A Not So Orange Halloween..YAY!

Ok, so before I say anything, I know I have been slacking on my blogging duties and I am trying harder, lack of projects is no excuse since I am always doing something creative in one form or another. I have just been so wrapped up with research for my new design that I am SOOO excited about so I've really been spending all my free time with that. I promise I will have the first installment of my Kids Krafts Friday this upcoming Friday, if I don't, you can hog tie me and beat me up I swear, anyway on to my post.

I'm not really big on the whole Halloween thing. I mean, its just not exciting to me, love a good fall decoration though. And my hubs habits are rubbing off on me and I'm turning into a Christmas fanatic like he is. (I have asked a few times already to put decorations up) When I saw this i thought it was the cutest thing ever, you put hello kitty on anything and I'm sold.

Besides the hello kitty pumpkin which is to tie for, look at the super cue pink glitter candle. This pic was found on a website called Prunille Fiat Son Show but I found it via Craft Gossip. Just a word of advice that the original website is in some other language so I have no clue what it says and the google translator never works for me. Which is sad because craft gossip featured another post of theirs about baking bread in a pringles can which i thought was a cute idea.

Anyways, I just thought it was too cute not to share with you, hope you enjoyed it as much as I did

Till Later,

Natasha Nicole

I'm Baaaack!

YAY! I know right, all of you are excited I can tell, but still not as excited as I am to have internet again. While I was gone I did not do much of anything crafty. I did however make this cute little cross stitch/beaded snowman ornament that I got from this super cute yarn store in town called The Red Thread. ( If you live in the area you should go check it out, if not, road trip maybe?)

Isn't he cute? It felt so good to actually have a project and finish it, I haven't had the chance to do that in a while. Now, I know what you all may be thinking, and yes, I did go in a yarn shop and come out with a small cross stitch kit. The store was full of such beautiful yarns I was overwhelmed and didn't know what to get so I though a quick project was just what I needed. But moving on, because I could go on and on about my experience there for a while.

While I was away I also got to take a little trip to Jo-Ann's to pick up some embroidery stuff to go with my new book. (read about that here) I was so excited that the first thing I did was organize all my thread on the bobbins and arrange by color. A little OCD I know, but what can I say, at least it looks pretty....see...

Ahh, behold, the beauty of color. The actual embroidering was a little less successful. I did a few stitches and then got tired of it. I think it was because I didn't get any transfer stuff, and with no real design I wasn't exactly 'inspired'. I will try again later once I get settled. I also need some inspiration on coming up with a face design for a crochet doll for my princess.

On a different note I do not have any projects planned for the near future, but I did promise my little one I would help him make a pinata  so I may do that next week hopefully. That being said I wanted to add a feature to my blog. I will call it Kids Krafts Fridays. It will feature a fun craft that I make with my little ones. I would like to do one every week but for now I will try to do as many as possible. I'm really excited about this because not only do I get more crafts to share with you, I also get a chance to sit down and have a little Noah, Mommy crafting time. Hopefully you will be seeing those in the very near future.

Last thing I wanted to add was that I am doing some research on a future project that I am spending all of my random online time looking up for. If you follow my pinterest you may have an idea of what it is. ( if you don't, there is a button on the right side of the screen, DO IT! - just kidding but it would be nice) For those of you who are not pinterest users - although I don't know what else you would be doing with your time - I'll give the surprise away.....its a craft bag. I don't know how long this project will take since I don't have much sewing experience and I am more of the learn as you go kind of gal, but I hope to open an online store -etsy or art fire- from it. So if anybody has any FREE online resources on handbag making please feel free to add it in a comment below.

Sorry to babble on, but Ive just missed this so much lol. Till later ;)





Thank You

I haven't had internet in a while which is why I haven't posted. I'm currently at the library to use the internet and enjoy some quiet time. When I just checked my blog I was so excited that my post about my ice cream pint cozy was featured on totally tutorials again! YAHH! Then when I actually sign on blogger and saw that I now have more followers I got so excited I'm teary eyed. (yes I know, I'm a big baby)

That being said I wanted to take the time to say thank you to all of you who choose to click that 'follow' button. It really does mean a lot to me. (yay, I'm not just posting to one reader anymore lol) Just so you know, I have quite a few nifty projects coming, when I get to them I'm not exactly sure, but hopefully it will be soon.

Doodle Stitching Book Review

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Border's going out of business is bittersweet to me. That was the only bookstore I actually liked to go to, now that they are going out of business I will probably have to get all my books now from Amazon. Even though it's sad, the good thing is that I now can stock up my craft library for dirt cheap (yay!). There was a big sign on the window of our local store that said 10 days left so we had to stop by and see what the slim pickings were. Poor Noah was upset because "someone took the toys" the whole kids section was completely cleared out. But anyway..

There was only so many craft books left, and only like three that I considered buying. There was this crochet book called Twinkie Chain's Crochet goodies for Fashion Foodies which had really cool patterns that I wanted to try, a few with cupcakes(which I'm into now). Alas, I wanted to learn something new so I choose a book on embroidery called Doodle-Stitching by Aimee Ray.

My first impression when flipping through the pages was that it had a variety of different patterns that seemed very easy to do. As a beginner of anything that "I can do that" feeling is very important and even after flipping through a few pages I got that feeling and wanted to dive right in.

The author gives a little advice on what materials and tools you need to get started which reading that made me happy because as a new craft its super affordable. (I can get everything I need under 20 bucks with coupons from Jo-Ann's)  She explains all of the basic stitches that you need to know to complete all of the designs provided in the book that you could also use in any design you come up with yourself.

My favorite idea in the whole book is the canvas shoe embroidery. I would have never thought to do that and I would love to personalize a pair of shoes like that. I have always seen ones decorated with sharpie doodles, but this is much better.

In the book she also explains how to transfer images and designs on your fabric to stitch over but what I love about the style of "doodle-stitching" is that you could really just draw a design directly on the fabric in pencil, no tranfering materials required. Hopefully this week I can grab some supplies and start on my new hobby with pix to show you guys.


P.S. Hope you guys had a wonderful Labor Day weekend like I did. I got to visit my family which made my whole weekend.

I'm In Love With The Mailman

Don't you just love getting new packages in the mail? I do, its even better when it's something you've won. That's right, my Little Pink Tool Set came in that I won from the Shanty 2 Chic giveaway.

Isn't it cute? (I mean the tool bag) I think when I find another good place to keep the tools I'm going to use it as a purse.

I was so excited to open the box I felt like a kid on Christmas. Even Noah was excited that I got a box in the mail. I love the enthusiasm of kids.

P.S. I did not model her like that, I looked on the floor and she was trying to crawl away with it on her arm :)

Going Through a Dry Spell

I know you guys have noticed that I haven't posted any projects lately, and there is a very good reason for that.... I don't have one. {giant gasp}

I know, I know, it breaks my heart too. So much has been going on lately I haven't been able to craft anything post able, but that does not mean that I haven't been working on anything. Lately I have been working on a crochet dolly for my princess which is now a trial and error type thing with random colored scrap yarn. I'm at sort of a stand still with that because of the face. I now have a new respect for softie doll makers, the face done wrong can make the cutest of dolly's look evil. If anybody has a good idea of how to add eyes and a mouth without using doll eyes(because I want to give it to her on her 1st birthday) leave it in a comment below, I REALLY need help.

Because of Border's going out of business my cousin and I took a little trip there and she bought me a book that I wanted to read and review. I will be doing that shortly, but finding time to sit and read with a 6month and a 3 year old is kind of tough, I've attempted, but just can not focus.

My other reason for not taking the time to post (although I shouldn't make excuses) is a good one atleast, its my newest addiction. Pintrest. In case you are like I was and had no clue what that is. I like to describe it as a visual favorites list meets social media, or the greatest thing ever. You can take any picture you find on the Internet and 'pin' it to a board on your pinterest account. Not only does it save the picture but the link too. For that reason I am in the process of transferring my Internet Explorer favorites to pinterest so I can see the crafts instead of a link title. You can also re pin things that other people have pined. The pinterest community is great because these people find the greatest things. But don't take my word for it, Go on over there and join, when you do, go ahead and use the link below to follow me.

I'M A WINNER!!!

I'm so excited I can't stop smiling. I had a wonderful 1st anniversary weekend with my hubby. We went to Shenandoah Caverns which was amazingly beautiful, even little mama had fun, she was so tired but did not want to go to sleep, she didn't want to miss anything. After that we went peach picking at a near by orchard which was fun, but by then little mama was sleep and slept the whole time in the wagon. I left that morning in such an excited rush that I forgot the camera and do not have pictures of any of this. I know, I'm sad about it too. I can't wait for the hubs to make some peach cobbler with them. Can you say YUM?

This morning I woke up with an "ugh Monday" feeling and checked my e-mail only to find out I was a winner of the Shanty2Chic Little pink tools giveaway! Yeah, if I were you I would be jealous too.
Here is what I won

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I've never been more excited for the mail to come in my life. Now all I need this that pink drill.



Twitter Inspired Fabric

I was looking around on fabric.com for some fabric to use on a future project and I came across this

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How cute, I don't know what I would use this for but I thought it was too cute not to post about. When I first saw it I thought it was funny, then I wondered was at an actual twitter name. So I did the logical thing, went to twitter and checked it out. Greatest thing ever. Sew to Speak is a little fabric shop in Columbus, Ohio ran by a mother daughter duo. They also have a variety of different sewing classes. Looking around on their website, I now want to take a trip to Ohio just to go to their highly adorable shop and stay long enough to take a few classes. head on over to their website here or check out their blog here

don't forget to check out their twitter @sewtospeak

while your there you can check out mine @LkyStrCreations

(shameless plug I know, but I couldn't resist)

and if you are in the market for some fabric for a project (or to stock your stash, I wont tell) The Raw Feed has some awesome coupons for fabric.com as well as coupons for many other retailers.

I Was Featured!

On Totally Tutorials today! I was so excited when I was going through my news feed on google reader I almost cried.They featured my nursing cover clip post.

If your not familiar with the site, they take really cool tutes from all over he blogosphere and feature them for everybody to see. Have a tute of your own? You can submit it just like I did and be featured too. Link there on my sidebar or click here

Ice Cream Pint Holder

This tutorial is near and dear to my heart because I've had it on my to do list for some time and never got a chance to do it. I love eating ice cream straight out of the pint like I said on my favorite things post. I never eat it all at once and I hate when it starts to melt from holding it and when I refreeze it the outside tastes a little different. This nifty little cozy not only helps keep your ice cream cold, but it keeps your hands nice and warm too (finger-cicles are never a good thing) and it even has a pocket for your spoon and can hang on the fridge so you always have it on hand.
Disclaimer: I am a newbie at sewing, and I'm known for making things a lot harder than it needs to be, this is the way that I did it, although there may be an easier way, if you know one, please leave a comment and share.
Here Goes!!

Materials:
Outside Print Fabric (or large scrap) I had a quarter yard'
Inside Fabric
Insul-Brite
Coordinating Thread
Empty Ice Cream Pint. If you don't have one, go buy two. Eat one now, Save one to reward yourself when your done.
Round magnets, I got mine from Joann's. They are super heavy duty 18x3mm
Rotary cutter, mat, and ruler. (or good coordination with a regular ruler if you don't have one)
Paper scissors, and fabric scissors
permanent marker
box cutter, or exacto knife
pencil
paper (2 sheets)
Tape
Iron


1. Take permanent marker and mark line where top is on container.











2.Use box cutter or exacto knife to cut along that line, the side seam and the bottom circle

3. Now use your flattened as a pattern and trace on paper. Tape two sheets of paper together so you have enough space to add the inseam. For the top and bottom add a 1/2 inch. on the sides add 1 inch.
I dont have a picture of this because I did it a while ago, but I used my ruler and added small points from the line to where the new line will be, and then played connect the dots all the way around.

4. Cut out your new paper pattern. Then use this pattern to pin and cut out fabric and insul-brite.

5. Next use your rotary cutter ( or ruler if you dont have one) and cut out a rectangle on a folded edge of your outer fabric. The fold should be at the top, and your rectangle should measure 3in wide by 3 1/2in long.

6. The Small rectangle you just cut will be your spoon pocket. To form the pocket, fold under about a half inch on each side, and press to stay

7. Top stitch the top of your pocket (with flaps still folded under). I used this special foot that came with my machine as a guide (if you know what its called, leave a comment to tell me please). I lined up the small size on the right with the top of my pocket.(the fold). Sorry about the bad picture, it was hard to take a good one.

8. Pin the pocket to the middle of the outside fabric. To find the center I gently folded and creased and lined up creases. You could just eyeball it, but i'm not that skilled.

9. Next, sew down pocket using the same method as the top stitch that you just made. Start stitching where the top stitch is. Hint: for the left side, start at the bottom so you can still use the foot as your guide .

10. Cut a square of scrap fabric larger than your magnet, I didnt initally measure but mine came to about 1 1/2 inch but whatever works for your size magnet. This is going to be stitched to the left side of your insul-brite to hold down your magnet. Again I used the smaller presser foot and pivoted the corners. After I did 3 sides, I slid in the magnet, and finished stitching the last side to close. This is a little tricky because when doing the last side, the magnet sticks to your throat plate.

11. Now you can stack and pin your fabric layers in this order.
Insul-Brite, With magnet facing down
Outside fabric, With pocket facing up
Inside fabric, right side down

12. Sew the top and bottom sides down using a 1/2 inch inseam. don't forget to back stitch at the beginning and end of each side. I also switched my presser foot back to the normal one for this.

13. Now you have a tube. turn it to the right side and press down so that it is nice and flat and even. Now you can top stitch the top and the bottom using the same foot as when you made the pocket. Leave about a half inch on each side that is not top stitched. (start 1/2in. in, stop with 1/2in left)

14. Take the side without the magnet next to it and turn in the fabric about a half inch to hide raw edges. Press to stay. To reduce bulk, I cut a small piece of the insul-brite out on that side. you can also do a small piece on the other side to.

15. Slide the end with the magnet in that opening about a half inch in. Pin down. Start sewing from the bottom. This is a little tricky. Be careful not to sew both sides together, because ripping seams is no fun, trust me. I tried to get a pic as i was doing this but I was having trouble at first and forgot. but here is the sewn line

16. This last step is not a must do, but I did it anywy. Go over the top stitching at the top and bottom over the seam you just made to reinforce. Mine was a little uneven at the top, and the back was a little loopy because i had to feed it through myself.

Now pat yourself on the back and take that second pint and reward yourself for a job well done.

If you dont want to eat it now, flatten it, and place it on your fridge so its ready when you need it.

Since this was created and written by me and things in my head may not make sence to other people. If you are confused by anything feel free to leave a comment and ask and I will clear it up to the best of my ability.