LINK IT UP THURSDAY #22

A quick word before we get to the fun of party day. 
Have you heard of Shabby Blogs?  They have free blog backgrounds and buttons and fun blogging stuff.  If you notice I don't have a link to them and there is a good reason.  Shabby Blogs was hacked at the beginning of May.  Since then any blog that has any of their HTML code is open for Malware. I did have some of their code on my blog.  Luckily two very nice bloggy buddies let me know they were getting messages that my site was not safe to visit.  (thank you Kara and Adrianne) It's easy to fix this problem just take off any and everything from Shabby Blogs.  DO NOT go to their site it is so infected you can pick something up just visiting them.  Also, it was recommended that if you do have HTML code from Shabby Blogs that you redo your passwords.  This type of malware makes it easier for others to hack your blog.
Now on to happier things.

 It's PARTY time!

I hope all of you here in the US had a great Memorial Day weekend.  (Canadian friends I hope you had a great holiday the weekend before!)  

We had a fun yet busy holiday.
 We have been doing a lot here at the Double Wide this week. 
On Monday I showed you my entry for the I Will Wear it in Public sewing Challenge, I'm really excited how it turned out.
Tuesday I showed you our Summer Time Banner.
Wednesday was all about my favorite crocheted slippers.  So much fun!! 

Don't forget to come back tomorrow, I have something really fun and exciting to announce!

Now, before we get to the party this week we get to check out the BELLS of the ball from last week.

Wesens-Art showed us how easy it is to make these beautiful leaves.  I can't wait to try it out with my kids.

AMGCrafts showed us some beautiful planters her mom made.  I love them!

Etcetorize made these so cute garden markers.  It's so smart they wont wash away, blow away, or fall over. Perfect!

One Creative Mommy showed her DIY garden trellises.  They look easy to make and like they would work great.

(Can you tell I've been working in my garden?)

Tousled Day made an adorable dress out of a maxi skirt.  What a great up-cycle!

Silo Hill Farm has a great alternative for stenciling on fabric.  She used fabric markers!  It turned out great.

GREAT JOB ladies!  Go ahead and grab yourself a Featured Button!  Face Book Features, make sure you get a button too. If you didn't get featured here head over to Terry's to see if she featured you.

<center><a href="http://kadie-sevenalive.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="Seven Alive" src="http://i1188.photobucket.com/albums/z402/tcohoe/FEATUREDPARTYBUTTON.jpg"/></a></center>

This is a shared link party so if you link it up here it will show up on the fabulous Terry's blog These Peas Taste Funny.  We want to see everything you have to link up! Old projects, new posts, giveaways, Etsy shops, recipes, crocheting, any and everything.  If you have more than one thing to link up, even better.  Here are our very simple rules.

1.  Please keep it family friendly.

2.  Link back to our site or grab a button so others can share in the fun.

3.  Following us would be nice. (but don't feel you have to)

4. Have fun, be inspired.


If you would like an e-mail reminder about the party let us know in the comments. Make sure you leave your e-mail address with your comment. We will happily add you to the list.  

Grab a button if you need one.

<center><a href="http://kadie-sevenalive.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="Seven Alive" src="http://i1188.photobucket.com/albums/z402/tcohoe/partybutton.jpg"/></a></center>

Party On!!
Click on read more, to see the links and add your own.
 One last thing, I would like to beg you (please, please, please) to take the word verification off of your blog comments.  There were way too many this week and it wore me out so I'm afraid I'll only be commenting on blogs that don't have it this week (and I really, really, really want to comment on your awesome stuff).  Thanks for understanding.

My Favorite Crocheted Slipper

I am so excited about these new slippers I made!!

Aren't they adorable!
I LOVE the pattern.  It is from Kara at Petals and Picots, blog, shop, craftsy,  ravelry and face book.
 I have another slipper pattern, not from her,  that I have a hard time making work.  This pattern was fast and easy.  The slippers fit so nicely and don't slip off.
I added the little bow myself using this free pattern.
Then while I was playing around I thought I would try to figure out how to make some for my youngest girl.  I used the smallest pattern for the slippers, which is a ladies 4/5,  a thinner (size 3) yarn, and a smaller hook (size G 4.00mm).  And ended up with a pair that fit my 19 month old really well.

I love the way they turned out.  They sure were a lot of fun to make!

And here is is on my fat foot.  My feet have gotten bigger with each baby.  So yeah, they're big now.

I'm not getting paid to write this post I just really love the pattern.  I was one of the pattern testers for these slippers and am so happy I was!

Thanks for stoppin' by and hangin' out.

I will be linking up to these fantastic parties.

Summer, Summer Time

Hello, Hello.  I hope all of you here in the U.S had a great holiday weekend. We had a nice busy weekend.  Lots of gardening was done and baseball  played.  It was very hot and humid!  I think it's official  summer time is here in the south.  I don't know about y'all in the North.

So the kids and I created this super simple banner to celebrate the coming season.

Okay now if you are in your early to mid 30's (like me)  you might be singing the Will Smith song, Summertime.  I couldn't stop singing it in my head while we were making this banner.  So I ended up putting the CD on and we rocked out to some Will Smith while we created this.

In case you are wondering Will Smith = Rock and Roll with the 5 to 3 year old crowd.  ABBA = not Rock and Roll....., they may even ask you to turn it off.  {sad}

Any way back to the craft at hand.  For our banner we took blank wooden pre-cut tags bought from Pick Your Plum.  However I have seen them at Hobby Lobby and other crafting stores.  Spray paint the tags with Aqua Blue paint.  We spelled out Summer Time in glitter stickers from Wal-Mart.  The stickers were $1 for a pack.

Then I tied them on to a long piece of bakers twine.  I just eye balled them.  I also added  washi tape pennants to the end and beginning of each word.  I put mine up in the Kitchen with some push pins.

It's fun and colorful, a great way to celebrate summertime.

Thanks for stoppin' by and hangin' out.

I will be linking up to these fantastic parties.

My Maxi Dress *Finished*

Yay!!!  I can't even tell you all how excited I am to show you my finished dress for the I Will Wear It In Public Challenge.  I'm sure some of you will remember me talking about it in other posts, if you want to catch up on the drama that was the challenge for me you can read about them here and here.  We'll wait until your done..................

Everyone up to speed?  Good.  So you know that I had some difficulty with cutting my fabric the right way and with being motivated to finish after I messed up.  Last week in this post a had pretty much given up. Then I started getting your wonderful comments, cheering me on. After that how could I give up?  Seriously, next time I feel like I can't accomplish something I think I'll do a post about it. Y'all are great a great cheering squad.  Love you guys!

So, Wednesday night I sucked it up and got sewing.  I had to re-cut the entire dress and figure out ways to use the fabric I had cut wrong the first time.  And guess what.... it worked.  Once I got started I couldn't stop,  I sewed until 2 am and finished it in one night.

So........., do ya wanna see?  Okay.

Here is the pattern I used.  I was going for look A the gray and white striped dress. And.............

TAAAAAAAAAAADAAAAAAAAA!!!

 

As you can see I didn't follow the pattern exactly.

I meant to take some photos of the making of the dress,  but I didn't want to break the focus I had at the time.  So no in progress photos.

As for the challenge, the rules were:

1. The theme of this challenge is to sew any garment that YOU will be proud enough to wear in public. 
2. This is a sewing challenge so machine or hand sewing is a required element in your entry.
3. You must make a new garment for this challenge.  
4. Upcycling and refashioning of existing garments is acceptable and long as you follow the second guideline.
5. Don't confuse garments with accessories like hats, scarves, belts, etc.
6. You must try something new when creating your garment.  That's where the "challenge" part comes into play, right?  Maybe you've never used a pattern, or sewn with knits, or installed a zipper. 

I have never made a piece of clothing for myself.
I have only used a sewing pattern twice before.
I have never used interfacing, nor made anything out of knit fabric.
I feel like I definitely challenged my self.

Some things I learned:

1. Interfacing is more important than I thought it was. However, you don't need very much of it.  I have A LOT left over! 
2. Make sure you check which way your fabric pattern is going BEFORE you cut.
3. I sew best after my kids are asleep, and with the T.V. OFF.
4. DON'T GIVE UP!!

 There are some things I would do different next time. I could take 20 minuets pointing out all the mistakes but I wont.One of the best things about this challenge (besides having a new dress that I LOVE) is what my husband said to me.
 He came home from work Wednesday night at about 10:30 p.m.  I was right in the middle making the bodice for the dress.
 He looked around at the mess of fabric, on the floor, and dinner dishes still in the sink and said," You decided to try again, huh?"
"Yeah", I said.
Then he gave me a huge hug and said, " I'm really proud of you honey." Yeah,...... he's a keeper!

So, there it is my new dress and my submission for the I WILL Wear it in Public Challenge.  Don't worry I'll be begging for votes as soon as voting opens.  Lets take one more, look shall we?

Oh yeah, I chopped all my hair off about 3 months ago. 

Thanks for stoppin' by and hangin' out.

I will be linking up to these fantastic parties.

P.S. I would be forever grateful if you would be willing to vote for my dress.

It only takes a minute I promise!:)

LINK IT UP THURSDAY #21

It's PAR-TAY time!!  WooooHoooo!  Love part day!  It's been a pretty busy week here at the Double Wide.  Over the weekend I got to take my three oldest kiddos to see the Avengers Movie.  We all had a lot of fun,  it's an awesome movie.  Then on Monday I showed you how I washi taped the window in my door.  LOVE washi tape!  Don't for get to enter into the giveaway for free Farm Rich products and get the super easy recipe for Spaghetti with Meatballs.  
Also I have been sewing up a storm for the I WILL Wear it in Public Challenge.  Thanks to all of your support and comments yesterday, I decided I needed to put my big girl panties on and just go for it.  As of 1:00 am last night I am happy to report I have a bodice and a skirt, now to just turn them into a dress.  It is working better than I thought it would.  I may finish the challenge after all.  I can't even put into words how much all your comments meant to me.  Y'all are so sweet!
Before we get to the party lets take a look at the BELLES of the ball from last week.

Please make sure you go to the individual blog before you pin.  That way everyone get the credit they deserve. Thanks.

How YUMMY do these steak bite shish kabobs from The NY Melrose Family look?!  I love grilling, it's one of the best things about summer.

Leslie from So Fabulously Flawed (don't you LOVE that name) shows us how to add glitter to our glasses.  How fun!

Holistic Homemaking shares her quiet bins.  We could sure use these at the ol' double wide.

Hear Comes the Sun shows how to make a Soda Bottle Bird Feeder.  This is totally on our to-do list for this summer.  The kids will love it.

One Creative Mommy has a great tutorial on how to make this ruffled diner apron with a menu. How fun.

HanniCraft made 4 beautiful bags, my favorite is this orange one.  You gotta check out the other ones.

GREAT JOB ladies!  Go ahead and grab yourself a Featured Button!  Face Book Features, make sure you get a button too. If you didn't get featured here head over to Terry's to see if she featured you.

<center><a href="http://kadie-sevenalive.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="Seven Alive" src="http://i1188.photobucket.com/albums/z402/tcohoe/FEATUREDPARTYBUTTON.jpg"/></a></center>

This is a shared link party so if you link it up here it will show up on the fabulous Terry's blog These Peas Taste Funny.  We want to see everything you have to link up! Old projects, new posts, giveaways, Etsy shops, recipes, crocheting, any and everything.  If you have more than one thing to link up, even better.  Here are our very simple rules.

1.  Please keep it family friendly.

2.  Link back to our site or grab a button so others can share in the fun.

3.  Following us would be nice. (but don't feel you have to)

4. Have fun, be inspired.


If you would like an e-mail reminder about the party let us know in the comments. Make sure you leave your e-mail address with your comment. We will happily add you to the list.  

Grab a button if you need one.

<center><a href="http://kadie-sevenalive.blogspot.com/" target="_blank"><img alt="Seven Alive" src="http://i1188.photobucket.com/albums/z402/tcohoe/partybutton.jpg"/></a></center>

Party On!!
Click on read more, to see the links and add your own.
 One last thing, I would like to beg you (please, please, please) to take the word verification off of your blog comments.  There were way too many this week and it wore me out so I'm afraid I'll only be commenting on blogs that don't have it this week (and I really, really, really want to comment on your awesome stuff).  Thanks for understanding.

What was I thinking?

Do you remember this post about the I WILL Wear it in Public Challenge?  The one where I said I was going to not only take the challenge but, go into it with a "go big or go home attitude".  Well........, I think it's time for me to go home.
For some reason I think I can sew.  Well Ladies (and Gentlemen?) I'm here to tell you that isn't true. Not only can't I sew, apparently cutting out patterns isn't my strong suit either.  If you follow me on Facebook you many have all ready read my late night laments about cutting out fabric wrong, and how I was the one who bought the last of the fabric the store had. My husband (who is always very supportive) told me I'll figure it out.  My Mom told me I just need more practice.  I just keep thinking I could have crocheted a dress by now.
With the deadline looming ever closer (May 31st), what am I going to do? To be perfectly honest I don't know.  I would like to finish......., something.  Something would be better than nothing, right? 
However I have nothing started.
What's a girl to do?     I know!!  How about some screen shopping. (almost like window shopping, only I don't have to get dressed.)

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Maybe I'll just buy a dress, because I would happily wear any of these in public!  Well, I guess it's back to the drawing board sewing machine for me.

Thanks for stoppin' by and hangin' out.

15 Minute Spaghetti and Meatball Dinner

This recipe is easy enough for my husband/older child to make.

Spaghetti and Meatballs

What you will need:
frozen meatballs (I used Farm Rich Italian Meatballs)
spaghetti
spaghetti sauce
pots and pans

First take 20-25 frozen meatballs and place them in the bottom of a large sauce pan, in a single layer. 

Next pour your favorite jar of spaghetti sauce over the meatballs.  (If you don't like to use jarred spaghetti sauce you can make your own.)  I like to doctor my sauce up a little.  I add some garlic, basil, and pepper to taste. Make your sauce how you and your family like it.

Bring your sauce and meatballs to a low boil.  Turn down to low heat and let simmer for 15-25 minutes, or until meatballs are warmed all the way through. (the meatballs are fully cooked so you are just heating them through)  Serve over cooked spaghetti.

With a green salad and some garlic bread it is a fast, easy, fantastic weeknight meal.

All my kids loved the Farm Rich meatballs.  My 2 year old, who is my pickiest eater, told me several times the meatballs were delicious.  How great is that?!