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!