Amigurumi Whale

Amigurumi is the Japanese art of crocheting little stuffed animals. I tried my hand at it and made this cute little whale for my niece's first birthday. I saw it at the yarn store and I thought that my niece just HAD to have it!

I just learned how to crochet a couple of weeks ago and I was so proud of myself for finishing my first project! Now that I know the basics of crocheting, be prepared for some posts about it in the future! 

I must give credit where credit is due. Since I had just learned how to single crochet, I went back to the yarn store where I had taken a class and requested some help getting it started. I also needed a little help connecting the two flukes (1 fluke = half of a whale tail) but after that I was on a roll and finished it within a week. Thank you Bliss Yarns for all of the help and teaching me how to crochet!

This was a pretty inexpensive gift because it hardly even used half of a ball of yarn. Granted, I did not use the suggested yarn so mine turned out a little smaller than the pattern called for.

I absolutely loved crocheting this little animal. If you would like the pattern to make it yourself, you can find it for free here. It is really easy, especially if you are an experienced crocheter. I needed a little help getting it started but even for a beginner it was pretty simple once you get it going. Starting something new is exciting and addicting! I hope I encouraged all of you to try something new that you've always wanted to try!

Thanks for tuning in!

-K

11 DIY Gift Ideas For Big-Little Reveal

                      My absolute favorite part about sorority recruitment and bid week: Big-Little Reveal! Here are 11 gift ideas to surprise your little with on the big day!

              

Pictured: Me and my little during our big/little reveal! So much fun!

Pictured: Ideas 1-5

1. A personalized candy jar, filled with candy of course! I found a plain jar and decorated it with oil based paint pens. This is something that she can keep on her desk to get her through studying!

2. A framed scrapbook page: Perfect for any occasion but even more perfect for big little reveal. You can add pictures that you have taken together or leave the spots blank for pictures from this exciting day. 

***Find my How-To for the scrapbook page and the candy jar here.

3. A giant clothespin picture holder. It is a little difficult to see it in the picture, but I painted it red with black letters and gave it a little bedazzling, because everything can use a little sparkle! You can find this wooden gem at Michael's or Hobby Lobby (if you aren't protesting HL like I am!).

4. A painted initial. I had already gone with the navy/light blue for the scrapbook page, so I went the same direction with the letter. I found small wooden letters to put our sorority letters on this large initial. Add a ribbon and some bedazzling and voila, you're done.

5. Something personalized to put MORE candy in, because who doesn't like candy? I used this wooden tool box that I thought had a cute shape and could be put to good use. A wooden crate would be cute too! You can find an example of this here.

6. Decorated cupcakes: Delicious and cute. Our mascot is the ladybug so I decorated these cupcakes red with black dots. So cute and so fun! My little shared these with her floor mates and they loved them! (Or so she said ;))

Pictured: Idea #6

7. A pin board or dry erase board. You can choose one or the other, but both would be a little much. Remember, she has to have room for all of this in her dorm room! Keep it simple. You can find my post on these here.

Pictured: Idea #7

8. A picture/memory box for her to keep all of the little sorority stuff that she will receive over the next three or four years. It's also a good thing to put other littler gifts in. A post for the memory box is coming soon.

Pictured: ideas 8-9

9. Picture Coasters! Find my tutorial for these adorable coasters here.

Pictured: Idea #9

And finally a couple of ideas that are pretty typical with sorority girls:

10. Her first set of letters decorated any way you choose!

11. A pin box, decorated to the nines.

Pictured: Ideas 10-11

A lot of schools start formal recruitment in the fall, so I'm posting this a little earlier than when we start at IU. Big-little week is the craftiest time of the year for most sorority girls. These are just a handful of inexpensive ideas that are perfect for broke college students. All it takes is a little love and a lot of paint!

Go Greek!

-K

Disclaimer: All of the ideas pictured above can be decorated according to your Sorority. Any of these ideas can be used as gifts for birthdays or holidays. 

DIY Hair Bow Holder

My sister was looking for a hair bow holder for my goddaughter, and being the best godmother ever I decided to take matters into my own hands and make one for her!

Materials: Picture frame (I found mine at Michael's in the wood crafts section), paint (if necessary), command hooks, ribbon, stapler.

Time: < 2 hours

Step 1: Paint it!

I painted the frame white and the sides had a darker tone to it that I thought gave the frame some depth. I decided not to paint the sides and just paint the top (it was also just easier that way!). 

Step 2:

The next step is to measure, cut, and staple the ribbon to the frame at even widths along the frame.

I double stapled each one for extra support. Make sure it is tight enough so that the ribbon does not hang loose.

Step 3:

This frame is perfect to add an accent ribbon on the side. I double tied it to give it the butterfly look. Then I laced the ends through the sides of the frame.

Step 4:

Time to add the command hooks! I added them just below each ribbon. The command hooks are for round headbands.

Step 5:

I created this round nameplate to give more support to the hair bow holder. I twisted the ribbon to use as a hook instead of adding a picture hook or something more complicated.

That's it!

The final product:

This is the sweetest project, I loved making it for my little goddaughter! This is such a good gift for birthdays, baby showers, or any time of the year! It's a great decoration and space saver. I hope you enjoy!

Thanks for tuning in!

-K

Picture Coasters

This is my latest project. I made them as a gift for one of my best friends. These tile coasters are perfect for any type of gift or just for yourself! They turned out so much better than I ever imagined, I hope it works for you too!

Materials: Gloss Mod Podge (I used Matte but Gloss would work better); Krylon crystal clear acrylic coating (No. 1303); 4x4 inch tiles; felt; hot glue; scissors; paintbrush, pictures.

Total Time (including dry time): 3-4 hours

 

Step 1:

Use the paintbrush to paint mod podge onto the tile. Place the picture on the tile and make sure it does not go over the edge. Use scissors to cut the picture beforehand if necessary (Walgreens does 4x4 Instagram prints but my tiles were slightly smaller than 4x4 so I had to trim those down a bit). 

After that dries, apply two more coats of mod podge on top of the picture. Mod Podge works as a sealant and helps make the picture water resistant.

Step 2:

I decided the Mod Podge wasn't enough to seal the coasters, so I used Krylon's Crystal Clear Acrylic Coating to make it completely water resistant. I sprayed each of the coasters twice. Make sure to spray at an angle so that it does not drip onto the coaster (like mine did---shhhhh). 

Step 3:

Once the coating was dry I cut the felt in squares slightly smaller than the tiles. This way, it doesn't stick out and the tiles will not scratch any surfaces. This is an extremely important step in this project, otherwise your project would be photo tiles instead of coasters. Once I cut the felt, I used a hot glue gun to glue it to the bottom of the tiles. 

And You're done!

Here are some pictures of the final product:

Thanks for tuning in!

-K

Happy Fourth!

In honor of Team USA competing for the World Cup as well as the Fourth of July this week, I've decided to make a festive decoration that's perfect for any American themed party. Happy celebrating!

Materials: wooden crate, wooden stars, wooden letters, star candles, festive ribbon, RWB paint, paint brushes (preferably one small one medium sized--not pictured)

Time: 1-2 hours (including dry time)

I decided to paint the ends blue to put the stars on and the four rails every other red and white. I also painted the letters blue but left a little white for dimension and I painted the stars white. I used the small paint brush to get in between the cracks and the medium sized one

I used a hot glue gun to glue the letters and stars. I think it works better than craft glue or tacky glue. 

I put three stars on one end and three on the other although you cannot see the other side in the pictures, my apologies.

I thought these star candles were too cute to pass up! I put a couple inside the crate and a couple outside to light up the night. Side note: Michael's is currently having a sale on all Fourth of July decorations, I suggest you check it out if you are hosting a party or just love the Fourth.

And the final product:

I know it's been a few weeks since my last post, but I have some very special things coming soon that I can't wait to show you!

Thanks for tuning in!

-K