Re-usable Sandwich Bags

At our house, we have 3 out of our 4 kids in school.  Three kids that never buy school lunch.  Therefore, we use an average of 4-5 sandwich bags per kid, per day.  That's a total of 12-15 per day, and 60-75 per week!!!  Now, that's a lot of baggies!!!  I've seen the re-useable bags on Pinterest & the internet, and wanted to make some, so I finally got around to it!!  ;)

I went to Hobby Lobby & didn't know what the fabric was called, so I explained it to the lady there.  She said it's what people make training pants for babies out of . . . but still no "name" for the fabric! ;)  (And like a dork, I didn't ask!! ;)  So - - whatever it's called. . . it's quite pricey!!  :(  It was between $12-$14/yd (depending on print)!!  However, I only got 1/2 yd & used my 40% coupon!!  :)

I must first say, (like I've mentioned a few times before), I do NOT claim to be an expert seamstress!!  I can make things, but my stitches aren't perfect!!  I had to tell myself, "Remember - these are sandwich bags. . . who cares how 'perfect' they are(n't)!!!"  :)

With that said - - here's what I did:

I used blue fabric - - there wasn't much of a choice. . . blue, green, baby dinosaurs or girly owls!!  :)  Now, with 2 boys & a girl in 6th grade. . . I thought blue made the most sense!!  ;)  I also used sew-on velcro.  I pre-washed the fabric, but wasn't sure if I could dry it, so I just laid it out to dry.  (It dries really quickly!! :)


The first few bags I made turned out a little too narrow for a sandwich, so they will be used for chips, fruit, cookies, etc!  :)  I ended up using strips that were 15 x 7", folding the top over 1" & just leaving a little gap between the top & the opening of the bag.  (And on some of the bags I made toward the end, I didn't even fold the top over - - just sewed the velcro right under the flap!!  ;)  I stitched around the top, sewed the velcro on, (apparently I didn't take a picture of that! :( , then sewed down the sides of the bag.  I added a little strip of ribbon to the tops of a few bags. :) I made a few small "snack-size" baggies with the extra fabric!!  (I didn't even worry about the raw edges being that this fabric doesn't fray!!  Once again - - they're only sandwich baggies!!  Had this been a gift, the stitches might have been a LOT neater!!  ;) 
I have to say - - this fabric is NOT fun to sew!!  The rubber-like lining kept gripping my machine & the silky top didn't hold still that well!!  :(  Therefore - my stitches were NOT pretty!!  However - they're done & now I have about 8 bags!!  8 bags from 1/2 yd - - which came out to about $3+!!  Not too shabby!!  I'm going to go back & get some green next!!  When the kids are done with the bags, I turn them inside out & wash them with dish soap & set them out to dry - - super easy!!  It takes a few extra seconds, but oh well!!  ;)  How's that for "goin' green" (or blue in this case)????!!!!  ;)  ;)

Simple Easter Wreath

 Well, I managed to complete at least ONE Easter project before Easter!!  ;)  I really wanted a wreath for my door, but didn't want to spend a ton on a wreath form, when I knew I could make my own!!  :) 
So, I looked around & found a nice box just sitting there, waiting to be used!!  :)  I used a large lid (from a salad bowl), traced it, then traced a smaller lid in the center. Then, using kitchen scissors, I cut out my wreath.

 I had some fabric in nice Easter colors in my stash! (They are much brighter than they appear!!) 

 I cut (well,tore) about 25 strips in each color - about 1" wide by 12" long.

Then, just tied the strips all over the wreath, following an ABC pattern!!

Lastly, I used fishing line to tie plastic eggs to the wreath!  Since the eggs already had holes in the tops & bottoms - this was easy!! ;)





Super simple & I think it turned out pretty cute!!  ;)

Time To Get Crafty!!

Apparently I took the summer off!!  :)  Managed to do a few crafty things here & there, but just didn't have time to post them!!  (Keeping up 4 blogs can be time consuming!!  ;)  Well, I'm back & no time like the present to get crafty!!  I've worked on a few projects lately, so I'm gonna show off what I've done!!  :)

 Curtains for Madelyn:

I made these a while ago, but just realized that I haven't posted them!!  :)  These pink curtains have served us well!! We have re-fashioned them about 3-4 times now!!  (You can see them in their previous styles over HERE!)  However, this will probably be the last re-do!! ;) I made 3 simple panels, with about a 2" curtain rod slot at the top.  I made a simple ruffled skirt (gathered the top & sewed it to the bottom of the panel) for each panel.  For the pink panels, I sewed a simple strip of zebra fabric across the center.  I made 2 fabric flowers for each panel, alternating prints. 

For the flowers:  I'm so mad that I didn't take pictures while I was making them!!  :(  However - they were super easy!!  I took a strip of fabric (width & length depends on how big you want them), gathered the top, then just spiraled the fabric to form the "flower"!!  Once I got it how I wanted it, I hot glued it in place.  On top of the flower, I made & attached a smaller flower (shown HERE) & then topped it off with a little bling!! ;)

Iron-Ons:
I just love Iron-Ons!!  They are a super easy, and relatively cheap way to re-do a shirt!!  :)  Here are a few that I've done:

 

Cute little onsies & cute big girl shirts!!  :)  These iron-ons came with some jewels that you could add on & they looked great when I was finished!!  However. . . after a wash or two - most of the jewels that were attached to the iron-on, came off!!  :(  The ones that were directly ironed on to the shirt managed to stay.  Wish I had known in advance!!!  :(

Bleach Pen:
Bleach pens are one of the greatest inventions!!  Not only can you get rid of stains easily, but you can create great shirts!!  ;)

I started with this plain shirt.  Kind of a coral color, but didn't match any of Madelyn's shorts (other than denim) & had never been worn. So, I had an idea & went with it!! ;)  Took my bleach pen & a ruler and made stripes down the front of the shirt. I let the bleach sit for about 20 minutes & then washed & dried the shirt.

 






 



While it was washing, I found a white tank top & cut three strips (even though there are only 2 showing!)  ;)  I turned those strips into flowers (like THESE).  I took a needle & thread & sewed each flower together, so that all the layers would stay intact!



 To add a little extra to the flowers, I took some tiny beads & sewed them on by hand!  It was super simple!!  I just added 5 beads to the needle, made a tiny stitch in the flower, then added 5 more beads & kept up that pattern, going in a spiral!










When the shirt was dry, I sewed the flowers on & ta-da!!!  A new shirt!!  :)

Madelyn loved it & said she got lots of compliments at school!!!  :)

TWO Months = TOO Long!!!!

Yes, it has been 2 months since I last updated - been a little busy around here!!!  Haven't had a ton of time to be crafty, but I've tried to sneak in a few projects lately!!!  :)  Here's a quick project I managed to finish recently:

* Chair Make-over:
Madelyn has a (kinda cheesy) black chair in her room, so I thought I'd jazz it up a bit!  I saw this fuzzy pink zebra fleece at Hobby Lobby & had to have it!!  It was a remnant, so I think I only paid about $2 for it!  Here's what I did:
- Unscrewed the seat & back from the chair frame.

 










- Peeled off plastic piece from the back of each cushion.
- Laid each piece face-down on the wrong side of the fleece.
- Hot glued (could have used a staple gun, but for some reason, couldn't find mine!!) fabric around the back of each piece (back of chair & seat), pulling tightly as I glued, and trimming excess.

 
















- Snapped plastic pieces back on (a little tricky).
- Screwed pieces back onto frame.   - - Viola - a new cute chair for Madelyn!!!  :)












I've started a few other projects, so hopefully I can finish them soon & get them on the blog!!

Dance Bag

WOW!! I actually managed to fit in a project in our busy Fall Break week!!! :) - - Not saying it was a super elaborate one, but a project is a project!! ;)

Madelyn performed at the State Fair, so she wanted a cute dance bag. She had a pink bag that I had made a while back, but was starting to look a little blah! (Not to mention had a lovely blue ink stain!!) So, I got out my supplies & jazzed it up a bit!! Perfect for carrying her dance shoes!! :)

The before:

The after:


Simply pulled off the old ribbon & flower (not pictured), cut strips of fabric & hot glued them on:

Then, hot glued silver wired tinsel/ribbon along edges to cover up fabric edges:

Cut squares of fabric, (I believe I used 4?? Maybe 3 in.- sorry, didn't measure!) :( , then frayed the edges a bit, pinched the center together, making a "bow", then fold that in half:

Simply glue the folded "bow" down & repeat with the other squares until you make a circle!! (Sorry - once again, no picture!!) :(

Next, I took a small chipboard circle & covered it with ribbon - didn't have one (or a button) in the color & size I needed, so made my own embelishment:

Then, added a little white button & a diamond accent on top of the pink ribbon & tied a few strips of ribbon & tinsel to the handles!! Ta-da!! A new (or updated) dance bag!! Madelyn loved it, so I guess that's all that matters, right!!?? :)