Valentine's Day From-The-Heart Pillow

If you have wanted to pick up quilting, but would like to try a smaller project first, or maybe you are looking for a beginner's project... a pillow is a great place to start. It makes a quick and easy gift, and perfect for a young sewer, too!

You Will Need:

• Scraps of fabric
• Craft Stuffing or a Small Pillow Form

Cut:
2 Rectangles of the Heart Fabric: 3.5in x 6.5in
4 Squares of the Neutral (white) Fabric 2in x 2in
2 Squares of Neutral Fabric 3.5in x 3.5in
2 Strips of Neutral 2in x 6.5in
2 Strips of Neutral 2in. x 9in
2 Strips of the Accent (floral) Fabric 2in x 9in
2 Strips of Accent 2in x 13.5
1 Square of Accent 13.25in x 13.25in

1.) Using the Rectangle of Heart Fabric, and one 2 x 2 Neutral Square, sew the square in the corner on the diagonal.

Cut one quarter of an inch away from the stitching taking the corner off, and press open.

Repeat this step with the opposite corner. Do the same for the second Heart Rectangle.

2.) Sew the 3.5in Neutral Square onto the Lower-Right corner of one piece and the other onto the Lower-Left of the second piece. Sew as you did the smaller squares, cutting off the corner and pressing out.

3.) Matching the seams, sew the two halves together and press.

***IMPORTANT STEP: Use your rotary cutter to trim/even out these edges. As you will see in the next step I didn't do this, and it throws off the whole center.


4.) Sew the two short Accent strips to the top and the bottom of your block and press.

5.) Sew the long pieces to the sides. Press, and even the edges.

See that crooked center? Yep. That's what happens when I don't even the edges.

6.) Do the same with the neutral strips.

7.) Right-sides together, sew the block to the 13in x 13in square, leaving a section open for stuffing.

8.) Turn right-side out and stuff, then stitch the opening closed.

What a cute holiday accent and a great way to begin a love of sewing!

More Fun For Multicolor Corn

I've really loved the last couple of crafts using the pretty corn kernels, and am still thinking of a use for the millions of kernels I have left. Here are some pictures of other crafts for thought starters.

How about a wreath? I found this blog from Peach and Pearl, with lots of wreaths using natural elements. Something like the nut wreath in corn would look nice.

Or why not make a table top decor item by glueing them to a styrofoam cone (with other embellishments of course)?

Lining the bottom of a glass candle container with kernels instead of pebbles would be pretty, too.

Got any ideas? Please share, and have a Happy Thanksgiving!

Kids Thanksgiving Craft: Pine Cone Place Cards

Hopefully you have gathered your cones and are ready for an easy kid friendly craft.

I have a copy of the Better Homes and Gardens Holiday Crafts Kids Can Make from '87, and the boys wanted to use the place card craft found in the Thanksgiving Table section. Mine came from a family friend but they also have it at Amazon.















On to the craft...

1.) We took our cones outside, spray painted them, and used spray craft adhesive to add glitter.

2.) While they dried, we went inside and worked on our name cards. I had some pretty cardstock, so we kept it simple and used the fancy-schmancy sisscors  on the edges. The boys wrote the names of family members that are expected for our Thanksgiving/Christmas dinner.

(I'm especially proud of my youngest- he'll be 5 in December- and how well he wrote names)


3.) When you're setting the table, just slip the name card into the pine cones for an Earthy, harvest decoration.

In case you were wondering, THIS is what happens when you combine all this with three boys. LOL



Of course when they are not being used for place cards, the pine cones look great just in a basket.

***Options: You can use letter stickers for the names, and if course you can decorate the card stock anyway you like... beads, glitter, yarn, bric-a-brac, etc



HEADS UP FOR LATER: WE WILL BE USING MULTICOLOR CORN FOR SOME MORE THANKSGIVING PROJECTS

Think on These Things: Greatfulness Leads to Happiness

It's almost Thanksgiving here in the USA. The "I'm thankful for..." statuses abound on Facebook, in church, my children are learning that a thankful heart is a happy heart, and I am encouraging them to think of things THEY can do for others BEFORE they think of what everyone else can get them for Christmas.

This is a great way to kick off the holidays, but how greater still would it be if we could remember to do this through out the year?

There was time in my life of depression. Real, full blown, Postpartum Depression. I would like to say that I just thought my way happy but I didn't. I was one of the people that needed medical help to get that emotional balance again. I'm in no way implying that those with serious issues such as this should just "get over it and quit being ungrateful" (I actually had someone who did not really understand say that to me). Yet, for the everyday kind of blues and doldrums, an easy way to feel better is to look around you and find things in your life to be grateful for.

Philippians 4:8-9 says it this way: Finally, Brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable- if anything is excellent or praiseworthy- think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me- put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

This applies to every area of your life. Feeling financially trapped? Look around at what you have or what you CAN do, and be thankful. Extra sick-of-it when dealing with the kids or spouse? Think of all the things that are lovely or praiseworthy about them (we all need our loved ones to look beyond our faults and see something excellent about us). Is your heart aching because you have a deep wish only to see it go unfulfilled? What do you already have in your life that brings you pleasure?

There are so many people in this world in much worse situations than our own. Do your children have to forage in the dump for items to sell just so they can eat that day? Likely not. Is your house mearly a lean-to of cobbled together scraps of metal and wood with a dirt floor? Likely not. There are still very simple things that these people are grateful for. How much more thankful should WE be?

One of my favorite blogs (Tea Rose Home) is hosting a giveaway... nothing new to the blogging world. The hitch is, you must leave a comment on something you are thankful for. What a great idea!

Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could all take the time at least once a day to think of how blessed we are? What are YOU thankful for today?