HALLOWEEN PINCUSHIONS ...

I made these little cuties this morning - talk about quick and easy!!!
I got the little Frankenstein pot at Hobby Lobby. To be honest with you, I'm not sure of its real use. It's too small to fit anything in - a little over an inch in diameter. I thought it was cute though, and that it would make the dinkiest little pincushion. I filled the pot part with plastic doll pellets, to give it a bit of weight.
The frame, I found in the dollar bins at Target. I saw the idea for these on Craftgossip (I think). To make it a little more Halloweeny, I glued on some Halloween charms, that I had in my stash, from who knows how far back!!!
I have a really fun project, that I can't wait to show you!!! However, patience is the word, she has to get to her new owner before I blow her cover!!! All I can tell you, is that she is a zombie doll, and I loved the way she turned out so much, that it was really difficult to tape her into her packing box today!!!
Thank you, as always for popping in and visiting for a while - I sure do appreciate you!!!
Until next time...

POLYMER CLAY BUTTONS ...

I came across a series on making your own polymer clay buttons (Lisa Clarkes Polka Dot Cottage) a little while ago. Yesterday I pulled out my clay and decided to give it a try. It was quite a bit of fun, and I do think that the color combinations you could come up with, are limitless.

Aren't they fun!!! There's no longer any excuse for not having exactly the right color, shape or size button for that craft project. I used what I had on hand to give these a try, but I can't wait to try and make shaped buttons using those tiny, little cookie cutters you get:-) Imagine how much fun they'd be to use on handmade cards or on a scrapbook layout. They bake up really hard (we even tried the dropping them from a height onto a slate floor .... they didn't even chip!!!)
These are being mailed off, as part of a package I'm sending to someone, so I wanted to display them nicely - I have a thing about presentation ... it comes from my Dad:-) So, I doubled a piece of cardstock and with a yarn needle poked holes in the card and tied each button on with a length of yarn - easy!!! I'll pop it in a cellophane bag, and attach a pretty bag topper.
This project is so easy, and would be a great one for kids to help with - you'd just have to help them with conditioning the clay and baking the buttons.
So dig out that polymer clay, and give it a go - you'll be delighted with the results!!!

INTRODUCING MUMFSY ....

And who would name someone that .... well my hubby of course!!!
And what would that someone have to look like to earn such a strange name .... well, just like this!!!

Isn't he cute!!! He is a baby shower gift for a friend of mines grandson, who will be making his entrance into the world, in a few short months:-)
This is where his pattern comes from ...

It is the most adorable book ever, and I saw it for the first time on Alice's Blog at Crochet With Raymond (if you've never visited before, hurry on over). It's one of those books that gives you the wanties reaaaalllly badly. I'm on a mission to knit every one of those sweet monsters. Rebecca Danger is one very talented girl. The instructions are so clear and easy to follow. It took me about 3 days to knit Mumfsy ... a very doable project, even for those short on time.
There is one part of him, that has me a little more excited than any other and it is this ...

His little foot.
Why does it excite me so ... because, I now think that I may just possibly be able to knit a pair of human socks!!! If I was able to do the gussety, picking up stitches, making a foot, on this little guy, then surely I can do it on a human sock? Watch this space ...
I'll leave you with one last picture of Mumfsy ... just because he is so absolutely, undeniably cute.


Have a great Sunday everyone.

CRAFTY TIDBITS ...

This is going to be a "little bit of this, little bit of that " type post. The kids are settled back at school now, and routine now abounds in our home ..... boy did we need it!!!
I climbed back on board with our school PTA this year, after taking last year off. Our circumstances last year were not conducive to me being able to give them the attention the position would have needed. While our circumstances remain unchanged, we've got a better handle on our new "normal" for now, and the time was right for me to be active again. Hospitality is my little niche. We hand out little treats to our Kindergarten parents on the first day of school each year (remember how traumatic that day was !!!!) I put together these water bottles and kleenex holders for them.


I used cardstock and felt in our school colors, as well as the image of our mascot. I also added the school's info to the kleenex holder. I printed it onto iron on printable fabric ..... I know how often I need that information, even now, and we're in our 7th year there!!! They were very well recieved by all those sad mommies and daddies:-(
Next, this is my 2nd year of being a part of The Year Of Enchantment Swap, hosted by Val, over at Yarnigras. I just love this swap, and have collected many gorgeous, enchanted ornaments since its inception, all of them made by extremely talented ladies. The theme for August was toads/frogs .... who would have thought those warty little creatures could be so cute? Here is what I made to send to my partner ...

The little frog I made using Fimo, for his crown I used glass head pins ... no wonder his eyes are bulging .... imagine how painful that must have been for him!!! The bigger one (my hubby thinks it looks like an egg who met with the hulk, and came off second best), I made by molding paper clay over a styrofoam egg, and adding to him from there:-) I was very happy with how they turned out. These are the froggies I recieved from my partner ..... see what I mean about cute!!!

Hope everyone is enjoying their Labor Day Weekend .... It's fun just being able to kick back and relax.