Easter crafts update...

A few partial pictures of easter tees, a bunny above and a squirrel below.

A fallen branch from my palm tree that I turned into an easter tree, and cut out some flowers from mulberry paper.

Cut outs from marthastewart.com

Aren't these cute?

I found these at: http://belladia.typepad.com/bella_dia/2008/12/button-clips.html via curbly.com. I am quickly falling for curbly, maybe more than craftzine's blog...

Hmm what to say...

I walked with the girls today over to the hospital. It is close and I go there to check Darcy's weight every few weeks. Anyway I was thinking about hospitals here. It seems like all hospitals here also have a dental clinic. Isn't that weird? Or maybe its like that everywhere else in the world, and the U.S. does it different. I had a root canal last year, and I went to the dental clinic at the hospital to get it done. Anyway... I just finished these pants. It is so interesting I just saw on Ginny's blog that she was making baby pants, and using old T-shirts. I made these from one of my old T-shirts. They are very light and soft. I didn't hem the bottoms so they are kind've like baby gaucho pants. I also made a couple of these little baby toys. There are a few little boys that will be showing up soon, so I wanted totake a crack at these with scrap fabric. I wanted to make more of a patchwork one like in the AnnaMaria book, but this just involved less cutting, so I went with this model. I still need to finish the top and bottom though. I wish I had time to do that, haha.

I am seeing the familiar signs of summer break all around. Swimming suits on sale, loud tropical shirts, and lots of heat; I can't believe its already time to endure another Thai summer (at least I'm not pregnant this time!)

Kewl

I was just looking up quotes to get some of those little personalized labels to attach to your projects- a little pricey! So I stumbled across a site that has instructions on how to make your own. This may be so old and everyone is already doing this but I thought, "hmm clever." http://www.grumperina.com/labelcontent.htm

YAY, I made something

This little felt scarf for Eliza for V-day (from marthastewart.com)

I also finally did some sewing on paper for a few cards. But didn't take pictures...

I have been working on a few other things. It feels sooo nice to be creative, it would be nice to have a little more time to do things, but I'll take what little time I have.

Pack n Play makeover

I finished this long ago, but haven't been able to get a good photo of the finished product. Oh well, here are some bad ones:






The reality of my life is that using a pack n play full time is a much better idea than just for when we travel, since we have to travel a lot. Its better to just use it exclusively and its one less adjustment for the baby. But I really could not look at this pack n play for another 2 years. I thought I would spruce it up a bit, a make it a little more homey. This is handed down from my brother and sister-in-law, and we our getting our miles out of it for sure. In reality when we are done with it, it will still be around Chiang Mai for another 10 years because everyone is always looking for a pack n play here.

Waiting around

So today is my due date and... nothing. I am just taking it easy. I can't even sew much because sitting at the table hurts my stomach. We have been baking chocolately things lately, and enjoying the last few showers of rainy season. We made caramel yesterday and dipped lots of apples into it-our tribute to fall in America. Here are a few more things I made that I thought I wouldn't get to make, but the baby hasn't made an appearance yet, so these were sewn in 10 minute increments since that's about how long I can sit and sew. Some burp cloths with my last bit of fancy designer fabric. I really stretched that yard and a half I bought!

A skirt I made for Eliza. She wasn't being a very cooperative model! The bottom layer is actually an amazing scarf I bought at the market, I thought it would be pretty in the skirt.

And a butterfly shirt. After I finished Eliza said it was ugly and that we should give it to her friend. She is so particular about her clothes these days.

More Experiments

A mosquito net for the carrier, my friend has one of these. I thought it would be good to go ahead and make one. The mosquitoes are really bad this year, so many people got Dengue Fever this year- in the city! It was quite easy to make, but hemming this material is definitely tricky!


I made this mobile. I wanted to make it like a cone, but it turned out looking like a Hershey's kiss-haha. I bought these little animals to make a mobile for Eliza before she was born, whoops. They are from McDonalds I bought them during Chinese New Year they had an animal for each year. That's why there is a chicken, sheep, cow and monkey, yes the monkey doesn't really fit, but it was way cuter than the rat.

Burp cloths and baby blankets

I think I have posted almost everything now.Some burp cloths for a friend. Easy and quick.

And some blankets for baby #2. This is one side...

... and the other. ( I made one like this for Bethany, but no ruffles this time.)
And another back...
and front (and wrinkled).
And one more back...
and front. Still twiddling my thumbs until the baby comes. She has to wait at least until Saturday. Our friends that will watch Eliza are out of town until then.

Trashy Baby

This was what I was most excited about making for baby #2. Micah had to help me balance it a bit. This mobile is made from drink lids, canned good lids, toilet paper rolls (the flowers), beads from around the house, some foam shapes I cut out, and some random wood from Micah's stash. I totally copied the idea from the plumpudding blog (http://myplumpudding.blogspot.com/2008/06/mobiles.html). She is amazing, and she works with felt a lot too. She keeps a lot of "trash," to use for crafts and she has made some great stuff. This craft is especially great because I try not to throw too much stuff away.


Not because I am some great environmentalist, but when you live here you are judged for every piece of trash you throw away. The trash cans in my neighborhood are like the town hall. EVERYONE goes through the trash. And no one throws anything away. My landlord has every empty can/bucket of paint she has ever bought sitting in her yard. There is a big yellow barrell in our yard that I hate but fear what would ever happen if I removed it from the yard. After Eliza's birthday party I actually bagged up all the trash from the presents and was going to take it to another dumpster in town because I knew I would get a battery of questions from people in my neighborhood, but Micah beat me too it and took the trash to our cans. And oh did the questions fly. I hate when we get pizza because everyone will eventually see the box and discuss how we had pizza for dinner. I also hate throwing out a rotting vegetable or two because everyone will discuss how rich we are to be able to buy vegetables and forget about them and simply toss them. And oh what about the time I was scolded for throwing out the apple peels when I was making my friend an apple pie. What a waste, she said. I am telling you, it messes with your mind.
And here is picture of me from last night. 38 weeks, there is no more room in there. I am ready to sink back into non-pregnant oblivion. I can hardly take the gasps from the tiny people I pass on the street when they see this huge woman coming at them. (Since I already tower over most of the women being 5'5" and all, the belly is just too much for them.)

Little things

I have made so much baby stuff buy I am slow to post it. Here are a few more things:
Bitty booties, that still need some threads trimmed.


This was Eliza's outfit, it had a picture of a bear on the shirt that always bothered me since its obviously a bee outfit, so I did a little work. I feel like this is turning into a baby craft blog and it isn't very expatish. I am nearly done with everything so maybe we can become more well rounded soon.

I have been as sick as a dog for almost 2 weeks now. A cold that won't stop which we picked up from Eliza's preschool and I got food poisoning last week. Now I have an ear infection so my doctor told me to go get some drugs this morning. I love that I don't need a written prescription here, she just told me the dosage and everything over the phone and I bellied up to the bar myself and bought it all. (I normally would go get checked out, but this is my gazillionth ear infection, so I can tell its the real thing.) Hopefully baby waits to come until my cold is cleared up.

Some Toys

Just finished this for Eliza. I am going to put it in her bag for when we are at the hospital and she stays with friends. I made a little envelope shaped bag for all the pieces too, but I didn't get a picture. (I also have a little felt board that is felt mounted on heavy cardboard. It is from another little playset we had already.)The model here is showing off this season's latest swimwear, and in Thailand you need a good suit all year long.

Evening and formal wear (one is a very loose copy of Cinderella's gown)

Different hairstyles, and a variety of colors, we are soo PC.


Shirts...
Acessories
Shorts, skirts and pants (the belt is detachable)

This is a little cow for the baby. I still need to stitch on the collar, I saw a cow like this at a toy shop here for $20! can you believe it? So I loved it so much I tried to make one myself. It definitely has a lot of, "handmade charm," but it came out well in the end.


And last week Eliza said her baby needed a tutu. This only took about 5 minutes. I have made tons of these. You don't have to sew it. I just used a piece of elastic the size of the baby's waist and cut long strips of tulle, folded them in half around the elastic and knotted it. Of course once I made it, she said the baby didn't want it, and I have been picking it up off the floor ever since. I guess that's a three-year old for you.

Baby Shower for Bethany

I just wanted to post some pictures because I got to make most of the stuff for the shower, it constitutes as a craft post I suppose. I got this idea from Martha Stewart. I made two, but I forgot to take a picture of both because I gave one to Bethany for the baby's room.
An easy little banner, caught in the air conditioner draft.
Bethany looks great! She is all baby, still so tiny.
I have been wanting to make a fruit bouquet for a long time. Fruit is sooo cheap here, it really needs to be done more often.
Some snacks.
I made this for the baby's room. They are naming her McKenzie.
A blanket I made.
And my contribution to the bitty bootie craze. I actually made these last year, but right before my Mom passed away, so yeah, I totally forgot about them, and found them a few weeks ago.
I hadn't decorated the yet, so I did the flowers last week.

Recipes to Share (some of these things are not good to eat)

I have been needing to post the recipes/directions for some of our projects so here are the ones I used:

Bath Crayons:
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/779453/how_to_make_the_best_homemade_bath.html?cat=24

Here is the recipe I used. I didn’t use ivory like they call for because I can’t get it here, so I just took two bars of white soap and grated it with my cheese grater. I also added TONS of food coloring. The crayons come out dark, but show up better in the tub that way. I also put them in the freezer for a few hours in their molds, and let them dry out for a few days on top of the fridge. I feel like they turned out pretty well. They aren't as smooth as a commercial crayon, but they served their purpose of dying the water and turning Eliza's belly blue.


Fingerpaint:
3 Tbs. sugar
1/2 C. sugar
Medium saucepan
2 cups cold water
Muffin tin or small cups
spoon
food coloring
soap flakes of liquid dishwashing detergent

Directions:
Mix sugar and cornstarch in a medium saucepan over low heat. Add cold water and continue stirring until the mixture is thick. Remove from heat. Divide the mixture into the four or five portions, spooning them into the sections of a muffin tin or small cups. Add a drop or two of food coloring and a pinch of soap flakes or a drop of liquid dishwashing detergent to each portion. Use a different color for each cup. Stri and let cool. Store covered in an airtight container.

I have made this a few times now. And I think the trick to make sure it doesn't get too thick is to remove the mixture from heat AS SOON as it starts to thicken. Because it still thickens even after you remove it from heat. My other advice it to keep it in the fridge. One reason is the paint starts to thicken after a few days, if you leave it at room temperature. And if you live here it will start to mold after a few days thanks to the tropical humidity. Once again it isn't QUITE the same consistency as store bought, but I think it makes a good enough substitute, and I also have no other option so...


Mini Brownie Bites
1/3 C. butter
2-1 oz. squares of unsweetened chocolate
3/4 C. sugar
2 eggs
1/2 tsp. vanilla
3/4 C. cup flour
1/2 C. mini M&M's

Directions
-Preheat oven to 325 degrees
-Ina saucepan, melt butter or margarine with chocolate over very low heat, stirring constantly witha wooden spoon. Remove from heat and let cool 5 minutes.
- In a bowl, whisk together sugar, eggs, vanilla, flour and 1/4 cup of the candies. Add chocolate mixture and whisk to blend.
-Using a spoon, fill muffin cups 3/4 full. Using 1/2 of the remaining candies, sprinkle on top of batter in each filled muffin cup.
- Bake for 12 minutes. Remove from oven and cool 5 minutes. Remove brownies from pan and cool thoroughly.
Makes 24 brownies.
(I actually used chocolate chips instead of M&Ms, except I topped one batch with M&Ms. But I wanted chocolate chips in them instead. Sometimes a candy shell gets in the way of what's really important [chocolate.])

SHIRTS!

Here are some more onesies I have been patching and covering up from staining. I have been buying a few things here and there too. I didn't really shop at all for Eliza. It was hard to even find a onesie then. Things have changed so much. I feel like everything I find is Carters. Which is always so nice and soft compared to other clothes. So I feel spoiled to see the big piles of baby clothes 3 for 100 baht ($3) and they are mostly nice and name brand. They are all the rejects from the big lots they make here, but most of them are still in good shape.

And this is Micah's Father's Day shirt. He always wanted a robot shirt since I made the robot ones for Christmas for my nephews.