My New Year's resolution for 2012

2012 is here in 2 hours! So, I guess this means it's time to make resolutions. There are many things I'd like to improve on this year ...I'm not going to list them all, but one of my resolutions that I think will be fun to commit (or TRY to commit) to is the following:

Only buy the absolute minimum when it comes to clothes for the kids. I've been going through boxes and boxes of clothing that they have outgrown and selling them (...the clothes, not the kids). I'm sure they did not need so many articles of clothing and it seems so wasteful! So this year I am determined to simplify. My resolution is to reuse fabric from our clothing rejects. I have a few boxes of clothing in the basement that are waiting to be turned into something new and useable. I'll still buy jeans, shoes, and anything that's too hard or time consuming to make, but I'd really like to make the rest.

This past year I have made a few outfits for my kids using fabric from my basement stash. Anja recently acquired her dad's old sweater that I refashioned into dress. I used this tutorial from the blog Make It and Love It.

So, now that I've shared this resolution I feel the pressure to follow through. ...Reduce, Reuse, Recycle... Happy New Year everyone!

Homemade Play Kitchen

Anja and Isla got a play kitchen set (made with love by mommy and daddy). I fell in love with this kitchen. So, I begged my husband to build it and I did the painting, sewed the curtains and made the hardware choices. We were able to make the whole kitchen for about $125, which considering how much the plastic ones are, I think is a pretty good deal.

They LOVE it!!!

Jellyfish in a Bottle

In the middle of November we had a couple of weeks that were very cold. Taking 3 young kids out in that kind of weather is not fun, so I tried to find some new activities we could do indoors. I came across "Jellyfish in a Bottle" from Bhoomplay's Blog. My kids LOVE underwater animals. You can probably find everything you need for this craft at home: plastic bottle, plastic bag, string, water and food colouring. I had to make most of it myself as it was a little too hard for them, but the most fun part (adding the food colouring) can be done by the kids.  My pictures don't show the jellyfish very well, but check out the jellyfish on Bhoomplay's Blog.

Quiet Bags

I FINALLY made quiet bags for my kids to take to church. I've been meaning to do this since my oldest was a baby (& he's almost 5 now). I used this tutorial from Zaaberry to make kid-sized messenger bags. I had a hard time picturing how big the bags would be before I made them, and if I were to make them again I'd make them a few inches bigger. Other than that, I'm happy with how they turned out.

I added pockets to the inside (instructions for this were not included in the tutorial) because I wanted to keep their snacks separate from their toys.  I used their favourite granola bar as a guideline for the pocket size.

Step 1: Cut out 2 rectangles for flap and 2 rectangles for pocket. Sew around edges leaving opening for turning. Clip corners.

Step 2: Turn rectangles right side out, iron, and sew along top of pocket and bottom of flap. Sew on velcro using a zig-zag stitch. (I cut my velcro in ovals just because I like how it looks.)

Step 3: Sew sides and bottom of pocket to centre of lining. Place the flap so the velcro matches together and sew along the top attaching flap to lining.

View of flap when open

Finished pocket