Ransacked Goods

Rainbow Party Favors

We're hosting a my daughter's 5th birthday party this weekend. She's not really interested in gifts but has asked several times for a rainbow birthday. I went to our excellent and cheap local party supply store and picked up some rainbow themed favors and these plain brown pastry bags. The Chickpea and I then sat down with a set of ink pads and decorated them which was fun to see what we could come up with. The adorable rainbow buttons came from buttonsandbadges Etsy store. We'll pick up some rainbow colored balloons and I found some rainbow striped candles at Target. Check, done! We're ready to get our rainbow on! Now if you wanted to go full tilt check out this board.Excellent ideas if you've got oodles of time and sugar.

via buttonsandbadges Check out what else they have!

Whole Cloth Baby Quilt

Just in the nick-of-time I finished the baby quilt for my nephew before I was off to my sister-in-law's baby shower in Nevada over the weekend. I was inspired by some really lovely whole cloth quilts that I had seen, particularly this one and this one that really let the simplicity of the fabric and pattern speak for themselves. An of course I fell in love with the linen car fabric from Kokka. So many amazing Japanese import fabrics to swoon over, here. I wanted to get in just a little modern patchwork on the back with some scraps I had around. I love piecing fabric together without a pattern, so liberating. I hope this little gem will be loved for years.

Baby Shower Gift

I am over the moon with excitement for the arrival of my new nephew in a few months. I find myself scouting for cute boy gear which is a real treat. I love it when boys clothing and accessories are done well. For example Tea and Mini Boden hit it right on for me if I were lucky enough to have a little guy. 

My sister-in-law's baby shower is in just a few weeks. I made the baby a few bibs with this vivid retro fabric from Alexander Henry that I had in my stash. And I made her a simple little clutch just big enough to fit some essentials. I stashed it with a few diapers, a small package of wipes, hand sanitizer, tissues, sunscreen and an organic onesie that I embellished (and forgot to photograph). Both are linen with soft linen because it just looks good with everything right!

The knit blanket they are sitting on was my brother's when he was a baby. Goodness knows why I have it. It has a nice big hole in it but I can't seem to get rid of it. I'm still trying to think of a way to change it into something else for his son, a pillow? I only wish they used natural fibers more back int he 70's. Oh well, work with what you've got.

Wooden Princess Wands

via www.etsy.com by 3PrincessEngravings

Here is a link to the lovely wooden wands I gave out to a few people this Christmas. I have bought a few other personalized natural wooden baby gifts from them too. They are excellent in quality and really affordable. Check it out.

Holiday Teacher Gifts

We gave each of the Chickpea's teachers a little homemade holiday gift this year. We made vanilla extract a few months back and then made some vanilla sugar - general recipe here. I also stopped by Miette, one of our favorite bakeries, and picked up little packages of walnut shortbread cookies. We bundled everything up in these sweet muslin bags that we stamped and punched out little tags with a message for each teacher.

While they aren't strictly made by the kiddo she helped in every part of the process and they were made over many days of crafting. It really helped to spread things out over several days.

We packed up a few more of these for friends. We'll be making another batch of this killer fudge from Martha. I made some for a Christmas party and I'm totally adicted to this easy confection.

Birthday Crown

Here is the birthday crown I made for Apple. I used the same tutorial from CurlyPops that I used for her sisters. It's super easy and would make a great gift for any kid. Both of the girl's crowns need to be bedazzled a little to make them supper special. We haven't found the right thing yet. A felt start doesn't seem quite glamorous for "hey it's my birthday, yippee!" So I'm going to look around for some sequin appliques. I'm usually adverse to sequins but sometimes it just feels right.

Personalized Girl or Boy Pillow

via www.etsy.com by olliegraphic

While I was thinking about thing I could make the Babe for her first birthday I came across this adroable pillow. I just love that you can pick the child's skin tone, hair color and style, eye color and pillow color, even his/her expression. I think I'll need to stash this idea away for the holidays.

Silhouette Portraits

I wanted to share the silhoettes of the girls that I made for their Great Grandmother for Christmas this year. (Pardon the terrible photos) I've had these reclaimed wood picture frames for ages but I haven't ever had the right image to put in them. So I took pictures of the girls that were backlit for ease,removed the background and filled their profile with black in Photoshop, added their names and birthdates, then printed them out on a handmade paper. I'm really pleased with how they turned out and they will look perfect once I find the time to hang them. The baby looks a bit like a blob (a cute one at that) but what a sweet treasure for them if I do these every Christmas and they can see how they grow and change. Grandma loved them and wants to frame them in swirly gold like the ones she has hanging of relatives long ago.

There are lots of tutorials out there to make silhouettes of your kids. I like this one from Jones Design Co., mostly because it so dang pretty.

You'll see we're working on some Valentine's Day decorations. Yup, we're starting early but I can't wait to show the finished results.

Baby Girl Gift

We're trying to keep Christmas gift giving simple with the kids this year. Just one present each. But I like their gifts to be something that will last and be played with dearly for years to come. When I was trying to think of what to get the wee baby I just kept coming back to what has been so important for her older sister, dolls. The imaginative posibilities are endless and I love hearing the stories she comes up with and watching her build elaborate scenes for them. And then there are the beautiful quiet moments all cuddled up with a soft little dolly that is all yours, fast asleep. Every little girl should have a dolly that she treasures. These are some of my favorites from Blabla Kids, warm, modern and wholesome.

How may hours have I spent dressing dolls, over and over and over again? It used to be tedious but it's surprisingly soothing now.

Rocker kids, cool right? This makes me wish I had a boy just because of the mohawk. And yes, I will let my girls dye their hair pink when they ask to.

So stinkin' cute. I wish I had these when I was a kid.

 

 

Handmade Kitty Dolls

 
I wanted to make my girls something to mark the point when they became sisters and to also give them both something special to snuggle made especially for them by Mommy. I looked at a bunch of patterns some of which I love below and decided to settle on a kitty pattern that I already had from this book (which is excellent in every way). I could have spent more time deciding on a pattern than actually sewing it! I tried using linen for the first time because it is so durable and classic. It was difficult to work with but I think it looks very sweet and highlights the details.

 

Chickpea's has rhinestone button eyes from an Anthropology sweater that I finally admitted I'd never wear again. I can sew some on Apple's kitty once she is old enough. Overall I'm happy with them. We'll see how well they are received or if they end up in the bottom of the stuffie basket. But I'm hoping they hold on to them for a long time.

via www.weewonderfuls.com

via bird & little bird

Hooded Towel Pattern for Kids

 

Just the other day I made one of these hooded towels for Chickpea. It was super easy with 2 towels from Target plus a scrap of flannel. She loves it and she'll be able to use it for quite awhile. I think it will be my go to present for birthdays and such. The possible variations are endless.

via www.etsy.com from Revel Designs

Homemade Thank You Notes

We were in need of some thank you notes and I got the idea for these color your own cards over here. I found some black and white illustrations and threw them into PhotoShop and added the text for both thank you and happy birthday so we'd have some in hand. I printed them on card stock and the file is saved so we can print more or adjust the text later. On the back is my daughter's name and a space to write in her age. She has had a great time drawing on them but with so many people to thank we're doing them in small batches when the mood suits her. There is another similar idea over here for slightly older kids. I bet you could even make a gift set with pretty envelopes and a new set of crayons for another child. I'll definitely have to try that for an easy birthday gift.

Also a few new recipes tried with great success: Brussels Sprouts with Pecans and Cranberries, Pear Walnut Muffins, Orange Chicken from The Joy.

Next up: Pizza Dough, and Chicken Tortilla Soup

Alphabet Magnets Revisited

I saw these lovely magnets from Make Grow Gather and I thought I would give it shot and make my own of the alphabet variety. I had been questioning the alphabet magnets on my fridge for awhile. I enjoy watching the Chickpea move them around and pile them up. It certainly keeps her busy for while I cook, sorting and dumping and sticking them back up. Alas, the plastic that has accumulated in my house makes me cringe once and awhile. Even though I have tried to embrace their day-glow colors it's just not happening and I truly do prefer natural goods around here when possible.

So I ordered a selection of rub-on transfers here (they've got lots of cool stuff too) as she suggested and got busy. There are also some great suggestions about how to use the transfers on fabric which I'll have to remember for a later date. It was simple enough, rub off the transfers onto the rocks (which needed to be really smooth), glue on a magnet and you're done. I used two different size magnets for different holding power. Certainly an improvement in our kitchen, don't you agree?

I think these would make a great birthday present - especially for older kids to make themselves. I'm realizing buying gifts can become very expensive when you add up all your kiddo's friends! You could customize the letters as a name or phrase or just do a variety of animals or flowers.

Iron-on T-shirts

One of the latest things I’ve been playing around with is ink-jet iron on transfers. I made this little rocket t-shirt for a friend’s daughter the other night (plus one for my own Chickpea). Besides being so easy to make… simply print, cut out, iron and peel…. I’ve been surprised at how well they hold up through the wash. I could make up a zillion of these in no time with a pile of illustrations and blank shirts. For the rocket I drew a doodle and placed it in a stock illustration. Fun and easy and definitely not what you’re going to find in the store. Great for easy gifts too! I’m sold.

Lucky Me

I was lucky enough (or I should say the Chickpea was) to win one of these darling notebooks from lovelydesign. And I just love how they were wrapped up as such thoughtful party favors. People really do appreciate the time and thought that goes into creating such a gift. I'm going to start collecting more ideas for favors with the little one's birthday approaching.

The Gift of Cookies

If you work in a corporate environment like I do, any office setting for that matter, the surfaces are dripping with chocolate and dusted with sugar by the time December 24th rolls around. Now I'm never one to turn down chocolate, but this is the season when I do. Our coworkers and vendors are very generous and thoughtful when they send a box of chocolates, petite fours, caramel turtles, popcorn balls, fudge and brownies… And I must say that I do get a little excited when a gem is sent like a box of Vosges Chocolates, which I would never kick down for myself. But please people, 3 boxes of See's chocolates lurking on top of 3 different filing cabinets, I have to turn up my nose and walk away. If I'm going to be consuming a fare amount of sugar over the holidays I need to choose wisely and make it worth it. So far, the mantra that has served me well through December in office land is “only eat it if it’s homemade”. So while I may still be eating more than my share of sugar in December, at least it’s not crap and it’s probably made with a good amount of love and probably some more wholesome ingredients.

So this year with a tight budget I’m making cookies for my friends and neighbors. And since they may be as exhausted of chocolate as I am, they will all be sans chocolate. I made the above spicy molasses cookies with all organic ingredients (yes, I had to test a few), balled up all the dough and tucked it neatly in the freezer to bake a little later. And since I’m got going to be a martyr and I found a killer deal, I’ll be baking some of these peanut butter and oatmeal raisin cookies. If you haven’t tried them, they’re all organic and support a good cause, so don’t resist. I’ll put a sampling of all the cookies in a nice little clear bag with a few bags of organic chamomile tea and tie it with a bow. There you have, a little quality teatime to pass along.

Give a Girl a Paintbrush

Last month I was in our newly glamed-up and questionably re-branded Michaels ohh-ing and ahh-ing over all the new holiday items they had. I've been so tempted to start some little art projects with my daughter although she's a wee-bit young at 19 months. But, the over ambitious person that I am grabbed up all the supplies that I needed with a vision and a mission in mind. It did take me a little while to drum up the courage to start the mess (my house is already messy enough without giving my toddler a paintbrush).I think the results were quite charming though. We'll add one as a final touch on our gift bags this year or as a simple hostess gift.

Supplies we used:
Paper mache or unfinished wood ornaments
Non-toxic poster paint
Deer stickers, ribbon and glitter from Martha
Acrylic matte medium

 

If it cleans up with soap and water - there's no excuse for getting dirty!

Easy Holiday Gift Giving

 

I’m trying my best to be less of a consumer over the holidays this year. Something I try to do every year but the days get away from me or I feel so much pressure to give. I should be giving out of the kindness of my heart – which I do, and I love to do – but my wallet doesn’t always agree with me. I feel like I give out of expectation and appearances sometimes – that’s stressful. Now that I have my own family, the holidays and the act of giving are being reevaluated around here. Why do we give? What do we give? How are we represented in what we choose to give? What are the gifts that we receive?

There is a reason why everyone loves the spirit Thanksgiving. Our expectation is to share a bountiful meal with our friends and family and even a few strangers and to just be gracious, thankful and well fed. What could be better than that? It’s the gift giving of Christmas that unsettles me, there is so much consumerism wrapped up in what should be a day of reflection, celebration, gratitude, peace and giving. I want to make sure our Christmas is filled with these values every year

So around our house we’ve tried to emphasize a few ground rules:
1.    Gift giving should be modest and in your means.
2.    Handmade gifts are appreciated and valued.
3.    Experiences are great gifts instead of objects.
4.    Shop your local community

That said I’m going to try and make (or order - I'm only human - and a full time working Mom) as many of gifts as possible this year and I’ve set a deadline to be done before Thanksgiving so I can sit back and truly enjoy the festivities. Plus I’m going to try to make the year a little greener and not to use any wrapping paper!

Here are some of my gift ideas this year and from years past:
1. Donations to your friend or family’s favorite cause. Remember it’s tax deductible for you! There’s no wrapping involved. Here's where we donated this year: Aid to Artisans, A  Better Way, Lakeside's River Park Conservancy.
2. Edible gifts from a local farm. I gave beautiful bay laurel wreaths from McFadden Farm to everyone on my list one year. Send it early in the season and they can cook with it too. Again now wrapping or shopping malls involve here. You can also find farms with ams, fruit, herbs, honey, lavender, even a weekly CSA..... all good stuff. 
3. Personalized canvas bags from L.L. Bean.  I gave these to all my family one year in different mix-matched colors. You can put fun words or nicknames on them instead of frumpy initials and they have some fun colors to work with. Best of all they are reusable for many years to come.
4. Gift certificates. While I'm not a huge fan of these because they never seem personal - what are you going to give a teenager, seriously. But you can give the gift of an experience at a restaurant, class or a spa instead of goods. A cooking class, a manicure, drinks at a new restaurant... think outside the box.
5. Baked something and put it in a pretty box. Last year I made these amazing cookies and toffee much like this . I was over at Michael's the other day and they have so many easy ways to dress edibles up.
6. Sew something up. For the kids on my list I'm making a little apron (as you see above) for crafting or baking messes. I'll send them with either a box of crayons or markers.For the others on my list I'm sewing a drawstring bag instead of using wrapping paper (from fabric and ribbon in my stash). The bag will be reusable for lots of other things. Inside I'm including 2-3 mixes from King Arthur Flour .  So people can enjoy their baked goods when they please on their own time. They do have a good selection of organic mixes too. A set of 4-6 napkins is an easy project with your scrap fabric too.

7. Magazine subscriptions. Maybe not the greenest gift but I like 'em. Amazon is always having sales and there are some good crafting or cooking magazines that people don't want to spend the money on but buy as a guilty pleasure every once and a while.Home Companion,  Selvedge, Vanity Fair, Ready Made. Domino, Real Simple, Gourmet, Cook's Illustrated, Saveur, Craft, Everyday Food....