An Outgrown Cello Shirt Becomes a New Upcycled and Resized Cello Shirt

And another t-shirt comes into being. My daughter outgrew her favorite cello shirt and since it wasn't one the other kids would wear I turned it into a new shirt.

This project took a bit of searching at the craft store I must admit, because I wanted to keep the upcycle in theme with the previous shirt that I was reusing.  We found some musical ribbon and buttons to help finish off her shirt much to my daughter's delight.

I cut the front of the shirt out with the words and designs and then cut the rest of her old t-shirt into strips.  The strips I sewed together end to end and then folded in half and sewed the ends to make a circle.  I also sewed a loose straight stitch along the outside where the two folded edges meet so I could gather, and gather those ruffles for the sleeves.

Once that was done I took another shirt from the local craft store and ironed the previous t-shirt front to the front of the new shirt and sewed the ruffles onto the inside edge of the t-shirt sleeve.  After the ruffle was attached I sewed on the ribbon to the top of the sleeves where it would cover the stitching from adding the ruffle and around the bottom edge of the shirt, because we had the ribbon and because my daughter asked me too.  Finally I attached the buttons I could with my sewing machine and then attached the others by hand.

I couldn't be happier with the way it turned out and my daughter couldn't be happier.  I also think these little projects might just be my answer for conquering stress.

An Old Paint Stained Pair of Sweats and a New T-Shirt

My daughter had this pair of sweat pants that she had used to help paint the chicken coop and in the inside of the house and various other projects.  So they were paint stained in places.  She also put on a growing spurt recently and they had become too short for her.  So I found I had two choices.  Toss them out because lets face it her sister would never want to wear them or as she put it save them for me mom, they are my favorite pants.

So I got creative.  I removed the ankle cuffs.  No paint on those and they were in good condition.  Then I cut out the cute glittery words and accents on the pant legs.  How she managed to not get paint on those I will never know but the designs being paint free are the only thing that made this t-shirt upcycle possible.

Once that was done I played around with placement until we both liked it then I ironed on the designs to a t-shirt I bought from the local craft store when they were on sale.  Then I sewed the ankle cuffs to the sleeves and satin stitched around the sweat pants designs to give it a puckered wavy look.

She loved it and I got to be a bit creative today.  Win, Win.

Artistic Pursuits of a Young Artist

So Kyrilene came to me this afternoon when quiet time was over. I had just finished telling all the kids to pick their next thing from their lists for school, and she says: "Mom, I need to paint. That is my job." I loved this and she had a great time watercoloring scribbles all over her paper.

It reminded me of a quote that I love and wanted to share: "We might as well declare that a child should not speak unless he put his words into poetry, as to declare that he should not draw because his drawings are not artistic." Anna Botsford Comstock

What an wonderful reminder that a toddlers self expression with paints is just as important to her as my own artistic pursuits and attempts are to me.  I need to give my children art supplies more and chores less.

A Toddler's Art Appreciation

Many years ago my Grandma Marilyn Cowley painted two canvases with children's toys on them.  Toys I remember playing with when we would go to visit her.  When she passed away several years ago, these paintings were something that I inherited from her.  Up until now I have been storing them and waiting to get them framed before hanging them up.

On a whim after our recent move I hung them up in our youngest daughter Kyrilene's room.  And she reacted in an amazing way.  Immediately she was telling me thank you for her pictures and describing them to me.  She is only two years old.  This has gone on every night for a month now, until yesterday.

Our A/C died five days ago and we have had all the windows open trying to keep the house bearable until the repair can come out to fix it.  Well yesterday we had a good breeze going and it managed to knock one of the paintings off the wall.  I decided to leave it down until the wind stopped.  Poor Kyrilene was beside herself lamenting the loss of her picture and wanting to know where it went.  Logically explaining wind and why we didn't put it back up went right over our little girl's two year old head.  Eventually I distracted her with a treat and this morning the first thing we requested was her picture.

Once I put it back up on the wall she was beaming her smile at me with tears in her precious little eyes and saying "thank you mommy, my picture" or over and over again with little toddler arms wrapped around my legs hugging me with joy.

I never expected my children to become so attached to paintings I appreciated because of my childhood memories.  Especially not the child who never even got to meet her Great Grandma in person.  I would like to think that they must have had a special relationship in Heaven before our little girl joined our family.

It also reminded me of the crafting heritage I learned from her.  Grandma was an artist in every sense of the word.  She was always creating something whether it was a new painting with her artist league or the Christmas ornaments she made each year for all of her extended family.  I always looked forward to our big family Christmas dinner and seeing what beautiful creation she had made that year.  She was an amazing example of someone who was not afraid to try making something new.  It taught me that you don't have to be afraid to try something you have never done before.  This lesson has helped me teach myself many things:  cooking, sewing, drawing, painting, scrapbooking, writing, canning, blogging, gardening and even homeschooling my children.

After 10 months of Withdrawl I Finally Get to Sew!

Well after 10 months or more I am finally settled enough I spent the day unpacking my sewing and doing a little bit of mending. I had forgotten just how much I enjoy to sew. Just hemming cut off jeans and sewing buttons back on was fun and I feel like I accomplished something. I will never recommend that anyone leave their hobbies entirely in storage while they move and sell a house. They are definitely my stress relief.

Typerwriter Art What a Talent!

While puttering around on Facebook this morning, checking in on family and friends posts and dropping notes to say hello I came across this news article that really inspired me.

Here is a man who faces challenges and struggles every single day of his life.  Yet he is inspiring people and using his talents and determination to create beautiful works of art to share with those around him.  I would never before have considered using a type writer of all things in the way this man can, but I am inspired by it.  So take a moment to watch this news story and let yourself be inspired too.  Then look at yourself and your life and answer the question he poses:

“What Can You Do?”

Just as Paul knows his gift for typewriter art is a talent from the Lord, each one of us has talents.  And it is our job to figure out what those talents are.  Once we know what we can do, developing and sharing those talents with others strengthens us and allows us to grow.

Thoughts While Mending

Okay I know and you know that my recovery process is not what this crafting blog is supposed to be about, but bear with me here.  As the dust from the recent trip to the hospital has begun to settle and the pain meds have started to kick in enough I can bear to sit up for longer then it takes to crawl to the privy,  I have had a lot of time on my hands to think.  And today something someone said to me as a reprimand really stood out and made me think.

“Tiffany you shouldn’t over do it like yesterday.  It will just make healing harder and take longer.”

Yesterday, I had a seven month old little girl, who was congested and running a slight fever, fussing, crying and unable to sleep unless she was being held in a semi-upright position.  She weighs enough that after a major abdominal surgery last Thursday I am not supposed to pick her up or hold her for the next six weeks at least and probably closer to twelve if I strictly adhere to the doctor’s wishes.  But there is something about a mother’s love and instinct that is tenacious and doesn’t care what the Doctor says if it goes against what you think your child needs.  Even when it goes against everything a doctor tells you that you should NOT do in order to help yourself recover and heal.  After what felt like forever but was probably more like fifteen minutes with her Gramzie I couldn’t take it anymore and had to hold my little girl even though I am not supposed to right now. Those tears and cries broke my heart, so we piled on the pillows and hoped it would protect me while I attempted to soothe my little girl.  Eventually though my body could take no more and I had to once again give my precious daughter to her Nana who took her from me and promptly got her to sleep.  The moment her Nana swayed back into the room rocking Kyrilene in her arms the innocence in that little sleeping face began to melt all the pieces of my heart right back together again.

Exhausted and in pain I rested now that I knew my daughter was sleeping comfortably, and when my four other children arrived home from school I was able to sit up and hug each of them and ask about their day.  They were all chipper and after a quick snack dove into their homework.  Not long after that I noticed my six year kept sneaking in to “check on me” and give me another hug.  Sneaking I think because his Gramzie was trying to entertain and distract the kids for the afternoon while I rested.  By about the third hug I knew he needed time with his mom.  At which point I also knew I had a tough choice to make.  Over do it and pay for it with extra pain that night and probably the whole next day or send him back downstairs with his unspoken needs unmet.  We spent the afternoon playing UNO and Monopoly and my six year tromped on me, but I blame that on the meds.

Eventually their daddy got home and he called them all downstairs for dinner and I felt an overwhelming sensation of being caged.  Here I was hurting and facing another night eating what little I could in bed in my room alone.  The struggles with my health have become chronic over the last sixteen months since we found out we were expecting our youngest daughter and I was definitely feeling sick to death of hurting and eating dinner without my family at that moment.  So I said a silent prayer asking for the Lord to sustain me through the meal and went down to dinner, to the shock and delight of my entire family.  It only lasted 15 minutes while we ate and I had to have help getting back up to bed but for that moment in time we had our family back.  Since then I have been flat on my back aching and wishing the pain meds would just take the edge off the swelling and pain so when I was asked this morning how I was doing I  was honest and said I over did it yesterday and I am hurting today because of it.

So back to the reprimand.  Was it given in love?  Yes, she just wants me to take it easy and allow myself to heal.  But it also required a carefully thought out response as well.  Over this journey with chronic health concerns and life threatening moments it is no longer about the hope of complete recovery or all the things I will be when I am back to quote unquote “normal“.  For many who struggle with chronic issues they are the new normal and you have to learn to deal with, cope and hope even though they are with you every single day.  I realized yesterday with my daughter and my son that I have a choice.  Put off the needs of those around me because I am suffering or focus on what I could do to emotionally to lift them up and let the cards fall where they may.

Holding my daughter was about me telling her that I was here and I loved her especially when she was hurting.  Because even though my broken and bruised body wouldn’t let me do it for long, it would let me do it for a little while.  I love my children so much I am willing to personally suffer just a little more to show my love for each of them and isn’t that exactly what the Savior has done for each one of us?  Our Heavenly Father loves each of us so much that he gave us a Savior who suffered all things so He could bear up our burdens.  And if He loves us enough to do that then how much does He ache to hold and comfort us when we are sick and hurting ourselves; the same way I ached to comfortable my little girl.  Just as I could not turn away the need for love and comfort that my son so meekly asked for by checking on me, I also can not think of a single time in my life when I have gone to Lord needing comfort like my son came to me and have not been overwhelmed by feelings of His love for me.

Not for a single moment do I regret my choices and the extra pain I am in today because they are reminders of the love my Savior Jesus Christ has for me and the love I have for my family.  Did I over do it yesterday?  Strictly from a physical standpoint, yes I did.  Am I paying the price for it now?  Yes I am.  But from spiritual standpoint and loving the journey despite the heartaches yesterday was the best day ever and I would totally do it again in a heart beat.  I simply hope that others who suffer with challenges and chronic issues whether they are spiritual or physical in nature can learn one thing:

It doesn’t have to be fixed and we don’t have to be back to “normal” to continue to love and show love for those around us.

So I hope and pray that each of you will not put off the help and love you can give to others just because you are suffering too.  Each and everyone of us is suffering and struggling with something.  It’s how we choose to handle it that builds our character and makes us who we are.