Crafts

compassion international

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have you heard of compassion international? you likely have. it’s a cause that has gained wild popularity. and unlike the bachelorette, their popularity is well-deserved.

this is a multi-faceted organization who has found an incredible balance when it comes to the job of supporting impoverished children and families. i’ve listed just a few things they provide:

  • a monthly financial support program that connects the able to children in need of clothing, food, and education in impoverished areas of the world
  • a deeper connection between the sponsor and sponsored by allowing for pictures, updates and correspondance along with the financial contribution
  • amazing compassion-run programs for the children that allow the gospel to be delivered while also meeting the physical needs of those in need

bryan and i support an almost 11-year-old girl from the dominican republic. i love receiving her letters and hanging her cute drawings on my fridge. she has truly become a part of our family.


how can you contribute?


this week, i’m giving away five handmade crafts from lullabies for africa!

simply leave a comment on this post if you’d like to win this adorable pin.
my sister-in-law put a lullabies pin on her winter coat-i must say, it’s pretty cute!

i’ll randomly select the winner at the end of the week!

lullabies for africa

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this week, i’m sharing five different opportunities to give. i’ve shared several times now on why my husband and i find giving to be an essential part of life. i thought it would be fun to help promote the causes that we are most passionate about. 
today, i’m sharing about a wonderful cause. Lullabies for Africa is something i’ve been really excited about these past few months. 
haleigh is a friend of ours from ames. bryan played for the anthem band while she was also in the band-this girl has pipes! i was so excited to get a support letter from her and hear that she was going to kenya for three weeks this winter. it was so evident that God had moved in haleigh’s life and given her new eyes to see all of the orphans in need. thus, the Lullabies for Africa album was born-some of our good friends both in Ames and in Iowa City contributed to this album, which is also fun! as usual, God had a bigger vision than even she had for this project. 
on top of the cd, haleigh (and some other awesome people) have been hand-crafting a bunch of cute goods and selling them with the promise that 100% of the proceeds goes to help orphans in africa! 
watching haleigh be transformed by God’s vision and love for the world has totally gripped my heart. i’ve told her several times that i’m just so excited about what God is doing in and through her! 
how can you contribute? 
  • consider making a donation to the Lullabies for Africa cause.
    “The money collected will go towards traveling costs and fees. Any donations that exceed the $3500 mark will go to help families adopt from Africa.”
  • check out the adorable handmade goods in the lullabies etsy shop.
  • purchase the cd as a gift or for your own children, it’s a beautiful collection of lullabies!


this week, i’m giving away five handmade crafts from lullabies for africa!
simply leave a comment on this post if you’d like to win this adorable hair clip. 
i’ll randomly select the winner at the end of the week!

the clothing pile

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so, i’ve had this growing pile of clothing that i can’t wear. whether it’s a missing button, and stain or a tear, i convince myself that i’ll fix them all and make them wearable again.

today’s the day.

today i’m mending, tailoring, sewing buttons, bleaching and dying.

i’ll post some pictures of my adventures tomorrow!

fabric flowers with tutorials

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i made three different kinds of fabric flowers this week. i might be addicted.

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the rosette
i found a great tutorial here for these little rosettes. i made 4 or 5 before i really got the hang of it, but after that it was a breeze! i never pass up a chance to use hot glue either. i love that i know how to make these because they are so versatile. they can go on wreaths, shirts, pillows, headbands, necklaces, etc.

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the button flower
this tutorial uses felt to make these flowers, but i used regular old scraps of fabric because i don’t really love the felt look. but i loved this tutorial because of the buttons and the “S” formation [genius!]. these were much easier to make consistent flowers and once again, i love hot glue!

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the target flower or the mikki flower
mikki, congratulations! you’ve now been mentioned twice on my blog!
my flowers were originally inspired by a hairpin from target, but made possible by my friend mikki, who made a bunch of this type of flower for her bridesmaids and as party favors at her wedding shower-what a cute idea! the only sad thing about these flowers is that there is no hot glue involved. it’s a shame really. i’m going to try to whip together a little picture tutorial later on today if i can figure out indesign.

as you can see, i’ve attached all of these to headbands. my adorable but bald niece is turning two next month and i’m working on a bunch of cute things to send her.

happy crafting!

homemade drop spindle

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on wednesday, my knitting friend shea and i went to a drop spindle spinning class at the cutest local craft store, home ec workshop. here’s what we made:

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it’s called a drop spindle and it’s used for spinning wool into yarn. pretty cool, huh?

well, i don’t know if spinning my own yarn is for me [i’m horrible at it] but it’s fun to try new things! we have two more weeks of the class, hopefully i’ll get better. if i get decent enough at it, feel free to call me a regular old spinster.

drop spindles come in all sorts of different shapes and sizes, so we made our own out of a dowel, a hook, two cds, a grommet and some binder clips.

rice pack tutorial

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in honor of homebirth, here’s a wonderful craft that is useful in many ways. i love using mine to ease back and neck aches and my mom uses something similar to help moms during labor. here’s how to make it [with pictures!]:

step one: cut two 12″x7″ rectangles from your fabric of choice. you can use whatever you have, but i chose flannel because it’s nice and soft, yet sturdy.

step two: with right sides together, line up fabric. sew around the edges using 1/2″ seam allowance and leaving a 4″ opening at the top.

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step three: cut corners

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step four: turn right side out, making sure to push all four corners out all the way

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step five: fill pack with rice. it doesn’t matter what kind you use as long as it’s not instant! as you can see [above] i used exactly three cups. you don’t want it to be super full. if you’re making a different size pack, you can see [below] that i filled it a little over half full.

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step six: top stitch over the opening.

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directions for use:

microwave pack for 1-1.5 minutes and use as needed!

this pack pits perfectly in the small of my back and also fits well underneath my neck. you could also try putting lavender or something similar inside to give it a nice aroma.

happy crafting!

latte changing pad

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we were in ames for easter last weekend-it was our first time missing veritas since we began 7 months ago! it was definitely weird to be away.

but we loved our time in ames with my family too and at cornerstone, our amazing “mother church.” quick non-sequitur: after being in a teeny church for almost a year, bryan and i were just in awe of the well-oiled machine that is cornerstone. everything runs so smoothly, and the quality of everything there is outstanding. even the programs were printed on nice paper and perfectly folded! it was magical.

anyway, because it was our first time back in ames since christmas, i knew i wanted to make sure to meet two very important babies. two of my dear friends from our old connection group had babies in november of last year and i hadn’t met them yet!

i also wanted their moms to feel loved too, so i made each of them a “latte changing pad.” the one pictured is the one i gave to whitney. i used a blue and green animal print for rachel’s since she had a baby boy.

i found the pattern in a book a received for christmas, one-yard wonders: 101 sewing projects. this is the book’s description of the project: this compact changing pad and sleeve can hold a small package of wet wipes and two or three toddler diapers. it is intended for the toddler mom who no longer needs a big diaper bag, as it can be rolled up and tucked right inside your purse. perfect for a trip to the coffee shop! 

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i thought that sounded perfect for them, as their babies are already almost 6 months old! it was fun to give my friends a simple little gift of love and meet their babies-love you Rachel & David and Whitney & Gracyn!

the directions were pretty easy to follow, although i admit some sentences weren’t as clear to me. the first one i made took about two hours to make, and the second only one! it was a pretty easy project, not quite like my last baby gift. : )

happy crafting!

baby blanket

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whew, this is definitely the biggest project i have undertaken yet. and i am so proud of how it turned out. my cousin and i say all the time, knitting is magical. it really is! what was once a rolled up piece of yarn is now a beautiful blanket, ready to provide warmth and comfort for it’s owner, which in this case is baby thune. our pastor’s wife, ashley, is due in may. a bunch of us church women gathered to celebrate with her last sunday, we’re all so excited for this baby!

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i absolutely loved ashley’s face when she saw the blanket, it made all the time spent on this fun project worth it for sure. i’ve had the joy of getting to know ashley this semester in a bible study we’re in together, and when i saw this pattern, i knew i wanted to make this for her!

i found the pattern, by the way, in a brand new book called a knitter’s home companion. it’s written by an iowa city local and is a most adorable collection of stories, recipes, and knitting patterns. it’s also the only book i have finished so far this year, so it has that going for it. if you’re a knitter, i highly recommend picking this book up!

happy crafting!

sneak peaks and crafting updates

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above is a detail shot of what i finished up yesterday. i’ll have a more detailed blog about this on friday. do you think you have a more accurate guess as to what it is? it’s the same thing shown in this blog.

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this is what i’m working on for next week’s craft of the week.

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and this is just something i’m really excited about! my first dress pattern! i may not get to this for a while, but isn’t it an adorable dress?

in other news, i updated this craft of the week because i received several questions about it. let me know if you still don’t know what a “replacement cotton square” is. : )

and i also think i’m going to add at least one tutorial in per month to my craft of the week blogs. i received a lot of interest on how i did the piping on a simple pillow case, so i think i’ll start with that!

ps: this post has been backdated!

replacement cotton squares

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i needed an easy-as-pie craft for this week as i’m working on a couple bigger crafty projects right now.
these replacement cotton squares cost me about 60 cents and took me about 15 minutes to make. talk about quick and easy!

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these handy little things are one simple way to “go green” in your house. instead of using a cotton ball or cotton square [as i call them] to take off your make-up or clean your face or whatever you can use a cotton ball for, you can use this reusable fabric replacement!

i was inspired by this link, and she says that she washes them in a lingerie bag so they don’t get lost. now i need to make one of those!