crafting – Pure Sugar

Spring Wreath

Posted on March 22, 2023 by Carol — 4 Comments ↓

One of my goals for the year was to spend more time on my hobbies. I have always loved crafting. When I was really little and had a subscription to “Highlights” magazine, I remember the arts & crafts section was my favorite! In high school I handmade lots of cards and used to love making those fabric covered photo albums (oh, my goodness, who else remembers those?) Over the years I have enjoyed creating all kinds of things and since taking my current job a few years ago, and balancing it with the kids and everything else that still needs to be done at home, it has been challenging to find a balance, but I think I am finally there!

I wanted to make a new wreath for the front door and I was inspired by another crafter in a Dollar Tree Facebook group I belong to. I fell in love with the design and was so happy to find all the supplies at my local store! This afternoon I spent some quality time with my trusty glue gun and within a half-hour or so had this Easter/Spring wreath to hang up.

With my Spring decorating underway, I now just need the warmer weather to go along with it!

Ta-Da! Simple Crochet Triangle Scarf

Posted on December 23, 2017 by Carol — No Comments ↓

I am still in love with Caron Cakes yarns. The wool/acrylic blend is so soft & squishy – I really can’t resist it! I think this colorway, called “Turkish Delight” is my favorite. I knew I wanted to use it to make myself a cozy triangle scarf.

Because I wanted a pattern that I like to call “TV crochet” I search for something with a repeat that would be easy to remember, and minimal difficulty. I settled on Simple Triangle Gradient Shawl from Three Sticks Design. I had to rewrite a portion of the pattern in my own words (the way it is worked at the peak of each row), because I found it a little confusing as-written, but overall it is a good pattern. I also changed the picot edging up a bit. Instead of chaing between picot stitches, I slip stitched. I just prefer that look.

My notes for this project on Ravelry.

I have been wearing this scarf out several times a week, and even a couple times at work as a shawl. My co-worker made this with neutrals and it is just stunning!

With this project over, I think it may be time for me to finish up my Atlanticus blanket!

I’m Not Usually A Gambler, But…

Posted on July 19, 2017 by Carol — 1 Comment ↓

I’m one of those annoying people who generally plays things safe, especially when it comes to money. If I don’t know what exactly I’m getting, I don’t usually get it. But, as they say, there is always an exception to the rule…

This morning Noah and I went to Michaels to get him a white t-shirt for tie-dying at camp, since they were on sale today. When we walked in, front and center, I saw these:

Now, in the past I’ve been able to resist the urge to try my luck at one of these grab bags. But today, something was calling me to them. I knew it would be summer stuff from the 4th of July. And maybe it’s because we were just recently at an Eagle Scout Court of Honor for my friend’s son, but I realized that now would be a great time to take a chance on some patriotic-themed decor. After all, Jake is hopefully starting his Eagle project soon, and he is well on his way as far as advancements are concerned, so I’m not being premature thinking ahead. It’s pretty standard to use red, white, and blue in the decorations and table settings.

I tried to peek inside the best I could and in two boxes I noticed things I definitely was interested in. Noah convinced me to take a change and buy both of them. After I unpacked it all, I was absolutely thrilled with the contents! Here it all is, combined into one box.

Now, let’s do a little show & tell, shall we? Remember, I paid $8 for everything! First up, this cute basic tee-shirt. It could probably benefit from a fun saying on it, so I can make that with my Silhouette.
(Value: $9.99)

Next, 9 bunches of silk flowers — 4 of the daisies with stars on the petals (price tag says $3.99), and 5 bunches of red/white/blue silks (price tag says $8.99).
(Value: $60.91)

Then, there are these vases. I think these, combined with the silk flowers, are going to make perfect centerpieces! The 7 small bottles (one got cut off from the picture because I was rushing) were priced at $6.99 and the large striped bottle (which I absolutely LOVE) is $9.99.
(Value: $58.92)

Then there are two of these metal signs, $24.99 each . Maybe I’ll give one to my mom!
(Value: $49.98)

I absolutely adore this sign! I remember seeing in in the store and thinking hard about it. It is actually burlap and very rustic looking. It will be so cute next summer!
(Value: $24.99)

OK, I’ve saved the best for last. It was seeing these two trays that made my heart skip a beat. I almost bought them last week, but even with a coupon couldn’t quite justify it. I love the quilt patterns painted on (I may actually crochet a throw based on the design of the smaller tray — that wouldn’t be too hard if I did squares) and Drew loves wood signs. We actually were able to have lunch with him today and so I showed him and asked what he thought. He really liked them too, and thought of covering the design with epoxy or something to preserve it in case there is a spill. The smaller tray was $19.99 and the larger one was $25.99.
(Value: $45.98)

So, drumroll please? …. I got over $250 worth of stuff for $8! Now, I would never pay full-price of course, that’s just not how I am. But even if it was, say, 60% off, that’s still over $100. I think I really lucked out!

Some Recent Silhouette Projects

Posted on May 18, 2016 by Carol — 3 Comments ↓

Since getting my Silhouette Cameo for Christmas, I have really enjoyed using it to kick up my crafts. There are so many possibilities! It can be overwhelming for a newbie, and I’ve read about people who keep their Silhouette in the box for months (or longer). Well, let me tell you — take out the machine, install the software on your computer, read the manual, and just play around with it! Will you mess up your first project or two? Maybe. Probably. But that’s OK. That’s how you learn. Isn’t that what we tell our kids? It’s totally OK to make mistakes! Don’t let the fear of failure keep you from having fun.

Here’s a picture of the first vinyl project I made. (Yes, I did go back and fix the missing apostrophe!) This was just using the Recollections brand vinyl from Michael’s. I wouldn’t say the vinyl is amazing, but the cup has held up for a few months now, and in a pinch I would buy it again.

After realizing that cutting vinyl wasn’t actually terrifying, I decided to buy the Craft E Vinyl Assortment of glossy permanent vinyl from Amazon. It was easier and faster for me to purchase this instead of tracking down Oracal 651 from a vinyl retailer and I love this stuff! It weeds easily, adheres well, and if you have Amazon Prime in two days you’ll have it in your hot little hands. I used the Craft E Vinyl to create this sign for my dad to hang in his workshop.

For St. Patrick’s Day, Laura needed to wear green to school (obviously!). I still had not ventured very far into the world of HTV (heat transfer vinyl), and all I had was a sheet of metallic gold Cricut vinyl I bought on sale at Joann’s. But it did the job and my little leprechaun made it through the day without being pinched! For this design, I simply found the shamrock wreath online, brought it into the Silhouette Design Studio, traced the image, added my text, and was ready to go. (When cutting vinyl to iron on to clothing, don’t forget to mirror it – I made that mistake!)

Next is a travel mug I made for Drew’s birthday gift. After Christmas, Target had 2-packs of Contigo brand travel mugs on clearance, so I scooped up a package. My husband is a huge fan of G.I. Joe comics (and even has a Cobra Commander Halloween costume), so this was a no-brainer. I love how it looks, even thought it was incredibly simple!

After deciding that I was going to want to delve a little futher into making custom creations that used HTV, I placed an order for some better quality supplies. First order of business was to make myself this shirt. Yes, I do think I am very punny!

And last I’ll share the Mother’s Day gift I made for my mom. Glass cutting boards were all the rage in the FB groups, so I picked one up at Dollar Tree and made this design from scratch. As you can imagine, it’s not that easy finding anything that says “Babci” on it, so I think she was happy with it. This was another project that required flipping the image before cuting it because you actually stick the vinyl on the underside of the cutting board (that way it is still functional).

There are so many other project ideas in my head! I’ve also used it quite a bit to cut complicated shapes out of paper (that’s how I did my son’s Confirmation invitations). And I also use it to cut out envelope templates. Again, it’s just faster and easier than doing it by hand. I look forward to sharing more ideas soon!

{Tutorial} Sew Easy Loopy Scarf

Posted on December 11, 2014 by Carol — 1 Comment ↓

It’s been a couple years now since I made my first loopy scarf, but I still enjoy creating them and if you’re looking for a last-minute handmade gift, this is perfect! One scarf takes about an hour to complete from start to finish (maybe a little more for your first one). The best part is that you don’t need to know how to knit or crochet. Yes, it’s true — you really can make a funky handmade scarf without those skills, as long as you have a sewing machine. Grab a drink, put on a movie, and let’s get crafting!

Here’s what you’ll need:

A sewing machine
One skein of Homespun yarn (or a similar bulky yarn)
Coordinating thread
Basic sewing notions

Set your sewing machine to a zig-zag stitch. Adjust so that the stitch is somewhat narrow.

Next, decide how wide you want the scarf. My prefernce is approximately six inches wide, mostly because that width makes the looping easy. There are about three inches on the left and I use a rubber band to mark three inches to the right (for a total of six inches).

Now you’re ready to start looping! Holding the end of the yarn, make “loops” going from one side to to the other. Keep doing this this until you have about 1.5-2 inches “looped” and then carefully move up the yarn so that it’s under your needle. Slowly start sewing (let me stress the importance of going slow when working on this scarf), being sure to backstitch at the beginning. Try to get the yarn strands really close to each other, but don’t bunch them up into a pile.

When you finish sewing together the first few loops, make sure to leave your needle down to secure the yarn while you continue making loops. Repeat this process until the scarf is as long as you’d like!

Just in case the directions aren’t clear from the photos, here’s a short video that explains how to sew the scarf together.

Hopefully that will clear up any questions. As you sew, you’ll see that your scarf appears flat as it comes out the other end of your machine. Once you’re done, you’ll just fluff out the scarf and voila! You have no-knit, no-crochet scarf that sews up in no time.

This project was originally featured as a guest post on Sugar Bee Crafts.

Country Living Fair 2014

Posted on June 16, 2014 by Carol — No Comments ↓

Guys, last year I had to miss out on the debut of the Country Living Fair here in Rhinebeck at the Dutchess County Fairgrounds. We had events that entire weekend and there was no way I could eek out the time to attend. But this year? I wrote it in my planner as soon as I found out the dates and I was not going to miss it again!

The weather was absolutely perfect for a day of walking around and being absolutely inspired by all of the creative ideas I saw. The fairground was transformed! I had just been there for CamporALL with the Cub Scouts, but it didn’t look anywhere near as pretty as this. Check it out — buntings everywhere! And I swear they were misting the scent of lavender and cinnamon because everything smelled wonderful.

Obviously the vendors want you to buy their wares, but I couldn’t help but steal a few ideas for finished products that were out of my budget. This “Pickles” sign was one of them. The sign, while super cool, was not coming home with me for over $100. And while I doubt I could do a perfect lettering job, it still provided some inspiration.

I loved these chairs with the ragamuffin strips hanging down the sides — kind of like a prim tutu, isn’t it?

Here was another project I thought I could replicate with a shabby frame, some ticking, an old BINGO card, and a cute vintage image:

And who knew that if I could safely take down a hornet’s nest I could not only use it as a home dec accent, but I could also charge $35 for it? (But I have to admit — it does look cool.)

Here are a few more “this and that” photos of pretty things:

I am already excited for next year! I’ll have one more Country Living Fair post this week all about “glamping.” I’d never heard that term before, but if you love the idea of cute caravan/camper decor… just wait! These ladies had more style in their tiny little campers than I do in my entire house, LOL.

Hello, My Friends

Posted on January 28, 2014 by Carol — 2 Comments ↓

Well… hi! It’s been a while, hasn’t it? Not even sure where to begin, but the end of December was kind of crazy with some family health issues (everything is fine!) and the holidays. January has just been a cold, grouchy month. The snow and Arctic temperatures haven’t exactly been inspiring.

I just looked at my SD card and realized that I’ve barely taken any photos since Christmas! I need to remedy that, even if it’s just “day in the life” type of snapshots.

Also, I’ve started working on some craft projects (including reorganizing my washi tape so I can actually see all of it at once). So I’ll start posting about those. I also wanted to start posting my monthly and weekly planner layouts, and sharing how I use my Erin Condren Life Planner. Decorating my organizer has become a relaxing hobby and there are so many creative people out there who provide inspiration! Fun and functional 🙂

That’s about all for now. I just had to finally write something and then hit the “publish” button. As with anything in life, it seems the longer you go, the harder it is to get back into blogging. So there. That awkward “Hey… how ya been” is over and we can pick up where we left off.

So… what’s new with you?

Hello Kitty Hat

Posted on March 5, 2013 by Carol — 3 Comments ↓

Since Christmastime, my three-year-old has been asking me to make her a Hello Kitty hat. And for whatever reason I’ve put it off. I’m not sure why, because hats are quick and easy to whip up. Last week I finally had the time to hook one up for her, and she could not have been happier!

For the hat itself, I used my favorite hat pattern, which at the moment happens to be the one I used to make Repeat Crafter Me’s owl hat. I find it a little small, and I always need to crochet more rows than the pattern calls for, but it is an excellent base pattern. Laura didn’t want earflaps, and I ended up adding a picot border just to make the hat a little bit longer.

For the nose, I followed the directions on Crochet in Color’s Hello Kitty Hat pattern. I also used her basic ear instructions, but I started with a magic circle, ch2, and then 7 hdc. I didn’t connect the end and beginning, I just made a ch1 and followed the rest of her instructions. When I used her method, I was left with a gap I couldn’t seem to tighten up. Using the magic circle helped with that.

For the eyes, I started with a magic circle (can you tell how much I love that nifty little trick?) and then a ch1, and 10 sc. Then I just sewed it all up.

I think the nose could go a little lower, but she’s so happy with it, I am not about to start taking it apart and redoing work needlessly. Too many other projects in the queue!

What are you working on at the moment?

Linking up with:
Whatever You Want Wednesday

Take a Look Tuesday

Experiments in Millinery

Posted on December 11, 2012 by Carol — 1 Comment ↓

I know, I know… I’ve already blown the write-every-day-for-a-month thing. Would it excuse me if I told you I was under the weather for two days and then had a totally crazy busy weekend? No? Ah well… I understand 😉 Well, let’s start again, shall we?

My littlest is spending a couple days with Grandma, which has given me time to get a ton done. Yesterday was cleaning/shopping. Today is crafting. Topping the list? A new welding beanie for my dad. Yes, my dad welds. I know, I am lucky to have my own personal welder 🙂

I have been trying for well over a year to figure out a welding cap pattern that fits him correctly. This really shouldn’t be hard! A while back he gave me an old hat that had been worn through, so I took it apart to see exactly how it was constructed and I made my own pattern from it.

After a couple cups of coffee, and quite a bit of cursing, I think I got it. Now, let’s just hope it fits!

Ta-da!

Flower Pillow “Ta-Da!”

Posted on September 18, 2012 by Carol — 1 Comment ↓

Earlier this summer when Lulu made the transition from her crib to a “big girl” bed, I knew I wanted to make something pretty for it. When my mom was visiting back in June, I started on a blooming flower pillow, using the pattern from Attic24. Only instead of using dozens of colors, I decided to make one enormous white flower.

And enormous it is! It took me forever to finish this, not because the pattern was hard, but I guess I got a little bored with all the white. Nevertheless, I’m happy with the way it came out, and my little girl loves it! The backside is a light green and the side is a dark purple, so everything coordinates with her room.

Of course, now the boys want pillows, too (only not flower pillows…) Good thing I have a couple of extra cushions laying around. I guess I’ll be added their requests to my never-ending “to crochet” list, LOL!