Fix a flat

So, no trip to visit my NY family is ever complete without some major crafting. This trip was no exception. While shopping at Costco, I noticed these huge 4'x4' squares of plain, unprinted cardboard placed between the layers of the diaper boxes and such. )The kind of cardboard that cereal boxes are made out of.) And since it was Costco, packaging is a free for all. We picked up 2 with a loose idea of tracing my nieces for a life sized paper doll.

Once we explained the plan to my nieces, they were totally on board. on cardboard, that is! But really, they were troopers and held perfectly still as we traced their outlines and patiently waited as I cut their 'flat' versions out.

Next, we raided the scrap fabric bag to come up with the perfect outfits for them to 'wear' which turned out supercute, if I do say so myself. Thank goodness for hot glue and it's super stickability! My mom came up with the great idea of running a hand basted stitch to make the skirt ruffle, made it even more lifelike!

Party like a soon-to-be-6-year-old

So, just when I thought the uber crafting was done for the month, I got a phone call to serve as the crafty ringer for my dear niece's 6th bday party. While they live far far away in a secluded isle of Man(hattan), the crafty goods are goin on here in Houston, so I sprang into action.

The theme: a cooking party so we knew it had to be cute and yummy, all at the same time. My sister, (mother of bd grl...MoBDG) has the food part taken care of, thank goodness, since that isn't my bag. So it was up to me to come up with something to jazz up the chef's hats, aprons, and goody bags in time for the big day. The birthday girl also has ideas of her own, 'just suggestions' which are always welcome b/c she's a burgeoning crafter in her own right too! But I digress. She suggested we use white, red, and aqua for our color scheme. We were all over that.

And if you don't already know, my crafting passion often intersects with with my eco-obsessions, so I try to reuse whenever possible. So, it was kismet that the bridal shower from april also used RED! I made some yoyo-type flowers from left over (red/white) ribbon which will be pinned on the chef hats, and I sent those along with the ribbon so my sister can attach it to the aprons too, somehow. And, my nieces also came up with the genius idea to write "Chef ___ " on each one. So, I bought some iron-on transfer paper for that. Keeping my fingers crossed that this will work. :)