Sew Much Sunshine [to the square inch]: October 2011

10.27.2011

IKEA Hack: Fabric Covered Cork Board Tutorial

Ever been to IKEA? Ever visited the IKEA Hackers site? Well, here's my hack. I bought three cork heat boards that I turned into fabric covered cork boards & you can too. Fully functional & pretty, not to mention super easy!

You'll need a hot glue gun, scissors, fabric, cork & a pen or fabric marker.

Trace around the cork leaving about an inch of room all the way around.

Plug the hot glue gun in and allow it to warm up. Cut fabric. Turn upside down and place the cork on the fabric. Spread a strip of glue along the edge of the cork. Pull fabric up and smoosh onto the glue with your fingers.

This is what it will start to look like. Continue all the way around.

Here's the completed cork.

Repeat with the second one.

And the third.

I used my favorite secret weapon to hang these puppies: 3M Command Strips.

This whole craft cost me little over $3! They look great as wall art as well! Have a great day!

10.26.2011

Color Crush: Terra Cotta

Inspired by Fall by nehesse featuring tote hand bags

I am currently loving this rust/terra cotta color. It is a nice, deep burst of color in the fall and winter. I got a pedicure last night & the terra cotta polish inspired this polyvore collage. Love it.

It's peacefully snowing here in the Mile High city. Yum.

Have a great Wednesday!

10.25.2011

Tickle Me Tuesday: Amazon Edition

Life is all about balance, about being well-rounded. Here are some items from my Amazon wish list that help nourish me (& tickle my fancy).

Although I've never tried it, Jessica at The Novice Chef raves about it & I would love to get my hands on some.

Super shiny hair? Yes, please.

Caroline inspired me to get one of these. Haven't taken the plunge yet, but I have a feeling I will soon!

An essential for me this winter with lots of skiing planned & my lack of a microwave, this will be perfect.

Said to help anemia, Blackstrap molasses is a natural sweetener with minerals.

A little nourishment for the mind & soul, this is one of the many books on my "to-read" list.

10.21.2011

The Little Things

Happy Friday! It seemed like this day would never come. Here's what I'm ~~reading, drinking, decorating, rocking, & cooking~~ enjoying this week.

[source]

[Picture tour to come next week?]

Linking up with the lovely Lindsay today:

Loving the little things and that it's Friday. Use code TOBER20 for 20% off everything in the shop. Today only!

10.20.2011

Weekly Dinner Menu: Free Printable

One of the things that helps me stay organized is planning my meals in advance. My roommate & I started this great trend in college a few years ago, and now that I'm in an apartment by myself, I've brought back the brilliant idea.

Our bi-weekly ritual consisted of us perusing recipe books & websites to find 10 dinner meals that sounded great & easy. These ten meals would feed us for two weeks (with a few leftover meals for lunches and or the freezer). We'd make two lists, one with the meals & one with the ingredients we'd need to make that dish. Then we'd choose whatever sounded good & made it knowing we had all the ingredients on hand. It worked out marvelously.

This is what I use on a weekly basis (as I've adapted to going grocery shopping once a week). I plan 5 meals (always with leftovers) and count on having a few leftover lunches at my disposal and use what's left in the fridge for Saturday & Sunday (not to mention these are the days I'm most likely to go out or have family dinner, etc.). Click the picture at the end of this post for your free printable if you like! It fits a standard 8.5 X 11 inch paper in the landscape orientation.

Here's mine in action:

I like to jot down the weather on mine too! Another tip I have is to make note of where you got the recipe so you don't go crazy the day-of trying to remember which site or book you got the recipe from.

Hope you find this helpful! Now get cookin'!

10.18.2011

Tutorial: Fabric Covered Letters

Here's a quick & easy (no sewing required) tutorial for a cute way to add some zest to any room.

You will need a computer, a printer, cardboard, fabric, scissors, a paint brush, decoupage & double-sided tape.

1. Find a font that you love. Download (if necessary) & open up a document. Type your letter, and re-size it so that it fits a full size of paper. I used a serif font.

2. Print out each letter and cut around the edges. Trace onto a piece of cardboard (use what you have on hand... cereal boxes work great).

3. Cut the letter out of the cardboard.

4. Place the letter face down on the fabric & trace.