Printable Valentine Goody Bags

I love free printables. These Valentine goody bags from Twig and Thistle are beautiful and perfect for goodies made with love. If your printer allows you to, you can print them directly onto white paper goodie bags or you could use sticker paper and adhere them onto bags or boxes.

Rose Barrettes from the Purl Bee

I just stumbled upon this sweet felt rose barrette tutorial at the Purl Bee. I would love to make a few for Jane. We have been growing out her hair from last year's short little bob and the in-between awkward stage is driving me nuts. She always has to have a barrette or headband on to keep the hair out of her eyes (though they never seem to stay put). Anyway, maybe I'll whip up a few colorful roses with my leftover felt and see how they turn out.

I Heart OhDeeDoh

So nice to get some love over on OhDeeDoh today. They featured our new hallway makeover and it totally made my day :)

Simple Handmade Valentines for Kids to Make

Alpha Mom has put together some great ideas for simple Valentine's children can make to give to classmates. I've been thinking about this lately as well. I love the idea of having Jane make her own Valentine's to deliver to her friends at school; however, I want to come up with something simple that can be produced in mass quantities by a four-year old. I really like these popsicle stick heart puppets as well as these printable butterfly lollipop cards from Skip to My Lou.

Valentine's Day Paper Dolls

I've put together a few of my favorite vintage Valentine's Day themed paper dolls from Teri Pettit's printable paper doll collection. And funny enough, I am pretty sure I remember cutting out this exact Joan Anglund paper doll at the bottom from the February 1987 issue of Good Housekeeping. Just click on the picture and print.

V.I.P. Day Preparations

We have been discussing Jane's upcoming V.I.P. day and making plans for her special day at preschool. We decided we should tell her class about our upcoming trip to London and Paris (in March). Maybe show them where they are on a map or show a few photos of famous sites. We may even teach the class a couple of simple french words. We also decided it would be fun to give each classmate a little paper passport where they can draw their own picture, write their name and color pictures of places where they've been or where they want to go. For our snack, we are planning to bring our own version of London's famous fish 'n chips (think Swedish Fish candies and potato chips).

Jane is working on her own passport as I type, drawing illustrations of different countries and planning to stamp the pages with various stamps.

Jane's Passport photo

Mexico (notice the cactus) and London

USA (President Obama) and Paris (the Eiffel Tower)

China (lanterns)

American flag

Love Notes

I mentioned this adorable novelty Valentine print I picked up at the store last night in my previous post. It is part of the Love Notes collection by Faye Burgos for Marcus Fabrics. I am getting into the spirit of Valentine's Day and trying to decide how best to use this print. I only have one yard so I am trying to determine whether I make a tradition bunting, a heart shaped garland (similar to the PB Kids banner) or perhaps some for the table?

Out of My Slump

I have been in a creative slump and haven't touched my sewing machine since before the holidays. My mom bought me a $100 gift card to my favorite local fabric shop for Christmas this year and I was finally able to take some time to myself last night and do some looking around. I bought myself some needed supplies: new fabric scissors, a bias-tape maker, a square quilting ruler and fabric marker. I also picked up a yard of adorable Valentine's themed fabric just because I love it; I picked out some great boy colored fabrics to make a baby quilt (a gift for a friend) and got enough fabric to finally finish Clark's zig-zag quilt (which I began a year ago and can't seem to make any progress on). The outing was just what I needed. Two hours alone in the fabric store to browse around and get inspired. I am compiling a list of projects in my head and I'm feeling anxious to get back to sewing, quilting, etc.

Vintage Valentine's Day Decor at PB Kids

Have you seen the vintage-inspired Valentine's Day decor at Pottery Barn Kids? What a lovely surprise. The 3D paper heart garland features adorable gingham checks and retro valentine designs which I love. You can also pick up the matching set of plates and glasses. I love the whole collection. I may want to create my own version of the banner and create some heart shaped vinyl placemats as well. Perfect for a little Valentine's Day party.

Winter Muff Pattern & How-To

So I think I'm kind of digging this sewn winter muff from BurdaStyle (recently featured on Craftzine). Maybe I'll make a little one for Jane as well. She would love it. Wouldn't it be perfecting for keeping hands warm while wandering around London and Paris? We are headed there in March and I may want to take a little muff along.

DIY Book Racks

I loved this book display which was featured on OhDeeDoh awhile ago. It is a great use of otherwise wasted space.


Another OhDeeDoh reader was inspired by the book display as well, and recently created her own version using picture ledges to create a similar effect. She recommends using the IKEA Ribba ledges to make your own.


I have been eyeing this floor book rack for Clark's room ($200 at the Land of Nod), but I may be able to create my own picture ledge version for cheaper. Hmmm... let me go get my tape measure and start planning.

The Big Purple Art Box

For Christmas we put together a large purple tub for Jane and two smaller boxes to organize supplies and craft materials in. The art box has been quite a hit and has been getting plenty of use over the past few weeks.

I filled up the larger box with:
white paper
colored paper
construction paper
large sheets of paper
activity books
coloring books
art smocks
wooden bead sets
yarn
pipe-cleaners

And the smaller boxes contain:
scissors
glue sticks
markers
crayons
colored pencils
watercolors
paint brushes
plastic beads
wooden stamps
stickers
popscicle sticks
pom-pom balls
googly-eyes
molding clay
hole-punches (shapes)

Jane's Room and Art Studio

We decided to create a little artist studio of Jane's very own. She spends most of her days drawing, coloring, cutting, stamping and creating whatever is in her head at the moment (movie posters, thank you cards, play scripts, pretend postcards, you get the idea).

Since Jane's room is rather small, we bought her the NORBO wall-mounted drop leaf table from IKEA last year. We finally got the right hardware and installed it in her room. Now she has her own little art desk where she can sit and draw. And we can fold it down when we need more space to play. I am planning to paint this little stool from IKEA (I'm thinking blue?) and make a little cushion for it as well to use at the table.

Crafting Goals for the New Year

I haven't touched my sewing machine since Christmas week and I've been thinking about the projects I would like to undertake during this new year. I really want to get my house together; figure out some ways to finish up the many blank walls and spaces. I want to finish the children's quilts I began almost a year ago! And I want to tackle more clothing patterns. The pajamas I made for Clark and nightgown for Jane were my first two pattern projects and turned out suprisingly well. Jane really wants some more outfits for her doll, Violet, so I may begin with some doll clothes and go from there. I would also like to make some things for the new baby arriving in June. I want to make a little bumper pad for our wooden cradle, a new quilt, etc. Along with the projects on my list, I would also like to improve my sewing skills and develop my knowledge of embroidery.

Oh, and one more thing I would really like to do is to publish a great tutorial of some sort. I am usually figuring out projects as I go and don't have a clear set of step by step directions to post; however, I would like to take more time to phototgraph the process of some of my projects and lay out the steps for you. Happy New Year to all.

Completed Hallway Makeover

During our break, we were able to do a few home decorating projects and a some necessary home repairs. My husband got me this hallway set-up from IKEA (previously blogged about here) for my Christmas gift and spent an entire day putting together the two shoe cabinets and securing them to the wall, as well as hanging the lamps and mirror. I love the final outcome. I just need to add a few framed photos to the left. The kids love having their own shoe cubbies and coat rack at their height. I like having a spot for the keys and the mail other than the kitchen counter. Yippee for my new space!

Hello There

Hello there. It has been quite awhile since I've posted to CraftPad. I was taking a much needed holiday break. I have a lot of catching up to do. I'm looking forward to filling you in on our Christmas activities and to share some of the home decorating projects we've completed. Check back soon for an update. Happy New Year everyone.