All Things Vintage Sheets {Giveaway!}

One of the blogs I follow, All Things Vintage Sheets, is hosting a giveaway for a Go! Baby Accuquilt Die cut machine and three dies of  choice, and I want to win!

This machine looks amazing! It would definitely give me the nudge I need to start quilting. They've got lots of different dies to choose from, of which my favorite is the stems & leaves.

The giveaway ends tonight at midnight, so check it out!

Ch-ch-ch-changes

Hi there! Despite not having posted for over a month now, I'm still here and still crafting. I feel like I may have lost a little bit of my crafting mojo. I've been busy with my swapping and I hate to say that sometimes when I have an order for something, it feels more like work than play. So I tend to drag my feet a little. It's probably a good thing that I don't have an Etsy shop anymore. Currently popular is my Sweet Pumpkin Hat.

Isn't it precious? This is the one I made for Lex when I was still pregnant.

Sadly here in Arkansas we have had a severe lack of rain and lots of heat which has led me to practically abandon my poor little garden. The zucchini were still alive last time I checked, but one or maybe two of the tomatoes are dead :(. I don't think I'm cut out to be a gardener. Maybe when Lex is less needy a bit older.

I've been working on a project for Lex-man over the last month and I'm ALMOST done. I can't wait to share it with you guys. Speaking of Lex, he has already learned to crawl and is succeeding in getting into anything he can reach. He's getting so big!

I've also fallen in love with Pinterest. It's such a great invention! It's like a virtual idea board. I can't tell you how many times I have been looking at a blog and seen something I really love, bookmarked it, and then totally forgot about it. Pinterest gives me that great visual reminder, plus I get to see what other people have pinned which spawns more pins. It's awesome. I'm at http://pinterest.com/cimorene5/. If you want in invite, drop me a line and I'll hook you up.

In other news, I got a new job! I'm still working in customer service but am now thankfully out of the call center environment. I also get weekends off (finally!) and have a normal schedule that is not subject to change (yay!). I love it! I get to work with my husband and in a place that values creativity. Everyone here is genuinely friendly and I already feel very at home. The call volume is also a LOT lower than at my previous job and I'm hoping that means more time for knitting and crochet on the side and possibly more blogging.

 My co-workers are so sweet :)

I think that with this new job and new schedule, I'm going to be feeling a lot more like creating. Definitely embracing the change!

 

Garden!

It was finally nice enough to plant my little vegetable garden today! I put my tomato plants in the ground along with my peppers (there turned out to be 2 of those plants--score!). I also sowed the seeds of some carrots, zucchini, chives and basil. I am worried I planted them a little too deep but I'm hoping they still sprout. I want to add some regular tomato plants and some summer lettuce. Strawberries would also be nice.

 Check out the awesome purple pepppers.

 Lex really liked being outside. I think it's because there were so many new things to look at.

Gardening is serious bidness!

Recycled Shipping Envelope Tutorial

I'm so excited to be guest blogging over at A Law Student's Journey and sharing a tutorial for making a shipping envelope out of recycled materials. Check it out!

SILHOUETTE MACHINE GIVEAWAY!!!!

SILHOUETTE MACHINE GIVEAWAY!!!!

Sorry about the short notice, but I just saw this. Today's the last day, so hurry up and enter!

Preparations

I'm pleased to say that I am one step closer to finally having a garden of my very own! Our former neighbor, who owns a landscaping business, bartered his building skills for the mister's computer skills which means I got two raised beds built and filled with "super soil." I also got some yellow pear tomato and Cherokee purple tomato plants along with an Aculpulco pepper plant from Whole Foods. I also have several seed packets for various vegetables and herbs. I have not been able to plant anything yet due to rain, but I'll be ready when it lets up.

I'm excited! I can't wait to see those little sprouts popping out of the soil. :)

Swap-o-rama!

Phew! It has been a busy few weeks around here. The boy has been sick again but is now feeling better. I'm hoping that with the weather warming up he will stop getting these nasty viruses! I have also been keeping busy with swaps.

Thanks to whoopdwhoop.com, I have been making hats like crazy. Also, a friend of mine on Facebook started a craft swap group and we completed our first swap a few days ago. The theme was Sci-Fi, and it was really cool. I received my package on Friday, and I was thrilled with what I got. Check it out!

I was amazed at all the cool stuff I got. She made these great hairpins and ring out of bottle caps and filled them with an epoxy.  It was crazy that she made me stuff from bottle caps because I had planned on making her a necklace with one (but it did not work out). And how great are those shoes!? It looks like she hand-painted them. (If you're my swap partner, Allison, stop reading!)

And here's what I sent my partner. I was late sending my package (sorry!) so my partner probably hasn't gotten hers yet. She was a fan of the movie District 9, so I made a couple things with that in mind. Here are some pics:

Here, I tried to replicate a sign from District 9. I put the image together in PhotoShop from some pics that I got from a Google search. I printed it out, minus the red part (because I don't have a color printer), painted in the red part, and then used spray adhesive to stick it to some foam core. I then sprayed it with some Krylon glaze to make the paper a bit more durable. I considered using Mod Podge, but just painting it caused some wrinkling, so I knew Mod Podge would make a lot more wrinkles. Then, I used some brown acrylic paint to make it look dirty. I am really pleased with how it turned out.

These earrings are made from an old circuit board. I had seen some like them on Etsy and decided to give it a go. I used a Dremel to cut out the pieces, and it ended up being more difficult than I thought it would be. I also sprayed on some triple thick Krylon glaze to make them look a bit more polished. I think they turned out pretty well for a first try.

Space food! Who hasn't always wanted to try astronaut ice cream? This I put in as a reference to another of my partner's favorite Sci-Fi movies, Moon. 

I'm most proud of this shirt. I used a freezer paper stencil, and it turned out great! Now my husband wants one. :)

This bag was made from Dana of Made's tutorial for the Hobo Sack. The only adjustment I made was lengthening it in order to accommodate the sign I made. It was made completely from remnants I had from previous projects, and it was a nice way to wrap everything up. My partner has a baby boy, so I figured the bag will come in handy with him eventually, too.

Now I wish I wold have gotten a picture of my package all together, but I'm sure my partner will when she gets it. :)

So, that's what's been occupying my free time lately, plus a few other things here and there. I'm really loving this swap business. I've gotten so much cool stuff from Whoopdwhoop, and I LOVE getting little packages in the mail. :) Our next Facebook swap theme is woodland creatures. It's going to be super cute! Let the swapping continue!