Greetings from Germany.....

  So after three months we have finally finished our transatlantic adventure and have started making our home in beautiful Bavaria.  Admittedly, we still have a couple of boxes left to unpack but for the most part our new place is starting to feel like home.

  Our little Georges are settling into routines and we will be starting our homeschooling in about a week and half.   We have been able to explore a couple of the town nearby.  Driving is not too bad here.  The autobahn is not as scary as one might think until you realize that it is just like being on the freeway system back in the states.
 
 The last three months have not been without some type of crafting.  I managed to make a mixed media canvas while we were living in the on post hotel and make a few cards.

(I used water color pencils to color in the image.

Stamped image from Tiddly Inks)

Not the best pictures of either projects but I do what I can with what I have to work with.

Til Next Time, Stay Crafty Friends...

~Mia

Egg Free Easter Eggs

**This is not my original idea.  The credit for this post goes to a friend of mine Joy who gave me permission to share this and her pictures with you.**

  Joy has a daughter that is highly allergic to eggs and wanted her to be able to participate in the fun of dying Easter Eggs.  She came up with an idea that is brilliant and fun!

Dye-able Rice Krispie Treat Eggs

Supplies Needed:

• 18 + Average Size Plastic Eggs
• Marshmallows
• Butter/Margarine
• Powdered Sugar
• Cooking Spray
• Milk or Milk substitute *if you are dairy free*
• Box of Rice Krispies
• Food Dye (Joy used PAAS Color Snaps)

Lets begin:

You can sterilize the plastic eggs either using hot soapy water letingt dry, spraying them with 90 % alcohol letting dry or even using a 10% bleach and water solution and of course letting dry.

Next you will want to grease the inside of the plastic eggs using either cooking spray or butter/margarine.

Time to  prepare a basic recipe for rice krispie treats (here).  While the treat mixture is still warm you want to mold your eggs.  Put the treat mixture into the top and bottom portion of the eggs and close.

The treat eggs are going to need to cool for at least 4-6 hours.  Towards the end of their cooling phase mix together a simple frosting recipe of:

4 tbsp of butter/margarine

4 c of powdered sugar

Milk or milk substitute to desired frosting texture/thickness

Remove your treat eggs from their plastic shell and cover in frosting.  Set on wax paper to allow the frosting to harden.

Once the frosting has hardened your Egg Free Easter Eggs are ready to decorate. Use food dye or  PAAS color snaps (I am not sure if PAAS dyes are edible I know they are are food safe, so use your best judgment) to decorate your treat eggs.  

I hope you enjoyed reading and a big thank you to Joy for allowing me to share her egg craft with you all.

Til Next Time

~Mia

Partying Over at:
Be Different Act Normal ~ Show and Tell Saturday
DIY Showoff ~ That DIY Party
The Idea Room ~ The Party Bunch
Craft O Maniac ~ Sunday Soirée
C.R.A.F.T. ~ Monday Fun Day
Krafty Kards ~ Krafty Inspiration
Sew Can Do ~ Craftastic Monday

Personalized Easter Buckets

  Our little George's attend a Moms Morning Out group once a week at a local Baptist Church.  It is a wonderful program and I am sad that a. our oldest will be too old for it next year and b.  we are moving so it will not even be an option for us.  However, if you live in the local Ft Knox area and have kids between 2-5 Northside Baptist Church has a wonderful Moms Morning Out program and Fall registration is just around the corner.

  With that being said, MMO is having a egg hunt for the kids this coming week and I needed to find buckets for my little people.   I wanted to find something I could put a personal spin on without spending a lot of money for something that may only get used once. After looking for nearly two weeks I finally found some buckets at Wal Mart.

   I could not beat $.97!  My first inclination was to paint on decorated eggs after putting my little George's names on in white vinyl.  That did not turn out so hot.

                                                                                                                                  

  Since paint was not working I knew I was going to have to resort to vinyl (nothing against vinyl I just like the feeling of actually making a project that painting gives me)  Unfortunately, colored vinyl is not something I keep on hand.  As luck would have it though a fellow crafty Army wife had just gotten in a huge selection of $1 sheets from  CraftVinyl, and was kind enough to give me 3 4x4 squares in different colors for my eggs.

  I used design #39700 from the Silhouette Online Store for my cut outs.  I cut out the base in the different colors and then the decorative portion in white vinyl and laid it over my eggs.  

  I did not make the eggs the same color and pattern for both buckets but I do not think the boys will mind too much.  Thank you for stopping by.

Til Next Time
~Mia

Partying over at:

Craft O Maniac ~ Sunday Soiree
C.R.A.F.T. ~ Monday Funday
Pieces by Polly ~ Weekly Block Party
Skip To My Lou ~ Made by you Monday
My Craftily Ever After ~ Awesome Things Tuesday
Funky Polkadot Giraffe ~ Too Cute Tuesday

February....

is always a challenge month for our little household.  Kind of like Lent in a way.  Last year we lived with no paycheck (through no fault of our own.  Gotta love military clerical errors) and we survived.  Our savings took a huge hit but we learned how much should be in our savings to get us through at least 30 days.  This year is no different and we have challenged ourselves to test our emergency food storage and eating plans.

Last year or even the year before that we purchased Augason Farms 30 Emergency Food packs from Costco.  (Picture is linked) The price at Costco was easily $50 cheaper if not a little more.  I have seen Augason products on WalMart shelves (Island City, Oregon to be exact I have not seen them on any of the shelves here in Kentucky)

The rules for ourselves are simple, we can use anything in the house in addition to what is in the box, we buy no groceries for at least 10 days (except for the one scheduled "bountiful baskets" produce purchase that will come on day 7 because that is our primary source of produce and skipping a purchase opportunity requires another two week wait).  Why 10 days?  Simple, even though we have 3 boxes the 30 day box is designed to support one person for 30 days, so we figured that it should support 2 adults and 2 children under 5 for ten days.  If you have a "survival plan" that you don't rehearse, it isn't a "plan" it is a "hope for the best."  Here is what it looks like unpacked and inventoried: (it is not all 48 cans...this is one of each can available in the box)  There are 21 different varieties of cans, and some of the recipes included in the survival box require products not included in the survival box, such as Augason Farms GF Ultimate Gel (to make jelly) or Augason Farms Cheese Blend Powder to make spinach cheese quiche.   Obviously including a recipe in a box requiring ingredients not found in the box is not very helpful.

Day 1 -- February 1, 2014

Our oldest son really wanted a strawberry smoothie (it is pictured on the box). Easy enough breakfast.  The outcome was not half bad either.  The recipe made enough for 3 large cups.  The boys were fed. Lunch was chicken noodle soup for the boys.  I had left over taco meat from the night before.  (did I mention that I have a wheat allergy and that the 30 day box is not gluten free?  Yes Augason Farms sells a GF kit we just happen to not have it).  For dinner I defrosted a family pack of pork chops made some mash potatoes from the emergency kit as well as some corn.  I saved the left over pork chops for breakfast. My DH and I enjoyed a late night snack of some cold cuts, cheese and pears as we had a Netflix date after our sons were asleep for the night.

Day 2 -- February 2, 2014

Breakfast this morning was left over porkchops, biscuits made from Augason Farms pancake mix & dried eggs (along with water & butter) and GF country gravy.  I made GF biscuits for myself using Gluten Free Mamma's Pancake Mix, Augason Farms dried eggs and dried milk powder.  Breakfast was a success.  Cheddar Broccoli soup was requested for lunch by our oldest little George.  Comparatively speaking this soup was a lot tastier and overall delicious than some of the other powdered soup mixes available on the market.  We had the soup with some leftover biscuits.  Dinner was another recipe from the book Chili Cheese potatoes.  Consisted of Chili, Cheddar Broccoli soup over mashed (rehydrated) potatoes.  I also made some hamburger patties and heated up some GF rolls to go with dinner.  The left over chili cheese soup is going to be used for tomorrows breakfast.....Southwestern'ish scrambled eggs.

Til Next Time

~Mia

Home is Where....

the Army sends us and it has been that way for 10 + years, fingers crossed it will be that way for another 10+.  With that in mind I really wanted to make one of the many "Home is Where the" signs and plaques as seen all over the Internet.  Try as I might though everytime I set out to make it I never fell in love with the project and so it would sit unfinished in a craft box.  That is until I ran across this Etsy Shop.  Her sign was everything I was looking for in the simplicity of the message.  I wanted some typographical flair on my sign and thought this file from Lori Whitlock was perfect.  I also used the silhouette of the USA from Silhouette.

Instead of wasting vinyl to create my stencils I purchased some contact/shelf paper from the Dollar Tree to use.  I put my blade all the way to 1, made my speed 3 thickness 5.  I used my cutting mat.  

After peeling off the back of the contact/shelf paper I taped the liner and cut design to my board.  Because of my cut setting the blade went through the liner but not through the paper backing.  My cut file was more alike a perforation rather than a clean cut.  Maybe if I had used the double cut feature but I actually liked the way the worked out.  Gave me time to fuss with stencil, and the cut image was very easy to separate.

After I separated the cut image I painted in the negative space.  The colors I used for this project are: Wild Blueberry, Love Bird, Vanilla Bean, Wet Cement & Putty.  All colors are by Martha Stewart Crafts.  

My finished sign is 12x24 (I purchased a piece of craft wood from Michaels)  I am thinking of making little flags to put onto push pins and place them at the posts we have been located.  So maybe my sign is not exactly finished after all.  

Til Next Time

~Mia

Linking up at:
Be Different Act Normal
I Heart Naptime
DIY Show Off
Keeping It Simple Crafts
Sew Can Do
Craft O Maniac
CRAFT

14 Days of Crafty Love....

has come to end over on my personal Facebook page.  It has been fun.  All the projects were well received. For my final day I wanted to create a couple of projects that a friend or family member could put on display as a decor grouping.  Here is what I came up with:

Altered Target Mailbox tin.  The base is a glass candlestick holder from the Dollar Tree that I painted with a mixture of food coloring and glue to create a sea glass effect.  The 5x7 frame was in the as is section of Ikea with no glass so I cut out a piece of scrapbook paper glued a piece of bakers twine and then using some clothes pins from Michaels hung hearts on a string.  Be My Valentine was created using a 1x3 cut up into 4 in rectangles.  Painted using Martha Stewart Craft paint BubbleGum & Raspberry Ice.  The font is Crushed and I added little hearts using Silhouette's double sided adhesive sheets and then covered them with Tourmaline glitter from Martha Stewart.

**Yuck I sound like a walking advertisement for Martha Stewart.  I assure you though aside from really liking the product no compensation is made**

Til Next Time
~Mia

Love Struck...Cupid Wreath

My 14 Days of Crafty Love are coming to close on my personal Facebook page for friends and family.  I figured every giveaway should have a wreath.  I had a Dollar Tree wreath leftover from a previous purchase. I specifically purchased this variegated yarn for the colors and the furriness.  What the picture below does not show is that I ended up wrapping the wreath form in duct tape first then I wrapped the yarn around that.

I cut out a banner and the words "Love Struck" using my Silhouette.  The font is called Crushed and can be found here.

Next I went searching on the the World Wide Web for a cupid.  I eventually found one I really liked fell in love with at SVG Cutting Files (I am pretty sure I fell in love with the store itself found myself spending a nice chunk of my crafting change there.  Not a bad thing though.)  I also cut out some hearts with mats to put on my wreath as well.

My finished craft turned out pretty cute.  

Sorry the picture is blurry.  Again I take pictures with my iPhone.  

Maybe one day I will invest in something a little higher end and better resolution quality.

Til Next Time

~Mia

Partying at:

Craft O Maniac

Pieces by Polly

Sew Can Do

Skip to My Lou

Creating Really Awesome Free Things

Glitter Heart Votive Holder

I came across some frosted votive holders in the Michaels Dollar bin the other day.  Unfortunately, they contained a gold heart on them already.

That had to be remedied.   The easiest way to do that was to grab my trusty bottle of 100% acetone nail polish remover some tissue and wipe away the gold picture.

Then using some Silhouette double sided adhesive paper I cut out hearts fixed them to the votive holder and covered them in glitter.  I used primary colors to break up the traditional Valentine color scheme.  Enjoy!

Til Next Time

~Mia

Partying over at:

I heart naptime

Valentine Banner

Hugs & Kisses.  As part of my 14 Days of Crafty Love I decided to make a banner and this is what I came up with.  I cut out the XOXO from Silhouette double sided adhesive and covered the letters in glitter, the kissing silhouette is from the Silhouette online store.

Til Next Time
~Mia

You + Me = Love

This was a simple enough project.  I started with this little number that I purchased for $1 at a local thrift mall.

Nothing against cats but this kind of screamed different vision.  So I spray painted in white from Valspar.  For each of the smaller areas I cut out two silhouettes holding heart shaped balloons (one girl and one boy) in black.  Both were purchased from the Silhouette online store.  I cut out extra balloons using Silhouettes double sided adhesive and covered each balloon in glitter.  Then took a piece of bakers twine and used it for the string of the balloon. 

I would have loved to have created a faux carved saying for the center but that was not going to happen.  I chose a simple love equation to make my statement.  I have to say I think it turned out pretty cute.

Til Next Time

~Mia

Partying over at:

Sew Can Do
Skip To My Lou
Someday Crafts
Clean & Scentsible
Be Different Act Normal

Playoff Games

Are tomorrow and I was asked if I could make a 49ers wine glass.  She wanted vinyl all the way but a beveled glass and an oval piece of vinyl do not really mix well.  I ended up painting the background oval and using vinyl for the SF.  I am still new to the whole concept of painting on glass.  It is a fun fascination at this point.

 To be fair with the whole rivalry.  I could not go without making a Seahawks glass as well.  This is what I came up with.

Til Next Time

~Mia

Ombre Paint Chip Hearts Specimen Art

Do you feel as guilty as I do when I take a stack of paint chips from Home Depot or Lowes?  I took a couple of handfuls of Behr paint chip strips in varying shades of pinks and whites.  I cut out hearts using my Silhouette.  I was able to cut out two hearts on each color strip giving me 6 hearts per paint chip.

Originally I thought I would make an ombre shaped heart but for me it was not meant to be.  Maybe it was the size of the heart or the size of my little hearts either way it did not happen.  I had an 8.5x11 red frame from Ikea's as-in bin waiting to be used so I decided to make a heart specimen art.  I cut out a piece of scrapbook paper from Recollections Valentine paper pack and cut it down to size. 

It is not too fancy but will make a great additional to anyones Valentine's Day decor (as long as their decor is pink/red).

Til Next Time

~Mia

Partying over at:
Thirty Handmade Days
Someday Crafts

Sending Love....

 In a cute altered Target metal mailbox.  You can find tutorial posts of altered mailboxes all over but my favorite tutorial comes from Emily Giovanni (here).
 The first thing I did was paint a wood candle stick from Hobby Lobby with Gunmetal (metallic paint from Martha Stewart) it took two coats and then covered it with three coats of Wedding Cake.  Using a small piece of sandpaper I distressed the whole stick.  Using my Silhouette I cut out two vines and some paper flowers and adhered them to the base.

 My mailbox was all white the flag too.  I used BoBunny paper "Love Bandit" (This paper is from 2009) I also some SEI paper Juliette.    One side I chose just go to with hearts and the other side is a banner of Love.

I think that I am going to fill it with wrapped Hershey Nuggets.  Hopefully the person who receives it will be thankful, likes pink (there is a lot of it) and is not allergic to chocolate.

  The pictures do not do the colors justice (taken with my iPhone) the flower on the stem is not at red as it appears.    I absolutely adore this project.  Took me three days to complete but I am in love with it.

Til Next Time,

~Mia

Partying at:
Craft-O-Maniac
C.R.A.F.T.
Keeping It Simple Crafts
My Craftily Ever After
Sew Can Do
Skip To My Lou
Clean and Scentsible
Someday Crafts
Funky Polkadot Giraffe
Thirty Handmade Days
I Heart Naptime
Be Different Act Normal

Love such a silly little game....

Okay maybe not in real life but tic tac toe is a fun silly little game.  Stepping away from traditional Valentine colors I made a fun little Tic Tac Toe board and game pieces.
I started off with a piece of scrap wood I had laying about.  I seems to have lots of those as well as paint sticks.  Lucky for me this piece was 4.5 x 4.5.  I also had an open bag of 5/8 candle cups to use as feet for my board.

I painted the board with a mixture o  Pond & Blue Sky (both from Martha Stewart) and painted my "feet" in Wedding Cake.  I trimmed out the board with some bling trim bought in the $1 bin at Michaels.  Covered with a 4x4 square of chevron paper then topped it with a tic tac toe board out of silver vinyl.  I glued the "feet" on with craft goop.

Using my Silhouette I cut out twelve circles to fit inside twelve white bottle caps I purchased at Hobby Lobby.  I glued in my paper circles and topped them off with 6 x's and 6 o's I had cut out of the silver vinyl as well.   Topped off the entire inside of the bottle cap with a clear dimensional epoxy sticker.

The end result being a sweet little table top game.  I am thinking I might make or try to find a small muslin bag to keep the game pieces in.

Til Next Time

~Mia

Be'e' Mine

 Today is the 10th of January and if I am going to get all of these Valentine themed crafts finished in time I have a lot of work ahead of me.  Here is today's craft.

I started off with a 6x12 birch craft board.  Painted it with two coats of Poodle Skirt (Martha Stewart Craft Paint) and then a coat of Camellia Pink and lightly sanded the whole board.  The bee is from Miss Kate Cuttables here.  She offers daily freebies and that is how I got this little cutie.  I cut her out using my Silhouette.  Miss Kate's files also include jpg and png so if you have a steady hand you can cut them out with scissors and an exacto knife.

I have such a hard time deciding what font(s) to use on a project.  I went through 6 different styles cut them out on Silhouette brand chipboard laid them out next to my bee and eventually went with two different fonts. 

I thought at first I was going to cover the chipboard with scrap paper but I painted it instead using 1 coast of Pond (Martha Stewart paint) and then I went over it with a coat of Blueberry Slush (this is a glitter paint from Martha Stewart).  Little bits of life always need some sparkle right?  After the paint was dry I glued all of my project pieces to the board.  I am still debating on drilling some holes in the corners and using jewelry wire to make it hang.  I know Be'e' Mine is a bit corny hopefully it will appeal to my friends and family.

Til Next Time
~Mia

Love Blooms Here

  My second Valentine's themed craft was inspired by this post at Just Crafty Enough.  I had a stack of fat quarter squares that were given to me about 2 years hanging out in my craft stash and I thought they would be perfect for this.

  I started off with buying a three pack of mini plant pots, Styrofoam balls and floral grass at my local Dollar Tree.  I painted the pots with Martha Stewart Paint color Habanero.  Using my Silhouette I cut out the saying (font is BoyzRGross and can be found here) The saying is painted with Martha Stewart Paint color Wedding Cake.  (You can see where I messed up a little bit on the letter 'e' when removing the positive vinyl piece)  **If you do not have a vinyl cutter you could always use a stencil or even letter stickers.  Or even leave the pots blank with just whatever color you decide to paint them.  The only limit is your imagination**

 

   While my paint was drying for both the pots and the saying I cut out heart shapes from fat quarter squares.  Once I had two hearts cut out I hand stitched them together (my sewing machine is still in its original box never taken out to be used because well, I do not know how to use it maybe some day but today is not that day)  Stuffed the hearts with cotton batting and sewed them closed around a kabob skewer.  I cut the skewers at different lengths to create height adjustment.  The nice thing about using the fat quarters was none of my squares matched.  So my little blooming hearts are reversible!

  I used hot glue to adhere my floral grass but the hearts/sticks are removable so you can change which hearts you want showing with the saying (I only painted it on one side of the pots) I also painted my skewers in the Wedding Cake color. Here it is again all finished.

Til Next Time

~Mia

Linked at the following parties: 

My Craftily Ever After

I heart naptime