DIY Hat Pumpkin

Happy Fall everyone! First I want to share this perfect leaf I found laying on the ground at Walmart. I was not sure if it was real or fake. I took it home and used it. It will work perfect on my Pumpkin I made.
So I thought.

   
Every year I come up with some way to recycle something from the house to create a pumpkin for Fall.

As I was searching around the house, I came across a bag of things I was going to take to the local Goodwill store. The bag was over stuffed and an old hat kept falling out. I kept stuffing it back in the bag as I searched for something of a sweater material to create a pumpkin with. There were no options in there. As I turned around to leave the room, the hat fell out again. That's when it hit me. "It is the perfect color. Could I? Will It work? I will make it work".

So, I filled the hat with stuffing.

With a string of yarn, I sewed and gathered the hat closed. Then I ran out into the yard and grabbed a piece of stick for the stem. and.....added the leaf.

I had some raffia and it was perfect for the bow. Remember the leaf? It turned out that it WAS real because after a day, it was not this pretty. This is a very easy project.

Here are a few of the other DIY pumpkins I've made through out the years.
DIY Lace Pumpkin
DIY Book Pumpkin
DIY Toilet Paper Pumpkin

Anything you see that can be gathered at the top, you can make a pumpkin. Now go round up something.

Ive Shared this at:
monday-handmade-linkup-party at judyscardmakingandpapercrafts
tuesday-pin-spiration-link-party at thestitchinmommy.
amaze-me-monday at dwellings-theheartofyourhome
something-fabulous-wednesday at roubinek
thursday-favorite-things-blog-hop at katherinescorner

Good Ol Tent Revival

With all that's going on in the world today and even right here is our own towns, it is great to see a revival. There doesn't seem to be as many revivals today as there was in the 80's. So when I hear of one going on, I get all tickled inside.

Well I get to share with you the tent revival my own church held this week. I have been following the progress so I could share with all of my readers, careful not to let it take my mind of the true meaning of worship. It was way more than just something to blog about.

I got up early one morning to catch the men of the church lifting the tent to the sky. They worked so hard and proud. The young and old were strong just the same. They stretched, and pounded. They pulled and leaned. They worked for hours until it was just right.

As I rode by each day on my way home from work, I could still see men putting in the chairs, putting together the stage and having fun fellowship with each other. This was the beginning of the revival. Little did they know the impact they may have had on the passer-bys.

Finally, its time. The sun has gone down and the air is cool. You can see the lighted tent for what looked like 1/2 a mile away. The neighborhoods around will hear song and worship as they sit in their homes. Maybe they will decide to step out and come down. Maybe they will open the windows and turn off the TV. Either way, we will be heard.

 While the crowd packed in, you could smell the rain in the air and hear thunder in the distance. That didn't bother anyone. The music and worship would make the hairs stand on your head as they echoed across the field. Tears of hope filled my eyes in hopes that a lost soul would be saved.

Some had their hands folded or in their pockets, others clapped, while some had their hands in the air, all with spirit in their hearts. There were also knees buried in the dirt as they knelled in prayer.

I was not able to attend each night but It was great to be there when I could.
It was refreshing and reviving.  New friends were made and hearts were changed. Everyone seemed to have a great time and left with revival in there soul.

God is Good.

SlimCado Cucumber Sandwich

I discovered a new Florida grown fruit (or is this a vegetable?) called a "SlimCado". Its basically an oversized avacado with half the calories and fat of a regular avocado.

They are large and pear shaped with a smooth or bumpy skin and have 35% less calories than a regular avocado.

I also discovered that it was delicious paired with a cucumber for a sandwich.

Two slices of bread, mayonnaise, sliced cucumber and slimcado, and salt and pepper. Thats it. Just like you would make a tomato sandwich. It was delicious!

The cucumber made the taste and the slimcado made a nice buttery taste that added the wow.  Ok well, maybe it was the cucumber that really made the "wow", but I'm sure the slimcado did something.

Slimcados do not turn black like an avocado and have a much larger seed in the middle. Raw they are very firm and will have a slight give in the firmness when ripe. The skin will peel away very easy.

Reading reviews on this diet food, I noticed most people do not prefer it over the regular avocado. Of course, like any other "Lite" food, It has half the flavor. I do not eat avocado alone that often so I could not really tell a big difference in the taste. I did notice that it did not turn black over night either and that made me happy.


I've shared this at:
full-plate-thursday at mizhelenscountrycottage
weekend-bloggy-reading-link-up at serenitynowblog
mix-it-up-monday at flourmewithlove
inspire-me-monday at create-with-joy
amaze-me-monday at dwellings-theheartofyourhome
 

Constipated Fish

I know this is a total random post but I thought I'd share some advice to all you Beta Fish owners.

For starters: Do not flush your fish yet until you have read this post. He may not be as dead as you think.

This is Duncan ↓ and he is constipated.

Do not feel sorry for him. He is absolutely spoiled, and we love him. He loves us too. He knows when we enter the room each morning. If we walk by him without speaking to him or feeding him, he will throw his glass rocks to get our attention. Then of course we have to show him some attention.

He is two and a half years old. In the past he has suffered tail rot in which you can read about it here.
But twice he has gotten constipated. Both times was when we went on vacation for a week and left him with a beta feeder tablet. I think he eats to much that way or either stresses out that we are gone. Id say its the second reason mentioned.

What is it? Its also known as "Swim Bladder" and its common for Beta Fish. 

Symptoms: Duncan was unable to swim right. He swam sideways often floating on top or sinking to the bottom. I was preparing his funeral because this can be deadly if left untreated. His digestive track was enlarged and pressing on his swim bladder. I bet he was in pain too.

Possible causes: This is caused by flake food or freeze dried food which expand in a fishes stomach and a fishes eyes are bigger than their stomach. It can also be caused by the water being to cold making their metabolism slow down. Their water needs to stay around 76-80 degrees.

How to fix it: Start with clean warm water (close to 80 degrees, but add it slow so it doesn't shock him). Take all the rocks off the bottom so you can monitor his poop. Do not feed for 3 Days!!! He will be fine. Betas can go as long as a week without eating even though I wouldn't suggest it. That would be just mean.
After 3 days, take a frozen pea (not a fresh pea, it could have pesticides on it) and thaw it out. Pinch off the pea skin and chop up ONLY a quarter of the pea in tiny pieces and feed the fish. Its good for him and he will love it. This will make him poop and no longer be constipated.


How do I know this? Well, I am no pet expert but I used Google and looked up his symptoms and how to fix his problem. and it worked.

Duncan is fine today, back to his old self and still throwing his rocks and begging for food. I only feed him pellet food and I may just have take him with me on my next vacation.

His fish cave shown in the photo was purchased at WhiteCitrus and she has alot of other cool ceramics. Duncan stays in his all the time. When I clean his bowl, I have to make sure I place it back in the same position or we will have another problem. He will pout. Hes a hand full I tell ya.

Ive shared this at:
thursday-favorite-things-blog-hop at katherinescorner
weekend-bloggy-reading-link-up at serenitynowblog

Zig Zag Cowl

Finally got around to making "Me" something. I made a zig zag cowl neck warmer and im excited about it. I wonder if it will get cool enough around here in North Carolina to ever get to wear it?

I have been practicing making some zig zag, rippled or chevron crochet (psst, check out the chevron mug cozy in my shop ← (I actually created the pattern for this cozy myself).
In the process of learning, I created this cowl neck warmer. I love the colors.  I think I will make a matching hat and then Ill be set.

You can find the free pattern for this cowl here.

If you want the pattern for the cozy, leave your email in comments or something and Ill be glad to send it to you.

It took me a couple hours on and off for about three days to make it. It did not turn out as pretty as the one that inspired me. I have always struggled making zig zag stitches as well as granny squares, but that's another post, another day.

This pattern was pretty easy, however, as I was on the last row, I realized I was doing all wrong. Silly me was using half double crochet instead of double crochet. No idea what I was thinking. It caused the cowl to be little wonky but it will work for me.

 

I plan to make a couple more of these lovely scarves "the right way". I think I may have the hang of it now but didn't realize all the different ways you can create a stitch like this.  geez!

I think it goes with one of my new sweaters....ok, in an odd way. What do you think?


Ive shared this at:
city-of-links at cityofcreativedreams
thursday-favorite-things-blog-hop at katherinescorner
dare-to-share at pamspartyandpracticaltips
snickerdoodle-sunday 2crochethooks
inspire-me-monday at create-with-joy.com
Amaze-Me-Monday at dwellings-theheartofyourhome

Chocolate Dipped Bacon Brittle

Had ya at bacon didn't I?

While on the computer the other day I came across an awsome looking recipe for candied bacon dipped in chocolate. Now, anyone that knows me, knows my love for bacon. I literally buy 2 packs a week. 

Anyway, I was fixing to head to bed and call it a day when this idea hit me. Why not make brittle with bacon instead of nuts? I thought I had come up with something new and could not wait to experiment.

The next day I headed back to the computer and to my disappointment, it seemed that I along with a hundred other people have already come up with this idea. They must have read my mind during the night.

 

Get a glass bowl ready, this is made in the microwave. I tried it once in a plastic bowl and it ruined both the bowl and sugar. It was just nasty. So Make sure you have a GLASS bowl.

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup light syrup (karo)

1/4 Tbs salt

1 Tbs butter

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 tsp baking soda

Bacon crumbles

Combine sugar, syrup and salt.

Microwave 4 minutes (be careful it will be hot and bubbly).

Stir in butter, bacon and vanilla and cook another 4 minutes.

Stir in baking soda an pour quickly onto a greased cookie sheet. Cool approx 20 minutes then break into pieces.

Once completely cool, dip each piece into melted chocolate and lay on wax paper to dry. Sprinkle with sea salt. Enjoy.

 

Oh. So you like the mug cozy I made too? I just got an order in of these adorable birch buttons from Wearhouse Industries. They were special made for me. Thanks Randy and Laura! I love how they look on these cute crocheted warmers. I sale these mug cozies in my Etsy shop if you want one. I can do all colors.


Ive shared this at:
link-and-share-wednesday at oombawkadesigncrochet
full-plate-thursday at mizhelenscountrycottage
thursday-favorite-things-blog-hop at katherinescorner
submarine-sunday at usscrafty 
inspire-me-monday at create-with-joy
monday-handmade-linkup at judyscardmakingandpapercrafts
something-fabulous-wednesday at roubinek  

Drawstring Beanie

I recently took a couple weeks off from crocheting. I have been suffering from Tennis Elbow something terrible and thought that crocheting could have been causing the pain. I'm not going to rule it out just yet, but It didn't help relieve it by not crocheting, so here I am, right back at it.

I made a couple things for a friends baby and then I made a couple of these cute little drawstring beanies to put in my shop. I fiddled and faddled until I come up with what I believe is now my favorite creation.

The neat thing about this cute little beanie is that it doubles as a neck warmer by just undoing the drawstring. I actually think I will make one for myself. But first I am going to share my pattern for all of you that like to crochet.


You are welcome to use my pattern and sell what you make with it. I just ask if you will link it back to me when you do so I can get credit for the pattern. But please do not sell my pattern. :(

Draw String Beanie:
H Hook (my favorite)
ch= chain
sc= single crochet
dc= double crochet

Ribbed Band
chain 10
Row 1: sc first chain from hook, across. (9) ch 1 turn.
Row 2: sc back loop only across. (9) ch 1 turn.
Repeat: sc back loop only across, ch 1 turn until you have enough to fit around the head.
Form a ring: sc two ends together. -Now your band is made.
no need to ch1. just begin crocheting the beanie in rounds ( you may need a stich marker). I used the tail of the beginning chain to mark my beginning of each row.

Beanie
Row 1: sc around once
Remaining Rows: sc, dc next stitch, skip next stitch, sc, dc next (repeat round and round to desired depth hat needs to be. finish off.

Draw String
ch 100, cut yarn and tie knot in each end.
weave in and out of last row of stitches.
There you have it!

You can alter the size by using less rows and stitches or different size crochet hooks.
You know what else is fun about this pattern? You can use any of your favorite stitches to create any texture you like best.

If you can't crochet and want one of these cute bundle of stitches, just visit my shop to see if any are available. If not, I'll be glad to make one up for ya.


Ive shared this at:
inspire-me-monday at create-with-joy 
amaze-me-monday at dwellings-theheartofyourhome
tuesday-pin-spiration-link-party at oombawkadesigncrochet 
tuesday-pin-spiration at thestitchinmommy
something-fabulous-wednesday at roubinek
link-and-share-wednesday at oombawkadesigncrochet
worthwhile-wednesdays at craftyallieblog
off-the-hook-monday at littlemonkeyscrochet
thursday-favorite-things-blog-hop at katherinescorner