Buttons…!
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I LOVE buttons! In fact, who doesn’t love buttons…?!
Here is my Top 10 list of things to make with lovely buttons:
- Bracelets
Theses ones here from Hope Studios need very little in the way of other materials, and there is a great tutorial to have a go yourself
- Coasters
How about these quirky woven button coasters? Complete with a how-to from Linda Permann at Craft Stylish
- Bowls
There are quite a few ‘button bowls’ on Pinterest, but most have them have very vague instructions-this is the best tutorial I have found-from Kumquat and Junebug. Go on, give it a go…
- Christmassy things
Christmas is coming. Well, not really, but you can never start too early…..So here is the obligatory wreath like this one from Craftapalooza
- Wall Art
These button monograms from Create Share Inspire would make lovely gifts
- Cushions
You can use buttons to embellish cushions in all sorts of different ways.
A variation on the monogram frames is to make a mongrammed cushion like this one here from Better Homes and Gardens
- Paperweights
How about this amazing button paperweight from Lil Blue Boo? Made using resin, which I’ve never worked with before, but these look great and I am very tempted to have a go.
- Lampshades
I really like this lampshade from She Dreams Big-there is no how-to but I guess it is reasonably self-explanatory, you just need a LOT of time and patience and buttons..
- Stamps
You can make some fun stamps to print buttons onto cards and gift tags a la Martha Stewart (I can’t find the link on the website anymore, but they look pretty straightforward-botton+cork+glue gun…)
- Magnets/pins
I recently made some fridge magnets using scrabble pieces and old buttons-it is easy peasy, you can read all about it here
Now if that little lot doesn’t inspire you to go and raid your Granny’s button tin, then nothing will!
And just in case you want some more ideas, here is the link to my Pinterest Buttons board!
Textile Pottery
I’ve long been a fan of bowls, cups, saucers and coasters that are made of porcelain, but are made in the form of knitted textures or lace impressions.
I’ve no idea how you can make a mould from something that is made of a floppy fabric, but they are beautiful works of art.
Last year I found this set, which I bought for my mum’s 60th birthday and designer Clare Gage has some beautiful items.
Click Image for source http://www.notonthehighstreet.com/claregage/product/cup_and_coaster_gift_set
There is also a designer called Annette Bugansky who makes amazing bowls and cups too, but also tealights and lamps.
Click image for source: http://www.annettebuganskydesign.com
Obviously these pieces are made by real artisans and not something that us eager pinners can knock up at the weekend. However, I have found something which I think is a rather decorative contender for the diy crafter.
Click image for source: http://www.urbancomfort.typepad.com
These have been created by covering a ceramic cup/bowl/vase with lace fabric. The tutorial here gives detailed instructions and photographs. I’ve added it onto my ‘must do’ craft list. I’ll be on the look out for some lovely embroidery anglais to have a go with.
Toilet roll stamps
My toddler is a real handful at the moment. Because we’ve just moved house he missed out on a place at nursery and has to wait until September to start. That means we’ve been turning to Pinterest *a lot* to find suitable activities to keep him busy.
One of our favourite activities is making stamps from toilet roll tubes. It’s easy, with an immediate visible result and satisfies the toddlers need to paint.
We raided our recycling box for toilet roll tubes and took out three. I cut slits about one inch from one end of the tube, folded them outwards, then cut each piece to make petal shapes. Then I let him loose with a paint tray and selection of paints.
Perfect messy fun for my 3 year old. If you need any inspiration then check out my special crafty inspiration Pinterest board for a 3 year old.
My name is Jenny and I can also be found at the gingerbread house.
10 (almost Free) things to do with Kids this Summer!
Can you tell I’ve just returned from a weekend away at the beach? Cornwall to be exact. Yes, I’m already scouring Rightmove to see if we can live there. I FELL.IN.LOVE.
It got me thinking about how focused my children are on technology. I know the weather is against us most of the time, BUT I didn’t see one child on a phone/tablet/x-box once over the weekend. There has GOT to be other, HEALTHY things for our kids to do. With 6 weeks of summer hols looming, I’m getting my act together now .. so I present you with..
10 (almost FREE) things to do with the kids this summer!
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I drew this on my 7 year olds hand a couple of weeks ago, and it kept her entertained for nearly an hour! Simple, but she loved it! Draw a trampoline and a stick man as shown, then move your hand to make the man jump!
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T-Shirt bangles – my teen will love making these!
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Fun pegs – the possiblities are endless! I suppose you could do these with paper, felt, card… whatever you have lying around!
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Books…. I LOVE to read. I love to visit the library. I LOVE the smell of new books. I know – that’s a bit weird. I really need to set an example to my sprogs and put the laptop away and read more books. It’s ON my summer bucket list. ON.
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Make ‘Sky’ cocktails. Blue jelly and whipped cream. DONE.
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Make a fairy garden…. awesomeness. ’nuff said.
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Have a water fight. We’ve had SO much fun running around the garden on hot summer days, each armed with a plastic water gun from Poundland. Fun, Fun, Fun.
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Start writing to a penpal. Remember the excitement of receiving a letter from the postman? A REAL, handwritten letter? This wonderful idea comes from Eighteen25 – a Penpal kit to send to your penfriend. Too cute!
You know you’re a 90′s kid when……..
Do it. YouTube it. Learn it. Teach the kids.
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Toddler Approved Balloon Tennis. Plastic knife, balloon, paper plate – bash around the garden. You may NEED a water fight to cool off after this one.
I hope you’ve been inspired to have some good, wholesome, cheap, healthy fun this summer – what are your plans? Have you written a blog post on Summer Fun? Leave your link in the comments section if you have, we’d love to check it out.
Here’s hoping we have a Summer filled with lots and lots of Sunshine !
Happy Monday!
Kerry x
Fabulous Craft Book Giveaway!
There is a fabulous craft book giveaway over on the Sew Scrumptious blog at the moment. I have reviewed the lovely ‘Mastering the Art of Embroidery’ by Sophie Long. Sophie worked on Kate Middleton’s wedding dress for her marriage to Prince William.
Its a lovely book which covers hand embroidery and machine embroidery.
with lots of lovely photos of embroidery work
Lots of inspiration for adding embroidery to your own projects 
If you would like to read the full review and have a chance to win a copy of this book, pop over to the Sew Scrumptious blog and leave a comment! The giveaway ends on Tues 21 May 2013 at 7pm. (UK entries only I’m afraid).
Crock Pot Orange Chicken
I am always looking for new recipes for dinner to keep things interesting 
I recently came across this and couldn’t wait to make it.
Here are your ingredients:
8-10 boneless chicken breasts. I use thinly sliced cut into small pieces as they cook faster
1 Tbs Salt
2 Teaspoons balsamic vinegar
6 Tbs ketchup
6 oz frozen orange juice concentrate
8 Tbs brown sugar
Cayenne Pepper (Sprinkled over the chicken)
S & P to taste
1/2 cup of flour (to coat chicken)
First start by cutting seasoning your chicken and then cutting it into pieces. Coat the chicken in the flour and put into oil in your hot pan.
Don’t cook the chicken all the way through as it will cook in the crock pot.
Add chicken to your crock pot.
Take your salt, vinegar, ketchup and brown sugar and mix it in a bowl.
Take your orange juice and melt in the microwave (unless already thawed)
Mix both together and pour into the crock pot to cover the chicken
Cook on high for 1.5 – 2 hours or on low for 3-4.
I put it over rice and here you have it…
It was delicious, I ended up having a second plate at 10:00pm last night!
Checkout my other recipes on my blog!!
Dress A Girl Around the World
You may not know this, but fellow Pinaddicts Crew member Louise (aka Sew Scrumptious) is the UK co-ordinator for a charity called Dress A Girl Around the World.
The idea behind the charity is that people make simple pillowcase dresses which are then delivered to girls living in poverty in the developing world. Girls in countries like Uganda, Rwanda, Haiti and India. The charity feels that every girl should own at least one pretty dress.The simple act of making a dress from a pillowcase (or other fabric) can have profound implications for the girls who receive them:
- It gives them some dignity
- It shows them that they are worthy of love
- And it helps protect them from predators-if they are wearing a good quality dress with the Dress a Girl label on the outside, this indicates that an organization is looking after them and just maybe a predator will pass them over.
This Saturday, I got together with a fellow crafter and we organised a sewing day making dresses for the Dress A Girl Around the World Project.
We had the most amazing day! I was astounded at the number of people who turned out and gave up their precious time to make dresses. And we made 34 altogether!
Here are some pictures:
Supplies at the ready….
The first finished dress!
Big smiles!
Great job girls!
The finished dresses-we ran out of hangers and space-but there are 34 there!
In case you want to have a go too, all of the information you need is on the Sew Scrumptious blog. There is more information about the charity and some links to patterns here, the armhole templates are here, and the pattern instructions that we were using on Saturday were from are from an article Louise wrote for Simply Homemade magazine and are here!
PS. I realise this is nothing to do with Pinterest, but why not pin the dresses on to your Pinaddicts Challenge board, and then make one for this months Challenge…!
