Chic Mason Jar

So, this idea came to me out of the blue. We have a bunch of mason jars of all sizes. We never do anything with them, yet we have kept them just in case. (You never know... right?)

The other day I was putting yet another mason jar in the "stash" and I thought that I just have to come up with something for them. I went to the store looking for ideas and I saw the glass "peebles" that people put inside flower vases. I thought that would be cute and that's how it came about.

You will Need:
* Mason Jar
* Glass Glue
* Glass Paint
* Sponge Brush
* Glass Pebbles and/or any other decorative things you want to use

First, place your jar upside down on a piece of paper and paint it using your sponge brush. The coats depend on how you want your paint to look. Let the paint dry for one hour after each coat. To cure the glass paint, you will bake your mason jar. Follow the directions on the paint for baking time. When you bake it, make sure you sit the jar upright so no heat will get trapped inside.

After your jar has cooled, use your glass glue to glue your glass pebbles on.

Once you have your jar all done, the glass glue will need to set up. Make sure no beads or decorations have slipped. Fix them if they have. Now tightly (but without messing up your work) roll your jar up with some fabric and let it sit for a few hours.

That's it! I even put a little rope on mine to dress it up after I was done and I'm using it to hold the flower pens my girls made me!

Flower Pen

I think these sweet little flower pens are so cute! Plus, they are super easy!

You will need:
* Green Floral Tape
* Pen (one that the top will pop off)
* Fake flower

Take the top off your pen. You can throw it away. Wrap the green floral tape from the top of the pen all the way to the bottom.

Leave a little stem on your flower when you cut it. (Just enough to hold good in the pen top)

Put a small amount of hot glue in the top of the open pen and place the stem of the flower in the top.

Viola! That's it! It's super Easy Peasy and cute!

Nursing Cover

Ok... nursing your baby is a beautiful and wonderful thing but if your like me, you like to be modest about it. I found out quick that babies kick those blankets down like nobody's business and the thought of the people around me seeing my goods was not ok with me.


You will need:
* 1 yard of fabric ( any fabric you are comfortable with is ok as long as it isn't thin & see through)
* Boning - 12 inches
* 2 D rings

Cut 3 inches off the bottom part of your fabric and iron it in half the entire length (right sides facing each other). After ironing, cut 4 1/2 inches off the piece. These will be for your D rings and your strap.



Sew the long end together on both the large and small piece, leaving the ends open for turning.
Once you've turned the right sides out, iron them down nice and neat.
On one end of the long strap only, turned it in and top stitch to give it a nice finished look.



Take your small piece, fold it in half (looping the D rings on) and sew right under the rings. Use your zipper foot to get close.


Lay those aside for now.

Take your 12 inch piece of boning, find the center and mark it. Also find the center of your big piece of fabric for the cover and mark the center.



Line your marks up with the boning curved out.


Pin your boning down and sew along the top using your zipper foot again. Do not sew over the plastic in the boning! It will just break your needle.


Starting with your short ends of the cover, iron both sides down 1/2 inch and then another 1/2 inch. Then do your bottom and top edge the same way.

Back to your sides. Sew them down followed by sewing the bottom.


On the top where your boning is, fold it over once and sew beside the boning on both sides.


Fold it over again and pin. Remember to pin your D ring strap piece on one side of the boning and the long strap on the other. Sew all the way across. Do not sew over the plastic in the boning!




Sew across the top again, but this time, only sew up to the boning and stop.






That's it! Now go nurse in style!

I do want to add that I recently had a friend stumble upon THESE and as a breastfeeding mom, I love the idea! I wanted to store milk for when the baby stayed with grandparents and such. I just thought this was genius and other nursing mama's might like the idea too! I am not affiliated with mymilkies. Just thought I'd share a great idea.

Seat Belt Cover

As my daughter has gotten bigger and is now using a regular seat belt. I've figured out that the regular seat belt straps don't really work that well. They are smaller and just slide down constantly. I had to come up with something for her. Her little neck would get so red with the strap rubbing.

You will need:
* material for the front and back of your strap
* warm and natural batting (flannel would also work)
* Extra Wide Double Fold Bias Tape
* sew on velcro

Cut your material and batting to 7" x 20". Cut two batting pieces out as well as the front and back material pieces. If you want to do straps for a car seat, your measurements would be 7" x 5".




Once you've sewn around the entire strap, flip your bias tape over to the other side following the creases and give it a good flat iron.




Sew the bias tape down.


Take your sew on Velcro and sew it to your strap. I measure mine from rounded edge to rounded edge. Make sure you are sewing it in the right place for when it gets folded onto the seat belt strap.




That's it! Easy Peasy and much more comfy!

Homemade Liquid Laundry Soap

This homemade liquid laundry soap is great plus it's wallet friendly! Yay! Gotta love those words... Wallet Friendly!

My sister in law introduced me to making my own laundry detergent and I'm so glad she did! I was a little skeptical at first, only because my kiddos have super sensitive skin, but it works like a charm!



I use a large bucket to store my soap and I put a copy of the recipe onto the lid.




You will need:
* 1 bar of grated homemade soap (3-4 oz) - I get mine from my sister-in-law and her family who have a small soap business. You should check them out HERE

* 1/2 cup washing soda

* 1/2 cup borax Powder

* Water

* Bucket for your soap (about a 2 gallon size)

Optional: You can add 1/2 - 1 oz. of an essential/ fragrance oil of your choice.

Directions:

Place the grated soap into a saucepan.
Add 6 cups of water and heat it until the soap melts.
Add the washing soda and borax. Stir until dissolved.
Remove from heat. Pour 4 cups of hot water into the bucket.
Now add your soap mixture and stir.
Let the soap sit for about 24 hours and it will gel.
You use 1/2 cup per load. You may need to stir the mixture between loads. Mixture should have an "egg noodle soup" consistency.

Now isn't that just easy peasy!!!