Essential Oil Girl strikes again

My dear daughter, Emma, is my comic maker extraordinaire. She has always done comics instead of your standard creative writing. This morning she sat down and made a really good one! I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

 Another day saved by Essential Oils Girl!! We have had this real experience in our family. My youngest had a lot of warts on her feet and they are all gone now!

Stuff, Things, and Deals

Gracious! The moment I think my life could not possibly get any more busy....Bam! I have been trying so hard to make my Etsy shop viable, I was sewing like a drag racer! I struggled through trying to please people and wanting to just express my own creativity. Ug!! I get so upset when I read magazines and crappy pillowcases are 80 dollars, but people won't buy hand-crafted, quilted and embellished bags for much less from me. Deep breath! I've decided my Etsy shop is a lovely hobby. I do not wish to beg and whine and plead for customers. If it is supposed to be, it will be. Kudos to those who have done so much to help me!

On a happy note! Last weekend was my oldest daughter's 13th birthday. I have a teenager! She had been wanting the doll pictured above for quite a long time and didn't know that I had snatched her up in a fantastic sale. She started to have an idea when I made the Maddie Hatter bedding and bed the day before her birthday. I love the top hat and tea cup. (this doll is supposed to be the daughter of the Mad Hatter from Alice in Wonderland). I made a crazy quilt and even made the polka dot fabric to match her tights! I painted dots on white fabric with a pencil eraser. Anyway, daughter was very happy!

So in praying through all of my troubles from the first paragraph, God came through and I got a job! I am the new Education Coordinator for the local Jo Ann's store! Yay! I get to craft and sew and get paid for it! Sew excited! (I know, sorry)

Next, my dear daughters wanted to open an Etsy shop with doll clothes and accessories. My oldest has just figured out she loves to make doll clothes. It's her own creative outlet. So we all got busy and created some awesome things! I am so proud of my girls for heeding my scrutiny and doing things well. Here are some of our things.

 I made this one and that is a paper purse I made, believe it or not.

 Ellie made these outfits. Elastic waist skirts and Velcro closed tops.

 I made this sparkly bedding set with lots of pillows.

So we had lots of fun sewing and photographing, as you can see! The girls new shop is grapecake.etsy.com .

Finally, we are saying goodbye, hopefully, to our baby bunnies this weekend. The time has come to sell them. So I'll post one last cute photo!

It's hard to photograph 8 wiggly bunnies!

What did I do last week?

Oh, thank you for asking! I had sew many projects on my plate. ( did you catch the pun?) Ok, I will probably stop being silly now, or not. Anyway, I wanted to post some of my fun projects that I completed last week. Ready. go!

These are not in order, but oh well! This first pic is a gift I made for a graduating senior, who is on her way to Baylor. I just had to whip up a tote bag for her new adventure (in Baylor colors).

 

 Another mission-minded friend is using these cute little bags to raise support for missions.

 I found this adorable template for a Dachshund here:  http://smallforbig.com/2014/02/diy-cardboard-animals-templates.html . My mother loves them, so I had to make her an essential oil purse with it.

 

My middle daughter is growing like a weed and loves her "hippy" pants. They were just too short, but she didn't want to get rid of them. We had seen some jeans on Pinterest that had eyelet lace inserted like this and loved it. I made the lace insert and then added more denim to the bottom. She will get a couple more months out of them! haha.

 

 

Want to see some beautiful essential oil purses and shopping bags? Check out my shop: https://www.etsy.com/listing/185913357/essential-oils-carrying-case-sweet-green?ref=shop_home_feat_1

 

Want to support missions? Check out our blog with info about our upcoming trip to Bolivia.

http://sotxandeanboendeavors.com/

 

Thanks!!

Sprung

I think I must have blinked. Where did spring go??? It is already in the 90s here and our little bunnies are suffering! We jumped straight from nice and cool to blazing hot. Welcome to South Texas! Although I would wish for a real spring, I will not complain. We did not have the never ending winter here, and that is why I love living here.

 

Ok, how about projects? I will share some things I've been working on in the past week.

First, I made 10 cute zipper pouches for a fellow short term missionary. We love the Russian doll fabric!! Putting in 10 little zippers was not the most fun thing I've ever done in my life, let me tell you. However, the finished pouches are so adorable!

 

 

 

Next, I altered a fancy smancy gown for a friend. That was the first time I had ever used a tiny rolled hem foot on my sewing machine. I must give a shout out to my two younger daughters who rubbed my shoulders and patted my head while I yelled at the machine. I watched multiple tutorials on how to use the rolled hem foot and most of them were not helpful. Only one helped me.....for future reference; you need to kind of have the fabric rolled in a nice tube before it gets to the foot for a nice, smooth outcome.

And I have to throw in a picture of adorable bunnies here. I think the little brown ones look like cow hide. I know that is tremendously uncute, but there it is. All 14 babies are growing quickly and can now jump in and out of their nesting box. (Their mothers do not appreciate this).

And my last baking exploration: Low carb, sugar free peanut butter cookies.
My dear hubby tries to avoid sugar in any way, shape, or form, so chocolate chips are out. We also do not eat anything with synthetic sweeteners. So, I tweaked my fabulous low carb and mostly sugar free chocolate chip cookie recipe. The result was a nice cocoa peanut butter cookie worthy of a large glass of milk. Hubby can't stop eating them, so I guess they are a hit. Want my recipe?

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies (Low carb and sugar free)
1 stick of softened unsalted butter
1/2 cup coconut sugar
1/2 cup stevia
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 large eggs
1 cup hazelnut flour (you can sub almond flour if that is your choice)
1 1/4 cup garbanzo bean flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Stir it all together and bake rounded tablespoon size balls on a cookie sheet for 9 minutes at 350 degrees. (I did the old fashioned criss cross pattern with a fork on mine and hubby was duly impressed).


Hey, please pop over to my shop and check out my bags! https://www.etsy.com/listing/185692008/essential-oil-carrying-case-purse-red?ref=shop_home_feat_3


Also, please support our trip to Bolivia in September. If you would like to check out our mission page and see what we are going to do, go here:  http://sotxandeanboendeavors.com/


Thanks!!!

 

 

Trying new things

Hi! Have you been scrolling through the DIY page on Pinterest and seen all those pins for homemade house hold cleaners? You thought to yourself, "OH, that is so cool! I should try that some time!" You repin all those ideas and months later they still sit on your "For the Home" board. Ok, maybe that is just me. I have this romantic idea of making all my own cleaners, to save money, but have never actually gotten around to it. Well, today I am one step closer! I made my own nifty recipe chart to hang in my laundry area! Nifty, right? Ok, so I need to use up all of my icky, harsh store bought cleaners before I can actually start using these. But hey, I feel accomplished just sorting through all those pins for the recipes that will help me. Here is my chart!

So cool!! If I do say so myself. I can't wait to start using these. The great part is that I have all of these ingredients in my home!! (except for the castile soap. not a regular in my house.)

Anyway, I thought I would share these with all 2 or 3 people who read my blog. I will update when I have tried these out! FIY, if you want to print my chart you can right click on it and save to your computer.





Hey, have you been to my shop lately? 3anniemouse3.etsy.com I have lots of essential oil bags (which make fantastic normal purses, by the way!) and some cute shopping bags.

 

Also! If you love to support missions, please check out our mission blog: http://sotxandeanboendeavors.com/

Awesome! until next time, friends, blessings!

Doll purses and people purses

Today was our 100th day of school, here at Withers Private Academy. We had grandiose plans of cake making, pizza partying, and crafting. However, as a cloud of lazy settled over the house I seemed to only fulfill the latter. We had homemade milkshakes for dinner (so healthy, right?), which we could do since hubby is away for his drill weekend as a chaplain.

 

 

Anyway, I always find that our dolls are sadly lacking in the accessories department. I mean, what Barbie is seen without a fabulous purse or necklace? Well, I am the official purse and necklace maker in our house, so I decided to put a few together tonight. I didn't photograph the necklaces because they sold off the shelf faster than I could get the camera. (they actually just got put on dolls as soon as the hot glue was dry.) Enough jabber, I'll show you the pictures and tell you how I did them.

Here are 3 of the bags I made this evening. Yep, they are all made from paper. I got this idea from My Froggy Stuff, once again. This time I had the where-with-all to make myself a cardboard pattern to avoid the tedious measuring and drawing every time I want to make some purses. The one on the left really buttons over a bead. I used some pink chain that I had for the strap. The middle one is open at the top and has ribbon handles. The last one closes with a flap tucked into a strap and has a bent paper clip handle. I love experimenting with different papers to see how they will look.

 

On to purses for real people! Much more exciting. I made the cutest essential oil purse and matching zipper pouch today! You can see them in my shop!

https://www.etsy.com/shop/3anniemouse3?ref=si_shop

 

Don't forget to support our mission@  http://sotxandeanboendeavors.com/

 

Bunnies and Gunk

So! Or, shall I say, Sew! I have been working on some new things for my shop and also some special requests. One request was for an Easter table runner. I was browsing Pinterest and came across a blogger who made the cutest things. I went to her blog and found the perfect idea for a spring table runner: bunnies!

http://jedicraftgirl.blogspot.com/2014/03/bunny-bricks-quilt-tutorial.html

 

This is her version. A bunny quilt wallhanging. She has a Sizzix machine to cut out her bunnies once they are bonded to a light fusible backing. I don't have that, so I just took one of her pictures and enlarged the bunny.  I cut it out and glued it to light weight cardboard. Then I fused some springy fabrics to Heat-n-Bond backing, traced the bunny, and cut them out by hand. I made the horrible mistake of using the heavy backing instead of light, so I had to clean my needle every few inches when I was appliqueing by machine. I used a whole bunch of scrap pieces for my border. It turned out really cute, but was so much work since I used the wrong backing! Read the package first!!

 

 

 

 

Anyway, here is mine:

 

 

 

 

I just may have to keep this one!! haha!
New in my shop:
https://www.etsy.com/listing/184734466/russian-dolls-shopping-tote-bag?ref=shop_home_active_1


Take a look at our website for our mission!
http://sotxandeanboendeavors.com/

 

Ends and Beginnings

 

Hi! So I wanted to post the final pictures of the doll house. We ended up finishing it and moving it into her bedroom last weekend. She was really anxious to have it done and start playing with it. Here we go:

 This is the nursery. Ellie made the crib and the tulle bed curtain. I found the changing table (I assume it was intended for a little bathroom shelf) and we spray painted it. The chair is from my first post. I cut a piece of fuzzy fleece for the rug.

 

 

This is the adopted teenager's room and done completely by Ellie. She lives on the top floor. I made the bedding from some fabulous Chinese fabric that was given to us. Ellie used the "room in a box" tutorial from My Froggy Stuff and also for the dresser.

 This is the office. Not much to it. We were going modern, after all. I made her "acrylic" desk out of some doll packaging plastic and wooden dowels. Then I glued the legs to a piece of cardboard covered in duct tape for stability. She is a journalist, so she needed a camera and notepad. I found these in the dollar section of Target.

Finally, we have the roof-top terrace. It has a nice box garden (made by Ellie), a bench, and one of those cell phone holder chairs. I found the chair at a rummage sale and we painted it white.

Et viola! I'm sure she will add to it, but my hard labor is done. I have to say, it turned out very well. Now my second daughter wants a Victorian style doll house. Ay!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 I wanted to include some pictures of my garden. It's looking quite well for the first day of April. On the right side I have nasturtiums, which are edible flowers. They are hiding my zucchini plant. On the left I have spearmint, lettuce, flowers, and tomatoes. The white box is my compost pile.

This is my lovely spearmint! I make tea with it everyday. It is so delicious mixed with green tea; and so healthy!!

   

 

 

 

Ok, that is all for today, since I really should be cleaning floors right now!

Doll house DIY second floor

So the second floor of the doll house is pretty well finished. Let me post the pictures and then tell you about what I have done:

 Here is the master bedroom. Ellie wanted a modern platform bed. I stacked 5 equal pieces of cardboard and covered them with wood contact paper. I made a mattress and a bedspread out of a thick white cotton fabric. I made a lot of pillows! The wall mounted night stands are two more of those blingy dollar store combs. I glued a rolled up piece of paper that is painted silver to a glue stick cap for the lamp. My Froggy Stuff on YouTube has tutorials on mattresses and the folded paper shopping bag. Lastly, I made two doors from cardboard, contact paper, and beads for the extensive (imaginary) walk in closet.

The bathroom is one of our favorites! Let's start with the tub. Barbie tubs cost in the neighborhood of WAY TOO MUCH! I found large Easter eggs at the dollar store and painted the lower half (which happens to have a flat bottom). My modern faucet is made from another dollar store comb with hot glue dripping off for the water. The sink is made from two different dollar store candle holders glued together. I made the faucet from a picture hanger and two beads. The mirror is an old scratched dvd and the fancy pendant light is from a broken necklace. The trash can was Ellie's work. She painted the lid to a hair spray can. And everybody knows that Barbie does not use the toilet since she is plastic. Also, if you've looked online like I have, you know there are no easy ways of making  a nice looking toilet from recycled materials!

 

 

 

Just one floor left! Ellie decorated the roof of the house, which I will show in another post. We are excited to be near the end of this project! I hope these posts are inspiring some crafty mom out there. My smart daughter was figuring out last night that this whole project will cost me under 40 dollars, whereas a store bought house and all the furniture will run over 100 dollars. I love a bargain!

 

 

Don't forget to read my other posts on this doll house! Also, visit my etsy shop: 3anniemouse3.etsy.com

 

 

If you support missions, we are going to Bolivia in September for a short term trip. We will be sharing with churches, promoting child evangelism through puppets, and visiting with our fellow believers who work diligently with their own people and others. http://sotxandeanboendeavors.com/2014/03/22/the-mission-plans-continue/

 

Thanks!!!

Doll house living room and kitchen

Hi! So I survived the first floor of the doll house! Wow! I have a few glue gun burns and scissor cuts to show for it. How about a tour?

So this is the modern kitchen and living room. Everything in the kitchen is made from cardboard. Some of it is covered in wood print contact paper and the rest is covered in scrapbook paper. I used a baby food container for the kitchen sink after painting it white. The top of a kid's hanger and two clear beads make the faucet. The rug idea came from here:

http://simplelivincrafts.blogspot.com/2013/08/diy-barbie-doll-furniture.html?m=1

 

The couch is made from a tissue box, fabric, batting, and extra cardboard. I also used cardboard tubing for the legs and painted them silver. You can find a similar couch here:

http://www.kidskubby.com/easy-diy-barbie-couch/

 

I made pillows with beads in the center. I can't find the right tutorial for these, but if you look up My Froggy Stuff on YouTube, she has loads of tutorials.

My super chic coffee table is made from a nut can covered in shiny scrapbook paper. I glued a scratched up DVD mirror side up on top. My modern art bouquet is made from a glue stick lid, toothpicks, and crystal beads. Peeking from the side is my printed-from-online tv. Both chandeliers are Christmas ornaments I picked up at a rummage sale. 

 

So that is the update for today!

Hey! Check out my etsy shop at 3anniemouse3.etsy.com

 

 

Also, if you like to support missions, check out our website to read about our short term trips to Bolivia.

http://sotxandeanboendeavors.com/2014/03/22/the-mission-plans-continue/

 

Thanks for visiting me!

 

 

 

Doll house updates and other busy things

Wow! I am just too busy! I keep wanting to do the final touch ups on Ellie's room, but every moment of my day is taken up with homeschooling, housework, sewing, and a few minutes on the doll house. I am happy with my life. Alright, on to details, right?

 

This week I papered the walls of the doll house with various scrapbook papers. (A great money saver there is to look at Big Lots in their stationary section. They get closeout stacks for 5 dollars or less.) I get most of my paper for projects like this at Big Lots.

I also had Ellie take a photo of the doll who will be occupying this house. (In case you are wondering this doll happens to be a bit self absorbed. She is a lesson to the other dolls on how NOT to behave.) Anyway, we did the photo in a paint program on the tablet so it looks like a portrait. I glued it to cardboard and put painted popsicle sticks around the edges for a frame. The giant peacock feather is just a piece of scrapbook paper trimmed.

 

Next I made some chairs from Dollar Tree blingy combs and popsicle sticks. Then I painted them white. Not sure if they are totally modern, but they are cute!

Next on the agenda will be the kitchen.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Also this week, I found the perfect fabric for an apron for my baker girl, Emma. She loves to bake and even more, she loves rabbits.

If anyone wants an apron made for their special girl, let me know! I do special orders in my shop: 3anniemouse3.etsy.com

 

Lastly, I leave you with a picture of our bunny, Bella, and her beloved blankie.

Everyone needs a smile!


If you are interested in learning more about Young Living essential oils, let me know. They have made a huge difference in our lives!

Also, if you are interested in supporting our short term trip to Bolivia, contact us on facebook, or go to http://sotxandeanboendeavors.com/2014/03/22/the-mission-plans-continue/ .

 

 

 

Updates and Info

Hi! I wanted to give an update on Ellie's room, but first..........

 

I have started making these adorable essential oil bags! If you have recently visited my shop and did not see a style you love, you have two options! 1. I will soon have some new bags up, so just check back with me. 2. You can comment on my blog or convo me in my etsy shop 3anniemouse3.etsy.com for a special order. I can make my shopping bags or essential oil cases in any fabric you desire. I hope to hear from you soon!

 

Now, back to the plans for my daughter.....Ellie is turning the big 1-3 this May and I am undertaking some huge projects for her delight. #1 Was to repaint her bedroom. It is now a lovely gray.  I still need to make a cover for her comforter with its huge hot pink and lime green flowers. I've decided to go the duvet route. (didn't that line look so fancy?) My hugest (I know, not fancy) project is to create a new doll house for her using a bookshelf. I have pinned a dozen ideas on my "doll stuff" board on Pinterest. I suppose that will count as homework. haha. My girl loves her dolls, but she wants her doll to have a modern house. Quartz counter tops, stainless steel appliances....the whole nine yards. Now, I am a French country, provincial, romantic, rosey type. Modern is not in my vocabulary. This will be a stretching experience. I've begun by buying this bookshelf from Target that has lovely dark hardwood floors already... ha.

I have stocked up on metallic paints and scrapbook paper. I dream about modern doll furniture at night. This is going to be bad. In the mean time, I have lots of sewing to do!! She is going bonkers because I won't tell her what I am planning. It is for her birthday after all! More updates to come!