Poolside Tote Pattern and Instructions

Posted on March 25, 2012 by andrea

Summer weather in Texas is H-O-T, hot.  It seems by the time July or August gets here, you can’t make it to the car without breaking a sweat!  May provides us with the most perfect pool weather.  I am sooooo ready to splash around in the pool with my little ones.  However, when packing for them, it seems that I can’t ever find a big enough bag for all their neccessities.  Maybe this will get easier when they can carry their own things, but for now it’s up to me to lug  it all back and forth.  I think I’ve created a just the right sized bag with a couple interior pockets and I wanted to share it with all of you.  If you have any questions about the pattern or instructions, subscribe to the blog and post them.  There might be others that have the same question.  I tried to be clear in my instructions, but this is my first go of it, so any suggestions that might help would be great.

What you’ll need:

1 and ¾ yards of print fabric of your choice

¾ yards of solid fabric

2 yards of fusible fleece

*Please note that you will most likely have extra fabric and fusible fleece depending on how you layout your pattern pieces on the fabric.  It’s better to overestimate then have to go back to the fabric store because you don’t have enough.

Coordinating thread

½ yard of ¼ inch elastic

 

Cut from the fabric:

2 pieces of the top of the inside / interior panel (blue and turquoise print of example)

2 pieces of the bottom of the inside / interior panel (solid blue in example)

2 pieces of outer / exterior bottom panel (solid blue in example)

2 pieces of the outer / exterior main panel (blue and turquoise print of example)

4 straps that measure 16 ½ x 4 (blue and turquoise print of example)

2 solid blue bottom panels that measure 20 ½ x 4

 

Cut from the fusible fleece:

2 pieces of the top of the inside / interior panel

2 pieces of the bottom of the inside / interior panel

2 pieces of outer / exterior bottom panel

2 pieces of the outer / exterior main panel

4 straps that measure 16 ½ x 4

2 bottom panels that measure 20 ½ x 4

 

1.   Lay your fabric pieces onto your fusible fleece and cut.  Note* You will use all of the fabric pieces with the exception of the interior pocket, labeled “E.”

2.   After all the pieces have been cut, fuse the fleece to the wrong sides of corresponding fabric pieces.

3.   Assemble the exterior

a. Lay the right sides of the fabric together and sew the bottom of an exterior main panel to the top of an exterior bottom panel

b. Lay the right side of one of the straps to the top of the exterior main panel and sew the strap to the main panel on the right hand side

c.  Repeat the sewing technique by laying the right sides of the fabric together and sewing the other end of the strap onto the left hand side of the fabric

d.  Repeat steps a through c to sew the other side of the exterior panel.  This will give you two complete exterior panels and straps

e.  Lay the two right sides of the exterior main panels together and sew down the sides.  Your bag will start to look like it’s coming together.  Your bag will have an open top and open bottom at this point.

4.  Assemble the interior pocket

a.  Put the right sides of the interior pocket facing together and sew the entire width of the top

b.  Your going to sew the right and left sides of the interior pocket together, just make sure you leave enough room to thread your elastic.  I left a half inch.

c. Starting from the top of the stitch you sewed down the sides, sew  a half inch parallel to your first stitch.

It should look like this:

d.  Thread your elastic from one end to another

e.  When the tail end of your piece of elastic is right at the point where you inserted the elastic, sew the elastic in.  Once the elastic is secure, you can pull it through the opening at the opposite end and sew the other side

f.  Turn your interior pocket right side out

g.  Fold the interior pocket in half and find the middle in order to iron a little crease

h.  Fold the interior bottom panel in half and iron a little crease

I.  Match the two creases and sew them together

J.  Now stretch the interior pocket so that it matches up to the interior bottom panel and sew them together on each end

You should have three seams – one down the middle and one on each end

k.  Measure from the middle seam to the outer seam on the right hand side.  Bring the excess fabric up.  Where the fabric is pinched, sew a line about an inch and a half in order to make the pleat.

l.  Repeat for the left side of the pocket

m. Lay the interior pocket flat onto the interior bottom panel.  Push the pleat down so the fabric is nice and flat.  Sew along the bottom in order to complete.

5.  Assemble the interior panels

Repeat steps 3a to 3e to assemble the interior

6. Attach the bottom panels to both the interior and exterior panels.  The easiest way I’ve found to do this is to start from the sides.  Make a little crease in the middle of the right side of the bottom panel.  Line it up with the seam that goes down the side of the main panel, and start stitching.

7.  Attach the Interior and exterior panels

a.  Place the interior of the tote inside the exterior of the tote.

b.  Fold in the unfinished seams at the top of the tote.

c. Iron them to keep them in place.

d. Once they are ironed and alligned properly, top stitch around in order to complete the tote.

****  Click the link below for the printable pattern pdf

poolside tote

 

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Fun Easter Baskets

Posted on March 15, 2012 by andrea

As Easter approaches, I’ve tried to think of different things to put in my little ones Easter baskets as an alternative to candy.  Most of the plastic Easter eggs measure anywhere from 1.5 x 2.5 inches to 2 x 3, but you can find them in larger sizes as well.  It took a little bit of brainstorming, but this is what I came up with:

1. Legos - You can get Lego Duplo for your smaller munchkins or a set of the standard size for your older children.  You might want to think about a theme that your child might like best.  Best of all, you can find Legos everywhere!  The legos below can be found at Toys R Us – http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3780397

2.  Puzzle Pieces – Pack the pieces so that the puzzle cannot be completed until all the eggs are found.  The possibilites with this are endless.  Just pick the theme that suits your child the best.  The puzzle below is available at Pottery Barn Kids.  http://www.potterybarnkids.com/products/boys-travel-puzzles/?pkey=e%7Cpuzzle%7C9%7Cbest%7C0%7C1%7C24%7C%7C8&cm_src=PRODUCTSEARCH||NoFacet-_-NoFacet-_-NoMerchRules-_-

3.  Crayons – What kid doesn’t like fun shaped crayons?  Include a great coloring book in their basket and there you have it.  I found these on Etsy.  http://www.etsy.com/listing/93909996/babys-first-colors-all-natural-kitty-egg

4.  Stickers – These are a really affordable way to pack those Easter Eggs with something fun.  I found the stickers pictured below at Sticker Giant.  – http://www.stickergiant.com/goofy-happy-faces-24-pak_ihaf5.html

5.   Alphabet Magnets – If you don’t already have a set of these, they are a great idea!  My little ones love putting new words together.  I found these on Amazon. – http://www.amazon.com/Educational-Insights-AlphaMagnets-Letters-Set-Multicolored/dp/B000F8XC6Q/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1331828654&sr=8-12

6.  Bouncy Balls - I don’t know a little boy or girl that doesn’t love bouncing these in the driveway to see how high they can go.  They are available in an array of colors and styles.  I found these at Oriental Trading –  http://www.orientaltrading.com/race-car-bouncing-balls-a2-12_4039-12-1.fltr?Ntt=bouncy+balls

7.  Stamps – This one is perfect for your “mini me” crafter.  The set I have chosen is available at Paper Source, but you can find a wonderful assortment at any craft store. – http://www.paper-source.com/cgi-bin/paper/item/Happy-Animals-Rubber-Stamp-Set/2901.010/497148.html

8.  Fingertip Flashlights – Santa left these in our stockings this year.  My boys love to play with them under the covers at night after storytime.  It has been a couple months and they still haven’t lost interest in them, which is amazing.  I found these at Restoration Hardware, but they are available at quite a few online retailers. – http://www.restorationhardware.com/catalog/product/product.jsp?productId=prod1531138&categoryId=cat1830011

9.  Felt Food – These are perfect little pieces for someone who loves to play in their own kid sized kitchen.  You should be able to easily squish them into a plastic egg.  They are available in desserts too, if you just do a quick search on Etsy, or make them yourself.  Etsy has pdf patterns as well.  This is a set I found on Etsy.  – http://www.etsy.com/listing/91871201/small-playset-felt-food

Last, but not least…

10.  Cash & Coins:  The idea of putting money in Easter eggs might not tickle your fancy at first, but think about how excited your little one gets when they find a shiny new penny on the sidewalk.  You don’t have to load them up with a ton of cash, but a few pennies in one, a quarter in another and maybe a crisp dollar bill in their “special” egg might be just the thing.  Then watch with delight as they count their pennies.  Make a learning experience ou of it teaching them how to count by 5′s, 10′s, and 25′s.  To top it off you can include a cute little piggy bank in their basket if they don’t already have one.  I found this cute one at Toys R Us. –  http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=11811393&CAWELAID=1055214261

Have fun with it and think a little outside the box to come up with something special for your little ones.  Have a great day!

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The Cutest Mugs Ever

Posted on February 22, 2012 by andrea

Before Christmas I saw the cutest little mugs I had ever seen in a magazine.  By the time I logged on to order them, they were sold out.  Isn’t this always the deal?  So I purchased them on backorder and they finally arrived yesterday.  I couldn’t be more pleased with them.  They are darling!

Here is the picture of  them:

 They can be purchased separately from this website http://korin.com/s.nl Just search for “mugs” in the top right hand corner of the webpage.

Each mug sells for $16

The Mugtail Fawn

The Mugtail Rabbit

The Mugtail Squirrel

and finally , The Mugtail Cat

These are great housewarming gift or for the person that has everything.  Check then out!

 

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Valentine Craft Party

Posted on January 30, 2012 by andrea

Yesterday I had a few of my closest friends over for a Valentine Craft Party.  Buffy arrived first with her sweet 5 year old daughter and glue gun in hand.  Next a colleague of my husband arrived with her glue sticks.  This turned out to be quite funny, since they were the “Elmer’s” sort instead of the hot glue kind.  I need to learn to be a little more specific on my invitations.  Jami, however has grown from a colleague of my husband into a friend of mine.  I’m so glad we met her!  Next Erin arrived with her hands full of not only the most tasty and cute cupcakes I had ever seen, but the sweetest little fruit sticks of melons cut into heart shapes.  Erin worked so hard to make something beautiful for my little get together.  I can always count on her, and for that I am so lucky!  Finally, Jazmine arrived.  She is not only a great friend, but she makes one heck of a cheese ball!  If she’ll let me, I’ll be happy to share her recipe in an upcoming post!

Here are Erin’s Cupcakes:

She used “Sprinkles Cupcake” Mix and Cream Cheese frosting

Erin baked the cupcakes a little longer so that she could cut off the cake that rose higher than the liner.

She then used a little heart shaped cookie cutter on the tops of the cupcake she had cut off.

She iced the cupcake and then placed the top back on the cupcakes.

They turned out so cute!

My husband scooted out of the house early and ventured off to Chuck E Cheese for some much needed playtime with our two little boys.  I really wanted everyone to have a good time and actually leave with something they finished.  All too often we get excited about doing something, but we loose track of time and only get half of it finished before the kids come home from school or we have to get dinner ready, etc.  With that in mind, I really tried to plan everything out accordingly.  I prepurchased a ton of felt sheets in an array of pinks, reds, purples, and so on, along with 14″ wreaths and coordinating yarn with thoughts of doing a Valentine’s Day themed yarn / felt flower wreath.  I knew it would be too time consuming for everyone to arrive and start wrapping the yarn around their wreaths, so I did all of them ahead of time.  When everyone got here, they chose a wreath and I gave them a short tutorial on how to make the felt flowers.  All but one person finished her wreath!  YAY!

Before everyone left to go home I gave them the little Valentine Pails I put together.

Each Pail purchased for $1.00 from Michael’s included:

A candy bar I picked up at Target (a pkg of three was priced at $5.99)

A tin full of Conversation Hearts ($1.99 each at Target)

Valentine M & M’s I placed in clear bags with a bow tied at the top ( this price will vary depending on where you shop)

Victoria’s Secret Peppermints in a heart shaped tin (3 for $5 at Victoria’s Secret)

Victoria’s Secret Antibacterial Hand Sanitizer (3 for $5 at Victoria’s Secret)

Victoria’s Secret “Beauty Rush” Lip Gloss (4 for $20)

Together, they looked like this:

I think they were all happy with not only their little pails, but their wreaths as well.  All in all I would say that this is a great way to do a party.  I didn’t have any certain thing to celebrate, nor was I asking anyone to buy anything.  We just had some great girl time learning something new and visiting with one another.  It was a great Day!

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Valentine Popcorn

Posted on January 16, 2012 by andrea

I’ve been thinking about what sweet treats I can have at the Valentine’s Day Craft Party I’m having later this month.  Last night, I came up with a sweet popcorn treat.  It took a bit of trial and error to get the vanilla drizzle just right, but I finally got it.

You will need:

a. Popcorn…  I have an air popper, so I used it.  I’m sure you could get the same results with a bag of microwave popcorn

b. Vanilla Flavored Almond Bark…  I found some at Target.

c.  Red food coloring

d. Squeeze Bottle.. I got a package of 2 “Wilton” mini squeeze bottles from Michael’s.

e. Something to lay out your popped popcorn on in order to do the drizzle.  I used a cooling rack.

1.  First, pop your popcorn

2. Lay your popcorn out on the cooling rack with a paper towel underneath.  Try not to pile it on top of each other or space it too far apart.  You want to lower your drizzle waste.

3. Melt a small bar of almond bark in the microwave according to the instructions on the package.

4. Mix the red food coloring with the melted bar until you get the color you like.

* Doing this is going to make a paste

5. Melt 3 bars of Almond bark in the microwave according to the instructions.

6. Using a little paste at a time, mix the paste into the melted almond bark.  This will allow you to get the bark colored and make a consistency that will squeeze through your squeeze bottle.

7. Pour the colored bark into a squeeze bottle.

8. Drizzle the colored almond bark over your popcorn and wait for it to harden.

Enjoy your sweet treat!

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DIY Heart Shaped Magnets

Posted on January 8, 2012 by andrea

I am totally looking forward to celebrating Valentine’s Day this year.  I have already started planning a Valentine’s Day themed craft party in my home at the end of the month.  I sent each guest an invitation complete with a little handmade gift.  What better way to get in the spirit of the day we celebrate love, than a heart?  It was so easy to make these little heart-shaped magnets, and everyone loved them!

You will need:

* Sheets of felt in your choice of color ( The sheets I bought were 9 x 12 and they were $0.25 a piece) You’ll probably get about 20 hearts or 10 finished hearts off each sheet.  This number can vary depending on the size you choose to make the hearts.

* Round Magnets ( I chose a package of 50 magnets that were 3/4 ” in size)  I paid $6.99 for the package.

* Round white labels / stickers that correspond with the size magnet you choose.  See step 9.

* Embroidery floss in your choice of color (Each 8.7 yard color cost about $0.25 a piece)

1.  Cut out your heart-shaped pieces of felt.  Use one as a template for the next so that your pieces will match up and you won’t have to trim anything once your ready to sew.  Measure to make sure that your magnets will fit inside the heart-shaped felt, allowing room for your stitches.  The hearts I cut measured 2 inches high by 2 inches at the widest part.

2.  Place two of the hearts together.  Trim off any excess felt, so that the hearts align perfectly.

3.  Thread 2 pieces of embroidery thread about 36 inches long onto your sewing needle.  You’ll notice that there are actually 6 different pieces of thread wound together to make the floss.  Just separate 2 pieces and set the other 4 pieces aside for the next heart.

4.  Tie a knot with the two pieces of thread at the end.

5.  With the 2 hearts aligned, put the needle between the two pieces of felt and pull the thread through until the knot catches the thread.

6.  Bring the needle to the top piece of felt and push it through about 1/4″ from the edge and 1/4″ from the first stitch.  Leave a little loop at the top.

7.  Pull the thread through the loop.

 

8.  Bring the needle back up to the top piece of felt and repeat steps 6 through 8 until you’ve gotten almost all the way around the heart.  Just leave enough room to put the magnet in.

9.  Place the magnet in between the two pieces of felt and continue stitching.  * I placed a round white label / sticker on each side of the magnets that I placed in the light color felt so that the dark-colored magnet wouldn’t show through.

10.  Once you’ve stitched your way back to the beginning, simply tie off at the beginning stitch a trim the excess thread.

I sent them out in these colors.

 

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Handmade Pillows

Posted on January 2, 2012 by andrea

Two summers ago, my husband and I purchased a brand new home in a neighborhood we love.  The only catch was that we moved in with what I refer to as our “dollhouse furniture.”  It doesn’t fit the new space, but filling a house with brand new furniture can be quite costly.  We’ve chosen to decorate one room at a time.  Since our children’s happiness is our top priority, we started out with their room.  Our boys share their bedroom, so it was pretty easy to knock that out this time last year.  A month or so ago, we bought furniture for their playroom. We have a few things to add in, but for the most part, they’re taken care of.  Hopefully, we’ll get the dining room taken care of by the begining of summer.  I want a big dining room table that fits the space appropriately.   The table we have in there now is square and only seats four, hence the reference to “dollhouse furniture.”  Our poor old sofa is in desperate need for a little tlc, so I decided to give it a few new pillows.  They’re so easy to make!  I chose two down pillows that measured 24″ x 24″ and two down pillows that measured 14″ x 20″.

1.  Cut your fabric an inch and a half longer and an inch and a half wider than your pillow.

a.  For my pillows I cut out two pieces of fabric that measured 25 1/2″  x  25 1/2″ for each square pillows and two pieces of fabric that measured 15 1/2″  x  21 1/2″ for each rectangular pillow.

2.  Use a serger to serge all the edges.

3.  Load your upholstry thread onto your sewing machine

4.  Sew a zipper onto the right side of one of the pieces of fabric at the bottom.

a.  I use a zipper, because if you have a spill of some sort, you can remove the cover, turn it inside out and launder the cover.

5.  Line up the two pieces of fabric (right sides together) and sew the zipper onto the other piece of fabric.

6.  With right sides of the fabric still facing one another, start at one end of the zipper and sew all the way around the edges of the square / rectangle to the other end of the zipper.

a.  It will look like you sewed your pillow cover inside out.

7.  Unzip the zipper and turn the pillow cover right side out.

8.  Insert your pillow into the cover and zip it back up.

Voila, you have a super easy to make pillow cover!!!

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My “Me” Day

Posted on December 30, 2011 by andrea

Yesterday I had a much needed “me” day.  After the hustle and bustle of the holidays, It was nice to take it easy and spend a little time doing the things that I love.  I spent part of my day lost between three floors of amazing fabric at one of my favorite home stores.  I need new pillows for my living room.  The red holiday pillows will go into storage bins until next Thanksgiving, when they’ll be pulled out and used once again.  I found two great prints!  I’ll start working on them this afternoon.  As soon as they’re finished, I’ll post pictures.

The other part of my day was spent in Anthropologie.  I have to admit, each time I walk through the door and take a wiff of the staple “Anthro” air, I smile a bit.  It never fails that seated in the furniture that decorates the store is a husband or boyfriend either taking a little nap or skimming through one of the books that sit on the coffee tables.  I knew exactly what I was looking for, but it’s easy to get distracted in there.  In early December a friend of mine had a birthday.  I put together a lovely little package of household goodies for her.  One of the gifts I included was the “Capri Blue Mercury Glass Candle Jar.”  I love this candle!  The scent is called “Volcano.”  It is a refreshing citrus blend of a paraffin-soy wax that has a 70 hour burn time.  At $28.00, the candle is a little pricey, but honestly, I’ve spent more and gotten less.  The added bonus is that if burned in a dark room, the candle really is beautiful and once it’s done burning, you can use it on your vanity for storage since it comes with a lid.  Next time you’re in Anthropologie, work your way over to this candle and check it out.  You won’t be disappointed!

 

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