Potted Plants in Ladies' Blouses

This last weekend I helped my mother decorate for a "Garden Tea Party" themed bridal shower for a dear family friend of our. We had these little potted flowers on every table but thought we could make the boring green pots cuter with a bit of love, fabric, buttons and do dads (that's a word, right?). I thought I would share how I did it.

Supplies:
- potted flowers from your local nursery
- unbleached/off white light weight fabric (I used about 1.5 meters for all of my 12 pots)
- glue gun and sticks
- 3" paper doilies, ribbons, buttons
- extra little bits to make each one unique like cameos, bits of chain, lace etc.

Here is how I did it:

1. I started with your regular tapered small green flower pot. First cut a long strip as wide as the height of your flower pots. 

2.Then wrap the fabric around a pot so that there is about one centimeter overlap at the widest part (it's almost like you are thinking of it as a cylinder rather than a tapered pot when you are cutting the fabric you need for one pot). I did one at a time since not all of m pots were exactly the same width. 

3. Hot glue the first edge straight down, starting from the top rim. Wrap fabric around and add a dot of hot glue to the back of the pot to hold the fabric securely down. 

4. Hot glue the last edge down overlapping the first edge. 

5. Pull and pinch the fabric on the bottom to make a gather. This will me an arm. Don't do it too much because you still need some for the other side. Hot glue the fold down and hold it until the glue has cooled enough to hold firm. 

6. Repeat step 5 with the other side. 

7. Fold a three inch doily in half. 

8. Cut as pictured to make two collars. 

9. Plan out the rest of the decoration on your work surface before you hot glue them onto your blouse.

It is fun to make all of the blouses different, but you could all do the same if you wanted, or if you didn't have a mad stash of crafty bit to pull from like I do.

Enjoy!
Gabrielle

1st Birthday Party

Ezra recently turned 1 this last February. At the same time, we were also just moving into my parent's new basement suite (yep we are boomerang kids). My parents graciously offered to allow us to host his party in their part of the house, since we had a ton of boxes in ours.

 We did lots of balloons, since Ezra loves them! We tied them all across the banister, on chairs, on toys, and above lamps. I wish I had more pictures of some of our decorations, but I kind of had my hands full.... to say the least.

I have a lot more appreciation for Pinterest after planning this party... Especially for planning the food. We wanted to have a classic kid's birthday party; no theme in particular, just lots of colours and fun food. We can always do themes for his party's later on.

A few items on the menu from Pinterest were:

Rainbow Fruit Skewers
Oreo Pops
Hummus and Bell Pepper Octopus

 

We really wanted to start a birthday tradition with our family. I found a pack of 3 foam crown from the dollar store. Each year, the idea is to add one significant item to the crown and our children get to wear their crown on their birthday during cake time. Since it was only Ezra's 1st birthday, and it was a classic party, we simply cut out a felt "E" and glued it on.

My Favorite Local Stores to Bite the Craft Bug

I've lived in the Lower Mainland (Greater Vancouver area) my whole life and have scouted out some awesome shopping locations for the creative individual. Here is my list of go-to places:

Birkeland Bros Wool Ltd - (Vancouver)

Birkeland Bros is my absolute favorite place in the lower mainland to go for beautiful yarn! The staff is super friendly, knowledgeable and eager to help you out. The prices are higher but expected since the quality just can't be beat. What is amazing is that this is a Vancouver company that has been in its original location since 1939 and still run by the same family! When Jesse and I got married in 2006 I wanted to make a warm shawl (pictured above) and found exactly what I needed here.

Dressew- Downtown - (Vancouver)

I go to Dressew to get CHEAP yarns, fabric, buttons and costume accessories. They have quite the variety of crafty items at a liquidation price! The quality is fair too. I'm so glad that they take debit now! They used to be a cash only place and I never carry cash around anymore. Some of the staff are a bit unfriendly... especially when it is busy there but if you go early in the day and follow their rules (no food in the store and don't touch the scissors!) you can usually find friendlier faces if you needed help finding something in their Goliath sized store. If not, enjoy the hunt!

Opus - (Downtown, North Van & Granville Isl)

My all time favorite art store is Opus. My favorite location is their Granville Island store because I found they had the most variety and quantity of products. You might have to put up with a few nervous looking Emily Carr students but they hire the friendly ones to work in their store.

Rokko Fabrics - (East Vancouver)

Rokko Fabrics has an amazing amount of variety of fancy to casual fabrics in their store for the amount of square footage they have. The prices are great if not the best next to liquidation prices. A big bonus... no hunting because everything is very well organized.

Urban Source - (Vancouver)

Sometimes you don't know what project you are going to do next until you walk into this store. They have obscure little items like little scraps of papers, rubber, magnifying sheets, containers and fuzzy balls? Every time I go in they have something new. Its always worth checking out when I'm in the Mount Pleasant area. The best part is that most of these are being saved from a landfill.

Welk's - (Vancouver)

One of my favorite discount stores! They carry dishes, household items, toys, gardening supplies, storage bins, canvasses, pretty paper, beads and the list goes on. It is relative to a candy store... really. As far as comparing the prices to a conventional dollar store, I've found them cheaper. Plus its in one of my favorite neighborhoods: Mount Pleasant.

Capilano Rock & Gem - (North Vancouver)

Whatever level of jewellery maker you are (from hobbyist to professional goldsmith) this is a place for you. Jewelry makers from all over the lower mainland seek out this store for knowledgeable staff, great product and competitive prices. As much as I enjoy to shop online, nothing beats seeing and touching my supplies before I make a transaction. Plus, this store is family owned. 

Dollar Max - (Richmond)

There are so many dollar stores in Richmond, but the Dollar Max located a few blocks from Richmond Centre is my favorite. They have low prices, even for a dollar store, and nicer quality and variety than the others. There is something about dollar stores that make me a bit queasy (who had to suffer to offer me a huge package of popsicle sticks for $0.99?), but sometimes you just can't find your typical dollar store items anywhere else!

MCC Thrift Mart - Abbotsford

Finally a reason to go to the valley! This is the queen of all thrift stores but please don't tell anyone. Not the best for clothing, but as far as finding books, housewares, lamps and furniture (there are two building to check out one across from the other) this is the best place. I wish I had a huge house that I could fill with furniture to refinish from here. In the same building where you find the furniture they have a plethora of frames and old lamps. The ladies that work here are all volunteers and as sweet as cherry pie. All profits go to the charity... nice!




Now go shopping!

Etsy Treasuries

From time to time I have friends/family who follow my Facebook Fanpage ask me, "What is this treasury thing you featured on?"

If you aren't familiar with Etsy, it is an online market place, much like ebay, that allows members to sell and buy supplies, handmade and vintage goods. I've been buying from artists and selling my PIE jewellery line on Etsy since December 2008. Most of my experience has been very positive.
"Etsy is more than a marketplace: we're a community of artists, creators, collectors, thinkers and    doers." - Etsy . Its a great place for support and inspiration for emerging and established artists and hobbyists.

Part of the community of Etsy has treasuries: a collection of images tiled with usually a theme, curated by members from Etsy. Its a great compliment to be featured in one, just because you know that someone out there is appreciating your work enough to include it in what they think is worthwhile to showcase.

Treasuries are also listed as one of the ways Etsy suggests people to shop. If there is as Etsy member who prefers to shop this way, you are more likely to have your stuff seen if you are in great treasuries.

Another great thing about treasuries is that sometimes they will make it to the front page if enough people hype the treasury be commenting, viewing, "admiring" or "favoriteing" them.  I guess favoriteing isn't a word, but its much like "liking" on Facebook. Its kind of a no brainer, but if you sell on Etsy, you want to get on the front page. Its the first page people see when they go to Etsy.

Are you starting to get why I post and share almost all treasuries my work is in? Its mostly a lot of fun!

Here is a treasury I finished today!

Featuring : Salvagehouse, TheDrunkenWord, WillowontheWater, Orange CountyCandle, Letterpress, TheGirlintheSticks, SeeLifeShine, illusy, braggingbags, TheLonelyHeart, SeedSewn

Grab a Bowl - 10 of my Favorite Uses for Rice Bowls

Some of my rice bowl collection

While growing up, my mother would often include a small bowl of rice with dinner. There was a generous stack of porcelain rice bowls with random patterns in the cupboard: it was a beautiful sight. We used those bowls for more than just rice. “Just grab a rice bowl! ” was often heard in our hive of six. 

Before I moved out, my mom bought me my own set of four rice bowls. Over the last five years I have added to this collection. I now own eighteen (I think) and they are never all in the cupboard at the same time because I use them so much.

Source

• Prep Bowls - They are the perfect size to hold chopped veggies, and herbs. Measure out spices into a rice bowl before you add them to the big pot so there are no accidents. Its happened to all of us at one time or another, right? The salt pours out too quickly from the box or the little spice jar cover with the holes pops off and goes into the soup along with all of the jar’s contents.

• Decorating Cookies or Cakes - Pour out your sprinkles and mini sized candies into these to create easy access and visibility. To get a variation of coloured icing to choose from; separate a batch of white icing into the bowls then add food colouring and mix in.
• Dying Easter Eggs - These bowls are the perfect size to hold just enough liquid to immerse a chicken egg.
• Defrosting Baby Food - About an hour before baby’s meal sit the bowls in the sink with hot water to defrost homemade purees. Because the rice bowls are small and ceramic, they transfer the heat from the water to the food quickly.
• Portion Control - Tempted to sit on the couch with a bag of chips, chocolate covered almonds or a tub of ice cream (or all three)? Dish your treats out into rice bowls in the kitchen, then sit down.
• Night Stand Duty - Some rice bowls are very pretty too and could make a great companion on your nightstand to hold your jewelery while you sleep. 
• Vanity Organizer - Avoid chaos in drawers! Organize bobby pins and hair ties into rice bowls.
• Manicure Soak - After removing old polish and filing your nails, soften up your cuticles. Fill a rice bowl with warm water. Scent it with a few drops of your favorite essential oils and a teaspoon of grape seed oil or olive oil. Soak your digits for 5-10 minutes.
• Crafting - There are bound to be bits whatever you are into. Use rice bowls to keep your bits in or from rolling away from you.  
• Snowflakes - One of my family’s favourite Christmas traditions was to cut out paper snowflakes. We would start every snowflake by tracing a perfect circle with a pencil around a rice bowl. The size of these snowflakes are big enough to get detailed with your designs but small enough that we could put a whole bunch on one window without it looking to crowded.

I feel like my home really wouldn't really be complete without one or two rice bowls around.

Source

Cloth Diapering as a First Time Mom

Whether to cloth diaper or to use disposables is just one of the important decisions we have had to make as new parents. Early on in my pregnancy we decided that cloth diapering was something that was worth trying out. I felt urged to find out for myself if cloth diapering was/is right for our family.

A few major facts that caught my attention:
1. It takes a disposable diaper 550 years to decompose!
2. At 6 diapers per day for 2.5 years (the average age a baby will potty train using disposables) is 5,475. That’s about $1,500 vs. $600 to buy a set of 24 quality cloth diapers plus the accessories. So that’s $900 worth of saving, plus they can be used again for subsequent children.
3. Disposable diapers are full of mysterious chemicals that are harmful to the environment as well as baby’s skin and body.
4. Cloth diapered children tend to potty train sooner, since they can feel that they are wet.
5. Cloth diapering is not what it used to be, thanks to advancements in the textile industry, they are easy to use and function well.

Sources:
http://www.thegreenmama.com/analyzing-environmental-life-cycle-costs-diapers
http://behealthyandrelax.com/2007/11/how-long-does-it-take-to-decompose/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z7rNYzSH-BA (plastic island)

I started my search online, looking to find out where I could buy them. I was overwhelmed! There are so many companies making cloth diapers and so many different styles, fabrics, and colours to choose from.

Watching people’s reviews on YouTube was helpful place to start, since I did not understand the cloth diapering jargon on review sites or blogs. It was a learning curve, but I found that some web stores had some really helpful pages dedicated to helping out newbies like me understand what cloth diapering is all about. I didn’t know the difference between a prefold or an all in one. Now I do.

• Flats – diapers are a single large layer of cloth that must be folded into the correct size to fit a baby under a separate waterproof cover.

• Prefolds – diapers are a simple rectangle of layered absorbent cloth folded into thirds and fastened under a separate waterproof cover.

• Fitteds – diapers are made of a few layers of absorbent cloth material sewn to resemble and fit the same as a disposable. They are fastened shut by pins, snaps, or hook and loop tape (velcro). They also need a separate waterproof cover.

• Pocket diapers – diapers include a waterproof outer layer and a moisture-wicking inner layer that is sewn together to create a stuff-able pocket. The pocket is stuffed with absorbent material called an “insert” and can usually accommodate extra layers of fabric called “boosters”.

• All-in-one diapers (AIO) – diapers have a waterproof outer layer, sewn together with a moisture absorbing inner layer(s).

• All-in-two diapers (AI2) – diapers can function as an all-in-one diaper or as a diaper cover. An all-in-two diaper has an insert that can be removed. With the insert removed the diaper can be used as a cover over a “prefold” or “fitted” cloth diaper.

After understanding what the different types of diapers were and the abbreviations used, some blogs were helpful with reviews on certain brands and comparing different brands to each other. I wanted to find something that was made in North America, trim, cost effective and above all functional. I found a brand called Apple Cheeks that I liked the looks of and read blog reviews favoring this brand because of their diaper’s low rise (as not to rub little umbilical cord stumps) and trimness as a two size All-In-2. I liked that the insert would come out of the cover because I hoped to be able replace the inserts after they were soiled and use the cover for more than one change. The inserts coming out would also mean they would dry faster too. Plus, they are made in Canada!   

At this time, my little wee one was still a dweller of the tummy. I was almost completely sure that I wanted to go with this Apple Cheeks system. When you are cloth diapering you want to have enough for 24 changes. I almost ordered 24 changes right off the bat, but I thought I shouldn’t be too hasty. I was nervous about its performance and fit when the little wee actually came. I ordered a mini test kit and washed it in preparation.



When our first born arrived, life was kind of crazy, as expected. What wasn’t expected however, was how long it would take for me to recover! (It was a long delivery) I thought maybe a few days but it was more like a week before I could even do stairs comfortably. My midwives strongly urged me to stay with my mom so she could take care of me. The last thing on my mind at that point was my little mini test kit since I wasn’t even the one changing his diapers. 

our first born in his Apple Cheeks Diaper

At about 2 weeks old we tried the cloth diaper. I was instantly glad that I didn’t commit to the whole system because the leg snaps were already at their loosest setting! our first born was still under 10 lbs and the diaper is estimated to fit babies from 7-20 lbs. I understand that this weight guide is not exact... but he is long and skinny. I would expect the diaper to be ill fitting on a chubby thighed baby, not him. The cover also would get dirty nearly every time he soiled (newborn poop is liquid not solid) it; defeating the purpose of using the cover for more than one change. Occasionally we forgot to point his little pee pee down, or maybe it managed to move while the diaper was on him, we found that his pee would wick up to the top front and then on his clothes. I didn’t have a problem at the time with the bulkiness of the diapers, I expected some bulk with cloth. I was suprised that Jesse, my husband, did however have a probem with the way the bulk looked. In short, these were not working.

I emailed Green Ninja, and let them know about my experience. I told them that we wanted to find a cloth diaper that was as trim as possible. Green Ninja’s site I found especially helpful with information, tips and suggestions. Their response to my e-mail was quick, detailed and personal.

I visited a couple local shops that carried cloth diapers to see and compare how they felt and what they looked like in real life. I wish this was the first thing I did. I understood so much faster what I liked and did not like from just doing this. For example, I hate the feeling of micro-fibre/fleece! It gives me the heebie geebies! Now, this is totally my personal preference because there really isn’t anything wrong with micro-fibre/fleece but how was I to know this unless I felt it and saw it in person? I went ahead and ordered a BumGenius Elemental to try out right away after seeing it in the local store and Green Ninja’s suggesting it in the previously mentioned e-mail.   

our first born in his first Elemental Diaper

We tried the Elemental diaper as soon as we could and were very impressed by its design. It was trim enough to go under our first born’s jeans even. Its absorbent layers were of organic cotton, not micro fleece and we did not have leaking or fit problems. He will hopefully fit these diapers for a while still since he is still on the second tightest setting in the legs and waist and on the tightest setting for the rise. The only drawback we have found with these so far is that they are higher in price and they take about 2 hours to dry on low in the dryer. Hopefully the weather will get nicer so that we can hang them outside. 

part of our cloth diaper collection

We now have 12 bumGenius Elementals and 2 Flip covers with 6 inserts. I decided to get some Flip diapers because they are so versatile. Our first born isn’t peeing too much at night now, but I there is an option to double up on the inserts with the Flip diaper (or any pocket diaper) when he gets a bit older. They also are great because they dry fast and have an organic cotton insert option, the same material that we loved about the Elementals.

Some pleasant surprises I’ve learned about cloth diapering:
1. There is a huge supportive and very friendly community of parents who cloth diaper.
2. Its been a lot easier than I thought it would be! I’m only doing one more extra load every other day.
3. Its fun and almost addictive! I want to find out how other people are doing cloth diapers and what they use, their experiences, what they wash them with, how they store them etc.
4. I really like the way they look and feel on our baby. The cloth diaper gives you something to grab onto when you are holding him and they are super cute!
5. I feel really good about making this decision for our family every time we put a diaper on our baby.  

My Favorite Cloth Diaper Links so far:
Diaper Pin - unbiased reviews on different products and brands
Green Ninja - helpful “diaper training” for a newbie like me

Parenting Web Abbreviation Guide

I am thrilled to be a first time mom living in the information era but the abbreviations used on different “mom sites” can be confusing. There are a lot of abbreviations used in forums, discussion boards, review websites, blogs etc. that took a while to get used to. Some are pretty straightforward, but sometimes as a first time mom I had no idea what people were talking about!

Here is my guide to help other new moms understand what commonly used abbreviations stand for:

BFP - Big Fat Positive (pregnancy test)
BFN - Big Fat Negative (pregnancy test)
BTW - By The Way
CD - Cloth Diaper
DH - Dear Husband
DW - Dear Wife
DD - Dear Daughter
DF - Dear Fiance
DBF - Dear Boyfriend
EBF - Exclusively Breast Fed
EUC - Excellent Used Condition
FF- Formula Fed
FIL - Father In Law
FTM- First Time Mom
GYN - Gynaecolgist
HPT - Home Pregnancy Test
HTH - Hope This Helps
IMO - In My Opinion
IMHO - In My Humble Opinion
MIL - Mother In Law
MOS. - Months
M/C - Miscarriage
M/S - Morning Sickness
PG - Pregnant
RN - Registered Nurse
RM - Registered Midwife
SAHM - Stay At Home Mom
S/B - Still Birth
SD - Step Daughter
SS - Step Son
SO - Significant Other
TIA - Thanks In Advance
TMI - Too Much Information
TTC - Trying To Conceive
U/S - Ultrasound
WAHM - Work At Home Mom
YO - Year Old