Summer is Still Here

Thanks to the toasty weather today, it has reminded me that we *technically* have over a month of summer left! Hoooray! I know for most people summer ends when school starts, but not for us! Our summer weather has been so on and off (and started late) that I'm hoping the next month will be warm.

So in honor of summer, another free pattern link! It comes from a really fun pattern site, You Can Make This. They have a good selection of free patterns, including the Thanks-A-Melon Pillow (above). The pattern includes a tutorial with several pictures. I really like it!

I love browsing through all the patterns. I have a wish list going and growing. My favorite one right now is the Bundle Pack: Cloche, Ribbon Top, and Gauchos by Dainty Designs.

Boy, Oh Boy

I've got so many things to post, but probably won't get to it right away. I'm so busy right now! I wanted to share a craft tutorial I found just for boys. It is a robot goody/tooth pillow from Goody Goody. If you really wanted to make it for a girl, then I could see yarn or felt hair added or leave it as a boy robot. I like the idea of using it to hold a gift card...great twofer!

While on the subject of tooth pillows...I have always loved Missy Ballance's Easy Tooth Fairy Pillow Tutorial. It is just another craft project in my book that I want to do someday.

There will be lots of goodies on my blog very soon...meaning after this busy weekend!

Free Patterns Alert!

With all the preparing I've been doing for my upcoming craft activity it has helped me to revisit my bookmarks. So the goody today will be 54 Free Apron Patterns! Pretty cool, huh?! Once you click the link, you will notice that they have divided the patterns into categories. There are aprons for everyone (woman, man & child)! There are also a few for those that like to knit & crochet.

I haven't had a chance to look at every single pattern, but my favorite so far is the Pretty Paisley Apron from BHG.com. I love the Heather Bailey print they used!

Recycled Crafts

I've been working a lot on crafts for an upcoming activity that I have to teach how to make crafts from materials that you already have at home a.k.a. recycled crafts. This was a good opportunity to go through all my bookmarked craft projects and try some things out. The person that asked me to teach crafts, gave me a knitted plastic bag. I'd seen them before and they weren't really my thing. I talked to my mom about it and she had the idea to weave some cool ribbon through it to jazz it up a bit. So I think I will try doing something like that soon. Anyway, I found one of the bookmarked sites with all different plastic bag crafts.

I really like the idea of fusing plastic bags together and creating a shopping bag from that. Etsy Labs has a great tutorial on how to prep and fuse the plastic bags. I used 8 layers of white plastic sheets (from the back of the plastic back). Then I cut out flowers from a red plastic bag and stuck them under the first layer. I didn't have a pattern for the bag, but there are tons out there. Finally, I used some woven ribbon that I saved from a package. I'm happy with the end result and think I'll try making some more that are even more creative. It would also be good material where you need some waterproofing...like in a beach bag.

Check out these crafts, all made from plastic bags. My favorite is the 50's Style Dress! Another good tutorial for making a really cute fused shopping bag is the Extreme Plastic Bag Makeover.

Now if reusing plastic bags isn't your thing, try making a reusable shopping bag out of a t-shirt. I saw this bag on Martha Stewart last year and thought it was a great idea!

Finished...Check...Unfinished...Check, Check & Check

I'm back from camp completely exhausted, but ready to get back into to some projects. Before I left, I finish my sign for an Enrichment activity in a few weeks. I'm really enjoying painting again. It has been a while, so I don't have really nice brushes & paints...yet. My dad has given us his old scroll saw & table saw to add to what we already have in the shop. So making wood projects have just gotten a lot easier!

I had some extra wood from the previous project, so I just started to free hand and see where it would take me. It is still a work in progress, but so far I am diggin it. I need more art in my office/studio!

I've got so many projects I would like to do and not enough time. Last month I got a new stamp set that I can't put down! The favorite thing that I'm making with it is a shrinky dink keychain. It is another work in progress...

I'm working on several different things this week and I hope I can get it all done. Can you believe it is August already? I can't! I don't see this month slowing down for me, so I'm sure this month will fly by like the rest of my summer.