CRAFT - Jellyfish!

So it's been very quiet on the blog, but not quiet at home! Now that I've returned to work, it is busy all the time. But today I wanted to quickly share with you this fun easy little project I did with the kids on weekend.

You'll need:

• Paper
• Ice cream lid/paper plate
• Scissors
• Glue
• Marker

Simply rip paper and glue to the plate or lid to make the body. Cut tentacles my creating spirals and glue them on the back. Create your face! It's that easy, but the kids loved every minute of it.

DIY: Make a Dinner Planner!

Having a dinner planner for the week has made things a lot easier! Here's why:

Planning

Everyone in the house knows what we're having for the night. It is quick and easy to pull something out of the freezer for defrosting. We have enough variety to cover a month so we don't keep having the same meals.

Shopping

Having a shopping list attached to your planner makes it so simple to get products required without forgetting anything! 

Save Money

If you shop for the week, you will be reducing trips to the grocery store and saving money! We all have impulsive buys, whether it is $1 or $20 - but if you added those up over a year, I bet you'd be shocked. If you eliminate the need to go to the shops every day, you will save a lot of money. Try it!

DIY

Here's a quick guide how I made mine. 

• I cut up a diaper box
• Spray painted the cardboard and drew flowers on the background
• Printed menu items, laminated and cut them
• Super glued mini pegs from Officeworks
• Used scrapbooking stickers to decorate
• Made a pocket out of paper for the menu items
• Super glued a pretty sticky notepad for shopping list

I hope this inspires you to get creative! :)

How to Make Bunting Tutorial

Hello! Welcome to my first tutorial. I have been working hard to make 'baby bunting' for my little boys room. It was really quite easy and I was able to do it in his nap times. Here is a quick look at the finished product before we get started, in case you are unsure what bunting is.

WHAT YOU WILL NEED:

• Minimum 3 different types of material  NOTE: Size depends how many you want to make. I used 120cm x 25cm for each different type of material which created 12 finished triangles in total

• Fabric pencil
• Sewing Scissors
• Pins
• Bias binding (Min. 3 metres long and 18mm wide)
• Card stock/scrap cardboard (to make triangle)
• Coordinating thread
• Sewing machine

STEP 1:

Draw a triangle on the cardstock/cardboard and cut it out. To get a perfect triangle I used the PAINT program on the computer and printed it out on A4. I transferred this to the cardboard and cut it out.

My triangle measured 20cm bottom x 26cm sides - but you can make them any size, just remember to adjust your bias binding and material lengths accordingly.

STEP 2:

Use the fabric pencil to trace out your triangles. To get the most out of your fabric join them together and do it right side, then upside down, right side, upside down etc. You will need 2 pieces per triangle as you will sew them together. Cut the triangles out. (eg. my finished product had 12 triangles so I required 24 pieces so they were double sided)

STEP 3:

Pin 2 pieces together, right sides facing each other. Sew the long sides of the triangles together. Do not sew the bottom. Remove pins.

STEP 4:

Cut away any excess fabric, particularly at the point as it will look better once turned. Once you have sewn all the pieces turn them right side out, using your fabric pencil to push the point out as much as it will go.

STEP 5:

Iron the triangles. I inserted the cardboard inside the triangles to shape them as I ironed.

STEP 6:

Cut the excess parts of the tops to make a nice straight line.

STEP 7:

Lay out the bias binding, place a triangle, fold half the binding over and pin it. I used pins to measure the difference between each triangle to ensure even spacing. Leave around 15cm of binding hanging at the end to create a loop for hanging later on.

 STEP 8:

Using your coordinated thread, sew along the whole length of binding ensuring all the triangles are firmly inside with the top parts hidden.

STEP 9:

Fold the ends of the binding over and sew to create a loop for hanging.

Congratulations! You should now have your very own bunting. If you complete this project, please share a photo with us!

Happy sewing!

#craft #DIY #projects #sewing #bunting

Hair Clip Board

Today I decided to make a Hair Clip Board for my daughter. We had an old frame to use which accidently had its glass broken. I had seen similar ideas used with a canvas board so I thought I would give this one a go!

I used scrapbooking paper for the background cut to shape. I then secured the ribbons along with brads you would use for scrapbooking. Attach the clips - and you're done! This took me about 10 minutes to make while the children were finishing their dinner tonight. Very simple and cheap! Perfect upcycle project.

Owl Bag >turned< Car Storage

Here is an owl bag that I made. I wasn't sure how to use it, originally it was going to be a type of library bag - but as my youngest is too young to really use this yet - and my oldest is definitely too old for 'owl theme' items - it nows acts as car storage hanging from the baby car seat.

This keeps spare nappies, wipes, tissues and a few toys. Great solution!