{Pretty}
Some of my flowers have been fabulous this year, and some have been disappointing (probably due to the excessive rain we had in May and June). But when Lizzie takes pictures of them, they all look fabulous!
 |
| Photo credit: Lizzie |
{Happy}
I'm going to share a couple birthday gifts I made for my granddaughters this year. First, I made this flying squirrel for Verity following these instructions by Abby Glassenberg, who blogs at While She Naps. Verity's actual birthday is August 31, so I will be popping this in the mail very soon. (We gave her most of her presents at the birthday party, but I didn't get this made in time.)
The instructions were clear and easy to follow. I made this in an afternoon. Now that I've made one, I should be able to go faster if I decide to make more. I needed a quick project because I decided to make Arane a busy book for her birthday, and I did not count the time costs of that project! I spent (many enjoyable) hours and hours putting it together, which left little time for anything else. Want to see it?
Here's the cover:
 |
| I bought the letters and flowers pre-cut. |
Page 1~
This is a magnetic fishing game and it was a big hit! The red bag is a storage pouch. I made the fishing pole with a chopstick, which I cut it to the right length with a pair of gardening clippers and sanded the rough edge with an emery board. The hook has a magnet inside and the fish have paperclips.
Page 2~
This was the grown-ups' favorite page, and it was also the most time-consuming for me to make. The clothes are stored on the line or in the laundry basket. And of course, the little girl's outfits are interchangeable. I used miniature clothespins from the craft store.
Page 3~
Arane is just at the age where she is learning to play games, so I thought tic-tac-toe would be perfect. I used velcro to attach the X's and O's. I did cut these letters out by hand, and that's what led me to decide to buy some pre-cuts! lol
Page 4~
This purse holds a coin purse with play money and real coins, a set of keys, a lipstick, and what is probably my favorite part of this whole book, a smartphone. It also contains a pencil and pad of paper and a comb and mirror set, which I did not make, obviously. Here's what it looks like with everything tucked inside:
 |
| More pre-cut flowers . . . |
Page 5~
The caterpillar segments are attached with snaps. The cocoon is a pouch for quick storage. This page works on two skills: the obvious snapping and also putting the numbers in the correct order.
Page 6~
On this page, each item is outlined so Arane can practice setting the table with everything in its proper place. I think the salt and pepper shakers are my second favorite thing from this book. The back cover has an extra storage pouch for quick pick-ups.
I used embroidery floss to blanket stitch the pages together. I bought a simple eyelet set at Jo-Ann that was easy to use and seemed to work pretty well. I did have to repair one eyelet later, but I haven't heard of any others coming apart, so hopefully they are staying together well. I used ordinary binder rings to gather all the pages into a book. There is room for more pages, so maybe one or two are in order for Christmas presents. We will see. Verity is next in line for a major project from her Grandma. :)
{Real}
Now that our visitors are gone, this is one of the sights I miss seeing~
 |
| Arane's pink boots, her favorite footwear, also great for going down to the pond |
Visit Like Mother, Like Daughter for more {phfr}!
No comments:
Post a Comment