January Point of View- LOVE

It seems like you can't turn a corner these days without running into something red or heart shaped.  :)  Well, even though the theme was LOVE and not Valentine's- I don't think these projects are going to disappoint.  Are you ready for the project reveal?
Wait no longer:

Mmmm- aren't they yummy?  Such fun projects to browse through, love and Pin- am I right? :)
Ready to go check out the goodness?  Here are the links to further details:
Jonie at Just Between Friends
Amy- just scroll down
Our very special Guests this month Meg and Steph joining us from DIY Divas
Camilla from Rosy Red Buttons
Michelle at A Little Tipsy
And Gwen from Gwenny Penny
Leanne had to miss this month dealing with a family emergency.  We love and miss her and are glad her daughter's doing better. :)

After you're done checking out all this goodness- head over to Gwenny Penny and link up YOUR favorite LOVE posts. (remember that it's any interpretation of the theme- so link away!)
Now- on to my project:

The Ruffle Heart Pillow

Oh yes- I am definitely in LOVE!

When I made the Wavy Ruffle Pillow last year I had the thought that it would be fun to create other shapes with the ruffles- and this seemed like the perfect time to test out that theory.   I didn't re-do the entire tutorial, because I followed all of the same steps from the Wavy Ruffle Pillow tutorial, but I did document the couple of changes I did.

First, we are obviously going to need a heart shape.  I just folded the paper in half and did it the good old gradeschool way, but you can be more deliberate and use a cutting tool like a Cricut or Silhouette if you want.  The shape does get a little skewed by the ruffles, so don't spend too much time on it- just a general heart shape will be just fine.

Here is where I make the confession of all confessions.  I am an "eyeballer".  I don't measure things very often.  I find that I am usually more accurate if I just eyeball where things go instead of trying to be exact in my placement.  So- center your heart on the front pillow cover panel and trace around it to give you a guideline for placing your strips.  Then take your pink (or colored) bias-cut ruffles, pin down the first layer.  I lined up the center of the ruffle (where the gathering stitches are) on the pencil line, you could also line up the outside or inside of the ruffle along that line as well- it's up to you.  For this pillow, I did sew down one round at a time, instead of pinning all the ruffles and then sewing- but either method would work.  Fill in the inside of the heart with more colored ruffles and you'll get something that looks like this:

Which I think is gorgeous and I was really tempted to leave it like that, but I felt it looked too much like my Faux Chenille Pillow- and I wanted them to look less alike.  So, next I filled in the outside with white ruffles.  Then I finished my pillow with an envelope closure and I was finished.

I'm really glad I added the white ruffles.  This pillow turned out just like I hoped it would.

Now are you ready for some linky fun?  Head over to Gwenny Penny and link up anything LOVE-ly.  We can't wait to see what you've done.

XOXO,

Amy
Linked up to the Be Mine Bonanza link party with At Home with K. Also linked to the Saturday seven at Positively Splendid. Partying with Creations by Kara at her Look What I Made linky.

Do Your Best Block

I was recently asked to be an assistant Den Mother in my son's Wolf Den in Cub Scouts.  I am excited to be involved with him in this fun adventure, but I have to admit, learning the scouting "ropes" is like learning an entirely new language.  I don't understand half of what they're talking about in meetings, but I'm hoping I'll learn quickly. ;)
We have a pretty large den- 10 boys now.  With many of them just barely joining our den, we decided it would be a good idea to help them get their Bobcat right off in our Den.  But, since not all of them need their Bobcat, we thought it would be fun to have a project all of them could take home- even the more 'seasoned' scouts in our den.  This is what me made:

It's the Cub Scout Motto and it's something all scouts should know.  We thought it would be a fun reminder the boys could keep in their rooms.  (plus, it's a pretty good motto even if you're not a scout ;) )  We cut 4" blocks from a 2X4, sanded them and then let the boys get to work.  The painted them blue and then used glue sticks to glue down the letters we had cut from cardstock using a Cricut.  It might be easier to use vinyl, but we were trying to keep costs down.
The boys seemed pretty happy with them, which is what really matters. :)
xoxo,
Amy

Prepared {Mom-day

My living room is a mess.  We are currently finishing our basement so all my fabric and craft supplies now reside in my front room.  It drives me crazy, but this one is having a blast! :)

I'm sure by now you have all seen the "one word" resolutions all over blogs and the internet this month.  I thought- "Wow, that sure sounds a lot easier than making specific goals I'll probably never do but feel really guilty about." 
As it turns out- it is just as easy to slack on your "one word" resolution as it is the more specific kind. :)
But before I whine about all the reasons I have fallen behind in my goals, I will tell you why I chose my word in the first place.
  This Christmas did not go as planned.  Not even a little bit.  We only planned 4 activities for the season- one for each child.  Seems easy enough to follow through with, right?  Um we got to 1 of them. :(  Turns out I was pregnant and didn't know it, but still, I felt awful that I didn't make the season all that it could be.  Christmas at our house is followed quickly by two birthdays.  My husband is used to getting the short end of the after-Christmas budget, but my 3 year old was expecting a BIRTHDAY!  I couldn't help but think if I only started sooner with all of this stuff, I might have avoided the stress and worry and just enjoyed each of these celebrations.  So much of my life is spent flying by the seat of my pants, putting things off until the last minute before I give them the attention they need.
So, as I thought about my word for the year, I thought- it would just be nice to be prepared for things, instead of just reacting to them.
And thus it became- "my word".  Prepared.  It has a nice ring to it doesn't it?  To me it sounds like organized, on top of things, calm, ready.  It is what I want to be.
And now, throw in the wrinkle of the aforementioned unplanned pregnancy, and Prepared has a whole new meaning.  I want to be prepared physically (will be again delivering naturally), mentally (5 kids terrifies me- I need a game plan), and emotionally (my husband is my Rock- I need to nurture that relationship so it can support me through the crazy after baby hormones that wreak havoc on me) so I can thoroughly enjoy this last little baby of mine.
Not to mention the rest of my life.  Christmas is huge for me- I want it to be magical and special and meaningful for my children.  This will require preparation.  Birthdays, holidays, LIFE- to be lived, enjoyed, relished!  Being prepared is the key.
Now, we all know a goal without a plan is just a wish.  So now I need a plan.  Lots of plans in fact.  I am planning a "Christmas all year through" event here on the blog.  Nothing fancy or too specific, but I hope to have inspiration and motivation to be on top of things before next year rolls around.  I am making plans (as soon as the yucky first trimester stuff goes away) to have a regular "working" schedule, where I make inventory for future boutiques and sales opportunities so I'm not under the gun as soon as I sign up for an event. 
All of this involves thinking ahead, planning and preparation.  Not to mention follow through.  So that's why I'm writing this here, in public, for all of you to see.  So I have more motivation to keep this 'on top of things' attitude going.  :)  Call me on it, ask me how it's going from time to time, chide me if I'm slacking.  And if you have a goal you're working toward, and need a little bullying to get it done- I'm your girl. ;)
Have an awesome Monday.  And don't forget- Point of View is THIS WEEK.  Please don't ask me about my project, I told you, I'm still in the planning stages of this prepared thing. ;)  But the theme is LOVE and we would LOVE to see anything you think relates to the theme (it's a very loose interpretation of the theme we have- so if it's just something you LOVE, come link it up on Friday)
Have an awesome day!
xoxo,
Amy