SPRING BUNNY ....

Before we know it, Easter will be upon us. I always feel a little cheated when it falls in March ....... to me, Easter and April go hand in hand.
We have two little people in our lives, for whom the Easter bunny is still very real. It makes me so sad to think that our kids are past that now ..... they just grow up too fast !!!! The Easter gifts I send these two little people, have a Trans Atlantic journey to make, so I have to have them ready ahead of time. Easter bunny one is finished, she just needs to snuggle down into some tissue paper, and she'll be on her way.

 Is she just not the cutest thing ever !!!! She is the Spring Bunny, designed by Josephine Wu, from A Morning Cup Of Jo Creations. She was lots of fun to crochet, and only took me a week to make, crocheting a little here and there. I adore her big head and floppy ears ..... her little rosy cheeks are oh so cute !!!

Her little button tail, just makes me smile...

 Her gorgeous pink sweater with little green buttons and trim, remind us that Spring is not too far off now...

And the lovely yellow rose in her hair rounds off her look.

I made her using a yarn I've never tried before - Vickie Howell's yarn called Sheep(ish). It is lovely. Very soft and silky, and easy to crochet with. I'd love to make a blanket out of it, where you're not having to crochet such a firm piece. A lovely granny square blanket, may just have to be put on my "To Do" List. The colors available are gorgeous too.

I think I'm going to give designing my own crochet bunny pattern for Easter bunny number 2 ...... Hmmm, it's the first time I'm ever giving this a go. I'll let you know how it works out ....... then again maybe I should just search Etsy for a pattern.

Until next time ......

SINFULLY DELICIOUS CHICKEN BITES .....

Oh my word !!!
Really that's all that needs to be said about these - three little words that describe them perfectly.
I needed something quick to put together on Friday, for our weekly Bible Study gathering. I found the recipe on Pinterest. It really is a quick little recipe with outstanding results. They were so good in fact, that I came home later that day, and threw another batch of them together, to feed to Hubby and the kids as their afternoon snack ..... Yum ... Yum ... Yum !!!!

- 4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
- 1 lb bacon
- 2/3 cup light brown sugar
- 1-2 tablespoons of chili powder (depends on how spicy you like things)

- Cut chicken into 1 inch cubes
- Cut bacon strips in half
- Wrap bacon around chicken cube, and secure with a toothpick.
- Mix sugar and chili powder together in a bowl
- Roll chicken in mixture
- Place chicken on a grill tray, and bake at 350F for 40 mins (until bacon is crispy)

Go ahead. Make some.You know you really want to .....

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY ....

I hope yours was wonderful in all the right ways !!!!
We normally don't celebrate it in our house - apart from the little "something" we give each of the kids. I usually make a special Valentines dessert for after dinner too. This year was a little different, and Hubby took me out for breakfast - so special and so sweet. It was wonderful !!! We had an issue blow up, that left me no time to make that special dessert, but hey, it happens sometimes.

It is of course the perfect excuse for some crafty goodness to take place though, so let's take a peek at what came out of my craft room (aka My Office!!!)....

Cards for some special friends ...
These cards doubled as gift card holders too. I really like this way of giving gift cards, and will definately be using it again. Instead of folding just one card, I folded two. Using double sided sticky tape, I joined the edges (only the edges, as you need to be able to slide the gift card into the pocket), of the back of one card, to the front of the other. I used a circle punch to cut out a notch, and then got decorating the front of the card. There's nothing that says "Be My Valentine" quite like monsters !!! I used the Bump In The Night cartridge from Cricut, and a sprinkling of punched hearts.

 This was Hubby's card, very plain and simple, but I think that's what I really like about it. It was an idea I saw on Pinterest. I like also, that there's no waste of paper, as you're using both the cutout, and some of the strip that surrounds it ...... the part that usually gets tossed out.

I made two of these cards, one for each of our kids. The photo doesn't show it well, but I cut out the heart shape using my Cricut, on a separate piece of cardstock. I then backed the cutout, with strips of  Washi tape. I attached this piece to the card using foam strips, to give it some dimension.

Lastly, I have a very dear friend, whose hubby was away on business for Valentines Day .... I wanted to bring a smile to her day. She loves ladybirds, and also likes to sew. I found this cute little ladybird at Hobby Lobby, it was attached to one of those springy wires. After I cut that off, it made the perfect addition to this pincushion. The card, was another Pinterest find. I made a cloud shaped mask, and inked the shape onto the white background paper. I punched out four 2 inch circles with my paper punch. I folded each circle in half, and stuck them to one another, attaching the last piece on each side, to the card mat (giving the 3D effect for the body). A smaller circle punch was used to make the head, and then I just drew on the antennae.

Next up ......Easter !!! It's early this year - the end of March!!!
I have a few little treasure I want to make ...... better get started.
Wishing y'all a terrific, fun filled weekend.

CUPCAKES AND CARDS ....

I took part in Shawnee's Flirty Apron Swap. The format was a little different this time - we all got a fat quarter of the same fabric, and we had to incorporate it into an apron. It sounds easy, but let me tell you, it had me stumped for a loooong time !!!!
I am quite happy with the end result though - I hope my partner likes it.
The photo doesn't show it off well - in fact it's a really icky photo, but it's the only one I took, so it'll have to do.

The black outfit that Molly, my trusty model is wearing, hides some of the detail on the apron unfortunately.
The cupcake fabric was the fat quarter fabric. I picked up on the pink, red and chocolate brown in that design, and used it for the layers in the skirt. The bib has chocolate brown, jumbo ric rac around it. I have used this pattern many, many times (It's a Simplicity pattern), and it is always fun to sew.

Of course all swap packages need to be wrapped beautifully, and they need a card. As I had 2 packages to mail today, I made 2 of the same card, just in different colorways (to match the color theme of the swap items).

I love this design (it comes off Pinterest). I found these rolls of Washi Tape at Target (5 rolls in each color pack .... blue, green and red), for next to nothing ....... I couldn't believe my luck when I found them :-) The little bird brads, are ones I've had for a while. I think they came from Oriental Trading.

Next on my "To Do" List, are a few little Valentines gifts ...... can't wait to get started on them :-)
Hope your day has been full of sunshine and smiles.

VALENTINES TREE ....

I guess the Valentines posts are unavoidable .... Valentines Day is on its way!!! I do have to chuckle though, because Hubby and I don't celebrate it - He's convinced it's a day that was created just to make Hallmark rich .... He's not too far from the truth, I don't think :-) I do always do a little something for the kids though.

Remember this tree ....

The one I made, using willow branches from our garden, and used as a centerpiece at our Church Womens' Christmas Brunch. Well, I decided that as I spent some time making it ( the branches are stuck into the pot, using that spray foam you buy at Lowes to seal windows - the one that expands and dries rock hard!!!), that I would use it year round. I have the perfect little spot for it in our entrance hall. My plan is to adorn its branches each month with handmade ornaments that celebrate something about that month.

February had to be Valentines themed .....

 The woven looking hearts, I bought at Hobby Lobby. I strung them with lengths of sparkly beads.

These hearts though are my favorite, and were so easy to make.
I used pink and red sculpey. I rolled it out to about 1/4" thick, and used a heart cookie cutter to cut the shape. I made a hole in the top of the heart with a wooden skewer (so that you can hang the ornament). Using some mini alphabet stamps, and some black Staz On ink, I stamped some Valentines type words onto the heart shapes. 15 minutes in the oven at 275 Deg F, and they were done, and ready for stringing.
I like it ....... very much !!!!

I hope you're having a fantastic week - I'll be back with some more crafty creations to share with you soon.

VALENTINES WREATH ...

Once again Val is hosting her quarterly swap ...... :-) It's a great opportunity to try out something new ... a new medium, a new product, or a new technique.
This quarter's theme was birds. We had to come up with an ornament, wreath, length of bunting .... the choice was ours, just as long as it had a bird in it somewhere. It's been ages since I've made a wreath, so that was what I decided to do. My partner choices were, either something for Valentines Day, or for Christmas. Given that I'm still a little "Christmased" out, I chose Valentines day.

I started off with one of those green styrofoam wreaths you get at the craft store. I Mod Podged red fabric strips around it to start with, but it didn't give me the look I wanted (to bumpy), so I went ahead and gave it a coat of red paint ...... much better !!! I crocheted up that little bluebird (I quite fancy the bright blue against the red). I sat him on a nest of red tulle. Next up, the felt flowers .... I used the felt flower tutorial I mentioned in my last post, as well as my Sizzix and a few other picture I found, to make all of the felt flowers. A big red bow and some wooden letter tiles, and it's all complete. I like it a lot. I didn't feel this way about it at the beginning. Midway through I nearly abandoned the whole idea - I'm glad I persevered on though. I just hope my swap partner likes it too:-)

Have a wonderful week.

SPRING BAG ....

I spent a little time with my sewing machine yesterday, something I haven't done in quite a while. It was very enjoyable. I needed to make a birthday gift for a friend - it had to be quick and easy, but still pretty and practical .... I love giving practical gifts !!!(When I read that back to myself, it makes me sound so boring :-)
While browsing the Craft/DIY category on  (yes, you guessed it) Pinterest, I found this free pattern.
http://verypurpleperson.com/2010/04/making-reversible-bag/. It was so much fun to sew, and came together easily and quickly, with delightful results.

 I used duck cloth for the exterior fabric (sturdy and durable), and Kona cotton for the lining. The original instructions didn't make provision for a closure and I wanted one, so I just went ahead and added a ribbon loop and button.

 Then I found the instructions to make these lovely felt flowers ... http://makeanddogirl.com/2011/10/tutorial-diy-felt-flowers/, and thought one of them would make the perfect embellishment. While it was fiddly to make, it was well worth the effort. You end up with a really lovely, feminine flower.
Happy Birthday Katie - hope your day was wonderful !!!

Then I had another birthday today, Boy Child's friend. They've known each other since PreSchool days. He was the first friend that Boy Child made when we came to the USA. Here is the card I made to go with his present. Another Pinterest idea. I like how cheerful it is, and that it can be easily tailored to suit a boy or a girl .... want to know the secret to all those fun colors? Paint Chips!!!

So there you have my latest crafty exploits. I plan to spend some time in my craft room this weekend - I have some "Have To Do's" and some "Want To Do's" that I want to have a play with.
Wishing you a wonderful weekend ...... and at least a little time, to indulge your crafty side.