So Long 2013...Welcome 2014!

It's hard to believe that just one week ago we were eagerly anticipating Christmas, and now here we are on the doorstep of a new year! It's just another day. But at the same time, it isn't. There's something powerful that comes with the welcoming in of a brand new year, even though the whole thing makes me kind of anxious. Please tell me I'm not alone!

I don't know that I would classify this as a resolution, but this year I would like to be more grateful and appreciative. Instead of grumbling about all the laundry I have to do, I'd like to remember to be thankful for having everything that we need. When I'm tired of cooking, cleaning, and chauffeuring kids to the dentist, doctor and all the other places they need to be, I'd rather reflect on how blessed I am to have the means to take care of my family. I think it all starts with perspective. And gratitude.  =)

I look at this early Christmas morning picture and I can hear the squeals and feel the excitement all over again! And I am still so proud of the thoughtfulness and generosity they showered on one another, all on their own- we had nothing to do with it! Such tender hearts...

What a beautiful sight we woke up to earlier this week!

And of course, cold, snowy days call for lots of hot cocoa!

I really shook things up this past week when our Christmas decorations were still up after the 26th! I was itching to pack it all away but we had friends visiting over the weekend and, well, I just didn't want to deny them the visual feast. HA As of yesterday, 100% of the interior things have been neatly packed and stored- it feels so good to see my counter tops again! Also, in a strange dream-like design brainstorming session (I think I dreamed about dreaming about this!), one of the best ideas ever came to me! Extra storage, visual interest, and we already owned the furniture so it was completely FREE. Now that's my kind of project! I'll share more about that later...

Everyone helped out with the cleaning! I think someone was going for the Cinderella look here....ha ha

I've been sharing some house pictures on Instagram that I probably won't also put on here... you can find me HERE if you want to take a look.

We're ringing in 2014 at home this year - am I the only one who is terrified of drunk drivers on NYE? Plus, William is sick, Ethan and I are feeling kind of yucky (although I'm sure it has nothing to do with all the junk food we've inhaled today), Isabelle was super tired...just seemed like a better low-key night than trying to force it.

Anyhoo. I hope you have a safe, wonderful & meaningful 2014! Happy New Year!

A Fun December Birthday Party Idea: Hot Cocoa/ Coffee Bar

This was such a fun party, both in the planning and the hosting! It was easy, festive and colorful, and quite inexpensive, too!

Just twenty four hours before the party, the dining room looked like this:

I'd been keeping things simple in here for a reason- it was super easy to move these things aside and decorate for the birthday party.

I realized that things looked a tad "girly" but Caleb was a good sport and said he liked how it all looked. I think it was actually the prospect of hot cocoa and all the toppings that won him over.  ;)

We set out various creamers, marshmallows, and other add-ins for coffee and hot cocoa...which included lots of candy canes! We already had everything else, like the mugs and bowls. Talk about easy!

One of our party hosts was on super high alert mode all day. Funny dog!

 
Isabelle Kate had requested a whole-head braid (buh-raid) with a bow and flower on the side. Voila!
It lasted all of 7.8 seconds, ha!

Caleb had his heart- and taste buds- set on one of my cheesecakes. This one was a Tuxedo Cheesecake- Oreo crust and filling with melted white chocolate, and oh boy, was it scrumptious! Needless to say, that didn't last long either.

Happy Birthday to my favorite eleven-year-old! How have eleven years gone by?

Isabelle wanted an ice cream cake, and well, I don't make those. This makes me smile because we've had a few of these little snowmen cakes over the years for Caleb, so they're sort of like tradition. =)
How do you like those off-centered buttons, ha! (We have a special birthday party in January for Isabelle and her friends, and I'll make her cake then.)

My Birthday Girl and her special Birthday Brooch.
Isabelle has a fun little tradition of wearing one of her favorite summer dresses for her birthday to mix things up a bit. I sure giggled when she came downstairs like this!

So excited!!!

We were having an ice storm last Sunday on Isabelle's actual birthday, which meant church was delayed, so that worked out well for having reindeer and snowmen pancakes for a special breakfast.

One last THANK YOU to everybody who has made a purchase from my shop, Rose & Ruffle! I'm still working on a master plan, if you will, for this business, and I really do appreciate you all! I thought I'd throw in a picture of my top-sellers for Christmas this year and...

...some cozy flannel nightgowns still available. I have some other nightgowns listed as well if you'd like to take a look. After Christmas vacation, I'll begin working on some fun spring things!

Hope you all have a blessed week!

JOY Appliqued Shirt and Adding a Ruffle to Too-Short Jeans

Good Saturday morning to you! Good early morning...it's pitch black outside, my favorite Christmas piano CD is playing softly and I've turned on the Christmas tree lights, aaaand nobody is bugging me up just yet. (Well, one is up but at least he is semi-quietly reading in his room. Sigh.)

A couple of weeks ago I began wondering what cute holiday-inspired outfit I could make for Isabelle this year, and I finally decided on a festive appliqued shirt and embellished jeans. Poor girl is in that in-between size, where the pants are a little too short and they hang a little too low on the backside, but the girth fits perfectly, where the bigger size seems to swim around her waist. I tell you this because my practical-minded self figured it wouldn't be that big a deal if I completely messed up and ended up tossing or recycling the jeans since she has a few pairs that fall in this sort-of-awkward bracket.

Since I've just spent an entire paragraph on jeans, let's start there. This is easy peasy!

First up, trim the hem. The larger the ruffle, the more material you'll snip away.

Next, decide on the size of the ruffle. Cut a rectangle (mine was about twice the width of the pant leg and 8 inches), sew the narrow ends Right Sides Together, press open, and then press entire ruffle in half (Wrong Sides Together).

Typically I gather ruffles on the machine by turning the stitch/tension settings as high as they go...but things were slightly askew on the day, and that is the only pitiful ruffling the machine did for me. Who knows? No big deal- simply line up the ruffle seam to the pant leg inner seam and then distribute ruffle evenly. Notice that you're pinning to the wrong side/ inside of the pant leg. Stitch along entire opening, adjusting gathers as necessary.

Now we'll add the ribbon trim. Starting at the "bump" by the seam, lay the ribbon flat over the layers (jeans and ruffle facing left), extending the end of the ribbon beyond the seam. It also gives you a more stable starting position since you aren't stitching right onto that bump. Stitch as closely to the edge of the ribbon as you're able to.

When you get near the end, take a moment to figure out how much ribbon you'll need- with the needle in the down position in the fabric, pull the ribbon towards you- it needs to be long enough to be turned under at the seam.  Cut the ribbon after determining the right length, fold under, and stitch in place.

Sewing the ruffle on this way gives you a perfectly neat inside as well as eliminates the tricky bulkiness that results when sewing with denim.

Now for the shirt...
There were so many cute ideas floating around Pinterest, and I had it narrowed down to a reindeer or this JOY, using the "O" as an ornament, which ultimately won out. (I made an easy reindeer barrette here.)

I used an iron-on bonding agent for the letters- follow the directions and you'll be good to go. One hint: I draw my shapes on the rough edge of the adhesive paper before ironing in because they'll be backwards otherwise.

 

Determine the placement of the letters on the shirt, then iron them on. Because of the bonding, you don't have to edge-stitch, but I chose to because I like how it looks. I made a small bow and stitched it in place over the ornament "O" - so cute!

Someone wanted Santa to meet her new birthday friends!  =)

Sorry for the blurry photos- she was pretty jumpy/bouncy, and since our days are now dark by 4 pm....

Santa told Isabelle how special her Mommy must be to make her special clothes like this. Aww, Santa! He was a total sweetheart- we all just loved him!

sharing with:
Scattered Thoughts of a Crafty Mom

Easy Felt Reindeer Jingle Bell Clip or Barrette

Easiest craft on the planet. And quick! I know because I didn't make it last night like I was supposed to (went to bed early...what!?!) and instead made it before school this morning. Literally took 5 minutes.

Phew! Because who wants to miss out on Crazy, Cute or Silly Christmas-themed Headwear Day at school?
Not this girl!

First, decide on your shape- I Googled images and just started cutting the felt. It was much too big to start so I kept cutting it down to the right size.

Then you'll need: 2 head shapes, 1-2 antlers, 2 googly eyes, red button or pom-pom, a cotton ball torn in half and pulled apart a bit, 1 jingle bell, ribbon of your choice, and a clip or barrette.

If you want more stable antlers, cut two and plan to glue together. But I only had 5 minutes, people!

Hot glue the eyes and button nose on once face. (I would have used a pom-pom but couldn't find where I put them when I supposedly reorganized a few weeks ago. Sigh.)

Glue the antlers on the other head shape, place your fluff near the mouth, then dab glue dots all along the face edge- line things up carefully because you won't be able to redo anything.When the layers were set, I tied the ribbon through the bell and then hot glued it all to the head. Glue the head to the barrette or clip, and that's it!

So cute and easy! I think I will add blush to the cheeks (since she is Mrs. Rudolph) and a blanket stitch around the entire edge.

Gotta scoot... I'm getting my Teacher Cookie Platters ready, and my peppermint bark has staged a protest and is currently in quite dire straits. I think I let the chocolate layer set too long before adding the white layer, and when I break it into pieces, they both split apart into separate pieces. Ugh. Oh well. Still tastes yummy. =)

Gray chocolate is all the rage this year!

You heard it here first.  ;)

sharing with:

Sew Much Ado 
Sew Many Ways 
seven thirty three
the idea room 
Scattered Thoughts of a Crafty Mom 

A Fabric Roses Birthday Brooch Pin for Isabelle

We've had quite the week of birthday celebrations in our home this past week! Caleb turned 11 on 12/12 (gulp), and Isabelle turned 7 (seven? SEVEN!) yesterday on the 15th. Our family came over on Saturday for a festive Hot Cocoa/ Coffee Bar Birthday Party, and it was so much fun! I'll be posting some pictures of that later this week. For this post, I wanted to share something special I made for my sweet Birthday Girl.

I think birthday shirts and outfits are just about the cutest things ever, and I've enjoyed making them for Isabelle over the years. But last year she had her little heart set on wearing her favorite summer dress on her birthday. I probably tried to talk her out of it but eventually agreed, and she was thrilled! I still wanted to make her something special, so I opted for a Birthday Brooch- she was in love! She wore it for the whole week!

This year? Same thing. Summer dress and a special Birthday Brooch. I think it's becoming a cute little tradition. =)

Since this brooch pin is removable, you don't have to worry about it holding up in the wash. You can make it as simple or as glitzy as you like. This is the first time I've used all of these materials together and I'm so pleased with the result! It is even prettier and lovelier in person!

Felt is the obvious choice for the number because it is stiffer and holds its shape well.

There are so many wonderful tutorials on making roses out there, so I'm not going to add one more to the mix. These roses are a combination of cotton, knit, and felt. I will say that I prefer to use a needle and thread as I'm "wrapping" the material to secure the underside. Then my trusty glue gun does the rest of the work, and in mere minutes, it's all done!

I adore the colors and textures, so bear with me as I post way too many pictures. =)

 I liked how this pink felt rose looked when I loosened it up a bit; the grey rose is rolled up pretty tight. Any edges that stick out too far are easy to snip right off.

For added dimension, keep some ribbons flat and curve others. 

That green ribbon on the left bugs me just a little, ha- it was supposed to be tucked underneath the grey rose more, but once that glue hits, it sticks! I couldn't move it! A toothpick helps with this part, too (and will spare your fingertips).

I added the white felt to act as a stabilizer, and stitched the safety pin on. You could use the glue gun, but I prefer to stitch it in place.

You could easily cut two of the numbers out and glue them back to back if you want a more stable number. This one seemed fine on its own so I left it as is. Of course, please ignore the glue! I didn't even notice until I was editing pictures, so it really doesn't seem that messy in person.

My happy, toothless Birthday Girl!

Notice the ensemble? I had laid out her pink dress and sure was tickled when she came flitting into the room wearing all this!  ha ha

 

And if you'd seen her just five minutes prior, this is what her hair looked like:

She moves. A lot.

Here she is last year:

Just a preview of our Hot Cocoa/ Coffee Bar Birthday Party...

sharing with:
seven thirty three
Have a wonderful week!