Redneck Baby Blanket

I went to a Baby Shower (who doesn't love those?) this past weekend. I was going to play it safe with a baby bath set or something off of her registry BUT I was feeling like I needed a project to do. So I figure I would make a soft baby blanket. I wanted to make it as unique and as special the new little blessing that is on the way. With Paige (momma) being a southern cutie I had to tie in the Mossy Oak Camo and little flair of pink since she is having a girl! I went to Joannes (which is now one of my favorite stores ever!!) and picked out the fabric. I did my homework by calling ahead of time to make sure they had what I was looking for. I know everyone carries the classic blotchy camo but I wanted the real stuff, twigs and all. I purchased a yard and a half to make sure it was big enough for the baby yet big enough for momma to cuddle with too. Next morning, I cracked down on making the blanket.

First, I started by layering the fabric one on top of the other. I started withe the camo on top but as I was cutting the strips it was harder to see with it being darker than the pink.

Can't forget my little helper!

Then I started cutting strips of both pieces of fabric. You will need make them sort of long so that you have enough room to tie them together.

The corners are a little tricky. You can either cut it like how I have in the picture or you can make the whole corner piece one big knot. I cut all the strips for one side then started to tie it.

To tie the pieces, take one strip of fabric from the top and the strip of fabric directly under it and tie a simple know. If you have enough room, you may want to double knot it just in case.

Keep repeating until you get all the sides done. Soon you will have a perfect blanket!

You can use any type of fabric and any material. I am a HUGE fan of the fleece on one side and another fabric on the other side. It contrasts well. Let me know how yours turns out!!

You Get What You Pay For

I have always been taught that you get what you pay for. Whether it's clothes, kitchen gadgets, toys, etc. Of course there is always the exception. For instance, when I was in school you had to wear American Eagle to be cool. I paid $25-$30 for 1 pair of jeans. Me being heavier set (I like to call it, juicay!), I wore holes in the jeans within a few months. My point is, I have a small beef with my camera. I might not have paid for it but I know how much it really was. I love my mom to death but I know that she would pay the cheapest amount possible to get what she wants. It is like the first generation digital camera. (Side note: I am extremely thankful that I even have a camera). It is soo slow and you can hardly take any semi-professional looking pictures. I would like to think I have the capability to take amazing pictures. During Holidays or Events it wasn't so bad. I may miss the initial reaction to someone opening a gift but with gifts the reaction lasts a good, solid 5 minutes. Therefore I could get away with it. But now that I am blogging (starting slow but working my way to making more posts) its harder to get the right lighting with my stupid flash that might as well be the brightest light from the Georgia Dome. (See my Scrapbook Post for my bad pictures). So even though I'm not necessarily in the market for a new camera it is still nice to dream. So this is what I found:

 

 Picture Borrowed from here

It is the Panasonic-Digital SLR 12.1 Megapixel Lumix Digital Camera. Now I have no idea what all that means. It does sound fancy though, right? I saw this one and it looked reasonably priced. Going to back to the whole "you get what you pay for" thing. I do not plan on being a professional photographer. I just want to act like one. I found this on Brandsmart USA's website for a whopping $718.88. Definitely not in the cards for us any times soon (again, I like to dream). Maybe I could upgrade to something like a faster digital camera. *Sigh* I guess I'll just have to wait.

Always remember kids...You get what you pay for!

Scrapbook Silhouette

So for my first project, I tried something really simple. Anyone and everyone can make it! All you need is scrapbook paper of your choice (preferably to go with your little one's room), a razor, a picture frame and a camera.

(Glue and pencil not included in the picture..oops!)

First take a side picture of your child(ren). Like so: It may take a few tries to get the right angle. Be sure you can clearly define their nose and lips. You can even add details such as the pony tail on a girl or spiky hair on a boy. Also try to take the picture in front of a plain wall or sheet so that you do not have any thing in the bac ground that may distract you or cut out the wrong parts.

Next you will have to get the picture developed or printed of the computer. It doesn't have to be a fancy, glossy picture since you will be cutting the picture anyway. My love, Chris, cut this out with his steady hand and did an amazing job. But anyone can do it. Just cut out the out line of his or her face. It doesn't have to be perfect. Can you imagine doing all the tiny hairs in her pony tail?! FYI-she was an awesome model! :)

And someone else was working hard on something else :)

Once this shape of the face is cut out, take your scrapbook paper and turn it over to the backside. Then trace the picture. You will want to do it on the opposite side so that you do no have any pen or pencil marks on the finished product. Be sure you know which way it will face when you turn it over, like a mirror effect. You can also get a piece of scrapbook paper big enough to try it a few times.

(Sorry, not a really good picture. I don't have the best camera in the world)

Next cut the second piece of scrapbook paper to fit the picture frame. Then past on the cut out piece of paper. You can center it, have it turned slightly, etc. You can get as creative as you like. You can even add different shaped objects such as trucks or hearts or stars, oh my! The great part about this silhouette picture is that it's not traditional so you can make it as crazy or as mellow as you would like.

And we can't forget Melania's beautiful artwork that she worked so hard on!

This is one of the funnest and simplest project ever. You can use an old frame around the house and left over scrapbook paper from another old project. Here is a break down of what it cost me to do this project.

• Picture Frame: $4.00 at Wal-Mart
• Printed Picture: $2.00 also at Wal-Mart
• Scrapbook paper: $0.00 from my niece who has a ton of scrapbook stuff
• Glue: $0.00 already had some from an older project but can be bought really cheap. I just used regular stick clue.
• Razor Blade: $0.00 we have a some stored away from Chris' work. I, honestly wouldn't know how much this costs. :(

I hope everyone has the opportunity to make this cute little decoration for your kids. You could even give this as a gift for birthdays or anniversary. It may get a little tricky to get the kids to take a picture without the parents knowing but it is definitely worth the struggle. Enjoy!