sexy wreath
I have recently made a very cheap and easy winter wreath that I thought I would share. My inspiration wreath came from etsy, it seemed pretty simple and with a quick paypal transaction of 30 dollars it could be all mine! Jay urged/begged/pleaded that I just simply buy the wreath, I on the other hand thought, like I always do, “I could totally make that for a waaaaay cheaper.”
After a ninety minute wreath session one evening at the kitchen table I accomplished my goals: make it cheaper and make it better. I have to say that it is one of my favorite wreaths that I have made. I have even been heard talking to it, letting that pretty little wreath know that it is one sexy wreath. Yeah, that’s right. You know you are a crafter when you 1.) talk to your projects 2.) refer to them as sexy.
So here is the break down.
Supplies: one pack of fluffy yarn (fluffier the better) (I returned one pack), ten inch wreath ring (normally I use the foam type, but since I was just covering it I used the half the price hay form), and a couple pieces of felt. Those supplies equaled a grand total of eleven dollars! I had some pins and hot glue already on hand, and did not have to purchase.
How To: I started by tying one end of the yarn to the wreath mold and slowly wound the yarn around the wreath. I was careful not to pull to tight, carefully placing each strand to the previous one and not to stack any up or leave any gaps. Next, I researched on youtube how to make felt flowers and found so many detailed videos. I had a ball playing with different types of flowers. I made some with swoops and some with spikes. I eventually started stacking the flowers to give it a bit more dimension. When I had a few flowers that I liked, I pinned them to the wreath and then when I was happy with the look, glued them all to the wreath.
I have to say that it completely reminds me of winter; the textiles, the colors, everything. Wouldn’t you agree...this is one sexy winter wreath!
-melissa
heat map
This is called year view on iCal. They describe the colors as a heat map. I suppose it is a quick way to look at your year and see if a date is open, which days, weeks or seasons of life will be busier than others. 2011 was a big year for us as a family, mostly because our life was changed in infinitely amazing ways related to having our first daughter Charlotte, maybe you've heard of her.
I've got a little bit of rain man in me so it is fun for me to look back over this heat map and remember what some of those red days were and how I was traveling or working all day long. The orange days were a little less busy, yellow was just one or two things and white means I had exactly nothing on my calendar for that day. Now before you go and judging me, this is a shared calendar so it includes more than just work related appointments. Like that yellow week of July 17th for instance. That was our first big family vacation! It's fun to think about last year. What we accomplished, what we experienced, the trips we took and on and on. Which leads me to this...
This is 2012's heat map. Not so hot yet, but it will be...but in a good way. Red days mean I'm living life and white days mean I'm resting. I'm excited to see how this year fills up. Not just for busy-sake, but for the sake of living. I will turn 30 this year (and so will Melissa). We always joke about how we'll never grow up and how we'll be old and still acting like the 15 year olds we were when we first met. Life is way to short to not enjoy it. Charlotte will turn one this year and I can't even describe how excited I am so see how she grows and changes over the next 12 months.
So look back over 2011. What did you accomplish? How many red days did you have? How many white days did you have? Were you present with your family and friends? Did you make your days count?
My dad has a phrase, like all dads do I guess. But one of his phrases says, "Every day is a holiday and every meal is a feast." I hope you have that kind of a year. Sure, have red days, but make sure you carve out some white days too.
-jay
a new year started off right
We here at jayhess.com hope you had a wonderful new year! We ended the new year and started it the best way we know how. Charlotte spent the last day of 2011 in a vintage Cincinnati Bengals shirt that use to be Jay’s when he was a kid. We had a relaxing day playing with Charlotte, cleaning up the house and working on our blog makeover. We were all in bed and asleep by 9:30, we are such partiers! The next day we had some of our favorite people over for a New Years Day brunch. The house was full of great people, yummy food and the backyard was alive with the shrieks and shrills of kids...just the way we like it!
Some of our projects for the year of 2012 are well underway, as you can see one is already complete: the makeover of jayhess.com! Jay has really been putting in some hours the past couple of days trying to convert and update everything. I hope everyone likes it! We think it is real purty! (southern accent used there)
Jay has some great time off, as this is his slow season. So, he is getting to spend some very valuable quality time with Charlotte before he gets crazy busy in the spring. I have some major birthdays on my mind and I am already planning and scheming away. Jay turns 30 at the end of February and crazy enough C turns one in March. Of course, there is going to be some major crafting, planning and at least one quilt that comes about! Charlotte has just recently (Dec. 31st) learned to crawl and so nothing in the house is safe, especially the dogs! As the new year comes about we have eagerly welcomed it and are charging full steam ahead! I know that this year will be filled with as many fun memories as 2011.
-melissa
a homemade holiday
This year I think I did pretty good with my crafting and the holidays. Every crafter out there has a list longer than Santa’s when it comes to the crafts they want to make for all their loved ones. Time, opportunity, resources and goals never equal each other. This year I think I was less ambitious because of little C. Nothing can really give you a reality check like a lively nine month old. I knew that crafting could only happen during nap times that I was not at work, not doing other necessary things around the house and actually in the mood. I will admit, when the heat was on and I only had 48 hours before loading up the car and actually leaving, AND the list of to do’s on the chalk board far outweighed the time I had, Jay jumped in willing and ready to help! I always get myself into these problems and time after time he bails me out. So this was my run down for this holiday season. My goal was that each person that we buy for had a homemade gift and a bought gift. I started the holiday crafting extravaganza with crayon letters to all the teachers on my team at school. They were super cheap, easy and quick! The most difficult part of the whole project was trying to rid the cutting board and chopping knife I used of the crayon chards after seven of these bad boys!
We had cloth rings for Honor and Charlotte. If anyone wants the pattern that I made, send me an email. I found one for twelve dollars but was far too cheap to buy one! Jay tried to explain to me that it would be only six dollars per girl, but I was still determined to do it myself. These were not as simple as I thought they would be. I found only after trying to turn a unstuffed ring inside out for about fifteen minutes, that it is impossible and that the only way to finish them is to hand sew them closed...boooo! It went quicker than I thought it would and I slowly got more skilled at sewing those tight little circles.
A project that I started on back in the fall was the last to get finished! I knew that Benjamin is getting to the age of letters and numbers and words, so the teacher in me needed to make him an educational gift. For the little man that is growing up so fast, I made a letter board and cloth magnetic letters. I used a big fat font to trace the letters onto fabric and then decoupaged them to a roll of magnetic paper. I also had Jay create a poster with the ABC’s and a cute little saying, cut out all the letters (this is where Jay saved me big time...he did all the cutting) and decoupaged them to a car oil drip pan that I got from Walmart for super cheap. Now he can play with his letters with his magnetic board and spell cool words like “BOARD FUN”!
For the grandparents I whipped up two quick blankets. I bought two fleece blankets that were on sale from Target and then personalized both with phrases that I thought both sets would enjoy. “Cuddles at the Cabin” for my parents and “Cuddles with Grandpa and Tiki” for Jay’s parents.
The last project that was completed was the easiest and maybe the cutest, in my opinion. I saw this idea on pinterest and knew that it was a must at some point for our little family. I found the puzzle, explained it to Jay and he completed the whole thing. Finding the pictures, getting them printed, cutting them out into the correct shapes, and decoupaging them onto the board.
I really love making gifts for Christmas. What would the holiday season be without me having all kinds of ideas, trying to get them completed last minute and having Jay bail me out every year! I most likely will do this every year, I just love crafting too much. Honestly, I think Jay likes to swoop in and save the day every year as well! I hope you had a great time giving or receiving some great homemade gifts this year!
-melissa