what i'm working on today...

oooh. customs. and funky ones, too! i ♥ it!!

the one that got away

i just made a custom doll...in a gianormous hurry for a 3yr old's birthday. let me say, i don't rush things often, especially Moppets, but this case called to my heart.
and then, when she was finished, i so wished i could keep her.
i was in such a hurry to get her to the post office, that i couldn't even get good photos. but what i have, i'll share with you.


see why i wanted to keep her? *sigh*

Ribbon Bookmarks a Simple Tutorial

my kids and i just celebrate a modified version of "Yes Day". i say modified, because they didn't tell me yesterday what they wanted to do...i just took them to do a whole bunch of things they've been asking to do for quite some time.

one of those things was to make crafts...we got supplies to make several, and i promise to show them all to you along and along.

the first thing i want to show you (all apologies to any of my readers who may also be my kids' teachers) is the book marks we made for teacher Christmas gifts.

yes, i know it's early, but when you have 4 children and each of them has at least 3 teachers, you've gotta get a jump start on things!

here's how to make your very own:

Supplies:
ribbon
book to measure and/or measuring tape
ribbon clamps
jump rings
beads
pendants or charms
tiny needle nosed pliers (either a jeweler's pair or the tiny one available at the hardware store)
scissors
optional: fray check or a lighter (to seal the ends of the ribbon and prevent fraying)













Instructions:
1~measure your book and add 2 inches (we found that 10 to 11 inches is just about right)

2~cut a length of ribbon to those measurements.

3~using your pliers, clamp the ribbon clamps to the ends of the ribbon.















4~pry open your jump ring and slide on the beads and charms for the top
















5~now add the loop attached to the ribbon clamp(which is attached to your ribbon...right?)















6~squeeze your jump ring shut.

7~repeat steps 4-6 for the bottom of the ribbon

8~pop in in your favorite book and admire your handiwork!























we've decided that good books go great with coffee, hot chocolate, or tea, so we will attach these bookmarks to a gift card for our local coffee shop. voila! 12 teacher gifts finished in about an hour...and the hardest part was choosing the charms.



p.s. please excuse the quality of the photographs in this post. my assistant was busy...