Feature Friday: General Conference ~ Something For Everyone

I don't typically share my beliefs here on my blog...that's not because they aren't important to me...but rather they are so meaningful that I tend to not want to share the intimacy of my testimony and beliefs on a whim.  My testimony is sacred to me, so I'm protective of it.
As you may know (from previous posts and my sidebar), I am a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  I'm a Mormon.

The Salt Lake Temple

You may or may not know that twice a year the people of my religion gather together to hear the teachings and counsel of our leaders.  We believe that revelation to man (and women, of course!) from God is still here on the earth.  We believe in living prophets.  We call this bi-annual meeting General Conference.  One of the most wonderful things about General Conference is that it is not exclusive to members of our church!  Anyone is free to watch, listen, and attend.  It is something I look forward to eagerly.  It's a way for me to refocus on the important things in life...and to be uplifted by the testimonies of others, that Jesus is the Christ, that He loves me, and that I can live with my family forever with Him.
Here is what one my favorite church leaders, Elder Jeffery R. Holland,  has said of General Conference:

I invite you to join me and my family as we learn more of the teachings of Jesus Christ and how to apply them in our own lives.  To learn more about General Conference, and to see when it will be available to watch, please CLICK HERE.
If you are interested in learning more about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, please visit HERE.

Things to Make: Refashioned Skirt to Dress Tutorial

I have this skirt.  It is made of the prettiest multi-colored cotton batik fabric.  It's loose and flowy.  I got it for $2 at a local clothing consignment shop.  And it's FRUMPY.
No really.
F. R. U. M. P. Y.
See?

Me.  Frumpy.  And just out of the shower...with no make-up on.  The ultimate before picture.

Sad, huh?
If there's anything a new mommy DOESN'T need it's to feel frumpy.  I mean I already feel frumpy enough...but add this skirt to the mix on a day when I'm supposed to be getting dressed up and looking cute?  Ugh.
So.
Someone told they saw a thing on TV where someone took a big flowy skirt and turned it into a cute dress instead.  Of course I wanted to give it a try!
Here's what I did:
Materials Needed:
Big, flowy, long drawstring skirt Sewing machine and thread Scissors
First I draped the skirt around my shoulders and tightened the drawstring to a comfortable neckline length.

Then I marked where I thought a good sleeve length would be...and I cut the skirt.

Next I put on the skirt/dress on and slipped my arms in the armholes.

I put it on inside out, and then I used safety pins and pinned the dress where I thought it should be taken in.

I sewed along the pins.

Then cut the excess fabric away.

I pinned the first side to the opposite side as a template; sewed and cut away the excess fabric.

I decided not to hem around the arms...I kinda like the frayed look of the fabric...so I just sewed round the armholes a couple of times, so the fraying wouldn't get out of hand!
I added a belt,  put on my make-up and and did my hair...
And voilá!

AFTER

A cute NON-FRUMPY dress made out of awesome multi-colored fabric...that I can still nurse in, thanks to the drawstring neckline!!  Plus it only took 10 minutes and cost $2!  Can't beat that!

WOOT!

Feature Friday: A little More About Me!

A couple of weeks ago I was featured on the LDS Etsy Team blog!  

In case you missed it here's a little link to my interview and a little more about me!

Me...Sporting my new 'do'!

Hope you have a great weekend!!

Great Idea: Keep Calm!

Ok... I'm jumping on the Bandwagon. I've had this idea swimming around in my head for months, and I finally just got over my trepidations and got it done. I'm now offering digital downloads of my latest creation in my shop! Here is my take on what I like to call the "Keep Calm Phenom."

You can order this in my shop and then print it out on iron on transfer paper right from your computer to put on whatever you'd like!   I think it would be perfect on a project tote bag or shirt....and would make a great gift for the knit or crochet enthusiast!  (I'm having my hubby help my kids make me one for Christmas...Yeah.  It's kinda cheating.  But at least I know I'll like it! lol)

I have it available in several colors, too!

To order this from my shop, CLICK HERE to see the listing in my shop! And if you'd like, you can download the file below FOR FREE, to add to your blog!

On a PC just right click and save the image to your desktop...or on a Mac hold the Option key as you click to save the image to your desktop.  Then just add it to your blog as a picture...or you can upload it to a photo site, like Photobucket, and save it as a button! Legal Mumbo Jumbo:

Design copyright 2011 by Sarah Anderson. 

THIS DIGITAL DESIGN MAY NOT BE RESOLD under penalty of law! DO NOT recopy, rewrite, redistribute or resell this digital file in any form as your own or otherwise!!! ***You are free to sell items made using this digital design, as long as credit is given to the designer, Sarah Anderson, for the design you used, by linking back to my shop as your source!*** Have fun!!

Pinterest Inspiration: Refrigerator Dill Pickles

We've been having a lot of fun harvesting our garden this year.  We've had a lovely little crop of cucumbers...but not enough to justify actually canning them.
So I went to Pinterest and found a recipe for refrigerator pickles in my Things to Eat pinboard!
This week's

is...
Refrigerator Dill Pickles!
Here's my inspiration:

Refrigerator Pickles from Food.com

And here's what we made! Instead of only using quart jars we've saved a couple of actual pickle jars and reused those to keep our homemade pickles in!  Here are the pickles before we added the brine....

And here they are after!

I added a little mustard seed to the recipe...and in one of the jars I also added some red pepper flakes for my hubby.
These are very flavorful and soooooo easy!!  The finished pickles have been crunchy...and super yummy!!!  This recipe is definitely a 'keeper!'  The recipe made almost a full quart of extra brine...so I stuck in the fridge, and we'll use it as we need to to make more yummy pickles!!  We may even try 'pickling' some other veggies, too!

Pinterest Inspiration: 5 Minute Bread!

I've been looking for a really GREAT (ie yummy, simple, and easy) bread recipe for quite some time.
So this week my 

is...

{Five Minute Bread}

from my Things to Eat pinboard.
And here's what I made:

Beautiful, huh?  And guess what?  Not only is it lovely to look at, but it was super yummy, very simple, and soooo easy!
Now... my hubby complained that it actually did take longer than 5 minutes...because, there was the rising, chilling, and baking before you could consume it...BUT the actual mixing really was less than five minutes...and the steps between rising, etc. were also really minute.  PLUS...it makes enough dough to make FOUR 1lb loaves!  (Which, let's be honest, only last for about two days tops in my home...)
In short:  I loved this bread.  It will definitely be a 'go to' recipe for me!

Things to Make: Stash-buster Crochet Scarf Pattern

This pattern has been moved to my new site!  It's still offered for FREE and you can get the instructions by visiting my new site HERE!

CLICK HERE to go to my Stash-buster Crochet Scarf Pattern!

Guest Posting At Maybe Matilda!

A {teensy tiny little bit} of my yarn stash!

Hey, everyone!
I'm doing a little guest post today over at my good friend Rachel's blog, Maybe Matilda!  Perhaps you've heard of it?  I thought so.  
She's AWESOME, huh?
Well...head on over to check out my post on YARN SELECTION TIPS - up today!!
And you won't want to miss out on her fun new CROCHET-ALONG!!!  So check out all the details while you're there!!
Have a fantastic weekend!!

Pinterest Inspiration: Pipe Cleaner Fairies

I wanted to try out one of the projects I have pinned in my Things for Kids pinboard, this week!  My oldest daughter has been sewing tiny little fairy clothes, books, and bedding since the last week of summer vacation!  I thought this would be a perfect activity for the two of us...and of course the other kids wanted to join in the fun, too!
My

this week is:

Bendy Dolls by The Enchanted Tree

And here's what my kids and I made!

 The heads of the first fairies we made were a bit big...I only had jumbo wooden beads on hand - which was just fine for my younger kids!  (Even my son wanted to make one!  His is the red-head with the scars on his forehead...what a boy!)

We decorated them with tiny felt outfits, fake flower petals, and rhinestones ... cuteness!!

After we made the first group my oldest daughter and I went to the store and got some smaller beads...I only have one of the tiny fairies in the pics, but these ones' heads were were much more proportionate!

I had to man the hot glue gun for the kids, but they had fun wrapping their fairies bodies, making clothes and helping pick out hair colors! 

We'll definitely be doing this activity again!

Great Idea: On a Misson...

For the past week I've been on a mission.  A mission to regain some freedom.
I'm a wife and mother.  I'm a Stay-At-Home-Mom.  I'm an entrepreneur and business owner.  I'm an artist and illustrator.  I'm also a chef, chauffeur, housekeeper, nurse, music teacher, law enforcement officer, teacher, and food source.
I like being all of these things.  They're what make me who I am.  But sometimes I feel like some of those personas start to take over.  Sometimes I feel like my housekeeping side never gets a break.  And then the Crank Monster comes to live at my house...I get crabby.  And not so nice.
Lately I have been feeling so overwhelmed by all of the 'things' I have to do.  I realized that a big part of that was actually just the stuff that had accumulated around us.  Too much stuff.
So this week I decided I'd had enough of the emotional and physical stuff weighing me down, and I started to de-junk.  
Following much of the advice that Katie (from The Red Kitchen) has been giving in her series, Living With Less, I started sorting out unnecessary 'things'...including guilt.
I went through the kitchen, the toys, the kids' clothes, my clothes, the books, even my craft room *gasp*...and do you know what happened?
I feel great.  I feel lighter.  I feel happier.  I've realized that I'm a happier mommy, wife, and person when I'm not so stressed out.  When I can concentrate on doing things that important AND on things that are fun.  When we have a schedule in place.
And...
So does the rest of my family.  Things they thought they couldn't live without are gone...and they don't miss them.  There have been fewer arguments.  There has been time to do the fun stuff.
So tomorrow we're having a yard sale...and completely getting rid of all of this:

And I couldn't be happier!