Doily Valentine Card

I posted a fairly juvenile Valentine earlier this week. I saw this image on Pinterest and thought it was a lovely and simple Valentine.  This really, really seems to simple to give a step by step tutorial, but I did take the pictures and everything, so here goes....
I started out with the same blank cards as in my earlier post. 

I had these doilies in my stash.  Could be easily found in any craft store. 

 I dug out my stamp alphabet and black ink pad.

 I stamped on a message. "All you need in love." My favorite valentine's day sentiment.

I set my sewing machine on a zig zag stitch and sewed the doily to the blank card.
Simple, but pretty.

Cupcake Liner Valentine Cards

 Valentine's Day is right around the corner!  I always love to send mail and Valentine's Day is as good of a reason as anything, right?  I've had lots and lots of time inside given the extreme cold weather here in Minnesota, lots of time to make crafts!  I often find inspiration in the things I have around me.  During Christmastime, I came across these mini cupcake liners in my kitchen.  I pulled them out, thinking I might make some holiday treats, but that somehow didn't happen.  They remained on my kitchen counter and inspired me to make these Valentine's.  Not terribly sophisticated, but I plan on sending these to my nephew and nieces. They could easily be made for children or by children.  Now, I'll fumble through a tutorial.  (Not something I often have the patience for, so bear with me.)

 It all started with the mini cupcake liners.  These happen to be winter/Christmas themed.  Could use any you have on hand. 

 I used these basic craft paper blank cards.

I painted on a stem using green craft paint.

I chose two coordinating cupcake liners.  Shown above, I cut one down about 1/2" and made petals by cutting little slits all the way around the perimeter.

I used my glue stick and attached one cupcake liner right above the stem. 

Then applied the slit liner on top of it.  Finally, attached a cut out heart on the very top.
I had almost all of this stuff on hand and other than waiting for everything to dry, was able to complete these in just a few minutes.  As I stated previously, these would be great to be made by kids or for kids.  And if you happen to read this blog and receive one of these from me in a few weeks, I apologize for ruining the surprise.  I plan on blogging about a slightly more sophisticated Valentine's Day card later this week.

Throw Pillows

 

When I moved, I left my old couch behind and bought a new one upon arrival.  I love it, but it's just a basic gray and knew it needed a pop of color.  Throw pillows were definitely needed.  I looked and looked for weeks and weeks, never quite finding pillows that suited my style and budget.  That's when I realized that making pillows was well within my skill set.  I could easily buy fabric that I loved and make my own pillows.  I used this tutorial for DIY Envelope Pillows from The Happy Housie.  So easy.  Once you have all of the fabric and pillow forms, you can really make a throw pillow in minutes!  I also kept an eye on the Joann's sales and was able to get all of my pillow forms for 40-50% off.  If you happen to live near an IKEA, you can get pillow forms there for about $5.  Since I wanted these pillows to be special and am often disappointed with the fabric selection at the big box commercial fabric stores, I ordered all fabric for these pillows from Fabric Worm.  I'm partial to their Japanese Import Fabric section.  I only used the "special" fabric for the front of the pillows and used coordinating prints that I had in my stash for the back of the pillows. In the very least, this cold weather has given me time to sew.

Feeling Minnesota.

(Picture taken by yours truly.  Lake Calhoun, at sunrise.)

Hello from the frozen tundra! Although, that's not entirely accurate.  It's in the balmy upper 20s today.  Warm enough to not wear my rated below 0 coat!  That beast is heavy!  I'm so thankful for what I consider perfectly normal winter weather.  That was not the case a week ago.  That was when the polar vortex hit Minnesota.  The temperature reached -25 and the windchill reached -45. 
I knew that it would be colder than I am used to here in Minnesota, but this has so far been the coldest winter in 17 years!  Everyone keeps telling me that it's not normally like this.
So... this is how I've been surviving.
-I have to start my mentioning that I live in a very nice building.  So I don't have to shovel a sidewalk, driveway or roof, or worry about maintaining my car for the winter.  I have a heated garage and take the bus downtown to my office everyday during the week. That eliminates a whole host of problems that most people have to face here in the upper Midwest.
-I have the warmest coat I could find.  I bought it on a whim this summer, on super clearance.  (Similar to this one, but much longer. Looks like the one I bought is out of stock.)  But it is rated -35 to -5 degrees.  And I've been wearing it almost every day since before Christmas.
-No matter where you're going, you wear snow boots.  (Mine are similar to these.  I bought mine a few years ago when we had a blizzard in Maryland.  I wore them once. So they were practically new!)  The sidewalks and parking lots are a sloppy, slippery mess so you wear snow boots.  (It's so cold, traditional means of snow removal just don't work.)  If I'm going to work or to a party or something, you carry along your regular shoes.  Everybody does this. 
-Wearing the warmest gloves, hat and scarf (gaiter) that I can find.  I didn't even know what a gaiter was before I moved to Minnesota.  It's basically a tube of fleece (or some other knit) that you wear around your neck.  None of that wrapping and tangling involved in a scarf.  I had an unfortunate tangling situation once with a traditional scarf and my long hair that nearly drove me to a hair salon.  The gaiter works better.
-Socks.  These make a big difference.  My only Christmas wish was Smartwool socks.  They are expensive, but so worth it! I ordered more today, relatively reasonably priced at Shoe Buy.
-Warm drinks.  I like good old Swiss Miss hot chocolate (it now comes in a K-cup!!) with peppermint marshmallows.  And my favorite hot tea is Tea Forte - Citrus Mint.
Other than staying inside and keeping busy, there's not much you can do.  I'm hopefully planning a tropical getaway and dreaming about summer!