"Joy" Card

Sorry it's been so long since I've posted! It's been a busy week filled with swim lessons for Dyllan, Summer cleaning and prepping for Dyllan's 8th Birthday party this weekend. I have many projects and fun places to share with you, hopefully I'll be up to full speed next week. This card I made is titled "Joy". It's part of a year long, twice a month blog hop. You can see more of this cardand how I made it, Here.
Thanks for coming by and have a great weekend! :)

Patriotic Cottage Mini-Book

Here's a "peek" of a cottage mini-book I made. It's SO cute. I just love it! I made the cottage reversible. Can you believe that? From the cottage roof to all the adorable details...you just have to check it out!
Come see me today on The Robins Nest blog and prepare to be Inspired! :)

Home grown lettuce!

 I love how these leafy wonders can make this sandwich taste so much better than store bought lettuce!

So, what garden delights are you eating fresh from your garden?
Stay tuned... in a couple of weeks....Cucumbers!  :)

Window Art Mobile

Today I am featured over on The Amazing Mold Putty's blog!
There you will find a great tutorial on how you can make this "Window Art Mobile"!
Please come by and say hi!

Happy Strawberries!

Alpine, traditional and Ozark Beauty are all planted in one pot.

One of the best things about summer is picking fresh strawberries from our (patio) garden!
If there are only one or two...I usually munch on them while watering my plants. If there are more, Dyllan comes out to help harvest them to enjoy as a snack , on cereal or with his Daddy. :)

Festive Card - "Peace"

Sorry for the week long absence. Summer officially started here in our home on Monday, with play dates, swimming, $1 movies, relaxing ,vacation planning.... and so much more!
Here is a Festive card I created using The Robins Nest papers. Every 2nd and 4th Friday of each month, some of us post a Festive card to get you pre-inspired for Christmas. Visit The Robins Nest blog to see how I made this card and view more amazing creations!
~ Michelle

4th of July

I wanted to share photos with you from our 4th of July!

I dropped off our chairs and tarp to save our space early in the day. We saw many people we knew and enjoyed the evening with my friend Susan and her family. The local bands were great and the fire works even better!

I hope yours was a good one too! :)

And I'm Proud to be and American...

And I'm proud to be and American,

where at least I know I'm free.

And I wont forget the men who died,

who gave that right to me.

And I gladly stand up,

next to you and defend her still today.

‘Cause there ain't no doubt I love this land,

God bless the USA.

*See entire song lyrics here...

Painted Shoes- Summer Crafts!

Around here during the sumnmer, some of our favorte crafts are to decorate our T-shirts and canvas shoes.
The top shirt I made for Dyllan to wear on the 4th of July and the shoes below, I made for my self to wear anytime!

This Month the theme is Summer Crafts and below you can learn how I made both the shirt and the shoes.

To start, I used a plain white under shirt in Dyllan's size. Then I put a piece of wax paper inside the T-shirt. Next I put the bottom part of my largest loom inside the T-shirt, under the wax paper and attached the top part of the loom on the top of the T-shirt, tightning and stretching until I had a taut canvas.

Then I used the red and blue of Sharpie Stained Markers to make my design. What I love about these markers is their paint like fluid. Still I had to work slowly on the shirt as the fabric was thin and still stretched a bit as I worked. Putting a thin paper back book under the loom helped make a better work surface. I used a bit of Sharpie Turqouise to add some detail.

I can't wait to take photos of Dyllan wearing this on the 4th!

As you can see, the Sharpie Stained markers also come in a wide assortments of colors. But before I decorated the shoes I carefully untied the elastic holding the shoes together and discarded the the hanger. I cut the elastic cord in half and made two bracelets withese beads I found at a gargae sale for .50
They fit perfectly on Dyllan's hand for the 4th!

The only place you can find blank canvas shoes these days is Walmart and they usually are about $10.
But before you are ready to decorate your shoes, it's best to snip off with scissors any stray threads and maybe cover the white rubber around the base of the shoes with painters tape. The stained markers don't color it well. That way you'll have a clean finish to keep plain or decorate in design later with a standard sharpie.

If you have never done this before, draw up a mock shoe on paper and shetch out a design.
Or you can just go with the flow. Keep it simple and inbetween designs, do the same to the other shoe. This gives the paint a chance to dry. I found that if I did not let the Red dry completly, the black pen bled right into it.

For this shoe, I used a Red and Black Stained Sharpie and a Turquoise Sharpie.
In the inside of the shoe, the "tongue" I accented some of the stars with a Blue Sharpie.
You can find these markers just about any where. Target, Walmart, Office supply stores and Craft stores.
I like using the stained markers because you get a better flow of ink onto the canvas and right on the pen you can see the ink level.

Thanks for coming by, I hope you like my Summer Crafts creations! If you make any yourself...a T-shirt or shoes, please post here,  a link to your site so I can see your creativity! :)