Travel cosmetic roll

I'm finally learning how to sew (gasp!). For one of my first projects, I had success in using Nested's pattern for a crayon pouch. The next step was adapting the pattern into a travel cosmetic roll, which wasn't awfully challenging.

Here's the one I made for my sister's birthday. The overall dimensions are 7.5 in x 13.5 in (floral fabric), with the compartment section (solid pink felt) at 4.5 in x 13.5 in. The width for the individual makeup compartments range from 1–2 inches in width. You can just guesstimate the sizes as you go, or measure the items you're planning on inserting and do some customizing that way.

You can see that my stitching is far from perfect, but it gets the job done. I'm figuring out my sewing machine on my own after a short lesson from my aunt, and it's a process! I think I may have had the tension too tight for this project. See how the whole thing puckers?

Another way I adapted the original Nested pattern was that instead of having the ribbon tie, I opted to sew on some Velcro on the righthand edge of the pouch and about halfway on the opposite side.

This pink ribbon is purely decorative. After all, it's a gift, right?! :) The roll is actually secured by the Velcro. I figured tying and untying the ribbon after each use would get annoying.

Happy crafting, everyone!

Organized craft closet

I suppose most people have catch-all closets, which is what became of this closet, originally intended for craft and sewing supplies. Crammed with clutter (although the perfect hide-and-seek spot for my kids), this closet was begging to be organized!

And, voila! Not a really dramatic change, but oh so much more functional. All I did was shift everything around into zones using existing drawers, boxes and other organizational tools.

SEWING ZONE: Color-coded fabric in an organizer right next to my sewing machine.

SEWING ZONE: Three drawers stash small sewing supplies like thread and needles, cross stitching miscellany and scrap fabrics.

GIFT AND CARD ZONE: A simple slotted rack on the wall displays greeting cards to choose from more easily than if stored stacked in boxes. I can also see, at a glance, which occasion I need to restock (anniversary, birthday, get well).

GIFT AND CARD ZONE: Rolls of wrapping paper and gift bags are stowed in a corner, along with tape and tissue paper.

GIFT AND CARD ZONE: Extra envelopes, address labels, standard thank you cards and stamps are tucked away on the wall adjacent.

IN PROGRESS ZONE: I tacked up some corkboard tiles on which to pin projects in progress, as well as magazine clippings and ideas. A tray on the desktop just below holds bulkier unfinished projects.

FILING ZONE: A row of magazine files are labeled according to my most frequent filing needs.

ART SUPPLY ZONE: I reserved the top middle shelf for miscellaneous art and craft supplies. Labels on the outside of clear drawers cut down on wasted time spent digging for stencils, stamps, scrapbook paper, etc.

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It's nice that everything has a "home" now, so I'm much less tempted to just pile things on the desk or shove them into a corner on the floor. I can walk in and find what I need quickly and have more motivation to put things back where they belong when I'm through.

How do you sort and organize a closet? Does "zoning" work well for you?

OLIVIA party :: Crafts and activities

By far, the biggest hit of the party was wagon rides around the backyard. They never tired of it! For the older kids, we had croquet set up in the side yard.


At the craft table, the kids enjoyed coloring sheets from NickJr.com.


We put together a cute Olivia egg craft from NickJr.com, too. It was great to use clearanced Easter eggs from earlier in the month. Note that it's best to use tacky glue for the craft as regular school glue didn't work too well for us.


Tucked away in the corner of the yard, we had a dress-up station with an open suitcase, props and a mirror. The sign on the suitcase reads: "Rule of Life #7: Whatever the question, costumes are always a good answer."

To get all the Olivia party posts, click on the tag, "olivia" below.

Rainbow Art Collage

Looking for a rainy day activity with quick set-up and toddler/preschooler appeal?

I recently did an impromptu art project with my toddler using magazine clippings in all the colors of the rainbow. I drew the outline of the rainbow with the color names on the left and set out a pile of magazine clippings. My toddler sorted the clippings by color and used a glue stick to arrange them on the arc that matched the color.

Although she ran out of clippings to complete the rainbow, we hung it up anyway and have been working on it in stages as I have time to clip more magazines. By the way, the colors we used were: Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Purple (a simplified version of Roy G. Biv).

Bee Mine Valentine

Here's your step-by-step for some adorable valentines that you can make with your toddler or preschooler.

1) You'll need a pack of medium tags and pink dye ink pad from a craft store (these are from JoAnn's Fabrics).

2) Have your child use their fingerprint to make a single mark on each tag. Disclaimer: this ink can be messy, so supervise your child closely.

3) Repeat, repeat! :)

4) Now, it's Mom's turn. Draw details on the bees using a thin-tipped black marker and write your "BEE MINE" message in pink. Tie to a small Juicy Juice box as a gift for classmates. Choose the Juicy Juice punch flavor for the pink packaging to match your sweet bees.

No-Sew Advent Calendar

Repeat after me: "Tacky glue is my best friend." Seriously, I got this entire project completed with just one bottle of that adhesive awesomeness. I own a sewing machine but (tsk, tsk) I haven't learned to use it, so I rely on glue and iron-on tape to get the job done on most of my crafts.

Supplies/Instructions:

• 1 - 22x34-inch fabric of your choice (I chose one with polka dots which made for less guesswork and tedious measuring on the rows for the calendar and when folding over the edges to glue to the back! Just follow the row of polka dots. Could work the same way with a striped fabric.)
• 1 - 9x12-inch light blue felt and scrap felt pieces cut for the manger scene (forest green for hills, brown for barn structure)
• 25 - 3x3-inch felt squares for the pockets (5 rows of 5)
• Stencil-cut numbers for Advent pockets (1 through 25)
• 1 - dowel rod trimmed to 22 inches
• Ribbon to tie on each end of dowel rod for hanging
• Tacky glue
• Fabulous Foam Self-Adhesive Nativity Shapes (500-pc from Oriental Trading; $7.99) There are two sizes of nativity shapes that come in this pack. I sorted them and, using the larger ones, I will have enough pieces now for eight years! Sheep, stars and palm trees all made double or triple appearances in the Advent calendar to have enough to fill up 25 pockets.

A foam sticker peeks out of one of the pockets. Tip: Use a stencil flipped over to trace the numbers in reverse on the felt. When you go to cut them out, any pen marks on the back will be hidden.

Tip: Using 9x12 sheets of pre-cut felt, you'll have enough 3x3 pieces cut out from 3 sheets to make 24 pieces. Use some excess felt of another color to make your pocket for Day 25...Christmas!

Here's what it looks like hanging from a door using a wreath hanger.

Harvest Garland

This craft project couldn't be simpler. Not the most beautiful decor you could dream up, but it was a great activity for me and my toddler--not to mention, it's a great lesson in learning letters.

Supplies:

- 2 scrapbook sheets in autumnal colors (12x12in)

- marker or pen

- hole punch

- scissors

- yarn

- glue

Directions:

1. Take two sheets of scrapbook paper, fold into quarters and cut along folds. You should have eight (6x6in) squares.
2. Using marker or pen, write one letter per square to spell out h-a-r-v-e-s-t.
3. Punch hole in top center of each square.
4. Trace letters with glue and have your "little helper" run yarn along the glue lines. Trim yarn with scissors to fit each letter.
5. Cut a long piece of yarn and tie from one end to another to create the garland. (I used the two window latches/locks to tie the yarn to. You could do this on a wall using thumbtacks or the like.)
6. Attach each letter using a small piece of yarn and tying to the garland.
7. FYI, the pumpkin sitting above the garland is a craft from Paint - Cut - Paste.

Fall Apple Stamp Stationery

This week, my toddler brought home a large sheet of apple stamp artwork from her Mother's Day Out program. Instead of hanging it on my fridge, I decided to share the artwork with our friends and family by creating these stationery cards for autumn greetings.

Cutting out the stamped paper, I used a brown permanent marker to trace around the "apples" and drew in the apple seeds and stems. Red gingham ribbon wrapped around a brown stationery card finishes off the country look. On the back of the card, use rubber cement to attach some white paper to make room for a personal note.

Fabric Decoupaged Photo Box

Do you have any scrap fabric lying around that you're looking to re-purpose? I recently took a pair of fabric scissors to a worn, floral bedspread I had back in college. Then, using a couple of coats of decoupage, I adhered the fabric cutouts to a plain white photo storage box. Layering most of the cutouts on top and intentionally overlapping some of the petals over the edge of the box achieved the casual look I wanted.

I often think of decoupaging only when there's paper involved, but fabric works well too! This project takes hardly any time at all to complete. Alternatively, try it on a hat box or any other similar surface.

Confetti Fleece Rug

A spinoff of the "rag rug," I made this two-color fleece rug for my daughter's nursery. Besides several hours of tedious work while watching TV, the whole project only cost $25.

Supplies:

• 2 yards dark pink fleece
• 2 yards light pink fleece
• 1 fish net (from craft store)
• fabric scissors

Instructions:
Using fabric scissors, cut fleece into 1x6-inch strips and tie in alternating colors to the fish net. You should have enough fabric to make a 3.5 x 5 rug. Just trim the net down to the size you want. Fluff the rug and you're done!