The Crafty Cafe

eileensideways: haaa, those are all cute; the yodels look good enough to eat. thanks for sharing. i have all the ing...
Elisabeth: Okay, those button cookies are too adorable! I can't even imagine the time it took to make the knit...
Robin: Thanks for the kind words about my buttons!
Pam: I have a wall in my room that is off white and I did all the different words for love in tan, it is ...
Ry: Wow, what a wonderful story! And can somewhat relate since my fella and I both work in theater (thou...
Vickie: So sweet! Your layout is lovely too. I tried digi scrapping during the summer but I can't afford p...
Damaris: MS. Jess...YOU ARE BLESSED. Wishing you a ton of more years together full of happiness and health. ...
{leah}: Aww... too sweet, Jess! And I totally know what you mean. ;) I feel the same way.

Weekend Etsy Inspiration - Carnivals and Fairs

Don’t you just love a good old fashioned carnival? Oh my gosh the memories I have of anticipating the day we got loaded up in the car and headed to a dream land of rides, games, and FOOD! Oh my goodness the food. There is no where else on earth I was allowed to eat so much sugar and fried goodness in a single day.

Cotton Candy…

(applenoggins)

Ice Cream…

(kilsook)

(Hee Hee)

Candy Apples…

(SugarMohawk)

(YUM)

I have to admit I was never much of a roller coaster rider back then mind you. I preferred the round we go type rides for a bit, but then wanted to be sure we spent plenty of time at the games. Oh how I wanted that cheap little stuffed whats-it from China. And I didn’t care if we spent way more than it was worth trying to get it.

(Keepthesugar)

In fact I still don’t…. it’s the pride of winning the dang thing that makes it worth gold. Gold I tell you.

Yes Ok because what I really wanted more than anything was one of those goldfish! You know the game I’m talking about… where you toss the little ball into the little cup and then get to take home a forever friend. Thank goodness Mom always talked me out of that one. I’m sure he would have been belly side up by the time we got home and I’d have been crushed. Still, I’d have been ok with one of these too (maybe):

(Amy Gaines)

Growing up in Michigan meant fairs were serious business of course. I didn’t participate much… but many of my middle school friends were highly involved in 4H , raising their cattle and pigs and goats to be prize winners.

(bouldnart)

(snarkledark)

(bossyfeltworks)

I walked a goat once… on a leash down a gravel road.

There’s a whole chapter in my memoir right there.

One of my favorite rides was what we called the “Swings”… you could leave me on that all day long.

(serpentine)

But the highlight of it all was always the carousel. Getting to pick just the right horse… being old enough to ride alone….the hypnotic music… hoping upon hope that just this time the man operating the ride would let it go a few more turns to extend the joy…

(tweettheartwallart)

(Lovelyology)

(theblackapple)

Wonderful memories and good times.

Hope you have had a lovely weekend. Thanks for stopping by today dear friend.

Let Them Eat Crafts

What kind of weird Universe turning in on itself kind of thing is happening lately.

My two greatest loves (oops besides Alan) are merging into this big blob of creative, crafty, sugary, cuteness…. and I’m just way too obsessed by it all.

I’m talking Crafts and Pastry.

It all started with this thing….

It’s Cricut.

It’s a Cricut Cake.

It cuts fondant for cakes. Yep.

(that eloquence there would be my brain in overdrive trying to grasp the coolness of it all)

My teeth hurt just thinking about what I’d do with all those ’scraps’ of frosting when I was done.

And then I ran across these adorable little Punkins,

( Coraline Cookies from Bakerella)

Peanut Butter BUTTON cookies. SHUT UP! And then she drenches them in chocolate… and I turn into a pile of goo on the keyboard.

These have been a favorite for awhile… the craftsmanship is stellar,

(Knit Night Cupcakes from VeganYumYum)

I mean adorable or what? I don’t think I could eat them adorable…. ok probably just one (or two).

Of course it goes the other way too… lest you wish to save on calories,

(onenonly88)

The chocolate straws are perfect.

(KnitCrochetBBQ)

Mercy.

(TimeToPlay)

Oh mercy mercy me.

After all that you probably need a little of this though…

(pukashell)

Or actually I should probably go for one of these…

(Shoosha)

Now I want carrot cake….

S’cuse me please… if I don’t tear myself away from this post now there will be issues.

Have a good day friends.

Back with less tempting crafts soon… because we stopped eating actual paste in kindergarden.

But if Mod Podge comes out with cream cheese flavored sealer I am telling you it is OVER.

Weekend Etsy Inspiration - Birds of A Feather

Hello there friends. How is your weekend going? I’ve been glued to computer all day…. I’m just getting so inspired lately by all the wonderful people I’m meeting on Twitter. From their blogs to their Etsy shops, my goodness I am just in awe of all of them!

So thought I’d share some today.

I’m so drawn to birds lately. I’m sure half of it is that I’m loooonging for Spring. Every morning when I head out the door from work there’s been one little lone birdy singing his heart out in a tree high above our house. I’ve searched and searched but can never find the little guy… I can only hear his sweet song beckoning to the sunshine to melt away all this snow so he can come down and play.

I’ll imagine he looks like this one:

(MaiAutum)

A little lonely but determined to feel the green grass between his toes (and finally yank a worm or two out of the ground).

This one below is a little annoyed that “Happy Go Lucky” up there won’t shut up…. but he’s probably also suffering from a case of the Winter blues.

(AmberAlexander)

These would all be lovely additions to my craft stash and I’m very tempted!

(whitefluffdesigns)

(Scraps Of Time)

(Buttons By Robin)

These all make me want to take them home and love them forever:

(BubbleTime)

(Buttercupbloom)

(Fliepsebieps)

And I’m just so in love with these:

(Ninjagrl)

(PS Its In the Details)

(Fix Design)

So what’s inspiring you this weekend? Any big crafty plans? Let me know so I can stop by your blog and spread some love. I’m working on my next review for Craft Critique and hope to get a little creative time in on some other projects too.

Thanks for stopping by today, and see you soon.

Lucky in Love

I’m going to get mushy for a bit.

Because it was Valentine’s Day and I’m still feeling a little lovey dovey.

It’s very likely that’s from the leftover chocolate hanging around this house which Alan normally keeps well stocked but we have a plethora of thanks to the holiday.

Yep, I’m a very lucky girl.

I’m not just talking about he treats me well, he gives me space when I need it, blad-de blah-de blah.

When Alan and I fell in love it was during a show in college called Cyrano De Bergerac. He played Cyrano and I played something like “Girl #2″. But he noticed me. And boy did I ever notice him. Seriously, though, how can a gal not fall for a romantic swashbuckler yielding a sword every night.

Don’t go to the wrong place with that one….see, swords:

It wasn’t that was it and we were together ever since of course. I personally don’t think any couple can be together without one major fight and break up during the course of knowing each other. You have to really understand what it would be like without the other, accept them for their faults, and then come together again stronger and for the better.

But through it all and a long distance relationship for almost 2 years, I always stayed in love with my Cyrano.

See… mush.

Good grief how on Earth did I find someone who:

Is a fellow creative soul that understands what it means to need that time to create.

That laughs and gets exactly what I mean when I pull out a random Star Trek quote.

That not only gets along with but loves my Mom – seriously they have one of the best in-law relationships ever. They read the same books that I have absolutely no interest in at all.

That can be a guy’s guy but also has a vast knowledge of musical theatre thanks to his acting background. I mean c’mon… that’s a crazy find. And he can SING by the way.

Gosh I could go on and on.

But as much as I can question it, I guess really, I’m just plain lucky in love.

Digital Layout made with Leah’s Victorian Valentine Mini Kit.

And I’m going to take that over hitting the lottery any day.

Gush gush mush.

Hope you’re having a wonderful weekend. I’m in the mood to create – hope to share some fun things this week.

XOX

Jess

Puffy Felt Hearts 1-2-3 (and what to do with them)

Hello there! How was your weekend? I mostly goofed around while Alan immersed himself in Assassins Creed 2 on Playstation 3.

It’s a good mix most Sundays… he plays, and I play. We go together well like that.

I’m getting in the Valentine’s mood and pulled out some felt to see what came of it. I ended up making several of these cute little puffy hearts. They are so super easy, you can whip some out well in time for the big love fest day too.

All you need:

Felt in your favorite colors – be it traditional Valentine’s or otherwise.
Embroidery thread and needle.
Stuff to make them puff… filler, scrap felt, dryer lint… you get the idea.
Scissors

Step 1: Start by cutting out several in whatever shapes and sizes you see fit.

The only requirement is that you need the fronts and backs to be pretty much the same size for sewing together. But they really don’t need to be perfect. A quick trick for doing so, is to fold your piece of felt into 4’s, and then making sure you cut along the folds, cut out half a heart shape. Then when you unfold what you have cut out you have two pretty much the same size hearts to sew together.

Step 2: Sew the majority of the front and back of each piece together using embroidery thread. Do so by simply sewing around the edges. Start your first stitch on the inside of the front piece so you can hide the knot inside the heart.

Step 3: Before you completely sew the whole piece together… leave a little room to stuff each heart.

Franken-heart. heh heh heh.

Once your heart is stuffed, finish up your stitching, and your done! Repeat, repeat, repeat.

Now, what to do with all these little cuties?

I made a magnet with mine:

To do so, hot glue to a piece of cardboard in whatever configuration you like, and then attach a magnet (hot glue works fine for that too) to the back of that piece of cardboard. Voila… your fridge is feelin’ the love.

Other ideas:

Use as a scrapbook page embellishment (you may want to fill a little less so they aren’t as bulky).
Fill with potpourri and use as a sachet.
Attach a ribbon to the top and use as an ornament for a Valentine tree.
Hot glue to a circle of corrugated cardboard and make a wreath.
Hand out a few to each family member and place an empty clear jar in a central location in your house for all to see. Each time someone tells another a reason they love them they get to drop a heart into the jar. Make it a goal that the jar is full of ‘love’ by Valentine’s Day in which case everyone gets a special treat.
Keep a few to pass out to those that need a little love, just because. I can guarantee they’ll keep it in their pocket all day and smile.
Fill with Cat Nip and become your feline friend’s favorite person EVER. (I may have to do that next).

You can of course use this basic crafty ‘recipe’ for so many other little puffy felt items too. Think flowers, butterflies, stars, you name it! Just cut out two basic shapes and get to stitchin’ and stuffin’.

Thanks for stopping by today…hoping for more lovey projects to come soon!

Or at least chocolate… by God there will be chocolate.