an article i like....

...and think we should all read and think about:
http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/33519021/ns/today-green/

what does the word "need" mean to you?

♥E

DIY dishwasher indicator

james and i have been having some issues lately with trying to remember/communicate whether the dishwasher is currently loaded with clean dishes or dirty dishes. since the dishwasher is magnetic, i decided a magnet indicator was in order.

i decided also to show you how to make one for yourself! this only took me about 20 minutes (takes me longer when i photograph); it would be a great project to do with kids and to personalize as you like!

1) choose an unused magnet off the fridge (reuse!)

this one looks good (it's my high school hotline number...i graduated quite some time ago and live about 5 states away...perfect!)
2) gather your supplies: mod podge, sponge-brush (sorry it has paint residue on it), scissors/paper cutting tools, brownish paper, white paper (plus stamps and pads, we'll see these later)
3) cut white paper to proper width. you'll only be covering half of the magnet with each color.
4) glue the white paper to the magnet.

5) repeat the cutting and gluing with the brown paper.


this is what you should get:
6) here's where you can really personalize it. i got out the stamps! i wanted to keep it sweet and simple, so i used my lil' letter stamps:


7) stamp "CLEAN" on the white side of the magnet:
8) stamp "DIRTY" on the brown side, upside-down from the word "CLEAN". that way when you have clean dishes in the dishwasher, you face the "CLEAN" side of magnet up (so it can be read), or visa-versa when the dishes are dirty.
you should now have this:
you can really do anything on either side! a little picture of stacked dishes versus dirty dishes would be cute, use your imagination!

here's mine in action:
shoot - now i have to unload the dishwasher...

♥E

reduce - reuse - recycle - ship!

as you know, i got married recently, and we were very blessed to have received many beautiful gifts from our doting friends and family. we registered at both macy's and bed, bath, and beyond. i tell you this not because we have an incomplete registry (you know you've been stocking up on those bb&b 20% off coupons!) but because it leads into my weekend craft project for tootsweet.

"crafts??" you say, "but i thought tootsweet was about sewing purses and whatnot..??" well, my dears, it is. BUT being the recycling waste-not-want-not fool that i am, i saved ALL of the beautiful purple paisley swirly wrapping paper that our gifts came wrapped with, in hopes of doing something fabulous with it. (i mean, look at it, how could i not??)

and i came up with....BUBBLE MAILERS!! that's right, it's simple, it's easy, it's sooo pretty! and here's how you can do it at home too:

1) collect your supplies:

that's bubble wrap, spray adhesive, scissors, wrapping paper, and brown scrap paper to spray on (plus you should do this in a well ventilated area. i did it on my back lanai)

2) be sure to have a friend to pop the extra bubble wrap for you :)

3) cut a piece of bubble wrap approx. 16 inches by 24 inches. lay that out on the wrapping paper and cut the paper such that there is a one-inch perimeter around the bubble wrap.

4) spray the back side of the wrapping paper with the spray adhesive.

5) place the bubble wrap in the center of the wrapping paper. carefully press it down - don't pop any of the bubbles!

6) fold the paper/bubble wrap fusion in half, bonding three sides of the paper perimeter.

7) be sure to leave one side open so you can stuff it for mailing!

8) cut the edges flush for a cleaner look.

9) voila! cute and pretty REPURPOSED bubble mailers!

hope this help spark your creativity :)

♥E

reclaiming at it's finest

Recently, here in Palm Bay, we got a new shopping center. the Marshalls next-door to the Joann Fabrics that i frequent moved to the new shopping center and apparently got all new fixtures for the new location...which means that they liquidated their old fixtures - to ME! ok, not all of them, just one, but still!

$43 bucks for a sturdy metal 4-way stand with metal casters and all the arms, plus 4 additional arms, a bag-full of clippy-hooks, and two sign holders.
Basically it looks like this:
BUT, mine has a bunch more stuff on it, and was about 1/3 to 1/4 of the price :D
This has made storing my finished items so much easier! and at future craft fairs it's going to be so great, too!

Sveet!

♥E

Bachelorette Party!

As y'all know, i am in the process of planning my wedding for June. My best friend and MOH, Renee, is getting married 2 weeks before me, and, of course, i am her MOH. It's crazy times!

So this weekend i am headed up to Indiana for my final dress fitting and bachelorette party. It will be a joint party for both myself and Renee, so double the fun! We're going to a dinner theatre to see CATS!

The attire is of course the first thing we thought of, and instead of crowns, we decided that we'd each wear our rhinestone "bride" tanks. but we also wanted to have those cute sashes that say "maid of honor". being the seamstress, i decided to make them. here's the really cute part: mine is in her wedding color and hers is in my wedding colors :)
Here i am modeling them both, since the party hasn't happened yet:
(renee will wear teal and i will wear red)
It's gonna be a grand ol' time!

♥E

My New Obsession

During my recent decluttering phase, I have been setting aside, as many of us do, a HUGE pile of stuff for a garage sale and/or donations. Our neighborhood is going to be having a community garage sale, so I figured it's worth it to make a buck or two off some of my stuff. While I was Stumbling the other day, though, I found freecycle, a nationwide grassroots organization that is basically an online swap meet. Ours here in Brevard is a Yahoo group where anyone can post something they need or have to offer - for FREE. So a lot of my things won't make it to that garage sale...but I did get a set of drawers for an awsome DIY that I'll be posting about in the future :)

<3E

GREEN Spring Cleaning: Part I

As we approach the time for tax refunds and warmer weather (hopefully!), we also approach the most wonderful time of the year - Spring Cleaning!! Ok, I know it seems that I am getting way to excited about it, but I find it cathartic to purge those items which I no longer use and send them to a better home. It's also a great time for me to discover lots of new materials with which to make more handbags and accessories for YOU!

The cool thing is that I am not the only one out there that does this. Check out this article from Suite101 that talks all about green crafting and how we can all be a little more Earth-conscious when we are going through our yearly "out with the old, in with the new" ritual.

<3E