12 Do-It-Yourself Projects I Plan to Attempt in 2012

I made several Do-It-Yourself Projects last year and I have been very happy with the results (laundry detergent, glycerin soap, wheat bread, cinnamon rolls, yogurt, etc.). As a matter of fact, I have continued making these items on a regular basis because they have become our new favorites!

I decided to challenge myself to try 12 new things again in 2012. I have set a goal of only doing 1 per month so it's more realistic for me to actually complete the task I start. I always get side tracked and start doing so many other projects at the same time, but just to find I never complete half of what I start. The purpose for posting this list on my blog is to hold myself accountable! :-)

January- Homemade Granola Bars (I made them already and they are delicious)
        
February- Sew Heart Shaped Rice Heat Packs for Valentine's Gifts
                Homemade Heart Shaped Crayons (Valentine's gift for my sons friends)

March- Homemade Poptarts

April- Homemade French Bread

May- Homemade Wheat Thins

June- Homemade Vanilla Extract (making it now so it will be ready by Christmas)

July- Sew Big Floor Pillows for the Kids (I'm hoping to find pillow forms at yard sales or thrift store)

August-Homemade Bubble Bath

September- Eczema Fighting Lotion

October- Homemade Chapstick

November- Homemade Vick's Vapor Rub

December- Homemade Chai Tea Mix

Cute Pillows

I have several projects I would like to do, but I seem to never find the time to get them started. This weekend was the first weekend we actually didn't have much going on, so I got energetic on Saturday and broke out my sewing machine. It was so nice being able to start & finish a project in the same day. I felt so proud of myself for completing a few things that my boys have been asking me to do for so long. Even though it wasn't anything difficult, my boys were so excited when they woke up Sunday morning & saw their travel pillows completed with the material they got to pick out all by themselves.

I also repaired my son's froggy pillow he sleeps with every night. Froggy's foot was falling off & he acquired a few holes along the way. I also made two heat packs with rice for my boys. It seems as though they are having growing pains in their legs, stomach aches or something else which requires heat packs. We only had one in our household & they would fight over who would get it. Not any more.....now we have 3 to choose from in fun Thomas The Train & Disney Cars material that come in different shapes & sizes. :)



This is the pillow I made for my niece which matches the blanket I made her a couple weeks ago. I thought it turned out so cute & very girly looking! :) I'm going to get her name embroidered on the black part of this pillow case so it will be customized for her.






My son Preston is still a huge Thomas The Train fan. He has been since he was 2 years old. This is his own travel pillow that we will keep in our car. I made it with memory foam pieces inside which makes these pillows nice & squishy.




My son Noah loves Disney Cars. He picked out this material all by himself. This pillow is the perfect size for the boys to rest comfortably while traveling in the car.

Sewing Club- Project #2

I just finished my second block square today for our sewing club. It wasn't as complicated as I thought it would be. It was actually pretty easy to do. I had alot of fun doing it and now I am ready to start working on my third project this weekend to catch up! I enjoy sewing very much and it's very relaxing. I'm not very good at sewing yet, but I'm hoping to get better with lots of practice. That's why I am so excited our church New Cov decided to start a sewing club. What a better way to enjoy something you love to do and get to bond with other Christian Woman Sewers!




This pattern is called the "Monkey Wrench".

Sewing Club- Project #1

Here is my first block square I finished for our Sewing Club. It turned out cute! I was hoping to get my second one done before our meeting tonight, but unfortunately, I haven't had any free time lately. I have been so busy during the week running my home daycare and it seems as though we have had every weekend booked for the last couple months with something going on. Things are starting to settle down now and I should have alot more free time this month to catch up.

Once I catch up, I also have another project in mind for the boys. I will be making Thomas The Train travel pillows for the car. The boys have been wanting something small and soft to rest their heads on while traveling, so I thought this would be the perfect solution they would enjoy. I will post pictures when I complete this project! :)





This was our first project and this pattern is called "The Nine Patch".

Sewing Club

I'm super excited to share with you all that I joined a Sewing Club at New Covenant Community Church. We meet monthly and the teacher has a project for us at each meeting. We also complete projects on our own throughout the month to bring in. Each month we are doing a quilt block to be added together at the end. We make 2 identical blocks each month and by the end of the class we will have 2 completed quilts... one to keep and one to donate (one for me and one for thee). I'm looking forward to being a part of this ministry, as well as meeting and bonding with other Christian woman.

Katelyn and I had tons of fun shopping at Joann's Fabric yesterday picking out our project material. YES.......you can spend hours shopping for fabric (somehow the hubby doesn't understand). Time flies when your having fun!




This material is for our 1st project I missed that I will be making up. These 3 fabrics will make a pattern called the "Nine Patch".



I chose these 2 fabrics for our 2nd project called the "Monkey Wrench".


Once I complete these 2 pattern squares, I will post pictures for you to see what they look like. Hopefully it won't take me too long! I'm looking forward to seeing what's next :)

My First Quilt........DONE!

I am FINALLY done with my first quilt. I made this especially for Preston as a coming home with baby gift in his favorite theme: Thomas The Train. I thought it would be nice to give him something special for being the big helpful brother that he is. It's a queen size quilt which will fit perfectly on his bed in the winter months. It's very heavy and very, very warm. I did not realize how time consuming or the amount of work this involved, but I'm sure glad I didn't know otherwise I probably wouldn't have started it :) I was so proud of myself for completing a task like this because I sometimes start things, but never finish them. I think this turned out soooo cute!

Preston was absolutely thrilled when he saw this quilt for the first time. He had such a huge smile from ear to ear asking if this was his. He can't wait to put it on his bed, but the unfortunate part is, the weather is warming up so he just might have to wait awhile before he can use it.




Another view of the quilt at a different angle.




A closer look at the blue Thomas The Train material.




The back of the quilt.




I used a pattern Thomas The Train red material on the back to give it a little extra look instead of it being all red.