Trendy Treehouse

2012-02-14T20:00:00.000-08:00

Please grab the Create and Share Button.

And share it in your post or on your blog. Thanks!

Come by every Wednesday to share your "Creative Side" You can link up anything crafty, recipes, room decor, party ideas, gift ideas, kid crafts, science projects, game ideas, ect. You get the idea.

| Linky Party Rules |

Follow Trendy Treehouse via Google Friend Connect
Link up only to the post. Not your home page.
Please Do Not link up shops or giveaways.
Share the Create and Share Button somewhere on your blog or in your post. OR..NEW...Create a Backlink to Trendy Treehouse.
Visit at least 3 other link ups and leave meaningful comments.
Come back next week to see if your link has been featured.

If you see your link below in our features, grab a featured button HERE
| Here are few of my favorites from last week |Click on photos below to read more

T-Shirt Scarf - Part 4

2012-02-14T08:00:00.000-08:00

I'm back with another t-shirt scarf today!

For those of you who haven't been here, I have been sharing a different tutorial for a t-shirt scarf every week. Visit Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 to see what I have already shared.

....The Loopy Scarf....

Today's scarf is another no sew scarf. For this one I used two different shirts.

Next cut strips out of both t-shirts.

Cut from armpit to armpit. Cut the hem off the bottom of the shirt. Then cut strips. Cut all the way off so you have individual strips. Stretch each piece to curl the fabric.

Once you have all the stretched strips, take two, one of each color and twist and fold them into circles. You can make large circles or small circles. For this one I made small circles. The small circles make a perfect length for a child's scarf. If you make your circles larger, they will be longer for an adult.

Cut some small strips from the top of your shirts to tie your circles together. I cute them about 4 inches long. Stretch those out too then tie the circles together making the scarf. You can cut the excess fabric from the ties or leave them. I left mine.

This turned out to be a pretty cute scarf. I like the tow colors mixed together!

And my daughter looks pretty darn cute wearing it! Wear it like a normal scarf, hanging straight down or you can slip one end through antoher circle to hold it in place.

And since today is Valentine's Day, we had fun with this picture for you.

{Happy Valentines Day Everyone}

It makes a pretty darn cute heart too!

I do have more t-shirt scarf ideas, so check back again next week.

Red Barn Scrapbook Review & Giveaway

2012-02-12T08:00:00.000-08:00

Red Barn Scrapbook offers unique, handmade camera straps. What started as a simple desire to have a stylish camera strap for myself, has turned into sharing my creations with others. I currently make straps for DSLR and SLR cameras, as well as wrist straps for point-and-shootcameras. These are beautiful, fun, and unique straps. If you are like me, always with camera in tow, you will delight in having a pretty camera strap. Please visit my etsy store to see the current collection of camera straps, and to make a purchase. Kim

Info above taken from Kim's site Red Barn Scrapbook

I was asked by Kim if I would like to review one of her camera straps. When I saw all the cute straps she had to offer, I was very excited to say YES! All I had to do was decide on a favorite. LOL Which was very hard because there are so many cute ones to choose from! I love owls and when I saw the one I chose, pictured below, my search was over.

Isn't it cute?!? I love the ruffles and the owl ribbon. This camera strap is perfectly made and very comfortable to wear. I put it on my DSLR camera as soon as I got it. It was the perfect week to get it. We had 2 field trips planned at school and 2 sporting events. I received many compliments from teachers, friends and strangers. We even took the kids to see the Dr. Seuss Art Show at a local museum. I loved the overall look of my strap and will most likely be ordering another for my other camera.

Red Barn Scrapbook offers many camera straps and camera wrist straps too! The best camera accessories available! Just look at these cute ones now available on Kim's Etsy Shop...click on the photo to see more info on those straps.

...The Ooh La La Camera Strap...

...The Sketchy Camera Wrist Strap...

...The Black and Red Ruffle Camera Strap...

If you like what you see and want to learn more, you can visit Kim's blog too. As well as her business site.

Interested in buying a strap for yourself?
Kim is generously offering a discount through March 15, 2012.
Just enter Code: TRENDYTREEHOUSE
at checkout for a 10% discount
Thank you Kim for offering this discount!

Kim at Red Barn Scrapbook is also offering a giveaway here at Trendy Treehouse
1 lucky reader will get to choose one camera strap of your choice.

...How to enter...

Mandatory 1st Entry -Visit Red Barn Scrapbook & Comment below sharing with us what your favorite camera strap is.

Must enter Mandatory entry or all others will be deleted. Thanks!

Additional Entries... Eligible after completing mandatory entry above.

Please leave a new comment for each entry that you have done. Thank you!

Like Red Barn Scrapbook on Facebook Leave a link in the comment
Add Red Barn Scrapbook to your Link List - http://www.etsy.com/shop/redbarnscrapbook
Comment on Red Barn Scrapbooks Facebook page about this giveaway including@TrendyTreehouse

Follow Trendy Treehouse via Google Friend Connect
Follow Trendy Treehouse via Link Followers
Follow Trendy Treehouse on Facebook
1 entry daily for each - Blog, Tweet & Post about this giveaway including@trendytreehouse & @redbarnscrapbook

You will have until March 4th @ 9:00 p.m. Pacific Standard time to enter this giveaway. The winner will be chosen by random.org and announced here. If the winner has provided an email address I will contact you. If you don't provide your email, you will want to check back here and see if you are the winner. The winner will have 48 hours to contact me or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is open to those living in US, CANADA & AUSTRALIA. You must be 18 years or older to enter. Thanks for entering at Trendy Treehouse. Good Luck and Have Fun!!

The featured product {s} in this post were provided to me free of charge by the manufacturer or pr company representing the company. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and not influenced in any way by anyone. By entering this giveaway you agree to Trendy Treehouse Disclaimer/Terms of use .

Art Case Birthday Gift

2012-02-11T08:00:00.000-08:00

Well hello there old friends! It's been a while hey? Like over a month! Yikes! I never intended to be gone so long but life has just been going on and on and I've been enjoying the ride. We had a great and very relaxing Christmas and genuinely did not want to return home. January flew by in a flash and here it is the second weekend in February already.

Well, since Valentine's Day is next week I probably should be showing you the really cool craft that my daughter made for her little classmates but it really didn't turn out that well. We punched hearts into paint sample strips and then she wrote their name on the front and on a piece of construction paper of the same size she wrote her name for the back. The problem came when I laminated the bookmarks...the lamination didn't really stick and they just look a little chintzy. But I don't think the 4 and 5 year olds will be too concerned...plus, I added in a pencil and a box of conversation hearts just to make sure Naomi wasn't pegged as "the girl who gave lame valentines" (like they do that in 4K anyway). I'm so self conscious even as a mother that I want to make sure my kid gives cool valentines. Yikes. Maybe I need some therapy!

Well, onto the real post! My daughter got invited to a birthday party on Super Bowl Sunday at the local bounce house place. This was a party for a little girl in her class that I'd never met. She was so excited and I was feeling well, strapped for cash, self-conscious (was I going to have to stay at the party and mingle with people I didn't even know?), and just plain intimidated. I decided that her little friend would get a handmade gift and I would quit making excuses. Because dangit, it was gonna be cute and functional.

I was browsing my saved tutorials on my hard drive when I came across this art case. I knew I didn't have the quilted fabric that it called for so I improvised and just used regular cotton with a little fusible interfacing to make it a little more sturdy. Other than that, the only thing I did differently was sew it right sides together and turn it out. I had a hard time with attaching the handles and sewing the sides shut because my machine only likes to stitch through two layers of fabric at a time but four needles later the job was finished. And I think it came out pretty good and I think Naomi's little friend was happy with the gift, well, it didn't compare to the almost lifesize Rapunzel doll, but what does! (seriously, who gives that to a five year old that is not their own child?) Anyway, I think this will be a good go-to gift that I can easily (minus four needles) make that is a pretty neat and functional gift. Naomi kept telling her friend "You can even take it to church with you" -my little evangelist!

The party was great and yes I did mingle with some of the other mothers and actually had a good time. Little ol introvert, self-conscious me had a good time. yup!

And if you haven't checked out Carrie at This Mama Makes Stuff you REALLY need to. She has TONS of great tutorials and refashions and just great sewing advice and tips! go check her blog out...and tell her I sent you!

Pinterest Challenge - DIY Vintage Valentines

2012-02-10T06:00:00.000-08:00

It's time for another Pinterest Challenge Party?
Don't forget to grab a button HERE or below! Share the fun too! It would be great to see all those Pinterest inspired projects recreated. Every Friday...stop by for the "Pinterest Party Challenge"
You can link up posts related to a Pinterest inspired tutorial, recipes, projects, ect. Basically something you love, found on Pinterest that you want to make.

NEW...I opened an ongoing party for you to join too. I made a board on Pinterest strictly for my Top To Do Projects. It's called My Pinterest Bucket List. I even included an image for you to download and use. Read more about it HERE or find it in my Top Bar below the header on the right. There only one rule. ;-) Please leave a comment below the party so I know there is a new bucket list to check out!

| Linky Party Rules |

Follow Trendy Treehouse via Google Friend Connect
Link up only posts related to this challenge. Not your home page
VERY IMPORTANT...Include a link to the original PIN. (where you got your inspiration) They deserve credit for their hard work too!
Please DO NOT link up none Pinterest related posts, shops or giveaways.
Share the i took the {PINTEREST} challenge button somewhere on your blog or in your post.
Visit at least 3 other link ups and leave meaningful comments.
Come back next week to see if your link has been featured and to share another fun Pin Inspired Project

Check out my Tutorial Below the Linky Party

I found a cool {PIN}spiration on printing on paper bags. It gave me an idea for some valentines. Check out how I made mine below the link party.

Can't wait to see your links. Have fun!
All unrelated links will be deleted. Thanks for following the rules.
PLEASE READ...I am getting a few more link ups that don't apply and don't always have time to get them off right away. Please remember to only link up posts that relate to this part. You can link up all others to our Create and Share party on Wednesdays. Thanks!

DIY Vintage Valentines

Remember I got my {PIN}spiration HERE.I love the idea of printing on paper bags and am going to remember that for future projects and gifts. But it did give me a great idea for making valentines this year.
...What you will need...Brown Paper Bags (Large from the grocery store)

Scrapbook PaperComputer and PrinterVintage Valentine ImagesGlueScissorsDecorative Scissors
First, cut your paper bag to fit your printer. I cut mine to 8x10. You can always go larger by taking your images to a printing shop.Below is the image I made up in PS. Feel free to save it and use for personal use only. Thank you.

Once you have it saved, print it out on your paper bag. Cut each image out with decorative scissors.

Then just glue your cut images onto some cute scrapbook paper. Fill in your message on the back and they are ready to give.

These will be cute to hand out and are so quick to make!

Create and Share | Features too!

2012-02-07T20:00:00.000-08:00

Please grab the Create and Share Button.

And share it in your post or on your blog. Thanks!

Follow Trendy Treehouse via Google Friend Connect
Link up only to the post. Not your home page.
Please Do Not link up shops or giveaways.
Share the Create and Share Button somewhere on your blog or in your post. OR..NEW...Create a Backlink to Trendy Treehouse.
Visit at least 3 other link ups and leave meaningful comments.
Come back next week to see if your link has been featured.

If you see your link below in our features, grab a featured button HERE
| Here are few of my favorites from last week |Click on photos below to read more

T-Shirt Scarf - Part 3

2012-02-07T08:00:00.000-08:00

Hi Everyone! Are you ready for another t-shirt scarf? For those of you who haven't been here, I have been sharing a different tutorial for a t-shirt scarf every week. Visit Part 1 and Part 2 to see what I have already shared.

....Today's Scarf....

Today's scarf is very easy to make. I don't have a lot of pictures today. You won't need them.

Just grab an old t-shirt. Use a salad plate and a piece of cardstock to make a template. Cut as many circles as you can from your shirt. I was able to get 12 circles from an xlarge shirt. Next, cut each circle in a spiral pattern.

Stretch all the pieces out. When you stretch out the spiral it looks wavy.

Now just take a scrap piece of fabric and tie all the pieces together. You can also just tie a knot instead of the scrap fabric, but I didn't like the thickness of the knot on my neck. Using a scrap piece made it more comfortable.

I got a request for me to model my scarf. LOL I don't usually model them myself. My daughter volunteered to wear this scarf this week. She looks cute. In fact, my girls have been wearing all of them to school. I haven't even been able to wear one yet. They have even got teacher gift requests. LOL That will make things easy. Anyway, here is my model for this cute scarf.

I like this scarf because it is light. You can wear it anytime of the year as a cute accessory. I haven't tried it yet, but it would be cute to take a few pieces and braid them too.

Also, while making these beautiful scarfs, I was able to make one for my daughter's friends birthday. I used the no sew method. I had to share it today because I love how it turned out. I used one of my dad's shirts. My mom had bought my dad and my hubby these bright tie dye shirts as a gag gift. Who knew that they would make great t-shirt scarfs.

My mom helped me make this one and you can check out her tutorial HERE. Oh and I got my mom to model it. LOL I promised close ups only.

Aren't the colors gorgeous!?!

I am definitely making more of these!

My mom has a really great blog (Pine Creek Style) that you would love. Make sure you check out her past posts and let her know I sent ya. If you love what you see, follow too! When she reaches 100 followers, she is giving away a beautiful set of jewelry made by her!

Visit the link here to read about the giveaway.

You could win this jewelry below.

Have a great day everyone. Be back here tonight to link up to the Create and Share Party!

Pinterest Challenge - DIY Glitter Keys

2012-02-03T06:00:00.001-08:00

It's time for another Pinterest Challenge Party?
Don't forget to grab a button HERE or below! Share the fun too! It would be great to see all those Pinterest inspired projects recreated.
Every Friday...stop by for the "Pinterest Party Challenge"
You can link up posts related to a Pinterest inspired tutorial, recipes, projects, ect. Basically something you love, found on Pinterest that you want to make.

NEW...I opened an ongoing party for you to join too. I made a board on Pinterest strictly for my Top To Do Projects. It's called My Pinterest Bucket List. I even included an image for you to download and use. Read more about it HERE or find it in my Top Bar below the header on the right. There only one rule. ;-) Please leave a comment below the party so I know there is a new bucket list to check out!

| Linky Party Rules |

Follow Trendy Treehouse via Google Friend Connect
Link up only posts related to this challenge. Not your home page
VERY IMPORTANT...Include a link to the original PIN. (where you got your inspiration) They deserve credit for their hard work too!
Please DO NOT link up none Pinterest related posts, shops or giveaways.
Share the i took the {PINTEREST} challenge button somewhere on your blog or in your post.
Visit at least 3 other link ups and leave meaningful comments.
Come back next week to see if your link has been featured and to share another fun Pin Inspired Project

Check out my Tutorial Below the Linky Party

This week I made Glitter Keys. They turned out awesome.

I found my inspiration HERE. Thank you C Mae for the fantastic idea!

Can't wait to see your links. Have fun!
All unrelated links will be deleted. Thanks for following the rules.

DIY Glitter Keys

Remember I got my inspiration HERE. From C Mae.I loved this idea the minute I saw it. I went to Michaels and bought my supplies. All I really needed was different colored glitter. I found a great variety pack there for a very low price. Perfect!...Here are my supplies...glueglitter (multiple colors)keysnail polish or mod podge

I added the glue to one side of the key and sprinkled on some glitter. Set aside to dry. Then you can repeat on the back side of the key.

Once both sides are completely dry, use some nail polish or mod podge to seal on the glitter. Both sides of course. Let dry and enjoy the lovliness. My key ring is so BLING now! LOL Very cute!

I think they are awesome! Remember to link up your Pinterest Challenges above!

Motivation Jars - A Tutorial

2012-02-02T08:00:00.005-08:00

I found another great {pin}spiration project to do.

Last week I saw some Motivation Jars on Pinterest. One said "Pounds Lost" and the other was "Pounds to go". The jars had marbles that you transfer as you lose weight. COOL! What a fun way to get motivated to lose weight. I have been working on losing weight myself and knew this was something I wanted to do. I found the original idea HERE.

I made mine with shorter, square shaped jars and used glass beads.

...Here are my supplies...

2 glass jars

small multi-colored glass beads

large multi-colored glass beads

letter stickers

mod podge

small paintbrush

motivational print out (image available below)

scissors

For my jars, I wanted to have something extra. So I made up some motivations in PS5 for my glass beads. I thought it would be cool to have a motivational word or picture on the beads. I even made the larger beads to use as milestones.

I don't need to lose 100 lbs. but I made this for others to use. I know a few people who have lost 100 lbs or more and they would have liked to use these. So here ya go, for anyone who may like to use these.

Save the image below for your personal use only. Thanks.

Once you have it printed out, just cut out each one to use on your beads. I left the circles on the image so you would have a template to go by. I cut them all inside the circle. Removing the black circle completely. Next I added some mod podge to the bottom of the bead, added my image and covered again with mod podge to seal it.

I did use all the images on this ONE page, but no more. There are 56 images on this page. If you want you can print out more of the smaller images and make more, or like I did, just add plain beads in to mix it up.

These are how mine turned out. I LOVE how they look!

Now when you move over your beads, you may get a cute image or a motivation. ;D All the larger ones, for the milestones, turned out great. I love that I can pull out that 5, 10, 20 lbs markers to show my progress. It feels great every pound you lose, but 5, 10 lbs and more seem to be so rewarding. Don't you think?

Why the LBS?

Did you ever wonder why the abbreviation for pounds was LBS? I did, so I looked it up. LOL

The abbreviation LBS is based on the word "LIBRA" A Libra was the basic unit of weight used by Ancient Romans. Similar to todays English Pound. The word in Latin means "BALANCE" or "THE SCALES".

Ok, back to the project. haha....next I added the stickers to the jars. I found this really cool black, silver letters. But once I got them on there, they didn't look right at all. I could barely read them with the beads in the jar. Here is what they looked like before I fixed them.

The beads look cool in there, don't they? Toot! Toot!

I know, I'm tooting my own horn there. SORRY! ;D

So to fix my problem, I grabbed a black sharpie and started to color over the silver. It was not fun, but luckily the silver part came off. I took off all the silver off each letter. :( I really liked my letters.

The letters were still a little dim so I went ahead and touched them up with my sharpie. Much Better. Still not great. But we learn as we go right? And I am sure you will learn from me by not buying the wrong letters. HAHA!

Here is my final pic. I am happy with how they turned out and look forward to using them. YEAH!

One other thing I changed was my "POUNDS TO GO" jar actually says "POUNDS TO LOSE". I just liked that better.

The letters look crooked in this pic. They really are straight. :( sorry for the bad pic. Plus my counter doesn't help much. Kinda dark. Oops.

What do you think? Will you make some of these jars? If you need them, that is! LOL

Don't forget to come back tomorrow to link up some {pin}spiration of your own in our Pinterest Challenge Party.

Create and Share | Features too!

2012-01-31T20:00:00.000-08:00

Please grab the Create and Share Button.

And share it in your post or on your blog. Thanks!

Follow Trendy Treehouse via Google Friend Connect
Link up only to the post. Not your home page.
Please Do Not link up shops or giveaways.
Share the Create and Share Button somewhere on your blog or in your post. OR..NEW...Create a Backlink to Trendy Treehouse.
Visit at least 3 other link ups and leave meaningful comments.
Come back next week to see if your link has been featured.

If you see your link below in our features, grab a featured button HERE
| Here are few of my favorites from last week |Click on photos below to read more

T-Shirt Scarf - Part 2

2012-01-31T08:00:00.000-08:00

I'm back with another T-Shirt Scarf.

Remember last week I promised a no-sew scarf. Well, I'm sharing it today! Stop by HERE to see last weeks!

Let's get right into it cuz I'm a little late posting. ;-)

Start off with a cute T-shirt. This is a smaller one of mine that I am making for my daughters. They have been wearing the others I made and asked for more colors. Too cute. But I usually use either a mens shirt or xxl for an adult scarf. You can pick them up at a thrift store to save on cost. Or if you're like me, save all your t-shirst and grab some that family and friends are throwing out!

I used another polka dot shirt. ;-D

Trim off the bottom and cut from arm pit to arm pit. Set aside the top of the shirt for later.

Fun part! Start cutting strips. Mine are just under 1" each. DO NOT cut completely off. Stop just short of the other side. Remember this is a NO SEW! Continue all the way across.

Close up of where you are NOT cutting.

Now you get to stretch out each strip to get that cute curled effect.

Now carefully separate the loops where you did not cute the shirt.

Before you gather that up, grab the top of the shirt and cut out a rectangle shape. About 2x6 in size. Then trim each end into a point. This is what you are going to use to hold together the gathered end of the scarf.

Now gather up the end that you didn't cut.

Wrap the cut strip from the top of the shirt around the gathered end a couple of time and tie in a knot.

To get rid of the stringy ends, just tuck them under. And you have a nice finished NO SEW t-shirt scarf.

This is a really quick scarf. I had this one made in a matter of minutes. So if you need a last minute gift for someone, this would be perfect!

Again, I added a flower. But it is just a clip on one. So you can use this scarf with or without one. Don't forget to double it up for another cute look!

I have more! Come back again next week for Part 3. I will be sharing another NO SEW scarf but with a completely different look! I can't wait to share this one!

My Pinterest Bucket List

2012-01-30T08:00:00.000-08:00

I thought it would be fun to make a "Pinterest Bucket List"

Since I will be hosting a Pinterest Challenge Party every Friday, I wanted to make a list of what is to come. I have many things pinned, just not in any particular order of things I want to make or do. So today I decided to open a new board on my Pinterest page titled "My Pinterest Bucket List"

I will be adding some of my top "to do" PINS on this board. There aren't many on there yet. Trying to sift through some of my thousands of pins. HAHA Yep I said thousands. How many do you have? Once they are made, I will share them here at Trendy Treehouse. Not always on Fridays. I have too many I want to make. ;) So I will be sharing them on random days. Every one I do will have a tutorial on how to make them though. So you can see what I did.

Anyway, go check out my board. I will also be adding this link to my sidebar so you can check out my ever changing list!

I CHALLENGE you to make a Pinterest Bucket List!

If you'd like, please grab the image below to use for your list.

Just copy the image, add it to your sidebar and link it up to your Pinterest Bucket List.

DON'T FORGET....to share your list with me too. I'd love to see what you have planned to make.

Check out the Pinterest Bucket List Page where you can link up your LIST! You can also find it in my top link bar.

Share this post link with others too, so they can make their own Pinterest Bucket List too!

Do you have anything that you want me to make and share? Something you found on Pinterest that you just can't figure out! Let me know and I'll see what I can do to put up a tutorial for you.

Pinterest Challenge - DIY Ruler Growth Chart

2012-01-27T06:00:00.000-08:00

Remember last week I mentioned a Pinterest Challenge Party? Well I thought I would launch it today! I thought it would be fun to make some of my favorite {PINS}. I also thought that maybe you might want to link up your {PIN} projects.
Don't forget to grab a button HERE or below! Share the fun too! It would be great to see all those Pinterest inspired projects recreated. Every Friday...stop by for the "Pinterest Party Challenge"
You can link up posts related to a Pinterest inspired tutorial or project.

| Linky Party Rules |

Follow Trendy Treehouse via Google Friend Connect
Link up only posts related to this challenge. Not your home page
VERY IMPORTANT...Include a link to the original PIN. (where you got your inspiration) They deserve credit for their hard work too!
Please DO NOT link up none Pinterest related posts, shops or giveaways.
Share the i took the {PINTEREST} challenge button somewhere on your blog or in your post.
Visit at least 3 other link ups and leave meaningful comments.
Come back next week to see if your link has been featured and to share another fun Pin Inspired Project

Check out my Tutorial Below the Linky Party

This week I made the Ruler Growth Chart.

I found my inspiration HERE.

Can't wait to see your links. Have fun!

All unrelated links will be deleted. Thanks for following the rules.

DIY Ruler Growth Chart

Remember I got my inspiration HERE.First I went to my local home improvement store to pick up some cedar fence boards. I chose the 6 foot boards. They had dog ears on them but they were happy to cut them off for me at the store. I took them home and planned on sanding them to make them smoother. Luckily hubby is a handy man. He had a planer and offered to run them through there first. They came out so good I didn't have to sand then at all.. I suggest you asking the home improvement store to plane them for you. If they can. If not, sanding is the way to go. I recommend a power sander. It will save your arms the pain. LOLI stained mine all different colors. Staining cedar is a little tricky. I picked a few colors and my favorite was the CHERRY stain. It is the one I have pictured in most of my pic. Below is a pic of all three colors.

Next I measured and marked my board. I used my fabric measuring tape by taping it to the board so it would stay in place. I started at the top of the board at 77" We have tall people in our family and I wanted it to be at least 6 foot 5 inches tall. I took 6 x 12 + 5 to get my 6'5 measurements. By doing this you will be able to hang it on the wall. Just make sure you measure the wall too so you get the correct height.

Measure and mark each foot. Then each half foot. I added more lines in there too keeping them equally apart.

I printed out some numbers and different length lines. I cut them out to use as a type of stencil. I just taped the numbers directly on the board. The lines were easy, I was able to just hold them while I traced them. To trace, I used a black sharpie.

This is how the board looks after I traced them all out. You could leave it like this. (just make sure you erase those pencil markings) It looks cool this way too. But I chose to paint mine.

I used black acrylic paint to fill in my traced numbers and lines. It didn't take long. Just under an hour to complete. Minus stopping to make the kids some cinnamon rolls. LOL They were yummy looking. I didn't eat one. :( Go WILLPOWER! yeah me! Did you see my son in the picture? ;) haha!

Finally done! Now just add a clear coat finish to protect the wood and paint. Then hang, measure and enjoy. All your family and friends will want one too! Here is the final look. This one pictured is a gift. I didn't hang it on the wall for my final pic. Sorry. ;0) But didn't it turn out great! I think so.

Have you made one of these yet? How did you make yours? Leave a link in the comments so I can check it out. Or link it up in the party above.

Scream Pillow - A Tutorial

2012-01-26T08:00:00.000-08:00

I was talking with a friend about our daughters getting older. The subject of emotions came up and how they can get overly emotional at times. My friend suggested that I make a "Scream Pillow". She had made one for her daughter when she was becoming a lil lady. ;-) She would tell her daughter to go scream it out in her pillow. My daughter isn't quite ready to scream mad into her pillow just yet, she is just a crier. :-( She gets sad quickly when she doesn't like what she hears or realizes she might be in trouble for doing something. LOL Hormones! uuuggghh. Being a girl growing up can be so frustrating. So I finished and wanted to share it with you.

First I wanted to share that I used the printer method for my print.

You want to pick up some Bubble Jet Set 2000 and treat your fabric before you print on it. Follow the directions on the bottle...but just so you know...You will soak your fabric in the Bubble Jet Set 2000. Set aside and let it dry. Next get out your freezer paper and iron your dried fabric on. Cut to fit your printer. TIP...the freezer paper helps keep the fabric in place while printing. Otherwise it would not work at all!

Next I designed my print in photoshop and simply printed it out on my freezer paper fabric! ;-)

Now it's time to make it into a pillow. ;-)

You will need...

Your 8x10 Print

2 - Strips of fabric for the top and bottom (3x16 each)

2 - Strips for the side (3x8 each)

For the back - 12 1/4 x 15 1/2

These are the sizes I used for mine, you can of course make a smaller one. And before you get started, remember to remove the freezer paper. You only needed that to help move the fabric through the printer.

Sew on the sides first and iron flat.

Next sew on the top and bottom strips. Again, iron flat.

Place this on the back fabric. Right sides in.

Pin together. Leave an opening at the bottom for stuffing. Cut a slit on either side of your opening.

Sew all around leaving the opening. Turn right side out and iron flat.

All that's left to do is stuff it and stitch together the bottom. I love how it turned out. My daughter came home and saw it and ran over for a big kiss and a thank you! ;-) Yeah! She loved it! And I think it looks pretty darn cute on her bed too!

BTW...that was my dolly when I was a girl. She sat on my bed for many years. Now she gets passed around different parts of the house. I love her!

Tip..when washing. Wash on the hand wash or delicate cycle. Air dry!

If you are interested in making one of these, below is the print I used. Feel free to save it for personal use only. Thanks!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hope you enjoyed this tutorial. Tell me what you think below!

I love all your comments.

Create and Share | Features too!

2012-01-24T20:00:00.001-08:00

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T-Shirt Scarf - Part 1

2012-01-24T08:00:00.000-08:00

Have you seen all those adorable t-shirt scarves out there? I have seen them all over and until I saw one in person, I never really thought of making one. I thought they were cute, but it just wasn't top of my list.

Well, my moms neighbor made the cutest one. It was teal colors with cream colored flowers pinned on for extra cuteness! I went home that night and grabbed some t-shirts.

(sorry for the wrinkles, they were in a bin of saved shirts. No sense in ironing when I'm cutting them up.)

In this post I will share how I made my first one. I have a couple more ways to make some that turned out amazing too. So I will be posting them too. Just not today. So check back soon for the others. I will leave links to all the scarves in each post so you can easily find them all.

Anyway....on to the first scarf. With this one, I did use my sewing machine. I know that there is a way to make one with out it and I did. So don't worry, it's coming. If you don't have a sewing machine, you can alway hand stitch this version.

First start my cutting the shirt from armpit to armpit. Then cut strips on the bottom half. I cut mine just under 1" but you can just judge it as you go. You don't have to measure really.

Set aside the top half of the shirt for now. Now take each strip and stretch it out. Not too tight, just enough to make the t-shirt curl a bit.

So I don't forget to tell you....sometimes shirts have tags in the seams. Make sure you cut that out. you don't want it sticking out when you wear your scarf. LOL That would just be silly.

Next, gather one end of the strips (seam together). Take them over to your sewing machine and give it a quick stitch. I liked doing this because it is not going to shift. Those strips are in place.

Remember the top of the shirt? Grab it and turn it over. Cut a rectangle piece to sew and help cover up where you just sewed the scarf together. I cut my piece larger because I'm just going to trim it. So keep that in mind.

Sew your rectangle inside out!

Turn it right side out and place it around the scarf and sew in place.

Trim off the excess.

Turn this right side out and hide that seam. Now you are done! A clean finish for your scarf.

Add a cute pin or flower to finish it off. You can wear it long or double it up too!

I'll be back again next week with another scarf. Don't forget to come see!

Come by this Friday for a fun party. I am hosting a

{Pinterest} Challenge Party

All those wonderful pins that we keep tucked away are coming out. I have so many loves on Pinterest so I am challenging myself to completing some of them. I will be sharing a favorite Pinterest project every Friday. Something I just have been wanting to make.

I will also be hosting the {Pinterest} Challenge Party for you! You will be able to link up your Pinterest Projects. Just please remember to give credit to where you got the idea with a link and image of the original pin.

All link ups that don't qualify will be deleted.

Thanks and hope you come by to link up. Please share this idea with friends. I will be sharing a Party Button this Friday!

Cookie Dough Bites Factory -App Review

2012-01-22T08:00:00.000-08:00

Do you have an iPad, iPhone, Use iTunes?

I was asked to review a fun new app called Cookie Dough Bites Factory. It's a FREE app available in iTunes.

I laughed when I got the email because my daughters had just asked me two days before if they could download it. I have it set up to automatically download new apps on my phone. So it popped up on my phone too but I hadn't tried it yet. Once I read my review request, I checked it out more. It is so Fun! I loved it and so did my kids.

In this app you get to make fun candies.

I started off by picking Factory One. In there you pick the Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix. You head over to the ingredients area.

Mix all the ingredients for your CDB (Cookie Dough Bites). Be careful not to overfill the bins or you will lose your precious batter. LOL

Next it shows you how much dough you wasted and how much you completed. It loads the dough crates onto a pallet. Fun!

Then you head over to the candy coating area. This is the exciting part. You get to spray the CDB's with chocolate. But be sure to spray them quickly before they fall through the bin. Very exciting!

Again, you visit the Pallet room seeing your progress. I didn't waste one CDB. Go ME!

Now it's time to discard those bad bites on the conveyor belt that don't quite meet standards. ;0) Be quick and remember to place them in the correct place. There are uncoated and rejects. LOL The kids love it and feel like they are little workers. Oh and they move fast, well not too fast, but its exciting!

One more stop in the pallet dock. I completed 84 successful CDB's. Yeah! I lost a few. :( Can you beat my score? I dare you. HA! HA! I want to beat my score. I know I can do better. See, its addicting. You and the kiddos will have fun with this!

Lastly, your progress for the round and given stars. I got 8 out of 10 stars. Not bad for a first time player. Eh?

So, yes there are other factories! 3 to be exact!

In this FREE version (with ads) you are able to choose from the CDB's and from Cupcake Bites in Factory Two. Mmmm. They are cute sprinkle cupcake bites. It plays the same way as in Factory One, just with different ingredients. It also is a little more advanced. Not much more but I noticed that I spilled a little more of my ingredients in this one. The bins have lids and works with RED lights and GREEN lights. If you go too long, the lid will close and your ingredients will spill on the floor. :( I lost too much the first time and had to start over. But hey! Makes me better at it. A good challenge!

Be sure to check out Headquarters for your progress. It shows you what you wasted and what you completed. As well as how many stars you earned.

There is an Ad FREE version available. Just enter the Warehouse. There you can purchase new flavors, upgraded tools for your stations, and a fun sprinkle pack. Each of them have different prices. But if you are interested in everything, you can get it all too for one price. Since this is a new game, the price is a little higher than normal. From what I understand it is an introductory upgrade price and will eventually be lowered. So keep a look out!

My thoughts....I think the cost is worth it now too though. If you think about it, apps are the cheapest games out there. My hubby and I chose iPods for our kids over other products for that reason. We thought, "WOW, cheap games that can be downloaded on more than one device or buy one expensive game that can only be used on one device?" Not to mention that if it gets ruined, you have to buy another. So apps are our choice for fun games for the kids. If they delete it, we can always reload it! AWESOME! And there are so many FREE and cheap apps to choose from. That's our thought about that anyway! ;o)

So if you find my review interesting, let me know in comments below.

Please and thank you!

And please check out all of Cookie Dough Factories links too!

Let them know what you think of their fun new app!

For more information regarding Cookie Dough Bites® and Cookie Dough Bites® Factory visit:

http://sunstormgames.com

www.cookiedoughbites.com

www.facebook.com/cookiedoughbites

www.facebook.com/pages/Sunstorm-Interactive/156245999242

www.cdbfactory.com

FYI...

Cookie Dough Bites® Factory Hits #1 Game for Kids on iTunes in just 9 Days

Very impressive!

Want to buy some of these delicious bites? Visit HERE or on the picture below to see where they are available.

Something else I found interesting...They offer a fundraising program. Wouldn't that be great for your school? I am going to look into this more for my kids school. This would be a fun fundraiser and I think very profitable too! To learn more visit HERE or click on the photo below.

Thank you to Cookie Dough Bites Factory and Promoting Group for requesting a review. This was fun.

The featured product {s} in this post were provided to me free of charge by the manufacturer or pr company representing the company. All opinions expressed in this review are my own and not influenced in any way by anyone. Trendy Treehouse Disclaimer/Terms of use.

An Apology and a fun download I found

2012-01-20T08:00:00.000-08:00

First off, I wanted to apologize for being so absent lately. I've been so busy. I feel so guilty for not being here. :(

Today I am sitting down with my lil Cass. She was up all night sick. Poor thing. Too many sour gummy's at the Basketball game I guess. LOL I am so glad to be able to spend the day with her but sorry for the reason. She is feeling much better now. Just so exhausted from being up every hour last night. Plus I didn't want to send her to school not knowing if she could keep anything down. :( That would be bad. So we tried a little piece of dried toast this morning and it hurt her tummy. Long story short, she is sitting here with me watching Sponge Bob and playing games on my iPad as I write this post. LOL

My busy life has gotten in the way of my crafting lately. I have been making things but have been lazy on taking pictures. So I will try to catch up. We have been busy with basketball, many school events and meetings. We even signed up all 4 kids for baseball. The two lil girls will be on the same team. Yeah! That will be so fun for them. ChaCha will be on the Minor girls team and CJ is on Major Boys again this year. Next year he bumps up to Juniors. WHOA! My kids are growing so fast. Hubby has been busy working very long hours, so every precious moment is spent with us watching movies, playing games, shooting hoops, hanging out or bike riding. I don't see him slowing down anytime soon. We are so fortunate and thankful for the work provided and can't complain.

So today...I thought I would share a really cool downloadable goodie I found. You may have seen it. It was featured in Better Homes and Gardens "do it yourself" magazine.

It's another cool way to do a growth chart. Cathe from Just Something I Made came up with this marvelous idea. She scanned one of her vintage measuring tapes for you to print out. It's life size and awesome!

Visit HERE to download yours. She even has and update at the bottom of the post offering a metric version. Cool! Thanks Cathe for the great download! Be sure to check out all her awesome DIY projects HERE too! She is one, pretty amazing and creative woman! I was lucky to have found her site!

Hope you enjoy my fun lil find!

One more quick thing...I was playing with a new idea. Pinterest is another fabulous site that I often use. I take it on the go with me all the time on my iPhone. LOL I am sure many of you do too!

So here's my thought...what do you think of having a Pinterest Challenge Party? Putting our Pins in motion. LOL I find so many ideas on there that I want to do and haven't. I though if I did it here, I would accomplish more of them. ;o) I thought of either posting a specific pin of mine that we could all make, then link up. That way we can see all the different versions from that one Pin. Or...each week you can link up your own Pinterest Pin that you loved and made yourself. I think it would be a fun way for us to make our favorite pins rather than just dreaming about making them. Ha!Ha! The idea would be to have you post a "How you made your favorite pin" Directions how you made your pin, including photos of yours and the pic of the original pinned inspiration (include their link). Then link it up here at a party to share with others.

What do you think? Would that be fun?

I can't wait to here what you think! Leave a comment below to let me know. Also, please share this idea with others. Have them come here for a comment too. I would love to see how many would like to be involved in a Pinterest Challenge Party!

I will be leaving a post on my Facebook page too. So you can comment there as well! I so need to be on there more too! LOL

Thanks All! Have a Perfect Day and a FUN weekend too!

Creative Share Blog Hop & Features too!

2012-01-17T20:00:00.000-08:00

Please grab the Create and Share Button.

And share it in your post or on your blog. Thanks!

Follow Trendy Treehouse via Google Friend Connect
Link up only to the post. Not your home page.
Please Do Not link up shops or giveaways.
Share the Create and Share Button somewhere on your blog or in your post. OR..NEW...Create a Backlink to Trendy Treehouse.
Visit at least 3 other link ups and leave meaningful comments.
Come back next week to see if your link has been featured.

If you see your link below in our features, grab a featured button HERE
| Here are few of my favorites from last week |Click on photos below to read more

Easy Baked Apples - A Guest Post

2012-01-16T08:00:00.000-08:00

Hello, Trendy Treehouse readers!

My name is Rebekah, and I'm from Potholes and Pantyhose. I am so honored that Tara asked me to be a guest here today. She's pretty awesome, but I realize you guys know that already.

On my blog Potholes and Pantyhose, I share and photograph detailed tutorials of my DIY Projects, Recipes, Photography Tips and Remodeling Endeavors.

And today, I wanted to offer a yummy dessert-Easy Baked Apples-that can be made at the last minute and with ingredients you probably already have on hand.

These Easy Baked Apples are one of my favorite go-to's when last minute guests arrive. To really go over the top, add a little french vanilla ice cream and be crowned dessert queen of the year.

Here's what you'll need to make these Easy Baked Apples:

4-6 Jonathan Apples

6 TBS butter-room temperature

1/4 C Raisins

1/4 C finely chopped Walnuts or Pecans

1/4 tsp Nutmeg

1/2 tsp Cinnamon

1 tsp Lemon juice (only needed if you are making these ahead and cooking them later, as I did)

1 TBS sugar (if desired to make the dessert a little sweeter, but can be left out)

By using either an apple corer or a paring knife, remove the center of the apple, including all seeds.

Take a moment to make a face with your cored apples.

Place your apples in a sprayed/greased microwavable baking dish.

In a medium sized mixing bowl, add the 6 TBS room temperature butter to the 1/4 C of raisins.

Add the 1/4 Walnuts or Pecans.

Next, add the 1/4 tsp of Nutmeg.

And then add the 1/2 tsp of Cinnamon.

If you are making this dessert hours ahead of when you might want to actually consume it, add the 1 tsp of lemon juice. The lemon juice allows the apples to maintain their color and crispness, but gives you the option of cooking the apples several hours or even a day later.

If you enjoy sweeter desserts, add 1 TBS sugar to the bowl. I opted not to do this, allowing the ice cream to sweeten the deal.

Mix everything together using a fork.

Using a baby spoon or a knife, fill the apples completely full and a little overflowing with the mixture.

Tightly saran wrap the top of your baking dish. (If cooking the apples later, place them in the fridge until you are ready.)

Microwave for about 6 minutes, or until the apple skin is pliable and easily cut with a butter knife.

Let the apples cool slightly for 1-2 minutes, leaving the saran wrap on the baking dish.

Transfer to your serving plate and liberally spoon the excess juices over the apples (and over the ice cream, if desired). Serve the apples whole or sliced up for easy eating.

Enjoy!

Stop by Potholes and Pantyhose for other recipe, craft, and remodeling ideas. I am so looking forward to meeting you all. And, thanks again, Tara for letting me be a guest here today. It's been a real hoot!

Love-Rebekah

2012-01-10T20:00:00.000-08:00

Please grab the Create and Share Button.

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I'm Back

2012-01-09T08:00:00.000-08:00

I'm finally back. Seems like its been a while! Like 3 weeks. Right? I know, I know! I was enjoying my vacation. We had a lot of fun!

Our kids got out of school early this year. It was nice because I had one full week to prepare for the holidays without any school events! Well minus Basketball practice for my son! Yep! He made the team this year! YEAH! So proud of him.

So on to our vacation...I spent that week sewing and packing. We planned on surprising the kids with a trip to DISNEYLAND for Christmas. Because of the cost of tickets and food, I was making a lot of the kids gifts this year. The older kids all got some Disney patchwork blankets when they were younger and I wanted to make one for my youngest. I had saved all the material from making the last ones. So it was very easy to make it. Thankfully most of the material was already cut! Woo! Hoo! Got that done! Then I made each of the girls a cute lil owl pillow! They turned out so, so cute! Because my son is 12, I decided not to make him a cute, cuddly pillow and bought him something. ha!ha! I also made a cute puppy blanket and pillow for our employees new baby. I love how it turned out!

By the way, I will be sharing pictures below. Don't worry!

We made our family members ornaments this year for Christmas. They were snowmen made from white tennis balls. Very cool! We made a few more things for them too. For Daddy this year, the kids made a really cool shirt. We saw it on Pinterest. I will try and find the link to it sorry. But they drew on the back of a shirt. Roads, buildings and personal touches. On the front it said, "My Favorite Shirt". They also each picked out 1 car to go with it. They love drawing on daddy's back with body crayons and thought this would be fun too! My hubby and kiddos are so sweet too! They went to our jewelry store and picked out charms for a Pandora Bracelet for me! I love it! They picked out an elephant, chick, good luck (my oldest daughter picked this out. She is always so lucky. Finding four leaf clovers and money all the time) an airplane, orange jeweled flowers, one with two hearts from hubby and while we were in Disneyland, a Mickey Mouse charm. I was very happy.

So here is how we surprised the kids... Hubby is always on Craig's List! We told the kids that we had to head south to look at truck dad found on Craig's List. They wanted to know why we were taking our Christmas stuff. We just said that we were going to celebrate with family down there and needed to bring stuff. They bought it! YEAH! So we left and drove as far as we could. It's about 9-10 hours depending on stops. We made it more than half way before we stopped at a hotel. The next morning, we went to the complimentary breakfast. The kids were still clueless. We then told them, that we were going to let them open one gift before we left. They were excited. I had wrapped up their Disney blankets and Disney ID's. We knew that when we left the hotel, we were going straight to Disneyland. The kids couldn't wait to look at the truck and leave. Ha! Ha! So we went back to the room, and videoed them opening their gifts. They were very quiet! Then when they realized it was all Disney, they screamed a little. ;0) We told them we were going right now to Disneyland! My youngest, so cute, asked "After we look at the truck?" LOL "No sweetie, we tricked you! Did it work?" we said. They all said "YEAH!" We succeeded in keeping the secret. We wanted to drive further, but we knew the older kids would know where we were going by landmarks, since we have been to Disneyland before.

Disneyland was awesome! We spent 5 days there. Including Christmas Day! It was so busy, but worth it! I can't say we will go back on Christmas day again, but like someone said, we were able to mark that off our bucket list. Check! I will share a few photos below of our trip. But I have to say, one of their favorite parts was going to the Animation Academy over in California Adventure. We went there 5 times and it was the first thing they wanted to share when they got to school. They all love drawing and I was quite proud of our artistic family!

The rest of our family vacation was spent relaxing and resting from the long trip. Kids are all back in school and the routine is back on. Kind of nice. I missed the routine!

Here are a few pics

Our Snowman Ornaments...white tennis ball, baby sock, and permanent markers.

Disney Blanket...this is the disney blanket I made for my youngest! Sorry it's not the best pic!

Back of the blanket

each of the kids had mostly the same fabric, but all different designs.

Front of the blanket

I embroidered her name and added the cute lace border.

Daddy's Favorite shirt

It was late when we finished and I snapped this with my cell.

One of the owls before it was finished. There is another pic below of them holding them.

We printed out and framed these for family.

Here is a pic of a lighted Christmas Tree we made. If you are interested in how I made this, just send me a quick email. I'd be happy to share. I do have better pictures and I added a bit more to this too!

The puppy pillow and blanket I made for our employees baby.

...Christmas Morning...

Very bad quality photo. Sorry. But it shows their smiling faces. That's all that matters. Right? LOL

When we surprised them with Disneyland

With their blankets and Disney ID's.

A few pics from Disneyland

Happy New Year Everyone! I can't wait to see what this year brings.

Thanks to everyone who sent us Holiday wishes via the blog, text and email! Hope your vacations were as fun as ours. What did you do?

Happy Holidays

2011-12-15T08:00:00.000-08:00

We wanted to wish you all a Happy Holiday Season!

Jamie and I will be spending the holidays with our families and will be back in January with a bunch of new posts. Until then, please enjoy browsing around.

Here's Tara's Christmas Card! ;0)

Heard on the Playground Review

2011-12-11T08:00:00.000-08:00

Heard on the Playground is a really fun site where you can share stories. Stories of what kids say!! I have read so many cute stories over there from grandparents, parents, kids and people who have overheard stories too! So fun!

I even shared a story a while back from my 5 year old at the time. She is now 7. ;0)

...Our Shared Story...

{This is a recent conversation I overheard between my son and daughter} "Why were you the first born?" my daughter asked. "Because God wanted a boy first in our family, then a girl, girl and another girl." my son responded. "Well that's not right...it's always supposed to be ladies first!" my daughter protested.

Caidee 5 - California

Isn't that cute? I'm kinda partial! Well Andrea, the creator of Heard on the Playground site thought is was cute too! She used it as one of her favorites in the book she published! YEAH! We were so excited to find out!

The book is available now on Amazon! You can also find it through Andrea's site, Heard on the Playground! Andrea was kind enough to send us a copy! Thank you! Thank you! We will treasure it!

Don't forget to stop by and share a story at Heard on the Playground! You might see it in the second book. Which I am sure there will be one. Kids never fail when it comes to finding funny things to say! ;0)

This book would make a perfect gift for Grandparents, Parents, Teachers and Kids! Get yours ordered TODAY!

Merry Christmas

2011-12-10T08:00:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas!!

Happy New Year!!

I pray that your Christmas celebration is filled with Jesus! I pray that you are aware of the blessings around you. I pray that you take time to capture the moments and memories that make up your family and loved ones. I pray that you experience Christmas through the eyes of a child with all the wonder and excitiment that it brings. I pray that you cherish every moment you have with your loved ones. I pray that you are blessed in new and exciting ways.

I had asked my Aunt if she would help us take some photos of our family after our Thanksgiving feast so we would have a current photo for our Christmas card. I also wanted to make sure to be in some photos with my kids. It was a joint effort between my aunt, Greg and myself and I think we did pretty good. Yeah, I don't really enjoy being photographed and I'd like to lose some weight before I'm photographed but my kids won't be saying that when they look back as these photos ("man, I wish mom would have lost 10 pounds before we took those pictures"). They will be saying things like, "remember when we ran around in the backyard and remember how Micah didn't want his picture taken. And remember how dad threw us in the air. Yeah, those were good times." So, here's to capturing good memories, picture perfect or not. And if you have to photoshop a blemish or two I give you permission!! We can put our best face forward right ;)

Here's a "real life" shot for you!

I'll see you back here in 2012! If you'd care to follow our Christmas adventures and just life in general join me on my family/photography blog!! Can't wait to see you there, and let me know you stopped by! And don't forget my shop is open if you need any last minute gifts!!!

Gifts for yourself

2011-12-08T12:00:00.000-08:00

We all know that Christmas is a time of giving. A time when we remember the greatest gift ever given, the gift of Jesus in flesh. The gift of salvation brought to life. We give gifts because we've already received the greatest gift ever to be given. We give gifts to everyone in our lives, kids, parents, teachers, postal workers, but is it wrong to give a gift to yourself? I don't think so. So often we as mothers give give and give some more that sometimes it's nice and actually IMPORTANT to give a little to ourselves.

Maybe your gift to yourself this year will be laying off the mommy guilt. Maybe you'll give yourself permission to fail, to not be the "perfect" wife, mom, etc because we all know that person doesn't exist. Maybe you'll give yourself 10 extra minutes of peace and quiet by setting the alarm. Maybe you're going to give yourself energy by exercising a little more regularly. Maybe you're going to give yourself time by setting a timer for "extra" things like tv shows or computer time so you don't get sucked ALL the way in, but then you'll have the time to do the things you want and need to do. Maybe you'll give yourself time to craft things for YOU! I plan on doing ALL of these things.

Maybe your gift to yourself will be more a material object. Those are nice too. My husband and I do the St. Nicholas thing with our kids (but not Santa) since he was a real man who gave to the poor and needy. But who fills my stocking...me! So, this year I didn't give myself anything. But that's becuse I didn't have any small gift that I really wanted...and I am still working on gifts for others so I haven't gotten around to my own crafting yet...but I will. I will make myself some pajama pants and I will make myself a clothespin people wall hanging.

What are you going to give to yourself?

If you're still looking for the perfect gift some someone on your list come on over to my etsy store and see what I've got that might help you check off another name!

Create and Share | Features too!

2011-12-06T20:00:00.000-08:00

Don't forget to go grab the Create and Share Button.

Please share it in your post or on your blog. Thanks!

Follow Trendy Treehouse via Google Friend Connect
Link up only to the post. Not your home page.
Please Do Not link up shops or giveaways.
Share the Create and Share Button somewhere on your blog or in your post. OR..NEW...Create a Backlink to Trendy Treehouse.
Visit at least 3 other link ups and leave meaningful comments.
Come back next week to see if your link has been featured.

If you see your link below in our features, grab a featured button HERE
| Here are few of my favorites from last week |Click on photos below to read more

DIY Glitter Nail Polish

2011-12-06T08:00:00.000-08:00

So today I have a very fun and quick project. DIY Glitter Nail Polish! It is so easy, the kids can do it! But....if you need stocking stuffers, you might want to make these yourself. Just make sure you mail them to the North Pole for Santa to deliver in time for Christmas! ;-)

What you will need...

Clear Nail Polish

Glitter (variety of colors)

Sling shot balls

Funnel

So my these colors are my daughter's favorites!! I made these per request. ;o)

First head over to the dollar store and pick up some clear nail polish. The dollar store is the only place you will find them that cheap. They even have glitter. They might not have a huge variety of glitter, but you can always pick some more up at a craft store. It will just cost a little more. I had glitter already from another project. I did get mine a Michaels. The Tulip brand. You get a lot and it goes far. You will want to get the sling shot balls because they are heavy enough to shake around the glitter. I tried BB's and they were way too light. If you don't have a funnel, you can make one from paper or even use an envelope.

Once you have all your supplies....just add your choice of glitter colors to the clear nail polish. Add the sling shot ball and shake. That's it!

If you want more glitter, just add more and shake. If you are having trouble finding the correct weighted ball to shake, you can always stir the glitter in with a toothpick. It will settle after sitting, so you will need to stir again next time you use it.

Our Glitter Nail Polish Colors (in the pic above)

I had pink and blue glitter from some shirts I made. My oldest loves blue and my youngest loves pink. So that was easy. My middle daughter loves purple so we just mixed the blue and pink together to make purple. Easy Peasy!

Just follow your basic color changing chart with your glitter to come up with your favorite colors.

When you paint them on, they will have pretty Glittery Nails!

~ Decorate your bottles ~

Want to add some cuteness to your Nail Polish Bottles? Let the kids draw on them with permanent markers or add some cute stickers. You can even get some puffy paint and make some cute flowers, hearts, ect. on them!

Hope your day is amazing day!

Gifts for Self/Wife

2011-12-05T08:00:00.000-08:00

This is the last week of our 12 Weeks of Christmas! I hope you enjoyed what we shared! I know, we loved sharing gift ideas with you!!!

FYI...after this week Jamie and I will be taking family leave! We are going to share the holidays and New Year with our Families! I'm sure you understand how busy the holidays can be and we need time to make all our fun DIY gifts for everyone!

I will occasionally pop in for a post or two and will keep the Craft Share on Wednesdays going. So don't forget to link up your posts every Wednesday!

READ ME...I have a really cool Christmas Project that I will be posting, hopefully Friday. My Papa (RIP, I love you and miss you so much!) made one years ago and my Grandma (love her so much) gave me the template. YEAH! I know you are going to love it and have to have it!!! So stay tuned....

This week for our 12 Weeks of Christmas Gifts....

The gift is for Self/Wife!

Here's a pic of me with the kiddos!

Visit HERE to see past and upcoming Gift ideas.

And please visit HERE to view the gifts we have already posted!

Don't forget to grab the Christmas Gifts Button in the sidebar!!!

For Self/Wife...

Blessings Jar | Count your blessing by adding them one at a time in this jar! Then read them with your family each Christmas. We got this from our kids last year and I can't wait to read through some of the blessings on Christmas Day!

Any mom would love to see the blessings their family has each year. I thought it would be fun to share this gift with you today.

Plus, its very easy to make. Just grab a cool jar, some little notecards, ribbons, gift tags, stickers and a pen. You can make the jar with fun holiday colors or neutral to keep out year round. A great gift to give and receive!

Chore Jars....another fun idea for a jar would be a kids chore jar. My kids were asking about sharing chores (well they were really fighting over who has to do what, lol) so I thought it would be fun to make it random. Have each child write down all their chores (on separate pieces of paper and throw them in the jar. Every day they pull one and complete it! As a reward for completing the task, with NO COMPLAINING, let them choose something from a prize jar. If your kids are older and get allowances, write on the chore card the amount they will get paid for completing that chore.

When my husband was younger he said that his aunt had a chore list, but the amount paid for completing was hidden. When they were done they got to reveal what they earned. I think that is a cool idea too! And change the amounts each time! So one week they may get $2 for folding the laundry and the next it's only 50 cents. LOL That way they can't always choose what they are getting paid the most for. Hee! Hee!

What mommy wouldn't love a jar like this! To get help around the house, teach kids responsibility and how to save money. Daddy's...you can help the kids put this together and surprise your wife on Christmas morning! She will love that you are trying to enlist help for keeping your home clean and tidy!

Have a great week everyone! I'll be back soon with my Christmas Project!!! Don't forget to come back and see!

Christmas crafting with kids

2011-12-03T08:00:00.000-08:00

We got our first snow here in West Tennessee early this week. My kids were so excited. This is really the first time that they've experienced a real snow fall. When we lived in Texas it snowed about 1/4 of an inch in February of this year and it only stuck to the driveway (so that's where they made their snow angels). So, they were super excited. They played outside in the snow...got cold...came in and had hot chocolate. We've also been doing some more crafting and Christmas crafting in particular. My kids love to do "projects", and ask to do them all the time. I figured it was time I start actually doing some of the things that I pin on my pinterest board...so we got out the construction paper and got to work!

The first thing we made was a Christmas Tree ring Advent calendar from Make and Takes. Naomi was able to do this pretty well on her own, I just had to tell her where to put the next ring, however I had to help Micah with it quite a bit.

Then I decided to cut out their handprints and make a wreath. My mom used to make a big Christmas tree with her second grade classes handprints. I'm sure this wreath has been done before and is nothing new but it was fun to make and it'll be fun to see how their handprints grow over the years. So, I just traced their hands on one piece of paper and then cut six out at a time. Then you just curl the fingers in a bit and then I glued them to a cardboard cereal box circle.

Glue them around the circle and keep layering them until the wreath looks full. Then I just glued some red circles around and covered the middle with a big red circle and as you can see wrote "merry christmas" on the circle to cover up the ends of the hands. I think I used about 24 handprints (half from a 5 year old and half from a 3 year old).

I tried to trace Hannah's hand so that I could make a small Christmas tree but she threw a fit. I'll try again some other time. But, you can use the handprints to create a Christmas tree as well. Just start the hands with the curled fingers pointing down but the hands curling upwards and layer the handprints in the shape of a tree. I'll try and get a photo of one soon!

Happy Christmas crafting!

I'll be celebrating my 32nd birthday tomorrow...and I'm hoping to do 32 random acts of kindness within the next week. I'll let you know how it goes!

Gifts for grandma and husbands

2011-12-01T11:27:00.001-08:00

Hey there everyone, sorry for being absent on the blog last week, I was enjoying time with my family and didn't feel like spending any of that time on the computer...

So I owe you two weeks worth of gifts. Gifts for grandma and gifts for husbands.

There were a few things that my mom mentioned when I asked her about what the kids could make
for her that she would like to receive. She said she loves any handmade gift from the kids and
especially anything made with handprints. So, we did the handprint calendar for grandpa but obviously
grandma gets to enjoy that as well. She mentioned things like placemats, mousepads, an apron with
handprints on it...and while I think these are all great ideas and hopefully we'll still be able to make some
of these things before Christmas, we made something different. My parents are missionaries right now
over seas and they don't have a lot of the "comforts of home" with them over there. So, I decided to have my kids paint them a picture. I just gave the kids a square canvas board and let them use their own creativity to paint them a picture. Canvas boards can be found at JoAnn's, Hobby Lobby and Michael's. I bought mine at Hobby Lobby and it was a package of 6 boards for $7.99 and I had a 40% off coupon so each board only cost me about 80cents, and I already had the paints on hand so this is a VERY inexpensive gift idea.

These paintings usually happen in "sessions", they paint for a bit then stop and add more too it at another time. They LOVE to paint and ask almost everyday if they can paint. I like to keep those square canvas boards on hand for times like these. They make great personal gifts. I didn't take a photo of the finished project because I don't want to spoil the surprise for my mom!

I don't have any photos of what I am getting/making for Greg...but I can tell you about it quick. I ordered some personalized products with some photos that my aunt took for us on Thanksgiving. He's in need of a new travel mug (takes his coffee to work with him every morning) so I ordered one from Shutterfly. I also ordered a desk calendar for him from Vistaprint (I got the same one as a wall calendar for free). And the thing I am making for him is pajama pants. He told me that he was a little sad last Christmas when the kids got new jammies but he didn't. SO, I went to goodwill and had Micah pick out a top sheet that he liked (he picked solid navy blue) and I bought that and one flannel sheet for the girls and I plan to sew pj pants for the whole family out of those sheets. Sheets are so much cheaper (especially from goodwill) than buying that much yardage of fabric at the fabric store. Plus, isn't it nice to crawl into your sheets wearing sheets?! Ha, we'll see. I have a pair for myself that I cut out of some old vintage orange and yellow flower sheets about two years ago...maybe I'll actually sew them for my Christmas present this year!

Hope I've given you some ideas. I need something else for my hubby though, so if you have any good hubby gift ideas I'd love to hear them!! Have a great week!

Create and Share | Features too!

2011-11-29T20:00:00.000-08:00

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Gifts for Daddy's

2011-11-28T08:00:00.000-08:00

First off! Sorry to be gone so long. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with our family! Took more family photos with everyone! They look awesome and I will share them soon! We spent the rest of the weekend playing games with the kids, went to the movies and took a couple family drives. Sorry again...Check out some Daddy gifts below!

This week for our 12 Weeks of Christmas Gifts....

The gift is for Daddy's...!

Here's a pic of my hubby with the kiddos! We have some cute ones of them giggling in this same pose too!

Visit HERE to see past and upcoming Gift ideas.

And please visit HERE to view the gifts we have already posted!

Don't forget to grab the Christmas Gifts Button in the sidebar!!!

For Daddy...

For my hubby's birthday, the kids gave him the pic I shared for Papa's! The one with their feet saying "We Heart Daddy". And I gave him a framed photo of him with his silly bitter beer face. LOL He loved them! Said they were the best gifts ever! So that is why we are giving him more pics for Christmas! He loves the ones from our family photo shoot. So we thought it would be fun to put them in a frame as a series. He will be so excited.

More For Daddy...

In case you don't have any photos to give, I thought I would share some more great Daddy gift ideas!!! Click on the photos below to learn more.

These are some great gifts! Make sure you go visit them and tell them how great these are!!! These are all on our list to make for Daddy this year! Of course, if you notice the shirts in the larger picture, we made those this past fathers day and I wanted to share them again. I think they would make a great Christmas present too!

Have a great week everyone!!!

Create and Share | Features too!

2011-11-22T20:00:00.000-08:00

Don't forget to go grab the Create and Share Button.

Please share it in your post or on your blog. Thanks!

Follow Trendy Treehouse via Google Friend Connect
Link up only to the post. Not your home page.
Please Do Not link up shops or giveaways.
Share the Create and Share Button somewhere on your blog or in your post. OR..NEW...Create a Backlink to Trendy Treehouse.
Visit at least 3 other link ups and leave meaningful comments.
Come back next week to see if your link has been featured.

If you see your link below in our features, grab a featured button HERE| Here are few of my favorites from last week |Click on photos below to read more

Family Photos

2011-11-22T06:00:00.000-08:00

We haven't had a personal post in a while and today I wanted to share with you some photos. My friend Jen took our family photos this year and I am so excited to share them. They are beautiful! I had a lot of fun making up our Christmas cards with these photos too!

Here are just a few of our favorites!

Love Love Love These! Thanks Jen!!!

If you are in my area (NorCal) and want your photos taken by Jen, let me know. Email me at trendytreehouse@me.com I know she would love to help you!

We can't wait to take more pics with Jen in the spring. Already planning on each of us wearing different bright colors. They are going to be cute! And this Friday we are taking more pics. Jen is taking our whole families photos. My family, my parents and my brothers. I can't wait to see how those turn out!

Love the Couch and Frames? Found the couch at an estate sale! The frames were found at thrift shops and spray painted for use in my craft room. They all made great props for our photos!

Please share your thoughts on my family photos in comments! Would love to hear what you think! ;o)