Pajama Pants

You can make Pajama Pants - they are the first thing to learn when sewing. I taught a sewing class to 5 yr olds and the project was PJ Pants. So grab a pattern and get to sewing! For these I didn't grab a pattern which was a bad idea because they didn't fit well. I learned for next time. I used a flannel sheet set I bought at a garage sale, even using the elastic from the fitted sheet for the waistband - talk about thrify - 6 pairs of pjs for a total of $2. Since it was a sheet it had a finished edge, so I used it for the bottom of the pants so I didn't even have to hem anything - remember that trick!

Photo + Document

While I can't claim this idea, I'll still tell about it. We have a document that tells about families that we wanted to hang in our home (read it HERE) but I wanted it to be more than just a framed piece of paper. So here's the solution - our family picture was faded out using photoediting, and then printed directly on top of the document. The effect is that our family is in the background. I framed it with a little plaque that says "Family: a journey to forever" replicating something I saw in a store this summer. Super easy and looks great - go try it!

MousePad

We've been undergoing a desk remodel. We got a new mouse that wouldn't work on our new shiny surface, and hence needed a mousepad. (We've since taken that mouse back and are using our old one - the new one was very skiddish.) I found a tutorial on recovering old mousepads and thought that'd be perfect - it would tie my curtains into the desk area. I couldn't find an old mousepad, so I looked at the store: $8! Yikes! Who knew. So I was on the lookout - luckily I spotted a discarded mousepad at my parents' house. Just lay the pad down on some fabric and cut around it, leaving 2-3 inches all the way around for fold-over. Then lay the pad down on some Heat-N-Bond and cut a piece slightly smaller than the pad. Iron it to the pad, pull off the paper, and iron the fabric onto the pad - it should stick. Flip it over and tack all the edges to the backside with fabric glue. Done and done. This took about 10 minutes. Now, to get a better mouse...

Quick Gift

I saw this gift idea HERE and it sounded so simple and easy and useful, that I used it for my neighbor gifts this year. Go to the Dollar Tree (Everything's $1), dig through all the ugly wrapping paper until you find something normal-looking, print out tags that say "Get Yourself All Wrapped Up In The Holidays", attach them, and deliver. Easy. Way easy. (I always do cookie plates, but this was SOOO much less work. And I still made cookies - just not near as many and we ate them ourselves.) Merry Christmas! I have other gift ideas, but don't want to spoil the fun!

Smores Ornament

I ventured into polymer clay to make this ornament. I've always considered polymer clay intimidating, but it was really easy and fun. You can do this! I bought a big pack of white at Walmart and found the other colors individually packaged at Michaels. The cost was $2.60 an ornament (single snowman). I made mine a double. Great instructions over on LittleBirdeSecrets, one of the crafty blogs I check out. Just make your shapes, stack them together, add arms and a hook to hang it by (don't forget the hook!), scratch "2009" into it somewhere, and bake. We did this as a fun adult craft at playgroup.

Dresser Repurpose

I traded dressers with my sister-in-law and got this way cool one. She's the one who put chalkboard paint on the drawer fronts (using spraypaint - sounds easy!) - genius idea. Functional and fun. This is now in my entryway and has solved the problem of piles of shoes and gloves. Chalkboard paint has endless possiblities.