Storage Box

This little box was purchased from a cigar store for 5$, and then put in storage for ages, until I saw in my craft book ideas for painting boxes.

While I loved the idea of painting this one, I didn't want to sand off the stain or try to avoid the hardware, so I decided to come up with another way to cover the cigar logo.

I hot glued the ribbon around the lid of the box, and the covered the ends and the glue on the inside with a square of felt. I'm really happy with the results-- and I think it makes for great storage for small things like buttons and other shiny crafty things!

Sewing Frustration

So the last time I mentioned doilies I talked about how important it is to try not to get frustrated with things, because it ruins the feelings about the whole project. Well let me present a project that was ruined by me getting frustrated:

So, this was going to be a journal cover for my mom. She loves history, and she really enjoys Egypt, so I was going to sew on these little Pyramids. I didn't like how they were turning out when I was sewing them by hand, so I pulled out the machine and I was going to run a thick zigzag around each individual triangle. The first one went fantastic. The second one got sewn in the wrong place.

I couldn't just rip the zigzag and re-place the second triangle, because the cloth was thin enough that all the pin marks were going to throw, and I couldn't figure out how to alter the design in a way that I would still be happy with giving it to someone; so the whole project went in the trash.

Of course, there was probably a better way of fixing the problem than just trashing the whole thing, but I had sewn it in such a way that there was no space for the rest of the picture, and I was unwilling to compromise the view I had of the project into something else, so it just had to go. While I don't reccommend getting this frustrated over a small square of cloth, if it does happen to you I will of course understand!

I, however, will steer clear of the sewing machine!

Caroline's Altered Chili

I found a great recipe on a classmate's blog and made it the other day for my grandmother, brother, and father, and it turned out to be a big hit. Major alterations were the substitution of real meat for fake, but I also left out the garlic and cilantro. We had it with fresh cornbread, and the meal was fantastic. I love trying new recipes, and I don't mind altering them, because I figure if the people I am borrowing the recipes from didn't want them to be used and personalized, then they would keep them to themselves and their families.

A Dinner Anti-Disaster this time!

Updated Doilies 2!

I think this is a fantastic choice for a scrap project, because it goes so quick! I can do one a night, if I want, and it gives me something mindless to do between some of my more serious projects.

As you can see, the third one is back to being the size of the first one. So now I have two non-flat big ones and one flat-ish smaller one. But I'm not worrying yet, and I think that's something that I've had to learn over the years. Not everything I make is going to be perfect, but I can still make it work out somehow.

Don't even let yourself get frustrated because things aren't working out "just right"-- trust me, I do this often enough to know that it ruins feelings for the project!

Good luck!

Previous posts here and here.

Updated Blanket

So I've added the first bit of yarn since I finished the Wild Thing scraps, and I pretty much love how the blanket is looking! The blue-green color is a bit wild, but I think it makes the blanket look a little more haphazard, which is exactly what I was going for.

Hope your scrap projects are going fantastic, too!

Updated Doilies

So of course you remember my doily post, and as you can see I've made another. I used exactly the same yarn, exactly the same needle, and exactly the same pattern...

 

And obviously I messed up on one of them, because they are clearly not the same size. I'm not worrying about it now, though-- we'll see what happens when I have a few more done!

New Post...

I know, I know, more bouncing around. But I've posted my second advertising blog post, and I would be MOST grateful if you would go check it out :)

Thanks much! Back to usual craftyness tomorrow!