Books and Things: craft

Showing posts with label craft. Show all posts

Monday, August 13, 2018

Crafty Catch Up

I made a few things lately and I thought I'd share.

First I made a Grace Travel Satchel* by RLR Creations (affiliate for pattern at Craftsy) for my mom:

The blue on the inside is ripstop and should be easy to clean. The loops on the inside is FOE (elastic) to hold her bottles and should be tall enough for full sized shampoo and lotion bottles. Zip in the front and both sides (hard to see) complete the satchel. It served her well.

I also made her a crossbody purse as she needed something light and easy to carry. I made a Triple Zip by Sew da Kine. She picked out all the bling and so I call it the golden dragon.

I added a credit card slip pocket but everything else was as the pattern was written. The zippers are "metallic" nylon which really makes it more fun. There are gold spots on the teal on the inside. Yep, this one is golden!

The last craft I am sharing is a tag collar I made for the big boy.

He goes through collars and isn't gentle with them (I have no idea how he goes through them!). I usually get him a leather collar (he likes leather... seriously) and I don't sew leather. I spied a tag collar on Etsy and thought I can do that! So I made him one. I have a d-ring on one side and a small lobster clip on the other. It can slip over his head but I thought I'd just give it that extra assurance I can get it off of him if needed. It is only a 1/2" wide and is secured with chicago screws. He seems to love it and it isn't heavy at all. I don't use his collar when I need to leash him so it works well. Monster pup has taken it off of him a couple of times but he just tells me and I go get it and slip it back on. I think I did good. LOL

So what crafty things have you done lately?

💠

*affiliate links have been noted

Wednesday, March 7, 2018

Arts and Crafts Post: Dog Sweaters

Well, this story starts with 2 short haired dogs. One I've been making coats for a while now. I swear manufactures do not believe that big dogs get cold. Dobermans are especially prone to being cold as their short coat is also not very thick. So, between my mom and I we came up with a coat pattern loosely based on a coat I did find that actually fits a Great Dane (he's big but not quite that big, but his chest is HUGE!). I made him one that he wears all the time and I needed to make more. I THOUGHT that the little monster pup was set as I FINALLY could buy one since her chest wasn't too wide and she was small (well, for me she seems small). So she got this sweater which I did NOT make but came from PetsMart:

Sweater from PetsMart (bought)

Isn't she adorable? Yea, looks can be deceiving. Actually she had this through at least 3 wearings which shocked me. After that 3rd wearing... it was put through a shredder.... or it looked like it was shredded. Yea, never trust a bored pup. LOL

So... I had a sewing machine... and I found a fleece blanket for $1 at Wal-Mart. It was small and a bit on the thin side for a blanket but perfect for what I had in mind. I found a free pattern and I had some black fleece on hand which was left over from a long ago project (which I recall I also got for a great deal). The pattern is from Mimi and Tara and is a mash up of the raglan dog sweater and the add-on hood (just click on the links to go to her posts on the patterns and yes, they are free).

The problem with the patterns is that there really isn't any instructions and I don't sew clothes. Luckily youtube came to the rescue and I figured out how to sew the raglan and the hood was easily figured out with the blog post Mimi and Tara had on her blog. I did add a cuff to the sleeves and because it was so long on her (it fit perfect otherwise) I added a small amount of elastic on the front of the sweater (stomach area) which also helped keep debris out of the inside of the hoodie.

And yes, there is already a hole after the 2nd wearing on the sleeve. There is now a patch there. LOL

The second one was much easier. It was like coats I used to make my dad's dog and only snaps on one side. This one is VERY easy to make and you could probably find something close to it on the web.

Second coat!

It was also made from a remanent fleece I found. I also don't put it on her that much as I do the other as she has more of a tendency to try to chomp on the back end of it more than the hoodie. Darn pup!

The big boy's coats

Of course I couldn't leave the big boy out and besides I needed to make him other coats so I can wash the one he loves. The blue one is a thick fleece and it wraps around his chest and is snapped on both sides. I added elastic to the chest piece (like I did on monster pup's coat) to keep it more fitted and debris out. I did the same with the rust coat. I didn't have much of this fabric so I used the fabric I had used on monster pup's hoodie for the collar. I made my $1 stretch! Monster pup is in the photo trying to undress the boy. She figured out the coat comes off from the snaps and now tries to unsnap him as much as possible. As you can see by how he ignores her, he is now used to it. LOL

I'll probably end up having to make more next year, but hopefully the monster pup won't shred them as quickly.

⛄

Wednesday, February 21, 2018

Really Late Craft Post: What I Made Over the Holidays

With all the craziness that happened over the holiday season, I did get a few things done. Nothing like I planned, but well... I guess you do get laughed at if you plan.

One I did get done was for my sweet 90 yr old friend.

These are done in the hoop on the embroidery machine. This one is from Lovely Leaf Applique (Etsy store) and the small tag was from Buggalena Embroidery. I made the large pouch with a D ring attached to the ribbon on the side and made the wristlet strap on my regular sewing machine. The smaller pouch just has a swivel hook on the end of the ribbon. All this was done with scrap fabric!

The next one I got done was a towel for a cousin who just got married.

The embroidery file was from Hoop Mama Designs (and was free during the season but is no more but available for purchase at her website). The towel was a microfiber towel. Blue and Yellow (or gold in this case) taken from the colors of her wedding.

A couple of other projects rounds it out...

Eye mask:

This was actually a play mask from Ohana Applique Designs but changed it quite a bit for my eye mask. I flipped the eyes to look closed (a little bit more wrangling than that, but you get the idea) and then made the front from felt and quilting fabric and the back was made with satin. It is then filled with smooth tiny beads for a cooling and relaxing feel.

Trinket tray

I don't know the designer for the tray (I got it free) but the letter design at the bottom of the tray is from Designs by JuJu. It can be unsnapped flat or partially snapped for a partial tray or fully snapped for a full, but small tray.

Lastly...

I made myself some pattern weights. The top two were from Buggalena Designs. It was made differently than I did as it required you to use non-fray fabric, but I thought that if I flipped it a bit while making it I could make it out of quilting cotton and have no raw edges. The one that says Pins is also a pin cushion. All have metal washers (get at a farm store) to create the weight. The 3 underneath are smaller and I used other designs I had on hand. The back is foldover elastic (which is part of the original design) to keep things in place and to give something to hold onto. FYI, I used unicorns, peacock feathers and star wars characters since you probably can't see them clearly. The horn on the unicorn is iridescent scale vinyl and the ears are glitter vinyl.

So have you been crafty lately?

Wednesday, November 1, 2017

Holiday Post: Halloween!

Hope everyone had a good Halloween!

Thought I'd give you a quick look at how monster pup dressed.

Pic taken by Terri at PetCo

If you can't tell, she is a Gryffindor student! I made her costume with a toddler's shirt (I really needed a larger one as she barely fit when it was time to wear it! I swear it fit when I tried it on her when I finished... one week ago!). I did eliminate the hood as it would have been a chew toy. I also made her a collar, leash and poo bag to go with the outfit.

A better look:

The collar and leash say "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good" and the poo bag says "Mischief Managed".

Heh... I think I was the only one who laughed at that. *sigh* LOL All are done in glitter canvas and I'll see how it all holds up over time.

The big boy didn't dress up so he was saved that humiliation but was ready to share any treats she got. I did take her to PetsMart where they were having a photograph with a big costumed pup (guy in costume) but she took one look at him and noped it out of there. I didn't force it. She needs more bravery so that is why I put her in that house... although she is cunning enough to be in Slytherin. LOL Yea, I put too much thought in it but it is all in fun.

Hope you all had a safe and fun holiday!

🎃

Monday, October 30, 2017

Arts and Crafts: Memorial Pillow and New Sling Bag!

If you have been around the blog this year, you know I lost one of my puppers. She was a sweetheart and LOVED to wear scarves. I got her into it as she was jelly of my other dog wearing coats (dobies are notorious for hating the cold and have a thin coat). She was a malamute (translation: fur, upon fur upon fur, upon... well you get it) so a coat for her would have been cruel. I decided that perhaps she would like a scarf instead and thus was born an obsession where she hated to go a day without one. She was sad when one was taken off (or walked off depending on how dirty she got it) and was elated when a new one was tied around her neck. Since she was my cousin's dog first and my aunt knew about the obsession I created, I decided to do some memory pillows out of her scarves. One for me and one for my aunt. I made hers first and still have to find the courage to make mine. Anyway, short story long here is the pillow:

This is actually a in the hoop embroidery design from Sweet Pea. You make each section and then sew them together. The grey and the black with paw print fabrics were my base and the rest were parts of her scarves she wore. Hopefully my aunt will get it soon.

And speaking of puppy crafts...

I needed a bag to carry my essentials for puppy classes for the monster pup. I didn't want to end up carrying too much so I took a small bag pattern I had and made it smaller. :) Just enough to fit essentials and my epi pens. This is the Speedwell Sling Bag by Blue Calla Patterns.

I would say this pattern is an intermediate one but the directions are clear so if you are up to it, I say try it even if you are a beginner. My biggest problems is that I reduced it by 15% so some of the details were a bit harder, but it was still doable. The parts I added was a zipper pocket in the back compartment for my epipens. I also lined it with insul-fleece by Pellon. That way my epipens stay at a more consistent temperature. Epipens should not be out in hot weather and never leave them in a car. Hopefully that addition will keep my medical supplies safe as possible.

I also added one of my charms and an embroidered note. If you are noticing the zipper, I added 2 metal zippers and crossed them at the top so it zips up on both ends to the top. I learned a lot about zippers with this one and a previous project. I'm becoming quite knowledgeable about them. More than I wanted to know, in fact! LOL I also added snaps to the pockets to keep things separated. The pocket was exactly the right size for the epipens and I couldn't have gone any smaller. The bag is not big as it is written either (so it would be good for those not wanting a big bag).

I also added card slots in the front section. Your cards go "sideways" to fit. That way I created 6 slots and a pocket in the back. The original pattern just had the slip pocket. The zippered section is also part of the pattern. I did reduce the grommets to 1/4" instead of 1/2" to fit the ascetics. The grommets are so you can put earphones or electronic cords through. You can still get the earphones to go through it, but you have to slip it through with the plug end. The earphone section will not fit through it but I felt that wasn't needed in my case. I did add charms for bling and the front 2 charms on my bag each represent my 2 dogs. Also, the glitter on the bag is a glitter canvas and not glitter marine vinyl. I have a domestic machine which is good on most things but I still have to watch the thickness. A good canvas backed glitter with a think vinyl coating worked well here and should also wear well.

While this bag isn't recommend for a beginner, I do think that someone who hasn't been sewing long could tackle this bag easily. It looks harder than it is and this was the first time I put together a bag where you use a seam binding. It was much easier than I thought it would be and because of the binding there was no saggy lining.

Hope this inspires you to tackle your projects!

🎒

Monday, October 9, 2017

Art Book Post: Everyday Watercolor by Jenna Rainey

Genre: Art Instruction
224 p.
Publisher: Watson-Guptill
Published: 10/10/17
Source: NetGalley and publisher for review

A contemporary paint-every-day watercolor guide that explores foundational strokes and patterns and then builds new skills upon the foundations over the course of 30 days to create finished pieces.

This beautifully illustrated and inspiring guided watercolor-a-day book is perfect for beginning watercolor artists, artists who want to improve their watercolor skills, and visual creatives. From strokes to shapes, this book covers the basics and helps painters gain confidence in themselves along with inspiration to develop their own style over the course of 30 days. Featuring colorful contemporary art from Mon Voir design agency founder and Instagram trendsetter Jenna Rainey, this book's fresh perspective paints watercolor in a whole new light.

My thoughts:

This is probably one of the best beginning watercolor books that I have come across in a long time. I really like how it breaks down skills and puts it in easy to understand format. I would love to see an accompanying video since watercolor is a visual art. I think that it would also be helpful to grasp the concepts much easier. However, once you do the exercises one or more times it should become more clear in what skill the book is trying to impart. For those new to this art, I would suggest taking each project as it comes in the book. The skills build upon the other.

For more advanced artists, the earlier exercises might seem too simple, but it is also good to go back to the beginning and just practice. You should be able to fly through those first chapters or skip around in this case. The last projects were you put the pictures together would probably be more interesting here and I do like how her simple and bright washes keep the paintings clear and high value. Makes the art look very fresh and it seems to be a trend in the watercolor illustration market.

In conclusion, I give this art book 4 stars. I would recommend this book to someone wanting to try watercolor and some good practice for those that have been painting for a while.

🎨

Wednesday, September 27, 2017

Something Strange is Going on Here...

You may have noticed that the blog is going under some cosmetic changes. I've wanted to change it for a long time now and make it more my own. I finally got a good stylus and so I don't feel like I'm drawing with my elbow. That is why I stuck to simple changes and things that were easily manipulated. Now I'm learning how to use Procreate (a great little program that only costs a few bucks at the iTunes store). I have a lot to learn, but I have had fun and decided to replace some things. I do hope you like!

Change in the blog header:

I think this will reflect better the direction it is going. I also could not put my pup somewhere in the header. The little monster would have made it but I started designing it before I had her. I also thought it would be too crowded but I may put the monster in a post header. Not sure yet.

Some of my post headers will have changed:

You've seen this one already and I have more coming. I may end up tweaking it here or there so I will share as I get to them. Some are already up on the meme page.

I also changed my button. The other picture is still active so it won't reflect the change until you use the one I've provided. Thank you for those that have used it.

Oh and speaking of buttons. I only have a couple of people who haven't moved from photobucket and I think the rest are updated. I hope I haven't missed anyone. If I have, I apologize.

Yea, I already see things I want to change but I think I will leave it until I get more done or if it bothers me too much. Whichever comes first. LOL

Well, I do hope you like the direction the blog goes. I know not everyone will love what I will post but you never know when something may suddenly seem interesting. Here's hoping!

💐

Monday, September 25, 2017

Arts and Crafts: Annette Bag with Accessories

First, I want to say thanks for those still sticking around while I change a few things. I really appreciate it. 💝

As you see I have a new header for the arts and crafts post and it may get tweaked... or not. LOL I'm still playing around with other things to change the look in the blog. Hope you like it.

Well, it has been quite a while since I've done one of these posts in what I created. I'm going to catch up one day. I have a few things I still need to photograph. I will share one I did for my mom back in May. Yea, it's been a while.

This is the Annette Handbag (affiliate link) with a Necessary Clutch Wallet (affiliate link) a Zig Zag eyeglasses case (affiliate link), a Small Tissue holder (affiliate link, but this one is free), and a dog lip balm holder from Nana's Handmade Baby Embroidery Designs. I'll go more into the details below.

The Annette Handbag by Swoon Patterns*. The floral blue panel is made from a obi sash that I got from ebay (you can get some good bargains if you are patient). I think that was the 3rd one she chose that I didn't get outbid or go over my bargain price. I also used an alternative leather that is also eco friendly on the sides and handle of the bag. Cork from Sew Sweetness* has become a popular fabric and it was the first time I sewed on it. If you try it, use a slightly longer stitch and don't overstitch since the fabric perforates but also don't overworry it. Backstitching (which is not recommended in leather is no problem here. I also used a cotton batik for the pop of color on the inside which my mom picked out. It makes it a bit fun. I also added a bit of twill blue to cut down on the bulk in the cork in the handles and it also matched perfectly. the side pockets and side panels inside are also lined with the blue twill.

I changed a few things from the pattern. My mom isn't much of a handbag person and likes the shoulder strap length. This pattern comes with the mesurments for the handles at hand length and a way to connect a removable shoulder strap. I just added inches to the handle portion and it was an overall 28" each if I remember correctly. It was nice to sort of measure it before I made it since my mom knew she was getting this one. I also got the long john handle metal holders from Emmaline Bags. The overlay included in the Annette pattern is beautiful but would have covered the floral pattern too much. This was a happy medium. I also added a key lanyard I stitched into the lining so she could attach something that she may have to pull out of the purse easily (I usually put my keys or wallet at the end of it). The other thing I changed was the small flower at the end of the zipper. This was a zipper end that I machine embroidered from Stitch Soup and then glued on the end.

I also added some chicago screws you can get in most craft or leather craft stores. The small detail of the handmade tag (Emmaline Bags) and the love you charm (buggalena embroidery) were the finishing touches to the bag. I was not done with her pressie, however.

The Necessary Clutch Wallet* by Emmaline Patterns was the wallet I made to go with her bag. I had made one for her before and she loved it and wanted one to match. I had a small scrap of the silk obi left but I thought it was a bit plain. I but this butterfly out of a embroidery file and stitched it on the silk. As long as the silk is stabilized properly (I did with SF 101) and I used cutaway in my hoop. I changed the flap by squaring it out and using a magnetic snap. The inside mimics the bag and I secured the sides with smaller chicago screws. The outside of the wallet is cork.

Zig Zag Eyeglasses Pouch* by Moments Designs was the next project. This one actually opens up flat which I thought would be great if she wanted to stow it away when not in use. I embroidered another butterfly in the same file I used in the one on the wallet and in the same color. I also used the same file from Stitch Soup for the zipper end. Of course, I also added a zipper charm to top it off. The hardest part of this one is making sure the zipper is solidly on and doesn't slip. Also closing felt a bit tricky so I did use some basting glue to make sure it didn't move in the final stitching. However, if you want to try this one, don't worry about it and go for it. It actually was easier to do than I thought and it even surprised me in how quickly it came together. This is a fun one I will do again in the future.

Last but not least was the small additions I added to the overall pressie. The tissue bag was quickly whipped up with some batik material I had (from the bag and the blue is from another project). She had also asked for a balm holder (from Nana's Handmade Baby Embroidery Designs) like what I made myself so I had some better tan vinyl so I added that to the present. (The links for those products under the group photo).

*whew* I guess now you know where I disappeared! Not really since I did these in May but I can still claim it, right?

Well, I think I now need to get busy on some holiday projects as a few personal ones. I also have to get busy in taking some pics.

Hope you enjoyed!

🎁

Bloggy note: Affiliate links are either identified directly or by a *. Not all links are affiliate links and I tried to identify all project pattern makers.

Friday, September 1, 2017

Craft Alert: Watch All Day Craft Classes Monday at Craftsy for FREE! (Affiliate Post)

I won't be around much blogging today (due to life and the need to deal with it. I will visit your blogs soon, promise!) and I didn't want to wait to post this so I had to give you a heads up on a great deal at Craftsy! Can I say FREE? 👀

They are teaming up with Cricut to give you free access to ALL their craft classes for one day only! So mark Sept 4th on your calendar! You do have to be a member but the membership is always free. Just click HERE (it's my affiliate link) to go to the page to either sign up or check out all the goodies! You can also click on the pic below (same affiliate link) to go to the same page. Have fun!!

🖌

Wednesday, August 23, 2017

What a month!

Ah, I've been silent again, but for good reason.

I had a whole post on what my dogs put me through (they are all fine now but seriously dogs...), my health, and Charlottesville. While I was writing it out I realized I really didn't want to talk about all of that. Since Charlottesville I've been angry and tired and let me just say it... racism is bad. How do some people not get that? Even though I was not surprised that violence has happened but what did surprise me is that it has become personal in a way I didn't expect. I won't reveal the specifics but I will state that I have no problems standing with my convictions but it did make me angry. I only wanted to state that since I KNOW I'm not the only one going through it and I want anyone out there to know they are not alone. So many more people are speaking out against racism. Racism has always been there, it will be there after this section in history but we can do what we can to lessen it's impact for future generations. I have no problem believing it will happen because so many people are saying no. It is good to see and hold onto that.

Now I'm switching gears (but know you just got a virtual hug from me)...

I just became a affiliate for Craftsy.

I have used this site for quite a while. I often buy patterns or videos from this site when they are on sale. I can now let you know so if you are interested you can get in on the sales. Yep, I'm trying to do more crafting. I'm also previewing a lot of videos for them so hopefully I'll get to share those as well for you. I've been a bit behind where I want to be due to personal issues but hopefully will get to writing those things down.

I am also getting more involved in dog nutrition and training. I have to write some reviews on this and will hopefully have them soon.

It will be a bit before I'm back into full swing, but thanks for sticking around! I hope I end up having something here you will enjoy.

Hope your day gets better (even if it is great, I want it to get even better!) since I think we all deserve it right now.

💝

Wednesday, July 26, 2017

Arts and Crafts (and Entertainment): Dog Harness and NetFlix

...and a bit of movies and shows as well...

I actually have a few crafts I need to post but because I'm behind and have a few things to work out before I post most of them so this will be short. I do have one I would like to share that I just completed.

I made a pup harness!

I put an extra D ring on the front to make it a no pull harness. Will see if it works soon. It is also an no choke harness as well. She needed another one and I made this one so I could wash the one I had on her. LOL

Here she is modeling the harness. She is growing! Her face is starting to elongate a bit and now I can see more of the shepherd that she is supposed to have in her. Still looks nothing like one though.

I have also been catching up on a few movies from time to time. Finally saw Moana (and now it has been in the background now and again... LOL) and I also finally saw Kubo and the Two Strings.

I knew about this one a long time before it came out because Toby Froud (yes that Toby from Labyrinth) worked on the film and I saw a bit of it while in production. If you haven't seen it yet, you should.

I also got my mom into Sense8 and about the time I knew she would be hooked they announced that it would be cancelled. I warned her but she had already been hooked enough to continue and by the time it was over she was cursing with me about Netflix stopping production. Soon after it was announced that there would be a 2 hr ending in the works and it should be available next year. *whew*

I also have been getting into Wynonna Earp. It is a campy-ish sci-fi show with demons and other odd characters. It is fun and I'm just in the first season. It comes on the Sci-Fi channel but the first season is on NetFlix.

Hope everyone is doing well! I'm going to try to catch up on my blogging and blog visiting one day soon...

🐕

Wednesday, July 5, 2017

What's Going On? AKA Why I've been a bit MIA...

In some ways this is going to be a hard post to write. I was tempted to just go with some shows I've been watching but I'm going to tear the bandaid off and just get to it.

In May I lost a member of my family. My sweet girl. You've only seen her a few times on the blog and she was very loved. She was only 13.

My Sweet Girl

She was an Alaskan Malamute and I got her when my cousin passed. He had 2 and his mom couldn't take care of both where she was going to live (she lived with him previously) and his brother could only take one. She did not get along with either of my parents dogs and when my big pup worked his magic, she accepted him as her minon. She got a bit nervous as he grew but he had no problems accepting her as his queen. They got along famously. In fact if he got scared she came running to make sure he was okay. She was his rock in life. I can't share more or I'll cry again.

She left a huge hole in the house and my big pup really got depressed. So much so I started to worry. I had always intended to get someone for him to play with since my sweet girl couldn't with her arthritis and pain especially in the last year. She didn't care for other dogs so I wouldn't stress her out with another dog. However, I knew my big pup would need a companion of the puppy persuasion sooner rather than later. As his depression got deeper (even my mother commented on it) I knew I had to look for a dog sooner than I had intended. It was too soon for me, but I just needed to get over myself. So I started looking for female who was either a doberman pinscher, a pittie (as sometimes they are hard to place), or a black dog. All rescues if you were wondering but no judgement here because I only care that you provide a good forever home for it once you get an animal.

Then I saw...

Pictures from EAPL

and

Pic from EAPL

With that face I knew I found the perfect one to drive me and the big boy crazy for the next few months. I figured a pup would be best to easier get them together or otherwise I'd have to pick something closer to home for more than one "get to know me" session. Sadly, I didn't see one that looked to be compatible nearby.

The monster... I mean pup *cough* 😜 was from the Evergreen Animal Protection Services who gets dogs from shelters in CO and neighboring states into foster homes for adoption. She was the last of her litter to go (black dogs don't often get picked). She is a Shepard mix (momma was a Shepard mix and daddy was a high fence jumping salesman). The big boy simultaneously loves and is annoyed with her. I expected that, but he isn't depressed!

Before the pup was picked up to go to her forever home, I did whip up something for the little monster... uh... pup. The font is small and I added a paw prints design which I combined in a program for machine embroidery. I tinted some muslin fabric with a fabric paint (just slightly to give it a bit of an aged look) before I embroidered on it. I then put it on top of some nylon webbing and made the collar.

I didn't realize how accurate this would be...

And her sporting it on a rare down time...

Everything wasn't totally smooth sailing as I did have some problems allergy wise. However, I have found it can be remedied by what you feed and bathe dogs in (Side note: I have a cousin who has a an allergy to dogs but has very little problems with my dogs). She had a med quality puppy food they were feeding her which wasn't exactly bad, but obviously not compatible with me. I carefully looked around (dogfoodadvisor.com) and found one that was "clean" and simple ingredients out of all the ones this brand had. I also trust the company and had researched it previously and it didn't seemed to have changed since the last time I looked at it (Merrick if you were wondering). My allergies cleared up shortly and I think she even feels better with the change. Now she is more of a handful than ever. LOL If you are wondering my big boy is on a homemade diet due to his specific medical problems.

She is now 3 months old and is already learning sit and come with pretty good accuracy. That can be a good thing and and bad one. It tells me she is smart but hopefully I can keep up. We will see (help me? LOL).

I'll always miss my sweet girl and nothing will keep me from missing her a lot, but the new pup (which I'm not unconvinced she didn't send to me to keep me on my toes) will help with the sadness. She is not a replacement but an addition to the family. She has already helped my boy who is having fun playing with her and watching her drive me insane. INSANE!

So I've been preoccupied at the moment, but it is nice that it isn't all bad news (I think). Now I have to go yell at a pup who just got something she shouldn't have gotten....

🐶

Wednesday, April 12, 2017

Arts and Crafts Pinspiration: Electronic Charging Station

I actually became inspired by a pin in Pinterest on making an electronics charging station. Here is the pin and my result...

This was the pin by Design Sponge I was inspired by:

There were a few things I changed and this was my result:

Sorry for the lighting, but it was the best I had at the last moment and where I have it, it is too dark for pics. I still need to set up a spot to take better pics, until then, please bear with me.

The case is something my mom got me a million years ago from Hobby Lobby when they were on sale (I have no idea if they still have these) to store things in but I thought it would be perfect for this project.

I used grommets for the opening in the back like the pin suggested. It was a good sized opening and I'll be able to not only fit the large plug from the surge protector power strip, but I'll also be able to thread wires back out for those things that I wouldn't put in the box.

Back of box

The headphones were attached to a shower hook that I had which fits semi-securely on the top (not for a lot of movement, but stationary it will be fine). The box can be closed (without hook) just like it came.

Front of box

The part where I deviated the most was the place where I will lay my ereader on. In the pin they had you use white peg board and it already had a place to lay this top piece. I just glued (Gorilla wood glue and a couple of small clamps) a couple of 1 1/2" boards cut to the side areas for my shelf just under the metal pieces they had to give the case stability. I then used foamcore cut to the size of the shelf (cutting a section out for the hinge so it didn't interfere with that area), minus the 1 1/2" board in the back for a bit of extra stability, added one layer of batting on top of that and then hot glued the fabric on top of it and then added a piece at the bottom to make it look nicer even though you won't see it. The fabric I used is a very thin microsuede I got from the remnant section at Joann's (hint: the remnants are usually 50% off and if you find the fabric in in a section that is on sale, you get that % off as well). Also, because I used foam core and the box isn't completely square in the front, I have a small space which I can thread my wires through to the items that need to be charged. I did add a small tab so I can easily lift it to sort things out in the storage area.

inside which shows the glued shelf and where the cords are going. Ignore the extra wood piece..

Hope you liked my wordy explanation! 😊

So this is my pinspiration! Have you done any projects from Pinterest?

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