Fashion would never be the same with vintage patterns and fabrics for .25 cents.

There i was on my country road side driving towards South Carolina for my family trip to stay at a cabin on Lake Barnwell with my husband and my son. We have lots of fun but as always I have to do the mandatory stop at the local thrift shops. Is like going to the surprise place where you can find all kind of stuff you wont expect anywhere else. And you will end up paying almost nothing. That was exactly what happen.  

When I stop in the first thrift store I found lots of clothes that were super cheap and in great shape. When I went to the back of the store guess what they have? an entire rack full of old patterns 25 cents each! I did my day. Patterns this days are expensive. About $12-$15 each  and a good vintage pattern with all its parts in my size for 25 cents is a gift.  I found buttons  zippers, closures, pins and all kind of sewing stuff for almost nothing. Thrift stores always have something you need for less money. Stop there and shop around.

Another place to find cheap patterns new ones and vintage is e-bay. They will sell you single patterns and lots for almost nothing. You just have to be creative and adapt the patterns to your stile. Most of the vintage stiles now are in fashion. Some of them are classics that will never run out. I am all about saving money specially now that I'm a stay at home mom and my income is lower. Depending only on my husband income have been a big challenge. specially for me that i have been working all my life since I am 16 years old. Since I got injured in the military and i cant work. Now is a challenge to find ideas on how to save. So this just came like form the heaven. I just need Ideas of where to find cheaper fabrics cause where i leave we have just jo-anns and walmart they are good but not the cheapest places to buy. The thrift stores don't have fabrics when i go there. So if you have any ideas you are more than welcome to share them with me......Please....

Everyone expects everything done by five o'clock. Tick, Tock.....Keep moving on with what is on your trunk!! Smart ideas for busy life at any age

Everyone expects everything done by five o'clock. Tick, Tock.....Keep moving on with what is on your trunk!! Smart ideas for busy life at any age.

There is so many ways you can be the girl who go to a date at night with the look out of a fashion magazine instead of having the look of .....UPS! I have been screw at work all day! Or the one who have a date or a dinner after work looking all sweating and crazy or looking like.... there she is! But it depends on how your day have been. Been honest, there is days.... That even if you do your best at work NOTHING will save you from working extra. But just BREATHE. Those days wont be every day!!PINKY PROMISE!! And the goal is to go from an office disaster to a casual look and survive the day like a pro. I can say that even in combat i wear makeup with a nice pull back hair until the day i retire. Like hundreds of other female soldiers we do the best with what we got. Girls would be girls. So do you! If you dont believe me here is my pic. Both on the same day. Not my best one, but hey i walk it through thanks to the box in my trunk....  ;-) 

The Large bag

from micro bag... go big. SERIOUSLY Is what is fashionable plus it will help you carry what you need from your trunk to your bathroom. That doesn't mean over load it and look like your are carrying a dead body in your bag. But you will see what I mean in a minute. You have needs and that is what your bag is for. Do you have a gym at work? with showers and everything available? or just a multiple toilet bathroom? depending on what kind of facilities you have then you have to choose what you will bring from your trunk to your work area in you bag. Is that simple. 

The Makeup Bag

• Make sure is washable in case of any accidents
• Pick one large enough for your cosmetics
• If you find one with multiple pockets or simple to organize brushes that would be a plus. 
• Do not store medicines with make up.  

http://sewlikemymom.com/cosmetic-bag-tutorial/

Unless you are one of the million of women who wake up late an put makeup on the way to work. In the car on a traffic light....How do i know this? Because i use to do this until i retire from my job in the Army! And that is a long time doing it! Please! I have something better for your ears. It is better to drive focused, arrived earlier, and have 5 minutes to run to the bathroom and put makeup before the work rush start up. I know we never think about having accidents on the way but i did look back and i did have many while i was on my make up duty. Of course i blame the other person! NOT A NICE THING TO DO AT ALL!

What to put in it?

• Compact powder
• Blush
• One multi-color Eye shadow set with as many colors you want small enough to fit your makeup bag.
• Lip gloss.
• Mascara
• One Dark Brown eye liner.
• Concealer
• Small bottle with perfume.
• Small bottle of hair gloss
• Small zip lock bag with bobby pins, hair clips, hair bands.
• One natural color nail polish

**If you use a base like dermablend or any other extend use base you wont have to re apply your base and powder during the day. So you don't need to carry the bottles with you. you might carry eye shadow and lip gloss just to change your appearance but you wont have to retouch your makeup at all.

**Remember this is for a retouch. You should put make up at home. If you didn't then you need a large make up bag and bring the entire make up set. Make sure your makeup is not expired and everything fit on your makeup bag!!!

What is in your trunk?

The large plastic box:

Every car should have their equipment in case you have a flat tire or something happen on the road; you or someone else can help you fix any issues with the car. That is the smart thing to do. But when it comes to your personal life it is smart too to be ready for any situation. 

Do you have your own emergency kit? A simple plastic box from any store should be in your trunk as an emergency kit. I carry a large one cause I have to carry things for an entire family. (wish will be my next blog.) If you are a single person a small or medium box will be fine. It looks like you will put a lot of stuff in your box but if you lay it down in your bed you will see that actually is not. What to put on it is simple and it depends on your expectations.  Play always the What if....game and that's what should be in the box. 

Your age determine a lot about the box too. a 24 year old girl who is single might be ask to go out after work. So her what if could be different than a 55 year old married woman with kids.  One could be ask to go out for dinner while the other could be ask to go out for a church meeting. Or a school play.  Here are some general Ideas of what you can have with you in general. Some others are Ideas for the box in your trunk. We also will like to hear your personal ideas. 

The emergency box

Just a smaller box that can fit inside the trunk box. Fill it with band aids  alcohol pads, gauze, headache medication (just one or two pills remember if medications stay in your trunk you must replace them often one or two doses is enough for an emergency until you get home or hospital, anti diarrhea medication, peptobismol, cold pack, hot pack) you name it and you will find it. The dollar tree store is one of the best places to find this stuff for cheap prices.

The weather bag

Is just a Large zip Lock bag (why i say ZIP LOCK because as i say before i use to be in the military and from all my deployments and travels i can say i never wore a dirty or wet uniform ever!! thanks to Zip Lock bags. I use to be In the Air Force as a 4NO and in the army as a 68W Jumping out of air plains or walking in the heat all my uniforms and boots were always inside of Zip Lock bags. They come in Sizes You wont believe. So don't play the game of my clothes will smell like trunk or my shoes will be stained. Because they won't. Buy a large Zip Lock bag put a sweater or light jacket and a pair of socks if is winter time if is summer time change it for some shorts and t-shirt. Remember this will stay in your trunk. So dont put your favorite set on it. Just a regular one that will make you look casual. In case you need it. Running shoes will be a plus if you are a sport fan.

Personal hygiene box

Another small box that can fix in the large plastic box. The toiletry items we are talking about are travel size toiletry. Soap, Razor, Body cream, Hair Brush, Deodorant, Tooth brush, Tooth paste, Travel size body spray, towel, tweezers  travel size flat iron or curler etc. 

Casual outfit bag

Is exactly that a zip lock bag with an outfit that you will wear anywhere. A casual outfit? Jeans.... They go everywhere! with the right compliments of course. if you add some high hills and a nice shirt, jacket and accessories. More casual? maybe a cotton shirt and boots. There are millions of options.  But don't put in the bag your best outfit. Remember it will stay in your trunk. A knit shirt or some fabric that wont wrinkle would be the best option. Some jeans with a casual jacket... the options are multiple. Set it with a pair of gorgeous sandals and put it with a zip lock bag so it doesn't get mess up or stained.

Food hmmm snacks.... 

Is true.... once is in your reach you will eat it. So be honest and stack you office, back pack, purse, and vehicle with healthy choices. Is not that I am not guilty of snack attack! but when you are in a hurry... and must of us are must of the time. You will eat what you have. Buy it. have with you. You will see the difference.But for this you will need a small cooler of course!!

I will mention some of them but i will sugest you to go to this site http://www.whfoods.com/foodstoc.php

That way if you get hungry you can grab something healthy when you are on the way

Apples     Almonds      Cashews     Cheese, low-fat      Eggs      Milk, 2%, cow's
Milk, goat     Yogurt     Flaxseeds     Olive oil, extra virgin     Peanuts
Pumpkin seeds     Sesame seeds     Sunflower seeds     Walnuts     Apricots     Bananas
Blueberries     Cantaloupe     Cranberries     Figs    Grapefruit     Grape     Kiwifruit
Lemon/Limes     Oranges     Papaya     Pears     Pineapple     Plums     Prunes

Raisins     Raspberries     Strawberries     Asparagus     Avocados     Beets     Bell peppers     Broccoli    Brussels sprouts     Cabbage     Carrots     Cauliflower     Celery     Collard greens     Cucumbers
Eggplant     Fennel     Garlic      Green beans     Green peas    Kale    Leeks     Mushrooms, crimini
Mushrooms, shiitake     Mustard greens     Olives    Onions     Potatoes     Romaine lettuce
Sea vegetables     Spinach     Squash, summer     Squash, winter     Sweet potatoes
Swiss chard     Tomatoes     Turnip greens     Yams      Watermelon

Lots of Water!!!

THE BIG LESSON FOR CRAFTERS. BE CAREFUL WITH WHAT YOU SHARE. SOMEONE MIGHT STEAL YOUR IDEAS AND PRESENT THEM AS THEIRS....

cheated on Pintrest.... What a turn off!! what am i going to do with the chicken and the egg?

There i was fulfilling my addiction to the most awesome website ever known. I think i log my self to Pintrest three, four, five times a day. What is new? Decor, Crafts, Fashion, Photos,etc After having a Bachelor degree in communications (that i never use) because i decide to be a soldier. Now that i am retired Pintrest is that website who fill that passion in me. With creative new ideas. That make my heart skip a beat. 

But the dream didn't last too long when suddenly i got in contact with this other website. Heap Sugar Network: 

I KNOW EVERYTHING IS IN CHINESE.... I KNOW YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND ANYTHING AND LIKE ME YOU START FEELING LIKE A CHEATED WIFE WHO IS ABOUT TO FIND OUT SOMETHING BIG. (BUT DON'T WANT TO BELIEVE IT SO I LOOK AT THE PICTURES AND SOME OF THEM LOOK FAMILIAR. AND JUST WHEN I WAS ABOUT TO CLOSE THE WEBSITE CAUSE IT WAS IN CHINESE. GOOGLE CHROME ASK ME.... DO YOU WANT TO TRANSLATE TO ENGLISH? AND I HIT YES! ....

http://www.duitang.com/home/

From there my life would never be the same. All those Pins that i share in Pintrest most of them are from the chinese website. Picture by picture, word by word, art by art, wish cause me to have an EGG moment in my life. Who did this first? Who is the author? Who is the artist? All this time following all this ladies because like my grandmother and my mother they were master crafters and ..... here it is..... in the other side of the world there is some one who claim doing the same work. It is impossible Half of the pintrest population is related to the China heap sugar Population..... so what ever it is.... someone break my egg. And i wish to know who came first The Chicken or the Egg? Are the Chinese crafters the original ones or the American ones? You can be the judge..... Like this one That i love and i did a baby shower with it because is beautiful. 

tissue rosette kissing balls

You can find the instructions for this gorgeous craft int the american blog: http://www.theidearoom.net/2011/01/tissue-rosette-kissing-balls.html

Or its chinese version here: http://www.duitang.com/people/mblog/49236928/detail/

My opinion, I vote that the chinese people stole this from Ms Amy Huntley and her Idea room. The date on her blog is older than the chinese one. and her post have a complete detailed explanation of how to do this. It is totaly shameful because she is the mother of five kids! with a husband who travels. 

the paper flower

this one is easy to spot .... (hint)the instructions are in chinese....

http://www.nextot.com/pic-5172.html

Just to mention an example.If you go to Pintrest and at the same time to the Heap Sugar Network (the chinese website) you will find that there is lots of similar post. I play the drama about the Chicken and the Egg I really don't care who did it first. Because maybe none of them did. Crafts and art is like history. Is passed generation by generation from elders to young people. Someone teach you the crafts you know today. That is how i learn the millions of crafts that i know. Crafts, art and history tell the story of a person. What they like, where they have been, who they have meet, etc. It is ok to share your crafts that is the purpose of most of this websites. That is the main purpose of this blogs. We live in a society where old crafters are dying with the knowledge in their hands. Because technology do everything so easy. School don't teach manual labor or crafts anymore.We have kids graduating as doctors but  don't know how to boil an egg or put back a button in a shirt.

What is wrong with this websites is to not give credit to the people who did the effort to pass on a knowledge. If you learn something from someone just say it. mention it. I learn this from .... And that's it.  Because is very disrespectful for somebody to wake up some day an realize that his work that is a family tradition is somewhere else claimed by somebody else that you don't even know. That, is called STEALING.  Who stole what? from who? That would be Gods work to do (or the pertinent authorities) and all the people doing it conscience. But is very disappointing to see it. It takes credibility out of the person. What this two websites prove is that we can't believe all we see but we must try to be as honest as we can and every time we craft. Give credit to who ever deserve the credit. Some other people Offer amazing ideas and their Pins are just link to spam but those are more easy to catch than the other ones.  

Hoping tomorrow i don't appear in China...... unless someone buy me a ticket for a family vacation. I will love my words create some conscience on this issue.  :-)

HOW TO GIVE A NEW LOOK TO AN OLD TABLE

HOW TO GIVE A NEW LOOK TO AN OLD TABLE

THE $25.00 FAMILY FOOTREST!!  TIRED OF THAT OLD TABLE? GIVE IT A NEW LOOK. MAKE IT AN OTTOMAN, FOOT REST OR JUST CHANGE THE COLOR OF THE TOP. THIS ONE GOES DEDICATED TO MY STEP MOM WHO TEACH ME HOW TO UPHOLSTER FURNITURE :)

 THIS IS OUR FINAL RESULT FROM THIS SCRATCHY OLD TABLE

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        I STARTED WITH AN OLD TABLE THAT I LOVE AND DIDN'T WANT TO GET RID OF. IT WAS A STURDY TABLE WITH A SMALL DRAWER BUT WITH LOTS OF SCRATCHES. I DIDN'T WANT TO DO THE TRADITIONAL STAINED METHOD SO I DECIDE TO MAKE IT A FAMILY FOOT REST FOR MY BIG SECTIONAL IN MY LIVING ROOM.  I START WITH TWO YARDS OF FABRIC AND  1 1/2 YARD OF 1" FOAM FROM JOANS AT 50% OFF. 

I CUT THE EDGES OF THE FOAM BASED ON THE EDGES THE TABLE

 (THIS PART IS OPTIONAL. DO NOT DO THIS PART WITH THIN FABRICS. )

MEASURE AND MARK THE PLACES WHERE YOU NEED THE BUTTONS. PLACE A DOT OF GLUE IN EVERY X WHERE I WAS GOING TO PLACE A BUTTON.

THEN PLACE THE FABRIC NEATLY ON TOP OF IT. MOST OF THE GLUE WILL BE ABSORBED BY THE FOAM BUT SOME OF IT WILL SEAL THE FABRIC TO THE FOAM ONLY IN THE AREA WHERE THE BUTTON GOES. THIS IS A QUICK WAY TO DO THE BOTTOM PLACEMENT. (MY WAY) THE REGULAR WAY IS TO DO IT WITHOUT THE GLUE. IF YOU ARE USING UPHOLSTERY FABRIC YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE ANY SIGNS OF GLUE IN THE OTHER SIDE OF THE FABRIC AT ALL BECAUSE OF THE THICKNESS OF THE FABRIC. THE GLUE 

WILL BE USED AS A GUIDE OF WHERE TO PUT THE BUTTONS. ONCE THE FABRIC IS ON TOP YOU WONT BE ABLE TO SEE THE MARKS. YOU WILL NEED TO CUT SIX SQUARES FROM ANY HARD  MATERIAL. I TOOK MINE FROM A CHRISTMAS PLASTIC BOX.

 .

IT CAN BE A SMALL PIECE OF CARDBOARD BOX OR ANY MATERIAL THAT YOU CAN PUT IN THE BACK OF YOUR FOAM AND UTILIZE TO GIVE YOUR THREAD SOME RESISTANCE WHEN YOU SEW FROM ONE SIDE TO THE OTHER. .

THE FRONT SIDE OF YOUR FOAM WILL BE OK BECAUSE IT HAS FABRIC THAT THE THREAD WILL ATTACH TO; BUT THE BACK HAS NOTHING TO ATTACH TO AND IF YOU WANT YOUR BUTTONS TO LOOK LIKE THEY ARE MORE INSIDE THE FOAM YOU NEED SOMETHING TO GIVE SOME RESISTANCE TO THE THREAD. THAT WAY YOU CAN PULL THE THREAD

WHEN ALL THE BUTTONS ARE IN PLACE THEN IT IS TIME TO SECURE YOUR FABRIC TO THE TABLE. GRAB YOUR TOOLS AND FLIP YOUR TABLE. A GOOD STAPLER, A CHILDREN'S CRAYON (THEY ARE CHEAP AND THEY ARE ERASABLE!) THEY ARE MY BEST FRIEND IN ANY KIND OF PROJECT AND A GOOD PAR SCISSORS.

REMEMBER YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE A PROFESSIONAL UPHOLSTER BUT YOU ARE TRYING TO MAKE IT LOOK AS GOOD AS POSSIBLE. SO ONCE THE TABLE IS LAYING FLAT ON AN EVEN SURFACE. YOU WANT TO PULL ON ALL SIDES OF THE FABRIC AN MAKE SURE THE FABRIC IS NOT WRINKLED UNDERNEATH.  REMEMBER THE ONES WHO DID THE HOT GLUE TRICK? THEY HAVE AN ADVANTAGE... IF THEY PULL THE FABRIC AND NOTHING COMES OUT AND THE FOAM IS EVEN IN THE EDGES.....GUESS WHAT? YOUR FOAM AND YOUR TABLE ARE EVEN!!!! IT IS A NICE TRICK, BUT DOESN'T WORK WITH THIN FABRICS. NOW IT IS TIME TO MEASURE THE FABRIC. 

WHILE THE TABLE IS UPSIDE DOWN PULLING SNUGLY ON THE FABRIC MARK WITH YOUR WASHABLE CRAYON THE EDGE WHERE THE STAPLES SHOULD GO. NOT SURE WHERE TO PUT YOUR STAPLES? THEY SHOULD BE IN THE NON VISIBLE ROUGH AREA OF YOUR TABLE.WHEN IT IS UPSIDE DOWN. THAT WAY WHEN IT IT IS UPRIGHT, NO ONE WILL KNOW WHERE THE CLIPS ARE. WHEN YOU ARE DONE  MARKING YOUR FABRIC, CUT THE EXCESS MAKING SURE TO ADD ABOUT HALF AN INCH TO MAKE A FOLD.AND STAPLE IT TO THE WOOD. START FROM THE MIDDLE TO THE EDGES AVOIDING THE CORNERS OF THE TABLE.

THE CORNERS WILL LOOK LIKE THIS: PULL THEM UP AND CUT THE TIP TO MAKE THEM LOOK LIKE AN ENVELOPE LOOK AT THE IMAGE BELOW.

 FOLD THE TIP OF THE CORNER FABRIC AND STAPLE IT TO THE WOOD. PULL THE FABRIC NEXT TO IT AND STAPLE IT UNTIL ALL THE FABRIC IN THE CORNER IS TUCKED IN . 

 AND THIS IS THE FINAL RESULT OF OUR LOVELY FAMILY FOOT REST!!!