DIY Fabric Faced Cabinets

So, I have these wonderful cabinets in my kitchen.  I love them.  Seriously. 

 When we bought the house it was very.....1970's.  The cabinets were brown wood.  The wallpaper wasn't vintage, it was just disgusting.  But, since we had just put everything into buying the house we didn't have a whole lot left for a facelift. 

Enter......Creativity.

I started with painting the walls and the cabinets. (I used high gloss enamel but you can use whatever you want.) I put white on the top cabinets and a very deep purple on the lower cabinets.  Why not white on top and bottom?  I have 10 kids.  'Nuff said.

Okay, now that your painting is done....Here's tip #1.  Make sure you paint the entire front of the cabinet.  If you don't, you'll be able to see a dark spot in the middle where you didn't paint.  Clearly, I didn't paint mine and thus, I know the consequence!

So here's what you'll need:

PRE-WASHED fabric.  I cannot stress the pre-washed part enough.

Scissors

Quilt Basting Spray (Sold at Walmart or fabric stores)

Spray a tiny bit of basting spray on the cabinet.  You don't need much.  You're just putting it on there to help the fabric stay up while you make your "template".  Notice in the pictures how it doesn't even go to the edges or anything?

Now, use your fingernail to rub the fabric into the cracks.  Make sure you get a good crease going!

You can see the outline of where you creased the fabric.  Cut it out.

Hold your cut out piece up to the cabinet to make sure it fits.  If you're good with it, spray the BACK SIDE of the fabric with your basting spray.  Go ahead and give it a good covering.  You want this baby to stay put for a while.  Basting spray can get a tad messy so I stuck mine in a cardboard box to keep it from "spreading" outward.

Finally, pick it up and smooth it onto your cabinet and Wala!  A gorgeous, CHEAP kitchen make-over.

Ok, Ok.....I know there's someone out there right this minute going, "But what if it gets dirty?"  This is the best part and also why it was so important to pre-wash that fabric.  Answer:  The fabric peels right off.  Just remove the dirty piece, wash it in the sink, iron, and hang back up.  Mine was up for over a year before I had to do this! (If you didn't pre-wash, your fabric will shrink when you iron it and it won't fit it's spot anymore!)

And one of the best parts?  You can coordinate with other rooms!

Someday, I plan to have "seasonal" panels made.  But, well......Someday.

Making a Classic 9 Patch Quilt

Well, Hello there, Friends!  I know, I know.....It's been SO stinking long since I even ventured into blog land.  I'm only venturing now because this is the best way to get patterns to my students for my classes.  So, here's a freebie for anyone out there!

For a 54X63 quilt you will need:
2 3/4 yards of solid (background) fabric
5 coordinating fat quarters ("Chain") (I am using Bluebird Park by Kate and Birdie Paper Co. for Moda)


Start by cutting your fabric into 3.5 inch strips.  You will not be cutting all your solid fabric into 3.5 inch strips so DON'T GET CARRIED AWAY! You will end up with 25 printed strips and
10 solid strips.  Cut the remaining solid fabric into (21) 9.5 inch squares.  Set those aside until the end.

After cutting with your rotary cutter,  cut the folded edge of your solid pieces with scissors to make two strips.

Now start sewing strip sets.  You will make 5 sets of solid, print, solid.  Using a 1/4 inch seam allowance place a solid and a print right side together and stitch.  Attach another solid to the other side of the print the same way.  Aren't those bunnies so super cute?

Now, make 10 sets of print, solid, print using the same method as above just making sure you have a solid in the center.

Iron all 15 strip sets making sure to iron toward the printed OR solid fabric.  It doesn't really matter which but pick one and stick with it.  This will make it easier to get really great points that match up!  A good rule is to iron toward the darker fabric.  In my case, it's the printed fabric.

Now, grab a strip set and square up the end of it.  Don't know what that means?  No worries.  Place your ruler on your strip set as shown in the picture.  It doesn't have to be in any specific place, just in enough that it cuts all the selvedge and jagged ends off.  This part is important:  Because of the sewing and ironing the top and bottom edge of you strip might be "wonky".  You should like up your ruler on one of the seams to make sure you get a straight cut.  Notice the 15" line on the ruler is lined up with the bottom seam on the blue piece?

Now that your strip is square, flip it around and start to cut into 3.5 inch strips.  I measure with my ruler, others measure off the cutting mat.  Whatever works for you.  You will be able to get (5) 3.5 inch strips from each of your larger strips.

Continue cutting until all your original strips are cut into smaller, 3.5 inch strips.

Now is when your quilt starts to take a little shape.  You're going to grab two of your print, solid, print strips and one solid, print, solid strip and sew them together to make your 9 patch block.

If you did a good job keeping track of your ironed seams then when you place your fabrics right side together they will sort of "nestle" into each other and you'll be able to feel that you are keeping your corners together.

Continue sewing until you have made (25) 9.5 inch squares.  You will only be using 21 squares on the front of your quilt.  The extra 4 squares give you the ability to trade out any squares you decide you just don't fit well from a design standpoint.  Extra squares can be pieced onto the back or used in a different project!

Lay out your quilt, mixing and matching until you are happy with your design. If you use your bed as a design station be warned that it could be wrestled on by an adorable 4 yr old and his handsome dad.  Just sayin'.

Begin sewing together one row at a time from left to right.  Once the squares are  pieced with your 9.5 inch solid squares, sew the rows to complete the rest of the piecing.

The quilt shown is not as big as the one the directions are for.  You will have one more row in width.

Happy sewing!

He needs a home!

This little guy needs a family.  Just look at that face.  My mommy heart breaks over the future of this little guy.  Please help get the word out.  Darren has a family.....Somewhere.  Is it yours?

http://reecesrainbow.org/439/darren405

http://www.facebook.com/DarrenNeedsAFamily



UPDATE:  Darren has a home!  Go to his FaceBook page to see a picture of him with his new family!

When Life Hands You Puke....

I shared this on my FaceBook page this evening and I thought it might bless some of you as well.  Have a wonderful evening!

Today has been a rough day. The kids are tired from puking all night. Mommy's tired from the kids puking all night There's puke on blankets and pillows. The washer is broken. My head is pounding from lack of sleep. Someone fell asleep on my bed and peed on it. Did I mention the washer is broken? But then I think of my friend whose tiny 1 pound baby is fighting for his life. A local house fire. A friend whose husband has cancer. A local woman and children who lost their daddy last week. And then I think....Puke? I can do puke. I can do a broken washer. A headache is at the very least a minor annoyance. Habukuk 3:17-18 says "Even though I'm broke and my kids are sick and my shirt smells like baby puke...I WILL STILL PRAISE YOU." (Heather version) I praise God for living children. I praise God for waterproof mattress covers. I praise God for good friends with washers. I praise God for soup stock I put in the freezer months ago. I praise God for older children to help when I need a nap. Perspective. Can't you find something to praise God for today?

Whatever you do....

I just finished these two precious dolls as a donation to an online auction to benefit the Musser family. If you would like one or even a different item to help the Musser family bring Tommy home you can help through this online auction....http://itstommystime.blogspot.com/

The Mussers have already rescued Katie from a love-less existence and now they're going back for Tommy.  You can read all about Katie and Tommy (and the rest of the Musser family) at http://theblessingofverity.com/.

We can't yet adopt our own child from that awful life but the Bible says in Mathew 25:40 that whatever we do for the the least of these, we do for Jesus. This is my "whatever". Could you do "whatever" too?

Please feel free to copy this picture to your own FB page or blog or whatever with a link to the auction site. Or, link back to this post.  Please help me get the word out!!

The girl doll is made out of cotton fabric with a muslin head and the boy is made from flannel with a muslin head.  Both dolls measure approximately 9 inches from head to toe. (Not including their little blankets)

Home Made Laundry Soap

So here's the deal.  It's not really a secret.  Are you ready?  

We make a lot of laundry!  

Big surprise, right?  The problem is that it is INSANELY expensive to buy laundry soap in Valdez for a family my size.  Most of the time I remember to grab some at SAM'S, but sometimes I forget or push the limits a little too long and I have to buy local.

I've been looking at all these blogs and people who make their own laundry soap.  It all looks well and good.  Until you get to the grating soap part....Or the boiling soap part....Or the part where my friend who makes her own has dingy looking clothes...Or...And here's the kicker.....THE PART WHERE IT DOESN'T SMELL LIKE LAUNDRY SOAP!  I know, I'm shallow.  But, I LOVE,LOVE,LOVE the smell of clean laundry. 

I finally found a laundry soap recipe that doesn't call for grating  soap or boiling it down so I thought I would try it.  It still wouldn't SMELL like laundry soap but I consoled myself with the knowledge that I would still have my beloved dryer sheets....And then, there it was....right there in the laundry aisle!

 Angels sang from Heaven.  Not even kidding.  Do you mean to tell me that for $6.99 my laundry can smell MORE like laundry?  Whoever made this stuff deserves a Nobel Prize! I thought, "Surely I can add this stuff to a home made laundry soap recipe, right?"  Granted, it makes the financial purpose of making ones own laundry soap a little bit less of a savings but.......Ah, who cares!

So, I gathered my supplies. For Valdez people who are wondering where I got the Washing Soda from...Fred Meyer.  That's also where I got the Downy Unstopables.  They may have washing soda at Eagle, but I doubt it.  I didn't look.  Anyway, supplies.......

 So here's what you do.  You mix 3T washing soda, 3T Borax, 2T dawn dish soap, and 2 Capfulls Unstopables in a gallon sized container.  I'm using a jar because I wanted to be able to see through it for pictures.  I should stop right here and say....People have suggested using different "scents" of Dawn.  In my research, it has been commented several times that the other colors do not work as well as the "Original Blue Dawn" so, take my advice and just stick with the blue stuff.

 Next, you're going to add 4 cups of boiling water and stir it up until everything is all mixed together. I recommend moving your laptop out of the way to keep it safe from dribbles.  *Ahem*

 Here's the part where I started to get a tad worried that my Unstopables idea wouldn't work.  Do you see that it's separating?

 I left it sitting on the counter.  I used a wire wisk to give it a good stir every now and then.  You're supposed to wait until it's completely cool before doing the next step but...well...patience has never been my personal virtue and my mother taught me never to pray for it....So I went ahead and filled the rest of the container with cold water as soon as I was convinced everything was well dissolved.

Don't worry, all those suds disappear after just a bit.  Just go ahead and let them run over the side of the container while you're adding the water.

So, now I'm into my 3rd load of wash using the soap.  I'm using 3/4 a cup in each load.  I have a toploader that uses INSANE amounts of water BUT it gets my cloth diapers cleaner than my front loader ever dreamed of getting them.  In fact, I never cared for my front loader and sold it to go back to the "old fashioned" top loader, but that's a post for another day.  The most expensive part was the Unstopables which is a completely unnecessary ingredient.  I'm finding that it works just as well as my "Name Brand" soap and....Are you ready....IT SMELLS AMAZING! 

 I know someone is going to want to know if this is HE safe and the answer is YES.  The cloth diaper community has been stripping their dipes in HE washers with Dawn dish soap forever with absolutely no problems!

In My Spare Time

People are always asking what I do in my spare time....As if I have any....But on the occasions I MAKE time to go do something just for fun this is my all time, #1 favorite thing to do.  The crowd isn't usually this big but this one happened to be at the Valdez Quilt Festival so the crowd was rather large.  Quilters from all over the state came to learn and socialize.  The halls leading to the classroom were lined with yummy fabrics just waiting to be caressed....and purchased.  I have to admit to buying Hannah some Lorax fabric.  She came with me as my official "baby holder" so I could sew hands-free.  It was her payment.

OK, so, on to what I was actually doing.  I signed up for the Mystery Quilt.  I love Mystery Quilts and I hate them all in the same breath!  I love them because of the Mystery.  I hate them because of the Mystery.  Ha!  It's a catch 22!

Once you sign up you receive your fabric requirements and cutting instructions for step #1.  Here's where the mystery comes in....YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THE FINISHED PRODUCT WILL LOOK LIKE!  The directions are somewhat vague...."You need X yards of light fabric", You need X yards of medium fabric", and so on.  They are kind enough to tell you when a directional (meaning striped or something where you want the heads to be upright, that sort of thing) fabric is a dumb idea but that's about it.  You complete step #1 at home.  I always sign up at the last minute so I always end up doing step #1 at the "class".

Here I am just quilting away.  This time I went "shopping" in my own stash so I could use up some stuff that had been  hanging around for a while.

Once I got to step #4 I realized they were going to be throwing a twist at us.  The blocks NEVER look this complete on the 4th out of 8 steps.  My guess was that we were going to be cutting them up and sewing them back together in a different way.....

I was right.  The next step revealed the cutting.

We then used some strips we had made earlier, but didn't know what we would be doing with them, to piece the cut up triangles back into a block and these are what I ended up with....

I left class with 4 out of 12 finished blocks.  It will literally only take me about 10 minutes each to do the remaining blocks.  I should get on that....In my spare time. ;)