Paperback Book Christmas Tree!

Thank you to:  kaylaaimee.com for allowing me to use this post!

I remember making a tree like this when I was very young.  I think this will be a great project for my granddaughter and me to make this weekend!

How To: Make A Paperback Christmas Tree

How To: Make A Paperback Christmas Tree

This decorative paperback christmas tree is super cute, easy to make, and affordable. It’s even a great craft to do with your kids, although I recommend letting an adult do the cutting with the exacto knife. That’s how we do it in my house. I mean, we don’t have kids but my husband is a little leery of leaving me alone with sharp objects. I can’t ever imagine why. (UPDATE: We totally have a kid now but J has still not changed his position on the whole “sharp object” thing)
There are several variations you can make on these trees (like the rolled tree & the full glitter cameo tree in the background) that you can learn to make HERE.

A paperback book – you can use one you already own or pick up an old holiday themed book at a thrift store!
An exacto knife
Dry adhesive
Optional supplies: glitter and glue (I used Martha Stewart tinsel glitter in brownstone and gold, as well as Martha Stewart glittering glue w/brush applicator. It’s hands down the best glue for applying glitter.)


Step One: Find a paperback book. Oh look, I found a few. That is because I inherited 352580551 paperback books of my grandmothers and they are currently multiplying themselves around my house.

Paperback Christmas Tree Tutorial Step 1

Step Two: Gently remove the cover so that it is naked. I hope your book is not modest. Mine did some nude modeling back in art school.

Paperback Christmas Tree Tutorial Step 2

Step Three: Count out 30 pages of your book. This is where page numbers come in handy.

Paperback Christmas Tree Tutorial Step 3

Step Four: Use an exacto knife to slice down the spine where you’ve partitioned off your thirty pages. Don’t worry, the book won’t feel a thing.

Paperback Christmas Tree Tutorial Step 4

Step Five: Repeat steps three and four. You should have two sets of thirty pages that look like this:

Paperback Christmas Tree Tutorial Step 5

Step Six: Now take one section of the book and lie it on the table so that the spine is facing left, as shown. Grasp the top right corner and fold it down so that the edge of the corner is touching the spine.

Paperback Christmas Tree Tutorial Step 6

Step Seven: Now grasp the part of the page where the folded edge meets the straight edge. Fold it over so that the part of the page that it already folded from the last step will be flush with the spine. It’s just like folding a paper airplane.

Paperback Christmas Tree Tutorial Step 7

Step Eight: either fold the overhanging part of the page up, or cut it off. I prefer to cut mine. It will sit well either way.

Paperback Christmas Tree Tutorial Step 8

Step Nine: Continue to do this until all of the pages are folded.

Paperback Christmas Tree Tutorial Step 9a

Paperback Christmas Tree Tutorial Step 9b

Paperback Christmas Tree Tutorial Step 9c

Step Ten: Take the other set of thirty pages and flip it so that the spine is on the right. Repeat steps six through eight.

Paperback Christmas Tree Tutorial Step 10

Step Eleven(OPTIONAL): Now hold the book page with the folded part towards you and brush glue along the edges. Then dip the edges into glitter and shake off the excess.

Paperback Christmas Tree Tutorial Step 11

Paperback Christmas Tree Tutorial Step 11a

Note: when you use the glitter, you’ll have to gently seperate the page edges afterwards so that the glue doesn’t adhere the pages together.
Step Twelve: Lay the folded pages down and apply dry adhesive liberally to the front and last page

Paperback Christmas Tree Tutorial Step 12

Step Thirteen: Press the two edges of each set together, lining up the edges. Open the pages and curl around until you can do the same both sides.

Paperback Christmas Tree Tutorial Step 13

Step Fourteen: Sit it up and let dry! Occasionally you’ll need to add some glue to the very top of the tree, along the inside edge to keep it from gapping but if you use enough dry adhesive that shouldn’t be a problem! Sit back and enjoy all the compliments you get on your awesome tree.

Paperback Christmas Tree Tutorial

Easy French Toast Casserole!

My daughter, Tara, entered a contest with a recipe that she created.  If she wins they will feature her recipe on their website.  I was wondering if you would all go vote for her for me.  If you vote, they are giving away (3) $500.00 gift certificates and you could win one of those!  Her recipe is called: 
Easy French Toast Casserole

by: Tara of Unsophisticook

Here is the link:

http://www.khholidayrollcall.com/?utm_source=Burst&utm_medium=banner&utm_campaign=2013KH_DP5#ta5yP

You can vote once a day and increase your changes of winning the gift certificates.  Not many people on the site, so chances should be good, even though I am claiming one of those gift certificates!  LOL  She is a very good cook, so you might want to try out her recipe!  Thank you so much for helping me!  Cindy

Halloween Costumes!

I told my daughter a couple of years ago that I wasn't going to make Halloween costumes any more.  It costs a lot of money to make those things.  The last time I did it, it cost me $50.00 and I made my granddaughter an Aladdin costume. She looked so cute and she walked out the front door, some boy came up in my front yard and knocked her down and it was muddy out.  She was mud from head to toe and had grass stain on her knees.  She hadn't even got her first piece of candy.  She was crying because she was all dirty and I was not happy either.   I decided right then and there, I was done. 

Well this year my youngest granddaughter saw a pattern at Walmart that she fell in love with.  She batted her eyes and asked me if I would make it for her.  I broke done and said of course.  It wasn't much work, but I broke my promise to myself. 

She wants to be a cat, so she picked out pattern Simplicity 0890.  It is more like a hat and here are the pictures.  My husband put it on acting silly, so I snapped his picture.  I better not tell him I put in on my blog.  I would hate what the retaliation would be.

 

Then my oldest granddaughter said she was going to be in the parade this year for band and will be carrying one side of the banner.  She wanted to dress up like Minnie Mouse.  She didn't want regular ears, of course, she wants sparkly ears and a sparkly bow and she wants them bigger than you can purchase.  So once again, I got the eye batting and had to come up with some kind of Minnie ears, bigger and with sparkles!  The sparkles are not showing up, but they are there.  My other 5 grandchildren live an hour and one half away.  It is probably a good thing!  I don't know if I could take the eye batting from seven of them at once!!

New Halloween Quilt

Hi everyone!  Sorry I haven't posted in a while.  Things have been hectic around here.  My youngest daughter is staying with us while her house has some repairs done on it.  So that is three extra people around here.  I am tired!  Lots of extra wash and extra meals.  That is a big change from cooking for just my husband and myself.  This should be the last week and things will get back to normal.

I did finish a quilt that I started last year.  I purchase this at Hobby Lobby and it is just a whole cloth design.  I love to buy those and see what I can do with them to bring them to life.  This is a little scarecrow that I worked on.

 

There were three extra pieces, two crows and the sunflower.  I sort of gave those a 3-D effect.  I added a little batting behind the extra piece and did some free hand stitching on them and attached them on top of the copied design at just a tiny bit different position to show it off.  It turned out really cute.  I also did some hand stitching on the face to bring it to life.  Here is a closer picture.

There is some stippling on the black background and hopefully you can click on the picture to enlarge it so see some of the detail.  This is so much fun!  You should try it!

 

My Daughter and Granddaughter made a video for Pillsbury!

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10151662941584023

Here is a video of my daughter Tara and my grandaughter Addie making a video for Pillsbury.  They traveled to New York as a mother, daughter team.  It turned out really cute if you would like to watch it! 

How To Make An Art Smock or Bib!

Well its that time of the year!  Back to school!  One of my younger grandchildren needed an art bib.  She is "Hello Kitty" crazy, so I had to find special material.  I made a simple bib and she was so excited.  I drew up a bib by using the top of a pattern for a shirt or dress and then just sort of changing the bottom to make it into the bib part.

I ironed some fusible light weight plastic over the front of the bib.

On the back of the apron, I cut out two layers and sewed them back to back to give it a little more weight since the front of the bib had the plastic on it.  It pretty much made things even. 

 I then used my coverstitch machine and added black extra wide facing all the way around the bib.

  

Next, I created two elastic tabs to attach to the front and back sides of the bib. This way she can just pull it over her head and it won't slide off of her. 

 

Here is her finished bib!!

She also had to have her name put on her lunch box and back pack.  What I do here is cut off part of the straps on the back pack because they are always so long.  Then I took a lighter and singed the edges of the parts that I cut off and that keeps them from unraveling.  I then used this extra part of the straps to make name tags. so I added a little something to her zippers!

 

Janome Ruffler Foot Coupon

If you have a Janome sewing machine and watched my new Ruffler foot video, you might be interested in this coupon.  Janome just posted a 20% off coupon for the Ruffler foot.  Here is the link:

http://www.janomespecials.com/coupons/fb.htm