Thursday, May 5, 2011

Boy it's been a while!

Hello Friends!

I know it's been a while since I've posted, but exciting news here! I finally got another teaching job :) For those of you who haven't read earlier posts, I used to teach Kindergarten and the classroom was eliminated, therefore, eliminating me boo. As a result of that, I've become a stay at home wife and mom to my kitty :)

All that has changed and I'm now teaching 4th grade, covering a maternity leave. Yay!

I will definitely be posting more soon and have a ton of diy projects just waiting on my camera to be blogged about :)

Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Picture Walk: No Sew Rosette Pillow

Hello everyone!  This is a quickie picture walk for a no-sew rosette pillow! To begin:
{Measure for pillow size, leaving at least 1 inch on all sides}


{Turn inside out}


{Liquid Unique Stitch: aka no sew}


{Apply 1/2 inch in from cut side, repeat on 2 more sides}


{Insert pillow form and fold up the opening, apply unique stitch glue}


{Seal opening all the way}


{Cut stripes of fabric, about 1 inch wide}


{wrap around finger to create rosette, this may take a few times to get the "rose" look}


{create more rosettes...}


{arrange in your letter or design of choice}


{arrange rosettes on pillow}


{apply unique stitch glue to back of rosettes, insert small pin to hold middle in place}


{admire your no-sew rosette pillow!}


Hope you can create your own no-sew pillows using this picture walk to help!!

Sharing with:






Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Woohoo: Versatile Blogger Award!


So I was super excited to get the Versatile Blogger Award from Nifty Thrifty Things



Now to pass along the award & follow the rules I have to answer a few questions :)

Thank the person who awarded you & link them back in your post.

Thank you sooo much Nifty Thrifty Things!!! I'm so excited that you included me in your list!

Tell everyone 7 random facts about yourself.

1. I have a twin sister, but people would never know we were even sisters

2. I'm fairly new to blogging and I love it, at times I really should set a time limit as to how long I'm reading the blogs I love... who needs to do laundry right?!
  
3. I always add an extra “R” in survey when I’m typing…as in survery…

4. Some of the nicknames between the hubby and I came from an Orbit commercial

5. I love the movie "Elf" and I will watch it any season, any time

6. Our cat, Annabelle, is our little fur baby who acts like a real person and occasionally does ninja moves on our sliding glass doors. 

7. My mom met my hubby and my sister's fiance on the same day (it all started with a football) a while before we all started dating

Pass the award on to 15 bloggers.

Here are  15 amazing (and some new to me) bloggers! 


Contact each bloggers and let them know you've passed the award on to them, & let the "giver" know you accept the award.
Notifying now :)

Have a great day!



Sunday, January 30, 2011

No Sew Pillows!

Hello Everyone!

Hope you are having a wonderful Sunday :)  I'm so excited to share these pillows with you! I had no idea what I was doing & the result turned out great ~ don't you love when that happens!  I'm sure many of you have seen the Ballard Design "Mr. and Mrs." pillows, here's a refresher:
{Ballard Design}
I loved them when I saw them, just the right amount of rustic.  I've seen other bloggers recreate these (so cute!) and I thought why not??  I also stopped into Home Goods the other day and admired their pillows, but the $50 price tag - I think not. Off to Joann Fabrics I went...

{If you do not have a fabric store near you, click on the link to Joann Fabrics above and you can order from their website!}

Okay, lets get started... here's what I used to create 2 pillows:


  • 1 yard of burlap-looking fabric
  • 2 pillow inserts (small - also found at Joann's or Ikea)
  • No Sew Glue
  • Silhouette machine or stencil equivalent
  • Fabric Paint
  • Small Paintbrush





I started my Ballard Design pillows by laying out the fabric, doubled to have a front and back with one cut and placed the pillow insert on top, leaving approximately 1 - 1 1/2 inches all around.  Again, no clue what I was doing... just trust me ;)... knock-off say whattt


...ya know just eyeball it ;)



Once those are cut, start with your stencils!  I used my new Silhouette machine, but you can use any type of stenciling method you have on hand.


I made the letters about 3" tall...


Tape the stencil to the fabric using any tape you have and try to center the letters where you would like them on the pillow.  I tried to stay in the upper middle part. I added a small sheet of waxed paper in between the fabric, which really helped the letters not to stick to the bottom piece.  Now, paint inside of your stencils using a small brush.  Only use a small amount of paint to create the rustic, stamped look...


  Remove the stencil after you are done painting, before paint dries


and continue with "Mr."...



now let dry side-by-side...awww...love.


now, the fabric paint states that you need to let the fabric dry for 4 hours...whatt?! I think not.  If you are impatient like me, let dry maybe 25-30 mins then check it out for tackiness.

After they are "dry," apply a thin line of glue about a 1/2 from the edge and leave about 1 inch at the top of the fabric:

Do the same to the other side, leaving the top of the fabric open to slide pillow insert in.  Let dry inside out for at least 15 minutes on the dining room floor a flat surface:


When the glue is dry (or strong enough to not pull apart) turn the covers inside out again, right side in...whatever...just the right way with the words on the front :)


Slip in the pillow insert...


and you are left with some excess fabric, so I just folded it up nicely to close the seam and glued it shut like this:



and there you have it!  Easy right?? I love them...




Hope you've enjoyed this tutorial: now go make your own no sew knock-offs!!

Linking to these lovely parties:


UndertheTableandDreaming


Weekend Bloggy Reading





Funky Junk's Saturday Nite Special











Sneak Peek...

For all of you night owls... here's a sneak peek of what I created today:


... tutorial coming tomorrow!!


Thursday, January 27, 2011

Thank you Thrifty Decor Chick!

Sooo excited to see that The Birds Nest was featured as a newbie at Thrifty Decor Chick!!!  Go check it out here!!

Three of my fav projects were featured:

{Found here}

{Found here}

{Found here}

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