Kessie's First Birthday and Cupcake Tree

I just finished Kessie's First Birthday cakes and cupcakes.  I have been planning on making a cupcake tree for some time now and decided I needed one for her party.

Supply List

6"

8"

10"

12" Round 1/4 inch boards

I used pre-cut masonite boards that I had purchased over a year ago from CK Products (Wholesale only).  I found pre-cut masonite cake boards at Country Kitchen Sweetart http://www.countrykitchensa.com/shop/cake-decorating-supplies/masonite-cake-boards/38/538/68/ This website does not require a minimum order and does give discounts.  They also have pre-made cupcake trees if you do not want to make your own.

3/4" dowel rod

3 packs of small finials (2 per pack)

White Spray Paint

24" of 2" pvc pipe

E6000 Glue

Wood or sheetrock screw

scrap piece of 1/4-1/2" wood/approximately 2" square or circle

Wrapping paper or fabric of your choice

Drill

Chop saw or hand saw

Pliers

Drill 3/4" hole in the center of each circle.

Drill a small pilot hole in the center of the dowel rod and screw one of the finials into the rod.

I cut the pipe into (3) 5 1/2" pieces.  (You may wish to cut yours a bit shorter)

Remove the screw from 4 of the finials that will become the feet of your stand.

Cut dowel off the proper length to allow it to thread through all circles and pvc pipe, less 1/8" to allow for tightening.

Spray paint all pieces in a well ventilated area.

Allow all the pieces to dry throughly before constructing.

Divide the largest circle into four equal sections to determine the position of your finial feet.  Glue in place with E6000 glue and allow to dry completely.

Cover pieces of pvc pipe with the paper or fabric of your choice. I used transparent tape to attach it so that it can be changed for each use.

Drill a pilot hole in the lower end of the dowel rod for the screw.

Start with the smallest circle and thread the dowel rod through, pvc pipe, circle, pvc pipe, circle...etc. Center the pvc pipes.

When all the layers are stacked properly, attach the 1/4" block onto the bottom of the dowel rod and tighten. This will hold everything together.  Holds about 30 cupcakes.

You can remove the screw and disassemble to make it easier to store.

Her Cakes and Cupcakes

Happy Birthday Kessie...Nana Loves You!!

Kessie's First Birthday Smash Cake

It is hard to believe that Kessie will be one March 19th.  She is my youngest grandaughter.  She is such a good baby and rarely cries. I made her a smash cake for her first birthday pictures.  I also made her a tutu outfit and a buble dress with bloomers.  I thought we were doing good.  She took a morning nap...but woke up with a bit of fever.  She is teething so I gave her a bit of Tylenol.  She woke up feeling better and after lunch took another nap.  I really thought we were doing good then.  Two naps and we were ready for picture.  WRONG!  When we went to get her pictures made, she did not cooperate and cried.  That is so not like her.  I am afraid she is getting an ear infection.  So, we rescheduled her pictures and I stuck her cake in the freezer.  I snapped a few pics before we left. 

I owned and operated a specialty cake shop for a couple of years and sold it last year due to health issues.  I really miss it some days.  

Mr & Mrs Pillow Covers

This set of pillow covers will be used at a wedding reception this summer and then in the newlyweds home.

Nurse tote Going to Hawaii

I am so excited...I sold a Nurse tote bag that is going to Hawaii!!!!  I love Etsy.  It allows you to reach so many people that would never get to see your creations.  Thanks Etsy!!!

Working on Floors

We have been doing small things to the house until the weather breaks and spring gets here.  The first thing that has to change are the dirty old linoleum floors.  It is supposed to be an ivory background...and well...when we moved in they were brown.  LOTS of elbow grease and a good degreaser made a big difference.

We have floating laminate flooring to install...but we have to prepare the old floors.  I have used an oscillating saw to remove the areas of the flooring that are rolling up around the edges.  We are trying to decide rather to fill the gaps with rock hard putty or possibly a few pieces of the new flooring.

Trying to Clean and Repair "New" Old House

Over Christmas my husband and I moved into my childhood home.  I have done this with mixed emotions.  The original parts of this house are over 100 years old.  My dad remodeled it in the 70's.  I lived with my dad in it from about age 12 until I got married (at 17...how stupid was that??).  Anyway, my first husband and I lived in another family home for the first year of our marriage...then we swapped with my dad and lived in my childhood home until 1994 when we built a new house.  My two daughters were "born" and raised in this house until they were 12 and 9 years old.

Several other families have lived in the old house over the years.  It carries a few scars and a whole lot of dirt.  I have been cleaning and we have been doing a bit of remodeling/updating.  My dad wants it to remain like he first remodeled...and that is ok.  I am adding a bit of updated paint colors and trying to decide about painting over off white paneling that is throughout the kitchen and den. 

A lot of memories here.  Good and Bad.  At 49, it is hard to look back and not see regrets....woulda, shoulda, coulda...but I am trying to look to the future and see the possibilities.

Christmas Orders...Busy, Busy

Busy...Busy getting Christmas orders out!  Pillows and Tote Bags from my Etsy account have been selling well.  Thank goodness!  A little extra money here at Christmas.  These have been my three best sellers.

Masking Tape

Have you ever tried to pull off a strip of masking tape and it splits down the middle?  This is so aggravating!  I was packing up some things today...Yes, we are moving.  YAY...I think.  It is amazing how much "junk" you can accumulate in a short amount of time.  Anyway...I was trying to tape the boxes and the tape kept splitting down the middle and coming off in little pieces.  I am not really sure what made me think of this, but I stuck it in the microwave for about 10 seconds and  it worked GREAT!  The tape came off in whole, long pieces.  I had to put it back in the microwave every now and then when it began splitting again.  I know masking tape is not that expense, but in this day and time, every penny counts.  Around our house anyway.  Give it a try!

YAY

YAY...I have my first follower and comment.  Thank you ShinyShiny Designs Company. http://theshinyshinydesigncompany.blogspot.com/

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I am really struggling to come up with new and unique ideas that will allow me to use my talents to make a little extra money.  You hear about these people that lose their jobs and go out and make as beaded necklace, or a cupcake out of a leftover hotdog or a coffee mug out of a hub cab and become instant millionaires.  Well, I am waiting for my turn!

I have been doing one craft or another for over 30 years...

I have taught tole painting and worked the craft fairs.  Made OK money if, but not enough to quit my full time job.

I have sewn, painted murals, opened a small gift shop, sold things on Ebay...now trying on Etsy.  I have made 3D modelled fondant cakes...did really well with that, but health issues would not allow me to keep the pace up.  SOOOO, it is back to the drawing board. 

I am really interested in lampwork beads and have found a class nearby.  But, you know the old saying..."It takes money to make money".  Well guess what..."I AIN'T GOT NO MONEY!!!!!"

I keep thinking and praying that one day that perfect idea will come to me and it will be my turn.  Until then, I guess I will keep making things that I like and enjoy...keep searching the internet for new ideas...and enjoy my newest grandaughter.  She makes me smile and laugh and that is the most important thing in life!

Upcycled Fleece Pants for Baby

My husband tried to throw away this fleece jacket two or three times and I kept taking it out of the garbage.  Reduce, Reuse and Recycle I keep telling him.  I decided that I would make a pair of fleece pants for Kessie.  She will be 7 months old on Wednesday and will be crawling soon.  She needs something to keep those cute little legs warm this winter on my cold floors.  I hope you can use this tutorial for ideas for your little one.  I think I will be making the dog a winter coat out of the remainder of the fleece jacket, and who knows what else!

I started by placing a pair of sweat pants that fit Kessie now and made a pattern on two pieces of 8 1/2 x 11 paper taped together end to end. 

I traced around them and allowed a 1/2" seam on each side, an inch at the top and the bottom to allow for elastic. Then cut the pattern out.

 

I used the sleeves of the jacket and placed the straight side of the pant leg on the fold of the fabric and only cut the top, bottom, crotch and inside seam out of the fabric. You can cut out around the entire pattern if you are using another portion of the jacket. 

Place right sides of the fabric together and sew the inside leg seams together using a 1/2" seam allowance.

Trim seams to 1/4" and zig-zag.  If you have a serger, it would be perfect to use for this project.

Turn one of the legs right side out and slide it into the other leg.  Match seams in the crotch and up each side of the front and rear seam, pin and stitch using a 1/2" seam allowance.

I always double stitch the crotch seam.  This is something that I learned from my Grandmother and it sure has saved some embarrasment a time or two.

Again, trim the seam to 1/4" and zig-zag.
You may want to try it on your little one at this point to make sure that it is not too long waisted.  It is easier to make the adjustment before you turn down the top for the elastic encasement.


Zig-Zag the around the top edge of the waist and the bottom edge of each pant leg.  Turn under 1" at the waist and 3/4" on each pant leg.  Stitch around each using a straight stitch.  Leave an opening of about an inch to be able to feed the elastic through.

I used 3/4" wide elastic for the waist and 1/2" wide for the ankles.  Feed the elastic through the opening using a safety pin.  Try on your little one, or measure their waist and ankles if that is easier.

 Draw the elastic up to the correct length, pin or hold together and zig-zag back and forth several times to hold toghether.  Trim, feed into the pants and stitch the opening closed.

I added hot pink bows to each leg and the waist to give them some color and make them more girly.  I think they are cute with the hot pink onesie and hairbow.  Now that I think about it, I may have to make her a raglan sleeve jacket out of the remainder of the fabric.  Poor doggy.  He may have to go cold a little longer.

Baby Shoes for Halloween

After I made Kessie her Spider Tutu Costume...I decided that she needed some shoes to coordinate.  I have been wanting to make some anyway.  I think they turned out really cute! 

I used McCalls pattern 6342.  It has 10 different versions in one pattern.  The pattern is normally $18.95, but I got it at Hobby Lobby when they were on sale for .99.  I used view "H" with a minor change.  I used ribbon to tie them with instead of the sewn in version.

They are made from black felt (made in South Carolina...YAY) and lined with an orange cotton print.  I made ribbon roses for the toes and tied with the matching ribbon. 

New Pillows on Etsy

I have been working all day on graphic designs for new pillows for my Etsy shop.  I have not sold anything yet...Oh well.  Maybe soon...

See what I have listed at http://www.nanaandmecreations.etsy.com/

Little Spider Halloween Costume and TuTu Tutorial

I found the cutest onesie at Carolina Mall in the Lee store for Kessie's first Halloween costume.  I have made a toulle tutu, leggings and a headband to complete the outfit.  She is going to be so cute!

I wanted to share the process with my first tutorial.  It was really fun, simple and fast.

These are the items that you will need:

Onesie of your choice (If you cannot find one with a design on it, you can always stamp it with a simple sponge stamp and paint, add an iron on transfer, etc)

1 yard black toulle (You will need more for an older child)

1 yard orange toulle

orange ribbon

black ribbon

elastic

scissors and rotary cutter

cutting mat and plastic ruler cutting guide

Sewing machine or needle and thread

stretchy woven headband (I found 4 for $1.00 at Family Dollar)

plastic spiders (I found a pack of 25 at Dollar General for $1.00)

TuTu

I cut the toulle 4 inches wide and about 14" long.  I just quartered the width of the toulle evenly.  I used the rotary cutter, but scissors work just fine also. You may want to adjust these measurements for a longer tutu.  Keep in mind, this is for a 6 month old.

You need to measure the child's waist. I subtracted about an inch, lapped the ends about an inch and then stitched them together.  I wanted it to be tight enough to stay up, but not too tight.  As you add the toulle, it stretches out just a bit.

My husband made me an adjustable stand to hold the elastic while I tied the toulle on.  It was really easy made from a scrap 2x4 and a dowel rod.  It sure made the process alot easier.  If you do not have access to making one of these, a bucket, pot, anything the right size will be helpful.

Place elastic around the two dowel rods.  Now you are ready to begin tying the toulle and ribbon around the elastic.  I form a loop with the toulle, place it to the back of the elastic and then pull the ends through.

 Be sure to tighten them fairly snug as you go and keep pushing them together so that the elastic does not show through.  I added the ribbons between every 3 pieces of toulle. You may want to knot the ribbon instead of just using the loop knot.  Since it is satin it may loosen while the child is wearing it.  I would do a section of toulle and then come back and add the ribbon.  You can use as many different colors of toulle and ribbon that you wish. 

Here is the completed TuTu.  If it is too large when you are finished, you can always remove a few pieces of toulle and ribbon and take up the elastic.

Leggings

I made Kessie a pair of leggings from a pair of ladies socks and wanted some to go with her Spide outfit.  I found the cutest orange and black stiped ones with BOO on the top.  They were children's sock and too big for here, so I decided to turn them into leggings.  For these you will need:

1 pair of larger childs or adult knee socks
Sewing machine and thread to match
Scissors

You will start by cutting the socks apart...I know it is kind of scary, but just go for it!

You will cut the heel and the toe portions away and discard those.  The foot of the sock becomes the cuff that will fit around the ankle.  The top cuff will fit around the baby's thigh.  If the sock is extremely long, you may wish to cut some of the length off so that it is not too "bunchy". 

Determine if the cuffs will be too large for the baby's ankle.  You may need to also cut this down.  I took about a 3/4" seam, trimmed it down a bit and then zigzagged the edges. I do not have a serger.  It would work great for this project.

Now You have to fold the cuff in half, right side out, pin to the right side of the legging and stitch.  I stretch it as I go so that it has a little fullness and to make the leg portion of the sock fit the cuff without any pleats.

I also zigzag around this edge.  Turn right side out and you are finished!

How cute is that??!!!

I also made her a hairbow out of the black and orange toulle and ribbons and hot glued some of the plastic spiders onto it.

This is the completed outfit.  Cutie Patootie!!!!!

Here she is!!