Babblings and More

Blue Framed Chalkboard

2012-02-23T09:25:00.001-08:00

I found this picture in the clearance bin at Hobby Lobby for $4! So I bought two of them!

I knew exactly what I wanted to do to it...

Make it into a chalkboard for my boys room.

Here are the results of the first frame...

Here is the before picture:

And here is the after:

It was a fairly easy process. I took apart the frame and flipped the "Dream" picture around and spray painted the back of the picture with Chalkboard Spray Paint from Krylon. I did about 3 coats of paint.

We used blue spray paint, also from Krylon, to paint the frame. I did a couple coats as well. Then

I took sandpaper and distressed the frame a little.

I'm loving the way it looks! And I really like the blue paint. My boys picked out the color and I wasn't sure how it would turn out, but I think it looks fantastic! I was tempted to put it in my kitchen to write our weekly menu on, but the boys were too excited to use it. I still have that other frame though.. :)

Don't forget to vote on Picket Fence! It just takes one click.

We also have a AMAZING Upcycled Wrangler Skirt Giveaway you don't want to miss!!

{Giveaway} Reminder...

2012-02-22T08:38:00.000-08:00

We just wanted to remind everyone about our giveaway going on this week. Click here to enter to win your choice of a Girl's Upcycled Denim Skirt!

The winner will get a skirt of their choice!

Here are a few of the skirts that we have available...

There is the brown and blue paisley skirt.

How about the red bandana skirt?

The white dainty lace skirt.

And the rose and yellow ruffle skirt.

They are all so cute and look adorable with a pair of boots!

Don't forget to vote for us on the Fence. Just one click...

New Year, New Cameras!

2012-02-21T12:51:00.000-08:00

Getting a nice, new camera can feel very overwhelming and pricey. We all have cameras that are affordable and make a HUGE difference. Being a new year there are always great sales on these wonderful SLR cameras. So, I decided to post the different cameras that we have- (they are all different, but we each love our cameras!)

Briana has a Nikon D40

Bridget has a Canon Rebel EOS Rebel T3

Brooke has a Nikon D3100

Don't forget to vote on Picket Fence!

We also have a AMAZING Upcycled Wrangler Skirt Giveaway you don't want to miss!!

Carseat Cover

2012-02-20T09:26:00.000-08:00

I have two daughters in car seats right now. My youngest daughter just out grew her infant car seat. So she needed an upgrade...

We had an extra seat in my husband's truck that we kept in there just in case he needed to take someone somewhere. I decided that we needed to move it to the van.

It looked pretty nasty though. But I do love the car seat. It is easy to take in and out of the car and is just an overall great seat. So I made the decision to recover it. I recovered an infant carrier about three years ago, so I knew the basics of it.

Here is the new and improved seat.

Here is what it looked like before. Pretty used and abused...

I went through my material stash and found some fabric that I ...you guessed it...picked up at a yard sale. You know me and my yard sales, I can't say no to a good deal. The floral fabric is actually fabric from the home decor section. It's pretty sturdy.

I laid out the old cover and cut out new pieces based on the old one. I cut one piece of fabric for the top and then another one for the back, or lining. And then I cut two pieces of batting for each piece because I wanted the cover to be nice and comfy.

This is what it looks like after I cut all the pieces out and laid it out.

I sewed each section together to itself.

Meaning: I sewed the front, 2 pieces of batting and the back all together to form one piece so I could put all the pieces together easier.

Here are all the pieces all sewn and ready to go.

I sewed all the pieces together and sewed "button holes" in the appropriate places for the straps to go through. This was the most challenging part for me because in the middle of sewing a button hole, my thread ran out and I didn't have any more left in the whole house. Just my luck! So I had to put the whole project on hold. But after a few days, I went to the store and picked up some much needed thread and finished those button holes.

So for this next part, I cut a 4 inch strip and sewed it to the whole cover. This is the part that will keep the cover attached to the seat.

In most cases, the covers have elastic to hold it onto the seat snugly. I didn't have any elastic, so I decided to sew pleats instead.

To do this, I put the cover on the seat and pinned various pleats onto the cover until I felt that the cover would be secure enough. Then I sewed the pleats. The pleats work great and look crisp and clean.

I attached a binding to the edge to cover all those stitches and edges.

All finished and I'm loving it!

And now my daughters sit side by side and hold hands and wear their sunglasses. Life is good!

Don't forget to vote for us on Picket Fence! It just takes one click...

Just a reminder- Don't forget to enter our Wrangler Jean Skirt GIVEAWAY! The skirts are SUPER cute!

Friday Feature: Dandelion Square

2012-02-17T10:07:00.000-08:00

One of my friends back in Arizona has an amazing sense of style and is so creative. I was excited to learn that she has a fun blog called Dandelion Square.

She also does the cutest vinyl. This one is one of my favorites...

She does such simple, yet amazing crafts that are inexpensive, but oh so cute!

So head on over to Dandelion Square and see what she is up too...

Don't forget to vote for us on Picket Fence! It just takes one click...

Just a reminder- Don't forget to enter our Wrangler Jean Skirt GIVEAWAY! The skirts are SUPER cute!

Homemade Whey Honey Oat Bread

2012-02-16T17:30:00.000-08:00

Just a reminder- Don't forget to enter our Wrangler Jean Skirt GIVEAWAY! The skirts are SUPER cute!

About 2 weeks ago, I posted a Homemade Yogurt recipe. After you are done making the yogurt- you have a couple cups of WHEY leftover. Here is a bread recipe that I use the Whey in. It is super good and it makes the breads texture amazing!

Whey Honey Oat Bread

Ingredients:

3 1/2 cups Warm Whey (if you do not have that much whey, just add enough water to make 3 1/2 cups)

1 Tbsp Yeast

1/2 cup Honey

1/4 cup Oil

1 tsp Salt

2 cups Oats

6 cups Flour

Directions:

Put warm whey, honey and yeast in a large mixer and let sit until yeast begins to grow or bubble. Add oil and salt, then mix. Add oats and flour- one cup at a time until all mixed in. Let it knead in your mixture for about 5-10 minutes. Dump out on a well greased or floured counter top. Note- the dough will be sticky. Form into 2-3 loaves. (I like making 3 smaller loaves- see in picture). Let rise until double or tripled in size (about 1-1 1/2 hours). Heat oven to 350 and bake for 25 minutes.

Don't forget to vote for us on Picket Fence!

{Giveaway} Upcycled Wrangler Skirt for Girls

2012-02-15T09:54:00.000-08:00

We have another exciting Giveaway to announce!

Between the four of us sisters, we have 13 boys! That's a lot of wranglers and a lot of holes in the knees. If any of you have boys, you will know exactly what I mean... :)

Instead of tossing the old jeans away, we have kept them to make Jean Quilts and Denim Skirts.

We are giving away one of the skirts that we have made on Etsy! There are several to choose from and the winner will get a skirt of their choice!

All sizes and fabrics may not be available, the Giveaway is limited to what we have in stock. We may or may not be able to take special orders. It depends on what sizes we have at the time of the Giveaway.

Here are a few of the skirts that we have available...

There is the brown and blue paisley skirt.

How about the red bandana skirt?

The white dainty lace skirt.

And the rose and yellow ruffle skirt.

They are all so cute and look adorable with a pair of boots!

There are 5 Ways to ENTER...

(Make sure you leave a comment for EVERY entry)

1. Follow Babblings and More Blog! Current followers count.

2. Like Babblings and More on Facebook! Current "likes" count.
3. Go to Babblings and More's etsy page and tell us what item is your favorite!

4. Blog or Facebook about the giveaway. (Either give us the link or tag us on Facebook.)

5. Vote for us on Picket Fence.
You can enter everyday on this one!
Make sure to leave a comment for every day you vote.
Just click on this button...

This giveaway will close on February 28th at Midnight and the winner will be announced February 29th.