Teddy Bear's Picnic - Part 2 {How to: Make 'no-sew' Pennant}

This ‘no sew’ pennant is very easy to make.

This is actually one of the ‘Hand-made ❤ Home-made’ gifts I’m making, and it will be apart of Miss [almost] 2's birthday present. Some of the fabrics I’ve utilised in this project are the same ones I used making her quilt, so they will tie in nicely together, without being too similar.

The pennant will not only make a nice addition to her bedroom, but it will also make a nifty decoration for her ‘Teddy Bears Picnic’ themed birthday party.

Get your shit together woman!

❤ Dodgy template, cut out from a piece of A4 paper.

❤ Scrap material, re-purposed old clothes, and old bed sheets for the fabric.

❤ Bias binding, the widest I could buy. {I've made this pennant 10 metres, the binding is $1.30AU per metre. } 

❤ Spray glue, decent brand. I used Bostik.

❤ Sewing machine. HAH! I lied, there is sewing involved! OK, so I twisted the truth a little...  [insert evil laugh]

Pin the flags to bias binding - Ready for sewing

It's pretty straight forward...

Do most of my sewing in
the 'bat cave' at night,
to avoid a certain 'little helper'.

Step 1. Make template. Well dur!

Step 2. Cut out lots of triangles. Mine were approximately 19cm wide x 22cm long. 

Step 3. Pin the fabric triangle in between the folded bias binding and sew together. 

Step 4. Spray the glue over the back of the fabric triangles and let dry. Try not to make it too thick as you don't want the fabric to be stiff, just enough to stop the material from fraying. *Best to take step 4 outside.

I used coat hangers on
my clothes line,to prevent
the line from getting sticky.

•Hang pennant up on clothes line,  and trim loose threads.

•I hung an old painting sheet behind the pennant, and laid some more painting sheets on the ground, to protect the area from spray glue.

•Be careful to only spray the pennants that are open straight - you do not want them glued to themselves, or another piece of fabric for that matter.

I didn't see any other tutorials that did the no-sew the same way, so I can't vouch that it is entirely fool proof, but it worked for me. So please don't send me hate mail because your pennant didn't work out for you. :P

End result in Miss [almost] 2's room.

If you found this helpful why not leave a comment, and let me know!

My Mum's Day... ❤

You must check out my early Mother's Day gift from the kids (and Mr R).

Finally got some of my photos printed,
framed and hung in the kids play room. *sighs with contentment*

I had been threatening to do this for some time, gradually picking up photo and picture frames cheaply at thrift shops. I painted three of them 'off white'... I'm not sure why though - I was possibly high on caffeine at the time. [shrugs]

This is also a great time to mention just how much I love my husband. One thing I love is that he makes me laugh, although most of the time it's his toilet humor that amuses me.

However this time it was his genuine interest and enthusiasm while we hung my pictures. He was unsure initially about the styles and lack of consistency in the photo frames I was bringing home - you could physically see him cringe.

When we were about half way through hanging the photos, he was saying how he really loves the "chaotic arrangement of the frames" and how "the different styled frames make it 'work'".  I looked at him adoringly, and resisted the urge to say "I told you so!". If you read this babe, I love you! :D

The wall the photo's are hung on is approximately 4 1/2 metres in length, excluding the window.

The photo frames I picked up would have only come to about $40 in total, if that. Most of these photos were printed in 8x 10" size, so it covers a pretty large area of the wall. 

Anyway, what more would a mum love on Mother's day, than pictures of her stunning children strewn across the wall?

Do you know what you're getting for Mother's day?


UPDATED: If you're interested in seeing the photos we had enlarged for these frames, check out my post called Babylost, Mother's Day, Motherhood {and me just crapping on}.

Dining Chairs, From Hell {"Mrs. Fix It" Job}

Argh! We bought these 'oh so comfy' leather dining chairs about 5 years ago - which I love, a lot... but now the leather on the seat has gone all 'funky'.

I have to admit, I probably have used a damp cloth a few too many times on the chairs. However, the fact that it's more than likely my fault doesn't make me any less annoyed by it. Bah humbug!

My weapons of choice.

Material $16 + Scissors + Upholstery Stapler $35 = I'm a freakin genius!

Really it was quite simple, there was no fore-thought, or planning. I just hacked at the material, and stapled the crap out of it, onto the chair. Worked a treat!

Yay for me!

'Before and After'
Note the leather, or whatever it is - peeling,
on the 'non-awesome' chair to your left.

End result

Where All The Action Happens! {Our Play Room}

Our 'Play Room' - Thought it was time to dish out some posts I've had sitting in my drafts folder.

We use our rumpus room as the kids 'Play Room'. It wasn't easy to create a space for a Teen, tween, and toddler combination.

You and I both know that this isn't the way our play room normally looks - picture this room completely trashed. That's the way it ought to be, right!

Corner cupboard stores board games and puzzles 
Hallway table stores toddler toys and
underneath stores the keyboard.

If you've followed my blog or are just one of my friends stalking me, you know I'm a thrift freak - I can tell you it doesn't have to cost the earth to set up a play room. It would have only cost around $140 to furnish this room.

Your main battle will be finding the space, which we are very spoilt to have ample.


Everyone needs a table and chairs, and with a teen almost the same height as me (5'8") teeny tiny stuff is out - we need the Real McCoy now. 

Craft Cupboard - This stores all the goodies and dress ups.
Plastic drawers for more toys, blocks and Lego
- lots and lots of Lego!

Miss [almost] 2's inside play area is in the corner of the play room, placed next to a nice big window for natural light. Miss [almost] 2 sits here to have her morning tea sometimes, hence the vacuum cleaner.

Note the strategically placed vacuum cleaner -
it gets used so much, I rarely even bother packing it away.

So now when you see a post  on my blog of painted windows, contact 'stained glass', or a handmade birthday card  - you know where all the action is happening... our play room.

Thift And A Room Make-over - Perfect

Pssst. I have a confession to make....

I'm one of those people, you know, the ones who have fifty projects going at once. I just can't help myself!!!

To be honest, I'm lucky if I ever finish one project, because I keep introducing new ones to the list. I thought I'd share one of those rare occasions where something actually ends up completed! [This is where you all gasp in disbelief.]


According to the house plans, it's officially 'the office', but with four of us sharing an office - it was just too crowded. So we moved our house around and ended up with this room... that was once the office but is now the, err.... 'sitting room'? Library, perhaps? Don't you need books in a library?

Welcome to the 'junk room' - Note the 'modesty' tape on Miss [almost] 2

Anyway, so it was a sad, sorry little room - unloved. I so desperately wanted to turn it into my sewing room, but I had all these wonderful, crazy, insane, expensive, ideas running wildly through my head... which made it difficult.

Did I mention, expensive? Like most people at the moment, money is tight. We are a family of five, on a single wage, paying a mortgage. None of those ideas were going to happen just yet. 

I had to use things we already had around the house, and that damn corner lounge was taking up so much room, since the family room had become the dining room. [We're trying to sell the lounge!}

Thrift buys for my sewing room: Chair $10 ~ White shelves $8

Step 1. Create some space. I separated the leather chaise into two sections and moved one half to our room for the time being. I then moved the remaining section around, and against the wall

B & A

Step 2. Work area. I needed something to actually put my sewing machine on, and Mr R suggested I use the old hallway table, which had been living in our garage. It really is a perfect size - not too big, not too small.

Step 3. Storage. Luckily, we had been given the two cupboards a couple of years ago by a friend. Big problem... all my material was previously bulging out of the cupboards - I couldn't even close the doors and drawers properly. I emptied both cupboards and decided to separate them, and put one on each side of my sewing table. No particular reason other than that I like things symmetrical?

       3(a). I also picked up what seemed to be a large cardboard storage shelving system. Only paid $8 for it! I just used some white vinegar and some Chux Magic Erasers, and it came up like new.  Now it stores all my fabric, and the cupboards are free to store craft books, scrap materials, wadding, batting, you name it.

 
Step 4. You need something to sit on right? I paid $10 for this beautiful, large, solid timber chair. Very comfy too!

Step 5. Step 5 wasn't really a 'step' at all, because the corkboard was already there from when the room was used as an office. The cork-board and photo frames above my desk allow me to pin up ideas, plans, and even a calendar.

Thanks to Shabby Princess for the digital-art

Master 9 - Epic Saga {part one}

Okay, so long story... [err] even longer? I'm on a mission! August last year, we were woken by Ms.13 at 3am in the morning, alerting us that Master 9's bed was in fact, on fire! Yes, that's right, on fire! 

 Turns out Master 9 was indeed still secretly afraid of the dark, and had placed a halogen lamp under his covers with him, which ended up setting light to his bedding and mattress. Master 9 sustained superficial wounds to his hand and legs during the ordeal. Needless to say it was a very scary event for all involved.

Of course, in moments of pure panic and trauma I shine through, with really bad taste jokes and humor. Whilst in the emergency department I was trying to reassure Master 9 that "chicks dig scars", so all's good? And when Ms 13 mentioned she was feeling hungry, I cheerfully suggested some "Kentucky Fried Carter" [used fake name, but you get the jist]. 

Of  course, my family know me well and find the 'humor' in it all, including 'bad arse', 'hard arse' Master 9 -  However I don't think the hospital staff saw it that way! I'm a bad mother right? Perhaps next time I should panic and follow it with some sobbing in a corner?

Master. 9 sporting the bandages on his hand... [Photo compliments of Ms.13]

The offending lamp...  [Photo compliments of Ms.13]

Anyway, the only way I can describe the winning combination of burning electrical, bed linen, mattress,  melted plastic, metal and burning flesh, is putrid. All his bedding was ruined, including the mattress and the bed frame. We could not rid the those above mentioned smells, but lets face it, it could have been a lot worse! 

 

One of Master.9's pillows... [Photo compliments of Ms.13]

 I'm sure you're all wondering what the moral of this story is? The moral of the story is, "If you want Mummy to do an awesome make over in your room, you should set fire to your bed!" - OK, perhaps not? 


I did realise however, that my little man.. I mean, Master 9 was still just a little boy, and surrounded by GIRLS 95% of the time [insert violin music here]. So I wanted to make his room an escape - plus as non-scary at night as possible. So long, scary jolly rogers!

So in order for you to fully appreciate what's been done in Master 9's room, we must jump inside my metaphoric time machine of photos  and journey back to when we first bought the house 4 years ago... [insert twilight zone music here]

 

Very Very Bright Blue!!! 

OK, now jump back in the photo time machine and we'll jump forward two years, to a period in time known as the "Pregnant, hormonal and nesting" era ... 

Master 9 loved the feature wall the previous owners had so we kept it, and just painted over the blue and removed the blinds. [which were on every window in the house] This is the bed and linen that were ruined by the fire.

Faults with this room:

1. Umm bed burnt and unusable? Not to mention it took up way too much valuable play space.
2. Computer desk pointless, since he doesn't have a computer or drawers?

We painted one side of Master 9's wardrobe with chalkboard paint - this is the part where you're in awe of my awesome transformer chalk artwork! Right!? [you'd better be!] It took me 1 1/2 hours to draw, and when asked what he thought of it, he was like "oh. yeah. it's pretty good.". Meanwhile I sobbed.

Anyway so this time instead of me taking over [Warning I'm Virgo and practical!!], I sat down with Master. 9 and asked him what HE would like in his room. We talked about what type of bed, what 'cool' things he could have, and managed to compromised on some of Master 9's ideas, like painting the ceiling red with green polka dots. I know, there I go being all practical again! Of course, almost all were my fabulous ideas but in the end it's still Master 9's choice...

In the end Master 9 decided to go for a bunk bed, and I thought "Awesome, I always wanted a bunk bed!!". Master 9 requested a timber one. I suggested we replace his desk too, with something a tad smaller and more *cough* practical. Except when I mentioned it to Master 9, the suggestion was more like "OH MAN! You know what'd be soooooo awesome!?! A desk with drawers and a hutch so you can put cool stuff on it and in it!!! Whoaa!!". 

You know how the common catch phrase is "Google is your friend", it's a lie, a stinky, horrible lie! I searched and searched, and search some more on how to make a bunk bed tent, to no avail. Yep, not one tutorial...well... if there were, there wasn't any with pretty pictures or diagrams to show me how to do it!! So after whinging about it to anyone who would listen, my 66 year old Mum had to show off by finding something that was really good, and even without diagrams would be pretty simple to make. Thanks a lot, Mum!

So make sure you check back in to see the latest installment of Master 9's - Epic Saga [part two]. I'll  post the after pictures of his new escape as soon as it's all complete! 

[Shit! Supposed I'd better make a start on it then...]

I {heart} Thrift

Thought I'd take a trip down memory lane, reminisce about some of the fabulous things I bought back in 2010 and gloat some. ;)

Not all are 'ultra bargins' as such, but just some of my favourite buys for the year! 

Drum roll please...

 

❀ The most darling Pumpkin Patch Boots for my little cowgirl, only $7.50! Can't wait for winter, she'll look super duper cute!

❀ Seriously, how cute it this little cane chair? Picked this up for $10. I still have plans for it, perhaps paint white and make a cushion - I'm undecided.

❀ Umm just what every play room needs - A traditional medieval German doll house!? Right? 

Later down the track I'll do a post dedicated to the work I have done on this dolls house, as it's in dire need of some TLC...

❀ I have so many projects going at the same time! I've been slowly doing up the kids cubby house. I picked up this little wooden cooker up for $10. 

Turns out Miss. 19/12 was spoiled at Christmas when Granny and Grandad bought  a saucepan set and Aunty Nicky got her a little shopping basket filled with plastic play food which must be pretty convincing, because the first thing she spotted was the 'chocolate muffin' then she moved onto the 'crinkle cut chips'! LOL  

"nom nom nom nom"

❀ Keeping with the theme of the cubby house, I also bought a old dresser for $40 to serve as a fancy kitchen. 

Artwork compliments of Master 9.

I had my wonderful and talented husband {note me sucking up} modify it for me by cutting the legs shorter, then jigsawing a hole in the top and I popped a stainless steel bowl in to serve as a sink, which you can't really see as bug-a-lugs is standing in the way. Exactly the same way I had it in their previous "cubby kitchen" that was destroyed by bad storms we had a couple of years ago. Still have more work to do to it, which I will get to at some stage in 2011. 

❀ Can't forget the awesomeness of the $2 desk! I mean $2!!! Need I say anymore? {if I do, then please refer to $2 desk post smart-arse :P}

❀ Nor can we forget the gorgeousness of the cane cradle that I picked up for $10.

❀ Ms. 13 spotted these awesome cowboy boots that just happened to be the perfect size for her {and me! ;) }, then proceeded to beg and plead! Made in the USA with real McCoy snack skin... $10!!! Of course my inner cowgirl couldn't resist!

We come from a long-line of horsey girls! Ms. 13 has been having horse-riding lessons with Grandma Keddie for a couple of years now and doing so well! Explains her obsession with the boots! 

Ms.13 riding 'Mozzie' - This pic was taken at the start of 2010

I have bought other bargins but I'm saving a couple for another extra special post...

One thing I noticed while doing this post is, I do buy a lot of things for $10 - must be my lucky number?
❀ Last but not least, I picked up this gorgeous and would most certainly be rare, corner cabinet. $30. 

{heart}

This has a new home in our rumpus room, and we store all the game boards in it. I do plan on replacing the handle at some stage!

$2 Bargin Desk

I wondered where to start and I thought this was a better place than any. A few months ago we visited out local Recycle Centre and picked up this gorgeous little desk for $2! It still needed some repair to a drawer, handle and door which is pretty obvious.

Anyway did a rough two coats of white paint on it and voila! I took Ms.13 to spotlight to pick out some fabric she liked for one canvas and her office chair. Yes, yes, I know you can pick up pretty little chairs but I think there is two types of decorating 'nice, practical, comfortable and in your price range' and there is 'stupid'. We picked up two canvases, one which Yassie painted - the other we covered. I could do a tutorial on that but I won't but heres a clue - canvas, fabric, glue and staples :P

• Desk $2
• Paint $0 {HIA}
• Liquid Nails $0 {HIA}

HIA = Had It Already