Some of my favorite creations

I enjoy making crafts but honestly I also really enjoy having the end product and being able to look at it and think, "I did that!"  I realized as I was working on making gifts to give to my children's teachers on 'meet the teacher' night, that I have very few pictures of the things that I make and then give away! My plan is to use this as a place where I can store pictures of my crafts and favorite things.

 I guess I should first tell you before you start to think I'm all super creative that I get almost all of my inspiration from other people's creations.  Have you seen this new 'Pinterest' site?  I think I am in love. I have so many new ideas now that I spend half my life 'pinning'.  I am in now in danger of spending all of my time 'pinning' versus actually making anything!  Crafts and looking at crafts (etsy please!) are therapeutic to me.  Yes, I will take a Bailey's on the rocks and a Mary Englebright catalog any day over television.

Here are a few of my favorite things in no particular order :-)


Teacher Gifts
These are the teacher gifts (also known as please love my child like I love my child gifts) that I made yesterday.  I think they are adorable and what teacher can't use some school supplies and sugar?

I started with a plastic bead storage box from a craft store.  I added ribbon, scrapbook paper, stickers, supplies and wa-lah!  There you have it! 


A wall display of my children's art
We got a new couch the other day and it was screaming for something interesting to hang above it.  I knew I wanted to incorporate my children's art into the room's decoration. 

I installed (okay, I had my husband install) the two curtain rods.  Their art is inside plastic paper sheet holders.  They are really easy to switch in and out and the kids are so proud to see their work displayed.  The squares are just random squares that I covered in wrapping paper.  I'm not sure why wrapping paper, I just didn't have any fabric laying about.  I am thinking that I could use different paper to mix it up depending the season or my mood!


The living room photo wall
This isn't really something that I 'made' but it took me forever to get the pictures up there how I wanted so I think that it counts.  Three cheers for Uppercase Living (http://uppercaseliving.com/).  I have to contain myself to not buy words to put in every room of our house.

Agh!  Some of the pictures are bleeping (this is a G rated site) crooked!  Well, just ignore that because I still like it. 


Our family rules
Huge props to the amazing woman who leads the 'craft' portion of our MOPS (mother's of preschoolers http://www.mops.org/) group for showing us how to make this awesome sign.  The basic idea is a piece of wood painted black and customized sayings printed in reverse (white on black) that are cut out and glued on.  LOVE it.

Hair bows
Well, what kind of 'crafy' site would this be without some hair bow action?  These are some of the ones I made that were in my daughter's bow box today (Where are the missing ones you ask? Wouldn't I like to know...)  She looks adorable in these, however, she is now 6 and knows when I sneak one on and so they aren't worn very often.  They bring back wonderful memories though.

Family portraits
A new take on the traditional family picture :)  The one on the right was drawn by my son at age 2 and the one on the left was drawn by my daughter at age 6.  These pictures make it pretty clear that in real life my husband is quite a bit taller than I am (yes, I am the little person in the middle).  I also love that in one (in which I am apparently a miniature person) my husband and I are drawn holding hands.  I'd like to think it shows that they know they are surrounded by love (can I get an awwwwww).