Sugaring- A Waxing Technique to Make & Do at Home

Bought these containers through the mail.... very cheap!

Paying to have waxing done can become quite costly (especially if you are blessed with lots of hair!) Even home waxing kits don't come cheap. Here's a recipe to try next time you run out of your waxing supplies at home or just don't want to pay for a salon service:

Ingredients:

2 cups sugar

1/4 cup water

1/4 cup lemon juice (I used Real lemon brand, from my 'fridge.)

STEP 1: Thoroughly combine all ingredients in a medium-sized saucepan, keeping the heat medium/high.

STEP 2: Continue stirring until mixture begins to bubble.

STEP 3: Turn heat down to medium and continue stirring until mixture reaches 250*.

Don't own a cooking thermometer? Just test a drop of the sugar syrup in a glass of cold water...if it's thready or makes a soft ball, it's not ready. If it forms a firm ball, it's done! You can check the consistency with your fingers: after you've dropped some into the glass of water, scoop it out with a spoon. Touch it with your fingers. Don't worry, it will already be cool!

STEP 4: Pour into desired storage containers with lids.

STEP 5: You can wax now or later since the mixture can be used as soon as it has cooled down enough.

*Use with homemade muslin strips, your own wooden sticks and accessories, or use with store-bought accessories..

Retro Hair-Tie



My daughter, Abby, modeling the first hair-tie.

                                     
I love a lot of things from the 1940's and '50's.. dishes, appliances, cars, music,. even movies. But I'd have to say one of my most favorite things about that specific time period would be their style. Their clothing style.

I love the aprons, the classy way men dressed with their suits, ties with tie-clips, shiny shoes & hats. The womens' dress suits with all those fabulous accessories! (Hats, scarves, purses with matching shoes, jewelry and gloves...just to name a few!) We haven't even begun to talk about their hair and makeup...with those classic hair-do's that are becoming popular all over again!

Which brings us to today's project... a retro hair-tie inspired by all those things that made that era unforgettable.

Materials List:

Here's a better view of the top.

7" x 22" piece of floral fabric

7" x 22" piece of polka-dot fabric

Thread

Instructions:

STEP 1: Wash, dry & iron all fabric.

STEP 2: Cut one of Piece A from the floral fabric and one from the polka-dot fabric. (Scroll to the bottom for the pattern.)

STEP 3: Cut two of Piece B from the floral fabric and two from the polka-dot fabric.

STEP 4: With right sides together, sew up the left and right sides of Piece A. When done, you should have raw, unfinished ends on both ends.
 

  

STEP 4















STEP 5: Of the four pieces cut from Piece B (two floral and two polka-dot) place one of
each floral with each polka-dot.  With right sides together, sew each up the long sides to the point and back, leaving the bottom open. 

STEP 5

STEP 5 (Closeup)

 STEP 6: Turn all three pieces and iron flat.

STEP 6













STEP 7: Fold the open ends of Piece A (the longest piece) under 1/4". Iron. Insert the raw, unfinished end of one of the B pieces into one of the open ends of Piece A, making sure the floral print is on the same side. Pin in place. Do the same with the other open end of Piece A with the remaining Piece B.

STEP 8: Using matching or contrasting thread, topstitch 1/8" all along the four sides of the center piece, or Piece A, making sure to secure the edges of the two B Pieces into the stitching.

Pattern

 Notes about pattern: There are measurements written on each pattern piece showing the final dimension of each. Enlarge or reduce the pattern accordingly.



Doll Bed for Barbie-sized Dolls: A Childs Craft

When I was a little girl I felt compelled to give my dolls all the comforts of a real home. So when I first saw this idea I knew I had to make it! I was still young and the idea was in a library book about mice. They talked, and lived just like humans, of course. They made their furniture from discarded things they 'collected' from the humans... and they made this bed in the book.

I thought it was pretty cool & a fabulous idea. My Mom helped me to make the bed & later she surprised me with bedding: a mattress, a quilt and a bedspread with two matching pillows! I loved them & yes!.. I still have them. Maybe I'll dig them out soon and post a few pictures. In the meantime, let's get started!

Items needed:

4 pencils
4 thread spools of the same size
1 empty cereal box

Pencils @ 12 for $1 from the Dollar Store!

STEP 1:
Cut off the top, bottom & sides from a cereal box. Glue the two pieces
together with the plain side out. 

STEP 2:
After the glue has dried, use a hole punch on each of the four corners.

STEP 3:
Choose four spools of the same size. Insert pencils.

STEP 4:
Slide pencil up from the bottom, through the holes.

All Occasion Letter Blocks

One of the greetings I used in December.

These types of blocks have been around for several years, so they may not be a new idea, but they sure are worth making! They're a great way to draw attention to a special day, a special person or just a special sentiment. They can spell out over 80 phrases/greetings and can be used for any occasion. If this isn't your style, choose a different base color for your blocks (I've seen it done in black with primary colors for the lettering) and possibly a different font for your letters. Decide which room you'd like them in and go with that style and color scheme. These work well on shelves, counters and even the fireplace mantle. They can also be set on a table when decorating for a special occasion such as a birthday party or baby shower.


These were for Valentines Day.

Materials List:

16 wooden blocks, 2 3/4 inches

Craft paint for base, and four colors for letters

Alphabet stencils, 2 inch

Stencil brush

Tack cloth

Brown craft paper for homemade heart and clover stencils

Medium color wood stain (for weathered look)

STEP 1: Sand all sharp edges off of the blocks to give the blocks 'softer' corners. This step can be eliminated if a more modern and crisp look is desired. Use your tack cloth to remove any sawdust created by the sanding.

STEP 2: Paint your blocks with the base color you've chosen. Apply 2 to 3 coats on all sides to ensure even and complete coverage.

STEP 3: This step is important and will actually be helpful later when using the blocks. Choose the side of each block that will be the bottom and number them on the bottom from 1 to 16. Your stencils can be used for this step if you would like to use the numbers along with your letter blocks later. Otherwise you can simply use a sharpie marker.

STEP 4: Following the chart below, and using your letter stencils and stencil brush, start with one color and do all the blocks that will have that color, making sure the correct letters are on the correct numbered block.

EXAMPLE: The block that you numbered with a 1 on it earlier will now get a yellow N, a yellow D, a yellow H and a yellow E. Then find the block that you put a 4 on the bottom, and on its' sides put a yellow Q, A, I and 4, one letter per each block side, and so on...according to the chart below.

Painting Chart:
Yellow: Block #1: N, D, H, E. Block #4: Q, A, I, 4.
Block #9: A, B, C, D. Block #13: S, O, A, C.

Red: Block #2: E, I, P, heart. Block #3: M, P, G, &.
Block #6: L, A, W, S. Block #16: F, I, K, M.

Blue: Block #8: V, O, H, R. Block #11: H, E, L, R.
Block #12: S, D, N, W. Block #15: T, V, U, O.

Green: Block #5: L, O, R, E. Block #7: E, T, J, clover.
Block #10: Y, G, C, E. Block #14: T, N, W, Y

For the style of the blocks seen in the photos above, lightly sand fronts and edges of each block after letters have dried. Wipe with a tack cloth. Wipe a light coat of wood-stain over all six surfaces of each block, immediately wiping any excess off. Allow to dry according to wood-stain manufacturers' directions. The stain isn't necessary but will give the blocks a more rustic & weathered look, if desired.
The following two messy pages are my original scribblings... showing what can be written with the blocks. Just find the block with the corresponding number and use the letter it lists.

Best Deep Conditioner, EVER!!



My daughter, Abby, with her super shiny hair!
Photo Credit: Amanda Marie Photography, AZ.

 We've all invested our hard-earned money on products that we're told will produce amazing results. Too bad they aren't true.
Now I know what you're probably thinking....this is probably one of those same claims. But if you try this, I won't get rich. So I have nothing to gain by you trying it, and you have nothing to lose by trying it....except about a cups worth of a condiment that you'd be better off health-wise using on your hair...not your sandwich.

Any brand is fine, just not low-fat!

Any guesses? YEP!
Mayonnaise!

My youngest daughter, Abby, and I have both used it and loved it! So if you've got dry hair & want to try something with no chemicals, give this a try.

What you'll need:

1 cup regular mayonnaise (not low-fat)
1 cheap plastic shower cap

This is an overnight treatment. At bedtime, spread the mayonnaise over dry hair, combing through with your fingers to distribute it evenly. Cover with the plastic shower cap. As an added measure of protection, cover your pillow with an old towel in case the shower cap slips a bit during the night.

The next morning, just shampoo and style your hair as usual. Oh, and enjoy your silky hair!

Homemade Baking Powder

  Make your own baking powder.      

Ever find yourself in the middle of a baking project, only to find that you're missing an ingredient that you consider a staple?... you never even checked to see if there was any... you just assumed it would be there?

Well, I have! Many times. I check for odd ingredients but not the common ones. It was one of those times that I went to grab my baking powder and there wasn't enough to do the recipe. So I decided to look on the internet. There were actually many different recipes, with different ratios of the key ingredients. This is the one I adopted:

1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cream of tartar

Makes: 1 Tablespoon

It only takes a few ingredients.

Combine. Use immediately.

If you plan to make more than you need and want to store any remainder for future use, add:

Make sure to mix well. Add cornstarch to store.

1 teaspoon corn starch to the original mixture. This will help absorb any moisture present and keep the powder from reacting before you need it. Store in an air-tight container.

TIP: Did you know that most commercial baking powders contain aluminum? Sodium aluminum sulfate, to be exact. Make your own baking powder and keep your baked goods aluminum-free.

Breakfast Croissants

Quick & easy treat for the whole family.

Around our house, breakfast is a favorite. We love breakfast food..biscuits with sausage gravy, orange-cranberry pancakes, fried potatoes, breakfast burritos, waffles....You get my point, right? We LOVE breakfast food. I didn't even start on breakfast breads... donuts, coffee cake, danish...and so on. Speaking of danish, my daughter Laurel just made some awesome danish a few days ago and posted the recipe on her blog: CaliforniaLaurel.blogspot.com. You can view the recipe and pictures here.

Of course, we have breakfast for dinner as often as possible. We even go out for breakfast late at night. (I know we aren't the only people who do this or Denneys wouldn't have a 24 hour breakfast menu!)

So with all that said, here it is Valentines Day. I had to run to the store early this morning because we had no sugar for our coffee! So I thought of grabbing some type of fresh-baked donut or something for my husband to get this special day started off right. (He's a great fan of all things 'pastry') Then I remembered our croissant trick...buy a roll of crescent rolls and add a few goodies and...Wa-LA! Fresh, hot, delicious pastry...for a fraction of the cost! Here are the details:

STEP 1: Buy crescent rolls. Mine were $1.98 on sale.






On the left, raspberry jam. On the right, Nutella.

          
             STEP 2: Before rolling, add yummy stuff.





These are the only savory croissants I made.  They have
brown-sugar ham & cheddar cheese.

  



These actually got more yummy stuff on top before
 the went into the oven.

  
            STEP 3: Bake according to package directions.


      STEP 4: Once out of the oven, add more yummy stuff.




The lemon drizzle on the left, and the plain drizzle on the right,.. just
to give me something to help the almonds stick.

 



On the ham & cheese I sprinkled a few bits of shredded cheese. On the
'cinnabon' I had smeared butter & cream cheese inside. The I had sprinkled
the inside as well as the outside with cinnamon & sugar.

 

    STEP 5: Eat. (At this point, they can't help it... they're yummy!!)




These actually didn't need this since there were only a few different flavors,
but I like to scribble across my parchment what flavor they are..just in case.