FONTS FONTS FONTS!

I LOVE fonts! I have HUNDREDS (probably THOUSANDS) of fonts on my computer and I LOVE finding new ones and thinking of projects to use them for. I use fonts to make cute additions to homemade cards, handouts for church, adding text to pictures in Photoshop, printables, making iron-on's for t-shirts (LOVE IT!), and of course using Sure Cuts A Lot and my Cricut to cut vinyl or freezer paper for stencils. The possibilities are ENDLESS!

What do I love more that cute fonts? FREE ONES! That is right, FREE! There are plenty of places where you can purchase fonts, doodlebats & SVG's, but there are some great places to  get free ones and really FREE is better.

Here are some links to some of my favorite places to find FREE FONTS:

http://kevinandamanda.com/fonts/fontsforpeas/

Games with the kids

I do wish I had a more sophisticated project to present today but for now this will have to do until I can get to the antique store for something more fascinating!

But until then-this is a project I came up with my oldest daughter to help entertain us one afternoon. We received something in the mail in this narrow long box which is perfect to use for this project. A wider box would also work though.

Then we cut different shaped holes in the box.

And now we can throw little bean bags in it for a bean bag toss. Surprisingly this game was pretty fun for the kids and the box can certainly be dressed up and painted. The kids love painting so if they can participate it is more fun.

With the excess we built these little cardboard books and the kids loved these as well. They made their own stories in them.

Again, apologies for the lack of sophistication but if you ever find yourself bored at home with the kids and need a fun craft with the kids this worked wonders for us!

Table Runner

I have wanted to make a table runner for a while now. I was looking online at different ideas and found one here I was really pleased with mine and it didn't take very long to put it together; 3 hours maybe from cut to finish. I may have to make one for each holiday now so I can decorate.

Materials
Solid Color canvas: 5/8 yard
Print canvas: about 3/4 yard total, I bought 4 different coordinating fabrics, each 7" wide and it was enough to make 2 runners
2 1/2 yards of 1/2"-wide rickrack trim
Thread in coordinating color

Finished Measurements: Approximately 14" wide X 41" long

Cutting Instructions
Out of the solid, cut 42 x 20. Each print fabric should be cut to 6 1/2" x 9".

Sewing Instructions
With right sides together, sew the print fabrics together along the 9" side with 1/4" seam allowance. Do this with each rectangle until they are all connected. Press seams open.


Topstitch the seam allowance down on each side of the seam, 1/8". You can kind of see the end result in this the picture below.



Now on to your solid fabric. Along the 42" edge (the longest edges), attach your rick rack to the right side of the fabric. Line the end of the rick rack up with the edge of your solid fabric. Sew 1/8" from edge as shown in the photo below. Do this on both long sides.



With right sides together, align the printed fabric with the edge of the solid fabric; the rick rack will be in the middle. Stitch 1/4" from the edge. Do this to both sides; it will create a tube.



Press the seam allowance toward the printed fabric (center panel), then turn the runner right sides out. Press the seams and rick rack again. You want the rick rack to go towards the solid fabric. Be careful not to iron the edges of the solid fabric and create a crease. I had trouble getting the crease out.



Topstitch along the long seams, across from the rick rack. DON'T SEW THE BACK TO THE FRONT IN THIS STEP. It's kind of difficult to scrunch all the fabric up to top stitch. Just go slow and be patient.

Turn your work inside out again and center the print fabric so there is 3" of solid canvas on each side fo the palen. Align and pin the short end of the runner and sew across the end with 3/4" seam allowance. Repeat for other end, leaving 5" open for flipping. Flip right sides out and press the edges, measuring again so there is 3" of solid fabric along the length of the runner.

Fold in and pin the seam allowance at the 5" opening. I liked the runner I made that wasn't topstitched around the runner. You may choose to top stitch 1/8" from the edge around the entire runner. OR I chose to whip stitch the 5" opening closed.

Dresser Re-Do....

I found this dresser at the D.I. (Deseret Industries, a donation/thrift store) and fell in love with it. It needed some love, but I had a vision and I LOVED the price.

 

I fell in love with the decorative details, the carved leaves on the front of the drawers and the trim on the bottom. The first thing I did was take off the handles, then I started sanding and filling and repairing. Some of the drawers needed some repairing. Then I started priming. I primed everything really well. Using KILZ white primer. 

 After it was all primed, I started painting. I actually used spray paint (KRYLON, Blue Ocean Breeze, Gloss). I used a lot of thin coats to prevent drips and I let it dry well between each coat. Here is a picture of it painted and waiting to be distressed.

 Next, I took sandpaper to distress the edges and details. I really wanted the dress to still look old and so I didn't sand out all the imperfections before I painted.

Next, I added the new handles and moved it into our living room. I love how much this piece has changed the look of our living room, it is so bright and cheerful!

Linked Up Here:

 The Creative Crate