Cute & Easy Valentine Wreath

My friend made this and I thought it was so cute that I had to make one for myself!

To make one you will need:

*Cupcake liners (any color you like) I chose the hearts for Valentine's Day.

*Straight pins

*Wreath form(I bought mine from the Dollar Tree)

Just take a cupcake liner and bunch it up a little so most of the print or color is showing (kind of like a fan shape) Then take the bunched up paper and using a straight pin, afix to the wreath. I worked in little sections ~ it took me about 30 minutes. I didn't bother doing the back or the inside of the wreath because you can't see either. I think I used approximately 175 liners. When you are finished you can adorn with ribbons, buttons, or anything else you can think of. So easy and cute!

Winter Project

I don't know about y'all, but January seems like the s l o w e s t month of the year. It's about this time every year the "blahey, blah, blah" feeling sets in, and it leaves me yearning for Spring. With inclimate weather and cold temps we are having to spend much more time indoors. So, why not make good use of the time? In order to get rid of the "blahey,blah, blah" feeling I try and work on a winter project each year. This year Miss Bonnie and I are both learning a new skill. She checked out several quilting books from the library, and she is working on making her very first quilt! I have always wanted to do learn how to do Calligraphy, so I checked out some books on the subject, got my needed materials, and am happily working on mastering this beautiful art!

Do you have any special winter projects that you are working on?

"She seeketh wool, and flax,and worketh willingly with her hands."
-Proverbs 31:13

Oh, No ~Not Another Pumpkin Post!
(I promise it's the last one;)

First of all let me say a big


The calendar might say it's the first day of Fall, but the temps are saying otherwise! It's in the 80's here in Virginia, but that's okay, I'm still going to cozy up my nest so I can usher in the harvest season with open arms!

Now, about that pumpkin post. I promise this will be the last one! I just wanted to share with y'all a cute way to say "Happy Fall" to friends and neighbors. This idea is as "cute as pie," (pun instended;)



Hopefully, you are having better luck at finding pumpkin than I was. If not, this idea isn't going to work for you. After you have made your pumpkin treat don't discard the can, instead rinse it out. *Next, take tape and completely cover the rim so that any jagged edges are covered. We don't want any cut fingers, that's for sure! Now, wrap up your pumpkin goodies and place them inside container. Finish off by attaching ribbon, tag, and embellishments of your choice. What a perfect way to say Happy Fall to those you love!

I'm just now finishing up my Fall decorating so I will be back tomorrow to show a few pictures of my home all dressed up for the season!

Much love,
Susan P.

Oh, and for those of you that asked about the recipe ~ I got it from one of my all-time favorite bloggers ~ Aunt Ruthie at Sugar Pie Farmhouse. If you have never visited you must go, because you are in for a wonderful treat! Go when you have some time, because once you start reading you won't be able to stop! Here's the link to the recipe.

Name Pictures

I get so much enjoyment out of making these! The little guy I made this for is a true miracle. He was born weighing only 2lbs. and has been in the NICU for several months. Praise God, he is now up to 4lbs. 1 oz, and he get's to come home this week. What a joyous homecoming that is going to be!!

I went with the baseball theme because Ryan's Daddy is a BIG fan;)

I'm Playing!!

Tassels, tassels, everywhere ~ Mr. P better watch out or I'll end up hanging one from his ear!

Sweet Baby Shower Gift

I recently had the pleasure of attending a baby shower for my niece, Emily. I wanted to give her something personal so after finding out the baby's name and the color of the nursery, this is what I came up with:

This is a picture I made that has her name, as well as the origin and meaning of it. (They have sites online that gives this info)

Photo Album~ you can never have too many of these, especially for your first child!

Side View of album

The wonderful thing about this gift is that it hardly cost anything! The picture frame and album came from the dollar store and the paper and ribbon I already had on hand from another project. I even had enough left over to make a matching gift bag! It just goes to show that you don't have to spend a small fortune to give a meaningful gift!

*One of my other nieces hosted the shower and she had so many cute ideas ~ she promised me she would send pictures so I could share them with you:)

Every "Benjamin" Needs A Bunny!

Made with love by Nana!

Six Done . . . . .

Twelve more to go!

Homemade Personalized Christmas Ornaments

Every year Miss Bonnie and I set aside an afternoon and make some homemade Christmas ornaments. A few weeks ago I went to our local craft show and I saw the perfect idea for this year's ornament. All you need is:



A container of the clear "make your own ornaments" They have either six small or 4 large. These are on sale for $2. 49 right now at Michales. I bought two boxes of six because I plan on giving them to each of my neighbors along with some yummy fudge.



Christmas ribbon of your choice (on sale at Michaels now for 99 cents).



Shredded gift basket paper in either plain or metallic. As I was doing them I found out that I could have gotten away with buying the smaller bags for this project. These were the most expensive item ~ $2.99 each. Fortunately, I had my 40% off coupon!



Letter stickers (your choice of color to coordinate with paper and ribbon). I already had these in my craft stash!



Take off the top of the ornament.



Start stuffing in paper. You will need a pen or pencil to help push the paper through the hole.



Really pack it in nice and full.



Tie ribbon at the top.


Place monogram or person's name on front, tie a piece of ribbon through the hook, and hang on the tree or give as a gift Easy, peasy!!

Gumdrop Wreath

Miss Bonnie made this over the weekend. It took less than an hour and she really enjoyed making it. I would suggest putting newspaper down first because if you don't you will have a lot of sugar to clean up ~ unless of course you just want to lick it up:) lol



Supplies:

Gumdrops
Styrofoam wreath
Toothpicks
Ribbon (optional)



Break toothpicks in half.



Place gumdrop (flat side first) on the broken off end of toothpick.




Place sharp end of toothpick into wreath.



Keep working until . . . .



You get this!


Add a bow and hang!

Edited to Add: Meredith asked about the amount of gumdrops Miss Bonnie used ~ with the 12" wreath she used 4 8 oz. bags of gumdrops. The project took all four bags of gumdrops with maybe one or two to spare. Hmm, I can't imagine what happened to them;)

Baby Shower Favor

This will be my last baby shower idea post. I really wanted to give our guests a little something to take home with them when they left the shower. After looking high and low all I could find were incredibly expensive things or incredibly "tacky" things (y'all know what I mean) neither of which I wanted. I got the idea that since we were going to be experiencing chilly temperatures for awhile it might be a good idea to give our guests something that would "warm" them up. I got hot cocoa, cup a soup, and tea bags, got out my craft box and went to work. This is what I came up with:

You probably can't read the poem I wrote so here it is:

A baby warms our hearts
As everyone knows.
This favor should do the same
Right down to your toes!

I was able to scrounge up enough little metal tags so I could even put the new baby's initials on it!

Well, that's it! The shower is Sunday so I will try to get pics up then. BTW, in only a few short weeks I will be a Nana!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm so excited I can hardly stand it:)

Diaper Banner For Baby Shower

So easy to make and very useful, too. When the shower is over I will take the letters off the diapers and give them to the new Mom-to-be. Between these and the ones from the diaper cake she might have enough for baby Gavin for at least two days!

Diaper Cake
For Baby Gavin's Shower

Here is a picture of the diaper cake I made for baby Gavin's shower. It will serve as the centerpiece for the table. Tucked inside are all kinds of goodies such as rattles, bibs, washcloths, pacifier,spoons, and some products for bath time. These are so much fun to make and they are so easy, too!! Tomorrow: Shower banner

Baby Sock Roses

In two weeks my DIL and I will be hosting a baby shower for a dear friend here at my house. For the next several days I will share with you some of the decorations I am making for the special occasion. These little roses are so much fun to make and they are so realistic looking in person ~ the camera isn't capturing that I'm afraid. I have several more to make in different pastel colors and then I will add them along with some baby's breath to complete the arrangement. What I love about them is that when I am done they will serve double duty. They will first grace the table at the baby shower and and after that they will keep some little "tootsies" warm at night:) Tomorrow: Diaper Cake

"Labor" of Love!
Hmm.....I can't imagine who this could be for;o)


I thought of doing Benjamin but the wall wasn't big enough!

Autumnal Picture
Easy as 1,2,3!

1. Find free autumnal clip art on the Internet.

2. Decide what you want to say to go along with the picture.

3. Print off and put in frame!! For added interest you can add some cute fall touches to the outside of the frame. This took all of five minutes to make and I just love it. From a distance I think it looks like cross stitch!

Monogram Picture
(Easy Craft Project)

I was in the mood to do a little crafting today but I didn't want to spend ANY MONEY. Several months ago I had seen this idea on at least three different blogs (sorry, I can't remember which ones) and I really liked the idea, so I made a mental note to make one for myself later. I decided to do Mr. P's first name on the left, our last name in the middle, and my name on the right, instead of just using our last name. It took me all of ten minutes to do and all I needed was an old picture frame (have tons of those;o) and a printer. Free and easy, two of my favorite words!

Happy May Day



Miss Bonnie and I had fun making these May Day baskets last night. Of course, we didn't forget you:o) Happy May Day to all my blogging friends!

This little May Day basket
Was made especially for you
Because you're my friend
From Guess Who?