued those onto more magnet sheet. So "Cinderbrella" as she is called in our house can do some baking. I have plans for a purple fridge, but I will not get to working on that until after Christmas.

I also made two beds out of some leftover foam from the flower box I made in the beginning of the year. I just wrapped the foam in fabric and hot glued it down. I made the mini quilts and pillows reversible, but Moose likes them like this. The beds are a tad short for the 12 inch dolls, but for the smaller ones they are perfect, so I'll have to get some more foam and make a few more larger beds. I also made a couch out of the leftover foam, but it looks really sad so I didn't take any close up photos of it. I'll have to make a more realistic one sometime in the future.

Car Roll Tutorial

2012-11-18T22:47:00.001-08:00

November is such a crazy time. There are so many projects that have to be made for birthdays and Christmas. Making things is so much more fun then buying something random. Anyways, I made this cute car roll for Moose's best buddy's 2nd birthday. I'm loving how it came out and her friend has been having a blast putting his hot wheels in the little pockets. So here is how I made it so you can make one too! I don't have photos for every step because Moose was "helping" me the entire time and I couldn't juggle her and a camera very well.

Supplies:

1/4 of a yard of green fabric

1/4 of a yard of some fun print fabric

Batting (about 16 inches by 9 1/2 inches)

5 Pieces of scraps of fabric at are 4 inches by 4 1/2 inches

Felt for roads, dirt, and water (I used the felt rectangle pieces you see everywhere in craft stores)

Bias Tape

Button

Elastic or a hair tie

Step 1:

Cut 2 16 inch by 9 1/2 inch rectangles. One should be of green fabric and the other a fun print for the outside of your roll. Cut 5 4 inch by 4 1/2 inch rectangles of fun fabric. I went for a rainbow effect.

Step 2:

Sew the 4 inch by 4 1/2 inch squares together to form a strip with a 1/4 seam allowance (I think...I didn't write that down when I was doing it). Fold the top down and sew to make a nice hem so that each color rectangle is actually now a 4 inch square.

Step 3:

Line up the bottom of the strip with the long side of the green fabric and sew. You can kind of see it in the photo on the right. Then sew down the sides of each color square to make nice pockets for the cars.

Step 4:

Make your roads and other elements. I free hand drew them and kind of made it up as I went. You will want your road to be 2 inches wide, but it can be a straight road or a curvy road. Cut some brown blobs for a bumpy dirt road. Make some brown rectangles for a bridge. Finally cut some blue for the pond. I really wanted to add a duck, but I didn't have the time. When you sew the pieces on don't put them to close to the edge or you will not have room for your bias tape.

Step 5:

Layer your top fabric (the one with the stuff on it), the batting underneath it, and the outside fabric (the nice side should face the table) to make a nice sandwich. Yummy. =) Then sew around all 4 side and you can go in about a 1/4 inch to even an 1/2 inch if you have wide enough bias tape to hide it.

Step 6:

The part I always forget to do is sewing down the elastic. To figure where you want it, you have to fold your piece in half and pick a half way between that fold. Or you could just do it 1/4 from the bottom, but I don't think like that. Sew it on really well. Ideally it would be sew on step 5, but why complicate things? =)

Step 7:

Now to figure out where that button goes...load up cars into all the pockets and fold that roll up. Then see where that spot where the elastic would nicely go around a button and mark it. then unroll and sew your button on.

Step 8:

Sew your bias tape around the edge and your roll should be complete!

If you have any questions or I typed something a bit too strangely please let me know! Enjoy your car roll!

Scrapbooking, Four Months

2012-11-01T06:22:00.000-07:00

It's another layout with Moose at four months. I realize now I really didn't put a title or any journaing on it. I might have to go back and add a little something.

I've really been into gray, yellow, and blue pages lately. I think that color combo is very relaxing. Anyways, the main piece of paper I used is from the Follow Your Heart collection by My Mind's Eye. Then I used lots of very random bits that I had laying around.

Scrapbooking, Four Months Multi Photo Layout

2012-10-29T06:09:00.000-07:00

So back in time I go to scrapbook some photos of Moose at four months. I managed to get five photos on this page. I always like to cram as many photos on a page as I can, but it's hard to find inspiration for pages with five or more photos or to figure out how to get so many photos on a page without being overwhelmed. Of course after I make this page I find one photo that I really wanted to add hiding under my papers.

Bat Trick-or-Treat Bag Tutorial

2012-10-26T16:41:00.002-07:00

My daughter was in need of a new trick-or-treat bag since her old one fell apart. She is still little so it doesn't need to hold much, so I made this cute bat bag. I made it in one night while my little monster was hanging off of me by my arms and neck. And here is how you can make one to in the size you need.

Supplies:

-Felt in black, gray, pink, and green (I used the rectangles from my local craft store. I used three sheets of black and two gray. The pink and green were scraps I had.)

-Floss in pink, green, and black (to sew mouth, ears, and eyes)

-Black sewing thread and a sewing machine

Steps:

First you need to figure out how big of a bag you want to make. I finally decided that I like the smallest circle and that has a diameter of 5 1/2 inches.

You need to make three circles. On two of the circles you need to add ears. The third circle can be set aside for a while. Make a U on a piece of scrap paper for the ears as a template then cut it out and trace where you want it on your bat circle heads. You also need to make four wings and cut them out. Use a silver Sharpe to trace with because it works great on black felt. I'll try to upload my pattern soon, but you can totally free hand it. While you are cutting, cut a black rectangle for the basket part that is four inches wide. If your circle is 5 1/2 in diameter like mine then you need to make it 11 inches long. The length is determined from the circumference from the bat ear to ear. You will also need another rectangle for the handle or you can use some ribbon or even rope.

Now on one of the circles with ears you will want to make a cute bat face. I traced quarters for the eyes and I traced nickles for the cheeks. I sewed them on, but you could just use some fabric glue. I did embroider a cute little smile, but you can also draw on on with a black sharpie marker.

Next you want to sew your wings. Leave an opening to stuff them a little bit. I let my little monster stuff them.

Now you will want to go and sew the wings onto the bat head. Then sew the two bat head parts together, but leave a small opening to add a little fluff in it. You should end up with a cute bat stuffy that just needs it's basket part.

To add the basket you need to sew that 4 inch wide rectangle piece. Sorry I don't have any pictures of the process so you'll just have to settle with after shots. This is when my monster decided to hang from my neck as I sewed instead of nicely sitting next to me. You will sew from ear to ear. Remember that other gray circle? You have to sew that on and it should make a nice basket. I hope that makes sense. I tend to not pin things in place at all and just kind of attack my sewing. Anyways, then sew a handle on and you're done.

Have a happy Halloween!

Scrapbooking, Oma

2012-10-22T15:22:00.000-07:00

It's not easy having all of our family on the other side of the country. I have this photo of my mom and Moose that I just love and had to scrapbook. The wooden shoes my daughter is wearing used to be my oma's shoes. She actually used to wear them and I love how they are just so smooth on the inside.

It's a simple page and I used mostly papers from echo park's everyday eclectic. I did add this cute handmade crochet flower that wasn't made by me. I wish I could crochet, but every attempt of mine has ended in a big knot mess

Scrapbooking, Halloween

2012-10-09T06:34:00.000-07:00

So I made another Halloween page. I had so many pictures of Moose that I had to make another page. This one is kind of crazy because I made a big black frame and raised it up around the pictures. I didn't plan on it being so tilted, but it kind of stuck its self down.

Of course I had to use more pom-pom ribbon. I also made some paper fringe and lots of cute embellishments.

Scrapbooking, Bee-utiful

2012-10-05T06:07:00.000-07:00

There is nothing like scrapbooking last year's Halloween photos to get you in the fall mood. I forgot how little hair Moose had a year ago.

This page is a fun one. It is very 3-D. It's hard to tell, but the photos are raised up. Since the pom-pom ribbon is so 3-D, I could raise the photos and other elements. I'll have to use a lot spacers when I put this page in Moose's scrapbook!

Jazzing Up a Costume

2012-09-28T09:00:00.000-07:00

So I got a good deal on Moose's Halloween costume, which is great because I didn't really want to spend a lot of time making one. She absolutely is in love with it and will wear it every day, but it lacked that extra something. Oh, and it was a little on the short side. It was supposed to be a dress, but it was more like a long shirt for my very tall toddler. So I dug up some tulle that I had left over from my wedding and started to make a tutu for it. It came out so cute and puffy! She loves to be a little monster even more! I just hope it doesn't wear out in the next month.

I couldn't help but share all these cute photos.

Painting Fun

2012-09-26T09:05:00.002-07:00

I've been having a lot of fun painting with Moose. We seem to have moved on from painting with our fingers and paint brushes to sponges and paper towel rolls. I heart simple fun times.