Button Hair Clips

The finished clips

Paraphernalia

Let me begin by telling you how much I adore buttons. I love how they can update a boring cardi or make a pretty birthday card or whatever. A few years ago, I bought a large tin of vintage buttons on Ebay. It’s one of the most exciting things I’ve ever got from there. Somebody was selling them, I’m guessing, as part of a clear out of an old lady’s house and it was a real collection. I can’t imagine ever running out of buttons whilst I’ve got that tin to keep me supplied. Anyway, I digress slightly.

Today’s post is a very simple make for this month’s Pinaddicts Challenge. I saw these gorgeous handmade clips and repinned them immediately. So cute and so do-able.

You’ll literally need nothing more than some flat backed buttons, a few plain hair grips (I used ones I bought from Ebay which have the little round metal disc for attaching findings – cost about £1 for 10) and a hot glue gun. I don’t think I need to tell you much more than that!

A Pinteresting Make

I’m a Pinaddict. There, I’ve said it. Seems I’m not alone though. The  lovely Kerry at Life, As I Know It  has set up a kind of support group where we can be loud and proud. It goes by the name of the Pinaddicts Challenge and actually encourages sufferers to be proactive and go ahead and bloody well create something, rather than just poring over other people’s lovely makes.

So, here’s mine. It’s one of the first things I pinned and it’s pretty simple. To make one you’ll need:

An old photo frame

Some pretty wrapping paper

Day Labels

Glue

Scissors

Dry wipe marker pen

Now, remove the back board part of the frame and cover it in your chosen paper – I used a glue stick to stick it down. Next, glue on the day labels. Finally, Re-assemble the frame and you should now have a lovely, blank weekly meal planner (or any other sort of planner come to think of it). Write out your menu in dry wipe pen and Bob’s yer uncle.

Materials

Cover the board

Glue on the day labels

Et voila!

Handmade Felt Hearts

In deference to good old St Valentine, I’m cheekily reblogging this easy craft (I first posted it back in December in the guise of Christmas decs). I originally pinched this make from Kirstie Allsopp’s Craft book, but to be honest, it’s a very simple, basic technique and you don’t need a book to tell you how to do it (that’s where I come in).

Anyway, these babies are so pretty and homespun looking that I’ve been making them left, right and centre. Best of all though is that I’ve probably only spent about a fiver and made around ten of them so far. 50p for such a lovely gift is thriftiness itself!

So, here’s what you need for around ten hearts:

0.5m red felt

2m (ish) thin ribbon (I used 5mm width)

Wadding

White embroidery thread

20 small buttons (two per heart)

10 beads (1 per heart)

And here’s what you do:

First make a simple heart template (freehand is fine). I drew mine on greaseproof paper. Cut it out and then pin to a piece of folded felt. Cut out (you should now have two heart shapes from the folded fabric). Next, measure approx. 20cm of ribbon, cut and fold in half. Place vertically inside the two felt hearts so that the loop sticks out at the top and the ends stick out at the bottom. Pin the ribbon in place between the hearts. You can now use a neat running stitch to sew round nearly the whole outer edge of the hearts just leaving a small gap into which you can stuff a little wadding to pad the shape out nicely. Continue to sew up the remaining edge. Finally stitch a pretty button onto each side of the decoration and thread a bead onto the ‘tail’ part of the ribbon. Tie to hold in place. Et, voila.

These make a great half term craft activity for slightly older children (i.e those who are capable of wielding a needle) or a lovely handmade alternative to the usual Valentine’s tat.

Brilliant Blogs

Today’s post does what it says on the tin. It is simply a list of blogs which have found there way onto my ‘Favourites’. If you’ve got a few minutes to spare, get clicking on the links and find yourself some brilliant blogs.

Lifestyle/Parent blogs

These are the bloggers who write about everyday life and more besides, quite often with a family slant. My top picks are: Cherry Menlove, Lulastic and the Hippyshake, Flower Fairies and Fairycakes, Carrots and Kids, Notes from Home, Salt and Caramel, and Mammasaurus. I could actually go on and on but will let you digest these first.

Thrifty/Frugal Living

I find myself drawn to these sites. I love the way they impart so much knowledge. Ones I like are: A Thrifty Mrs, Mel Wiggins, Faith, Hope and Charity Shopping, Penny Golightly, My Family Club, Austerity Housekeeping, Thrifty Mummy, and Baby Budgeting. If you read these, you WILL save money!

Style/Design/Creative

These are the bloggers who know what’s hip. Among the best are: The Sartorialist, Bangs and a Bun, Betty Bee, Jane Foster, The Purl Bee, Design Mom, Kat Got The Cream and Made by Tamsin. Warning – these bloggers may make you green with envy.

Now, I think that’s enough to be going on with. Oh, and don’t forget to spread the word if you find one you really like!

Thrifty Thursday: Half term on a budget

M breaks up for half term this afternoon so we have a week plus an extra day of ‘fun’ to look forward to. Anyway, as it’s Thrifty Thursday, I thought you might like to hear some of my ideas for filling the next few days without spending a small fortune.

I think the activities fall into two main categories – Home and Away. Within these categories, there are the sub groups: Free, Cheap or Pricey. Obviously this post isn’t about spending big money – that’s very easy to do without any help – so we’ll forget about anything which is too expensive and concentrate on free or cheap stuff.

Let’s kick off with Home:

I suppose this will depend on the ages of your children. Mine are almost six and 19 months respectively. Quite a large and sometimes un-bridgeable gap. I tend to tailor things around M (the big one) and then let K join in as best she can. Here are some things to have a go at:

Baking/Cooking – easy recipes such as fairy cakes or pizza – include a trip to buy ingredients and you have a morning or afternoon covered

Messy time – I hate getting paints/glue out, but the kids love it and so long as you’re prepared for the mess, this kind of thing can keep them busy for ages. There are some great websites with art/craft ideas. This can incorporate anything from finger painting or papier mache to play dough or collage making.

Halloween  – pumpkin carving and spooky dress ups. M likes to go the whole hog and put on a show complete with handmade programmes and posters.

Bulb planting – just about still got time for this and it combines fresh air with a nice wholesome task – result!

DVD and popcorn – okay, so not so much an activity as a chance to chill out, but nothing wrong with that.

Indoor den – make some form of tent or teepee and let your kids set up a den inside. Again, this can lead to all kinds of role play games.

And moving onto Away (by which I mean out of the house rather than abroad):

Visit the local park – great time of year for an autumn nature trail. Use their finds to fuel their craft activities – leaf rubbing/printing, twig collages etc… Older kids can use a digital camera to take pics for an autumn project or make a mini film.

Musuems – here in York, we have lots of museums and quite a few are free or offer reduced price entry to locals.

Autumn picnic – you could combine this with a trip to the park (in fact I recommend that you take a packed lunch wherever you’re going.  It’s only recently started to dawn on me that this is the way to save £££)

Local library – always great for your kids to get ‘new’ books and often there are free or cheap actvities taking place during school holidays

Bike ride – if your kids are old enough to ride along on the path next to you then this is a nice way to get some exercise. In our case, M will ride on the pavement and I’ll take K in the child seat on the back of my bike. There are lots of cycle paths where we live, so this is perhpas easier here than in some other areas.

So, there you have it. A few thrifty ideas. We’ll try to do some, if not all, of these activities and I’ll let you know which ones are best. In the meantime, tell us know what you’re up to. Happy half term!

Thrifty Thursday: Purse-friendly presents

It’s that time of year when I begin to feel a little overwhelmed by the sheer volume of gifts that I need to buy. We have three family birthdays this month including M’s which is obviously a big deal. On top of that M has four party invitations on the pinboard and then there’s a friend’s daughter to buy for early next month. And that’s just birthdays. Let’s not forget that the C-word is very much on the horizon and getting nearer. So, to launch Thrifty Thursdays, today’s post is all about how to give gifts without bankrupting yourself.

Tip One

The present cupboard. This works particularly well when buying for kids. Basically, this is a stock pile of pressies which can be plundered as and when. The key is to build it up as you go and keep it fairly well stocked. In other words, if you’re shopping in the sales and you see a toy or whatever marked down in price, buy two or three of them for the present cupboard. The real bargains are to be had when buying out of season, so you have to plan in advance and it might seem like ages before you actually give some of the gifts, but the beauty of the present cupboard is that it spreads the cost and means that you don’t wind up in a last minute panic buying something over-priced and unsuitable.

Tip Two

Make it.  If you’re a crafter then you’re probably already doing this, if not then now might be the time to hone a few basic skills and start making some stocking fillers. These could be anything from home-made jams and chutneys (there are loads of recipes online) to a hand knitted scarf (again, check online for beginners knitting tutorials). You can be as creative as you like and it’s always so lovely to receive something that someone else has pored over.

Tip Three

Offer a service. Do an evening’s babysitting so new parents can have a break or take a load of ironing and deal with it for someone. These are the ultimate thrifty gifts as they basically require expenditure of time instead of money. If you’re going to do this, try and tailor the service to the recipient so they get something really useful or enjoyable for them. No point in offering to mow someone’s lawn if they live in a block of flats. You can make little vouchers for these gifts too.

Tip Four

Put a spend limit on your present shopping. For kid’s parties, I’d say around £7 is plenty, but again, if you shop wisely then you could probably spend a lot less. This tip is best applied when buying for your own children or family members. It’s so easy to get carried away, just buying one more stocking filler or an extra pressie here and there. Set a limit for each person and stick to it.

Tip Five

Cards and wrapping. Bulk buying is the way forward here  (see tip one) and again means that you’re never stuck without a card for someone. If you’re ultra organised, you can even start a card file and buy a load of cards then store under the appropriate month for someone’s birthday. Christmas wise, everyone knows that the best time to buy cheap cards and paper was in last year’s post-xmas sales. Too late for buying this year’s stash, but bear in mind for next time. As far as wrapping paper goes, from an eco-thrift point of view, the best thing is to recycle where possible. Failing that, buy large rolls or make your own.

Right, well that was my first thrifty post – I hope you like it. Come back next Thursday for another one! In the meantime, I’ll tweet any newly discovered bargains on the high street or online, so look out for me on Twitter (@living_itlittle).

The Tuesday Review: Sew! by Cath Kidston

I got some Cath K gift vouchers recently. A nice amount, but not enough for any of the more substantial items. Now, I don’t know about you, but when I have vouchers, I’ve  just GOT to spend them. I kept popping in to my local CK and toyed with a few options before plumping for Sew! The pocket version.

Basically, it’s the A5 or mini version of the full size book of the same name. The mini one costs £9 (as opposed to £16 for the larger size). It’s published by Quadrille who I like as they do these kind of books well.

So, what do you get for your nine quid? Well, in case you’re wondering, this smaller book contains exactly the same projects as the larger size. The only difference (as far as I can tell) is that you get the materials to make one of the bags with the full size one. You don’t get that with Mini Sew!. What you do get, however, is a pretty needlecase and set of needles along with paper patterns and templates for the projects.

The book itself is paperback and 160 pages long. It contains, and I quote, “over 40 simple sewing projects”. It also features a useful introduction section which outlines some of the various tools and techniques needed for the projects. At the back it has an Addresses page to help you track down your materials.

Moving on to the projects, they really are lovely. Some are more tricky than others of course, but there are real basics such as lavender bags (below) which I’m planning to make and feature on here next week. If you’re a regular reader, you’ll know that I’m a bit of a novice when it comes to things crafty, but the projects in Sew! are so pretty and inspiring that I’m determined to get on with some of them. I reckon you could make a fair few Christmas pressies if you were that way inclined. How about a girl’s apron or a peg bag, a bird mobile or a flower cushion? I suppose most of the projects are quite ‘ordinary’ and more advanced or skilled crafters might be put off by that, but the projects are beautifully shot and the book is great to just flick though when you need uplifting.

Sew! is part of a range of Cath Kidston craft project books. The others are Stitch!, Make! and Patch!. I already own Make! but find that some of the projects in it need so many materials (some of them quite random). It’s nice as a coffee table book though.

Anyway, I hope that’s given you a bit of an insight into Sew!. It’s a great little book and would make a perfect and affordable gift. Ten out of ten from me. Look out for my attempt at lavender bags next week!

Thoughts of a frustrated crafter

That’s me, by the way, and I don’t want to be frustrated no more. The long and short of it is that I would LOVE to be a crafty, creative type person, the kind who regularly knocks up a cushion cover or rustles up a tray of scrummy cakes, but I never seem to get round to it.

Like a lot of mums, I’m busy doing mundane, usually kid-based stuff. This includes: the school run,  changing nappies, loading the dishwasher, feeding chickens, feeding children, ironing, washing and so on and on. Every so often I see a magazine article or come across a great craft blog and think ‘ooh, that looks nice, I could make that’ and then that’s as far as I get. The day to day stuff seems to take over.

During the summer holidays, I had big plans (sad I know) to make a doorstop for my very swingy living room door. Simple, eh? I tracked down a good ‘how to’  blog and even rooted out some suitable fabric. So far so good. But is my door now safely wedged by a lovely new doorstop? Is it heck. No, this is another project awaiting completion (or in fact awaiting commencement).

I have the tools. A sewing machine.  A fabric stash. Knitting needles. A fairly well stocked sewing box. What I don’t have, it seems, is the creative  momentum that is needed to get started and I can’t work out why.

It’s funny really. I can make lots of time to spend two or three hours watching crap telly each evening. I also find time to blog and google and tweet (impressive, eh?) and most amazing of all, I can get up at 6am and go for a run. However, none of these activities provide me with that sense of pride that you get when you create something from more or less nothing.

With long winter nights ahead and Christmas looming, I think now would be a good time to start. So, today’s post is a plea for help (again) from all of you makers and shakers out there. I would love to hear about what you’re all making and hopefully find some much needed inspiration. Happy crafting.