Pretty up your switch plates and outlet covers

Ferris took a long nap this morning so I decided to something I've been meaning to do for ages - make the switch plates and outlet covers pretty. I've done this before with paper from magazines, but the ink just doesn't hold up to sunlight and the fading becomes really obvious...something I wouldn't mind except that it happens more with some colors than others, and it just looks all blotchy. This is much neater and easier to do with fabric anyway.

What you need:
switch plate or outlet cover
piece of fabric at least 4" x 5.5" (or larger if you have a double or triple or whatever)
scissors
Xacto knife
tacky glue (or your other favorite glue...I like tacky, oh yes)
Small paint brush for applying glue

How to:
Take your brush and apply glue fairly liberally to the front of your switch plate or outlet cover.
Place switch plate or outlet cover on your piece of fabric.Like my sketch? I thought so.
Next, clip the corners of your fabric diagonally close to the corners of your switch plate or outlet cover. This will help avoid bulk in the behind of it all.Next, apply glue to the back edges of the switch plate or outlet cover and fold the fabric over and around.
Then use the Xacto to cut some neat lines in your fabric where the switch or outlet would be. Apply glue to the edges around the holes, and pull the fabric over and around.

Let dry. When it's all set, use the Xacto to stab the holes where the screw holds the switch plate or outlet cover into the wall, install and enjoy!Fancy, eh?

Let's See

Many things...

Ferris had his first birthday.


It is amazing to experience the growth of this little being from barely conscious newborn to the little person that he is. I can't think of anything that compares to it. The only thing that could make it better would be a change of scenery. Our apartment just isn't a good fit for our family now, and not just because it's an apartment, but it being in the "city" doesn't help. Manchester is just not really a city anyway as it lacks whatever advantages would usually be found in that type of location and yet has all the disadvantages of living in a suburb to boot. We've hit our saturation point of dealing with all the compromises of living here and just really need to get out.

I've hardly had a chance to draw but I have done some things...


This I came up with for a contest on Spoonflower with the theme of Civil Rights Toile. The civil rights part I have, women's suffrage, the toile not so much. But I like it and have already adapted it for t shirts. It's the closest thing I've done to art recently, anyway, and I'm pleased. Eventually I hope to get the paints out but I fear that once we put up the easel we'll be told to take it down by whoever is trying to sell our apartment. We will see, I can't depend on having the time or inspiration for it anyway.

We've been watching too much tv. It is unfortunately one of the things that calms Ferris. He doesn't watch much but likes the noise. He used to like music more, but I think he likes the sounds of people talking and the things going on. I think I've now seen Toy Story more times than I can count, and what's fun about having stopped my postpartum medication is that I'm a blubbering mess at all the sad parts. In a kids movie! Things are just oh so sad when you're a toy I guess.

Long time....

I've neglected the blog of late, and I can tell you why: my baby does not sleep. I half expected it, I've always been an insomniac, my brothers and I would stay up in our beds long past being tucked in at night. My husband, on the other hand, is a champion sleeper. I'm amazed at the amount of sleep he can rack up in a night, and then take a nap. I had hoped that the two sides would even out in our son, but it just isn't the case. So life in general has been a sleep-deprived haze, and I'm coming to terms with it as something that I'll just have to deal with until he's old enough to at least entertain himself long enough to fall asleep at night.
We've also had so much to get done around the house. Re-arranging, baby-proofing, re-decorating. It's all been stressful but satisfying. The house is just beginning to become what I envisioned six years ago when we decided to buy it, and of course, we are hoping to move within the next couple of years. We want Ferris to have a yard to play in, and there just isn't a satisfying park nearby. At least I'll get to enjoy the results while we wait.

So Ferris had his first Halloween! It was adorable. We had planned on taking him trick-or-treating, but his mood just didn't allow. We got some great pictures, though...



mmm....leafy!

Flags

My current obsession: bunting flags. I think they are just too adorable and fun. I love the triangle ones but also the square ones that are like prayer flags. Earlier this year I made this set for Ferris' room:
I used swatches and scraps to make this one and I love how colorful it is. Turns out it's a little long, but not too bad.
My newest project has become printing flags on the garment printer to be used specifically for making these bunting garlands. Hence, the first example:Gnomes and mushrooms. I am in love with this set. It only has six flags but it's still 4 feet long. I listed it in my etsy shop but I am very tempted to keep it. I suppose if it actually sells I can make another, and for now I can gaze at them all I want!

Also, I'm quite obsessed with all things Montessori right now. I know my guy isn't quite old enough for a lot of it yet, but at the rate I've been getting things done I just might have my research and supplies ready about the time that he will be. I can't wait, I think I'm going to have a lot of fun learning along with him.

Sunday

It was a rainy Sunday yesterday, and it was actually kind of nice to hole up with the family and just do little things around the house. Though some things were not so little, like getting the paint up in Ferris' future room. It's almost there now, I just need to do one more top coat. It's a lovely, buttery light yellow. I can't wait to put up all the cute things for him and make it a nice space for him to spend his time.I came out from painting the room at one point to find this:

so sweet

So I also recently bought this cook book:

Would you even know that I'm trying to diet? I still have pregnancy weight and my little guy is 8 months old! It's probably because I can't stop trying out things like this! There's nothing like a recipe that uses an entire pound of butter to ruin my plans. I love butter. I seriously, seriously love butter.
Anyway...here's my finished product:

zucchini spice cake whoopie pies with honey lemon buttercream

So, yes, they are delicious. The recipe I used for the cake part was actually for pumpkin spice cake, but I had a squash/zucchini thing and and thought, how can I take this healthy, fresh gourd and make something completely unhealthy? They are just lovely to eat, though and they took 2 hours to make, so maybe I can write off some of the time making them as calories burned? Yeah, right.

Re-working

Well, the computer crashed horribly last week. So badly that we had to get another one. During this time I had been very caught up in compter-ized designs for tshirts and fabrics. Nothing wrong with all of that and I get a lot of pleasure from those things, but, those still feel very much like work these days. Not always, sometimes it's a load of fun and it's great for when my brain is just not wandering in the ways that it normally does.
The incident prompted me right back into 'traditional' art again. As traditional as I get, though I doubt I would ever be accepted into any group of artists that would identify themselves with the word. Either way, I feel renewed in a way that I haven't in a long time.
Results:

Model Home

Our home is far from precious. It's been a work in progress since we moved in. It's an apartment style condo that used to be a rental, so wear and tear is a given. So much work to be done and so little time and money. I try to keep my humor about it and I was able to whip this up as a nice little touch the other day:

Remember The Money Pit? I always loved that quote.

The pattern and tutorial came from here:

http://sewing.about.com/od/christmasideas/ss/fabricwreath.htm
I'm sure there are others out there that aren't christmas oriented but really I just clicked on the first one I saw!