Finally, a new project to show you! Although I have been busy working on various things in my new craft room, I haven’t been motivated to update my blog. It’s hard to get anything done lately with the second trimester honeymoon over and only 8 weeks until baby girl arrives.

Because this is our third child, we really haven’t had to buy or do much to prepare for her imminent arrival. Ange of All Trades (who just became a new mama to a baby boy) managed to convince me to make a baby quilt for our new addition. As she pointed out, I did sew quilts for daughters number 1 and 2 and it only makes sense to have a special one made up for number 3. She even gave me a kick start in the right direction by donating Lily and Will fabrics by Bunny Hill Designs for Moda from her quilting stash!

Rather than go shopping for more colours and patterns, I decided to use up the chocolate brown fabric from my own stash to compliment the muted, vintage feel palette of the Lily and Will line of quilting cottons.

I used a simple “X’s and O’s” block to create this quilt. Be sure to watch this easy to follow this video tutorial by Missouri Star Quilt Co. if you are interested in sewing your own.

I really wanted to be economical and managed to piece together blocks of the remaining Lily and Will fabrics and the plain brown to create the quilt back. I have tons of quilt batting leftover from my previous projects so this baby quilt cost me nothing. Well, no new expenses anyhow.

Can you see the X’s and the O’s? You would achieve completely different looks by using high contrast fabrics or spacing the blocks out with a border.

I prefer to hand bind my quilts. It’s a bit more work but I like the finish better than a machine sewn binding.

This is the first big project that I completed in my brand new dedicated crafting space! Although I managed to do all the sewing at one kitchen island work station, the addition of a sewing nook/table/station would be most welcome in the near future. Not that I’ll have much time on my hands for quilting or crafting.

Before you go, check out these other crafty posts:

• Inexpensive DIY Clip Art Rails
• Crochet Cupcakes
• Fun with DIY Freezer Stencils and Craft Paint

It’s been a long stretch since my last post. No, I have not run out of projects to work on. In fact, it’s just the opposite – too many projects and too little time to blog about them.

The one project that is on going and continues to keep me busy is “Project Craft Room”. I’m happy to report that although the room is not actually finished, it is completely functional as is and has been used on a daily basis.

Here we have the two Ikea Stenstorp kitchen islands setup in the “yin yang” position inspired by Sarah and Tommy’s craft room design on Sarah’s House season 4. Instead of the rather pricey Crate and Barrel stainless steel counter stools, I opted for the not as cheap as I would like Ingolf  counter chairs by Ikea.

I chose the Ingolf counter stools because they offered the best comfort and support for my kids. My two girls are tall enough to climb on and off the stools without assistance. I like the back support. It seems safer for the kids than a traditional bar or counter stool.

One of the best buys at Ikea was the Mala paper holder/dispenser which can be found in the children’s department for $9.99. It is easy to setup and the kids just love it.

Much like the inspiration room, I installed the Ikea Grundtal kitchen rails on the wall for extra storage. I love how the Grundtal cutlery holders and Rationell recycling bins are perfect for holding crafting supplies and tools. Just pull up what you need while you’re working and pop them back on the rail when you’re done! This system keeps everything off the tables  so there is always ample work space.

Under the Grundtal rails, I plan on putting a long desk/sewing table At first I was really keen on adding a large storage unit but I’m currently working on a quilt/sewing project and it’s not alway convenient to pull out my sewing machine and set it up at the kitchen island. Therefore, I think the free space between the islands and the wall will be better served as a dedicated sewing nook.

That’s all I have to show you right now. There is still plenty of work to be done. Meanwhile, the room does serve it’s purpose and it is a space that my girls and I enjoy using everyday.

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Remember the days of Room Service? That’s how long I’ve been following beloved Canadian designer Sarah Richardson. While I consider myself a fan, some of her more recent designs, particularly on Sarah’s House season 4, are not as much my style as her work on previous seasons or on Design Inc. That being said, the one episode that stood out for me was Sarah and Tommy’s first craft room design.

As far as inspiration goes, I wouldn’t exactly say Sarah’s room is my dream craft room. My fantasty  craft room would be a lot bigger with gorgeous built in cabinetry for storage, a sewing station, a paper crafting/scrapbooking nook along with a large general crafting area. There were be tons of natural light and maybe a comfy chair or two. Truthfully, it is a luxury to even be able to have a designated space for a craft room, fantasy or not.

In real life, my future craft room is in the basement with a well window for light. It is approximately 12 x 12 with a closet which is a bonus for storage.  The foundation of my room design is inspired by Sarah and Tommy’s use of the kitchen islands as the main working stations in their craft room makeover. I love this idea so much, I went ahead and took advantage of the recent kitchen sale at Ikea and purchased two Stenstorp Islands. At $549 each, this was definitely a splurge.

Why the Island Love?

What works in a magazine shoot or tv show doesn’t always translate well in reality but in this case, the Stenstorp kitchen islands are ideal for a craft room. Here are a few reasons why:

• The kitchen islands have built in open storage
• Putting two islands together provides ample work space for up to 4 people
• The counter height and large working space is ideal for cutting fabric or quilting (backaches be gone!)
• Sturdy counter tops will withstand some wear and tear and can be easily sanded and refinished

I’m happy with my splurge. The lighting in my room is terrible right now so I don’t think the photo does my crafting islands justice! There is still a lot of work to do in the room. Unfortunately, splurging on the islands means I have to keep the rest of my spending in check! I don’t think those cute stainless steel counter stools from Crate and Barrel will be making the cut but I’m pretty sure we’ll be spending a few more weekends at Ikea.

Stay tuned for more on Project Craft Room!

Before you go, check out these popular reads:

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I‘ve said this before and I’ll say it again – even at the risk of sounding like a terrible mother. My daughter loves pancakes and I absolutely loathe making them. I hate standing around waiting for the opportune moment to flip the pancakes. No matter what I do, the first pancake is always a disaster and ends up in the compost. So you can imagine how excited I was to discover a recipe for making a fluffy pancake like creation called a Dutch Baby (aka German Pancake) that is baked in a pan rather than heated (and flipped) on a griddle.

Never having tried an actual Dutch Baby, I’m not sure I can really say whether this recipe is authentic or not. From what I’ve read on the internet, Dutch Baby pancakes can be baked in a pan or made using a dual heat method of pouring the batter in a hot cast iron skillet and then placing the skillet into the oven. No matter which cooking method you use, the Dutch Baby should rise and puff up (much like a Yorkshire pudding). Once removed from the heat source, the sides of the Dutch Baby remain quite puffy while the middle deflates.

Dutch Baby Recipe

Ingredients

• 4 eggs
• 1 cup flour
• 2 tbs butter
• 4 lemon wedges
• 2 tbs icing sugar

I had to adjust the recipe a tiny bit to make one large Dutch Baby instead of two smaller ones in round spring form pans. Unlike a traditional pancake which has a fluffy, cake like texture, the Dutch Baby has an eggy, chewier consistency. If you like Yorkshire pudding then you’ll love the Dutch Baby pancake.

Here’s a piece served with homemade blueberry sauce. So yummy!

Another piece with apple slices (tossed them in with the batter) and a topping of cinnamon sugar and powdered sugar. The apples were a bit heavy so the Dutch baby didn’t rise as high. Tasted amazing though.

After serving this for brunch two weekends in a row, I feel confident that pancakes will now be a regular staple in my kitchen (the Dutch Baby kind that is).

What’s cooking in your kitchen this Wednesday?

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Last week I showed you some pictures of our current crafting area. This kitchen nook is home to supplies and my children’s creations. Most of their artwork consist of paper, paper and more paper. They love to draw and colour pictures. Lots of pictures. The piles keeps growing on the desk until I can’t take the mess and clutter anymore and it discreetly goes in the recycling bin.

How can you throw your kids’ beloved artwork away? I know it’s terrible but I just can’t keep all that paper. I do feel bad, especially when some of their drawings are quite nice. What’s a crafty mama to do?

It’s been on my to do list for awhile but these easy DIY clip art rails are just the thing my oldest daughter needs to neatly display her work.

This is such an easy project. You can even make the art rails with your kids. Not only do the rails look cute, they are functional. Take at look at my au natural wood and clothes pin art rails in action!

For my project, I picked up two pieces of 1/4 inch hobby stock at Home Depot. They happen to be the perfect length for mounting above the chalkboard desk in my daughter’s bedroom. I used Aleene’s Tacky Glue to glue the clothes pins onto the hobby stock 4 inches apart. Be sure to alternate the direction of your clothes pins.

Because my art rails are pretty short, I was able to easily mount them onto the wall with 3M hanging strips. I love these strips because they can be removed without ruining your walls. Mounting the rails with the 3M strips saved me the trouble of putting nails or screws through my project and the walls.

I can’t take the credit for coming up with this ingenious project. I did change things up to make the rails work for my room of course, but the kudos go to Ana White of ana-white.com. If you want to make your own clip art rails, be sure to visit her website for a detailed supply list and instructions.

Be sure to check out my other crafty projects:

• My First Knitting Project 
• Customize a Cork Memo Board
• DIY Framed Wall Art Tutorial

Thanks for visiting inspirednest.ca. If you liked this post, why not leave a comment or subscribe to the blog via RSS Feed. You can also  or Twitter for the latest updates!

It’s a little early to blame the nesting instinct but with a new baby on the way this summer, I feel like I need to complete our on going list of projects ASAP! Let’s see, we finished the home office renovation; however, the organizing and decorating is not quite there. A custom safety gate to match our staircase and railing is high on the priority list, but of course I haven’t gotten around to it. Our big grassy backyard is looking more like a moss pit and the almost new carpet we ripped out from our office/den is sitting in the living room waiting to be cut and bound into a rug.

The smart thing to do would be tackle all the above in the next few weeks. Blame it on mommy brain because instead of prioritizing and dealing with the important stuff (like the safety gate) I’ve decided to take on designing and putting together the ultimate craft room.

Huh? Yeah, I know – where did that come from?

I haven’t gone completely insane. I have good reason for wanting to create a designated crafting space. Not only am I an avid crafter, I already have two daughters in training and a third one on the way. Right now our crafting stuff is everywhere. If I don’t keep it all in one dedicated spot, then eventually the entire house will be taken over by crayons, papers, glue, beads, yarn, fabric, wood, tools, paper, stickers, markers, scissors, and more paper. You get the picture and if you don’t, here are a few to help you out.

This kitchen nook is where my kids usually do their crafts. It’s a nice little space that works for now. I’m able to contain most of the paper and tools in the drawers but it does drive me a little nutty when the kids leave their creations all over the counter.

One of the biggest pluses of having a small craft area for the kids in the kitchen nook is that I can keep and eye on them while I’m prepping or cooking dinner. The downside is the nook is small and my girls won’t be tiny forever. Also there isn’t room for me to work along with them which means I’m spreading my mess in other parts of the house – like this bar area which has become a make shift craft space.

Notice the upper cabinet doors on the right are not closed? Nice flat of apple juice in the microwave shelf. It goes well with cardboard! And yes, that is my original Cricut Create box sitting next to the juice. I’m not proud of this chaos.

A few people have asked what my latest project is. Well, this is it…my latest project is creating the ultimate craft room. The goal is to design a room that is bright, functional and organized. Here is a collection of craft rooms that I absolutely love and look to for inspiration:

via Home Depot

 via bhg.com

Design by Kelly Deck via House and Home 

 via bhg.com

via House and Home 

This one is the jumping off point for my own project – a craft room by Sarah Richardson via hgtv.ca

So now you know what my latest plans are! I’ll show you the room I’m making over next time. I’ll also talk about why I like Sarah’s craft room so much and how some of the elements will work in my very own space!

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Thanks for visiting inspirednest.ca. If you liked this post, why not leave a comment or subscribe to the blog via RSS Feed. You can also  or Twitter for the latest updates!

Spring has technically arrived so I better post this cozy project before it looks silly. Although, anyone living in the metro Vancouver area would agree that it has been colder than usual and wearing a hand knitted wool cowl wouldn’t exactly be strange these past two weeks.

Those of you that know me, have heard me say many times that I don’t know how to knit and I wasn’t interested in learning.

This is why I never say never…

Yes, I have finally taken up knitting. Thanks to watching a few YouTube video tutorials, I managed to teach myself how to knit and I’ve already completed my first project – a warm and versatile cowl neck scarf made of 100% wool in a lovely charcoal colour.

Don’t look too closely! There are tons of mistakes. I used a free pattern I found on ravelry.com, an awesome online community for crocheters and knitters. The pattern was simple and easy to follow but being a little on the impatient side, I often rushed through rows and knitted when I should have purled and purled when I should have knitted. Hence, the obvious errors in my scarf.

Do not be deceived by the simplicity of the eternity scarf. While the project is easy enough for knitting newbies, it does require time and patience. Each row or round consists of 160 – 220 stitches (depending on how long you want your scarf). That is a lot of stitches. It took me something like 6-8 weeks to finish my scarf. Mind you I have a billion other things to do so if you can dedicate yourself to one project at a time, you should be able to complete this cowl a lot faster!

The scarf was made using 2 skeins of Patons Classic wool and 5mm circular needles (90cm). I find Patons Classic wool is quite soft and it doesn’t leave me feeling itchy from the fibres.

The pattern for the cowl is by Ann Maria for Madeleine Tosh. As I mentioned earlier, I discovered it on ravelry.com.

I love how my cowl turned out. It is warm, cozy and versatile. I made the long version of the cowl which can be wrapped twice around the neck for warmth or just for a different look. The scarf is technically “reversible” since the pattern looks pretty on both sides. I’m thinking the shorter style cowl would be great for my girls. Wearing a cowl is much better than a long scarf, especially for the little ones. No need to worry about any ends being caught or wrapped around the neck too tight!

I’m not sure what my next knitting project will be. Maybe a pair of socks for each of my girls or something for the baby.

Happy knitting/crafting!

P.S. Here’s an important tip: Avoid twisting your first row! I discovered a twist after knitting 2.5 inches and unfortunately had to take it apart and start over. (That would be about 2000 wasted stitches.)

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Thanks for visiting inspirednest.ca. If you liked this post, why not leave a comment or subscribe to the blog via RSS Feed. You can also  or Twitter for the latest updates!

Blueberry flan, blueberry cake – what else can a blueberry fanatic make?

How about muffins?

These classic blueberry muffins were served fresh and warm as an after school snack. They were light, and fluffy with just the right amount of blueberries and the perfect lemony, sugar crust on top.

Blueberry Muffins

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
• Pinch of salt
• 1 cup of blueberries (fresh or frozen)
• 3/4 cup yogurt or buttermilk
• 1 egg
• 1/3 vegetable oil
• Topping
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 4 tbs sugar

In a large bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Gently stir in blueberries and set bowl aside. In a separate bowl, whisk together yogurt or buttermilk with egg and vegetable oil. Pour mixture into dry ingredients and stir together with a wooden spoon until just mixed. Spoon batter in lined muffin pan. Bake in preheated 400F oven for 20 minutes. Remove pan and let muffins rest for approximately 2 minutes before carefully removing and cooling on wired rack.

Yum, yum! These berry good muffins are a keeper in my recipe vault!

What’s cooking in your kitchen this Wednesday?

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Last week I blogged about my great office library chair find. I thought $139 versus $699 was a pretty good deal. Relatively speaking it still is an awesome find but this week’s Homesense find will be hard to beat. Even hubby who was initially a reluctant player in my weekly bargain hunts was fully on board with this crazy cheap buy!

Are you ready? Take a guess at how much we paid for this high back French Style chair. I’ll give you a hint – it was sitting in the clearance section (of course!).

$300? Yeah, I don’t think so.

$150? Good guess but that’s more than we paid for the other accent chair.

$75??? Getting close but I’m not sure I would snatched it up so quickly because it does have quite a few dings and scratches.

$50???? Nope!

Was it free? Ha, ha I wish!

Okay, I’ll just tell you how much we paid! This Homesense clearance item was $30. Yes, I’m serious. $30.

The chair is not in the best condition but it’s not a disaster either. In fact, the scratches and dings can be easily fixed or one can just leave it and call it a vintage look.  I don’t love the fabric but that can be changed too. But for $30, it’s pretty much perfect in my bargain book.

Now the question is, where do I put it?

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Thanks for visiting inspirednest.ca. If you liked this post, why not leave a comment or subscribe to the blog via RSS Feed. You can also  or Twitter for the latest updates!

Warning. You may become obsessed with personalizing everything after trying this fun stenciling technique. This no sew version of monogramming was my quick go to solution for handmade presents during the holiday season. My tutorial requires the use of a Cricut machine but you really don’t need it to make your own freezer paper stencils.

Materials & Supplies

• Renoylds Freezer Paper
• Cricut Create*
• Don Juan Cartridge (comes with the Create)*
• Pressing cloth
• Iron
• Foam pouncer or brush
• Acrylic craft paint or fabric paint
• Cozy Faux Sherpa Blanket

*If you do not have a Cricut or die-cutting machine, a set of large (3 inch and up) lettering stencils, cutting mat and craft knife will do.

How To: Personalize a Cozy Faux Sherpa Blanket with DIY Freezer Paper Stencils and Craft Paint

Step 1:

Cut your freezer paper into a 6 x 12 in rectangle to fit your Cricut mat (depends on your model of course). Place the paper shiny side down. Insert the Don Juan cartridge in your machine, turn on and load mat. Pretty easy so far!

Step 2:

Set the size dial to 2.75 to 3. 5 inches depending on the size of the item you are personalizing. Since my blankets were fairly big, I went with larger letters. Choose the “Marquee” feature followed by the letters you wish to cut. Depending on the size, I was able to fit 3-4 letters per sheet of freezer paper.

Voila! Here are my freezer paper lettering stencils.

Now if you don’t have a die cutting machine, (because not everyone is as craft obsessed as I am or they would rather spend the money on something else – totally understandable) there is no need to despair. My suggestion would be to purchase a cheap set of stencils so you can trace the letters directly onto the freezer paper. Lay out your freezer paper on a cutting mat and carefully cut out the letter stencils with a sharp crafting knife.  An even more cost efficient way to make your own stencils is to find a font you like and print letters off your computer. You can then trace the letters onto the freezer paper.

Step 3:

Arrange your stencils (shiny side down) on the faux sherpa blanket. Carefully place a pressing cloth (I just used a spare piece of quilt weight 100% cotton) over your work.

Step 4:

Using the lowest heat setting, iron the stencils onto the blanket. Be sure to press firmly to smooth out any gaps between the paper and the fabric. You want the stencils to really stick to the fabric. This will keep the paint from bleeding underneath the stencils.

Step 5:

Use a foam pouncer or brush to apply paint to the stenciled areas. Although it requires some time and patience, I personally found it better to apply 3 coats of paint instead of 1 thick and gooey layer. Allow the paint to dry between coats. For this project I used Martha Stewart Craft paint by Plaid in Vanilla Bean (satin finish).

Step 6:

Once the paint is fully dried you can carefully peel off the freezer paper. Go slow as the paper rips easily and it is quite hard to peel those tiny bits around the painted letters. Maybe I ironed mine stencils a little too vigorously!

Step 7:

Almost there! Place the pressing cloth over the painted area. Using the lowest heat setting, press over the stenciled letters. Just move your iron over the area for about 2 minutes or so. Doing this will heat set the paint. Allow 21 days for the paint to fully cure. Basically that means, don’t throw your personalized blanket in the wash for at least 3 weeks. I knew my nieces and nephews would want to use the blankets right away so I washed and dried them BEFORE I started personalizing them.

This one was a house warming present for my sister in law. I love how it turned out. Basically, freezer paper stenciling on fabric is the poor girl’s version of silk screening!

So what will you try stenciling first? A tote bag? Onesie? T-Shirt…Imagine all the possibilities…

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Thanks for visiting inspirednest.ca. If you liked this post, why not leave a comment or subscribe to the blog via RSS Feed. You can also  or Twitter for the latest updates!