A Few of My Favorite Things

I’m back!  I hope I didn’t lose anyone, but I’ve been busy working on the greatest thing I’ve ever made.

I call her Little Miss.

She took nine months to complete and is worth every sleepless night and swollen finger.

When I started this blog, I made the decision to keep my family life private.  So I won’t be using her name or putting her face on my blog. 

While I was prego, I realized that the baby market is crazy!  They have a gizmo or product for about every situation.  Some of these products probably aren’t worth the extra money.  But here are a few items that, over the past few weeks, I have decided are worth every penny. 

Munchkin Disposable Changing Pads

 These little bad boys have saved my cute changing table cover about a million times, not to mention they make great covers for those nasty public changing tables and the quick diaper change on someone’s living room floor.  They are a little large, so I cut them in half, giving me twice as many in each pack.

Bright Starts Lots of Links

Using these links, I have been able to transform anything into a hanging toy.  Little Miss is automatically happy when she sees something interesting hanging over her head.  Obviously, you don’t want to hang anything dangerous over a baby’s head, but seeing her favorite toy has kept her happy on multiple shopping trips.

Bright Starts Comfort and Harmony Portable Swing

Little Miss loves relaxing in her swing.  I’ve even finagled ours, with the above links, to hang some bright colored toys.  These toys keep her occupied for minutes! (This is like hours in newborn talk).

I’ve been working on several projects over the past few weeks; hopefully, I will be able to go back to posting on a fairly regular basis.  But if there is one thing I have learned, newborns do not know the meaning of sticking to a schedule.  So bare with me as I start this new chapter in the life of Crafty Kate.


Linky Party!
The Gunny Sack
Skip to my Lou
The Blackberry Vine

Homemade Gift Giving

I’ve been trying my hand at homemade gift giving, and it seems like my go to idea is picture frames.  I’ve become a little obsessed with taking a thrift store find and turning it into something personal.

I used some fun scrapbook embellishments for the letters.

This one is just a block of wood that Hubby cut for me.  I painted it and sanded the edges, then I attached a piece of wrapped cardboard and a decorated clothes pin.

Please ignore the bad picture here...I had a house full of people and wanted to get the sucker wrapped...

I got the inspiration from Pinterest.

source

And don’t forget the custom frame I posted a little while back for my Sister-In-Law.

I’m loving being able to give homemade gifts! 

Linky Party!! 
52 Mantels
Katie's Nesting Spot

Many Thanks!

A few weeks back, I made some wine charms as a thank you to my mother-in-law for throwing that wonderful joint shower a while back.

I love how easy these are to whip up.

Now, can I just vent a little?  OK, thanks.

I am not a fan of the Thank You card tradition.  I never have been.  I feel like, if I can thank you in person, than that should be enough.  I can understand sending Thank You cards to someone who wasn’t around when I received their thoughtful gift.  However, if you’re sitting in the room when I open the present, I’ve probably thanked you a couple times already.

You all can probably imagine what is sparking this need to vent…it’s my cramped hand.  The cramped hand I am getting from writing Thank You cards for the people who gave me such wonderful gifts at my first two baby showers.

I was going to be all motivated and crafty and make Thank You cards.  I had my eye on a couple of pinterest goodies…

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But my lovely mother-in-law knew better and bought me a box of generic cards.  They are much more realistic.

I have one shower all written and ready to be mailed…if only I had some stamps.  My goal is to finish the second shower’s cards by next weekend, when I have my final shower.



Linking up!
The Shabby Nest
French Country Cottage
Finding Fabulous
I Should Be Mopping the Floor

Cousins Frame

I wanted to share one of the two frames I made for my sister-in-law’s shower gift.

I’m so excited to be sharing this experience with her and I love that our kids will grow up together.

Linking to these parties!
Katie's Nesting Spot
52 Mantels
A Turtle's Life for Me

Grandma's Garden Signs

This weekend my sister and I gave my mom her birthday gift.

We gave her some garden signs.

We wandered the isles of Hobby Lobby looking for inspiration. (Always one of my favorite parts of starting a project.)

We settled on some unfinished wood blocks.

Hubby went to Home Depot to buy the wood for the stakes and hardware. (There is no way that Grandma’s Garden sign will blow away!)

After we painted the wood blocks with some acrylic paint, we printed the words on some Grafix Rub-onz Film. (I still need to buy a new blade for my Silhouette.)

Hubby and my sister sprayed them down with several coats of Krylon Polyurethane Satin Finish.

I can’t wait to see pictures of them in her garden!



Linking up to these fun parties...

I'm Topsy Turvy
The Blackberry Vine
Boerman Ramblings
Homework
Funky Polkadot Giraffe
Raising 4 Princesses
Jillify It
Coastal Charm
Sugar Bee Crafts
Strictly Homemade

Our Delightful Home
Uncommon
Organize and Decorate Everything
Sugar and Dots

Katie's Nesting Spot
52 Mantels
Somewhat Simple
Tales from Bloggeritaville
Beyond the Picket Fence

French Country Cottage
2805
A Little Knick Knack
One Artsy Momma
Little Becky Homecky
Dwell on Joy
Truly Lovely

Linky Here

Ordinary Craft Project

I didn’t really know what I was going to post about today, but leave it to hubby to inspire a little crafty project.

Last night, he curled up next to me with a good book and took out his bookmark…

Yes…that is a square of TP…

So I decided to make him a bookmark.

I know it’s not anything extraordinary,

But sometimes we’re inspired by the ordinary...

or toilet paper.


Link Parties I'm joining...
2805
French Country Cottage
The Shabby Nest
Little Becky Homecky
Flamingo Toes
I Heart Nap Time

Oscar Party Wine Charms

This Sunday is my annual Oscar party.

This year, I wanted to update the decorations.  I’ve been using the same cheap decorations for the past couple years and I thought I would give this year’s party a craftier feel.

First up, some Oscar party wine charms.

This is the second time I’ve made wine charms like this, and I love the way they turn out.

I start with some inexpensive jewelry parts.  Bought at 50% off at Hobby Lobby, they only cost me $1.97!

Trace the jewelry plate onto the paper of your choice and cut out.

Mod Podge the paper to the jewelry plate and allow to dry. 

Follow that with another coat of Mod Podge.

Next, apply a thick coat of Inkssentials Glossy Accents Epoxy.

I love this stuff!

I placed a scrapbook embellishment right onto the wet epoxy.

The epoxy will take a while to dry.  These dried overnight, and a couple of them aren’t quite dry yet.

 Finally, insert the ear wire into the jewelry plate and around the stem of your glass.

I'm thinking this will help make sure the pregnant ladies don't get their drink mixed up with the

"fun" drinks. 

Joined these link parties
2805
French Country Cottage
The Shabby Nest
Flamingo Toes
I Heart Nap Time

Name Sign

Happy Monday everybody!

I hope you all had more productive weekends than I did.

I started my weekend with several projects in mind,
so that I would have plenty of things to share with you this week.

It ended up being one of those crafting weekends were nothing ends up going right.

My first project was a name sign that I am giving as a wedding gift.

For Christmas, hubby gave me

It's the vinyl starter pack for my Silhouette.  I had been eyeing it for months, so it was definitely a win in the gift department.  So I kind of felt bad when I spent most of the project cursing. 
In hind sight, I probably should have started with a simpler design.

Hind sight is 20/20...

The project started out as a $.79 frame that I found at a thrift store.

I gave it a good cleaning and a couple coats of black glossy acrylic paint.  So far so good.

Then came the fun stuff.

A. the vinyl jammed in my Silhouette when I tried to load it.

B. they make removing the unused vinyl look easy in all the instructions and blogs.

See that lovely empty space?  It was going to say "est. 2012".

Yeah, that section is now in the trash.
...maybe I need a new blade in my Silhouette, or more patience.  I’ll start with the blade.

They say practice makes perfect, and I have several more projects that involve the vinyl,

so I'll definitely be getting the practice.

As for the other projects I wanted to finish over the weekend?
I'll be working on them during the week...that is if the crafty gods allow me to.

Hope all your weekend crafts went smoother than mine.  Can't wait to see them in all the link parties!

Joined the Link Party at
Craft-O-Maniac
Keeping It Simple
Between Naps on the Porch