Note: I have a special surprize at the end of this post, it is somethig to do with the fabric I used...hint hint hint ;)

In the last few posts, I wrote about the vintage dress I found at a thrift store and the things I made out of it.


I still had more fabric left, so I decided to make a top for the upcoming season. I just finished it...


The close up...


I used a pattern from Simplicity(2415), but I changed a few things here and there to make it mine. I made thin strips of ribbon to use as a belt. Also, I couldn't resist to add a feminine touch by adding ruffles in front. I LOVE how it turned out!

I can think of so many different ways to wear this shirt. For example, with some denim...


or, capris and other bottoms, but I think my favorite outfit will be with a white skirt...


accompanied by my favorite white straw hat...


I have a little surprize for you all... The skirt of the vintage dress was made from 4 panels of fabric. Now I am down to 1 panel. Since I had so much fun with this fabric, I thought you would too. I am doing a fabric giveaway!


The rules are simple:

1. Leave a comment on this post (you will get one entry)

2. Become follower of my blog and show me your beautiful face on my side bar (second entry)

3. Blog about this giveaway on your blog and link back (third entry)

I will announce the winner on the night of Friday the 16th. What would you make if you win the fabric? A scarf? A bunch of flowers? The possibilities are endless.
I am really excited about this giveaway, I hope you are too. Have a nice week everyone!

I LOVE THIS WREATH... at first, it was more like, "ok, let's play around and see what I can come up with." kind of project, but the end result is so much more than I had imagined. When I am excited, I can't contain myself!

I will show you what I did...

{You will need}


10" Wreath foam (I picked this up at a dollar store)

1 yd of 100% cotton fabric (I used what I had, this fabric looks like muslin, but has more of a rough texture)

Cotton Lace

Flowers (I used flowers I made from my past project leftovers. You can use silk flowers too)

Sewing Pins (Lots of them)

Ribbon to make a loop to hang the wreath.

{How to}

1. With 1 yd of fabric make bias tape. To see how to make bias tape go here. Cut three 7" wide bias fabrics.


2. Connect two bias fabrics together to make a big loop. Cut the third bias fabric in half to make 3 1/2" strips.


3. Wrap the bias strip from step 2 around the foam wreath. When you come to the end, simply use the sewing pin to stablize the fabric.(make sure to stab all the way in!)



4. On the one side of the big loop, sew on the lace all the way around. For the ohter side, stretch and move the fabric around roughly, so that it will fray a little bit and give it some character.


5. Fold the fabric 3" to the middle part all the way around.


6. Place the folded fabric on top of the wrapped wreath, and start making pleats and secure it with sewing pins. Keep going all the way around.


7. Here is the fun part. You get to decorate the wreath with flowers! I used sewing pins to secure the flowers. The pins are more then 1" long, mine are very stable, unless I try to yank it out, it doesn't come out!(Just in case you are worried about falling flowers).

The flowers I used came from all of my past project leftovers. There are some tutorials to make flowers; I show you in my ruffle shirt tutorial and my fabric flower tutorial.

If you are not up to making flowers, you can use silk flowers too! Just take out the plastic parts in the middle and pin them on to the wreath.



8. I also added individual pearls too...



9. I cut about 3" of ribbon to make a loop so that I can hang the wreath. Seal the edge with your favorite method, and pin it onto the back of the wreath. If you want to make it extra secure, you can use a glue gun and then pin.


10. I had so much fun trying to figure out where and how to place the flowers.


Then I came up with this:


I am absolutely in love with this wreath. Not to mention that I was able to use all the flowers I had made before. I haven't quite figured out the place for it, but just looking at the wreath gives me a sense of Spring and Summer. :)

I can't believe this is already my third link party. It is such a pleasure to see what everyone is up to. Everyones' post motivates me to keep doing what I love to do, for that, I thank you!

I have been wanting to do something with scrabble letters for a while. My family owns the game, but I didn't want to use them for my craft (well, I can't do anytning permanent, and the risk of loosing some pieces is too great). I have been on the lookout for scrabble everytime I go to the thrift stores... then BINGO!

I found a BRAND NEW unopend scrabble game for 1ドル.99!


I also picked up a silver tray for 1ドル with the intention to do this...


with some spray paint, the tray looks so much better.


I put magnets on the back of the alpabet pieces, so I can use them with the tray as a message board. Here are some loving message for my kids:



I was totally having fun doing this, as I made these massages I showed them to my kids. Their response? "That's not fun!!".

Then I realized that this board can be used as a design board too.


The flowers are made out of leftover t-shirt fabric and I just glued on the magnets.

Best of all, this tray is perfect for Rachel's take along activity in the car.


I made some magnets for her to play with, and put them in a container (this container has a magnet on the bottom, so it sticks to the tray too!).


Actually making magnets for her was a really fun process. I cut out images from old magazines and mod podged them on thick paper (the thickness of a cereal box). After they dried, I cut them out and put some magnets in the back. She loves them!! I found some disney princesses on a fruit snack box too. I think I found a new obsession for me for a while.

Have you been working on something last week? Do you have something you want to show off? Here is your chance, join the link party!

Here are the rules:

1. Please post something YOU made. It doesn't matter if it is crochet, quilt, clothing, anything would be fine. I want to see it!

2. Link to your specific post, that way it is easier for everybody to find and read it.

3. Please grab the "Tea Rose Home" grab button, and link back from your post. If you can mention the party in your post or place the button on your side bar, that would be great! I want more people to have a chance to come and show off their creation.

4. One more thing, please DO NOT link anything inappropriate or any kind of advertisement.

Go visit people on the list and say hi! I can't wait to see your projects!
Note: I was going to post last night, but I had some problems with McLinky. Sorry!

Hi everyone! That's right, you read the title correctly, I am posting an interview with Kari from Ucreate today!!

Ever since she contacted me about a year ago, we have been emailing back and forth. Kari is one of the special people that I have become good friends with through blogging. Sometimes you get to know someone and you "click", then you become friends. Before I started blogging, I never thought that in a million years I would make friends through this!

Kari is the person behind the wildly successful blog Ucreate. She has a keen sense of finding many kinds of cute projects in the craft blogosphere. Her blog contains always new and exciting information and links; never a dull moment.

I was a little nervous when I asked her if she would answer some questions. I knew she was really busy, and I would have understood if her answer was no (but I was crossing my fingers hard!). I am sooo excited that she gracefuly agreed to the interview with me!! She doesn't write about herself on her blog, so, this is a great chance for you to get to know her a little more.

I will start the interview...(just pictuer us sitting on my dream couch, a cream leather couch, I have been wanting for a long time. On the table we have a glass of juice, and some beautifully decorated treats...)

1. "Ucreate" is a household name among the crafters now. How and when, did you come up with the name?

When I first started my blog it was called “You Can Make It!” After a few months I decided I wanted to change the name, after a couple days of brainstorming “Ucreate” seriously just popped into my head. I thought it was a little weird at first (like most things we change are), but I’m so glad I changed it!

2. I think we all want to know this... with four children, a household to run and above, how do you manage your time to maintain such a fun and exciting blog? When is the best time for you to work?

I still want the answer to this question myself! I really have to be careful not to waist or spend too much time online. My favorite time to work is between the hours of 10pm-midnight {I’m definitely a night owl}. I treat Ucreate like a part-time job and I keep it between 1 to 2 hours a day. I will also check my emails throughout the day when things are slow. My family always comes before my blog and business ventures, however they also understand that this is something I love to do and they are very supportive.


3. You share many different kinds of crafts and sewing projects, what is your most favorite thing to do?

This is always changing for me. I will really get into one craft… I’ll get burnt out…get into another craft…and so on. Funny thing, when I was pregnant with all four of my kids, I hated to craft (I know, shocker)!
The past few months all of my craft supplies have been in storage and I can’t wait to get them back this week! Right now I LOVE to make modern looking quilts and I have a feeling my next obsession will be decorating my house!


4. How would you describe your decorating style? Do you have a favorite color?

I like a variation of these decorating styles {classic traditional, romantic, shabby}.
As for colors I’m really liking the soft grays, greens, blues, etc.
I always love a bold orange, too!

5. I know you love making quilt tops, who is your favorite fabric designer?

Joel Dewberry {his brand new line is fabulous!} and Heather Bailey

6. If you could describe yourself with three words, what would they be?

This is pretty tough for me to do so I asked my husband for three words and he said, “Funny, To-the-point {not quite one word},and Friendly”

7. You have mentioned that you love to read, please share your top three books we should read.

I could give you a huge list of my favorites, however three recent ones that come to mind are:
1) The Last Lecture (Randy Pausch)
2) The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society (Shaffer & Barrows)
3) The Hunger Games series (Suzanne Collins)

8. If someone were to show up on your doorstep and give you and your family tickets to anywhere, where would you go and why?

If my kids were with me we would go to Disney World. I am a HUGE Disney fan (I can’t tell you how excited I am for Toy Story 3) and I love to see my children’s faces when they see a character and believe that they are real! If only my husband and I were allowed to go, we would go to Switzerland. My husband lived there for awhile and I’ve seen many pictures…Beautiful!

9. Do you have a favorite restaraunt? What dish would you recommend?

I have lots of favorites, but I am soo loving Firehouse Pizza right now. Their salad and chicken cordon bleu pizza is DELICIOUS!

10. What gives you joy and happiness?

Definitely living my religion. My faith gives me the strength and confidence I need in happy/hard times and helps me to experience true joy.

11. Ucreate grew in such a short period of time. Do you ever stop and think "Wow, I did this"? What do you think made Ucreate one of the most popular blogs out there? Do you have any plans for Ucreate? (well, if you are allowed to share...)

Sachiko, you’re seriously too kind. I do look at it sometimes and wonder when this all happened and what in the world have I gotten myself into. I think I am more amazed that I have met so many incredible crafters online and have made so many friendships (Sachiko, you included). I am also fascinated with all of the brand new craft blogs out there…when I asked everybody to share their new blogs with me my inbox was overflowing with them…I didn’t expect that at all!
I do have some fun ideas in store for the future. Some I can’t share yet, but I will say: “watch for some huge craft celebrities”.

12. Would you share some advice with Tea Rose Home readers on how we can become successful bloggers?

I would love to. Keep in mind that these are tips I use and are not necessarily the right or wrong way.

-Keep your personal blog separate from your hobby blog. I do this for privacy issues as well.
-Reward your readers and followers. Let them know you appreciate them and also make sure it’s easy for them to contact you.

-Keep up with the trends/news in your blog category.

-Have fun with it!

13. What is something most people don’t know about you?

I was offered to be on the Dr. Phil Show. The topic was “Leading Busy Lives” and at the time I was going to school full-time evenings while my hubby was going to school and working in the days and we had two kids. I ended up declining…because our lives were too busy!

14. What do you love most about Ucreate? Dislike most?

I LOVE my readers! I can’t believe how kind people are. I will get emails from people telling me to keep up the good work or just to stop by with a friendly comment. These are my favorites and truly motivate me to keep going. I love when people take time to submit their tutorial and share it with me! What I dislike the most? Is that it is impossible for me to respond to every email or submit every tutorial. I really hope they don’t take it personal, it would just take way too much time away from my family

Wow, those were some great answers. Thank you so much for spending time with me and all of our readers today Kari! I am looking forward to seeing Ucreate keep on inspiring us and most importantly, I wish the best for you and your beautiful family!

---

Note: Don't forget, Tuesday midnight, you can start linking your creations to my Wednesday link party. I am looking forward seeing you all!

Are you readay for Easter? I actually spaced a little and realized this Sunday is Easter Sunday a couple of days ago. (Hey, I didn't celebrate Easter growing up, that doesn't help.)

I decorated my house with some colored eggs and "peeps". With just a little bit of this and that, my house looks a little more ready for Easter.


Here are some more sparkly gems...


Am I ready for the massive egg hunt throughout our small house? Am I ready for sugar high kids for the next few days? (who would want that and spring break mixed together.) Well, the answer is "No".

I was stuffing the plastic eggs with some candies last night, when this feeling of "they are growing up too fast" hit me. I almost shed a tear or two. I am not joking.

My older two already know that the Easter Bunny is not real. They are doing a really good job not telling the secret to their little sister. I realized that it will be only a few years and they will grow out of the "egg hunt" fun.

I know someday, I will look back on all of this and be happy that I have these memories with them.

Just like Christmas, I want them to know the true meaning of Easter and the reason why we celebrate it. They will probably be very antsy to look for their eggs, so I will keep the talk short.

My husband and I will be watching our little bunnies scattered all over the house with smiles on our faces...

Have a happy Easter everyone!

P.S. I have a big surprise on Monday's post so be sure to come back and check it out!

After giving much thought, I decided to try hosting a link party regularly. It will be every Wednesday, and next time I will make sure that you can start linking from Tuesday night. I can't say that I will do a giveaway every time, but if I have something, I might, so who knows... I think it will be fun to see what everyone is up to and to get to know more of you.

Before I start the party, I will share my latest project first... I have been working on this baby blanket for the last couple of days. Christopher's teacher is going to have her first baby soon, she has been such a wonderful teacher for him; I wanted to do something nice.

I love making baby blankets like this. They are quick projects, I get to play around coordinating fabrics, and I looove the feel of minky while I am working on it.

For the back, I used the same minky shown in the picture. There are zig-zag stitches on the edges.


I hope she and her baby boy will like it...


Ok everyone, it is your turn! The rules are simple:

1. Please post something YOU made. It doesn't matter if it is crochet, quilt, clothing, anything would be fine. I want to see it!

2. Link to your specific post, that way it is easier for everybody to find and read it.

3. Please grab the "Tea Rose Home" grab button, and link back from your post. If you can mention the party in your post or place the button on your side bar, that would be great! I want more people to have a chance to come and show off their creation.


4. One more thing, please DO NOT link anything inappropriate or any kind of advertisement.

Go visit people on the list and say hi! I can't wait to see your projects!

A few weeks ago, I was watching a short documentary on the Japanese channel. It was about jewelry artists living in NY. They introduced a few designers, all of them had a common ground. They make "Statement Jewelries".

Usually, statement Jewelries are big, bold,and most of the times inexpensive compared to its size (Think of a diamond, people pay how much for a tiny stone?). In the documentary, the reporter also said that statement jewly become popular when the economy is not doing so great. During the Great Depression era, statement jewelry was a big trend. I guess people were after the "Wow" effect and something to cheer them up for a price they still could afford.

I thought about our economy now... hmm... that make sense. Those statement jewelries are everywhere. I usually perfer small real jewelry. BUT, I see so many pretty necklaces, earrings, and rings to drool over. They sure make a plain outfit shine.

I particularly liked one desinger who collects antique parts and pieces to make her original jewelry. She showed some of her collection. My eyes went wide, while hold a dust rag in my hand (I was dusting the furniture). Wow, they were truly a piece of history.

I have been itching to find my own statement jewelry pieces. I am no expert with antiques. Nor, can I tell the difference when I find something; what is "old" and what is "vintage". They sure sound sooo different. Although, when I see something I can immideately tell if I love it or not. If I think it's beautiful, that's good enough for me.

The other day, I found two jewelry pieces that I fell in love with at a local thrift store. They are unique and my style. Above all, they were 2ドル.99 each!

A pair of earrings with rose print...


Then, this gorgeous pendant head with dainty detailes.


Lucky me! I found a chain that would match with the pendant in my jewelry making box! I can start wearing it right away:) Next time when you go visit a thrift store, or yard sale, look around a bit carefully, you might find a piece of history too.