Snowflake Garland

It's that time of year again!  It's exciting to think about all the time we get to spend with family and friends.

This week I get to spend time with my family for several days and I can't wait to see everyone!  Well.... almost everyone!

So what I have I been working on lately?  Of course!  Snowflakes!
I'm wanting to do do something different again and this year I am starting on getting more snowflake garlands out there to sell or maybe as a gift item.

Use the garland to decorate your tree, fireplace, windows, doors, cabinets and more!

This garland is approximately 4 ft long.

Each snowflake is 2 inches across.

Additional snowflakes can be added for additional cost.

The next set of snowflakes I am working on will be a little larger ones and dainter looking!  Can't wait until I am done!  See my Etsy shop for more listings available!  www.etsy.com/shop/amykempf

Cozy Cuddle Bunny Blanket

I decided to list this on Etsy!

It's been a long time since I have made something I feel like blogging about.  I really enjoy making something new to show others, but I am afraid since it's been so long since I posted last, I may not have anyone read this. 

Growing up I had a blanky that was my favorite.  I used to take it everywhere I go and I wouldn't sleep without it.  I always think that it is so sweet to see little one attach to something special.  I hope that this Cozy Cuddle Bunny Blanket will find a home soon.  I might become attached!

The original pattern I had gave directions for making eyes and a mouth, but I thought it was sweet without it.  I did think it needed something special to it so I stitched a flower to it.  The pattern I used was from Lion Brand.  It was alot of fun to work on! In fact it turned out a lot cuter then the pattern picture!

So what projects do you work on during the summer to pass time? 

Usually summers are much busier for me, but my son is in Summer School for a month so I am enjoying picking up my hobby again while my other one sleep.

Spring Has Sprung

While it may not be Spring yet, this hat I finished makes me think about all the wonderful things Spring has to offer.  Green grass, flowers, sunshine, fresh air, long walks.  I can't wait!

The flower is different then I have done in the past, but I think I really like it.  It reminds me of a dalia and reminds me of the things yet to come.

While my crocheting has slowed down since Winter is almost over, I am hoping to keep making these hats so that in the fall I have a supply to sell at a Craft Show. 

Premie Baby Hats

Baby Hat in Premie Size Available

As Lilies Sewing Dolls

Looking for a sweet gift to give to a little girl?  Check out Miss. Sarah's store at As Lilies Sewing!

Don't Forget! and Other Notes

Don't forget, I am having a give away until January 31, 2011.  See my post on http://craftersniche.blogspot.com/2011/01/all-moderncom-giveaway.html

I also wanted to mention that I am closing my Etsy Store on-line.  I decided it wasn't worth my time to have it, since I do orders for people I know and word of mouth.  I am currently changing the way my blog will look to show the design styles of the things I do the best.  At the top of the page you will see Home, My Store: Baby Hats, My Store: Canvas Hand Bags.  All you will need to do is click on those headers and you will be able to pull up all the styles of hats and bags that I can do.  There are limitless Color options and styles so I am not set on just one style.  I'll add photos as I do more of them so keep checking back!  I also have other things on hand that I need to sell, so I will add an additional page of things I have In-stock.  Will have to do that another time.  I am also going to offer a 10% referral fee to my customers.  If you refer someone to me, I will give you a 10% discount on a future purchase for your word of mouth referral.

When I first started I wanted to do review for people.  As I come across things I have personal knowledge of I will still post about those.  I find that a lot of fun and love giving people recommendations for others.

As always, thank you for taking time to read my blog!  I do love your comments, even though I am still trying to figure out how to respond to each comment made.  Any suggestions? :)

Oh Baby!

Today I am on cloud nine! 

The last few days have been so good.

You see we finalized our adoption with our son yesterday.

He all ready felt like our son,

but yesterday's formality with the judge made us feel like we are a family even more.

We have a special relationship with Jackson's birthmom, an open adoption. 

We love Jackson's birthmom.  

God certainly gave us more then we dreamed of.

As Jackson gets older it will be wonderful to see them develope a special relationship of their own.

Another reason for such a good day is that our Pastor and his wife are adopting a little baby girl too!

The baby is due soon, but there is something about adoption celebrations that get me all giddy inside!

I know how they are feeling... 

The anticipation.....

The worries...

The happiness you feel...

So today I am going to an Adoption Celebration!

So excited about that and my wonderful husband has taken the boys

and are going to go sledding at grandpa and grandmas!

I wanted to make something for the Adoptive Family.  I found out that our Pastor's wife likes Tangerine so I really wanted to add that color into the scheme.  Do you know how hard it was to find Tangerine yarn?  Most places didn't carry it.  So I ordered it.  The yarn itself was made out of recycled cotton shirts.  Pretty amazing!  But I decided to make the hats as neutral as possible and just add splashes of color.  The cream yarn I chose was really cool.  It is naturally caron called Spa, a silk soft bamboo blend.  Pretty nifty!  It is so soft and WW3.  I hadn't worked with something like that before and you do have to make adjustments to your pattern to make it bigger.  The hat with the tangerine flower needed to have added rows at the end to make it big enough for a new born infant.  I really couldn't tell you how many but I added enough to make it work.  I decided to single crochet a "ribbon" to weave in and out of the filet stitch to add a little more color to the hat.  I think it turned out nice.

For the next hat, I used a pattern from Leisure Arts called Fun Fashions for girls.  It has 14 crochet designs in sizes 2-6.  I have really enjoyed this book and have made quite of few things out of it, experimenting with yarns and adding finishing touches to it.  One of my favorite pattern in it was the Rose Motif hat.  I was curious if I used the cream yarn as the project above, if it would make the Rose Motif hat smaller to fit a newborn.  I was right!  I used a smaller hook size, G-6, and made the below hat smaller to fit an infant.

I also added one of Sylvers Designs Double Strap Booties to go with the hats using the same Spa yarn mentioned above.  I did make one change.  Since the yarn size would make the booty smaller in size, I used the size 1 pattern instead of the size 0 to make it fit a newborn. 

Interested in the booties and making them, visit Sylver's Designs Etsy shop for details.

Sylver Designs Review

I'm always on the look out for a good baby pattern to crochet something cute!  I found Sylver Designs  on Etsy.com a long time ago but never bought a pattern until we had a snow day recently and I wanted something different to do.  I really enjoyed looking at Sylver's patterns and admired how cute they were.  With so many differnt color options out there you can come up with some pretty cute baby booties and not have one alike!

What I like about Sylver Designs was how quickly I go my pattern.  I think I received it within 3-4 hours after paying for it by paypal.  I was eager to get it and try it out!   So I decided to make a pair of booties for someone I know having a baby soon.  Here is my finished product so you can judge for yourself.

Sylver Designs showed her pattern in two tone but I wanted to make

an all pink one to show how dainty the booties really can be!

A cute flower button makes it look even more precious!

I love that the booties will actually stay on the foot instead of slipping off as the baby moves.  You can make various sizes for different baby ages too which is great!

I definitely rate this pattern a A+!

So go ahead and check out her store at http://www.etsy.com/shop/sylver?ref=pr_shop

You will love what she has to offer!

Pure Soap

I don't know if you are like me, but I dread Winter. . .

Why?

'Cause I know that my hands will get so dry that it hurts. 

Even worse when you have little children around. . .

 You are constantly washing your hands every time you change a diaper,

get a snack, get their lunch, or wiping their little noses.

So what should you do?

I decided to try something new this year.  When I went home for Christmas my mother gave me some home-made soap she made.  One rose bar was made with coconut oil and olive oil and the other with avocado and coconut oil.

Before this I never really thought that home made soap could be better then the name brand we normally get.  Actually we use liquid soap for washing our hands, and it is usually the off brand with "aloe" in it.  But who's counting?

I decided to do a test one the soap and try my best to use my mom's soap every time I wash my hands.    The question I had was, "Would it dry my hands out as much as the liquid soap?  What is different about it?"

The difference I am finding after using the soap with olive oil and coconut oil is simply this:

1.  It lathers SOOO much better then regular soap.

2.  My hands are not drying out as much as they normal do.

3.  I am not having to use as much lotion to soften my hands.

So I simply had to ask my mom for the recipe.  She gladly complied.  I have yet to make this.  I just thought the process of soap making was a unique thing to me.  I would love to try this and hope one day I will.

Soap on left made with avocado and coconut oil.

Soap on the right made with coconut oil and olive oil.

Pure Soap

{depending on size of molds this recipe makes 6 rose bars and 1 bar soap}

16 ounces coconut oil

2.9 ounces lye {Sodium Hydroxide}

1/2 cup warm water.

Combine the lye-water and the fat; stir occasionally for one hour and forty minutes.  Add 1/4 cup hot tap water and stir for ten minutes.  Add another 1/4 cup hot tap water and stir until the soap is thick and smooth (a few minutes).

Time in mold:  24 hours

Place the soap in a freezer for 3 hours, then remove it from the molds.

Age: 3 weeks.  Why?  It needs time to age so that it will not burn you when you wash your hands.

You can make many cleaning products from Pure Soap. 

Spray cleanser

laundry powder

soft-scrub cleanser

toilet bowl cleanser

jewelry cleaner

**My mothers additional instructions:

Put newspaper on the area you are working.

Use stainless steel bowl and whip.

DO NOT use aluminum or you will have a very big mess.

Measure water and place in bowl.

Use a digital scale to measure lye and fat.

Pour lye into bowl with the water and stir till dissolved.

Place fat and or oil in next.

Stir fat till it is melted.

You may use other oils or fat but keep the total to 16 oz.

I use 8 oz olive oil and 8 oz coconut oil.  It makes a very good soap.

Also, I make avocado soap using 1.6 oz of avocado oil and the balance coconut oil.

Very important, add the lye into the water and not the other way around.

**Use cider vinegar to clean up or if you get some lye solution on you.

You can find your ingredients at Texas Natural Supply store.

Is Candle Making A Lost Art?

There is just something about candles that bring a warmth to our homes. 

Their scent tickles our nose.... 

The colors add pizazz to our living spaces. 

With so many shapes, sizes, and smells, candles are an affordable way to dress up our homes and show off our home's personality. 

So what do you think of when your see a home made candle?  One of my first memories of candle making takes me back to Silver Dollar City.  I used to love watching their candle makers dip the candles and walked around their shop to admire all the fun shapes they sold.  One of the fun shapes I recall is a Candle Sundae in a glass dish.  It really looked good enough to eat! 

I can't say I know too many people that make their own candles, but I do know at least one person.  My nephew, Caleb, started a candle making business this year and I wanted to make sure I got my hands on one of them.  My past experience with home made candles was disappointing.  I found they didn't have a strong enough scent, but I know my nephew and knew that he would not be in the business if his candles didn't smell just right.  So I decided to buy some from him hoping that I would not be disappointed.  You probably are asking, how did it turn out?  Well, I tested them.  They are perfect.  I am not a person that can handle an over powering scent.  Too strong of a scent makes my allergies flare.  These candles were exactly what I look for when buying candles.

So I decided to help my nephew out and let more people know about him and his product.


As I mentioned before, Caleb is my nephew and is 14 years old.  Caleb started his candle making business September 9, 2010 so that he could earn a little money on the side.  I always like to ask people what they have learned by doing their craft and he said that he has learned how to make votive candles and to get the scent just right.  I think that is a very important part.  No one likes buying a candle that doesn't smell when it is lit.  Caleb also mentioned the most challenging thing he had to learn was how to use the auto wick pins and putting them in just right.  He did a great job doing it.  The tops of the candles are smooth as can be and the centered just perfectly!

So how does he make them?   Here is what he said, "I use a Paraffin Soy Mix Wax, Zinc core wicks, liquid scents and dyes. I measure the wax then I melt it. As it is melting, I prepare the wicks, jars, and molds, scents, and dyes. I then add scents and dyes and stir for three minutes. Next, I pour the wax, add the wick, and let it harden."  It sounds so easy, but I know with any craft a steady hand and attention to detail is very important!


Caleb likes candle making because it is fun to do.  He even got to sell 3 jar candles in a weeks time!  Not bad for starting out!  I know how hard to get a home business going sometimes.   One can wait weeks or months or years before it takes off.  That's why it's important to let people know by word of mouth what you are doing.


I purchased Caleb's Cinnamon Apple Berry in a reddish pink color.  Cinnamon Apple is one of my favorite scents so that is what I ordered when I saw what options I had.  When I brought them home after Christmas, I decided to test it out right away. There are several things I liked about Caleb's candles. 

1.  The vibrant colors are so pretty.  
2.  The scents were strong enough and not overpowering.
3.  After burning the candle, the hot wax was not hot to the touch and would not burn little fingers that might get into them.
4.  You can mix and match your scent to the color.  You could definitely fool someone by having a vanilla scent to a green or reddish-pink color!

All three of those things were important to me and I am a very satisfied customer!

Here are some options for Caleb's Candles:

Scents:
Pomegranate Cider, Mulled Cider, Vanilla Macadamia Nut Coffee, and Cinnamon Apple Berry

Colors:
Reddish-pink, Apple Green, Brown, and Spiced Pumpkin

Price: {does not include shipping and handling}
14 OZ Jar with Candle= $8
2 OZ Candle= $1.30
Candle Votive Jar for 2 OZ candle= $0.75

If you or someone else would like to order a candle, you can contact Caleb by leaving a comment on his blog with your candle choice and address.   Tell them Amy sent you!

http://www.wolfbreath.blogspot.com 

Future Post:  Soap Making

Langley Metal Works Showcase

Recently I read an article about supporting your local businesses this year for Christmas.  While I love to do that, I usually don't find out about neat shops that not well known.  Today I wanted to give a shout out for a small business that deserves to be found.  My husband, Patrick, was recently looking for a gift idea for "someone" and found this unique shop.  Best part is... they were a local company that not too many people know about.  Or at least we didn't and some of the people Patrick works with didn't either.  I wanted to tell everyone about it because they have resonable cost items for someone that is looking for a unique gift.  They have a shop on etsy, http://www.etsy.com/shop/langleymetalworks?ref=pr_profile and also a personal web-site.  We purchased the above metal sign for $30 and just got it today.  The turn around time on this item was quick!  It is fabulous!  Go ahead and visit their personal web-site at http://langleymetalworks.com/mizzou-shop.html.  Let me know what you think.  Here is the picture of the finished product and we are thrilled with it!



Luxe Deluxe

This week Iwant to highlight a jewelry designer, Luxe Deluxe.  I know it is not exactly a show case, but I was impressed by what Luxe Deluxe has to offer and who couldn't love wedding jewelry?   Her shop is lovely and caters toward Wedding Bridal Jewelry with a Vintage twist.

I was introduced to this shop because I was in a wedding over the weekend and received a a beautiful necklace as a gift from Luxe Deluxe.  You can find her shop by clicking HERE .    Luxe Deluxe has beautiful, simple but very elegant design.  It definitely says vintage and I adore that!   With almost 8,000 in feedback with 100% positive feed back, who wouldn't want to check it out and see what she has to offer!

If you have a chance, please go visit her shop.  Drop me a comment and let me know what you think!