Just Jen

How do you spell "Finished Project"? J-A-C-K

I bought these craft letters at Paper Source (LOVE that store!) before Jack was born. I planned to cover them in cute papers and put them over his crib. It was just one of many things that didn't quite get finished before he came. I've made it my goal lately to chip away at my growing list of unfinished projects. (I say growing, because I keep adding to it, of course). One down...
Here's how I did it:

First, I spray painted the letters white on the sides. I had not decided if I would cover the sides with paper yet or not, paint them a color, or just leave them white. No matter what, I wanted to cover the craft paper, and the white would be a good base if I decided to paint color on the sides.

Once the spray paint was dry, I started cutting out the paper to go on top. To do this, place the letter on top of the paper, both right sides down, carefully trace around the letter and cut it out.

Once you have the paper cut out, you're ready to glue. I used PVA from Paper Source - it's made especially for paper crafts and bookmaking, but you can find similar adhesives at any crafts store. It's important you choose a glue that's specially made for paper crafts in order to prevent wrinkling and bubbling (no Elmer's this time!) Now I learned a little trick through trial and error - you don't want to try to glue the entire letter down at once (error #1). It's really hard to keep it lined up.

The best way to do it is to line the paper up exactly where you want it to be on top of the letter (no glue) and hold it in place. Glue a little bit at a time, starting at one end being very careful not to let the paper shift at all. By the time you finish gluing, it should still all be lined up!
Follow these steps for all the other letters, and before you know it you'll be finished!

Jack looking on, overseeing the project!

Cheeseburgers and Potatoes

The other night my friend Bethany hosted a Mommy's Night Out craft party for a group of girls who recently had babies. I was so excited to go - I am usually the one to host the craft parties, so it was a nice change to just attend! The babies stayed home with their Daddies, but they were still the focus of the party. The craft of the evening was potato printed onesies. When I got the evite for the party, I immediately started planning what I would do (I'm a little obsessed when it comes to this sort of thing, I admit). I soon settled on a cheeseburger. I sketched out my design and planned how I would cut out the stamps. Each layer of the cheeseburger was made from a different stamp - each cut from a potato, of course! Each shape is basic and simple, but all put together it's almost as yummy as the real thing!

The other girls' designs came out cute as well - there were birthday cupcakes and planes and 4th of July flags.  It's amazing what you can do with a potato and some paint! And it's easy enough that even the least crafty among us can make something cute. If you want to give it a try, take a look a this video tutorial on Martha Stewart's website.

Happy Accident

For years I've tried to grow sunflowers like this in my garden. They are really easy to grow from seed and always come up, but the annoying thing that I find is the picture and description on the seed packet rarely matches what comes out of the ground. This year I had decided not to plant any at all, yet up came this giant beauty.

It was purely accidental - last fall some little bird must have kicked the seed out of my bird feeder and right down into the pot below. When the seed sprouted this spring, I decided to let it grow and see what it would become. Now I am wishing that little bird had kicked out a few more! Wouldn't a whole patch of these be just lovely?

Other scenes from my garden:
Purple & White Coneplants - my favorites
and a lizard friend I caught shedding his winter skin.

 

 

A Toy For Jack

The other day I came across a cute pattern for a baby rattle. It's from the Lotta Jansdotter's book Simple Sewing For Baby which is now on my must-have list! The pattern looked easy enough to finish quickly, so I decided to whip it up for little Jack. (I had to have something to do while procrastinating all the other important things I needed to get done yesterday.)

I picked out some special fabric at my favorite fabric store The Quilt Asylum. I chose bright colors and shapes with lots of contrast for his little eyes to focus on. It's got a jingle bell inside for a slight rattle and is just the right size for his chubby little fingers to wrap around (and shove into his mouth). The pattern is pretty simple, but I did realize that I need a little more practice sewing curves... But that just gives it character, right? Jack didn't seem to mind the imperfections. Must taste good as well - bonus!

Heirloom Flowers

Last spring I planted some Hollyhock seeds that my grandma harvested from her plants. She's grown them for years - my mom says she remembers them always being in the garden when she was growing up. Last year my seeds sprouted but never bloomed. They somehow survived the winter (and total neglect during my pregnancy) and took off this spring when the weather turned warm. They finally bloomed this week! I love them because they are old fashioned looking and pretty and make me think of my grandma. My plan is to harvest the seeds so that no matter where we live, I can always grow her Hollyhocks in my garden!