Tied Up

What can you do to take a time-out from a busy schedule, have a 3-hole punched folder, paper and plastic cable ties on hand?

Make a journal/ notebook! A fun project on your own or with your kiddo(s)

how we made it:

(1) 3-hole punched folder
(2) 15 pieces of paper cut to fit in the folder and 3-hole punched to line up with the folder
*We used paper from a huge roll we bought at our local shopping news publisher for $5
(3) plastic cable ties purchased at the Dollar Tree

Pull the cable ties through the back of folder, through the paper, then through the front of the folder and finally, pull the cable and tie up to close

I found this idea at dollar store crafts. Click here to view her tutorial for making a file folder notebook. You'll find a ton of great ideas at her website.

The Review: My daughter and I had a great time with this project. Will probably do it again with a few changes.

a few other ideas-


in place of white paper-You could use old stationery, lined paper, old torn-out book pages to add some character as the paper, picture page inserts.

ideas to replace folders- old book covers thin enough to punch holes through, recycled cereal/ cracker boxes (Even use mod podge to cover with fabric!)

in place of plastic cables- binder rings, knotted yarn or ribbon

Email me pictures of your projects! I hope this inspires others to give it a shot.

Think INSIDE the Box

My daughter wanted to ride the quarter-horse machine at the grocery store today. She had behaved well, and we had some extra time. She said she wanted to put the quarter in the box by herself. And so she did. Just think of all the excited little kids that have put the coin in the box to ride that horse machine! I was one of them-25 years ago when it only cost a dime. Today that silly song didn't seem so annoying. It was fun to giggle with her. I'm glad I could take the time today to let her put that quarter in the box, because all too soon she'll be too big to do so.

As always, I'm looking for a few new ways to keep things organized in our house. I ran across some awesome organization bins at tatortotsandjello  the other evening. Love, love, love the polka dot fabric she used, but I needed to use up some fabric that I've had on hand for awhile. We don't have any scrap wood in our garage, but we had a used priority mail package in our recycling bin in our garage. A-ha! So, this was my attempt to make a wall organization bin-

and on the topic of "in the box"....

(1) I found a first priority postal box, taped it closed with packaging tape, then cut it down to 10" with an xacto knife. I kept the end scrap, because I had an idea for that too.

(2) Next I applied fabric around the large box, using good ol' Mod Podge! Then I did the same thing to the extra end piece. (I'm not a fan of the fabric, but it will eventually look good in the hubby's office corner. :))

(3) I found a recipe card and stenciled FILE on it (kind of crooked though), then used double-sided sticky tape to hold it to the fabric. 

(4) I hung the box to the side of our kitchen cabinet using Command velcro picture hanging strip to see what it looked like.  I'm not posting the pictures of our current office workspace-still working on organizing that.... :)

Click here  for coupons to save $2 on Command hooks and picture hanging products. 

Here's what I did with the end-nothing fancy, but functional

(1) empty pill bottle for paper clips

(2) glass case for flash drives

(3) containers and other small office supplies

*I made my own magnetic paper clip catch-all by sticking a small piece of magnet to the top of the lid then I put the lid back onto the pill bottle (upside down/ non-childproof).

The Review: Easy but does take a half an hour or so. Will definitely make another one.

Thought for the day: "No empty, used box is useless"

Flip Those Shoes-Round 2

Update: Well, I ended up ripping off the old fabric and giving this project another try. I used some old silver flats I had. I loved the green fabric used for the Make It-Love shoes, so I picked some up at Hobby Lobby- 30% off! And, waddya know...I DID IT! :)

Want to give it a shot?

Things you'll need:
Regular and Outdoor Mod Podge
Pair of old flats (or cheap flats you can usually find on clearance for $2 or so)
Fabric large enough to cover both shoes with some excess
Exacto knife
hot glue gun/glue
Patience!
Click on here for the tutorial for mod podge shoes at the Make It and Love It blog.

Have fun! Send me pictures of your creations!

Printable Gift Tags

Download and print gift tags!

Just click here to find a unique assortment of gift tag templates.

Branching Out

I've noticed that trees and branches are very popular in artwork and wall decor. I ran across a picture holder wall decor on the Pier 1 website that I really liked.

The simplicity of the swirling branches and leaves inspired me to try something new and pick up a black sharpie and try to copy the design onto some paper. I first tried it on some aqua-colored scrap paper, but I wasn't happy with how it turned out. So, I used a darker brown then framed it with an extra black 10"x 10"frame I had. It didn't cost me a dime, just took about 15 minutes.

Here's how mine turned out-

The Review: Quick and easy. May try making a larger picture, using different colors for the leaves.

Flip Those Shoes

I had a pair of white flats that I haven't worn in a year, but they are so comfy that I didn't want to part with them. So, I ran across the idea to mod podge fabric to them! I gave it a shot!

Here's how mine turned out-definitely not the greatest and I'll probably tear off the fabric and try it again. But it was a fun experiment! (Ignore the glue on the inside of the shoe.)








I found another pair of mod podge shoes at Recycled Lovelies-


The Review: I shouldn't have used the striped fabric. Colors and stripes were challenging to line up. I will apply a sealant to these to make them more weather-proof. There is an outdoor mod podge that would work too. I'm interested to see how long the fabric will stay down though.

A few thoughtful Shoe Quotes :)
"I still have my feet on the ground, I just wear better shoes."
Oprah Winfrey

"It isn't the mountain ahead that wears you out; it's the grain of sand in your shoe."
Robert W. Service

"The shoe that fits one person pinches another; there is no recipe for living that suits all cases."
Carl Jung

"You want to fall in love with a shoe, go ahead. A shoe can't love you back, but, on the other hand, a shoe can't hurt you too deeply either. And there are so many nice-looking shoes."
Allan Sherman