11 Don't "Strain" Yourself Planter Tutorial

You may have noticed my plant display from this post and as I promised, I have a little tute for you to make your very own! This is one of my favorite crafts I've made so far. It's quick, easy and cheap. Who doesn't like cheap?!

I was perusing the aisles of one of our favorite Japanese markets and I saw these cute strainers in various sizes and it hit me...

why not use these babies as a planter for my air plants?

And as I walked over to the next aisle, I found these cool plastic trays...

Oh yeah.

So enough small talk and let's get craftin'!

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SUPPLIES:

OTHER ITEMS NEEDED:

-White glue

-Double sided tape

-Black Sharpie

-Wire cutter

-1/2" hook screw

-Epoxy

-Sawtooth picture hanger

If your *tray is made of a thicker material, you may need to drill a small hole first and then hand screw the hook in.

(*How about a cutting board instead of a tray? Anything's possible!)

You can use the 3M command strips instead. That would be my first choice, but for some odd reason they don't want to hang around (HA! pardon the pun).

You can use small rocks, moss or even colored beads. And it doesn't have to be air plants. I placed rocks from previous vacation spots in some of them. Whatever tickles your fancy... I'm not one to judge...

You want to cut as close as possible to base of the paper fastener, add glue and stick it!

I think using the scientific name gives it that cool factor, no?

Now how freakin' cool is this?!

I made four of them to create an impact on our otherwise naked wall. I just love it.
Now remember I mentioned cheap? The tray and Strainer were $1.50 each so with the air plants along with a few other items, the total cost was about $40.00. That's $10.00 per display!
Not too shabby.

If you plan to make one, make sure to show off your creation at our Flickr group. I'd love to see what you create!
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9 Pinafore Pattern by Imagine Gnats

Rachael asked me if I would be interested in being a pattern tester for her Pinafore and I thought, "Uh... yah!". I have been wanting to make a pinafore for Lala forever and like all the things on my very long to do list, it gets pushed aside as I add more and more things. 

*sigh*

Does that sound familiar to you?

It's funny how things work out. I'm so glad I waited until now. Rachael's pattern is still in the works and I believe she's still looking for a few more pattern testers. Check it out over HERE.

This pattern is simple and direct. Perfect for the newbie sewist. You have the option of either having it reversible or not. To get the most bang, I made Lala's reversible. The only thing I did differently was adding my own little pockets on the outside versus the hidden pockets provided with the pattern.

The stars must be aline...

Lala was kind enough to allow me to take a few photos of her without any drama (or a cookie). Very rare folks. VERY rare.

Overall, I'm very pleased with the pattern. It's quick and easy, perfect for my hectic lifestyle.

Maybe it was the balloon that put her in a good mood. Either way...

I'll take it!

If you haven't met Rachael from Imagine Gnats, I kindly implore you to pay a visit to her blog. She's a wonderful gal with loads of inspiration and talent! You can also find her HERE and HERE.

Make sure to give her a hug for me!

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P.S., Notice the plant display? I'll show you how to make one of your own using everyday kitchen finds next week!

5 We all need a pep talk

I saw this on Little Lovely and I had to share this with you. You can see more from Kid President HERE.

Make your weekend wonderful folks!

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22 animal sleeves

You can wear more than just your heart on your sleeve.

How about a raccoon or a bear or even a fox? I was inspired by Jennifer of Parrish Platz who made a panda sleeve shirt for her little one. Check it out over here.

The hardest part of the creating process was figuring out an animal. 

*think*think*think*

A-ha!

A raccoon!

I remember Rachael from Imagine Gnats did a series called, "Raccoons The New Black". It was really cute. So I thought I'd give it a go.

Since the raccoon was going to be on the sleeve I didn't want to have too many layers as it might be too stiff for movement and comfort. First, I cut the sleeves out and marked the centers to help with placement of the faces. Then I cut out pieces for the face using black flannel with fusible web on the backside. Next, I placed the eye detail and nose onto the sleeve and ironed it. Once it was fused, I did a decorative zig-zag stitch along the edge of the nose and around the eyes. The eyes are buttons and the ears are black flannel with white piping that was sewn into the seams. Quite a few steps, but it came together fairly easy. The blouse is a pattern I have used before (seen here) from this book.

The vest is a pattern from Cucito Babies And Toddlers Magazine, 2011 Winter and Early Spring volume. I tried to locate it for you if you were interested in purchasing it, but I can't seem to find it anywhere. Sorry. The fabric is this suuuuper yummy sherpa fabric I had bought from Fabricworm last year. I had originally wanted to make a throw blanket, but now that we're getting into warmer weather, I opted for a vest. At least now she can wear her blanket, right?

Now the pants...

Okay this deserves it's own post. I'm sooo in love with the harem/sarouel pants at the moment. I've already made quite a few and I promise to talk more about it later. I know... I'm such a tease...

*wink*

So are you ready for a little animal love?

What would you wear on your sleeve?

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7 A-Frame Tent

When I saw Ruby Ellen's a-frame tent(here and here), I fell in love. It's a perfect little "getaway" for the girls to hang out, inside the house or out.

Who doesn't love bubbles?

Puka... the best dog I ever had, hands down. She has such the sweetest demeanor.  

We followed Ruby Ellen's tutorial and the only thing we did differently was drilling holes on the ends of the dowels and putting in screws to keep the flat pieces of wood in place. The frame work cost just under $20 and the fabric are blankets bought on our last family trip to the Philippines (here and here).

I had originally planned on making only one for the girls to share (knowing that the girls would occupy it at different times), but Lala thought otherwise. When Lily Moon wanted to hang out, it was like a scene from nature. A smaller bird attacking the bigger bird, because it was too close to its nest. Needless to say...the BIG bird won.

Hilarious!

So change of plans and it looks like I'll be making two more. Thank God I bought several blankets!

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