MY NEW BLOG LOCATION

Okay, everyone, as stated in my last post, I am going to be moving to WordPress.  It is a work in progress but I do have my new blog address as well as all the posts from this blog already moved over.  Now, like I said, it is a work in progress.  Right now it still just looks like a pre-fabbed blog but with my posts.  So, you can go see it if you would like.  I will update you again when it is totally ready, in the state that I want it to be when you come back.  I will be back to blogging on my WordPress blog at the beginning of January 2013!

www.hshomemade.com

Happy Holidays!

A New Blog Location....

....will be announced soon.  What has happened is that I have run out of free space on blogspot for pictures.  So, since that is the whole basis of this blog, I will be changing blog locations soon.  My husband has a blog of his own (for work/research purposes) on WordPress and we have already purchased a blog name for me through his company blog.  We are working on a few glitches and will be up and running by January.  He always told me I would run out of space (which I knew I would eventually) and so I should have taken his advice from the get go and started at WordPress, I guess.  Hindsite is 20/20, right?  So, my plan is to move my entire blog to WordPress by January and begin blogging there next year.  I am excited about this new beginning!  Once I have it up and running, I will post a link.  Since the circumstances have changed, I am going to take the rest of this month off and spend it first of all with my family and secondly doing some much needed sewing for my little girl.  I said I was going to make some clothes for her this fall and never really got around to it....so, this is the open door for that.  So, I hope you all have a wonderful Holiday Season with friends and family and I will catch you in January with a new plan for the year ahead!  I will be sure to share with you all of my sewing adventures that I PLAN to complete by January!  Have a great day!

Working on it....

Sorry for the delay....I am having a few problems with my blog.  Working on it!

Craft Room Video

Why, yes, it IS a 4th post for the week!  It is a holiday weekend, right?  Why not have a little more fun this week and do a random video of my craft area???  Sure, why not?  :-)  So, after all this time, I have never shown you all my craft space.  Please disregard my dirty clothes in the video...oops! 

 

FYI:  I do have a little more storage of things in my closet (much to my husband's dismay...)....but we were NOT going there!  :-)  My sewing machine and sewing "stuff" is in there as well as some things for my scrapbooking that I do not use daily.  Anyway....here we go....

Happy Thanksgiving

 

 

"HIS"

 

 

"HERS"

 

 

Happy Turkey Day everyone!  Hope you are all able to be spending this day with family and/or friends!  We are spending the day with my husband's family and we are also going to "do" Christmas this weekend as well!  We are driving down to his parent's house (about 2 hours away) this morning and will eat, eat, and eat some more for the next few days!  Great!  I don't need any more inches in  my jeans!  Anyway....sure to be a great weekend!  Today, I just wanted to leave you a few pictures of the turkey shirts I made with the kids to wear this week.  Acrylic paint, feet, hands, shirts.  That is all it takes....oh, and a bow for my daughter's "girl" turkey.  How cute are these?  The kids LOVE them.  They have already worn them this week and are wearing them again today!  Hope you all have a great day filled with turkey, dressing, and all the "fixin's".  I personally made the pecan pies, the homemade (of course) cranberry sauce, and the dinner for Friday night (stuffed shells/beef and chicken).  Whew....it's been a long week....can't wait to eat it all!  :-)  Have a great day and remember, it is always homemade!

Turkey Gift Boxes

I was in a hurry when I took this picture and I just snapped one with my iPad....sorry for the fuzziness.  But, you can still see how cute these little gift boxes were that I sent to school with my son today for his teachers.  I saw on Pinterest a little turkey that had the rosette as the feathers and that is how this little turkey came into existance.  Really simple and really cute.  Everything is just held together with ATG gun adhesive and/or glue dots.  The feathers are made out of a 1 1/2 x 12 inches (scored and folded at every half inch).  The kraft boxes are from SU! and the paper that wraps the box is measured at 8 1/2 x 2.  The turkey body is made out of two circle punches.  The rest is self explanatory.  Hope you have fun making these!  Have a wonderful day of baking (as I am) and remember, it is always homemade.

Hello, Dear Friend: Sketch #3

 

(Sketch from www.cardpositioningsystems.blogspot.com)

 

 

 

This week's skecth comes from www.cardpositioningsystems.blogspot.com .  I wanted to use one of my new stamp sets and this bike from the SU! Moving Forward set fit perfectly on the front of this card.  Don't freak out but I did cut the sentiment away from this bike image and used it separately on the bottom of the card.  I did that with each stamp in that set that contained an image and a sentiment together.  It just works better for me that way.  I really like the vintage feel of this card and will probably make another one soon.  Hope you have a great day and remember, it is always homemade!

Our Family

 

We had some family pictures done last Saturday and here are a couple of them.  Just wanted to share!

Old Friends, but Good Friends!

Old friends don't trump your new friends nor is the opposite true, but it is ALWAYS good to see friends you haven't seen in a long time.  My husband and I lived in West Texas for three long years while he began and finished his Doctorate Degree.  We were so far from family and our "old friends" from Alabama we felt very alone for a little while until we made our "new friends" seen in this layout above.  Now, since we moved back to Alabama, we miss our "new friends" we made in Texas!  Well, about a year after we moved back to the state of Alabama, we had the opportunity to return to Texas for a long weekend.  My husband was asked to speak at a Gospel Lectureship that the congregation where we attended (Southside church of Christ, Lubbock, TX) in October of 2009.  We spent time with great friends, whom we will never forget, and got to visit around to my old workplace as well as the University campus.  These are only a few of the people that meant so much to us while in Texas and we hope to get back to visit again one day.  Hope you enjoy this quick, easy layout!  Have a great day scrapping a layout of "old friends" and remember the memories!  Remember, it is always homemade!

Double Embossing Video

Just a quick video today for a neat little idea I just totally did by accident....thought you guys might be interested...

Target Turkeys...

This is the second Thanksgiving craft in the series this month....one more week till the big Turkey Day!  I can't really believe it.  I feel like Thanksgiving meal at our house this time last year was, like, yesterday!  This year we spend Thanksgiving with my in-laws and we are also doing Christmas on the same weekend....and I haven't bought the first item...seriously!  Not.  Good. 

Anyway...here is the craft for today.  Target had these little gems in the $1 bins although they were actually only 50 cents!  Which made it even better.  The kids had a blast putting these together and there are plenty of stickers left on the sticker sheet to use for something else!  They are thrilled which always makes for a happy Momma!   

Have a great day and remember, even with my kids, it is always homemade!

Sketch #2 With Video



 

(Sketch from www.cleanandsimplestamping.com  #209)

 

 

So, this week, I was looking for something that I could use washi tape (the newest fad) with and this sketch was PERFECT!!  So, I went to work and made a few variations. 

 

 

My Original

 

 

The same sketch but with different sentiments...

 



With Paper for Holiday Cards

And while I had the washi tape out....

Below is the video that accompanies this sketch....ENJOY and remember, it is always homemade!

Petting Zoo

Yes, this is a VERY simple layout.  But, it captures the moments of that particular day and the amazement Harrison had on his face as he "petted" the animals.  We used to live in Lubbock, TX (for my husband to do his Doctorate) and about a year after we moved back to Alabama we had the oppurtunity to go back for him to preach at a Lectureship in the area.  We were so happy to have a chance to go back and see all of our friends that we missed so much!  So, we actually were there on a weekend when one of our friends' daughters had a birthday party at a well known petting zoo there in town.  So, we were able to spend time with all of our friends at the party as well as have fun with the birthday girl.  These pictures are from the petting zoo part.  Harrison, even still to this day, does not LOVE animals.  Maybe I shouldn't put it that way.....he likes them until they look in his direction.  If they come near him, he runs and screams.  It has gotten better in the last 6 months but he is still very nervous around animals of any kind.  So, these pictures remind me of that day when we wanted him to pet the animals and he wouldn't!  :)  Hope you enjoy and remember, it is always homemade.  Meet me back on Monday and I will have another sketch to share with you!  Have a great weekend.

Autumn Banner

 

 

 

First of all...sorry that these are not the best pictures.  I couldn't take them in natural light and these take away from how cute this banner really appears!

 

This is the frist week of another series this month of "Thanksgiving Projects".  I know that this is not a true Thanksgiving themed craft but it is great for this time of year.  Also, this is a great craft for the kids to do and then be able to appreciate it themselves when it is hung up in your home!  My son did the stamping and glueing of this yesterday.  He is VERY proud of it....although, not too happy that he had to take the bats and ghost projects down to put this up!  He still wants it to be Halloween!

 

I got this idea from something I saw on Pinterest....I saw real burlap hanging with apples stamped onto it and it was so cute that I began to think of a way to improvise.  So, I had some burlap paper, twine, an apple to use as the stamp, and the leaves and stems are made with fake leaves....just cut down into pieces.  I tried at first to make the stems out of pipe cleaners but I HATE glueing pipe cleaners down.  It just never co-operates!  Oh well.  Life will go on....

 

So, hope you enjoy doing this yourself or with your kids.  My kids love to "make" stuff!  My son loves to stamp with all my "boy" type stamps.  I am sure that one day I will "make" my daughter crafty as well!  ;)  She is only 2 so glue and such is not fun right now for ME!  She loves to color and use stickers so I am sure a love of stamps will follow. 

 

Have a great day and remember, it is always homemade!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sketch #1

(This sketch is from www.gotsketch.blogspot.com April 2012)

 

There are several places online that you can go and find sketches for cards and scrapbook layouts.  Millions, actually!  So, this month and next we are going to do a new sketch each week.  This month, the sketches will be on Mondays.  A list of places to look for sketches are at the end of this post.

 

We start with this sketch which I actually saw on Pinterest and tracked it down to the original website for you guys.  With the Chevron pattern being so "in" right now, I thought this would be a fun one to start out with.  As you look at my card below, it is obvious that I did not copy it exactly but you can see the general layout in my card.  That is the point of sketches....to get your brain working and make something original. 

 

Hope you enjoy the sketches to come and remember it is always homemade.

 

 

Here are a few places to go to for inspiration through sketches.

 

www.gotsketch.blogspot.com

 

www.mojomonday.blogspot.com

 

www.mysketchworld.blogspot.com

 

www.skippingstonesdesign.com/catagory/card-sketches

 

www.cardpositioningsystems.blogspot.com

 

www.cardpatterns.blogspot.com

 



Labor Day Layout

 

Here is the layout for this week.  It is a very simple layout and then embellished in the corners around the journaling box.  Just remember that your page doesn't have to be "overly embellished" to be a nice looking page.  I really do like the look of pages that have few pictures and lots of embellishments, but like I have said before, I am so behind, I do not have time to make every page like that.  Mentally, it is very hard for me to just use one or two pictures on a layout.  (Not that I have never done this, because I have from time to time)  I have always been a scrapper who puts lots of pictures on one layout.  I just can't get around that in my mind.  I don't know why.... Also, remember that everyone has their own style and I want you to scrap YOUR way, not anyone elses.  Okay, there is your encouragement for the week.  Scrap the way YOU want to....don't worry about how others scrap.   I watch a lot of YouTube videos on girls scrapping and some scrap the way I do and some do not but I still can use some of their ideas without going completely away from my own scrapping style.  Just remember to stay true to yourself.  Hope you have a great day of creating and remember, here at H.S. homemade, it is always homemade!

Double-Pocketed Envelope

 

This was a fun project to bring forth from the vaults of long ago....  I have made these in the past and I thought it would be fun to bring out the pattern for the coming holidays.  I know today is Halloween but, as many of you probably are by now, I am so over it!  :-) 

 

So, let's have a Christmas themed project, shall we?  By the time Christmas rolls around I will be sick of  making Christmas themed things....

 

So, here is a video on how to make these envelopes.  First, the basic fold.  Secondly, how to use patterned paper in a way that the print will come out "right side up" after the paper is folded into the envelope.  Hope you enjoy and have a great Halloween! 

 

Vellum Milk Cartons

 

 

 

 

You really can't get cuter than these!  I made these for my son's preschool teachers for their Halloween gifts.  I have made these little milk cartons before but this time I made them smaller and in vellum!  So cute!  You can get a template for this anywhere on the internet.  I used my SCAL software to cut them out.  Also, SU! has a die for them as well.  I used my new Spooky Bingo Bits stamp set to make all the little tags on the front.  The orange stamped image is covered in Glossy Accents to make it shiny.  I secured them with little metal clips and then tied the name of the recipient on the top of the carton.  I hope the teachers love them!  There is candy corn inside so surely that will be a plus!  Have a great day and remember it is always homemade!

Driving....

Cute, simple layout today.  These are pictures of my son "driving" in the front seat of the car while I was cleaning it out.  As you can see he was very excited to be doing this!  He thought he was hot stuff!  I laid the pics out and then embellished a little bit and voila it was done!  Hope you all have a great weekend and remember, it is always homemade!

Bleach-Sprayed Shirts

 

 

 

 

You may have seen this technique on Pinterest or just browsing the Internet for craft ideas....I saw it on Pinterest and then had a friend who tried it and so, I just had to try this for the kids.  My first attempt was the owl and I am so glad that I had a "trial run" because I messed it up!  It got the freezer paper applique too wet with bleach and it bled through into the design.  I kept that shirt for a PJ shirt for my daughter but had a second go at this and they came out great. 

 

First, you cut out a design that you want on Freezer Paper.  I used my SCAL software to cut the designs out.  Then you iron them onto the shirt.  Then you need to put something between the front of the shirt and the back that will not allow the bleach to bleed through onto the back of the shirt.  Then, from a distance spray bleach onto the shirts so that the bleach will kind of float down onto the shirt....you do not want a direct spray. 

 

As you can see from the pictures above some colors appear different than others.  The red was awesome but took more sprays of bleach than the others.  The pink took a couple of sprays and the yellow faded rather quickly.  My suggestion is to spray one or two sprays and then let it dry completely before spraying more so that you can see the effects as you go and so that you do not spray too much.  You can not reverse the effects.  Do this on a hot, sunny day so that the shirts will dry quickly.  Think of the possibilities!

 

Have a great day and remember, it is always homemade.

 

Cello Bags

These little cello bags that are 1 inch by 8 inches are the cutest bags ever!!!  I have seen multiple uses for them.  If you just google them on Google Images, you will see several uses for them for every holiday.  So, from left to right in the picture:  1.  This is one that we made in our stamp club with the little set you get from SU!.  The second is one that I made that was just for fun.  These will be used for my kids' Bible class teachers this year but instead of candy corn we are going to dip those long, wide pretzels in green chocolate and then into Halloween colored sprinkles.  The third is a vellum bag from SU! that we also did in stamp club.  It is embossed with the spiderwed embossing folder and then you just add the tag.  Very cute, very simple.  Have a great day of crafting and remember, it is always homemade.

Five Things I Love

This is a hodge podge of pictures that just had no other place to go in our album and so they wound up on a page all together.  They were one time memories that I did not want to miss!  So, this is a way to save those memories that may just appear to be random pictures but that actually have a particular meaning to you.  Anyway....here is how I threw together these random photos and will still remember them one by one.  Have a great day and remember, it is always homemade.

Inspiration Everywhere

 

So, my mother sends the kids little treats and notes in the mail every other week or so and this past week was one of those times.  The card pictured below is what was in their little envelope along with Frosty coupons....which were a huge hit!  Anyway, I saw th card and immediately thought of trying to recreate it somehow.  I knew I had a few apple stamps that would work and so, I started stamping!  The above card was the result.  The apples, for some reason, today reminded me of the saying, "An apple a day, keeps the doctor away", and so I made this into a "get well" card for someone in the future.  I used some colors that were very "fallish" since I am in that "zone" and I think it turned out really cute.  So, the moral of the story is this:  If you see something you like, try to recreate it....even though it might come out totally different but if it got your brain working, then that was worth the time.  Have a great day and remember it is always homemade.

 

 



Pumpkin Door Hanging

 

This is a $1 project.  At our church, the ladies have a Ladies Night Out on the 3rd Monday of  each month.  I was asked by the hostess of last month to do a few easy craft ideas.  Well, I was walking around the Dollar Tree one day and saw this felt (thick felt) pumpkin.  I figured I could figure  something out for this pumpkin, so I bought it.  I brought it home, added the letter, ribbon and a little inking around the edging and voila----a simple, cheap door hanging for the fall.  Hope you enjoy and remember it is always homemade!

Golfing Buddies

 

 

Here is the layout for the week.  These are just a few pictures that I took of my husband teaching our son some golfing tips (at a very young age).  Gotta teach them early, right?  I made the little golf balls off of a tip I saw on www.catherinepooler.com when she made a masculine card that included golf balls.  She added golf balls by punching out a small circle and then running it through a swiss dot embossing folder.  I inked mine up just a little bit to give it a little dimention.  I hope you have a great day of crafting.  My kids and I are headed to my in-law's house for the day which is two hours away.  It will be a long day but we are sure to have lots of fun! Have a great day and remember, it is always homemade!

Family Birthday Cards

So, here is my confession for the year to all of our family.  Instead of making each individual card differently for each member of our family, this year all the girls are getting one card and the all the guys are getting another.  The girl's card you saw last week on World Card Making Day but the guy's card is new.  I used the chevron embossing folder for the background and then just used half of a circle punch for the banners.  I raided my scrap box and made 12 cards with all scraps.  So, this card is also a great way to use your scraps.  I then sewed the banner pieces onto the card.  This is the first time I have ever sewn on a card!  Usually my sewing machine is not just sitting out but the day I started making cards, it was!  So, since I have been wanting to make this card for a while (but my machine is never out) I thought this would be a prime time to make them.  So, off to work I went.  Here are the results of my sewing adventures......

Double-Sided Pouch

 

 

 

Here is the next Halloween Project for our series in October!  Hope you enjoyed last weeks projects!  I enjoyed making them!  Here is another one that I copied from a YouTube video.  Again, this is a great little pouch that you could make for any occasion!  I just happened to make it for Halloween.  This would be great for small cookies or for a piece of candy.  Have fun and remember it is always homemade!  The video is below....

 

 





World Card Making Day Has Arrived!!!!!

 

World Card Making Day 2012

I, like many of you, love to make cards!  It is so much fun using your creative juices creating all of our cards, but also, it is even more fun sending them out to others!  You know, I have heard a fellow card maker say, that when YOU make cards, it is rare that you get one in your own mailbox.  But, we LOVE when we do!  Anyway....it is card making day!  Do you know how many people in the world today will be making cards to share with others?  Probably thousands and maybe even more!  So, why not sit down at your crafting space and make a few cards today!  Just tell your family that you HAVE to because, it IS world cardmaking day, you know! 

Well, I on the other hand have been working this week to bring you a few quick, easy, clean and simple cards that I have made to send in to the Paper Craft Magazine contest.  (I would appreciate it if you would not copy these cards and send them in under your name.  If you do, you will have to live with that decision.  If you duplicate these cards please use them for your personal use.) 

Now, here are a few of the cards I made this week.  Hope you enjoy and have a great day making lots of cards to share with others! 

 

 

 

 

 

Have a wonderful, stampin' day!  Remember, here at H.S. Homemade, it is always, always, always homemade!

 

 

 

 

 

This is a two page layout that will face each other in my album.  These are pics of family and friends that we saw while in town for my sister's wedding.  I know they do not technically match but i wanted them to flow a little bit so I added the same letter stickers onto each page.  Enjoy and remember, it is always homemade!

 

 

 

 

 

 

You Capture My Heart....

 

 

This little sentiment I used from a card I saw in the Paper Craft magazine.  It had a jar with hearts in it as well but the general layout of my card is totally different.  I cut this jar out of a piece of 12x12 paper that was covered with mason jars with several varieties of objects inside of them.  When I saw this one with the hearts I knew it would be perfect for this card.  Have a great day and remember it is always homemade.

Monster Box and Envelope Bag

 

 

MONSTER BOX

 

 

I saw the directions for this box and knew I had to try it!  This would be great for treat boxes for any season!  So, I made mine for Halloween.  I used my Monster stamp set that I have had for a while and it works great for Halloween.  The video is below!  Have fun making your own!

 

Make sure you scroll on down the page to see the Envelope Bag!

 

 

 

Envelope Bag 

 

 

 

This is a SIMPLE bag made from a standard A2 envelope!  Yes, an envelope!  You can also make this with any other size or shape envelope and get many different looks to this little bag.  Again, this is perfect for a small treat bag for any occasion!  Below is the video with all the directions!  Have a great day and remember it is lways homemade!

 

 

 

 

 

World Card Making Day and Challange

One week until the anual World Card Making Day and Challange!  The Challange was created by Paper Crafts Magazine.  If you go HERE you can find out the details of the challange and prize for the 20 lucky winners.  I plan to submit at least 2 or 3 cards total for the challange.  I have never done this before (even though I have wanted to) so, I am really excited.  The winners will have a chance also to have their winning card in the magazine next spring.  So, have fun this week and next Saturday especially making cards!  I will have a special post that day to celebrate!  Have fun creating and remember, it is always homemade!

Blue Run, Rainbow River, Florida

Again, while in Florida for my sister's wedding, we went out in the boat to a well-known river in the area.  The Rainbow River.  If you live in the Citrus County area and haven't been on the Rainbow River you haven't really lived.  It was a monthly (if not weekly) adventure for my family during the summer months.  We made so many memories on that river.  So, while we were all in town (my Aunt and two of her girls as well) for the wedding we all took a trip to Blue Run.  We have some friends who have a small house on the river and we went there to swim and have a day of fun.  My Aunt had a birthday (50th) that week and we celebrated that as well that day.  We had lots of fun celebrating her birthday as well as being together.  I really hope you had fun memories as children doing things as a family just like I did.  Now that you are older and have families of your own, make sure you make memories together!  Have a great day and remember it is always homemade!