cReAtIvE jUiCeS: oven mitts

My first mass production sewing project - making oven mitts for stocking stuffers! I found the pattern for these double handed oven mitts at a small quilt shop in Yoder. I thought they were rather ingenious and creative.

It was a slow start considering I made a practice one for myself first. I don't even like to use it myself because it was SO bad. Then I moved on to the mitts that were actually going to go in someone else's home. Yikes. The next two mitts I redid three times! Every time Corey would ask how they were coming, I was redoing something. BUT, I made some adaptations and got better!

This one ended up being my favorite fabric choice. I really enjoyed picking out fabric that matched each gal's personality!

So I've made 8 so far and really have 2 more that I want to make. One for a friend and then a "good" one for myself. BUT, I'm taking a break. I'm sorta over the mitts. Hopefully I'll come back to them once I finish the baby scrapbook that I am making for a friend.

I rolled them and tied them with rafia for the stockings. Such a fun and personal gift!

pizza with pizzazz

I am loving making homemade pizza these days. Remember my grilled pizza that Shiloh and I made? I need to learn how to do that cool link thing.

Moving along, I got a pizza stone for Christmas this year and was so excited to try it out! I made pizza for us the other night and it was SO yummy. Maybe not a Bob and Luigi's replacement - but it sure is a lot cheaper and a lot healthier! And the little man will almost always eat it, which is very important. I love being able to make it at home and the whole family enjoys it and doesn't feel nasty the next day from all the sodium and grease. We didn't have homemade pizza growing up. Did you? Oh wait, there was that one time that my mom made us "individual pizzas" on hamburger buns. Gag. Soggy bread with tomato sauce and hamburger. No offense, mom! I'm sure it was a busy mom trick of the times. And I only remember it making the menu once!

No more buns. My keys to a good homemade pizza:

- The Crust - Did you know that Fleishmanns makes a yeast specifically for pizza crusts? It is fabulous. In a matter of a few minutes you mix it, knead it, roll it, and bake it. It is super quick because you don't have to plan ahead for rise time. Next time I want to experiment with part wheat flour.

- The Sauce - I use a homemade sauce that I found on the Our Best Bites blog. It is essentially tomato sauce, water, and seasonings. So much tastier than a jar.

- The Secret - I sprinkle my pizza with a bit of Oregano before baking.

- The Pizza Stone!

cReAtIvE jUiCeS - tie

A few months back I made this tie for my little man. I was so proud of myself considering it was only my 4th sewing project; and when it was done I felt that it was worthy of him leaving the house in it :) In fact, Christmas morning seemed like the perfect occasion! I'm wishing I would have gotten some closer pictures.


I bought the pattern from the Make It and Love It blog that I follow. Her instructions were so thorough and I learned several new techniques like how to do a hidden stich and how to turn a long skinny tube right side out after it is sewn.

This project gave me the confidence to keep sewing. Meaning, sewing things that leave the house (unlike the pj pants that I lengthened for my abnormally long husband). I took on a project to use for Christmas gifts and considering I still gave them as gifts, I think that was a success also. Sometimes being a perfectionist is the pits. Stay tuned for pictures of my Christmas project (after I make the last one of course, I wouldn't want to ruin the surprise).