Hop Scotch Mat

Hop Scotch Mat (the copycat version)...I found a picture of a hopscotch 

mat like this one online somewhere and saved the picture because 

I knew I wanted  to make one for Katelynn as a gift. My husband picked up

 a drop cloth for around $8. at Lowe's for me and I had plenty of felt on hand.  

This project was pretty much about deciding how long and wide I wanted my

 mat and how large I wanted my squares and numbers, of course I forgot to take 

picture of the steps to make this project, but I will do my best to 

explain it...really it was very simple. 

First, I laid out my drop cloth on the floor. Then, I laid out 10-12x12 scrapbook

 sheets of paper on the drop cloth in a hopscotch pattern and traced around

 them leaving about a 4 inch border all the way around the mat, this would also

 be a good time to cut your drop cloth so it is easier to work with,(remember to 

cut a seam allowance for turning and sewing up the sides 1/4").  Next, I cut 

several long strips of felt with a rotary cutter and ruler for the chalk outline and 

I sewed them onto my traced outline on the mat. Then, on my computer I went into

 my fonts printed and cut out the numbers 0-9 in the font of my choice. 

Next, I traced the numbers onto my felt and cut out all the numbers,

 (be sure to trace and cutout the number 1 twice so that you now have the numbers 1-10). 

Then, I sewed my numbers on the mat in the center of the squares. Next, I made three 

felt bean bags with Katie's Initial in three different colors so her sister and friends 

can play Hop Scotch with her. Finally, I sewed on two long ties onto one end 

of the mat, so that the mat could be rolled up and tied for storage, and there you have it 

a special gift for a special little girl OR boy.

Here it is all rolled up and tied. originally I was going to make a easy draw 

string bag for the mat and bean bags to be stored in, but then changed my mind. 

I think the drawstring bag would make a cute gift bag as well as a storage bag.

 You can find an easy drawstring bag tutorial here.

ENJOY!

Barbie clothes

So, I'm almost embarrassed to say "YES" I've been making Barbie clothes, because what I've found is  there are some hardcore Barbie people out there! "NO" I don't own any Barbie dolls myself, "WAIT" unless you count the one I bought at the dollar store so I could use her as my model." WAIT A MINUTE"..."OR" the Ken doll my husband found in his office...the guys at work thought it was only fair, if his secretaries bring their Barbies to work, he should have one too so naturally I inherited Ken ...actually my niece Katie is the one with all the Barbie's, she probably has dozens of Barbies. This little girl asks for a new Barbie every birthday, holiday and every opportunity she finds fit. With that said Barbie probably needs some clothes.
 I started thinking back when I was a little girl, my older sister Marlene gave me all of her Barbie's, this was big, I wasn't even allowed to touch them up to this point and now they were going to be ALL mine! Marlene was very creative, keep in mind we didn't have a lot of money, my mom was a single mother of eight kids, and I came to terms that Santa wasn't dropping off Barbies Dream House anytime soon. Marlene's creativity was nothing more than pure genius to me, she would come up with ways to make our own Barbie Dream House, with empty toilet paper rolls and wash cloths, Barbie had couch's and bed's, with bottle caps as dishes, and if my mom only knew we were cutting up our clothes so Barbie could have clothes living with Barbie probably would have ended. Marlene showed me how she made Barbie's closet out of a cardboard box, she even had a place for all of her shoes, and reminded me how Barbie always loses them and that I needed to make sure Barbie put them back into her closet so that they wouldn't get lost. I remember her spending most of the day showing me endless possibilities on how
Barbie could have it all with just a little creativity.

With one semester in 7th grade of Home Economics and a sewing project here and there with my step mom I had the bare basics of sewing down when I started sewing again in the last year or so, and what I found was Barbie clothes are a great beginner project because I know understand how garmets are pieced together. I think this Green and brown dress would make a cute summer dress for an adult after all it's only a bodice with darts and a skirt attached and there are so many variations of this dress you could make...I just might have to try it! If you do try to make Barbie clothes they can be a little tricky because they are so small, but just remember they are for Barbie and the little girl who receives them is going to think you are sooooo cool, so see, it's a win win situation once you get past the thought of "You're such a nerd, you're making Barbie clothes".
 Here's a few more...Have a good day ya' all.

                                                        WHAT? ... Barbie needs PJ's too!

                                               ...and a bathing suit or under garmets

Plush Alphabets

when I found these Plush Alphabets by chezbeeperbebe I knew I wanted to make some for Kinzy (my niece), because she's learning her ABC's and these were so much cuter than those ugly plastic refrigerator magnets that I had growing up.

I love them because they are bright and pretty, they are like art on your refrigerator, and what a great way to use up all those scraps laying around, but why I love them most  is that they are a learning toy for sweet Kinzy. Next, I would like to make some numbers like these with plus and minus symbols,  for  her older sister to help her with her math. Enjoy! P.S. I hope i properly linked.