Teacher's Gift Ideas ....

The long Summer Holidays are less than a week away.  The late nights, movies , picnics and ice cream will soon be filling our days :) ..

The start of the Summer Holidays also means that another school year has ended .. time to show the teachers a little appreciation for all they have done this past year . I am all for more homemade gifts, if you are too here are a few ideas ...

Simple Sweet Gift ~ B Inspired Mamma

Potted Plant ~ The Blackberry Vine

Starbucks Gift Card ~ Unknown 

Hands Down Gift ~ Eighteen 25 

I hope that these ideas have given you a little inspiration ?? 

I will be sharing our gift idea on Wednesday :) 

Are you more a homemade or pre-made gift giver ???

Thought For Thursday ...

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

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“And suddenly you just know…it’s time to start something new and trust the magic of beginnings.” -Meister Eckhart

As I start on my new adventure with "Oh So Peachy" , I am excited for change, to be challenged ,excited, a little nervous (Is anyone reading what I have to say ?) ... but these feelings drive me to the endless possibilities of starting a fresh..

After all who knows where this adventure could lead ?/?

Tips to make Ramadan Fun for Kids

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I came across these tips whilst searching for something else and thought that they were really good and thought I would share them with you too :) 

So, how is your Ramadan so far ?? I am not gonna lie I have found a few days difficult :( but Alhamdulilah ..

I need to catch up with my Quran reading and start my Quran journal Insha'Allah 

I will be back tomorrow sharing a simple Recipe for my Strawberry Trifle !!

Monday Moments ::

I had so much fun writing last weeks "Monday Moments" post I thought it would be fun to do another this week ...

So here are 5 things to inspire you this week ....

I love this awesome print via Studio Calico 

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I am totally in love with black and white, such a classy look for a home. Not sure how practical it is with children ?? But maybe going through my home creating this look one room at a time may be possible, will have to work on my husband first though !!!

Amy Tangerine 

I am a huge fan of Amy Tan (aka Amy Tangerine) I also find her blog and projects so inspiring and I proudly have a lot of her products ... I love how bright and cheerful her projects are .. Amy was a huge source of inspiration that started me scrapbooking and project life , that sadly I haven't managed any this year :( which makes me sad.. I am hoping to get my paper crafting mojo back soon !!!! but for now I am enjoying stopping by her blog and seeing what she is up to !!

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During my 6 week recovery from surgery, I have been unable to drive :( which has definitely been frustrating a times. I have had to think of meal preparation for the week instead of on a day to day basis.. So having a meal planner has been really helpful, and how cute is this one ?? I will be using this one next week :) 

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For all my creatives out there, thinking of starting a handmade business, this series is a must!!! By the awesome Maggie Whitley !!! Who has inspired my journey in so many ways , her blog is one of the blogs i check daily !! So grab yourself a Notebook and pen and enjoy the series ..

What is inspiring you this Monday ??

Claire xo

Craft, Create & Inspire Linky Party

Welcome to this weeks Craft, Create & Inspire linky party

Did you all have a nice Valentines Day ??? I had some lovely surprises from my daughter :)   There were some really great DIY, Crafts and more projects last week !!! Thank you for stopping by each week and sharing your inspiration with us.

Featured Projects from last week : 

Anthropologie Inspired Pom Pom Pens ~ The Casual Craftlete 

Gold Painted Geo Planters ~ Homeyohmy

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Roses ~ The Pin Junkie 

Believe You Can Printable ~ Elegance and Enchantment 

Where you Featured ?? Make sure you GRAB YOUR BUTTON !!

 Ready to get this week's Party started ? 

• Feel free to link up just about anything. Recipes, Tutorials,  Inspiration, Crafts, Printable's     I would {love} for you to follow my blog.   
• Please link to your specific post and not your entire blog. 
•    Please add this party to your linky party list.   
•  Take a few extra minutes to visit some of the bloggy loveliness that has been linked up.  
•   Most importantly: HAVE FUN! 
•    Feel free to grab my button from my and spread the linky fun

An InLinkz Link-up

Monday Moments

I thought it would be fun to start of the new week with 4 inspiring things to get us through the week ...


First up .......

Article : Bonnie Forkner , Stay at Home, Work at Home

Bonnie, is one of the most inspiring people, this article is a great read for tips about working from home and keeping your creativity and inspiration flowing, something I have struggled with post-op but really hoping that is going to change soon .. Go grab yourself a cup of Tea and spend 5 minutes reading this article..

 Lindsay Letters 

I love Starbucks Mugs, I have been meaning to buy myself one fora while, but I have to say I think this Bistro Mug would be perfect and a great little reminder each day to be present in each moment .

Paper Cupcakes ~ Damask Love

The lack of creating in my home, is kinda sad.. but i think these cute paper cupcakes might be the thing to get my creative side going.. I think these would be the perfect "sweet" treat for my girls, maybe with a little something just in time for Valentines Day (4 days away !!! yikes ).

And lastly .....

10 Years of Kikki.K

I think this is such an inspirational video about turning your dreams and goals into reality and making things happen !! Not to mention the cutest stationary ..

So there are my 4 things to start the week of inspirationally..

If you have any inspirational links to share with us, please leave a comment below so we can stop by and check them out !!

Happy Monday 

Claire xo

Craft, Create & Inspire Linky Party :: Heart Addition 2 ..

Welcome to this weeks Craft, Create & Inspire linky party

Featuring Heart Inspired Projects

I don't know about you, but I am loving all the Valentine's Inspired projects, I have yet to make mine, hopefully this weekend... There were some really great DIY, Crafts and more projects last week !!! Thank you for stopping by each week and sharing your inspiration with us.

DIY Valentine's Day Cards ~ Homeyohmy
Heart banner ~ Hello Little Home
DIY Valenine's Day Card ~ Passion Shake 
White Chocolate Cake with Strawberry Cheesecake ~ Winnies Blog 


Where you Featured ?? Make sure you GRAB YOUR BUTTON !!

Ready to get this week's Party started ?

• Feel free to link up just about anything. Recipes, Tutorials,  Inspiration, Crafts, Printable's     I would {love} for you to follow my blog.   
• Please link to your specific post and not your entire blog. 
•    Please add this party to your linky party list.   
•  Take a few extra minutes to visit some of the bloggy loveliness that has been linked up.  
•   Most importantly: HAVE FUN! 
•    Feel free to grab my button from my and spread the linky fun

An InLinkz Link-up

Apron Tutorial :: Sally's Angelworks

Thank you so much, Claire, for having me over here at your sweet blog! My name is Sally, and I blog over at Sally's Angelworks! I'm a wife, mama, musician, and a quilter!! And one of my latest obsessions is aprons! I am in love with aprons right now. It feeds my desire to play with fabric in a practical way. We all want something we can use in the end, right?

 So today, I'm bringing you a fun, quick tutorial on how to make a darling little apron with embellished pockets!! Join me! Let's start by grabbing our supplies...

Supplies:

6 fat quarters of your favorite fabric! (I used Stephanie Roth's Modern Roses from Moda!!)

34 1/2" x 21" piece of backing fabric (I used premium muslin, but you could add two more fat quarters to your pile of fabrics and use them for your backing!)

Cutting:

from each of 4 FQs -   one 9" x 21" strip

1 FQ - cut 4 - 4 1/2" x 21" strips (for waist ties)

1 FQ - cut 2 - 6" x 14" rectangles

Cut out two flowers from two different FQs

Let's sew!!

Sew your 9" x 21" together on the long sides to create a big rectangle (the main front of the apron)

Place your back lining (backing) right sides together with the front. Match the edges and pin, pin, pin! Those pins are your best friends!! Sew it together on the sides and the bottom, leaving the top open.

Turn right side out turning the corners and iron the seams.

Sew the short ends of your four 4.5" x 21" strips together forming one big long strip. Press your seams open.

Place the long edges right sides together and sew along the long side making a big tube. Turn the tube right side out. Press the tube flat with the seam in the middle. 

Fold the pressed tube in half longways to find the middle of the strip. Fold the main body of the apron in half and mark the middle of the raw edge of the top. Match the top of the main body middle with the waist tie middle folded over the raw edge of the main body. (see picture above) Pin, pin, pin!!

Sew the bottom of the tie all the way across the top of the apron...

Go all the way around the top of the tie folding in the ends and finishing it all the way around.

Sew top stitching from the top of the apron to the bottom 1/4" to the left of each of the seams on the front of the apron. This keeps the layers together!

Take your pocket pieces and fold them in half right sides together. Sew them together leaving a 2" opening on the bottom of the piece.

Trim the corners and turn your pocket right side out. Press.

Place your cut out flower and sew it onto your pocket. Do this for both pockets! I used free motion quilting to sew my flowers on.

Grab your fun button bag and grab two vintage buttons.

Hand sew your buttons on!

Pin your pockets where you want them. **Hint: put the apron on and see where you want to reach for that cell phone!

Sew a double seam on the sides and bottom of the pockets to secure them.

Voila! You have an apron!!

You can add other embellishments if you'd like. Embroider your name or your word of the year! Hand sew other buttons all over the apron or sew flowers all over the apron. 

Thanks again to Claire for letting me play over here!! If you'd like to join in on more frolicking aprons, quilts, and other wildness, join me over at the blog, Sally's Angelworks

Thanks again to Claire for letting me play over here!! If you'd like to join in on more frolicking aprons, quilts, and other wildness, join me over at the blog, Sally's Angelworks

Blessings!!

10 Ways to Brighten up your Winter :: La Caseta de Paper

Let me start this post with a huge HI to all the readers of Live Love Create, my name is Laura, and I blog at La Caseta de Paper. I'm so happy to be guest posting here today! When Claire asked if I wanted to do a guest post, I quickly knew that I wanted to post about something cheerful and happy. I don't know about you, but for me January and February are the saddest months in the calendar. Christmas and its lights are gone since days ago, and Spring is still pretty far away. That's how I came up with this post: 10 Ways to Brighten Up Your Winter. I hope you'll like it, and you find some inspiration in it to fight the winter blues in it. 

10 WAYS TO BRIGHTEN UP YOUR WINTER

1. Who said that gardening is for Spring? Start an herb garden in your kitchen, you won't need much space for this! Buy little tins, or even better, recycle some you already have at home, and plant herbs that not only you can use for cooking, but that will also purify the air inside. Some ideas include rosemary, lavender, basil or mint.


2. Talking about gardening. What about cheering up those boring terracota pots you have for the balcony and garden, painting them in bright colors? In that way when Spring comes and you get them out again they'll be original, cheerful, and pretty. And meanwhile you'll have lots of fun with it! 


3. Even if usually our clothes during winter have darker colors (grey, brown, black, dark green...) cheer up your wardrobe using bright accessories. Are you wearing black today? Cheer it up using a fluor scarf!


4. If there's a tree near where you live that has lost all it's leaves, or that is all covered in snow now, you have the chance to start a wonderful project: take a photo of it every two weeks, and keep doing it for the next months (with the same tree). At the end, put the photos together: you'll see the evolution of the tree through the seasons, and believe me, that's something amazing!


5. Put up together a cute package for a friend that lives far away and surprise them sending it. You don't need to send anything expensive (bonus points if what you send is handmade), but pay lots of attention in the packaging: wrap it all up with lots of love, decorating it all in a way that they'll feel bad even unwrapping it. You'll have lots of fun putting it all together, and it will totally make your day when they contact you to say that they received it, and that it was totally amazing and unnexpected!


6. What's that skill you always wanted to learn? Play the guitar? Knitt? Learn to use your photo camera in manual mode or the sewing machine? Then winter is a great chance for it! We spend more time home because of the bad weather, and there's a bunch of good tutoraials you can find online for almost anything. And if you can get a friend to learn with you, even better, in that way you'll motivate each other in the process and it will be less likely that you give up on it.


7. Use colorful covers in your pillows and throwns. Brightening up a room with color won't cost you a fortune (you can even make the covers yourself i you know how to sew), and the visual result will for sure bring your mood up. 


8. Create a playlist only with happy cheerful songs... and listen to it every day! Songs have that amazing power to change our mood in a matter of seconds. Take advantage of it!


9. Plan a themed party! If you are a social butterfly and you love to invite people over at your place, Winter is a good excuse for a themed party. There's not much to celebrate during these months (unless it's your birthday), which means you can make up any kind of party you want. You'll have lots of fun planning it, and people for sure will appreciate it.


10. Don't forget about getting natural sunlight. Even if most of the days days are foggy, or rainy, or snowy, whenever you catch a sunny day and you get the chance, get outdoors for a while, that's one of the best antidepressants known. Do the same inside the house: sit near a sunny window to read, and let the curtains open to let as much sunshine in as possible.

Happy Winter!

Craft Create & Inspire Linky party :: Heart Addition

Hey Everyone, Happy February !!

Thank you to everyone who stopped by and linked up last week, so many great projects and inspiration, my recovery is a slow process, slower than I thought ..

So, who's ready to get this weeks party started ??

Here are last weeks features ::

Valentines Bib ~ View From the Fridge 
Valentines day Burlap gift bags ~ The Casual Craftlete 
3D Heart Valentines Card ~ Scrapbook Crafts Cards
DIY Heart Wall Art ~ Homeyohmy

Don't forget to grab your "featured button" from my button page !!

 Ready to get this weeks party started ?? 

• 
  
• Feel free to link up just about anything. Recipes, Tutorials,  Inspiration, Crafts, Printable's     I would {love} for you to follow my blog.   
• Please link to your specific post and not your entire blog. 
•    Please add this party to your linky party list.   
•  Take a few extra minutes to visit some of the bloggy loveliness that has been linked up.  
•   Most importantly: HAVE FUN! 
•    Feel free to grab my button from my and spread the linky fun

Oh, I also Have an Awesome $25 Pick Your Plum Gift Card Giveaway here :)

Craft Create & Inspire Linky Party

Hey everyone, how was your week ??

We celebrated my baby girls 3rd birthday yesterday .. I am ready for a little time out this morning, I am having my hair cut and coloured :) 

So, who is ready to party ? I am so glad you have stopped by to join us !! I love to browse through everyone's projects with a hot cup of tea and a sneaky chocolate . 

Another great party last week..

Featured Projects from last week :

Edible Dessert Cups ~ Something Sweet Winnies Blog 
Vintage Map Pillows ~ Chic California
DIY Girls Headboard ~ Namely Original 
DIY Gold Leaf Jewellery Tray ~ Homeyohmy


Don't forget to grab your "featured button" from my button page 

Ready to get this weeks party started ??

• Feel free to link up just about anything. Recipes, Tutorials,  Inspiration, Crafts, Printables 
•   I would {love} for you to follow my blog.
•  Please link to your specific post and not your entire blog. 
•  Please add this party to your linky party list. 
•  Take a few extra minutes to visit some of the bloggy loveliness that has been linked up. 
•  Most importantly: HAVE FUN!  
• Feel free to grab my button from my and spread the linky fun. 

I am looking for guest bloggers, craft, diy, recipe, tutorial posts , if you are interested let me know :)