{ baby onsie cupcakes }

Baby gifts are so fun! You get to be so creative!

here is a cute idea for a baby shower gift or even a birthday gift!

What you'll need:

1. Baby onsie/body suit
2. Baby wash cloth
3. Coffee filter
4. Ribbon

Start with a onsie.

Lay your onsie front down. Fold the sleeves in toward each other.

Now fold the body suit in half with sleeves toward

the inside.

To make the dollop of cream on top:

Make a fist. Lay your wash cloth over your closed fist.

Use your index finder and poke the center of the cloth down

into your fist.

Now flip your fist over and grab the part you pushed through

with your fingers.

Now grab around the whole thing.

Lay your washcloth onto the collar end of the onsie so your "dollop"

hangs over the edge.

Now roll it up! If you roll at a slight angle, the center will sit

higher than the outer edge.

Now place the onsie into the center of your coffee filter.

Pull the edges of the filter up around the onsie and tie it off with some

ribbon!

You can add tags and other embellishments to your ribbon!

I can't wait to give these to my friend that just had her baby!

{ fabric buttons }

I've been wanting to try these out for some time now! I finally went to the

store and bought them! These are buttons that you put together

yourself! You choose the fabric, you choose the size! I got a new

couch and the throw pillows that I made less than a year ago are WAY to

big for it! So I am making smaller ones... with big red buttons!

What you'll need:

1. fabric of your choice scissors
2. package of cover buttons and tool

First you cut your fabric to be twice the diameter of your button.

My buttons are an inch and a half so I cut my fabric into 3 inch

squares.

Your next step is to layer your stuff. Start by placing the

rubber white piece down.

Now center your fabric, face down, onto the rubber piece.

Next lay your button, face down, on top of the fabric.

Press the button into the center of the rubber mold.

Now fold all the extra fabric down behind the button.

Put the button back on top of the extra fabric

Use the blue piece to press the back into the button until

you hear it snap into place.

Now pop your button out of the rubber mold!

Now you can sew your button onto your project or snip off the loop and

add it to scrapbook pages, hair accessories, or even rings!

{ banana nut bread } recipe

Based on taste alone, I have always thought banana nut bread had to be difficult to make.

I was wrong!

If you love that heavy, moist, stick-to-the-roof-of-your-mouth kind of banana

bread, this is the recipe for you! Enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour 

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 cup butter or margarine (softened)

2 cups white sugar

2 cups mashed over-ripe bananas (about 4)

4 eggs; beaten

1 cup chopped walnuts

(yield: 2 loaves)

Directions:

 Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour two

9x5 inch loaf pans.

 Combine flour, salt and baking soda in a large bowl. Mix well.

 In a separate bowl mix butter and sugar until smooth.

Stir bananas, eggs and walnuts into the sugar mixture until

blended.

Mix wet and dry ingredients. The consistency is that of a
batter and not a dough.

Divide into two loaf pans. (I've halved my recipe so I only

have one pan)

Bake 55-60 minutes or until knife comes out clean. Allow to cool in pans

at least 5 minutes, then cool on rack.

Wrap loaves in tin foil to retain moisture.

Enjoy!

{ wall vase }

I'm in the process of decorating my bathroom (finally). I am going for a

shabby chic/vintage/cottage look! Here's a little wall vase project I

 threw together this week for my wall collage. They turned out so cute and

they were so easy! And because I made them from things I found around the

house, they didn't cost me a penny! That is my kind of project!

What you'll need:

1. Pint canning jar
2. 9x4 1/2x1 piece of wood (these measurements don't have to be exact)
3. Wire and cutters
4. Paint and sand paper
5. 1 large head screw and screw driver

Start by painting your wood piece. I chose to use an antique white.

Once your base coat is dry, take a piece of sand paper and sand 

around the edges of your board to remove some of the paint and reveal the raw

wood beneath.

Now, use a darker color (I used burnt umber) to antique the edges. I like 

to use about 1 part paint to 2 or 3 parts water. I also prefer to use 

a rag to apply the color instead of a paint brush. This way you can wipe

and reapply with the same thing.

Dip your rag into the watered down paint and simply rub it onto the edges

that you just sanded. you can wipe it off or add more as you

like. Don't try to make it perfect! The messier and uneven it looks, 

the more original it will look. Let it dry.

Now take your canning jar and start wrapping your wire around

the top of the jar. I wrapped mine 3 times around. Now clip the wire and

twist the two ends together. Tighten it with needle nose pliers.

I wrapped the loose ends back around the original hoop. You should end up

with this area perfect for a screw.

Now attach your hoop to your board! The large head screw will pinch the

wire hoop in between itself and the board. Now add a hanger to the back

and slip your jar into the hoop!

Add flowers, sea shells, candles or even pot pourri!

You may recognize some of these piece from older posts! Look here

to learn to make these vintage style keys and here to learn

to make the cute fabric carnations!