Tissue Paper Decorated Chinese Lantern

I haven't gotten much crafting, art or sewing done lately, but I am almost done with one project finally! I got this idea from a friend and it's turning out so cute. This is a Chinese lantern I'm decorating with layers of colored tissue paper. I cut out stencils then traced the images onto the tissue paper. I found a good paper glue, although it's still tricky to get the tissue paper glued on lightly so the paper color doesn't bleed. Sarah designed the lantern, instructing me what she wanted on it and where to place things. It's one of her birthday presents although it's very belated! When the light shines through the designs it's very pretty. I'll have to post a pic when it's all finished and hanging in her room.

Free Goods & Being Resourceful

A friend of ours came over the other day to hang out and we gave her a tour of Ron's beautiful garden. Ron was showing her the compost pile, the raised beds he had just made out of free redwood, the arbor he made out of stunning free willow branches, and the awesome free play set one of his co-workers gave us. Noticing a trend here? She then said, "Wow, you guys are really resourceful!" It got me to thinking since that thought had never crossed my mind honestly! Then I began to realize that we actually are way resourceful. Ron is the king of free; he's thrifty, and if it can be found for free he will find it! He's taught me a lot about being frugal and pinching pennies in the almost fourteen years we've been married.

Here are some examples of his frugalness, (that's not a word, but I like it!) The other day he saw some willow branches on the side of the road. He picked them up and brought them home, with a plan to make some sort of structure for the garden. Within a few days he had a design for an arbor which he made in a few hours. He is also making a cute gate which will be below the arbor, and a fence will eventually go on either side. He made a mini raised bed out of the scraps and it turned out so cute! Last week he found some free old growth redwood on Craig's list - perfect for raised beds! He plans to grow a veggie garden in the spring - can't wait! A few months back co-worker was very generous and gave us his kids' old play set! The kids love it and play on it every day. Another co-worker gave us her bunny, Charcoal, who makes great poop for the compost pile. My free find was an adorable 9 patch wool quilt, found on the side of the road in Arcata with a free sign above it. It just needs a new backing, a bit of mending and some tlc and it will make the perfect winter warm quilt!

One of Ron's co-workers, Russel, has a home made apple press. He invited Ron to come over and press apples last weekend. They pressed a total of almost 60 gallons which was a record!! In exchange for the work we get fresh organic apple juice, yummy!!! We hope to eventually have our own apple trees so we can do this ourselves, and have juice, apple sauce and fresh apples for apple pie. Another plan of ours is to buy chickens in the spring so we can have fresh eggs. We want to trade eggs for other goods as well. I used to make my own Keefer but my batch got old and I couldn't find any more live culture to grow it from. I plan to get more though and get that going again! With the economy being tight there are so many ways you can save money, plus have organic healthy food to eat. Please feel free to share any ideas with me as well!

The eclectic arbor Ron made from free willow branches.

Mini raised bed made from free willow branches.

Raised bed made from free recycled old growth redwood. The posts sticking up are for chicken wire to keep the critters out.

Another raised bed made from free recycled redwood.

Charcoal the free bunny.

Free Costco play set.

Free wool quilt.

Russel's home made apple press.

Ron and Russel hard at work pressing apples.

Apples ready for the pressing!

Pumpkin Patch Day

Today we set off for our family tradition of going to the pumpkin patch. It's a fun time every year, and the kids each pick out a pumpkin or two. The day was perfect and we got some really cute pumpkins! Here are some pics of the day:

Ron pulling our little pumpkin around the pumpkin patch.

Sarah found the perfect pumpkin.

Justin had so much fun! The smile says it all.

The pumpkins in their happy home.

Mini pumpkins and squash for the table decor.

Sarah's Birthday Weekend

Sarah is 11 now! Her birthday was Oct. 2, and my parents came up from Sacramento to share the weekend with us. They took Sarah out to her favorite restaurant, Arts Alive, and the apple festival! We all had a great time hanging out and being a family together. Sarah had lots of fun with her grandparents of course! Here are some pics of the fun weekend:

Mmmmm, cake!
Arts Alive!

Justin "riding" a tractor at the apple festival.

Family hay ride complete with apple cider!

Sarah's dinner birthday treat.

Purses for Chiang Mai

After months of planning, my trip to Chiang Mai Thailand is almost here! I leave in only three days and I have tons to do between now and then. One of the things I had to make before I left were these potato chip bag purses. I got the pattern at Scottie Dog Quilts, as well as the Wonderland fabric which I love!! They are the perfect size for passports, cameras, etc. and small and easy to travel with. I made myself one and made one for our fearless team leader, Deanna.

Deanna's purse - fun fabric with a vintage button closure.

Front of purse. I had a time of it getting all of the flowers to go the right direction! The inside of the flap is the same material.

Back pocket

My purse, made from batik fabrics.

This was a fun project! Now off to pack....

Beach and River Family Day

We decided to head out to the beach today for some family time. We went out to the beach and it was so cold, but the kids had fun. We didn't stay a long time and decided it would be better to head to the river where it would be warmer! Here are some pics from the day:

Dad and son headed out to the waves.

Evidence that we really do live by the beach, a cold beach at that!
Building sand castles.
Sarah ballet leaping over the sea weed.

Justin threw rocks in the river...

Sarah read a book...

Justin laughed each time he threw a rock...

Sarah sat on a big log.

A heart rock Ron found me.

Craft It Forward Batik Baby Quilt

I finally finished my craft it forward gift! I made a batik four patch/block quilt for Micah Jude Hebert, born July 25th. He and his parents are moving to Niger Africa in a few months, so I thought batiks would be fitting for the quilt. I made the pattern up as I went, and got the fabric from Fabric Temptations and Scottie Dog Quilts. Mama Hebert loved the quilt, and Micah looks cute on it!

The finished size is about 30"X30"

Close up shot of the batiks - I love the colors!

I did a border around the 4 patch and regular squares and added big blocks for the outside border. I did my own binding for the first time, love how it turned out!

Backing fabric

Hand made gift tag

Little Micah on his hand made quilt!

Here is the cute little guy at one week old, sleeping with his sock monkey and lulled to sleep with ocean sounds.