Blog Hop Wednesday!

It's that time again, to hop all over blog land to find great new blogs. I hope everyone joins me.

Fabric Camera Strap Tutorial

My camera and I have became one, in the past month, because of my photography classes. I have seen so many tutorials for a camera strap cover. I thought I would jump on that band wagon, and make my camera a little more FLASHY. Ha! Forgive me for my terrible joke. The strap I made is very simple, and I used fabric that I had left over from a previous project. I love it when that happens. I'm not sure if all straps are standard, but these are the measurements that I used for my strap. You may want to measure yours to be sure.


I cut my fabric 3 1/2" wide, and 20" long. Next you fold all four edges 1/4" over and iron.


Then you will sew closed the folded short ends.


In the last step I added fabric flowers. You can find the tutorial for those here. You will have to hand sew these on. You will want to do that before you sew the cover closed. Lastly you will fold the cover over longways, and sew closed. Now you have a fun cover for your camera strap. I can definitely feel the difference wearing it around my neck. I think it is much more comfortable. I hope everyone enjoys.

I would also like to thank Cheri, at I Am Momma Hear Me Roar, for featuring my graffiti stencil shirt on her you roared segment. I am also super excited about reaching 50 followers. I'm considering having a giveaway when I reach 100. Maybe a fabric sunglasses case, or a fabric camera strap cover. Let me know what you think.

Patchwork Sewing Machine Cover

I have wanted to make a sewing machine cover for a while, but didn't know how I wanted it to look. When I saw a tutorial on Sew,Mama,Sew from Tiny House, I had to try it. I have never tried patchwork before, and realized right away it was not as easy as I thought it would be. It was a little more time consuming than my normal projects. I think it turned out ok, but I need a little more practice to get the squares to line up perfectly. I am excited that my pink and black theme for my craft space is turning out nicely. I defiantly see a coordinating chair cushion in my future.

Wednesday Link Parties!

I wish I had a new craft project to add today, but it will have to wait until tomorrow. My kids have no respect for mommies craft time. In the mean time I will be linking up to some Wednesday link parties. I hope everyone joins me. If anyone knows of other link parties that I don't normally go to, please let me know. I always love finding new blogs, to add to my list. I also want to let my lovely followers know that I did a guest post on my husbands blog No Bad Movies. I gave a review on Sixteen Candles, which was on of my favorite movies growing up. I hope everyone checks it out. He has a lot of other great reviews for you to read. He would love some followers, and feel free to leave any movies requests in his comments. Happy Wednesday everyone!

I Was A Really Good Mom Before I Had Kids {Book Review}

I decided to add a little something new to my blog. I was inspired by my husband who started a blog to review movies. If you are a movie lover check it out here.Reading is another hobby of mine. Especially with the winter coming soon. There is nothing better than wrapping up in a blanket and reading a good book. A friend recommended this book to me when my twins were getting mobile. So many changes were happening at one time, I wasn't sure how to handle them all. The name of the book described how I was feeling perfectly. I always knew that being a mother wouldn't be easy, but I don't think your ever prepared for the stress that motherhood brings.


I related to the book from beginning to end. At the beginning of each chapter there is a quiz. You check each statement that applies to you. My personal favorites are... "You secretly wish you had your own apartment", and "you find that slowly browsing the isles at Target, by yourself, is better than therapy". Don't get me wrong I love being a mother, and went through many challenges to be one, but it is the hardest thing I have ever done. In the book they interview mothers from all different parts of the US, stay at home moms, and moms who work. That way all moms would have someone to relate to. I'm so happy I read this book when I did. It helped me feel less alone. As mothers we are always under stress from a decision, that you are afraid you may get judged for... cloth diapers, or disposable, shots, or no shots, spank, or don't spank. I say make a decision that is best for your family. I asked my mom the other day, how she made it look so easy? Our house was always clean, dinner always ready at five, and our laundry was always done. Her response..." I don't know, I just did it." It was not a helpful response, but it's reality. We don't really know what we are doing, we just do it. On a good day, we get it right. I really enjoyed the book, and recommend. It makes you feel less alone in motherhood.

A Blog Award!!

I was shocked and excited when I found out that Beth over at Two Monkeys & A Washtub had chosen my blog as one of her blog award recipients. Thanks so much for thinking of me.

The Rules:

• Thank the blogger who awarded it to you.
  
• Sum up your blogging philosophy, motivation, and experience using 5 words.
  
• Pass it on to 10 other people you feel have blogs with real substance.
  

5 words to sum up my blogging.

1. Fun


2. Inspiring


3. Welcoming


4. Time-Consuming


5. Worthwhile

It was really hard for me to pick just 10 blogs to give this award to. I follow so many. I tried to choose the ones I find myself going to alot. The ones that inspire me and have alot to offer to others. They are all great blogs so go to the links below and check them out.

The Truth about Motherhood

A Forty Year-Old Ranch

Mandys Creative Corner

Making Mud Pie

Delia Creates

Paper Treats

My Blonde Ambitions

Sisters 4 Say More is More

Rubies & Pearls

Atelier Caroline

Graffiti Shirt {Finally a project for boys!}

Maybe I'm the only one, but I always have crafters block for boy projects. I blame it on my husbands strict standards on what his son is allowed, and not allowed to wear. I always feel bad because I make so much for my daughter. It doesn't seem fair. I was really excited to find Cheri's blog I Am Momma Hear Me Roar. Her blog is filled with great craft ideas for boys. The one that really caught my eye was her High Voltage Tee, which you can find here. After seeing her post I went out the next day and purchased all of my supplies from Michael's. I have no experience with stencils, but it was really easy. If you have older boys they may want to graffiti a shirt themselves. With supervision of course.



Supplies:
Tulip Fashion Graffiti paint (for paint cannon)
Tulip Fabric Paint Cannon
Fashion Graffiti Stencils
Shirt



I used painters tape to secure wax paper around the stencil, to prevent over spray. I also used a piece of cardboard to put inside of the shirt to keep the paint from bleeding through. I then pumped the paint cannon and sprayed until I was happy with the coverage.



After carefully taking the stencil off. A muscle car was revealed. A 1967 Mustang Fastback to be exact. My Husbands words, not mine. Needless to say he was pleased. They also have some fun girl stencils available. I hope everyone tries this project. It's inexpensive, fun, and easy. Even for those who don't know much about stencils.



I've joined the Frogs & Snails, Puppy Dog & Tails link party today, over at Seven Thirty Three. It's a link party just for boys.