Always a Project

I've never done much beading, or jewelry making for that matter.

And, it's sorta hard to know what you need for your projects if you don't know the name of the parts you're looking for!

After much research, I now know that jewelry making "parts" are called "findings."

{Um... why?}

Seriously, I must be Googling the wrong terms because I just can't seem to find the techniques that I'm looking for.

After pinning this beautiful necklace by Le Fanciulle, I went in search of the perfect beads to make my own.

I knew I was looking for seed beads, but what size??!!! There are a million options! Who measures in millimeters?! And how many would I need?

{I was nearly burned out on the project before it even began.}

But, then I had a special moment... I opened up one of my dresser drawers and found this belt made of the perfect beads!! They were right under my nose the whole time!

And, clearly, I don't use this belt (I didn't even remember that I owned it) so it was fair game! I grabbed my scissors and some extra thread and set to work.

I didn't have a lot of luck "weaving" my "hanks" {huh?} like La Fanciulle demonstrated, but I'm not displeased with the results.

I love the look of burnished metals so this is a necklace that I can wear with a lot of my existing jewelry.

And, in case you're curious, I found the findings {he-heh...}at Joann's.

So, mark one more project off of my endless list!

I've pinned quite a few beading projects that I'd love to tackle, but I have no idea how to locate what I need - from techniques to closures. Can anyone recommend some great beading and jewelry making sites?

Thanks, friends! Have a great weekend!

I just wanted to share a few recent photos of our garden. We're still harvesting summer veggies, but we've planted for winter!

And, my jar lid wreath is weathering beautifully!

I'm a long time customer of Keurig. I absolutely love, love, love my machine! So, I jumped at the chance to host a House Party for Keurig's newest brewing system, Vue.

But, honestly... how could they really improve on perfection?

Well, they did.

The Vue system is astounding! You can select the strength of your coffee, create café beverages with fancy froth, and brew over ice! Like your coffee "extra hot?" Vue's got you covered!

As a House Party hostess, I received a Keurig Vue system, six boxes of coffee, delicious cookies, an apron, after-coffee mints, and all of the necessities for hosting an amazing coffee break for my friends.

But what's a party without a fun activity?

I've been dying to experiment with decorating mugs with Sharpies, as seen on A Beautiful Mess. So, I incorporated a little crafting session into my party.

We each picked our favorite coffee quote... well, except for Patrick, who chose to rebel... and set to work!

We had such a great time!

Get in on the House Party action! Head on over to their site and apply to host a party today!

Happy brewing!

I cannot tell you how blessed I was last night to spend time with my oldest son... crafting!

He purchased a "super cool" bracelet while we were out and about yesterday. He was so inspired by it that he came home and wanted to learn how to make it himself!

So, he went straight to "ha yoo"... "ya woo"... "yoo hoo"...

"What's it called, mommy?"

"Um... Google."

He found a great tutorial on YouTube for weaving "Survival Bracelets," which is a military-inspired technique, and that's what we did last night!

I started him out with craft lace because that's what we had available. I used some cotton cording that I had left over from a sewing project.

{As always... YAY for making something new out of something old!!!}

We had such a good time with it once we finally got going!

Check out how intently he's working on his project.

Totally precious.

Here are the results!

Of course, I had to get fancy-schmancy with mine and added a humongous button closure. I have to say - I would actually wear this out. Pinterest tells me that rope is fashion-current these days.

**smile**

So, here's the best part of our crafting adventure...

He wants to incorporate this activity into his birthday camp-out! What a fantastic creative project for little boys!

It's appropriate that they are called "Survival Bracelets" because I have been stressing over how to survive a house full of little boys!

I found this awesome pack of paracords for the boys to use.

Very masculine, n'est pas?

I love it when so many things come together in the perfect way!

I'll be honest.

I'm just not creative enough to be a scrap-booker. I humbly bow in the presence of those who are.

I gave it a good effort several years ago, but I just have no vision for how a page should be put together. I just sit there and stare at it.

I have a Silhouette that I've primarily used for fabric and vinyl cutting. But today, I used it to make creative birthday party invitations for my son.

And it was... So. Much. Fun!

I won't give you a play-by-play because the pics tell the story, but if you'd like some resources:

Fonts: Pinewood, Reprise Stamp
Art: Silhouette Online Store
Silhouette Print and Cut Tutorial

Dylan added the final touches by decorating the envelopes for his friends.

These didn't require the talent it takes to be a scrap-booker, but I'm proud of the way my paper crafting project came together.

Now, I'm off to plan the party!

We spent the holiday weekend camping.

Well, glamping, really.

I mean, can you really count enjoying television, air conditioning, refrigeration, and a microwave as camping?

**big grin**

I can tell you that I spent the weekend roughin' it with a cranky two-year-old!

Allow me to interpret...

"Why can't I climb the dangerous pile of rocks?"