Project 9: No More Boring Pillar Candles

 

Who doesn't love pillar candles. But these days, who has the money to spend on those fancy, pre-decorated ones? Certainly, not myself. You can pick up plain white ones at the Dollar Tree, or even at Wal*Mart, for next to nothing. On the other hand, unless it falls into your stark white décor, white candles just don't add any flavor to the scene.

But.. they CAN with a little creativity. I am obsessed with Pinterest (you might've noticed, if you've checked out other posts to my blog). I found this idea there, and several other places on the web. And there are a few variations. This one is my own, only because I have not yet comes across the use of tissue paper for it, yet. Of course, original ideas are few and far between in this information sharing age.

So here's the skinny:
On Pinterest, they used printed seasonal or special occasion napkins with a clothes iron.
They are typically 2-ply; printed-ply and a plain backing-ply. Remove the plain backing, leaving only the printed 1-ply napkin. Wrap the printed-ply napkin around the pillar candle, and run a cooler-setting iron over it evenly, so that they wax melts and seeps through the napkin. Trim off the top and bottom hang-over pieces of napkin. And voila! Fancy pillar candle to fit in with your décor.

I didn't have any printed napkins. However, I have a habit of keeping tissue paper that comes in gifts and other packaging. And I have friends and family who donates theirs to me as well.

I picked out the colors I wanted. In lieu of an clothes iron (because I have no idea where mine is), I used my curling iron. I didn't use the barrel of the curling iron, but the hinged part used to hold the hair in place. When you're done, wipe the iron with a clean cloth or paper towel and the hot wax will come right off. I found the curling iron to be easy to use, I'm sure I'd have burned myself if I knew where the clothes iron was and attempted to use that.

It is fairly easy to see your progress, as the tissue paper (or napkin) becomes translucent.
With this candle, I wanted an overlapping effect of the different colors.

Play with ideas and experiment with your look, and enjoy!

 

Crochet: Button Flowers

 

This is another pattern I found on Pinterest. I can't tell you how much I enjoy surfing Pinterest for new ideas! And this is fairly simple and takes only a few minutes to complete one. I did all five of these within an hour and a half. It took me longer to locate my buttons and pick out the ones I wanted to use to go with the crochet thread I had than it did to actually make them.

I think they are so cute and could be used for a lot of other crafts. You could slip one on a bobby pin and use it as a hair decoration, use them for accents on crochet blankets, attach a key chain ring, you could even use Sticky-Tac to mount them to a boring wall, the list goes on and on!

What you'll need:

• Size 7 crochet hook
• Size 10 crochet thread
• Buttons with four holes

I used Red Heart Classic Crochet Thread. And the buttons will need holes large enough for the hook to easily pass through.

RND 1: single crochet in the 1st button hole, chain 4 (for a bigger button, you may need to chain 5), single crochet in the 2nd hole, chain 4, single crochet in the 3rd hole, chain 4, single crochet in the 4th hole, single crochet in the 1st hole, chain 4, join with a slip stitch to the 1st single crochet.

RND 2: *slip stitch, half-double crochet, 4 double crochet, half-double crochet, slip stitch.
Repeat from * 4 times, slip stitch to the 1st slip stitch, finish off.

If you'd like to add a border color like I did, just slip stitch in each slip stitch spot and single crochet in half-double crochet and double crochet stitches. Slip stitch to the first slip stitch and finish off.

Project 8: Hot Glue Snowflakes

My sister doesn't start decorating for Christmas until after my nephew's birthday on December 12th. The reason for this is simple. She wants to keep his birthday separate from Christmas, so that it doesn't diminish his special day or that of Christmas.
So in keeping that in mind, there's nothing wrong with decorating for WINTER; as long as it doesn't give off too much of a Christmas-y vibe. I found this idea somewhere on Pinterest.
Hot glue Snowflakes. It's very easy and so simple you'll wonder why you hadn't thought of using hot glue for this and other types of things, as well, yourself.

I went to Google Images and searched for "snowflake outlines". As you can see from the image above, I found two types suitable for this, bold solid and traditional outline. I printed them out so that the widest snowflake is about 3-1/2 inches across. Any larger, and I think the glue might become too heavy and sag after it cools.
You'll also notice from the photo above, those patterns are under glass. The patterns serve as templates, and you'll work directly on the glass. Once the hot glue has cooled, use a razor blade, carefully, to lift it off.
You can use standard clear hot glue sticks, or the glittery hot glue. I preferred using the standard clear glue sticks and then using a paint brush with Mod Podge and glitter from a shaker. It sparkles brighter that way, I think. The glitter sticks just didn't have the "bling" I was looking for with these.
As for whether to use a mini glue gun vs. a standard sized glue gun, that really depends on which works better for you. I found the mini glue gun worked for me.

 If you don't have a handy piece of glass to work with, never fear. Buy a cheap picture frame, take out the glass and ditch the tacky frame (or use it for something else).
Work on a flat surface with good lighting. Place your pattern under the glass, and lay even, thick lines of glue, tracing your patterns. The less you have to stop a line and start another, the better; so plan your course tracing ahead of time.
In the photo above, I laid the six-sided middle ring first. Then I added the six outer "spokes", followed by the "branches" off the spokes.

I used 4-pound fishing line and a needle on the tip of a spoke to hang them. Make sure you leave a little room between the fishing line and the very tip of the snowflake, so that it doesn't pull through the glue while hanging.

You can use them to decorate almost anything. We have rods above our doorway into the kitchen, I hung ours from there. But you can make smaller ones to decorate your tree, wreaths.. like I said, almost anything. For all intents and purposes, you could hot glue them directly onto your windows (if it's not too cold outside- don't want to crack the window) and then when you're ready to take down your decorations, just use that trusty razor blade to remove them from the window.

Enjoy!

Money Saver: Home-made Laundry Detergent

Do the Math

If I said you could have 15 gallons of laundry detergent for about $13.00, would you spend the minimal amount of time and work to make it?

My sister and I just priced Arm&Hammer brand Washing Soda ($4.00 for 3-pound box) and Twenty Mule Team brand Borax ($4.00 for 4-pound box) at Wal*Mart. We have a Dollar Tree here that sells full-sized bar soap for $1.00.

Now, since my recipe calls for 1 cup dry measure each of washing soda and borax, I used a converter from dry pounds to dry cups (rounding up 1 number value to the right of the decimal):
3-pounds equates to 5.8 cups
4-pounds equates to 7.7 cups.
Assuming I have .8 cups of washing soda and 2.7 cups of borax left over for the next time I need to buy ingredients to make this: 5 cups of each will make FIVE batches.
Each batch requires 1-bar of soap.
Therefore, $4.00 (washing soda) + $4.00 (borax) + $5.00 (five bars of soap) =$13.00 for five batches or fifteen gallons of laundry detergent.

Let's Make It!

You'll need:

• 1 bar of castille type soap (no glycerine or moisturizer soaps)
• 1 cup of Arm&Hammer brand washing soda
• 1 cup of Twenty Mule Team brand borax
• 1 large pot (2-1/2 gallon or larger)
• grater
• long, wooden spoon
• large funnel
• 3 empty 1-gallon jugs

Directions:

• Fill two 1-gallon jugs with cold water
• Grate one bar of soap into the pot
• Pour one 1-gallon jug of water into the pot with the grated soap. Cook on medium heat, stirring until the grated soap dissolves.
• Add 1 cup of washing soda and 1 cup of borax and bring to a boil while stirring. Mixture will coagulate.
• Turn off heat and add one 1-gallon jug of water into the pot. Stir well.
• Using the funnel, pour equal amounts of mixture into three 1-gallon jugs. Fill remainder of each jug with water, put on lid, and shake well.

Shake before each use, it may separate if left to sit.
Use 1/2 cup for a regular load, 1 cup for large or heavily soiled load.


Other Important Information:

• Borax, alone, is harmful to animals and children. Follow the directions on the box for safe storage!
• Since this is a low-suds recipe, it is safe for newer washers.
• Instead of regular bar soap, you can buy FELS-Naptha Laundry Bar Soap (Dial Corporation) for better/heavier stain removal. Also, this product boasts its ability to remove poison ivy from skin and clothing.

Project 7: Crepe Paper + Dowel = Cat Fun

I find inspiration EVERYWHERE!
This morning, my sister tagged me in today's "Cuteness Dose". It was a video, not unlike many on the webernet, of kittens playing. The inspiration, was the crepe paper they seemed to having a blast with.
Of course, yes, I have crepe paper streamers on hand in my craftroom. At first, I hung them from a doorway, but it seemed to lack something, as it didn't really invoke much interest from our kitties.
However, after a moment of thought, it came to me. They love the toys that dangle from the dowel rods. A LOT.

MATERIALS:

• Crepe Paper Streamers
• 1/4" dowel
• tape

I used two different lengths of the crepe paper. Though, I'm sure you could use more than two, but one didn't seem to be as interesting to the kitties.

Line up the ends of the two streamers and fold lengthwise.

Wrap around the end of the dowel, as shown above.

Then tape, as shown above, making sure that the tape wraps around both the crepe paper AND the dowel.

You'll want to smoosh each streamer seperately, so that they "fly" independently of each other. Otherwise, they will just stick together as you play.

This is 2Dot on the left, waiting ever so patiently for this to be finished. He's already shredded and "killed" this toy several times. But it's okay. It cleans up quickly, easily and is easy to make again. It takes all of 5 minutes to do and I've had a BLAST playing with all the kitties this morning.

I'll update shortly with a video of this little fatty getting his exercise.

Money Saver: Mince Your Own Garlic/Freeze Garlic?

Store-Bought vs. Fresh

We've all bought this at the grocery store, pre-minced garlic in a jar. I am in no way belittling this grocery store item. However, I can tell you if you are on a super-tight grocery budget, this is one of those items that gets stuck on the "maybe next time" list.

Everyone likes to save a buck when they can, so I pass this on to you. (I hope it makes enough sense; as always, sleep deprivation leaves me rather wordy LOL)

An 8 oz.  jar similar to the one above costs approximately $2.88 at Wal*Mart. We bought a 24 oz. package of already peeled garlic cloves for $7.98 at Sam's Club.

Now, I mince 20 garlic cloves from that 24 oz. package (and it barely made a dent) and put it in a 15 oz. jar that I re-use solely for this purpose; those 20 garlic cloves fills it 3/4 full. I'll be able to do this at the very least 7 more times.

Let's do the math:
Store-bought minced garlic 8 oz. @ $2.88 per jar.
24 oz. package of already peeled garlic cloves @ $7.98 (enough to mince garlic equal to eight -  at the very least - of the store bought jars)
$2.88 (store bought cost) x 8 (how many I'd have to buy to equal to the large bag of cloves)= $23.04
$23.04 - $7.98 (cost of the large bag of cloves)= $15.06 - what I save by purchasing that 24 oz. package and mincing it myself.

$15.00 for the gas tank folks AND you get your minced garlic in a jar, for the next eight, or more, months.

 

Here's what you need:

• 1 jar
• fresh garlic cloves
• extra virgin olive oil

(No, I did not include the price of the olive oil, because it is bought regardless of whether or not I do this AND so very little is used)

 

Directions:

In my research for this, it seemed to be common practice to use 1-part garlic cloves to 2-parts olive oil. In other words, they'd have your minced garlic swimming in oil.
When I buy it, it's not swimming in oil, so I don't make it that way.

I mince the garlic and put it in the jar as I go; every once in a while, as it fills up, I add just enough oil so that it comes just below the top of the minced garlic. I guess you could say that's just about 1-part to 1-part equal. I don't stop there, however. Personally, I have an aversion to any food tasting like the oil it is cooked in or stored in. It could be my imagination, but adding just enough water so that the entirety of the garlic is submerged seems to cut the oily flavor to me. Screw the lid on and give it a good shake (no, I'm not expecting the oil and the water to mix - we all know that's not going to happen), and refrigerate.

**NOTE**
You CAN freeze garlic. Here are the suggestions I've found:
1) Whole cloves - leave unpeeled, store in freezer bag and toss into the freezer. Pull cloves off as needed, peel and use immediately.
2) Minced - leave out the water (if you chose to follow my directions above). Store in freezer-safe plastic container and toss into the freezer. The oil prevents complete solid freeze. Spoon out desired measure for your recipe and use immediately. I should note here, that it was highly suggested that if you use this method, that you do not allow for thaw time. Period. From freezer to pot/pan/baking dish/slow cooker, etc.

*    *    *

I'd also like to just say, that mincing and storing fresh garlic this way, seems to keep the flavor punch of the garlic more so than buying it already prepared. Should I mention for those of you who DO care, by preparing your own jar of ready-to-use minced garlic yourself, you absolutely know what's going into that jar and what's not.

Cooking something yummy!
  



 

Crochet: Double-Sided Hot Pad

 

Skill: Easy
Size: 10" x 10"
Materials: Cotton Heat Resistant Crochet Thread
Crochet Hook: Steel Size J

**PLEASE NOTE** I made this a while back, so my stitch count is a little fuzzy LOL

Ch 30, sc in first ch; sc in each ch st across. Ch 1 and turn.

(Here's where the fuzzy comes in.) Repeat until square. LOL
Honestly, this is so basic a pattern, any stitch count can be done, depending on the maker's desired size.

Use that basic pattern to create two blocks. (As pictured above)
I chose a single crochet stitch, because it's a close weave and if used as a pot holder, fingers would be less likely to slip through and get burned.

Line the two pieces up and use a single crochet stitch to connect them.
I single crocheted 3 times in the corner stitches so as not to have cinched or puckered corners. Once you've gone all the way around, Sl st into first ch (sc). Ch 1 and single crochet all the way around again (This time you won't have to sc 3 times in the corner stitches). Weave in all excess yarn and you're done.

 

*    *    *

I'm sure there are patterns galore out the for this type of thing. My mom taught me (later in life) how to crochet the basic stitches and I went from there. When you're learning how to crochet or knit, you end up with a lot of squares. What do you do with them?

I got tired of the clanking of the spoon being put onto the spoon rest and the clanking of the glass sugar and powered creamer containers onto the countertop, by the coffee maker. So I took two of those useless squares that had the best uniformity to them, attached them together as described above. What I ended up with - I put the sugar/powdered creamer containers on it, ditched the spoon and spoon rest for a glass swizzle stick and had myself a nifty little coffee station.

(front)

(back)

My mom liked the idea so much, I made her one. This one. This poor thing is almost 15 years old, and as you can see, it's had better days. Yes, it's coffee stained, but it's still sturdy and useable.


There is no one to credit for this idea or general pattern. I came up with it, whether it was an original idea or not.

Project 6: Too Many Trick or Treat Buckets?

Trick-or-Treat Buckets Galore!

My nephew had amassed a few of the pumpkin Trick-or-Treat buckets. Mostly, because on a successful Halloween night, one bucket just wasn't enough to carry his candy loot. My nephew is autistic and is insistent on using these buckets as opposed to the always handy pillow case. So my sister came to me and requested they be melded, somehow, to make one large bucket.

NOT a problem!

• Use a utility knife to cut the bottom out of one bucket (that will be the top one). To avoid any owies when reaching down into the bucket, I used a metal nail file (they really come in handy when crafting) to smooth the edges of the bucket where I cut out the bottom. 
• Remove the little handle from the bottom bucket.
• Line up the bucket seams - and hot glue the "snot out of them". Pretty sure that's not a technical term lol.
• Be sure to go all the way around and squirt plenty down into the second bucket where the two meet.
• Once that is dried, I applied a second beading of hot glue around the outside so that it completely covered where the two met.
• Again, once dried, I used a mini glue gun to put another beading around the INSIDE between the lip of the top bucket and the bottom bucket.

Voila! It was plenty sturdy enough to carry his candy loot.

Project 5: Scratched CDs/DVDs

Don't Toss Those Scratched CDs/DVDs!

CDs and DVDs become scratched and useless. It's a fact of life. But that doesn't mean you have to throw it away.
If you like alternative forms of art, this one's for you. It's fairly easy, but depending on the pattern you choose, it can be a little time consuming.


I use PLAID brand Apple Barrel 20404 Black Acrylic Paint (found in the crafts section of Wal*Mart, or at HobbyLobby or Michael's). Paint the data side of the CD/DVD, edge to edge. (BluRay, I'm not sure how it would come out unless you'd use a lighter color)

Once dried, use a pencil to draw your pattern onto the CD. Now, here's where the time-consuming bit comes in. I used the tip of a metal nail file to scrape off the paint. You may find a utensil that works better for you. I will say, I made a "test" CD before this one and used a razor blade - did NOT work out so well.

Once you're satisfied with your piece, you'll need to seal it to avoid accidental scratching of the surface. I used ModPodge Clear Acrylic Sealer. You can buy that in Gloss and Matte. I happened to have Gloss on hand, but, in all honesty, I think I'd like the way a Matte finish would look better.

Project 4: Safe Toy Mouse

Cat toy mice. We used to buy ours at the Dollar Tree, a pack of 3 for a $1.00. The same fuzzy mice they sell for much more at Wal*Mart or other stores like it.

I say "used to", because we no longer buy toy mice. Period. After watching one of our cats appear to choke on and then finally throw-up a red, gooey tail from one of those mice, I decided once and for all, that would NEVER happen again.

It is a fairly easy project. You need only minimal sewing skills and the materials.

I designed my own stencil and then cut it out of one of those thick plastic 3-ring binder dividers. You'll want to make it a little bigger than your desired finished mouse size, for sewing purposes.

If you're going to use just one color or pattern of felt, you can cut it like above so that it is all one piece. Otherwise, you cut one side out of each color/patterned felt. One piece of felt can make several mice.

I pre-sew "X's" for eyes and install whiskers. At this point, you'll want to cut off a length of something for a tail. You can use shoestring, cording, ribbon, a strip of leather, etc. I would advise against using a strip of felt, because in a strip - it's fairly flimsy and can rip apart easily.

When you are ready to begin sewing, remember that you will sew the majority of the body inside-out. Place the tail inside the two sides, as pictured above.

This is what you should end up with. Note that where the tail is sticking out of the body should be left unsewn. Also, when sewing around the tail, make sure to put a couple stiches into whatever material you used a couple of times before continuing on. I always start from the mouse's behind and sew towards the nose.

 

 

Now, you are ready to begin the stuffing process. Turn your mouse right-side out. To stuff my mice, I use cotton balls from the Dollar Tree ($1.00 for a rather large bag, can't beat it, and it's cotton fiber rather than blended fibers). I use traditional catnip (also obtained from the Dollar Tree, and it's "organic" LOL) which I put a good sized pinch into the mouse before I stuff it. I spray the cotton balls with Catnip Mist (Wal*Mart, and a little goes a loooong way).

 

 

You're ready to finish up. I use what I call a "zipper" stitch to close. Start the stitch from inside on one side of the body and then over into the inside of the other side of the body, and so on.

 

 

Your finished mouse toy should look something like this, like a closed zipper, underneath. (See top of page for completed mouse photo)

 

*     *     *

 

I make about 3 of these once every other month, it only takes about an hour. They lose most of them, but every once in a while we go on a search and rescue, and I clean them up - trimming off the felt pills. We do this until they are what I consider "dead", which is ripped stitching, or the felt has just become "thread bare".

We've had no problems with these safer mice. No scary choking, no yucky gooey pieces vomited up.

 

I hope you consider undertaking this project if you have kitties of your own. While the faux fur on the store bought mice makes them look super cute while laying around on your floor, trust me when I say, your cat's don't care if they aren't fuzzy. I've even used this method using a cow-patterned heavy-duty material. Our kitties give these mice a two-paws up review!

 



 

Crap Room to Craft Room (Part 1)

My sister and I have been trying (for what seems like an eternity) to turn our "crap room" into a proper, functioning Craft Room. Doing so on an almost non-existant budget can be a bit overwhelming... UNLESS you can think outside of your own ideas. LOL

Thrift stores and roadside freebies are THE best! Period. Remember those military-style metal desks? Your teacher had one, the bank was full of them, they had them at the library, etc. They are sturdy. They are big. They are bulky and weigh a ton. My sister and I just happened to luck into picking one up at the local thrift store for $25! That my friends, is a STEAL. Then a couple days later as she was out and about in town, she found one curbside for FREE!! Both are in immaculate condition.

This had once been a pull-out file system. The wire rack that the hanging folders were hung from, no longer exists. However, it was a perfect fit for mounting my sewing machine, almost custom specifically for it! You open the door located on the left, grab the platform and full forward.

Then you simply lift up and perch it on a lip located on the door, and the door becomes the leg for the platform. How awesome is that?? Now, when not in use, the sewing machine can be put away, but it's always ready and waiting.

The middle drawer is shallow, but wide and long with plenty of room for lengthy knitting needles, paint brushes, rulers and straight edges. There are three drawers on the left with varying depths but all are equal in length. I keep tools like hot glue guns, wood burners, engravers, my bedazzler and such in the middle one. The bottom one houses miscellaneous bins containing markers, gel pens, colored pencils and the like. The top one is the shallowest of the three and is designed with a built in "inbox" type slot system.

Both desks had hutches with adjustable shelving areas. (I think this was probably an aftermarket upgradeable option, oooorrrr, went to other pieces of furniture). The shelves were not with the hutches, but in my case, I was fine with that. I had come up with this idea for my hutch after seeing a ton of organizational pins on Pinterest. What else do you do with miscellaneous spools of ribbon and Duck Tape brand tapes?

Add another shelf above the hutch for extra storage and I've got an ideal workspace that is perfect for me.

There is still much to do to complete this room. I need shelving to house many, many, many beads LOL and my sister is still working on her own space to make her desk work for her.

All in all, our "crap room" feels more like a "Crafting Room", finally.

Project 3: In a Pinch Push Pins

 

So, the other day, I ran out of pushpins. The reason for this inconvenience was mostly because the plastic pushpins I had, were broken (as you can see in the above photo, this yellow pushpin was the best of the bunch) or just plain MIA.

We don't exactly have the money to just go pick up a pack. Fortunately for us, in amongst all the freebie stuffs I've procured, I had a container of Upholstery tacks (or what they call "nails").

I cannot express just how useful a block of styrofoam can be. (This particular piece, I rescued from other bits of useless packing foam bits and also use it for crochet blocking). I painted the caps of the tacks a pretty and bright red, using ordinary crafting acrylic paint (Plaid Folk Art 414 "Cardinal Red") and let dry, before painting white dots (using the same type of paint).



Then, I finished them off, using what else? Mod Podge Clear Acrylic Sealer.

I use push pins for a variety of uses, and now I have some very sturdy "toad stools".
My sister has requested her own set of "lady bug" push pins. The cap designs are limited only by your imagination.

I hope you find this idea useful and fun, enjoy!