Mason Jar Sewing Kit

Making your own DIY sewing kit is super easy.  Although none of my pictures include an actual sewing kit inside the jar that's only because I haven't gotten around to it yet but…. thought I'd show you how I used a jar to make a sewing kit with a pin cushion attached to the top.

Adding the pin cushion to the top of the lid is the trickiest part to this craft.  Other than that it's a super easy craft to make.

I cut my fabric to size (about 1.5 inches around the lid) and then used some quilt batting (because it's what I had).  I shaped the quilt batting into a ball…the picture to the right isn't exactly a nice round ball but it is very difficult to hold the batting and take a picture.

I used a touch of hot glue and glued the batting to the TOP of the lid.

Cover your lid and batting with the fabric and use hot-glue to secure it to the back of the lid.

And once your fabric is secured you're done!

Personalized Clip Board

This project was by far one of the easiest ones yet!  It's just a personalized clip board that I mod-podged with scrapbook paper…. then I added a personalized luggage tag which I found on sale for approximately $1… and since the clipboard was only $1 (from the Dollar Tree) the entire craft was a little over $2 bucks!

You can tell from the picture there are "bubbles" in the mod-podge which you will want to smooth out BEFORE it dries with either a squeegee or your fingers.

I used the backside of the scrapbook paper to trace an outline of the clipboard and then carefully cut out before I mod-podged everything together.  I applied the first coat to the clip board then attached the cutout scrapbook paper and applied another layer of mod-podge over the top of the scrapbook paper.

I added the luggage tag to personalize the clipboard for "J" my college roomie and possibly to hold her business cards as well as a pen for the clipboard.

Picture Frame Message Pad

This is also a gift for my college friend J.  Since we are both graduates of UA I couldn't resist the houndstooth ribbon…. along with a $1 picture frame and $1 note pad from the Dollar Tree I think this made a super cute and inexpensive gift.

I started with the $1 picture frame and removed the matting and the frame separating the glass from everything else.

Since I opted to use ribbon as the background I needed 4 strands of it to cover the entire glass front.  You can't really tell from the picture but I laid the glass over the ribbons to ensure I had the right width and length.

This particular ribbon is wire-edged…. and because I needed to mod-podge the ribbon to the glass the wire needed to be removed.

Ribbon is relatively easy to mod-podge… but the wire is NOT!

Once the wire was removed… I used mod-podge to adhere the ribbon to the glass front frame.  I used a coat of it on the glass front… adhered the ribbon… then made sure to add another coat of mod-podge on top of the ribbon INCLUDING the ends!

I allowed it to dry completely before moving on to the next steps.

Once it was completely dry I used some scissors to snip the ends… because the ends of the ribbon were mod-podged (from the previous step) they didn't fray, tear or frazzle after being cut…. which can be common with fabric.

I used hot glue to adhere the back of the picture frame to my glass/ribbon mod-podge.











For the finished project I made a bow and super-glued it to the frame and then used velcro to attach the note pad.  If you decide on making this project make sure your frame and note pad are the appropriate sizes.  They don't necessarily need to be the EXACT same size…. personally, I prefer a slightly bigger frame.  However, picture frame sizes and notepad sizes tend to be completely different!

DIY Memo Board

As if I didn't have enough crafts with cookie sheets from the dollar tree I've decided I would add yet another one!  This time however, I'm turning it into a DIY Memo Board for a dear friend from college.

It's a relatively easy project it just takes patience to finish the entire craft… especially if you plan on adding the embellishments I have added.

I started by painting the edges of the cookie sheet black with a craft paint.  This process took 3-4 coats for me as the cookie sheet seemed "slick" and the paint had difficulty adhering to the pan.

But, all in all after a few coats I think it turned out great.

I decorated the cookie sheet with scrapbook paper and used a box cutter to cut the scrapbook paper to the specific measurements I needed.. I didn't really measure, just cut it like you see in the picture to the right.

And here's my final scrapbook layout!  I mod-podged all of the scrapbook paper to the cookie sheet.  Also, I painted the cookie sheet with mod-podge…. placed the scrapbook paper on it….. then mod-podged over the top of the scrapbook paper.  I used a stencil to trace out the "W"

And here's the final product

Also, I made my on mod podge using glue and water… I used about 3/4 of glue to 1/4 of water for a somewhat thick mod-podge

I found some 3D "sticky letters" which I used to spell out "MEMOS".   Then used magnets to attach the notepad and glitter clothespins.

If you don't have any magnets… you can easily find those "photo magnets" used to turn a picture into a magnet and then cut it to size which is what I did.

Strawberry Cheesecake Bundt Cake with Cream Cheese Icing

This recipe turned out to be one of my better ideas and trust me… I've had enough bad ideas in the kitchen to know when I come across a good one :-)

I've been on the search for a Strawberry Cake and/or Strawberry Cheesecake Cake recipe for a few days now (courtesy of too many strawberries in the house) when I finally decided I would just make my own Strawberries N' Cream kinda cake.

For the most part this recipe is easy and simple, nothing too complicated and even my toddler H enjoyed helping me out!

Ingredients

1 box of yellow cake mix - prepared according to package instructions
1 cup of diced strawberries
1 package of cream cheese - softened (I popped mine in the microwave for a few seconds)
1 egg
1 cup of sugar
1 container of Cream Cheese Frosting - (I used Duncan Hines)

 Start by cleaning and dicing up your strawberries until you have approximately 1 cup of diced strawberries.












Once your strawberries are diced, Mix together the cream cheese, sugar and egg using a blender… then gently fold in your chopped strawberries.










The picture below shows the cream cheese mixture with the strawberries gently folded in.

Pour half of your prepared cake mix into a WELL GREASED Bundt Cake pan and use a spoon to drop little "dollops" of the cream cheese mixture into the cake mix batter.  You will want to use half of the cream cheese mixture.

Pour the remaining cake mix into the cake pan and repeat the step above continuing to drop the rest of the cream cheese mixture into the cake pan.


Bake in a preheated oven according to package directions.  Once it has finished baking it may look a little like the picture below.

Allow the cake to cool completely before adding your cream cheese icing.  I warmed mine slightly in the microwave… just enough to get a good "drizzle" consistency to the frosting.

Chicken Broccoli & Rice Casserole

If you're in the mood for a good southern casserole or ever wanted a good recipe for Chicken Broccoli and Rice Casserole then look no further!  This is my go to recipe for casseroles and especially if I'm in the mood for a good chicken casserole.

It's creamy with lots of flavor and texture, it's warm, tasty and filling!


Ingredients

1 Package of Instant Rice
2-3 Chicken breasts
1 Cup of broccoli florets
2 Cups of chicken broth
1/2 cup of milk
1/2 cup of flour
1/2 cup of grated white cheese
crackers
Shredded cheddar cheese

 Prepare the instant rice according to package directions and set aside.

My chicken breasts were extremely thick so I halved them lengthwise….. With one of the chicken breasts I opted to slice it into three separate pieces

I Seasoned with salt and pepper


And then diced them up into thin strips which would cook quick..

Saute the chicken until it's done.

In a skillet or sauce pan add 2 cups of chicken broth and 1/2 cup of milk and allow it to slowly simmer. In a separate container, add the remaining 1/2 cup of milk along with the 1/2 cup of flour and stir together well.  Once the mixture is thoroughly mixed add it to the simmering broth.

Once the chicken broth mixture begins to thicken add the shredded white cheese of your choice and allow it to melt completely… once the cheese has melted add the rice.

 

Then add the coarsely chopped cooked chicken.

Gently boil the broccoli until it is tender and then add it to the chicken and rice.

Once all of the ingredients have been mixed together place them in a casserole dish and top with shredded cheddar cheese and crushed crackers….. then bake at 350 degrees for approx. 30 min.

Alphabet Toddler Rocks

Can you tell I have a toddler?  And that I often wonder what crafts I can do with my toddler.  Something easy, inexpensive and if possible… educational.

Well, what could be easier than painting rocks and writing letters on them?!  H really enjoyed this toddler craft and I liked the fact that it was easy and using what I had on hand made it very affordable.

1.   I used flat river rock and painted some various colors….Clean the rocks thoroughly and give them time to dry completely before you begin painting.

2.   Also, I used "paint pens" to make the letters and spray paint to give some of the rocks a "base color" (red, black,yellow, white).


3.   You can see the difference between the paints as the red paint has a "glossy" finish, the black spray paint was a "flat" finish and the yellow and white were "satin" finishes.