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how to: personalize end-of-year teacher gifts
in 3 easy steps

tutorial fabric marker artwork on sewing gifts

Ok, so this really could be a how to: personalize any gift. It’s just that I really wanted to get my daughter involved with her teacher thank you gifts this year and this was all her idea.

She had been playing with a fabric gift card sleeve of mine and asked if we could make something similar for her teachers for “receipts and stuff.” She also wanted to decorate it herself.

You could do this with any fabric gift: zipper pouch, bookmark, you could even buy some blank canvas tote bags from the craft store. The important thing is to get your child involved!

Materials
In addition to your project supplies, you’ll need:
-disappearing ink pen
-fabric markers

Step 1
With your disappearing ink pen, mark off the area where your child can draw. It’s ok if she wants to draw outside of the lines, just make sure that the most important artwork is in the marked area.

Step 2
Let her go to town! When she’s finished, follow the directions on your fabric markers. Mine did not require heat to set the ink, but it did recommend two coats of ink. I traced over her lines after she went to bed.

Step 3
Sew up the gift!

tutorial fabric marker artwork on sewing gifts

What surprised me most about this project was how specific my daughter was for each drawing. Sueann received a picture of a treasure map (something she saw at school) with X marks the spot at a heart-shaped rock. Lorie received flowers (it was nature school—makes sense). Diane received a picture of “things falling” (not sure about that one—neither was Diane). They were all so different! She made sure I put a tag on each gift so it went to the correct teacher.

stash: I wish I thought to put a note about all of the recycled textiles that went into this gift. Nature school teachers are all about reusing. The fabric was thrifted and the zippers were recycled from other textiles. I wish I took a pic of the insides. She picked out different linings for each teacher, too!

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my (not so) creative space

car cover mending

Severe weather is finally here in Nebraska and my creative space is filled with some not-so-creative sewing.

In the Spring, we stuff blankets under this cover to protect our car from hail. We got lazy last winter and left it on all year. The Nebraska winds nearly shredded it to pieces.

Now the weather radio alarm is going off and all we’ve got is a giant rag. I grabbed some canvas from my stash and started sewing patches. I gave up after fixing the biggest holes. It’s good enough to hold some blankets in place. That’s about it.

My husband asked if I could use the old cover as a pattern to sew a new one. Ha! I’ve taken on some crazy projects, but I think I’m going to pass on this one.

garage sale find: The canvas came in a tub with a bunch of muslin. I almost tossed it because it had spray paint stains on it. Now there’s hardly any left. I’ve made all sorts of heavy-duty patches with it.

Creative Spaces have a new home. Stop by and play along!

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ikick freezer paper stencil

A few weeks ago, I mentioned that my first freezer paper stencil was a prototype. Now that the recipient has received his gift, I can show you: iKick!

kids karate freezer stencil tshirt

I used two coats of paint this time and got much better coverage, but it seeped under the freezer paper in some places. Not a big deal for this shirt because I like the edginess it brings to the design. I wonder if I could get better coverage with a smoother edge by using fabric markers instead of paint. Hmm…

stencil art: Karate guy from clip art I had on my computer. Font is Myriad.

Did you happen to catch Apple in the headlines today? It bumped Google out of first for most valuable brand.

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mother’s tea

kids handmade mothers day gift

Last week, my daughter’s nature school class hosted a Mother’s Tea. It was a really sweet morning. The kids sang us a song, gave us presents they had been working on for a few weeks and then we all went on a hike to the Butterfly Garden to plant flowers.

preschool butterfly garden

If you are local and happen to be at the park, you should check out the garden. All of the flowers are planted by the preschoolers. They were so proud.

butterfly sculpture

The benches, sculpture and garden itself were donated by preschool parents over the past few years in memory of some of the mothers, teachers and children related to the program. It was a very touching morning.

handmade gift idea: The bracelets were so cute. They are beads on pipe cleaners chenille sticks. The poem was written by one of the teachers. The kids re-used old greeting cards to make new Mother’s Day cards. It’s a great project for little ones to do mostly on their own.

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silky eye pillow

A few nights ago I sat down in front of the tv and couldn’t find anything to watch. My daughter was already in bed and my husband was downstairs working out. I decided to flip through some of my craft books for an easy project. I was really tired so it had to be really easy.

silky eye pillow amanda soule handmade home

I found the perfect project in Handmade Home: a silky eye pillow scented with chamomile and lavender. I had it finished and ready for the stuffing in no time. The next day I bought the herbs, came home and made a few more.

silky eye pillow amanda soule handmade home

stash: I had everything I needed in my stash except for the herbs. A quick online search showed that most people used flax for the stuffing. I had a big bag of sushi rice in the pantry and the small round grains worked perfectly.

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thrifty find: fabric book panels

Remember all of those hours I spent thrifting without finding anything to wear? Well, I did find something cool on the way out of one store: a huge box of brand new quilting fabric. I couldn’t resist a little peek and what did I spy? Books!

fabric books

I don’t know why I haven’t thought of making fabric books before. My daughter had a few and loved them. She’d crumble them up, chew on them, drop them on the floor and after a run in the washing machine they’d be just like new.

thrifty second thoughts: Last week, I was proud of myself for not going overboard and buying the whole box. After doing a little online search, I wish I would have bought a few more.

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save paper: craft coupons on your phone

I was headed to the craft store this morning and realized I forgot to print my 40% off coupon. I really didn’t want to drive all the way home so I asked the cashier if she could just use it from my phone. “No problem!” she said. Awesome.

Think of how much paper we could save if everyone who had a smart phone gave up printing coupons!

I don’t like posting without a picture, so here’s the little frame I bought today. Isn’t it cute? Perfect for a little girl who likes pink and little purses.

pink purse picture frame

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spring fair

We managed to squeeze in a little fun time in between errands and chores this weekend. The church were Mirabella goes to preschool had a Spring Fair today.

red light green light

We only stayed for a short time, but she managed to play games, make crafts, get her face painted and have a cupcake. Add beautiful weather and we had all the ingredients for a fun spring morning.

face painting

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my creative space

fairy dress

In my creative space this week, I altered this cute dress to fit my daughter. She hasn’t been that interested in dress up clothes, but there were a few times at the children’s museum that wore a dress almost exactly like this.

I snagged this one at the thrift shop, even though it was a few sizes too big. I took in the shoulders and body, but left the skirt as is.

fairy dress

She was really excited when I brought it home and couldn’t wait until it fit. Now, of course, she doesn’t want to wear it. Maybe I should call it a Fancy Nancy dress instead. If that doesn’t work, it can always be transformed into a twirly skirt.

What’s happening in your creative space this week? Play along over at Kirsty’s.