Random Nag Facts

So, since I'm getting back into the blogging swing of things, I thought it would be a good idea to join Amy at {The Idea Room} and her {Getting to Know You Party}. So, here's a few tidbits about me.

**I'm the oldest of four kids all born within five years. Shocker, right? It's not like you knew about Megan? :) We grew up all over the place because of the military, our Dad going to school and job transfers. The six of us (including our parents) are pretty close because we always lived so far away from extended family. We have a great time together and I know I'm insanely lucky to be a big sister to three awesome, intelligent and down-to-earth people. I'm proud to be their sister.

**The blog name comes from nicknames Meg and I gave each other growing up. Meg is as stubborn as they come and I have a tendency to push things over and over again. With these personality traits, we then saw {A League of Their Own} with Geena Davis and Tom Hanks. The sisters in the movie call each other 'Mule' and 'nag' and when we saw that we started to laugh because that's totally us--- except for the whole professional baseball, WWII thing.

**I am a serious sports fanatic. I've played basketball since third grade and I will never get tired of the swish noise from a made shot. After all the moving around, we ended up in St. Louis during my high school years and, as a result, I LOVE the St. Louis Cardinals. To the point that when my husband and I were dating I had to take him to a game in order to see if he'd at least tolerate it... just my luck it ended up being a pitcher's duel.**Also in high school, I caught the theatre bug. My best friend convinced me to try out for a couple of plays and I loved it. As a result, in college I minored in Theatre Studies with an emphasis in Theatre Education. I still get goosebumps when I go to the theatre. This picture is Ash & I as {The Call sisters} in our last play Senior year. It wasn't too hard for us to do. :)
**I majored in Elementary Education. I was able to teach pre-kindergarten for a year before I had my son---also known as my little knight.

**Speaking of the previously-mentioned best friend, she is one of the few people in the world that knows the whole me and still loves me anyway. It's nice to have a relationship like that, outside of your family. Even though she's really family--but that's the next fact. We went to school together, got married a year apart, and even had our first kiddos 3 months apart. She read a lot and you can check her out at: {Ashwey Reads A Lot}. (see, I wasn't kidding).

**I also love to read, but I don't read nearly as much as Ash. I don't think anyone can. My favorites include: Harry Potter, Mortal Instruments series, Hunger Games trilogy, Artemis Fowl and Twilight.

**While at Brigham Young University (where we went to school), Ash introduced me to this crazy guy that I can never stop thinking about, luckily, he's my husband. The two of them are actually second cousins once-removed and didn't meet until a few months before she introduced the two of us. We've been together for almost SEVEN years (what the what!) and he's seriously fantastic. I got lucky enough to find a guy that never really got into sports, so I was able to teach him all I know. And, in return, he's able to show me how the world really functions (he's a mechanical engineer).

**I love chocolate and peanut butter. best. duo. ever. (Besides the two goofs in the above picture)

**I'm a member of {The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints}. I have come to know that Jesus Christ is the Savior of all mankind. With His help, we can all live forever with Him, our Heavenly Parents, and our families. How sweet is that?

**My husband and I have two kiddos, a boy and girl, exactly 18 months apart. They are so intense right now, especially since our Princess is now a toddler. I love the new things Knight says to me each day and I'm so excited to see them grow.

**I'm a closet Titanic collector and enthusiast. It all started with a book report in the third grade (a lot happened then) and I get irked when people think it's because of the James Cameron movie.

**I love to create. But isn't that why my sister and I have this blog?

Recommitting because....

Santa listened....
I got a Silhouette.

Thankfully, Megan's been more than willing to show off her amazing creations. I feel like such a slacker... but just because I haven't been blogging doesn't mean I haven't been crafting.

I even made myself a huge list of things to do before Christmas and... guess what... I completed the whole thing.

So--- in other words--- have a few things to post about. If there are still faithful readers out there... stay tuned...

Christmas Presents

Now that Christmas has come and gone, I can now post pictures of the items I made as gifts. I'm pretty happy with how they turned out. I'm also glad that they liked them so much! It was also an interesting experience since I had to make two gifts of the gifts completely before leaving for break. The other one I had to have the body ready to finish when I got home. Boy, did my fingers hurt.

This gift was for my Mother. She mentioned something to me some day that she would like crocheted chilies. I guess she forgot because she was completely surprised. It now hangs on the shelves in the living room.

To be honest, I've always wanted to make something KC Chiefs related for my Dad. I was always worried though because they weren't doing so hot in the past. I figured he would say something like, 'Oh, this is cool. Too bad they suck.' I'm glad they're doing well. A part of me wishes that I had the time to do in single crochet stitches instead of double. Oh well. He still liked it.

My siblings and I would love to watch Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles together when we were younger. We even had one of them as a 'pseudo name' since there was four of us and them. My older brother was Raphael; and he has continued to be his favorite of the four since. I really like how he turned out. I may have to make the other three. ;)

Christmas Tree Star Topper Pattern

Christmas Tree Star Topper Pattern

Size G Hook (4.25 mm)
1 skein Red Hart Super Saver or worsted weight yarn
Polyfil Stuffing
Pipe Cleaners (for the stand)

Abbreviations:
sc - single crochet
st - stitch
tog - together
dec - decrease

Main Part (make 2):
*MAR* (magic adjustable ring)
Rnd 1: 6 sc into ring (6)
Rnd 2: 2 sc into every st (12)
Rnd 3: *1 sc for 1 st, 2 sc into next stitch* (18)
Rnd 4: *1 sc for 2 sts, 2 sc into next stitch* (24)
Rnd 5: *1 sc for 3 sts, 2 sc into next stitch* (30)
Rnd 6: *1 sc for 4 sts, 2 sc into next stitch* (36)
Rnd 7: *1 sc for 5 sts, 2 sc into next stitch* (42)
Rnd 8: *1 sc for 6 sts, 2 sc into next stitch* (48)
Rnd 9: *1 sc for 7 sts, 2 sc into next stitch* (54)
Rnd 10: *1 sc for 2 sts, 2 sc into next stitch* (60)
**END (Cut the first one ONLY.)

Points of Star (5 total):
*Take both circles that you've made. Put the wrong sides together.
Rnd 1: 12 sc one one circle, 12 sc on the other circle (24)
Rnd 2 - 3: 1 sc around (24)
Rnd 4: *1 sc for 1 st, 2 st tog (dec)* (16)
Rnd 5 - 7: 1 sc around (16)
Rnd 8: 2 st tog around (8)
Rnd 9: 1 sc (8)
**END. Weave in end to point.

This should make a star that is approximately 5" tall. This hasn't been tested except for me making my own as I went along. If you have any questions leave a comment and I'll get back to you a.s.a.p. You can make this for personal use only. Thank you!

Umbrella Kanzashi

Here's a new kanzashi. I recently made a shirt and a skirt for my sewing class. I finally got the shirt back and can wear the two together like they were made to be. =) I decided that I needed something for my hair to put it all together nicely. The skirt is made from the umbrella fabric and the shirt the tan fabric. Both pieces also have the same ribbon on it; while the shirt has the same buttons on it. Like the other headband creations I have made this to be able to go onto another ribbon or small headband. What do you think? Should I post the whole thing together when I wear it on Sunday? ;)

Craft Dump

I've been so far behind on posting on the blog about my recent craftiness. This post will probably be HUGE. I'm sorry! D= (Anything seen here can be remade. All you had to do it request it on my Etsy. ;) )

This is Frank. I wanted to make a plushie completely out of felt that was Halloween themed, and since I love Frankenstein by Mary Shelley I thought I would make him. I know he's not true to the monster in the book but I guess I took some creative liberties by making him how I wanted him to look.

These next two were gifts for an aunt. Her costume is Steampunk but she doesn't have any accessories that she could wear with it. I decided to make the bracelet first. I wanted to use kanzashi to make something feminine with edgy side. I like the contrast between soft and hard in the materials to the shapes. The wire wrapping and chain making was interesting since I didn't have any pliers. Needless to say my fingers were raw after making it. >.< The ring came after the bracelet. While making the gears for the flowers I had an extra. (All made out of Cold Porcelain clay. Clay I made from scratch!) Then it was painted and had wire hot glued to the back for it to be adjustable.

I held a contest on my deviantART page. The winner had to get an image of my 7,000 page view (along with other information) and then note it to me. The winner actually didn't know what she wanted so I had to nudge her in a direction. At first I mentioned Halloween theme and then she said that was good or something like a panda. So, I made a panda using purple and white instead of the normal color combo. It's about 3.5" tall. It's on its way to Tunisia right now! I hope it makes it safely. *crosses fingers*

While I was making the panda, I made these pumpkin earrings. I thought they would be a nice touch to wear on Halloween and during the Fall season. I almost put Jack-O-Lattern faces on them but I wouldn't wear them any time but Halloween then. I'm actually wearing them right now and they're super light and easy to wear. =)

This was actually made a long time ago. It's a Rabbid from the Raving Rabbid series by Ubisoft. I love these guys. They make me laugh so much. xD I made him in mind of my other felt key chains so they could be put together.

And finally I made this yesterday. This is a Weighted Companion Cube from the game Portal. I love watching the boys play the game and wish I could do it myself. I've been scared to because I know it will be frustrating. Perhaps some day I will try. This also was made to match my other felt key chains so they could be put together on the same key ring.

Trick or Treat Bag

I meant to create this bag for my son a year ago--- but with being 8 months pregnant and moving into our new house it took a back seat. This year is different! Here's a simple and fun way to make the kiddos in your life their own Trick or Treat bag!


Supplies:

• 1 yd of two coordinating Halloween fabrics (if you just want to make the bag get 1/2 yard)
• 1/4 yd heavy weight iron-on interfacing
• Halloween-y thread
• Sewing Notions

Instructions:

1. Cut out your pieces. You'll need 2 of everything in both fabrics. 12" x 7 1/2" (LARGE) rectangle, 12" by 3 1/2" (SMALL) rectangle, and 1 1/2 x 19 1/2 for the straps.
2. Pair opposite fabric straps to each other and sew along both 12" sides with 1/4" seam allowance. Turn inside out, press and sew finishing stitches along each 12" side again. Set aside.
   
3. With RIGHT sides together, pin one L rectangle to one S rectangle along a 12" side. Do with all four pairs. Sew together. You should now have four large squares.
4. Press out, then cut two pieces of interfacing to match size of your two outer squares. Press to bond interfacing. Then sew a finishing stitch just above second fabric (pictured in last photo).
5. With right sides together, sew the similar squares together. DO NOT sew around the top. Outside to outside and lining to lining. Leave a 3-4" gap at the bottom of the inside lining fabrics. (My hole was a bit to small).
6. OPTIONAL: If you want your bag to stand, match side and bottom seams to form a point. Sew a straight stitch 1" down from the point. Double stitch for added strength. Trim off the point and repeat for three other corners. (FYI: this is call Mitre corners).
7. Now it's time to put it all together. With the WRONG side OUT on the outer fabric, pin the straps 3" from the seam. I did matching fabrics facing each other, but you can do opposite. That's the beauty about this bag!
8. Turn inner lining RIGHT side OUT, tuck inside the outer fabric. The right sides should be together. Repin straps through the lining too and stitch along the top of the bag.
9. Pull bag right side out through the opening in the lining, arrange the bag, press and complete the bag with a finishing stitch!
10. Don't forget to hand stitch the opening in the lining. I did and remembered a few days later. I was just too excited to give the bag to my little boy!

You're done. Now all you have to do it convince your little trick-or-treater not to carry in around the whole month of October! Good Luck!

Do you recognize the fabric? I used the extra to make my pumpkins and will finish off the coordination with a table runner!

I'm using this tutorial as an entry for this... wish me luck! Hopefully, I'm chosen!

U-Create Create with Me: Fabric Pumpkins

I took at crack at making some Halloween Fabric Pumpkins with Kari over at {U-Create}.

Super simple! Here's the {tutorial}. I added my own personal touch by using fun Halloween fabric and using fleece to make the face on the green one.

If you have minimal sewing skills and a machine--- this project is perfect for fall! You can even make gifts for neighbors and friends!

Family Night 1-2-3

About a year ago, I read about this idea in the {Ensign}. I knew it would help us improve in having more habitual {Family Home Evening}.

FHE, 1-2-3!

The original idea called for glass jars... FHE Jars. I really want to have glass for something I knew my young kiddos would freqently touch (I kept imagining glass shards flying all across our tile), so I waited to make the craft until I came across the perfect plastic containers. Thank you, Crystal Light!

Supplies: 3 plastic containers (I reused our old Crystal Light containers), larger container to hold them in (I got mine at Hobby Lobby in the clearance section), large Popsicle sticks, 3 sheets of scrapbook paper, spray adhesive, sticky velcro circles, small wooden cutouts (one for each family member) and multiple permanent markers.

To make the containers

• Cut out a large enough rectangle to wrap around each container (mine are 6 by 8 1/2 inches)
• Next, lay out some cardboard/newspaper and spray a generous coat around one container. Wrap the rectangle around and repeat for the other two containers.
• If you have a cutting machine, you can cut out the numbers 1,2,3 for each container. If not, do what I did and cut them out of paper and glue them on.

The activitiesThis is actually the most time-consuming part. Using your judgment (and the Popsicle sticks) write down individual choices for each component. What, I didn't tell you what each container actually contains? Well... let me explain...

The containers hold a different part of FHE. Every week (or the week before after the evening's activity) draw one stick from each container.

Here's how to divide the containers:
1- Songs: In ours, I wrote the song title and the number found in the Children's Songbook. You could also do songs from the hymnbook.
2- Spiritual Thought: Things like family stories or names of books/magazines to get lessons from (such as the Friend, Ensign, Nursery Manual or Preach My Gospel).
3- The Night's Activity: This is where you could have a Family council, testimony meeting or evening at the Pool.

Don't forget the Wild Card in each container. If you have older kids, you could even create the options for your next FHE! We've had a month with this new system and our two year old loves to pick the sticks--- he even tries to throughout the week!

Lastly, stick velcro pieces all around the outside of your large container and on the back of your wooden cut outs (I have stars for our family). This will help you keep track of who's in charge of the three different containers, prayers and treats!

I hope this helps to make your Family Nights run a little easier--- I know ours have!

Birthday Gifts & Another Giveaway

My best friend's daughter turned two last week, so I made her a few presents:

A reusable Sticker book. I used{THIS} tutorial from {Samster Mommy}. It was really easy to make; in fact, I need to make my kiddos one too! The only thing I did different was the ribbon binding. Instead of using thin ribbon around each page I used my glue gun and a wide-ribbon (1 1/2 or wider) to fold it over to do two at once.

I also made her some felt bracelets:
I got the idea {HERE}, but didn't follow the tutorial at all. I wanted to make the bracelets more durable (they are for a toddler after all), so I doubled up the felt and used snaps instead. I also used a little bit of Heat 'n Bond to attach ribbon as well. I finished each off with a simple {blanket stitch}. When she grows out of them, she (or her mommy) can use them as bookmarks!

Finally, one of my FAVORITE craft blogs is giving away my soon-to-be FAVORITE tool--- the Silhouette, check out the giveaway {HERE} or just enjoy Somewhat Simple {HERE}.

Even More Silhouettes!

I hope this time it actually works! Here's the links:

{Kara's Party Ideas}
{Grosgrain}
{The Shabby Nest}
{Under the Table & Dreaming}

BYU Cougar Amigurumi

I had this idea to make a new amigurumi. I was testing out some shaping to amigurumi while making him. You can't really tell from these pictures but his arms and legs curve. I finally figured out how to make that work. ^^ I wanted to also add lots of details like the footpads and beads. I hope you can see them all. I would imagine taking him to football games. ;D I do wonder if he really looks like a cougar though. My dad kept making fun of him by saying he looked kind of like a deer. D= Oh well. I also made his sweater removable but I doubt he will have it off that often. ;)

Mule Designs on Etsy!

I've finally done it! After lots of people giving me feedback and support I have finally opened an Etsy Shop. Say hello to Mule Designs! I'm so excited that I can't even tell you. It's been a long time coming and I have lots to sell. I have well over 20+ things already made for the shop. The only thing now is to put them all up for sale. Wish me luck everyone! <3

I also have a business card! Feel free to share it. ^^

Memories Quilt

I finally got a chance to make myself another quilt. I have only made one big quilt and a smaller one in the past. Those quilts were probably easier than this one. The main reason is that they were both made with squares of the same size. This one is definitely not all the same size.

I call this my 'Memories Quilt' because it is made with t-shirts, denim, and fabrics that all have some memories attached to them. Lots of the t-shirts are from Youth Conference, Girl's Camp, and high school. There are some that were from trips we made as a family, but in reality they still happened when I was in high school.

It took me a total of 3 days to finish this quilt. I did most of the cutting on the first day; sewing and cutting the front on the second day; and then basting and putting the edging on the third day. This quilt is BIG, too. It's a little over 5' wide and 8' tall. It'll definitely be nice to take out at school since it will fit over my bed there nicely. And it will be good to have to lay out on the grass with or take to football games to stay warm. ;)

Want to know how I did it? You can see that a lot of the pieces are the same size. I made piles of shirts that I knew would fit in the same template size; each row was a pile. Since I was doing four across for the t-shirts I knew it would be good to use the scrap fabrics I had to make triangular pieces. (These pieces were already triangles because they were headbands in the past.) I was able to also get more fabrics on the quilt that way. When you enlarge the picture you'll see that some of the pieces had to be made to fit into their square shapes. I just used fabric from the same t-shirt to make it less apparent. Then I sewed the rows together and then the rows to each other. When you get that part done you need a bottom layer of fabric and batting. I trimmed those to the same size as the top and use a yarn darner to bast some yarn through all three layers. Then you pin and sew on the edging!

To be honest it really is an easy project. You just have to make sure that you have the time to actually do it. I like how mine turned out and now this way my t-shirts and fabrics will last a lot longer!

Fast 'n Easy Hooded Towels

A couple nights ago---for thirty minutes TOTAL--- I made these for my kids:

Hooded Towels!

All you need is: one large towel, one hand towel, matching thread and sewing notions.

I mostly followed {THIS} tutorial from {Make 'n Takes}.

MY CHANGES:
I (my husband) ripped the seam out of the top of the hand towel and that's where I sewed for the top of the hood. Then I pulled opposite corners together and sewed across the top to create a flat top---instead of a pointed one.
I also sewed right sides together since I had a raw edge.
I used the leftover half to create the first letter of each of my kid's names.

The finished project is really large on a toddler/baby, but they'll grow into it. And, what a perfect baby shower gift for all of us who have expecting friends (and even the older siblings too)!

Really easy, really fast and now my kids have towels that aren't ones we've been using since our newlywed days.

New TLS Technique

I found a new technique for TLS (for me that is) I thought it would be perfect to make some easy and cool looking polymer clay goodies. I first had to think of things that I would want to do with the technique; and then it hit me. This is what came out of my recent polymer clay madness.

Since I'm a fan of The Hunger Games Trilogy and with the upcoming release of Mockingjay, I thought it would be perfect to make some things for me and other fans to have for the celebrations. I started with easier thing first and then went on to the harder stuff. These are what I made for The Hunger Games. (The first two will show up in my upcoming Etsy shop.)

Book charms.

Mockingjay pendant.

Trilogy bracelet.

Book thong.

Katniss' mockingjay pin.

I also did some other charms using the same technique. These are things that will shop up in my upcoming Etsy shop. I also liked how these turned out.

Twilight Saga book charms.

Legend of Zelda pendants. Logo and heart container.

Fast 'n Easy Jewelry

This week I added a few new items to my jewelry collection.

For the bracelet, I used a tutorial from Little Birdie Secrets {HERE}. The only difference for my bracelet is I tied knots in between my beads. I also made sure the beads wouldn't pop out by putting a dab of FabriTac on each of them.

I used {THIS} tutorial from Smashed Peas and Carrots for the rings. I loved how they turned out. I used mod podge for the cover coat and instead of getting a cover button kit, I got the snap together buttons in the same size.

I LOVE how these turned out and they were super inexpensive to make. Just another craft to be addicted to. :)

Amigurumi & Cosplay Status

This is another amigurumi to be sold in my future Etsy shop. I like the contrast in yarns and thought it would be perfect for a cute little bear! The picture is horrendous so I'll make sure to have a better picture up for Etsy. I'll let you all know when that happens. I just want to make a few more things before setting it up. ;)

Some of you may know that I'm working on a new cosplay. This one will be Vincent Valentine from Final Fantasy VII. For him I had to make some faux metal. I used a tutorial posted here. I actually changed it up a a bit. I made the pieces the same way but then I only did a layer of Elmer's glue, no water. Then I have five layers of gold acrylic paint. Attaching the pieces to the boot covers and glove that I made turned out to be harder. I had to end up using super glue and it worked really well. I'm pretty happy with the results being my first time doing this method. What you do think?

More Silhouette Giveaways

So---As I stated in {this post} I didn't get one of these amazing machines for my birthday--- the funds just weren't there. :(

BUT--- there are a few sites out in the blog-o-sphere ready and I'm crossing all fingers and toes... praying that I win ONE of these... check them out....

{V and Co}
{Sugardoodle} The one I was just featured on! :)
{Dollar Store Crafts}
{Tidy Mom}
{Infarrantly Creative}
{The Idea Room}
{A Soft Place}
{Mom Advice}

Check them out and enter yourself... or just think lucky thoughts for me. :)

Peachy Sweets Day Dream

On deviantART there is a contest called "James and the Giant Peach Day Dream Contest." Now how does this qualify as a day dream? Here's the reasoning I put on deviantART:

For the last couple of weeks I haven't been able to eat foods high in sugar without my stomach turning sour. It's usually temporary and only lasts for a couple hours but it's still uncomfortable. I find myself wishing that I can have sweets again. I guess you can say I day dream being able to eat my fill of sugary delights. So this is my entry; me surrounded by peachy sweets. Maybe this will be me again someday.

You want to know the ironic thing? I'm not even sure if I like peaches. It's been forever since I've actually eaten one. However, I thought that the peach flavored delights would fit best seeming that it's for the James and the Giant Peach.

I also said this on deviantART:

This is about 2" tall and 3" wide. I'm not sure on the estimated time that it took to make this. I know that the girl figure took about 2 hrs. I guess you can estimate yourself using that. ^^; Made from different colors of sculpey and fimo clays, as well as TLS.

I failed to mention that I also used glass beads and sculpey gloss glaze. I hope I do well. Wish me luck!

Missionary Work Bookmark

So, now that you have a reminder for yourself to {write a missionary} it's time to make something for the Elder!

I used President Thomas S. Monson's "The Five M's of Missionary Work" as the framework for this bookmark.
Print out, laminate, and send to a missionary! It's that easy!

Remember, if you use this or like this--- link back to me!