Dog Treats: Bacon Bits with Parsley and Carrots

Rikki and her freshly-baked dog treat!

I started working for a small hotel, doing breakfast thingy. Instead of throwing the rest of the bacon (I try to avoid throwing food as much as possible), I've decided to bring them home and create something delicious for Rikki. Thus, the Bacon Bits with Parsley and Carrots Dog Treats.

Bacon Bits with Parsley and Carrots Dog Treats

DIY: From a School Felt Project into a Pillow Case

IC came home with all of her art and craft works from school last week. After all, the summer school break would be in a few days!

She brought home loads of artwork, but the first thing that caught my attention was this piece of felt project which she informed me was from their Religion class. They cut out religious figures and pasted them on a piece of felt.

IC told me that she would love to keep that particular piece. My suggestion to her -- why not turn it into a pillow case? My little girl immediately agreed and I started 'upcycling' with glee.

This is the Religion class project made from felt.

DIY: From Rice Sack and Old Shirts Into a No-Sew Foot Mat

Summer time and our inflatable pool is again ready for the girl's invasion.

No-sew foot mat for our inflatable pool

This time, we needed something to use as a foot mat. My husband wanted to buy something, but I told him to wait until I thought of something else.

Since we needed to buy a sack of rice, the idea of creating a foot mat out of the used sack. I admit, something out of my school project year ago prompted this concept, but I can't remember exactly what.

DIY: From an old t-shirt into a no-sew summer top

I have been busy sorting out our closet... and then the girls arrived from school. They started rummaging through the clothes, grabbing items they absolutely cannot live without.

And there ensued a long discussion, just because some t-shirts are simply too small for them already.

The solution? Old favorite t-shirts turned into airy, summer tops!

The cookie monster version

DIY: From Old Jeans Into a Pet Bed

My husband told me Rikki needs a soft and comfortable bed which we could leave in our car's trunk when.

I already made one using an old bathrobe, but it was too thick for the trunk's space. Then came the idea of creating a pet bed from the ever reliable old jeans.

What did I use to make the bed as soft and comfortable, as per my husband's requirements? Check it out:

Rikki's jeans bed

DIY: From Old Socks into Gloves

I saw this posted on Facebook and decided to create a few for my girls: gloves from old socks.

Image taken from Facebook, source unknown

Materials needed:
- pairs of old socks
- needles
- thread
- a pair of scissors
- extra materials for decor (if you want)

From old socks into gloves

Instructions:

DIY: From a Bathrobe into a Dog Bed

Rikki, our 2-year-old golden retriever needs a new bed. I have been searching the internet for DIY suggestions and I finally found something that I could work on: this.

I used an old bathrobe, and to make the bed more stable and softer, I added an old winter coat. I was done after 30 minutes!

Pet bed from an old bathrobe

Materials needed:
- an old bathrobe
- old winter clothes, socks, stockings or rags for stuffings
- a large enough needle
- thread
- a pair of scissors

DIY: Advent Calendar from Plastic and Glass Jars

It's that time of the year. After the Advent wreath, another item is on the list: Advent calendar.

This year's Advent calendar took sometime to make because I needed 24 jars that would be big enough to carry the surprises I have collected throughout the year. Plus, the pieces of woods I intended to use as the base for the calendar were not stored properly that. Our dog, Rikki, kept on playing with them and disappearing with them in our garden!

I finally finished the Advent calendar made of wood and jars after three days of working on it. I really though I would have to do overtime work that would keep me up this weekend because I was focused on our donation drive, but the girls have stressed that I promised to create one for them. "Promises are not made to be broken, right, Mama?"

Advent calendar using plastic and glass jars

DIY: Simple Advent Wreath

I was so busy with our donation drive, it took my husband's nudge to remind me that the first Sunday of Advent is fast approaching. He asked me if we need to buy something to create our own Advent wreath, like some greens?

I told him we would have a simple Advent wreath, using the old ornaments I have collected the past years. And nope, we won't need any greens, too. I managed to finish the Advent wreath last Sunday.

The only things new are, of course, the four candles.

Materials needed for a simple Advent wreath:
four candles
some clay (or a glue gun)
a sturdy plate or bowl or whatever type of base you want to use
assorted Christmas ornaments
some nuts and twigs, if possible

How to create a simple Advent wreath:

Make sure you have all the materials on hand. If you are using a glue gun, it should be plugged and ready to use.

Place the four candles on the plate or bowl. Fix them in place using the clay or the glue gun.

Put the candles on the base of your choice.

DIY: From a Shirt into a Simple Dog T-Shirt

I did say I am not a fan of dressing up pets, right? But hey, my sewing machine has been busy these past weeks creating Halloween costumes and the girls wanted to be fair to our dog.

They are convinced that Rikki wanted to have her own Halloween costume, too.

I compromised by making a simple shirt, signifying our pet's super power :-)

Materials needed to turn a shirt into a simple dog t-shirt:
- an old long-sleeved shirt
- scraps of easy to stretch cloths (I used old leggings)
- a pair of scissors
- pins
- needles
- thread

Rikki's t-shirt, with cuffs, too!

Get the shirt ready. I used a long-sleeved shirt. You would notice that I already removed the neck area.

After cutting off the neck area, cut the sleeves.

To make sure that the shirt would fit Rikki, there's a short fitting time.

DIY: From a Skirt into a Halloween Treats Bag

Because she's wearing a newly-made bat costume, IC decided that her ever reliable Halloween bag would not do anymore. She wanted a new Halloween treats bag.

Halloween treats bag from an old skirt

Busy, busy Halloween. I know why, because it falls in the same week as the kid's autumn break!

Anyway, if there's a will, there's a way; especially when IC asked so sweetly.

A confession: there's this skirt I have already set aside because I wanted to make a bag out of it. I have decided it would do for IC's Halloween treats bag.

DIY: From an Umbrella into a Kiddie Bat Costume

I have actually been planning on creating a kiddie bat costume for my girls since I saw a photo of a bat costume using an umbrella a few months ago. Why? Because I have a broken black and silver umbrella that would fit the bat costume!

The mummy costume was easier because I have all materials ready, though.

Bat costume using an umbrella

But it took me a long, lone time to finish the bat costume because I don't have the proper materials to work on the umbrella spines as suggested here. It was only when I presented the bat costume idea to IC that I really gave enough thought for an alternative. So here goes, presenting my own version of a kiddie bat costume made from an umbrella.

Materials needed for a bat costume made from an umbrella:
an old black umbrella
a black hoodie
pins
barbecue sticks
a pair of scissors
thread and needles

My old, broken umbrella

DIY: Easy Kiddie Mummy Costume

This is a result of another last minute request from the girls: 'Mama, we need a new costume for Halloween!'

Mummy Costume for Kids

Mama needs to think fast and work on the costume faster. Therefore, a mummy costume. I think it's easy and yes, it was done after 30 minutes. It helped that I already have all the materials ready for the mummy costume.

It also helped that I used a very old table cloth I retrieved from the store room, therefore I don't need to dye the fabric to create a seemingly-authentic mummy-look.

Materials needed for the mummy costume:

Rikki protecting the skirt, the shirt and the table cloth
for our mummy costume project

DIY: No-Sew Loot Bags using an Old Pillow Case

It was a last minute decision to invite IC's former classmates and good friends to finally celebrate her birthday with them with a swimming pool party. Last minute, because the weather forecast that week was really hot!!

A loot bag from an old pillow case

That Monday, I managed to coordinate with all the participating girls' moms and scheduled the party on a Wednesday afternoon.

Now that means I only have two days to organize a swimming party for five girls. Yay! No chance to go to the grocery store to shop, too, because my husband have meetings planned from Monday to Wednesday! Another yay!

DIY: From an Old T-Shirt into a Grocery Bag

From an old t-shirt into a grocery bag

Something easy, something fun!

I decided to recyle after I realized we would have no time to shop to buy little something gifts because of IC's little accident last December.

I rummaged into my sewing box and found some old t-shirts that I already set aside for future DIY projects. Then I checked the internet for possible inspiration that goes with the motto: something easy, something fun.

Therefore, these grocery bags made from old t-shirts!

What you need:

old t-shirts
a pair of scissors
your sewing machine (or needles and thread)

the old t-shirt

Fold it 

Cut the sleeves

Cut the neckline

Boiled Egg Snowman

Boiled Egg Snowman

I saw a photo of this boiled egg snowman in Facebook and decided to re-create it for breakfast the next day to surprise the girls.

Cute, right?

The problem is, the girls decided it's too cute to eat :-)

But after taking photos, they started savouring the snowman, piece by piece. First they started with the carrots, and the toasted sesame seeds, then the eggs. They gave me the lamb lettuce.

How to create a boiled egg snowman:

Ingredients:
a carrot
two boiled eggs
toasted sesame seeds (or whatever edible thing you have that could be used for the eyes)
something green (lettuce, salad, dill, parsley, etc.)
toothpick (or a plastic/wooden stick)
egg holder

Preparation:
1. Cut the carrots into pieces according to your needs: for the hut, for the nose, for the buttons.
2. Put the snowman together, first the carrot pieces for the huts, then fix together the two boiled eggs.
3. Then add the other accessories: nose, eyes, buttons and something green.
4. Place in an egg holder.
5. Enjoy eating!

DIY: From an Old Jeans into Dog Treat Bags

Remember those jeans that I turned into shoulder bags?

Well, I wanted to use the scraps from the jeans and those scraps became dog treat bags. Very simple and real easy to do.

Most importantly, we also save because then we don't have to buy new dog treat bags. I noticed, those bags, no matter if they are bought cheap or we paid a bit more, don't really have long lives with us.

Now I could just sew a new one whenever needed :-)

A dog treat shoulder bag, since there's no pocket for the plastic bag, I just tie it around the strap.

I usually use this dog treat shoulder bag because, well, I just have to hang it over my shoulder.

A dog treat belt bag, I added a small pocket for the plastic bag.

My husband prefers this dog treat belt bag because it stays in place, belted.

DIY: Garden Label Sticks

Okay, this post might not be too relevant in our part of the world as it's autumn now; but for those of you who are still busy in the garden, you might want to try this: your very own garden label sticks.

This idea came to mind because we cut down some trees; we separated the bigger branches and the smaller ones which we plan to use for our grill. And while doing that sorting, my girls, who got bored, started carving into some branches. And the garden labels sticks were born :-)

Materials needed to create your own garden label sticks:

The garden labels made from tree branches

Materials needed to create your own garden label sticks:

- enough branches as needed

- a knife

- paint brushes

- a pair of pruning shears

- paints (we used watercolors, which lasted the whole summer despite the rain)

here's what we need: enough branches, knife, paints, paint brushes, pruning shears  

How to make a garden label stick:

DIY: From Mama's Long Skirts into My Girls' Summer Dresses

Looking for new summer dresses for your girls?

Check your closet first!

From Mama's long skirt into  my girl's summer dress

I found something in my closet: long skirts that I have yet to wear. A gray one and a striped black and white skirt. Perfect for the girls! 

The idea is to have those dresses done as fast as possible and to save money, of course.

DIY: From an Old Jeans into a Shoulder Bag

MC doesn't want to wear this pair of jeans anymore. So I decided to make a cut-out shorts for her; still, she refused to wear them.

Therefore, I decided to experiment a little and created this shoulder bag out of MC's old jeans. And she loved it!!

The shoulder bag made from an old pair of jeans.

Materials needed:
an old pair of jeans
thread
a pair of scissors
tape measure
extra accessories depending on your design (like an old belt)
sewing machine

First, cut off the bottom of the jeans into the lenght that you desire.
Mine is bit smaller because my little girl is the one who would use it.

Then undo the seam between the middle area, front and back -- see above

Afterwards, spread the unseamed area and sew them together. 

Then fold and sew least 3 inches above the hemline.

It would look like this.

Turn the jeans inside-out and sew the hemline together. The jeans is already with lining so I didn't have to add one.

Cut pieces on both ends of the edges.

Fold those edges once and sew them. Then turn it again. Then add the bag straps.

The bag is done! The belt is a colorful addition.

Other DIY ideas here.