Stencil Projects

You know we love stencils around here.  You have seen our many projects done with Cutting Edge Stencils.  Here is a little recap of mine...

My son's houndstooth stenciled closet...

My girl's polka-dot closet...

A big white peony in our bedroom...

And a large tree with a couple birds in our loft area...

Want to win a stencil for your own home?

Click HERE to enter to win.

Happy Tuesday!

Read more...

Men's Shirt Re-Do # 2: Boy's Pants

I showed you last month how I made one of my husband's old shirts into this sweet little vest applique.

There was still lots of fabric left over so I decided to make something for my son. It was the perfect opportunity to try out this kid pants pattern by Dana at Made.

I laid my pattern pieces out on the shirt to make sure there was enough material. Then I traced around the edges with a fabric marker and cut out my pieces.

Did you notice that the shirt had a front pocket? I decided that I wanted to use that on my pants. I couldn't just leave it on the fabric where it was, otherwise the pocket would be in the crotch area of the pants. Not good. I used a fabric ripper to carefully remove the pocket, still intact, and then ironed over the spot where the pocket had been to remove the evidence.

(The above picture is pre-ironing.)

I sewed the left and right back sides together so that I could get an idea about how to center the pocket and left a 1/4" seam allowance. I pinned the pocket down and straight stitched around the edges with a gray thread.

Once the pocket was attached, I sewed the front and back pieces of the pants together, hemmed the legs using some pants that fit my son as a guide, and finished the waistband with a flat front.

They are perfect. Soft, lightweight and pretty darn inexpensive since I grabbed the shirt out of our "clothes to donate" bag!

They have a flat front, so they could be worn with a shorter shirt and would still look spiffy.

But they have an elastic band in the back, so they will stretch and grow a bit with my boy.

When I hemmed the bottom I left about 1 1/2 extra inches, so in a few months when my son is taller, I'll just rip out the hem and sew it down at a longer length.

I'm still just getting into sewing clothes, so I need to make sure my efforts last a bit longer than just a few months.

In hindsight, (or perhaps hind view?), I should have taken the pocket in to make it a little smaller. I think that taking about 1/2 inch off of each side and 1 inch off of the bottom would have made it the perfect size for his little booty. Maybe compare your men's shirt pocket to a pair of your son's pants to see if you need to make adjustments. Or if you're making a more casual pair of pants, you could make it a cool front pocket.

Either way, prepare yourself for your boy to do some really cool, big, jumping in his new pants.

So rummage around in your guy's closet and grab a shirt that he never wears anymore. It's the perfect fabric for your boy projects!

I'm sure Pinterest has some good inspiration as well! Check it out and let me know what you make!

And while you're there, follow my pin boards here.

Have a great week!!

Read more...

Friday Finds {Pinterest-My Style}

Halloween {Pinterest} Style
Take 2: Let's Decorate!

If you tuned in last week to the Friday Finds, you noticed some great pumpkins on the mixer! This week I want to share some fabulous ideas for decorating in or outside for parties or just for Halloween pleasure!

The {Mixer}

Tons and tons of ideas are just floating around on this site waiting to be repined and saved to your board for future references and projects...it's endless and {oh so} exciting!

Below are just a few I adore and want to share..just click on the picture to view their inspiration or shall I say PIN-SPIRATION!

{Tablescapes}

{the source}

{the source}

Mantle Inspiration {Show Stoppers}


{the source}


{the source}


{Wreaths}


{the source}

{If you follow me at all on Pinterest, you know I adore Chevron. When Tatertots and Jello posted this...I fell in love!}

{the source}

{From our very own LTC..Patrice...Love this!}

I would love to see your Halloween inspirations on Pinterest or check out your inspirations. Leave me a message and I'll gladly check them out. You can check out my boards here!


Happy Friday LTC

Jessica

Read more...

Handmade Baby Mobiles

Today we have Jenn stopping by to share some great nursery finds with us!

My name is Jenn and I am a freelance writer for Arcadian Home, an e-commerce website that specializes in top home decor ideas around the world. My first job out of university was at a home decor magazine, and I've been infatuated by chandeliers, antiques, and everything Jonathan Adler ever since. When I'm not writing about home fashions I'm planning them - my husband (and high school sweetheart) and I just purchased our first home! I turn to a lot of websites for inspiration and one not to be missed is Lemon Tree Creations - thanks for letting me guest post here today!

There are slews of mass-produced baby room mobiles to choose from out there, but why buy one when they can be made instead? Give little ones rooms that have a personal touch with a homemade baby mobile. It's an easy home decor idea and one of the sweetest of home accessories. Here are eight do-it-yourself mobiles that are too cute!

Pretty owlets

wow baby gifts via

Shabby chic nurseries are all the rage, and drawing inspiration from retro owl themes is a popular starting point. This space features unique wall art, table decorations, and a mobile made from miniature stuffed owls.

ABCs (or 123s)

Martha Stewart via

Dainty dangling letters (or numbers) hung from above make for a charming DIY baby mobile. Use a stencil to outline the shapes and then cut them out of pastel-coloured cardstock.

Pink and brown birdies

the nest via

While most baby mobiles are centered over the crib, this homemade gem, fashioned out of pink and brown little birds, looks pretty in the corner of a this space.

Colourful and stimulating

Design Dazzle via

Babies will love this DIY mobile that is a mishmash of funky hues and patterns. It's super easy to do: Just cover standard plastic poker chips with pieces of fabrics boasting bold motifs and secure onto pieces of striped ribbon.

Pompoms with panache

Project Nursery via

A striking homemade baby room mobile can be created out of coloured paper pompoms hung in a cluster, as shown here - it's engaging to look at and adds interest to this corner.

Whirlwind of style

E Tells Tales via

A green and white spiral mobile is made out of cardstock cut into circles - the look is copied in the paper pinwheels fastened over the crib.

Sky's the limit!

Lemon Tree Creations via

Let babies dream of faraway lands and floating on clouds with this do-it-yourself cloud mobile, made using the popular Silhouette machine and some great scrapbook paper.

Chirp chirp chic

Daffodil Design via

A one-of-a-kind DIY baby mobile is hanging several petite birdhouses from the ceiling - the coloured thatched roofs make them eye-catching to little ones.

Content provided by Arcadian Home Decor, a site that specializes in top quality home accessories at extremely affordable prices. Come visit us today!

Thanks Jenn for stopping by and posting with us today!

If you'd like to guest post with LTC, please email your unpublished submission to ltc.guestposting@gmail.com. We look forward to hearing from you!

Read more...

A Simple Thank You {Silhouette Project}

About a month ago my sister-in-law and mother-in-law threw me the sweetest baby shower. I knew before we even had the shower how much time and effort they were putting in to make it perfect for me and the soon to be baby, so I needed the perfect simple way to thank them and this is what I came up with.

I love how the Silhouette can cut out simple messages to make such professional looking cards, so I turned to my Silhouette SD and its design studio to find just the right thing.

  

After I found the sweetest phrase, I combined it with the tag options I already had in my gallery to create quick thank you tags. 

 

I quickly glued the messages onto the tags I had cut out in varying scrapbook papers and tied them off with a ribbon. The result looked so 'finished' and I loved it! 

Using the Silhouette to make these tags was so quick and easy. I guess it's the job of the machine working at it's simplest? It got me thinking about how I need to start working ahead for personalized Christmas gift tags, how sweet would that be? Have you used your Silhouette to make any tags or cards recently? We'd love to have you link them to our Flickr sight!

Here are a couple of other simple thank you ideas I've used recently too. (I've been blessed with some sweet showers for baby Abbott, so I've gotten to make quite a few fun thank you's this year!)

These were created just using Microsoft word and an inkjet printer, though I did use the Silhouette to cut out one of my favorite scalloped circles too!

Happy Wednesday!

Read more...

Bib Mania

I am officially participating in my first craft show in November.  My Mom, sister, and aunt already had a booth and they asked me to join them.  Woohoo!

My craft of choice???  Baby bibs.

After I made the pinwheel bib for my baby girl's first birthday party, I was hooked.  I have made 12 bibs so far, each one different and I have 11 more halfway done.  I typically get bored with the same project over and over which is why I am making each one unique.  It keeps the whole process fresh and exciting.  

I also decided to only use materials and supplies that I already have at home.  This allows me to use up some of those beautiful smaller scraps I have stashed away.  It also challenges me to make something pretty without buying anything new.  However, I did end up buying a yard of blue terry cloth for backing but only because it was on clearance for $3.  Couldn't pass that up.  

So for a total of $3, here is what I have come up with so far...

But, my dear LTC readers, I need your help please.  Since I am a rookie at this craft show thing, I am clueless as to what to charge for my bibs.

Will you please be honest and tell me what you think would be a fair price for these bibs?  What would you be willing to pay if you saw these bibs at a craft show???

Here are some of my favorites to give you a better look...

I love the button and ribbon closure because it allows me to throw in more fun details.  I love choosing the ribbon and button special for each bib.

I leave the raw edges simply because I am a fan and just love the added character.

Remember the ballerina shirt I showed you a few weeks ago?  I really loved it so I created a bib just like it!

I have quite the bib collection now so if you are one of my pregnant friends, act surprised when you get one of these as a gift and an Etsy shop full of bibs could possibly be in my future!

Thanks so much for your input on pricing these bibs.  I appreciate your thoughts!   

Happy Tuesday!

Read more...