Taking a break from a project to show you a site I'm in love with!

http://www.playathomemomllc.com/

This site has so many activities and fun DIY stuff to do with your kids...I just get lost in it all. My daughter learns so quickly that I've decided I need to keep her mind going and try some new activities. We may try something new every week!

Dollhouse Part One: Inspiration

Last year, my mom and I went to a warehouse where a few companies stored and displayed interior design things. They were emptying out last years samples (of carpet, window treatments, tile, wood flooring, linoleum, and upholstery) to make room for new stuff. We grabbed three boxes of stuff thinking to ourselves that we could use these tiny samples in a tiny dollhouse.

 
We have/had this old blue case and it was in the baby's room with some toys on it, but I really wanted to do something else with it. It looked pretty rough: the scratches on the side are from adjusting the shelves to be more even for the dollhouse and realizing that whoever painted it before didn't paint under the shelf holders. 

I went online and looked at some various projects to do with old bookcases. There are a lot of pictures of people turning dressers and bookshelves into dollhouses. What's really interesting to me is you can buy a bookshelf/dollhouse from the store for a hundred bucks...or you can just paint one and slap on some wallpaper and do it for pennies.Granted the final project will cost me about 80 dollars (when you count all the wood for furniture and fixtures and the dolls themselves) it's still a lot cheaper than buying a plastic one in the store.

And so, we begin the journey.

I'm still working on the crochet project that I can't share as it's a gift I don't want her to see until...well it's done. So I'm going to post some pictures of my crafting work space.


This is a closet in our dining room (or the room that I have claimed as my space), I think it's supposed to be a coat closet...but whatever. On the top shelf I have a tub of carpet samples and two tubs of fabric. 

Below, on hangers, I have clothes that need repairs (ripped seams, missing buttons, pant hems), my sewing machine, box of fabric samples, tub of yarns, woodcarving tub, and a tub of misc. things. 

Here are two cabinets that I bought at Loews (I think 80 dollars each) and this is where I store a lot of stuff. 

Each shelf has a different "area" of crafting. Painting, sewing, scrapbooking, tools, drawing, and sculpting all have shelves (some more than one). There's also a shelf where I have put "things" for "random" projects that don't necessarily fit in any other category (like a box of sea shells and empty baby food containers).

Here's my new desk, this is mostly for school work rather than crafting, but this is a good space when a project over flows from my crafting table or if I'm working with a friend or my mom. 

 Here is my crafting table, it's just an old card table...I don't care what happens to it so there's paint on it and holes in it and it just makes "cleanup" easier if I don't have to worry about wiping everything down. There's the current stage of the dollhouse (although I will add better pictures of that in a bit).

Here is a picture of a bookshelf that I have reserved for crafting books. I don't buy too many books because I can find a lot of instruction for things and project ideas online.

So that's the space I have to work with. I have a fair amount of supplies for a variety of upcoming ideas I wan to try out. The whole dining room is sectioned off by a baby gate so I can leave some things out if they are drying or whatnot.

As you might have noticed there is a bit of a gap between posts. Well, that's because crafting takes time! I've been working (albeit slowly) on the dollhouse and have hit a snag on what to do about putting up the wallpaper (the best adhesive method) so I'm searching around for an answer. I don't want it to wrinkle, I don't want the edges to unglue (that just spells destruction opportunity for a toddler) and I don't really want to buy anything "special" that will just sit in my crafting stuff for years after this.

I've also been contemplating on whether I should post "progress" posts or just wait until a whole project is complete and then upload everything at once. Thoughts? I do have a good "before" picture of the bookcase and some pictures of materials, but that seems like it would be a bit of a boring post if I just had those up for a week...ya know? But then again, I don't want zero activity on here for too long. Oh the woes of a "blogger."

Side note: I've been painting the shelves white (so the ceilings are white and not blue) and my cat...delightfully...walked across one as it was drying. Someone buy me a house with a crafting room and craft a "No Pets/Kids Allowed" sign. That would be nice.

Introduction!

So I've attempted to blog in the past and I had difficulty sticking with it because I didn't really have anything to talk about (at least not anything I thought people would care to read). But now that I'm an avid crafter and my addiction is only getting worse, I feel it's my duty to share my projects with the world. 

Here are some of the types of projects you may see:

I am a beginning knitter and by beginning I know how to knit/purl and make square or rectangle things. So unless I get a bitten by a knitting bug you probably won't see much...maybe a baby blanket or a scarf here and there.
I am an advanced crocheter (currently working on a wedding gift that I can't share until after she opens it) and I make baby clothes, toys, accessories, and I'm always looking for cool things to crochet (my to do list for crocheting is quite long). This is probably where I do the most. ANYTHING can be made into crochet!
I am a self taught beginning painter and I have a lot to learn. I prefer acrylics but I've dabbled in water color. 
I am a not quite advanced but getting there drawer. I like charcoal a lot, I've used colored pastels, pencil, and pen. I have an affinity for drawing dragons.
I am a newbie wood carver and by newbie I mean I've carved ONE thing and it took forever, but that's because it was the first thing right? I'm planning on doing some "carving" for a dollhouse.
I like DIY projects (am about to start on a bookshelf to dollhouse project for my daughter!) and turning old furniture and "trash" into useful and pretty things.
I am an okay sewer. I've made quite a few Halloween costumes (a jester, werewolf, Lizzie Borden, fairy, Morticia, and Wednesday Addams) and stuffed animals (and I rarely use a pattern). I have plans to make some dress up clothes for my toddler soon.
My husband is starting to become interested in steam punk, so I may be venturing into the weird jewelry/accessories/outfits realm. 

I am a mom, so I feel like most of the stuff you will see will be kid friendly. We have a pretty tight budget so I'm always looking for things I can make that are fun, cool, safe and inexpensive. After making the dollhouse I plan on making a toy kitchen (I'm sure most avid crafters have seen photos of the cool entertainment center turned toy kitchen?) and crocheting food and so on.

I also enjoy making "weird" things like crocheting bacteria or sewing a stuffed leg of ham (this was a request). 

I am going to be an elementary school teacher, so you may see some projects that are teacher friendly. Things for organization, unique activities, maybe some manipulatives...who knows!


One of my complaints with most DIY sites or crafting sites is the serious lack of explanation... sometimes they post a few pictures and a few sentences but seem to skip very important steps. I'm going to err on the side of too much...lots of pictures, lots of discussion, lots of questions...on the whole process. UNLESS I used a pattern that is copyrighted, I will try to post enough so that you can replicate! I want other crafters to anything I can do and hopefully better, because they will learn from my mistakes.

I welcome any questions! I welcome any advice!