Those Nerdy Kids - Geeky Pocket Tops

My nephews have officially become nerds - just like their mother, their grandparents, great-grandparents and their auntie, they need glasses. A visit to the optometrist told my sister that they had both inheirited the bad eyeballs gene. The oldest didn't seem to mind either way, and the youngest informed me "that he looked good in all of them" (the glasses at the store). So at least they weren't bummed like I had been when I first had to start wearing 'em.

A few days after they started donning their new specs, my sister called and asked if I would make the boys nerd shirts like I had made Russell last year. That sounded so awesome but what do kids under 8 need with a calculator unless it is to spell words like 80085?

Click to read more ...

Finishing a Pinata Tutorial, Part 2

So it's been a few days and your pinata is all sorts of ready for some beautifying, right? If you're just tuning in and missed how to make a pinata, check out part one by clicking here.

Click to read more ...

Gluten Free Paper Mache Paste & Making a Pinata, Part 1

I grew up in West Texas where there was a piñata at just about every kid's party. I don't remember ever actually taking a swing at one, though, which seems pretty odd. Some years ago my sister and I decided that her boys needed to experience a piñata in all of its violent, candy filled goodness. Besides, we just might get a good junk shot to send in to America's home videos and win 10K! (I did tape it just in case).

The boys, and every kid at the birthday party, had a blast. So last year, pre blogging days, I made a gigantic spider piñata for Valentine's Day. She was a black widow with a heart instead of an hourglass, ping pong ball eyes and legs that were broken off in order to accommodate my sister's massive amount of luggage. We named the piñata, Lovey Mc LoveLove and she was massively huge - her head was a normal 8 inch balloon, her legs were made of four long skinny balloons and her body was one of those jumbo punch balloons. 

Click to read more ...

Sweet Feet - Girly Shoe Makeover at Mom Spark!

My Mom's side of the family is really big into cutesy or kitschy sayings. To this day, when Momma takes a crazy turn while driving, she says "Hang on Lucies!" I'll say "cheese it" whenever I break something, knock something over in a store, or otherwise klutz out, which is at least once a day. Mimmie has sayings that are terribly inappropriate, including one about a kitten who can't get any milk. When I was little, when my Poppa would help me with my shoes he would tell me to "get those sweet feet over here". Needless to say, I love these types of sayings and they often inspire me...

Prior to blogging, I had just started working towards baking for a living and had begun filling my first orders for Christmas chocolate cakes, caramel apple pies, cookies, caramel apples and the like. I even made a super cute chocolate cake shaped like a pilgrim's hat with a turkey pilgrim hanging onto a musket on top. I would often visit cake forums in search of inspiration for my latest marshmallow fondant laden design.

That is when I stumbled onto a cake design called "drippy cakes" and I instantly fell in love and planned to make this style for Valentine's Day. Unfortunately a few weeks before I was diagnosed Celiac which means I cannot eat gluten found in most commonly wheat. Now, cakes are generally made from wheat flour. To say I was devastated was an understatement. I shoved all of my cake pans, fondant rollers and the like in the garage and quit taking orders that very day.

So in making a pair of kid's kicks over at Mom Spark, I decided to make cupcake inspired 'classic canvas' shoes for a very sweet little girl. Since I never got to make "drippy cake" I decided to use the inspiration for these adorable little slip ons. Head on over to Mom  Spark to check out this girly sprinkled shoe makeover tutorial!

Shoestaches Revisited! - Mustaches for your Shoes!!!

Today I am revisiting one of my favorite DIY projects that I have posted to this blog to date! Shoestaches are mustaches for your shoes made out of felt and they are awesome...

You may be wondering why I am reposting an old project... That is simple. Euclid left me abandoned at my sister's house, and while I prepared posts to automatically post through the day after Christmas, I wasn't counting on my ride not being able to get me home by now. So, please enjoy this kind of an oldie (originally posted April 16, 2012) but a goodie. 

This project can be whipped out in about 15 minutes per pair - you will need:

Felt, scissors, matching embroidery thread, needle, shoes & laces, your moustache printable.

Click to read more ...

Letters from Santa from the North Pole!

In my family we have had a longstanding tradition of really giving the littl'ins a fun experience with Santa Claus. When I was a kid, Santa would call my sister and I on Christmas Eve to let us know what we were doing well, how we were misbehaving and to excite us to the point that it generally made it even more difficult to go to sleep. Little did we know that Santa was actually my Uncle Les.

Nowadays he's called Uncle Skunk and he has maintained the longheld tradition and calls my sister's kids every Christmas Eve without fail. Last year I decided to get in on the action in my own crafty way. For the first time, the boys received letters from Santa that were actually postmarked from the North Pole!

Click to read more ...