Thursday, July 23, 2020
Quick and Easy Popsocket Makeover and Friday Favorites Link Party Week 539
Thursday, July 16, 2020
Soapmaking and Friday Favorites Linky Party 538
Monday, July 13, 2020
How to Make a Recycled Aluminum Can Butterfly Necklace
I don’t drink a lot of soda but every once and awhile a pop can will cross my path. Once I finish the beverage I have two choices:
1. Recycle the can in the recycling bin.
2. Recycle the can into a cute necklace.
Today I am going with Option 2 because it will make a much more entertaining tutorial than Option 1 and it will give me a chance to answer I often get: How do you smooth the edges of a cut aluminum can?
It’s easy! Let’s get started.
How to Smooth and File the Sharp Edges of a Cut Aluminum Can
Sunday, July 5, 2020
1950’s Wrap Sundress
A good long while ago, I fell in love with the 1950’s vintage wrap sundress sewing pattern Simplicity 8085 (you can read about it in detail here.) I bought a super cute cotton cherry print fabric with the intent to make a dress for myself. (Disclosure: I am including affiliate links in this post for your convince.)
Two years later I still had a sweet vintage sewing pattern reprint and super cute cotton cherry print fabric in its shopping bag in my sewing room. *sigh*
I need a dress for a wedding reception (hopefully? maybe? We’ll see how group events play out when the time comes) later this summer for a wedding my husband and I attended on Zoom. That’s all the incentive I need to finally sew my 1950’s wrap sundress. I made a few tweaks to the pattern because as my husband observed long ago, I always hack a sewing pattern in one way or another.
Save this fun retro dress to your Pinterest boards for later! Share it with your friends!
How to Sew a 1950’s Inspired Wrap Sundress
Thursday, May 28, 2020
Growing Vegetables from Scraps and Friday Favorites Linky Party 531
Thursday, May 21, 2020
Red, White, and Blue Face Masks and Friday Favorites 530
After all that sewing, I had to take my workhorse sewing machine in for repair and my backup sewing machine when it decided it wanted to break too. Oh no!
Thursday, May 14, 2020
DIY Mental Health Jar and Friday Favorites Week 529
After one too many social media conversations about being disappointed about upcoming plans, events, and whatnot being cancelled due to Covid-19 (and then feeling guilty afterward for being sad over something so trivial when so many people around the world are going through much, much worse) I started to think that for my mental health I should try to focus on what little good things are happening around me instead the daily mountain of bad.
No good or happy event or moment is too big or small for my jar, because let's face it, things are so weird that I road the happy until the wheels fell off the day I ordered Instacart groceries and the original delivery date was a week away until I added my product substitutions and the delivery date changed to later the same day of the order - which hasn't happened in a very long time. Kinda silly, I know, but at least it points my head in the direction of complimenting rather than complaining.
Monday, May 11, 2020
20 New Sewing Tips, Tricks, and Hacks for Beginners to Professionals!
Lately I’ve been fielding questions from folks who are breaking out their old sewing machines after a long hiatus – a quarantine will do that, you know. I’ve also been brushing up on new sewing hacks from fellow sewing and costuming friends as we dive into sewing cloth face masks for our family and friends. I figure it is my turn to share what I know to help you make your sewing projects go a little easier, a little quicker, or allow you to make that one little unexpected tweak that takes your sewing project from OK to Wow!
20 Sewing Hacks That Will Make Your Life Easier!
Thursday, May 7, 2020
Elizabethan Chemise (Shift) and Friday Favorites Week 528
Thursday, April 30, 2020
3 Quarantine Bottle Cap Crafts and Friday Favorites Week 527
Thursday, April 23, 2020
Mini DIY Ceiling Light Makeover and Friday Favorites Week 526
Because quarantine mini makeover sounds so much nicer than bunch of nagging DIY projects I put off forever and need to do something to keep from going stir crazy in lockdown so I'm finally getting around to it.
Ahem.
My late project is getting rid of one more ugly builder ceiling light in the in our upstairs hallway. I installed this industrial beauty while my husband was making dinner. One more light banished - 2 more to go!
The thing that made my heart sing "this is the ONE"are the Edison style bulbs (you can buy Edison style light bulbs here) because they work with tapestry and pendulum clock. Best of all you can buy LED Edison bulbs so I get the energy saving LEDs I like and my husband gets the warm yellow light of an incandescent light bulb he likes. We both win.
I showed you my project. Now you show me yours!
Thursday, April 16, 2020
Friday Favorites Week 525
Time to link up your fantastic and creative craft and DIY projects, recipes, and ideas!
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Thursday, April 9, 2020
Homemade Cloth Face Masks and Friday Favorites Week 524
A family member asked me to make her some and the ball started rolling from there. I guess saving every scrap of leftover fabric has its advantages in an emergency.
Time to link up your fantastic and creative craft and DIY projects, recipes, and ideas!
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Tuesday, April 7, 2020
8 Reusable Cloth Face Mask Tutorials
As of April 7, 2020 the United State Centers for Disease Control (and well as the Governor of Ohio) recommends that everyone wear a cloth face covering when out in public. The idea behind wearing a face mask in public is not what a someone yelled at me for falling for “pandemic panic” or a “false sense of security.” My reply was just as less than kind because I'm battling an allergy related sinus infection that never seems to end and don't want to pass this misery to anyone else (unlikely but I get horror looks when I sneeze with and without the mask.)
The idea is that by wearing even a simple, non medical grade cloth face mask when you are in public is so you may be less likely to unknowingly pass a virus to someone else when you aren’t showing symptoms and don’t know that you are sick. This precaution leaves the medical grade and N95 filtering face masks and respirators to our front line COVID 19 heroes who need to be protected from known viruses in the air around them in a front line setting.
How to Sew a Reusable Cloth Face Mask
Friday, April 3, 2020
Cute Quarantine Dogs and Friday Favorites Week 523
Time to link up your fantastic and creative craft and DIY projects, recipes, and ideas!
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Thursday, March 26, 2020
Friday Favorites Week 522
Time to link up your fantastic and creative craft and DIY projects, recipes, and ideas!
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Thursday, March 19, 2020
A Personal Update and Friday Favorites Linky Party 521
One of the hardest hit communities are Renaissance Festivals. There are many performers, food and craft vendors who make their living traveling and working all aspects of the faires and festivals that have shut down with no idea if they will reopen this year. To help, here is a Facebook group called Faire Relief 2020 that is full of shops and performers from all over the United States and selling everything imaginable. You can search the group so if you need something like a chainmail potscrubber for your cast iron skillets or a crocheted hat you can do so since people are adding their shops to the group daily. I suggest trying the Facebook group before searching Etsy as many of these stores don't have one. (
If you want to keep or start exercising and no longer have access to a fitness center or gym (all are closed in Ohio) I highly recommend the At Home Workouts Lead by Circus Performers Facebook group here from my friends who performed in the Cincinnati Circus (it is a people only circus with trapeze and aerial classes/performances, jugglers and such) until all of their bookings for the year were cancelled in one horrible half of an hour. Here's the group description: "At this time when so many people are stuck at home, we want to raise their spirits and help them stay healthy. Since we too are stuck home out of work, we will be asking for a $1 donation per person per workout. It is not necessary since we know others are having financial difficulties as well, but if you have the capabilities we would really appreciate it." There are several classes throughout the day to fit your schedule. (Neither of these two links are affiliate or sales links. I'm just trying to help out some folks who need it by spreading the word.)
I'm trying to keep the writing ship afloat despite Facebook's glitch marking the urls of Condo Blues and Lazy Budget Chef post to our Facebook page here as spam but will let me post memes about cakes that look like toilet paper all. day. long. Weird but a minor thing I'm sure will be sorted out eventually.
Since I also have some extra time on my hands, I'm attempting to relearn how to crochet. I haven’t crocheted since my grandma taught me as a little kid to keep me out of her hair when babysitting. I figure it is time relearn. Good to know my technique is still that of a six year old’s.
I showed you my project, now you show me yours!
Thursday, March 12, 2020
Friday Favorites Linky Party 520
Take care of yourselves. Take care of your neighbors. Be kind.
Time to link up your fantastic and creative craft and DIY projects, recipes, and ideas!
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Thursday, March 5, 2020
Friday Favorites Linky Party 519
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Thursday, February 27, 2020
Friday Favorites Linky Party 518
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