Christmas Tree Lanterns

I know . . . time is running short.  Here is a quick and easy craft to keep youngsters busy while you get your baking and wrapping done.  
Here is a link to the step-by-step You Tube video I made on how to fold the light lantern:

Origami Light Lantern video

All they need is a piece of copy paper.  Really that is all.  Oh, maybe some scissors to cut the paper into a square.

Then they just follow the video (and they can start the video, pause it, stop it, watch it over and over, to follow each fold to make, then they blow some air into it to puff it up) and make the origami paper mini light bulb cover. 

If you have colored tree lights then the white paper takes on the color of the light bulb.  If your tree lights are all white, you can use different colors of copy paper to make the lanterns a variety of colors. 

In the above picture the red and blue lanterns are made of white paper.  The yellow lantern was made with pastel yellow copy paper.
Or just use white paper on white lights to diffuse the light and make a beautiful larger soft light.

It's really amazing to see how this little paper lantern can transform a mini light!  You just slip the lantern over the light bulb --- it's so easy and the effect is amazing!!!


Disclaimer:  Use at your own disgression.  Do not cover any lights that produce any heat.  You are responsible for your safety in using these lanterns on safe lights. 

These origami lanterns are also used as water balloons.  So once the kiddies learn how to fold the lantern, then they can fold them for water balloons in the summertime!  Cool, huh!!!

Sheep Decoration/ Ornament

Merry Christmas! 

This is my favorite time of year.  It's also so busy, cold, and stressful.  So here is a fun and quick (yet adorable) Christmas decoration or Christmas tree ornament to make.

You will need some sheepy like material (an 8" by 8" piece), strong thread and needle, brown felt,  glue ( I use a glue gun ), and some kind of stuffing (either batting or cotton balls), and either 2 beads or felt for the eyes. 

 I like this decoration/ ornament because it symbolizes part of the Christ story of Christmas instead of all the Santa stuff.  It's good to have balance, right?

Here's a helpful howto link to a You Tube video I did showing how to put the sheep together:

How to make a sheep decoration video

My wish to you this Holiday Season is time to enjoy.  Enjoy the magic of Christmas in music, decorations, yummy food, family, friends, and worship.

It's Autumn time, it's autumn time!

We are really feeling fall here.  It has cooled down so much in the last week and we have had a lot of rain, making it sweater weather.  It may return to the 80-90 degree weather we had 2 weeks ago, but for now it is definitely autumn. 



My pumpkins have mostly turned orange and they are so festive.  Two of the pumpkins are larger than any pumpkin I've EVER grown before.  I'm so excited to put them on my front porch!

This is the big one, hiding in the leaves.  If I remember I'll take another pic of it when I have it on my porch so you can tell how big it is compared to the other small pumpkins.

To go with my pumpkin fever, here's a lil' punkin (yes, it is little about 1-2 inches tall) crochet project that works up in about 5 or 10 minutes.  Really, this crocheted pumpkin is so easy. 
Here is a link to an easy step-by-step You Tube video I did showing how to make this adorable 'lil punkin':

How to crochet a small pumpkin video

Btw, these are really cute on a headband!

 Okay, that ought to do it for pumpkins for one day. 

 Have fun punkining :)  Whatever that is!

PUMPKINS!!!

My favorite time of year is here. 

Harvest time!  Fall time!  Autumn time!

I love the pumpkins growing in my pumpkin patch.  I love the cooler temps at night.  I love the smell of the air.
The leaves are just starting to change to beautiful fall colors in the mountains.  I also love sweaters and sweat shirts.  Yes indeed, a great time of year!

I've been making autumn decorations and having fun dressing the inside of my home to match the harvest time outdoors.

Here is a link to a you tube video I did of the pumpkin centerpiece that I've been making (it has step-by-step instructions):

Pumpkin Centerpiece video

All you need is scrapbook paper, scissors, glue, and a stapler.  So easy!!!

I also made a bunch of smaller (fan fold type) pumpkins out of less expensive orange copy paper.  They look cute together in a pumpkin grouping.

Here's the link to the video I made for the smaller pumpkins:

Origami Pumpkins video

Now I think I need to go bake up some pumpkin cookies (with chocolate chips, of course!).

Happy Happy Harvest to you :)



Crochet Accessories!!!

Here they are ------ the crochet accessories.  There is the crochet heart, the crochet poinsettia, the crochet butterfly, and a crochet flower.  The flower is an older pattern that has already been covered, but I decided to throw it in too (since it can also be attached to a hairband or whatever by way of a button).

First, the crochet heart.  This design is the easiest and works up the quickest.  Someday, I'm going to make a Valentine heart garland for my fireplace using this crochet heart pattern.  Enough said, here is the link to the you tube "how to" video I made:

How to crochet a heart video

Next, is the crochet poinsettia.  I love this and it is very fun to crochet.  I think it will be very pretty for you on a sweater or coat in the wintertime.  The crocheted poinsettia would also be so cute on your purse or handbag or crocheted hat.

Here's the link for the "how to" video for the crocheted poinsettia:

How to crochet a poinsettia video

Last, but not least is the fun crochet butterfly.  This one is a little more involved.  It has a yarn color change and some back and forthing for the antennaes and wings.  But it works up quickly after you have completed one of them and kids (girls mostly) love them!
Here's the link for the "how to" video for the crochet buttherflies:

How to crochet a butterfly video

Oh, the flower can be found in an older post at:  How to crochet a flower

One more thing, these crochet accessories for hairbands, sweaters, hats, bags, bedrooms, or towels, etc., can also be crocheted with crochet thread instead of yarn.  The items in the picture below are done with a size "F" hook and size 3 crochet thread.  The crochet thread gives them lacy, delicate look.

And just one more thing again, if you are interested, here is a link to the you tube video I did for crocheting the hat:

How to crochet a hat video

What fun projects and I love projects that I can make for myself and as gifts for others.  These crochet items fit the bill ;)

I hope you have so much fun making them!

Another fun headband!

I have wanted to do a super simple crocheted headband for a long time, with optional cutsy things to add to it.
After thinking about it and putting it off, I finally started working on it, and now (I'm typing this as I pat myself on the back) I'm done with the whole project!!!!! 

Wahoo!!!  Woot! Woot!

The crochet headband is so easy.  It uses only a single crochet stitch and a chain stitch.

So let's get started.  I used a size "I" crochet hook and you can use any regular yarn or "Soft" yarn too.  I used Caron Simple Soft yarn.

Here's a link for a youtube howto video I did that shows how to crochet the headband step-by-step:

How to crochet a headband video

For a 1" wide headband, start with 4 chain stitches and work 3 single crochet stitches for every row until it is the length you want for a snug fit (not too tight and not too loose).

For a 1 1/2" wide headband, start with 6 chain stitches and do 5 single crochet stitches per row.

For a 2" wide headband, start with 8 chains and do 7 single crochet stitches per row.

If you want to make some headbands with crochet thread, I used size 3 crochet thread and an "F" crochet hook.  For a 1" wide headband, you will start with 5 chains and work 4 sc for each row.

I will talk about the poinsettia, heart, and butterfly in my next post.
Make some headbands fast so you will be ready to add the accessories (heart, poinsettia, butterfly, flower) to them.

I want to thank my cute lil' 2 year old granddaughter for modeling for me.  She really liked the poinsettia on her hairband.  She liked the heart too.  She likes the butterfly best, but I didn't get a pic of that one on her.  Just gotta love her wild red hair!

 She is an angel!  (and a spitfire too -- ha, ha)

Doctor Who's TARDIS! Really?

Okay, brace yourself, this post is a little different.  Nope, that's an understatement.  This post is a lot different.

I don't even watch Dr. Who, oops, I mean Doctor Who (my daughter corrected me).  Actually, I've seen a few shows, but it is my daughter (the fourth one) that has watched several episodes, several hundred episodes.  There are like thousands??? of episodes of Doctor Who since he has been going strong for half a century. 

I just don't get it, but there are so many that do 'get it' and love, or rather LOVE Doctor Who.

So this post is dedicated to all those out there that are Doctor Who fans (including my daughter).

You would be shocked at how many trial and errors I went through with this project.  You would be even more shocked to know how many hours were spent on this project, so I won't tell you (but it was lots and lots).

Let me warn you, I would not consider this a beginner project.  It's isn't hard, there just isn't much of a repeating pattern to crochet mindlessly while you watch TV (specifically Dr., oops again, Doctor Whatever Who!!!).

The instructions to make this crocheted Tardis are in a 3 part video.

Here's part one of how to crochet a Tardis:

TARDIS, part 1 video

Here's part two of how to crochet a Tardis:

TARDIS, part 2 video

And last, but not least, here's part three of how to crochet a Tardis:

TARDIS, part 3

The finished Tardis measured about 6" tall and you can put all your Doctor Who memorabilia inside the Tardis as the doors are not crocheted shut.

Time and Relative Dimension in Space

Bowties are cool :)

All righty, that enough of Doctor Who and Tardis's.  The next crochet video I do will be something normal like R2D2 from Star Wars -- just kidding!

Pinwheels for the Fourth of July!

I love the 4th of July and as I live in Utah, I also LOVE the 24th of July, so I wanted to have something fun for the grandkids to make for the celebrations.  These pinwheels will be so fun for them to hold while watching the parades.
They hope the pinwheels will attract the attention of people on parade floats that are throwing candy.
I (with the help of my granddaughters) made some pinwheels with red, white, and blue scrapbook paper. 

Then we attached them to some 25 cent rulers from Walmart.  The rulers were longer than the straws that we also used for the pinwheel handle.  I think the rulers added more character to the pinwheels too, but the straws also work just fine.

The best part about these pinwheels (and what the kids love about them) is that they spin really easily and well!!!

Here's the "how to" video:

How to fold a pinwheel video

Here are a couple of my darling helpers:

And here is the template or pattern to print out and cut the right shape for the pinwheel:

Left click on the pinwheel template, then right click on the pinwheel image and select "print picture".  This will make the template the correct size when you print it out.  By the way, the pinwheel template should measure 5"x 5".  Cut along the solid lines and use a hole punch to punch out the circles :)

I'm thinking these would also make fun birthday party decorations.  As I continue thinking, I've also seen pinwheels used for wedding decorations on pinterest (the ones I saw did not spin though -- they were strictly decorative).

I may make some fall colored pinwheels later this summer and stick them in my patio when the wind starts blowing leaves off the trees.  Anyway, there are so many fun types of scrapbook paper that the possibilities are endless.

In case I don't get another post up before the 4th:

Let Freedom Ring!!!

and

God Bless the USA!

and everywhere else too!



Girly twirly scarves!!!

Spiral scarves are all the rage where I live.  They are made with a special "pre-fab" yarn that is already machine crocheted.

So, knowing me, I had to make one from scratch -- no "pre-fab" yarn for me!!!

This little project ended up being a several month long project, and now several scarves later, I'm done -- yippee!!!

The "pre-fab" yarn is not really yarn.  It is actually machine woven or machine crocheted with thread.  For me, working with crochet thread is more difficult than yarn.  Sooo, with this in mind the first spiral, twirly scarves I made were with yarn.  I like how they turned out.

These yarn scarves are great for cooler times of the year, but for summer I needed to tackle crochet thread for a lighter, airy look.
The next scarves were made with size 3 crochet thread (so many more stitches, because of using thread instead of yarn!). 

These scarves took a lot longer to crochet than the yarn scarves. 

But so worth it because these scarves are fabulous! Once you get started the thread is easy to work with and you will truly enjoy making these crochet thread scarves. 

This yellow/orange scarf (below) took an especially long time because I threaded small clear beads onto the thread and the crocheted them into the scarf.



This is the post I was hoping to get done a couple of weeks before Mother's Day, for a Mother's Day gift idea  ---  oh well.  At least it is done in time to make some fun summery accent scarves for yourself!



I want to thank my youngest daughter (#5) for modeling the scarves for me.  And I want to thank my oldest daughter (#1) for doing the photography.

Here are the "how to" videos that will show you every step of the way to create the trendy scarves:

How to crochet a twirly scarf, Crochet thread video

The video above is for the crochet thread type scarf.

How to crochet a spiral scarf with yarn video

This video (above) has the instructions for the spiral scarf made out of yarn.

Happy crocheting :)

.

Plenty of time for Father's Day!

Oh, I felt sad that I didn't get a post on for Mother's Day.  To prevent that from happening for Father's Day I thought I would not procrastinate (like I did for Mother's Day) and I would
"git-er-done" now!



This is a super cute origami shirt and tie card you can make for your men of the day (don't forget, it is June16th).
You just use a regular size (8.5"x 11") piece of white or colored paper for the shirt, and a smaller (3.5"x 3.5") piece of patterned paper for the tie. 
That's all you need!
P.S. This shirt can also be used as a awesome card for a missionary.



Here are a couple of easy step by step videos that show you how to fold it:

How to fold a man's shirt video

Here's how to fold the tie:

How to fold a tie video

You can write a Father's Day note on the inside of the shirt.

(Yes, I know, this has a note to a future missionary and not a note to my dad -- oops!)

No matter what the age, this is a fun project to fold and make and the men in your life will love it!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now for a review of a wonderful Mother's Day . . .

It started with an absolutely delicious breakfast in bed.  Made by my daughters.

Then we finished off the day with a tea party in my mother's orchard.



Happy Be-lated Mother's Day to all the glorious mother's everywhere!!!



Cute GRADUATION Owls!

I don't like waste.  Sometimes I ponder really deep subjects, such as, "What can I do with this empty milk carton or empty egg carton, instead of just throwing it away?"
Or, "What can I do with empty toilet paper tubes?"
Well, you will be so happy to know that my intensive thinking and profound brain has come up with a use for a empty toilet paper tubes --- yea!!!

Seriously, I think these little owls are so cute and I like that it has multiple uses.  The owls can be used as graduation decorations and/or table favors, and as the graduation gift itself. 

As a gift, the top of the owl opens up so you can hide a note, letter, money, candy, or smaller gift inside the owl.  A fun surprise for the grad!

The following video shows how to make the graduation owl .  .  .

How to make an owl video

As graduation day approaches have fun getting ready for your graduate's special day :)

Congrats and Happy Graduation!!!!!!

Simple Valentine Crafts Galore

Don't know about everyone else, but I appreciate simple, easy, inexpensive, and super cute craft ideas.   So, here are some Valentines ideas that fit the criteria ( they can be used for so many more things than just Valentines though -- like random "I love you" surprises and wedding or anniversaries, etc.).

 Here are some easy to follow (well hopefully they are easy to follow . . . ) links to youtube videos I did showing step-by-step "how to's":

Fan Heart YouTube Video

Heart Ornament YouTube video

Heart Wreath YouTube Video

Heart Chain YouTube Video

Happy  heart and love crafting!!!

Ribbon Roses

Is it already time to think about Valentines Day?
I haven't taken down my Christmas tree yet!
Well I actually made these ribbon roses and the ribbon rose topiary tree before Thanksgiving so it could double as a Christmas decoration and Valentines decoration.  Smart thinking, yes? 
Ultimately, I'd like to have a grouping of three (in different sizes). We will see if I get the other two done before the end of this month.

My Mom made ribbon roses when I was little. Then she made topiary trees out of all the roses she made.  So with the help of my mom, we were able to figure out how to make these roses after all these years.

I also made boutineers with the roses. I may also try making some out of colorful print fabric to attach to a sweater or top for myself and maybe also attach them to hairbands for my granddaughters.

To make the ribbon rose all you need to purchase is floral ribbon (acetate, I think) in the colors you want.  The tools, you should already have on hand, are scissors and tweezers.

This first link to my youtube video shows how to make the ribbon roses:

Ribbon Rose video

This second link shows how to make the topiary tree:

Topiary Tree video

I think the easiest way to secure the ribbon ends is to just tie them in a square knot in the back.  Then pin 'em to the styrofoam ball.

 Get started making flowers soon, cuz' it takes a lot of roses to cover the large size styrofoam ball.

 LOVE   LOVE   LOVE   LOVE   LOVE   LOVE   LOVE   LOVE   LOVE   LOVE