Spring Projects

We've had so many projects happening these days. I love being busy and getting things done. Even though life is being restricted due to the insanity of Covid-19, we are trying to go about our life as normal as possible. The good thing about having a large family is we can still celebrate big no matter what circumstances we're facing. Every year I try to make my daughter's and me matching dresses for Easter ~ I decided to continue with that tradition even if the churches remained closed this year.

I decided to make this year's Easter outfits with stretch knit. This was not my first time sewing with stretch fabric, but it was my first time sewing stretch knit with my serger. I watched a ton of YouTube videos before actually sewing them, and I was pleasantly surprised how easy it was to sew stretch knit fabric with a serger. 

I purchased our fabric from KnitFabric.com. This particular fabric was double brushed knit and it is so silky and soft ~ amazingly comfortable and flattering to wear.

While I purchased new patterns for my dress and the two little girls from Peek-a-boo Pattern Shop, I decided to create my own pattern fro my oldest daughter's maxi skirt. Maxi skirts are super easy to make with just a few measurements and straight line cuts you can whip up a super cute skirt.

I really wanted to find a pattern for high waisted bloomers to make for my little girlies. I am SO glad I persevered, because I found a pattern on Etsy and they turned out unbelievably cute! I'm hoping to find some more stretch fabric soon so I can make more of these precious bloomers. I found a couple different hair bow patterns on Pinterest, but I had to alter them quite a bit to get the look that I wanted. 

We also made two batches of soap. I typically make cold process soap, but I decided to try a hot processed soap recipe for one of our batches. I was not a fan. Not that the soap did not turn out, but it was just really time consuming and didn't make nearly as much as my tried and true recipe. 

I have been making homemade soap for quite a while with never a problem, but I started having issues with my soap turning orange last year. I have been trouble-shooting all the causes it could be and I think I have finally figured it out! It was our water. We have a Berkey filtration system that we drink from, but I had just been using tap water for soap making. Like I said I have never had a problem until about a year ago ( I usually make soap twice a year so it wasn't that many times that I had actually experienced the problem). So this time I switched to using the Berkey water and my soap turned out just fine. Who knows what 'they' are adding to the water now to make it effect my soap, but they've added something, {{sigh}}. 

Most years we enjoy visiting a couple local churches for their Easter festivals. I like making my younger crew matching vinyl Easter shirts for these special family events. Obviously, the festivals did not happen this year, but I still wanted to make the shirts, even if they were only for our family's annual Easter egg hunt.

I must admit it was a pain trying to find vinyl this year. I much prefer to purchase my vinyl from local small businesses, but they are currently closed. I ended up buying some from JoAnn's but the vinyl was terrible to work with and wouldn't even stay on the shirts despite using my heat press. I'm definitely going to have to be more diligent to order my vinyl online for future projects. Which also mean planning a literal further in advance, lol. 

I had made these super cute family van decals last year when we bought our new (used) van but I needed to add another figure for Abby Lou ~ better late than never! The lassoes crack me up every time I see them. There's no truer picture representing the story of my life.

We haven't quite finished this project yet, but we're getting there. Since we make a lot of crafts I wanted to make an official place to display the children's artwork. We are in the process of making an art gallery wall and this little sign will be at the top of the display. 

We've also made three new flowerbeds around the property. I must admit I've never been a fan of flowers, but as I'm getting older, they really bring a smile to my face and joy to my spirit. I can't wait to watch the flowers grow and bloom.

We've still got a few more projects we'd like to get done before the main harvest and preserving season is upon us, but one day at a time. I'm in a continued effort to learn balance between work and rest. It's a privilege to be able to set goals and achieve them, but there's also productivity in rest. There's no denying it, we are currently living in strange and uncertain times, but that doesn't mean we have to stop living. There are plenty of things and activities we can do at home. This doesn't have to be a season of misery. Perspective is key. I'm a firm believer that we are the owners of our sanity ~ we can either wallow in self-pity or get busy and do something about it. For me I'm staying active, setting goals, and getting things done.

With Love & Hope,

Jennifer .  

A Christmas Vinyl Project

For as long as I can remember we've been a 'water only' family, especially when we go somewhere. Even if it's just to town, we all bring our own water bottle with us. Which means everyone has their own water bottles. When I got my Silhouette Cameo, and was able to cut vinyl, I started monogramming our children's water bottles just to help streamline the whole whose is whose.

Our children's current water bottles are in dire need of replacing. They are stainless steel with stainless steel screw-on lids. For some reason after only about two years of use the lids have started seizing onto the water bottles, making them a pain to use, especially for the little ones. So this year I came across all these water bottles on deep clearance at Target ~ my favorite kind of finds when I'm shopping for our large crew.

Unfortunately, Target did not have enough of the stainless steel water bottles for all my littles so Lydia is getting this one and I had to order one off of Amazon for my oldest (which has not been monogrammed yet).

All of the water bottles will go into the children's stockings for Christmas. I did buy Abigail (our new little one who will be here by Christmas) some baby bottles for her stocking, but I decided not to monogram them ~ just in case we have any more daughters who may need to use those bottles. 😬

I'm afraid this was my last vinyl project with my current Silhouette Cameo and computer combo. I've been in dire need of replacing my whole system for the past year, but I just haven't wanted to spend the extra money on it, especially since it's not a necessity. I just really enjoy making the cute vinyl crafts, and now if I'm going to continue with these projects I will have to upgrade. Thankfully, I was able to get this project done and I have a couple of months to decide if I really want to continue with the vinyl crafting.

With our large crew I really like having the monogrammed items which helps to keep 'whose is it squabbles' to a minimum. I've tried color matching to each child for things like cups and towels, but it has yet to work for our family ~ insert eye roll!

I'm hoping since the lids to these stainless steel water bottles are plastic that they will hold up better and longer than the ones we currently have. But, I am nervous that the plastic is going to crack and break with my rough and tough crew, especially with how much we use them. Time will only tell, I suppose.

Over the years I've always tried to make the children at least one homemade gift for Christmas. One year almost our entire Christmas was homemade (that was a special year, but a lot of work!). This year the extent of our homemade gifts are only these water bottles monogrammed and I hardly consider them homemade ~ sigh. But, my children do enjoy receiving gifts with their names on them. Maybe next year, I can get back to my homemade gifts; there really is something extra special about giving and receiving homemade gifts ~ at least there is to me.

With Love & Hope,

Jennifer